!!!

The firmament suddenly erupted with startling thunder, fierce lightning pierced through clouds, demon serpents danced wildly, and in the dark shadows all things turned to dust.

Something was shattering, something was vanishing, something was struggling, something was howling.

…His soul must have scattered, broken into countless fragments, becoming the accumulated snow over that year’s plum grove in Yunzhou.

…That snow was so forest-cold, touching his fingertips, exploding with fierce flames with a bang.

…Such a great fire… In the crackling sounds palaces collapsed… it was Changle Palace… he and she had walked hand in hand over every inch of that land… In the raging flames, someone danced with black hair, someone watched indifferently, someone sneered and crept in, someone turned back in confusion… All living beings’ forms, all living beings’ forms, all living beings entered shells…

…Who could struggle free? On the long street, angrily turning back, a delicate woman smiled as she approached…

…He joyfully went to take her hand… Chang Ge… I knew that old monk was talking nonsense… you didn’t die… you won’t die…

The touch was scorching. He looked down in shock and released his grip…

…A handful of charred bones, scattered in the black ruins…

…Where is Chang Ge? Where am I? Where am I? Where is she?…

…Looking around in vast confusion… there was a sweet, fishy smell, surging up turbulently…

Who set up the oil cauldron? Who held the knives and axes? Who sneered and came forward, holding long blades reversed, moving with piercing cold light.

Intense pain overturned seas and rivers, yet he didn’t know where the pain was coming from. Heart? No… it was gone…

…Was he about to die? That would be good too…

“Shout! Awaken!!!”

Like lightning overturning the chaotic demons, the heavy dark clouds pressing on his thoughts were shattered by the pure, honest Buddhist lion’s roar!

Xiao Jue’s whole body shook as he awakened from the near-delirious nightmare.

His face strangely showed a line of flush, his gaze somewhat moist. He slowly looked at Shiyi once.

About to speak, his body swayed, and a mouthful of fresh blood sprayed down like cherry rain.

Spattering on the smooth blue brick floor.

Like a freehand blood painting, only every stroke was chaotic, every brushstroke filled with grief.

Like those past events that could not be spoken of, could not be retained, wanted to remain in ignorant self-deception yet were cruelly pierced through – unreachable and irretrievable.

“Foolish child…” The same phrase, but when Shiyi said it this time, it also carried several parts grief. He carefully examined Xiao Jue – this child, once caught in obsession, couldn’t be pulled away, truly innocent…

Extending his hand, his fingertip was about to point toward Xiao Jue’s brow.

Let me break through your delusions for you, return to you a moon-washed clarity…

Rumble!

Under clear skies for ten thousand li, sudden muffled thunder arose.

In the Great Buddha Hall, Yu Zixi, who had been wandering around everywhere, looked up in amazement: “Clear blue sky, and it’s winter – thunder?”

He squinted at the horizon – dark clouds suddenly rose, layer upon layer thick as black curtains, a fireball flashing with golden light weaving through the cloud layers.

A line of lightning, like a heaven-shocking blade struck down. The dim great hall suddenly brightened for a moment, illuminating the elegant man standing calmly with hands behind his back in the hall corner, his handsome face shrouded in mysteriously bright and dark light.

Rumble!

The muffled thunder shook the meditation room’s wooden windows in chaos. With a crack, that pot of plain orchids inexplicably toppled from the desk, shattering to pieces on the ground.

Shiyi’s finger froze before Xiao Jue’s brow.

After a long moment, the old monk suddenly showed a bitter smile, extremely slowly raising his head to look at the horizon.

Slowly withdrawing his finger.

That fireball rose and fell, leaping as it departed into the distance.

The old monk’s eyebrows trembled extremely minutely. Turning to face Xiao Jue, who was blankly looking at the ground, completely unaware of what had just happened, he pressed palms together in salute.

“Benefactor, please return.” He gazed deeply at Xiao Jue. “Deep water drowns stones, thick clouds cover the moon, walking at night in confused alleys without knowing – actually none of this requires disturbance. Just quietly await the right moment, naturally there will be a time when clouds part to reveal the moon. Being within the situation unable to escape is ignorance; being outside the situation yet accidentally entering is evil. Benefactor, take care of yourself.”

Xiao Jue stood up in confusion, stumbling out like a walking corpse.

The moment his figure disappeared from the meditation room doorway, Shiyi immediately pointed at heaven and cursed loudly:

“F*ck your mother! Threatening this old monk!”

