Huancheng Shen Shen

Chapitre 6

"Huh?" Che Shui, standing nearby, exclaimed in surprise, "Um... just now... I clearly shot all those things down..."

"ha?"

Shuangjing helped Xuansheng up and peeked over his shoulder to look. Sure enough, she saw three small silver knives on the bluish-green ground. But she couldn't help but worry and asked anxiously, "Then...where are you injured?! Is there some kind of hidden weapon?"

“I…cough…” Xuan Sheng turned his head away with difficulty, a hint of indignation on his cold face:

"...When I rushed up, my knee hit the chair..."

"..."

"..."

Shuang Jing's expression froze. She wanted to laugh, but her face remained stiff, so she could only stare blankly at the man in her arms.

“Well…” Che Shui was the first to come to her senses.

He turned to look at Lvming, who was pinned to the wall, blood trickling down his shoulder and spreading across the floor. His smiling eyes held a distinct chill: "I'd like to know, where exactly did you, this follower, come from?"

He smiled and stepped forward, taking Green Tea's hand and asking softly, "And what have you been doing all these years, lurking by Xuan Sheng's side? Hmm?"

Upon hearing this, Xuan Sheng immediately stopped trying to stop Che Shui.

Everyone knows that behind the Seven Stone Gate stands the Tower of Triumphs. Even he, who has lived in seclusion in Half Moon City his entire life, understands this.

Therefore, assassinating the Seven Stones Sect Master in the main hall of the Chongchonglou was an extremely reckless act. He hadn't realized it while he was acting, but now, standing here, he was drenched in cold sweat. It seemed highly likely that he had orchestrated the whole thing, luring Shuang Jing out of the Seven Stones Sect to make his move, yet these two people hadn't asked a single question, believing without any reason a fact he could never clarify.

Why is that?

Could it be that he was once a sworn brother of them?

Faced with the unwavering trust of these two people, he began to question his own unquestioned memories for the first time.

On the other hand, no longer with the innocent and chivalrous expression she had when she followed Xuan Sheng around, Lv Ming glanced coldly at the Lord of Chongchonglou, a chillingly eerie smile playing on her lips, before turning her head to look in the other direction.

Che Shui grabbed his chin in time and sneered, "What? Want to bite your tongue? Not so easy. I... hate being deceived the most..." He said with a smile, and then there was a snapping sound. Lv Ming's face changed drastically, and he bit his lip tightly.

Shuangjing looked closely and saw that one of the attendant's fingers had been turned over and was pressed against the back of his hand.

“I know you’re a loyal dog. Even if I drag you to be tortured, you won’t say a word, right?” Che Shui still smiled amiably. He gripped the sword stuck in the follower’s shoulder and slowly spun it. “So, I’ll grant your wish.”

After saying that, he tapped Green Tea three times and sneered, "From now on, you can no longer speak, but I have managed to stabilize your heart meridian... Go down and enjoy the consequences of deceiving me and trying to harm the Seven Stones Sect Master."

Ignoring the beads of sweat dripping from Lvming's forehead, he finished speaking, turned around with a flick of his sleeve, and shouted with a stern face, "Baiyun, Jinguan!"

After a few gusts of wind, two figures appeared at the door, clasping their hands in greeting and saying, "Your subordinates are here."

"Drag him away and throw him down to Old Seven's place. It would be best if we could get some information out of him. If not, let them have some fun!" Che Shui commanded indifferently, frowning as he looked at the person on the wall.

The building has seven floors in total, with the upper floors used to overcome obstacles and reach the top floor where the main character resides. Below lies an increasingly mysterious and terrifying inferno and the secrets of the gang.

Clearly, Lvming had heard about this matter. He glared at Cheshui with hatred in his eyes, then turned to look at his master, whom he had served for five years, but still snorted coldly and let Jin Guan and Baiyun drag him outside.

"Wait!" Xuan Sheng suddenly called out to stop him.

Shuangjing and Cheshui couldn't help but laugh; they had known all along that he would speak up to stop them.

"Please, please, don't be shy!" Shuangjing said with a smile, gesturing to him.

Seeing that Che Shui and the others did not seem to be wary of him, Xuan Sheng slowly walked up to his former attendants.

He gazed silently at Lvming, whose face was pale with pain, and after a long while, he sighed: "Is Shaohua's illness also related to you?" Shaohua was his fiancée's name. He stared intently at the person in front of him, as if trying to see through him.

