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“Likewise.” Ming Er’s expression was one of otherworldly elegance, showing no sign of displeasure.

They stared at each other in silence for a long time, their expressions shifting, seemingly filled with anger, hatred, and a helpless resignation.

Perhaps, there was also a hint of secret joy that no one would admit or even notice.

"Sigh!" After a long while, Lan Qi could only let out a heavy sigh. "How could it have turned out like this?"

"How would I know?" Ming Er stopped laughing and shook his head. "I didn't want to either, but unfortunately..." He looked at Lan Qi and said, "It seems that we have no control over our own lives. Isn't this fate?"

"Sigh, whatever." Lan Qi sat down resignedly.

Ming Er laughed again and said, "You know what? I overheard some things just now, and it made me feel a little uncomfortable."

"So you have to make me uncomfortable too." Lan Qi glanced at him with her green eyes and scoffed.

Ming Er smiled and tacitly agreed, then added, "I feel quite comfortable now." After saying that, he swayed, and a wave of dizziness hit him, causing him to quickly grab the table for support. Only then did Lan Qi notice the large patches of bright red on his back.

"You damned fake immortal!" Lan Qi shouted angrily, but the panic in her heart confirmed her previous understanding, leaving her no room for denial or regret.

"Hehe..." Ming Er chuckled. Cold sweat finally broke out on the face of the immortal, diminishing his celestial appearance somewhat, but his expression remained leisurely, even somewhat pleased.

Outside the door, Feng Yi, who had brought medicine for Lan Qi, quietly left.

After Lan Qi's cold aura dissipated, she stayed in the Beique Palace for a few more days because of Ming Er's injury.

By then, it was already the end of the year.

Therefore, the heroes of the imperial dynasty were unable to leave Dongming before the Lunar New Year.

Inside the Northern Palace, Ming Er and Feng Yi had a conversation.

That day, when Ming Er woke up, he saw Feng Yi applying medicine to him. After the medicine was applied, Feng Yi did not leave, but stood by the window for a long time, while outside the window the sky was clear and the clouds drifted by.

Ming Er leaned against the headboard, looked at him for a long time, and then said somewhat casually, "For so many years, she has been waiting for you, waiting for an answer. And you... seem to have no intention of saying anything, which makes me a little strange."

Feng Yi, standing by the window, shuddered but remained silent.

Ming Er was not in a hurry and waited quietly.

Finally, Feng Yi spoke: "Yesterday, you gained some understanding through self-harm, so you should understand now."

Upon hearing this, Ming Er's heart skipped a beat, and he looked at Feng Yi with a strange expression.

"Besides..." Feng Yi gazed wistfully at the floating clouds in the sky, "The first thing she said to me after she woke up that day was, 'We will never meet again in this life, let us forget each other in the world.' With those words already spoken, why bother saying them again? She may know why I left, or she may never know. But whatever the case, let it be this way, I will never need to say it again."

Ming Er stared at him for a long time, and finally his expression of surprise faded, replaced by a smile that was hard to tell whether it was admiration or mockery.

"Do you think this is the best thing you can do?"

Feng Yi remained silent.

“You admire Ning Lang, don’t you?” Ming Er’s eyes were fixed on the figure by the window. “But if you hadn’t left back then, perhaps she would have been another Ning Lang. Today’s ‘Bi Yao’ can be said to have been created by you.”

The figure by the window trembled again.

Ming Er looked at her, her empty eyes filled with a deep emptiness. "If she had a choice, would she choose to spend her life with you as a beggar, or to be alone and glorious like she is now? I think she would have chosen to be with you back then. Even if she froze to death, starved to death, or was beaten to death, she would have chosen to be with you. She would have been content."

The indifference on Feng Yi's face as she faced the window finally cracked, and a deep, unforgettable pain slowly surfaced.

After a long silence, Feng Yi finally spoke: "Second Young Master, do you understand now?"

"Um?"

"Second Young Master must have also investigated my and Yinyin's background, right?" Feng Yi slowly turned to face him. "Since you know about that past, you should know the beginning of all the tragedy."

Ming Er defaults.

Feng Yi turned back to look out the window, not letting Ming Er glimpse any of his emotions.

"Yinyin and I... have been inseparable since birth. We have no one else, our bond is too deep, and there are so few who can disregard sins and live a life without regret or resentment. So... Yinyin and I... this is enough. At least, she knows I've lived a peaceful life in Wushan, and I know she wields great influence in the martial world. Perhaps this isn't the best. But..." He paused, then turned to look at Ming Er, a faint glimmer of light flashing in his dark eyes that concealed endless pain, "Didn't you appear? And there's Ning Lang too. As time goes by, she will eventually forget the past. After all, she still has decades of unknown life ahead of her."

Ming Er was surprised and looked at him, unable to speak for a moment.