…

Xiao Jue didn’t know how he walked out of the meditation room or the rear courtyard.

After the startling thunder, the sky remained bright and clear, sunlight slowly streaming down like milk. Xiao Jue suddenly felt that bright daylight somewhat glaring. He slowly raised his hand to shield his eyes.

Moving forward, moving forward.

The Xiliang Emperor’s steps had never been as heavy and sluggish as now, stepping on fractured sunlight shadows, hearing those rustling sounds like sandpaper grinding against his wounded heart.

So those facts he was unwilling to face, unwilling to acknowledge, were all cold reality?

So those grief-filled, resentment-filled remembrances were all one-sided wishful self-deception?

So that nation-toppling famous flower had not bloomed on white jade steps and purple gold towers in his foreign land, but had long turned to ash, leaving only him to waste years, vainly waiting for a return that would never come.

So those past events had long been silently abandoned, and standing in one corner waiting would forever be just a missing.

The person I loved, the person I waited for – you were already gone long ago.

From now on, would the rest of life be a cup of bitter wine difficult to swallow? Raising cup toward moon, with no one to drink with.

And with vast oceans and seas, boundless and limitless, shores beyond shores – how was he to cross?

Looking up, Xiao Jue didn’t know if he was looking at that line of sunlight, or some distant, untouchable memory.

Chang Ge, I would rather you had abandoned me.

I would rather bear the shame of being abandoned, to exchange for the truth of that rumor.

The vows once made drinking together under blue gauze windows had all become cold prophecies after wind-knives and frost-swords. Those longings carried that year’s pure plum blossom fragrance, crossing three autumns to reach his heart, condensing into frost and snow. Yet only today did he learn that the day of breaking ice would never come.

Standing long outside the meditation courtyard gate, not knowing how much time passed.

Sunlight slanted and shifted, wind gradually brightened, gorgeous sunset clouds rose at the horizon then gradually disappeared. A bright moon faintly shone over, outlining three equally tall shadows.

Xiao Jue slowly turned his head, thinking himself very calm but actually smiling quite bleakly.

His voice hoarse: “Night has come… let’s go.”

Xiao Jin and Yu Zixi exchanged glances. Both were crystal-hearted – how could they not see Xiao Jue’s abnormality? Xiao Jin’s gaze fixed on Xiao Jue, his expression complex and indescribable. Yu Zixi also fell silent now, gazing distantly northward. A line of cold moonlight shone on his face – his expression wasn’t sorrowful, yet showed a kind of silent resentment.

But Xiao Jue paid them no mind, just striding quickly forward on his own. Those two followed closely, originally fearing he might lose control in his unstable emotional state, secretly planning countermeasures. Unexpectedly, he mounted his horse without hesitation and headed straight for the palace city. The two exchanged glances again and wordlessly spurred their horses to follow.

By regulation, outside ministers couldn’t enter the palace city after nightfall. Yu Zixi dismounted before the quiet palace gates. His Red Armor Guard had long been standing straight as nails waiting for him. Yu Zixi watched Xiao Jue’s back enter the palace gates, turned to Xiao Jin with a smile: “You’re the Minister of Imperial Guards, you can stay in the palace…”

“No need!” Before he finished speaking, Xiao Jue’s voice came from ahead: “A’Jin, return to your residence.”

Xiao Jin frowned, about to say something, when Xiao Jue’s low voice cut decisively: “This is an imperial command.”

Raising his eyebrows, Yu Zixi shook his head. Xiao Jin stood before the palace gates, making a gesture to the Dragon Seal Palace head eunuch Yu Hai who came to greet them. Yu Hai slightly bowed to show understanding. Xiao Jin looked again at Xiao Jue’s figure, slightly closed his eyes, then turned away.

Only two people remained facing each other on the vast palace gate plaza.

The two glanced at each other, then simultaneously turned away. Their earlier natural conversation seemed to have vanished. Yu Zixi smiled cheerfully at his fierce Red Armor Guard, while Xiao Jin expressionlessly looked up at the moon.

Curling his lips, Yu Zixi also didn’t greet anyone, directly walking before his guard unit. Amid the uniform greetings, he stepped on a servant’s back to mount his horse, departed in dust clouds without looking back.

Xiao Jin stepped into Prince Zhao’s purple felt palanquin with a call to lift.

