Once again stepping into the main hall of the Blazing Flame Gang, the garden of autumn chrysanthemums retained their subtle fragrance, dancing gracefully in the breeze, breaking countless golden points into glittering fragments scattered across the ground in charming splendor.

Due to the recent alliance and friendship between the two groups, Qin Chang Ge was invited in without obstruction at the main gate. When the accompanying steward was about to announce her arrival, Qin Chang Ge gently stopped him, smiling as she pointed to a corner of snow-white brocade robes barely visible among the myriad flowers: “I’ll go over myself.”

Parting flowers and brushing aside leaves, she walked along the bluestone path. The flower garden’s layout was elegant and ingenious, incomparable to the gaudy, vulgar luxury she had seen in Su Xuan’s study last time. This must have been arranged by Su Xuan himself.

In the depths of a cluster of purple chrysanthemums, Qin Chang Ge found Su Xuan lying among the flowers, playing chess with his left hand against his right hand.

His left hand held black pieces, his right hand white. A wine cup was clenched in his teeth. He tilted his head back, downed a mouthful of wine, then with a sharp sound, put himself in check.

His manner was free and unrestrained, like moonlight and clear wind.

Light purple, deep purple, dark purple, brilliant purple – petals of countless changing colors continuously fell on his robes. The white fabric with purple created a startling elegance. Occasionally petals fell into his wine cup, but he paid no heed and drank them down.

“Wash the jade cup and pour white wine, wearing flowers while drinking alone is most romantic,” Qin Chang Ge smiled slightly. “Gang Leader has excellent refined taste.”

Su Xuan was tilting his head back drinking wine when he heard a voice. He paused slightly, his eyes glancing over. His beautiful black pupils were like black agates soaked in a crystal pool – lustrous and penetrating. Though his face bore a smile, anyone who met those transparent, jade-like eyes would feel a chill run through their entire body.

Naturally, Qin Chang Ge felt no chill. She only quickly confirmed one thing: the Gang Leader was in a bad mood.

Su Xuan had already stood up with a long laugh. As he rose, petals scattered everywhere. With a turn of his head, the silver wine cup in his mouth suddenly flew out, landing steadily on a stone platform nearby. Amid the gentle purple rain, he said: “No wonder the lamp wick sparked three times last night, and the birds sang especially sweetly today. So distinguished guests have truly arrived.”

“A guest, yes, but wicked rather than distinguished.” Qin Chang Ge smiled faintly. Without much talk, she took the box from her robes and handed it over: “Gang Leader, I’ve come to seek your guidance.”

Su Xuan accepted it, opened the box, and glanced inside with a slight exclamation of surprise.

After a long moment, he frowned: “Where did this come from?”

“Someone tampered with a certain old item and placed this inside,” Qin Chang Ge said. “I’m not from the martial arts world and have limited knowledge about the hidden weapons and martial arts of various sects. The Gang Leader surely cannot be ignorant of such things.”

“Don’t try to trap me with words,” Su Xuan laughed. “This thing looks ordinary, but it’s actually quite rare. Even I have only seen it once, by coincidence.”

He stared at the flying needle with furrowed brows, pointing to the tail end for Qin Chang Ge: “Do you see? This tail end has a needle eye… You must know that flying needles used by martial artists aren’t like embroidery needles with troublesome needle eyes. Needles with eyes are difficult to control in terms of force and balance, so they’re not favored. But this needle has one, and it was seeing this needle eye that reminded me.”

He raised his hand and clapped twice. Immediately a black-clothed subordinate approached. Su Xuan said: “Bring the item from the third hidden compartment in my study.”

The man hurriedly retrieved it. Su Xuan took the box and smiled: “Miss Ming, let me test you. What do you think this is?”

Qin Chang Ge leaned over to look and saw only an extremely fine thread in the box. But upon closer inspection, it was neither cotton nor metallic, gleaming with a dark green light that also contained traces of light brown – a strange color.

Taking a light sniff, there was a faint fishy smell.

After brief consideration, Qin Chang Ge smiled: “It seems to be something from a snake’s body.”

A flash of surprise crossed Su Xuan’s eyes as he smiled: “Miss Ming is extraordinary, able to guess so accurately. Why didn’t you say it was snake skin?”

Qin Chang Ge replied: “If it were snake skin, there would be nothing particularly rare about it.”

“Correct, this is snake saliva.” Su Xuan smiled. “In our Chihe highlands, there has always been a legend. The legend tells of an unusual ice circle in the far north of Chihe, several times colder than outside the circle, where no grass grows. Within the circle lives a strange type of snake that feeds on exotic grasses within the ice circle. Its saliva is extremely poisonous, but can also neutralize extreme poisons. This snake’s saliva is extremely precious because it oxidizes and disappears upon touching the ground, but if preserved through special methods, it can take myriad forms and never decay. However, the ice circle is extremely cold – most who enter freeze to death. Local people can hardly obtain it. Only a mysterious race that also exists in legend, called the Snow Drinking Clan, is naturally unafraid of cold. Though the weather is frigidly frozen, they wear single clothes and go barefoot. They also understand methods for obtaining snake saliva and use their clan’s secret techniques to specially craft it into various strange objects for killing people.”

Pointing to that “thread,” he said: “Guess again – what is this thread used for?”

This time Qin Chang Ge didn’t even glance at it, saying lazily: “What can thread be used for? Naturally for threading needles.”

Su Xuan laughed heartily: “Talking with you is truly effortless – correct, for threading these flying needles with needle eyes.”

“The needles are hollow, the tips are also hollow, and poison flows out through the hollow needle tips. No wonder this poison is so fierce…” Qin Chang Ge murmured. “But when did I offend this so-called Snow Drinking Clan?”

Actually, she vaguely knew the legend of the Snow Drinking Clan, but it differed from what Su Xuan knew. Years ago at her master’s sect, she had heard her master explain the world’s legendary and bizarre phenomena. Her master had told her then that so-called bizarre tales usually had internal reasons, sometimes even being legends deliberately obscured and distorted by people – one should neither disbelieve nor blindly trust them. Among these, her master mentioned the Snow Drinking Clan, though not about snake saliva, but said that the Snow Drinking Clan honored women over men, with men having low status. Especially men born in yang years, yang months, yang days, and yang hours were considered “yin destroyers” who would be unfavorable to the female clan leader. Upon birth, their tendons and meridians would be severed and they would be abandoned in the wilderness. At that time, she was still young and pestered her master about why such cruel customs existed. Her master avoided answering, finally only saying: “The myriad troubles and sufferings of the world mostly stem from romantic tribulations. Remember this.”

She had remembered, but couldn’t avoid it. Having left her master’s sect for many years and learned countless skills, the most important principle she should have practiced ultimately became her prophecy. The Thousand Absolute Gate’s custom was that the mountain gate never opened, never entering the mortal world, remaining far above the mists and clouds. Did her master, wise as the sea and learned as the sea, know her final fate?

As she contemplated here, Su Xuan standing with hands behind his back was also silently speechless for some unknown reason. The handsome man with peerless features was silent and distant at this moment. The setting sun cast its rays from afar, adorning his robes and face with faint golden edges. The number one figure of the martial arts world within that golden halo had refined features and robes fluttering in the wind, like a deity.