"Zhi'er, I'm so sorry." Shangguan Tou lowered his head and smiled bitterly. "After wading through too many muddy waters, people's hearts have become impure. I never thought that you traveled all the way to Moonrise Valley because you missed me, your...brother. I'm sorry."
Xuezhi gritted her teeth and looked ahead:
"I'm leaving now, nothing else."
"Be careful on the road."
"I know."
Shangguan Tou let go.
Xuezhi raised her whip and lashed it down hard.
Amidst the raging wind and swirling snow, the horse galloped away, its hooves clattering three times.
Shangguan Tou watched Xuezhi's retreating figure, letting the howling wind billow his cloak.
In the midst of a snow-covered landscape, the fiery red figure resembled a flame burning in winter, its intensity waning and weakening until finally it was swept away by the cold wind and extinguished by the snowmelt.
Actually, if Xuezhi hadn't said she didn't like him so quickly, he probably would have done something silly and said some strange things, things that would probably surprise even himself.
For example, you can stay in the valley for now, and I'll teach you martial arts first. Once you've thought it through, we can decide whether or not we should get married.
For example, although I know you have many affairs in Chonghuo Palace, you can consider spending half your time in the valley and half your time back after you get married. As long as you are interested in me, I believe there is no difficulty that cannot be overcome.
It's like... you can go into seclusion without any problem, I can wait as many years as you want.
At that moment, he was extremely glad that he hadn't spoken.
Xuezhi is still young and cannot distinguish between love and family affection.
She came all the way from Chonghuo Palace because she was attached to him.
But he... defiled her.
The following year, at the Weapon Ranking Conference, Shangguan Tou remained lost, constantly searching for Chong Xuezhi.
Xuezhi, however, seemed to have vanished into thin air.
Some time after the conference ended, he learned from others that Chong Xuezhi had entered the pass during the winter and did not plan to leave in the near future.
Chong Xuezhi's failure in the last weapons ranking competition, and her complete disappearance within two years, caused her to be forgotten by everyone for two years.
68
Spring goes and autumn comes, time flies.
Two years later, weapons were stored in armories and horses were brought to Mount Hua. However, subtle changes were taking place between the major sects and between the large and small sects.
Chonghuo Palace remained silent for two years.
Two years ago, Moon Valley suddenly announced its location, openly recruiting disciples and expanding its power at an astonishing pace, forming alliances with major sects and annexing and controlling smaller ones. Shangguan Tou was no longer as mysterious as before, nor did he fight only out of chivalry. Nevertheless, his romantic escapades never ceased. First, there was He Chunluo, the second owner of Pinghu Spring Garden; then Du Ruoxiang, the second-generation leader of Cailian Peak; then the daughter of a wealthy salt merchant in Luoyang; and even a beautiful disciple of Emei was not spared. However, Shangguan Tou's previous women often came from brothels, especially in the Luoyang area, and none of these women had any connection with brothels.
Some say that Shangguan Tou's taste in women changes frequently, and perhaps in the past two years he has lost interest in those beautiful women and started to pursue a more magnanimous and unrestrained type. Others say that he takes advantage of his interactions with others to seduce people, but surprisingly no one says that he uses women, which is quite a rare example.
The three words "Shangguan Tou," often used to describe good fortune, have become a common phrase on the lips of most people within just two years. Both men and women have their devotion and their utter condemnation of him. However, with the changes in Yue Shang Valley, Shangguan Tou has also changed considerably. In the past, if someone spoke ill of him, he would always retort with rather flippant and witty remarks, but now he seems very busy, and unless someone points a sword at his face, he generally doesn't respond at all.
And because the number of women he "swept away" was increasing, the little scandal between him and the young palace master of Chonghuo Palace two years ago had long been forgotten.
What many people find strange is that Shangguan Tou would scan any beautiful woman, or any name that people in the martial arts world had heard of, but there was one girl who was very popular, yet he had no connection with her at all.
She is Lin Fengzi, the daughter of the master of Lingjian Manor and a disciple of Xueyan Sect.