Left and right, they went separate ways.

…

Yu Hai was very nervous tonight.

When His Majesty returned to the palace, his expression was wrong – he saw it at a glance. Prince Zhao’s hint at the palace gates immediately made his heart rise high.

What had happened? When His Majesty left the palace today, though not particularly happy, his expression showed faint anticipation and nervousness with no displeasure. Yet after just a few hours, everything had changed.

His Majesty appeared calm enough, just speaking less. However, as a head eunuch who had served His Majesty for years, he was extremely familiar with all the reactions caused by His Majesty’s subtle mood changes. These years, His Majesty hadn’t been happy – he was melancholy, often explosively angry, but had never been like today with such strangely indescribable expression.

What kind of feeling was that? Being looked at by those black pupils countless times deeper than usual, he himself felt as if doused with cold water, something rapidly falling, sinking into deep seas.

He desperately pondered – what kind of feeling was this? In all these years, he had never seen His Majesty like this.

Until he carried a golden basin to serve His Majesty’s washing, seeing His Majesty standing long before the world map, slender fingers slowly tracing over the map… Qizhou, Youzhou, Pingzhou, Dezhou, Chihe, Yunzhou, Hanzhou… Yingdu.

That finger moved slowly and heavily.

He was first confused, then suddenly understood – that seemed to be the route His Majesty had taken years ago expanding territory, conquering cities and seizing land!

Looking at that lonely back, he suddenly understood the meaning of that strange expression.

That was despair.

Deep, eternally inescapable despair.

The long night was bleak, cold wind hissed, ornate gold-inlaid windows were struck by uninvited wind with banging sounds. In the vast hall, curtains flew and candle flames swayed, reflecting the lonely emperor’s back as he silently raised his hand to touch with his finger the traces he had once walked one by one.

Those days of bloody battles, difficult yet satisfying. Those days wearing wind and rain, sleeping on weapons ready for dawn, traversing the world, killing on battlefields, with lofty aspirations commanding wind and clouds.

Those days of mutual affection, walking hand in hand, using rivers and mountains as blueprints, facing bloody storms together, overturning the mortal world with shared laughter.

That person who clearly possessed everything yet was so lonely as if abandoned by everything.

Who was he thinking of, missing?

Old Yu Hai suddenly felt his nose tingle.

He pursed his lips, raised his sleeve to wipe away a teardrop.

Old… old… couldn’t bear to watch…

This cruel heaven… how could it be so heartless? His Majesty was such a devoted person…

Just as he was about to step forward asking His Majesty to rest – excessive worry would damage the dragon body.

But he saw Xiao Jue suddenly withdraw his hand, stand stunned for a moment, then slowly turn around.

Yu Hai carefully approached. Xiao Jue didn’t even look at him, going straight into the inner hall.

After hesitating, Yu Hai also followed. Xiao Jue was ignoring everyone, going into the specially designated clothes room himself, throwing various garments all over the floor. Yu Hai looked and discovered they were all outer casual clothes. Yu Hai’s mind exploded, cold sweat already emerging.

After a long time, Xiao Jue finally took a set of pure black casual clothes. Only then did Yu Hai notice that though all the clothes thrown on the ground were black, they more or less had decorations – only this one had no flourishes at all.

Still as if not seeing him, Xiao Jue changed clothes himself. The black clothing was solemn, his complexion slightly pale, lips tightly pressed. He selected a waist blade from the antique shelf, again ignoring everyone as he walked out.

Old Yu Hai dared not daze anymore. Spreading both hands, he desperately threw himself kneeling at Xiao Jue’s feet: “Your Majesty… Your Majesty…”

His gaze coldly moved down. This time Xiao Jue’s eyes also showed no expression – this complete indifference made Yu Hai’s cold sweat pour like waterfalls. Hearing Xiao Jue only make a nasal “Hmm?” sound, he immediately kowtowed frantically: “Your Majesty, please stop please stop… Your precious golden body, absolutely must not…”

“Yu Hai,” Xiao Jue looked steadily at him. Just when Yu Hai thought he was about to be kicked flying, he spoke: “Do you want to die?”

“Uh…”

“Do you want to harm others’ deaths?”

“Uh…”

“Tonight, you, or any person you arrange to follow me – that means one word: death.” Xiao Jue had no killing aura, yet this indifference made Yu Hai know he spoke absolute truth. “Not only you, but also your family, your palace companion, and any follower’s family… all must die.”