The two men behind him frowned slightly.

Green Tea remained silent, only raising an extremely eerie smile, a smile of cold mockery and hateful disdain, before shaking her head.

Xuan Sheng stared at him for a moment, then sighed deeply: "Fine, I believe you."

Seeing a hint of surprise flash in Lvming's eyes, Xuansheng turned his head away and said calmly, "Even if you've been pretending all these years, I know when you're lying and when you're not." He turned to Cheshui: "This person and I still have a master-servant relationship. I beg you, Master, to spare his body." After saying that, he clasped his hands and bowed.

"Ahhhh, Ah Xuan, don't bow to me... If you want a whole corpse, I'll give it to you..." Che Shui was so frightened that she hurriedly stepped forward to help him up.

"Thank you for your help over the years." Xuan Sheng nodded slightly to his pale-faced attendant, then turned away and refused to look at him again.

Green Tea pursed his lips, wanting to say something, but no sound came out; he took one last deep look at that familiar back, and finally lowered his head.

"Good!" Che Shui clapped his hands with a smile, then turned to his two subordinates and instructed, "Did you hear me? We need a complete corpse, and the face should be pretty!"

"Do you think you're selling pork?" Baiyun wanted to reply with that, but she shook her head, drew her sword, picked up Lvming, and left.

"Alright... let's get back to our previous topic." After someone tidied up the floor and the hall, Shuangjing turned around, smiling as if nothing had happened, her rabbit ears still twitching slightly. "Shall we set off in three days? How about it?"

“But… I still have a lot to deal with here…” Che Shui waved his hand, dismissing the servants.

"Hey, what's it to you?" Shuang Jing asked lazily, "Is the Lord of Chongchonglou also seriously ill?"

"Aaaaaah, Xiao Jing!! You're not going to leave me here all alone, are you?!"

"But you coming along will only cause trouble. We need to be alone, alone! Do you understand?"

"But Sister Shuangqing will definitely not let me go!!"

Seeing the two of them bickering as if no one had attacked them, Xuan Sheng couldn't help but rub his temples and frown as he asked, "Excuse me... don't you two really intend to properly investigate Green Tea's intentions before setting off?"

The two, who were bickering fiercely, suddenly fell silent, turned their heads at the same time, and both revealed similar sly smiles:

"Well, Xuan Sheng... even if we ask, he won't tell us, right?" Shuang Jing chuckled and shook her finger.

"The person who could lie in ambush by your side for so long and endure for so many years before coming to Chongchonglou to assassinate you must be an extremely formidable character..." Che Shui nodded in agreement.

"So there's no need to waste time on interrogation. Since they failed, it means they'll come back for more..." Shuang Jing said with a smile, picking up a pastry and taking a bite, then excitedly announced:

"It's decided then, we'll set off in three days!"

Frost Gate - The Mountain Moon Knows Not What's in My Heart (Part 1)

The mountain courtyard stands far away, facing the long river; the river trees are layered, and the smoke rises to the distant horizon.

The five people walked laboriously along the winding mountain road.

The sun is high in the sky. Although the early spring sun is not strong, walking for a long time will inevitably leave you covered in sweat.

Che Shui wiped the sweat from his forehead and couldn't help but look at the scenery around him.

Ning Shuang Gate is located in the Lingxia Mountains, at the deepest part of Yunwan Valley.

Looking up, the surrounding mountains lie quietly nestled together, seemingly asleep. Regardless of the season, this place is always surrounded by a sea of clouds, with peaks large and small, and countless ravines and valleys all submerged in the rolling waves of clouds. The clouds are like a sea, and the mist is like a bay, hence the name: Cloud Bay Valley.

"Clouds and rosy hues cover the mountains and islands like a sea," Che Shui couldn't help but recite a poem.

The sea of clouds stretched out for miles, sometimes as calm as a mirror, sometimes surging like a tide, sometimes rolling like waves. Golden sunlight, like a waterfall, set off the green pines and red maples in the valley, the mountain streams, and the surrounding colors of green, blue, white, and red. Looking around, it seemed as if one had stepped into a dream world.

but……

"Sect Leader, could you please stop rubbing against my back?"

"Oh, okay."

"And don't rub against my shoulder..."

"Oh, okay..."

"Not on my neck either!"

"...Okay..."

"Sect Master..." Suppressing the urge to throw the woman on his back into the valley, Xuan Sheng's forehead veins bulged out in a cross shape:

"...Do you think my head is a bed?!"