Even when Lin Fengzi was very young, she was known for her obedience and gentleness. From the age of eight or nine, scions of noble families came to propose marriage, which greatly frightened Lin Xuanfeng. After she turned fifteen, suitors became as numerous as the rivers and lakes, plentiful and easy to find. Those who dared to propose to Lingjian Manor were all wealthy young men, their exceptional qualities enough to fill a long list. Because each one was so outstanding, the elders were all anxious for Lin Fengzi.
In early spring, Lin Fengzi rejected Feng Mo, the beloved son of Fengcheng and the promising fourth disciple of Mount Hua. This matter was the subject of much discussion, but Lin Fengzi's suitors did not decrease but increased, with many even using "winning over Lin Fengzi" as a standard to judge whether a man was charming.
Lin Fengzi has become more and more beautiful over the years. Her features, which were not fully developed in childhood, have become increasingly soft and beautiful. With her peach blossom eyes and rosy cheeks, her smile is as gentle as the wind and as sweet as water, making people involuntarily think of a fairy descending to earth. Therefore, Lin Fengzi has a nickname: Jade Fairy.
Ever since Chong Xuezhi challenged Lin Fengzi at the Heroes' Gathering, many people have compared the two. But no one does that anymore.
In the eyes of men in the martial arts world, Lin Fengzi is now a celestial being shrouded in holy light, someone who must be protected forever and is forbidden from fighting with ordinary women.
Compared to ordinary people, that's even more impossible.
However, all of this happened before Chong Xuezhi made her comeback.
No one in Chonghuo Palace expected Chong Xuezhi to emerge from seclusion so quickly.
Two years, countless identical gray clothes.
For two years, she did not use any cosmetics, gold hairpins, or jade bracelets.
After two years of living there, all that remained were martial arts manuals, techniques, mental cultivation methods, swordplay, meditation, and enduring pain.
In the first few months, Xuezhi thought she would go crazy and die in the back mountain of Chonghuo Palace; but when she came out after completing her mission, her demeanor and mind were calmer than ever before.
A night that shook the heavens and earth.
Chong Xuezhi was wielding only an ordinary sword.
An ordinary rusty sword.
However, Chu Weilan witnessed her wielding a sword and using a palm technique called "Fire from the Moon" to shatter a large rock that had been placed on the back mountain for hundreds of years.
Chong Xuezhi has lost a lot of weight compared to before.
She had her hair piled up high, with stray strands falling messily across her face. She looked somewhat haggard, but her face conveyed more of a triumphant spirit and the relief of having accomplished a great task.
In just two years, she stood straight in front of the cultivation room, and the four guardians almost didn't recognize her.
People quickly gathered together.
Lin Yuhuang and the elders also arrived.
Chong Xuezhi, still wearing her ever-present gray dress, approached the crowd:
"I came out today to tell my second uncle that I have completed all the tasks he assigned me—but it's not enough, far from enough!"
Lin Yuhuang had also followed the rules of Chonghuo Palace and hadn't seen her daughter for two years. Now that she saw her, she remained silent for a long time.
Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Elder Yuwen stepped forward and said:
"What do you feel is not enough?"
"It's not enough. I need to go back and practice for a while longer, and then come out when I'm ready."
"You don't need to practice anymore."
"Why?"
"There are many things that Chonghuo Palace needs you to do."
"But I didn't practice well—"
"Martial arts, like knowledge, have no limits. Even the Lotus Palace Master cannot reach the limit."
At this moment, Elder Wen Gu glanced at Elder Yuwen and whispered, "'Lotus' Palace Master...?"
The night was pitch black, without stars or moon.
The myriad lights of Chonghuo Palace shone faintly up, reflecting on Chong Xuezhi's face.
Elder Yuwen put down his cane and slowly knelt down before Xuezhi:
"Please, Palace Master, emerge from seclusion."
In an instant, all the Chonghuo Palace disciples present, including the four guardians, also knelt down:
"Please, Palace Master, emerge from seclusion!!"