Staring at the sweating Yu Hai, Xiao Jue said indifferently: “Today is the kind of day when I very much want to use a boundless sea of blood to sacrifice to one person. Don’t force me to use fresh blood to exchange for the tranquility I want.”

Yu Hai couldn’t say anything anymore, only knowing to kowtow on the ground. His forehead quickly became bruised and swollen. He looked up with tears and snot flowing: “This old slave… this old slave… this old slave dare not… this old slave only begs Your Majesty… treasure yourself…”

Indifferently walking around him, Xiao Jue left without even looking.

Wind slammed the opened hall doors shut with a bang. Cold, lonely footsteps echoed away one by one.

Yu Hai collapsed softly on the ground for a long time, until awakened by the door-slamming sound. He crawled and rolled to get up, stumbling and running to the side hall’s small Buddhist shrine, tremblingly taking incense to light before the Buddha statue.

In the incense smoke, the Buddha statue smiled compassionately with eternal peaceful serenity. Yu Hai wept as he raised the incense high above his head, devoutly kowtowing.

“Buddha, please protect my master’s safety…”

…

Yingdu – the capital city he had conquered together with her.

The former “Immovable City,” called an insurmountable natural barrier, the mainland’s first famous city with triple city walls that no army could destroy.

Destroyed under the meteor arrows of the Wind and Rain Divine Crossbow.

Those towering high walls, fluttering banners, forests of weapon points, ten thousand armies ready for battle.

That red horse like fire, white clothes like snow – the woman standing on horseback, a mysterious smile at her lips, delicate hand drawing back a vermillion longbow with string-sound ringing.

One crisp sound destroyed a dynasty.

From then creating new legends.

Standing beneath the city walls, looking up and listening to wind sounds rushing from the foot of Green Horse Sacred Mountain, those wind sounds faintly seemed to carry a woman’s smiling words.

“Boys, which of you can take that banner and bring it to the Marshal this evening to wipe boots?”

Chang Ge, not just the Yellow Dragon Banner of the Yuan Dynasty – these rivers and mountains were ultimately all used to wipe my boots, your lapels.

Then who was it who lightly cast aside, turning all records of the journey of support and love into flying bloodied silk, abandoned in Changle Palace’s eternal demon fire?

Xiao Jue walked alone in darkness, silent as a tree.

A tree that had endured winter, bleak and desolate.

Palace gates, Heaven and Earth Altar, Ministry of Agriculture Platform, Hongwen Academy, Jade Universe Platform, Plank Ferry Bridge, Jiafu Gate, Dong’an Main Street, West Residence Main Street, Zhengyi Main Street, Tianqu Main Street…

These lands that had recorded their footprints.

Three years later, in deep night, he left the palace through the secret passage Qin Chang Ge had once taught him, alone, embracing remembrance of the deceased, step by step treading again over old places.

Moonlight was lonely and clear, stretching shadows long – long as eternal pain and longing.

This moment’s quiet was good, suitable for mourning the departed.

After today, after today… that time for mourning, he would use for revenge.

These years, sleeping in the ruins after the burning, unwilling to open his eyes and face facts, allowing private feelings and obsessions to stubbornly let rumors bury both her and himself, wasting three years vainly, missing the best opportunity to find the true culprit.

Now, how could he allow Chang Ge to die so unclearly?

To die so unclearly, bearing shame?

Looking up, a long howl – howling out all sorrows and joys piercing darkness, shooting far up to the clouds!

The emperor’s grief made grass and trees bow low; the emperor’s anger made wind and thunder startle.

Thick clouds gathered at the horizon, faintly rolling, while a line of early rainbow appeared in the distant southwest.

Heaven and earth shook in alarm, not daring to speak, yet there were reckless, ignorant people who rashly provoked.

“Crack!” A window on the second floor of a roadside tavern was forcefully pushed open. Someone spat a thick gob of phlegm and loudly cursed:

“Damn it! Where did this madman come from! Howling like a funeral in the middle of the night!”

The thick phlegm fell, wet and sticky, landing right on the face of Xiao Jue standing below.

Raising his long eyebrows, a flash of dark light in the darkness, then silence. Xiao Jue was silent for a moment, slowly wiping with his sleeve, looking up at the backlit man on the second floor whose face couldn’t be seen clearly, coldly saying: “Good aim.”