Feng Yi walked back to the bedside and looked at him very closely, as if trying to see through him and into his heart. After a long while, he said, "You and she, together and yet fighting and jealous, are rare in this world. If one day you can get rid of this fighting and jealousy, perhaps you will become a divine couple like 'White Wind and Black Breath'."

Upon hearing this, Ming Er chuckled, a laugh tinged with a hint of mockery, but it didn't seem directed at Feng Yi; rather, it seemed to be directed at himself. He raised his eyes to meet Feng Yi's dark, unfathomable gaze. In that instant, the mist in his own eyes cleared, revealing his ruthless gaze to Feng Yi.

“I am the same kind of person as her, so I know that people like us can never have all the simple things that ordinary people can have in our lives. We... are bound together, but at best, we can only accompany and fight together in our lives.”

Upon hearing this, Feng Yi shook his head, took something from his robes and placed it in Ming Er's hand. To Ming Er's surprise, he closed his hand and said, "You and she still have decades to go, many possibilities." He turned and walked away. As the door opened, a faint, ethereal sentence drifted out, "As for her and me... after the dynasty's fall, we will never see each other again. In this life, perhaps we will forget each other, or perhaps we will remember each other."

Inside the room, Ming Er stared blankly at the object in his hand. Chapter Eighty-Five: Epilogue

Updated: [2008-11-28 14:08:16.0]

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On January 6th, the heroes of the Imperial Dynasty finally boarded the ship to return home.

On a clear and cool morning, two large ships slowly departed from the coast of Dongming, carrying the ashes of hundreds of heroes and thousands of souls, braving the wind and waves to sail into the vast ocean. Some remained in Dongming, perhaps never to set foot on the ancestral lands of the dynasty again.

Standing at the bow of the ship, looking back at the ever-receding Dongming Island, Yuwen Luo sighed, "More than three thousand of us heroes came for the 'Lan Yin Bi Yue,' but in the end, only a few hundred of us have returned in despair."

Ning Lang remained silent for a long time after hearing this before saying, "If we hadn't sent the 'Biyue Flower' back to Shouling Palace with Senior, perhaps we wouldn't have had to come to Dongming."

Yuwen Luo shook his head. "Since Dongming has such a desire, he will do everything he can to get 'Lan Yin Bi Yue'."

“That’s true.” Ning Lang thought for a moment and nodded. “However, although Senior is highly skilled in martial arts and is in his prime, why did he send the ‘Moonflower’ back to the Shouling Palace?”

Yuwen Luo chuckled and shook his head upon hearing this, saying, "Can't you even think of such a simple reason? The reason he did this is, of course, to make things difficult for Senior Kong." He had already figured it out at the Pear Blossom Tomb that day. After a moment of silence, he continued, "The reason why Seventh Young Master took the 'Orchid Moon' that day was perhaps not just for the position of Martial Arts Leader. Because in the current martial arts world, she is already someone whom everyone admires, and there are very few who can compare to her in terms of power and status. So, perhaps she really is just as she herself said, simply very fond of and wanting the 'Orchid Moon' flower."

"Hmm?" Ning Lang looked at him in confusion.

Yuwen Luo squinted as he watched Dongming Island turn into a tiny black dot. In the vast ocean, everything seemed so insignificant.

"'Lan Yin Bi Yue' not only represents the supreme position in the martial arts world, it also represents something else, do you know?"

Ning Lang shook his head.

Yuwen Luo hadn't expected him to answer, and said, "'Lan Yin Bi Yue' is known throughout the world because of 'Bai Feng Hei Xi,' a peerless flower that Feng Lanxi cultivated for Feng Xiyun over eight years. The two met in the martial world in their youth, and traveled together for ten years; in their prime, they formed a marriage alliance, fighting side-by-side across the land; but when they had half the country under their control, they both relinquished their positions and wandered the world; later, they unified the martial world and became the supreme martial arts masters; finally, they retreated to the mountains to become a pair of immortal lovers. Therefore, this 'Lan'..." "The Jade Moon" also represents a perfect and flawless love! It represents the unwavering, steadfast, life-and-death bond between "White Wind and Black Breeze," a love that would make one sigh for a hundred generations! Seventh Young Master so desperately wants to obtain "The Jade Moon," perhaps what she truly desires is actually..." At this point, he stopped speaking, turning back to look ahead at the boundless sea, its blue waters unfathomable, just like the unfathomable depths of the human heart.

Ning Lang listened, and then his vision suddenly cleared. He vaguely understood and seemed to know what he needed to do next.

These words were overheard by Kong, who had just stepped out of the cabin. At that moment, he too became somewhat dazed.

Does such perfect affection truly exist in this world? He and Weiming were once deeply in love and pledged their lives to each other, yet in the end, they were separated, their love scattered, and they forgot each other in the martial world. "White Wind and Black Breath" fought in the martial world for ten years and for many years. In such a long period of time, did they really never have any ulterior motives, never have any disagreements, and never have any regrets?