69
Chonghuo Palace rises once again!
Chong Xuezhi succeeds as Palace Master and makes a comeback in the martial world!
The martial arts world of the Central Plains is about to be turned upside down once again!
Perhaps it was because the world had been too peaceful a few years ago that Chong Xuezhi's comeback to the martial arts world caused such a great stir.
Two years ago, the emergence of a peerless martial arts master at Chonghuo Palace caused considerable anxiety among many sects. However, after Mu Yuan distinguished himself at Shaolin Temple, he rarely appeared again. This apparent grandstanding with little actual action left many feeling disappointed, but it greatly worried the major sects.
Now, Chong Xuezhi has been in seclusion for two years, and her martial arts have greatly improved. With the Nine Forms of the Lotus God in hand, many sects are already on edge.
It was a cloudy day, and fog enveloped the entire Songshan Mountain.
Smoke rose from the foot of the mountain, but was hidden by the mist and the peach blossoms covering the mountain.
Chonghuo Palace.
Chaoxuelou.
The tea in her hand gradually cooled, but Chong Xuezhi was completely unaware, quietly looking at the list of allied and enemy sects on Mu Yuan's ground.
Although she had changed out of her dusty gray clothes, she was still wearing a plain blue cloth dress. The dress was clearly more than a size too big for her, hanging loosely and making her look like a clothesline stick. Her hair was unchanged; she still tied her long hair up on top of her head with a strip of cloth, her bangs falling messily across her forehead without any style.
Lin Yuhuang sat down next to Xuezhi.
He didn't know much about women. But Lin Xuanfeng once told him that there was no woman in the world who didn't love beauty. He just said that was nonsense; if a woman didn't love beauty, would she still be a woman?
At this very moment, his daughter is dressed in a way that no woman in the world would ever consider.
Before entering the country, Xuezhi didn't care much for dressing up, but at least her clothes were mainly bright red, pink, and yellow, giving her a youthful and energetic look. Now, this outfit truly made him despair.
Even so, he couldn't help but look at Xuezhi's face again and again.
He even counted, and even a wooden man like Mu Yuan, who had the mindset of a pure monk, glanced at her no less than five times.
Her facial features are becoming more and more like Chonglian's, but her temperament is becoming less and less like hers.
Lin Yuhuang didn't want to admit this feeling, but his daughter, especially with her head down like this, looked more and more like...
"When did the incident with Mount Hua happen?" Chong Xuezhi looked up at Mu Yuan, her eyes extremely serious. Lin Yuhuang immediately wanted to slap himself—Zhi'er is still Zhi'er, so cute and innocent, how could she be like what he thought?
Mu Yuan was taken aback for a moment, then said, "It's been half a year."
Six months ago, Pinghu Chunyuan set up a fighting arena near Aotian Manor, similar to a small-scale heroes' tournament, but participants had to be in groups, and the winners could earn a considerable amount of silver. A group of disciples from Chonghuo Palace participated, but in their private capacity. Coincidentally, Feng Mo, the fourth disciple of Huashan and son of the sect leader, also participated and fought to a draw with the Chonghuo Palace disciples, giving Chonghuo Palace the upper hand. Pinghu Chunyuan, unaware of the Chonghuo Palace members' identities and unwilling to offend Huashan, declared Huashan the winner. The losers, naturally dissatisfied, revealed Chonghuo Palace's name. Pinghu Chunyuan, now caught in the middle, simply threw out the silver and fled. The Huashan group, with its superior numbers, grabbed the silver and ran. Several Chonghuo Palace disciples returned and told their fellow disciples about the incident, leading a group to challenge the arena. What was originally a matter between the disciples somehow escalated into mutual animosity between the two sects, even alarming the elders and sect leader. After discussing it, the two sects decided to have their disciples compete again at Aotian Manor and Fengmo in a few days to determine who won and who would get the silver.
“It’ll take quite a while. We have to deal with it eventually.” Xuezhi hummed softly. “I’ll take them with me.”