“Of course!” That person’s tone was frivolous. “Poor scholar! Your Master Jiang grants you golden liquid – receive it well, maybe your luck will change greatly in future, and you’ll have to thank Master me!”

Behind him lights were bright with many shadows. Vaguely people could be heard laughing loudly: “Exactly, kid, when you walk through the capital in future, you won’t need to seek anyone’s patronage. Just say ‘spat-upon person under the Minister’s door’ and you’ll enjoy endless benefits!”

A burst of laughter, someone mockingly chanted: “Yesterday at the thatched gate studying by candlelight, today on Heaven’s Avenue embracing spittle, poor scholar, under Minister Jiang’s door, today you’re lucky to climb up, though it sounds inelegant, it’s still your fortune!”

Another round of dissolute laughter mixed with teasing of prostitutes and courtesans, women’s coquettish laughter, boy prostitutes’ affected voices, “little darling sweetheart baby”… a cacophony that wouldn’t stop. Several people swayed drunkenly to the window, craning their necks to see the “spat-upon follower.”

Xiao Jue smiled – extremely coldly.

Chang Ge… are you punishing me? Punishing my heartless forgetfulness? I’m actually being insulted by petty people in my own country, under my own feet.

If being insulted could bring you back, that would be fine.

Unfortunately…

The mocking laughter continued. Xiao Jue looked up, his gaze like startling lightning.

One person met his gaze and suddenly shivered, face turning white, falling silent. After thinking, he pulled his head back inside.

His keen instincts saved his life.

“Crack!”

Xiao Jue swiftly lifted his robe hem, kicking a head-sized stone by the roadside flying up to the second floor!

The stone howled like rushing thunder, carrying the grief, anger and killing intent accumulated in his heart with nowhere to vent, with thunderous force, smashing into a head stretched out like a turtle!

Snow-white flowers bloomed brilliantly in the night sky!

Bloomed in a crowd’s terrified, amazed, infinitely dilated pupils, bloomed in the intoxicated, wealthy, glorious romantic background.

With just one kick, a perfectly good head completely shattered.

Bright red blood and white brain matter shot out like fountains, mixing in the air into pink bloody rain, then splashing down.

Xiao Jue had already flashed away from his original position. With a sweep of his robe, he flew up to the second floor.

The moment he appeared at the stairway, actors, prostitutes and boy prostitutes all shrieked piercingly. Mindlessly they swarmed in chaos, screaming “Murder!” as they scattered everywhere seeking escape routes.

Jiang Hua’s son, the Ministry of Personnel Minister’s child, the capital’s famous villain Jiang Chuanyun stared pale-faced at the murderous, black-robed, death-god-like Xiao Jue, his legs trembling, crotch slightly wet.

He had just been standing at the window. This demon had kicked a flying stone killing his most relied-upon guest Wan Shengmu. That usually most eloquent, extremely agile excellent head had just exploded bloodily before his eyes. Blood and brain matter splashed his face. He saw in horror that mouth which could sing, compose verses, do voice tricks, compose lewd songs and often amused him to excitement suddenly disappeared. Snow-white teeth flew everywhere, hitting his forehead like stones, immediately raising a bump.

But he had already forgotten the pain.

That killing god had actually come upstairs!

Frantically pulling people in front of himself as shields, Jiang Chuanyun panicked incoherently, issuing chaotic orders: “Someone, someone, help! Help!… Kill him… kill him!”

But the others were also in chaos, desperately struggling not to be his human shields. How could they care what he was saying?

Xiao Jue only sneered as he stood at the stairway, watching this group who had been so arrogant moments ago running around like headless flies. He simply swept his robes and sat boldly on the stair handrail.

There was one advisor who remained relatively calm. Seeing Xiao Jue was alone while their own people were in chaos, feeling there was no need for such panic, he shouted loudly: “Everyone! Don’t panic! Call your bodyguards – he’s just one person!”

This reminder awakened the young masters. They quickly shouted loudly. Their bodyguards had originally been sent aside for being inconvenient, but now became lifesaving straws. Those guards waiting in carriages not far outside had also heard the commotion and were rushing upstairs quickly.

“Right, right!” Young Master Jiang was delighted, continuously shouting: “Kill him! Whoever kills him, I’ll reward a hundred taels of gold plus an official position!”

Under heavy rewards there must be brave men. Everyone’s spirits lifted greatly as they shouted together:

“Kill him!!!”