If that's the case, then that's good too.

He slowly walked to the stern of the boat, only to find Qiu Changtian already there.

"Brother, we've come back empty-handed and accomplished nothing, haven't we?" Qiu Changtian turned to look at him and said.

"This is already a stroke of good luck amidst misfortune," Kong sighed deeply.

“That’s true.” Qiu Changtian nodded. “If the descendants of the Feng family hadn’t shown up that day, we might have really perished here.”

Kong shook his head almost imperceptibly, a deep worry on his face.

"Brother?" Qiu Changtian looked at him. "Why are you so worried?"

Kong remained silent, then suddenly turned to look at another large ship a few feet away. Ming Er and Lan Qi were on that ship, but their subordinates were nowhere to be found, just as they had been when they arrived.

"Brother?"

Kong turned around and slowly said, "Nephew Luo once told me that the 'Yunmen Jiuyou' of Dongming were all killed by Young Master Ming and Young Master Lan."

"Ah?!" Qiu Changtian exclaimed in surprise. He had fought against Jiu You before and knew his skill level; even he was no match for him, yet those two had managed to kill... Jiu You! This martial arts...

"The martial arts skills of Young Master Ming and Young Master Lan are indeed among the best in the world, but the combined strength of the Nine Netherworlds is definitely no less than that of the two of them working together. Yet, in the end, nine people died at the hands of the two of them. That is definitely not just a matter of martial arts skills," Kong said earnestly.

"What is that?" Qiu Changtian asked, puzzled.

"Twenty years ago, I witnessed a man fight six top-tier masters alone. Two of those masters, working together, could have been his equal, yet in the end, all six perished." Kong's gaze fell on the horizon, his expression enigmatic. "And that man, though severely wounded, survived. I am his equal, and we've always been rivals. I'm certain my martial arts are no less than his, but if I were to fight six masters alone, I have no guarantee of victory. So, I willingly conceded defeat to him then, but he laughed and said it wasn't that his martial arts were superior, but rather that he had grown up with killing, accustomed to it all. He didn't care about martial arts, only killing; he could kill people many times stronger than himself."

Qiu Changtian was stunned for a long time after hearing these words. Suddenly he understood and his heart skipped a beat.

"The martial arts world has reached its zenith in this era, with an unprecedented number of sects and masters. But how many are left now?" Kong turned to look at Qiu Changtian. "Those two have held everything on Dongming Island in their grasp from beginning to end. Brother Changtian, those two children are far from simple."

"You mean..." Qiu Changtian was now trembling with fear.

Silence reigned.

After a long while, Qiu Changtian came to his senses and sighed deeply, "We... have grown old without even realizing it."

"Hmm." Kong remained silent for a long time, then sighed deeply, "Such a person might only appear once every few decades, but two have appeared in this era. Alas, I don't know whether it's fortunate or unfortunate."

"What will the martial world be like after we return?" Qiu Changtian looked up at the blue sky. "I just hope there won't be any great disasters."

Kong turned her gaze to Ning Lang at the bow of the ship. On the blue sea, under the clear sky, the figure of the boy in blue clothes blended so well with her, serene and warm.

"If only we could give this child some time, he would surely become famous in the future."

The ship sailed westward, heading towards the imperial dynasty.

Those days, the weather was exceptionally good, sunny every day, without any wind or rain.

During those clear and leisurely days when they were traveling on the vast ocean, Lan Qi and Ming Er had the following conversation.

"Fake Immortal, it seems we can see at a glance what the martial arts world will look like in our hands."

"It depends on what you want to see."

"But what do you think would happen if it were in the hands of someone like Ning Lang?"

"oh?"

"You and I don't believe in benevolence or chivalry, but we don't doubt that Ning Lang possesses such qualities, do we?"

"He is an anomaly in this world, a rare breed."

"We've seen too much ugliness, but aren't you curious about what it might bring? You and I have met people who, no matter how much injustice or suffering they've endured, still hold onto a glimmer of hope, hoping to see something beautiful and good, even believing that they'll one day see what they've never seen before. Back then, we always laughed at those people for being foolish. But now that we can see it, why don't we give it a try?"

"You really want to see it?"

"Since neither of us can kill the other, this seems to be a solution, doesn't it?"

"It's not impossible."

That day, the two casually decided who would become the future leaders of the martial arts world, but there was a hint of regret in that casualness. What was the regret? Only the two of them knew.

So, one day, when Lan Qi saw Ning Lang on the opposite bow of the ship, her soft yet incredibly clear voice reached Ning Lang's ears.

"Ning Lang, I'll give you five years. If you're capable of becoming the leader of the martial arts world after five years, then we'll let you go. If you're not capable, then we'll take over the martial arts world."

"Huh?" Ning Lang at the bow of the ship was stunned, almost wondering if he was dreaming.