Hearing the barely suppressed growl behind them, the two female attendants and Che Shui paused, but continued walking forward as if they hadn't heard anything.

Because the mountain road was winding and narrow, they had to abandon the carriage and walk; Shuangjing's physical condition was naturally not able to cope with such hardship, so several people prepared to take turns carrying her up the mountain.

However, when it was Xuan Sheng's turn, she refused to get down no matter what. She shook her head like a rattle drum and clung to Xuan Sheng, whose face was turning purple from being strangled, with all four limbs like an octopus: "No, no, no, get away! I'll bite anyone who pulls me down!! I may not know martial arts, but my teeth are still very sharp!"

These words left everyone speechless. They immediately turned away, ignoring the situation, and happily strolled up the hillside, feeling relaxed and carefree.

But Xuan Sheng, who was walking at the very back, became Shuang Jing's new toy all the way, letting her knead and rub him with a cold expression.

By noon, they could see Songcui Peak, where Ningshuang Gate was located. Seeing that they still had a long afternoon, they sat down to have lunch and rest for a while before continuing their journey.

Shuangjing reluctantly climbed off Xuansheng's back. Seeing the beautiful scenery around her, she cheered before Xuansheng could even straighten up and ran into the depths of the forest, startling Anxing and Ningdu, who hurriedly followed.

"Your body isn't very good, is it?!" Xuan Sheng looked at Shuang Jing, who was jumping around like a goat, and the veins on his forehead bulged again. He snorted coldly and began to slowly walk around, loosening his limbs. Che Shui, on the other hand, smiled and carefully started a fire on the side.

They were on a flat area that jutted out slightly from the cliff. From there, they could see the surrounding low, flat hillsides, and behind them were cliff walls with a dozen small waterfalls cascading down, accompanied by the gurgling sound of water.

As Xuan Sheng walked, he was captivated by the swirling white clouds and the lush, sea-like greenery before him. Standing on a high point, looking down at his feet, he couldn't help but recite a poem: "The waves roll over the rocks at the sea gate..."

“Clouds stretch across the mountains.” Che Shui continued without looking up from behind him, smiling as he said, “The last time we came to Ning Shuang Gate together, you recited the same poem in this very place.”

"..."

Xuan Sheng slowly walked to his side, sat down, and gazed at Shuang Jing, who was running past cheering in the distance. He asked softly, "If what you said is true... then why did I lose my memory?"

"Grandpa, I'd like to know too, okay?" Che Shui thought, poking at the fire with a frustrated expression, but still briefly explained the incident at Chongchonglou five years ago to him:

"...So, you and Xiao Jing were both seriously injured back then, and were taken back to recuperate by Half-Moon Tower and Seven Stones Gate respectively. Xiao Jing didn't recover for more than half a year, and as for you..." His voice was somewhat somber, "We only found out now that you're still alive... Both Chongchong Tower and Seven Stones Gate sent many people out to search for traces of Half-Moon City, but... it's just too difficult to find..."

Xuan Sheng remained silent, looking at the man standing beside him with his head down, like a child who had done something wrong, and couldn't help but feel sad.

He looked up at Shuangjing, who was ignoring the maids behind her, and couldn't help but ask, "Then what about me and the Seven Stones Sect Master...?"

“You spoil her a lot.” Che Shui interrupted before he could finish his sentence, and looked up with a smile: “It’s hard to imagine someone as cold and aloof as you spoiling her, right? But you really, really, really, really… really spoil her. Before, when I saw you spoiling her, I wanted to kick you a few times!”

He chuckled and continued speaking to himself:

"Once, enemies from Half Moon City came knocking and kidnapped Xiao Jing, who was delirious with illness. She was still injured, and we were all terribly worried. But before we could react, you rushed out and single-handedly took down all fifteen of them. As a result, you were seriously injured yourself. Although you managed to save Xiao Jing, the two of you were lying in the same room groaning. Hehehe..."

Immersed in pleasant memories, Che Shui couldn't help but dance and talk excitedly.

However, Xuan Sheng looked at his jubilant face, but felt no emotion whatsoever.

He has no such memory.

When I close my eyes, all I can think of are the flowers, plants, and sunshine of Half Moon City.

In that peaceful valley, there was no hatred or grudges, only vast fields, streams flowing over the hillsides, and leisurely days.

There were no wounds, no blood, no signs of swords or spears.

Even if the other person was once so important, there is no trace of her in my memories.