In the distant toll of bells, the Emperor lightly lifted his feet, ascending the white marble steps towards the Spirit Hall. Traditionally, only descendants of the Xie clan were allowed to enter the Spirit Hall. Seeing the Crown Prince still by the incense burner, far from the hall, Wei Zhao hesitated.
Pei Yan couldn’t fathom how the Emperor planned to ignite the gunpowder beneath Fang City, killing many while allowing himself and the Crown Prince to escape in time.
As the fragrant smoke rose, the Crown Prince lit the finger-thick ceremonial incense. He performed the three kowtows towards the Spirit Hall, then reverently inserted the three sticks of incense into the center of the burner.
The Emperor looked back, smiling with satisfaction, then gazed at everyone before the hall. The Crown Prince was the first to kneel, followed by Prince Zhuang, Pavilion Master Ye, and all the Guangming Si guards. Pei Yan hesitated briefly before kneeling beside the Crown Prince.
Wei Zhao, however, looked up at the Emperor. The winter sun shone on the dark green glazed tiles of the Spirit Hall, reflecting a soft glow that also cast a flickering light in the Emperor’s eyes beneath the tiles.
This figure in imperial yellow was like the King of Hell, entangled in his nightmares for over a decade. Even now, it still gripped his throat, threatening to drag him into an abyss.
More than ten years of bone-deep humiliation and endless hatred – only he truly understood the man standing before the Spirit Hall. Only he could see the determined glint in his eyes.
How ruthless he was, willing to sacrifice even the Crown Prince in this explosion on Fang City! There must be a secret escape route inside the Spirit Hall. What the Crown Prince had just lit was likely the fuse for the gunpowder!
There was no turning back now! At that moment, Wei Zhao’s eyes blazed terrifyingly bright. He sprang up, lunging towards the Emperor who had just stepped into the Spirit Hall, shouting, “Xie Che!”
The Emperor turned at that moment, looking up at the spirit tablet of the late Emperor. “Xie Che!” The shout was like the late Emperor’s furious accusation on his deathbed. His heart trembled, and his Yuan Power suddenly became chaotic.
Like a bolt of lightning, Wei Zhao leaped up the steps in an instant. His toes barely touched the jade stone before the hall as he lunged at the Emperor. The Emperor’s martial skills had greatly diminished since his serious illness, and with his Yuan Power in disarray, he couldn’t dodge in time. Wei Zhao tackled him to the ground.
A grey shadow flashed as Pavilion Master Ye darted into the Spirit Hall like a lone wild goose. Before Wei Zhao could seal the Emperor’s acupoints, Ye’s short blade had already slashed through his fox fur coat.
Wei Zhao rolled on the ground as Ye’s blade struck the blue bricks of the hall, sending up a spray of cold light. Ye twisted his waist, lunging at Wei Zhao again, shouting, “Your Majesty, flee quickly! Protect the Emperor!”
Outside the hall, Pei Yan realized what was happening when Wei Zhao shouted “Xie Che.” He swiftly kicked the incense burner, sending sparks and dust flying.
Beneath the burner, three fuses were sparking.
As Pei Yan moved to extinguish the fuses, a chilling sword aura surrounded him as several long swords attacked from all sides. If he didn’t dodge, he would be riddled with holes. With no choice, Pei Yan leaped up, avoiding the combined attack of several masked men in black.
The Crown Prince, who had been standing aside, seized this moment to flee quickly.
Inside and outside the hall, the situation changed in an instant. Wei Zhao attacked the Emperor, while Pei Yan battled with the masked men in black who had appeared from nowhere. Although Prince Zhuang didn’t understand why Wei Zhao had launched the attack before Gao Cheng’s arrival, the arrow was already on the string – it had to be released. The bell had rung, and Gao Cheng would arrive at any moment. There was no room for hesitation. Seeing the cloaked Crown Prince rushing towards the base of Fang City, Prince Zhuang shouted, “Attack!”
On Fang City, the Guangming Si guards were in chaos. Prince Zhuang’s men attacked the Crown Prince, while Wei Zhao’s secret allies in the Guangming Si rushed towards the Spirit Hall. The remaining few, confused and at a loss, looked around blankly before finally shouting, “Protect the Emperor! Guard His Majesty!”
Prince Zhuang, trained in Xie clan martial arts, had a short blade hidden in his sleeve. With a few leaps, a cold light flashed, and before the Crown Prince could turn, the blade sank into his back. But at the same time, over a dozen more masked men in black appeared in Fang City, their skills no less than any Guangming Si guard. Some rushed towards the Spirit Hall, while others surrounded Prince Zhuang.
Outside the Spirit Hall, by the incense burner, Pei Yan fought against five opponents. After a few moves, he realized these masked men in black were all disciples of the “Tianyin Pavilion.” He could hear Wei Zhao and Pavilion Master Ye’s shouts as they fought inside the hall, and he saw the three fuses burning shorter by the inch. Desperate, he filled his body with Yuan Power, releasing a burst of energy. As he leaned back slightly, a masked man’s sword pierced his left shoulder. With an angry roar, Pei Yan seized the sword from the man’s hand before he could withdraw it.
The majestic aura that could make thousands of soldiers bow rose with the sword light. Pei Yan channeled his sword energy to its limit, his body becoming a purple flash as he shot toward the fuses.
But more and more masked men surrounded him, and the fuses grew shorter and shorter. In his urgency and anger, Pei Yan threw his sword, cutting two of the fuses, but one fuse continued to spark, extending into the black hole.
Having thrown his sword, he couldn’t block the combined attack of his opponents. He stumbled, receiving another sword wound to his left leg.
He rolled on the ground several times, avoiding the relentless sword attacks until he reached the overturned incense burner, where he finally managed to stand. In despair, he slapped his right hand on the burner, using it to leap towards the battlements of Fang City, shouting, “Run!”
But several more masked men leaped into the air before him. With several sword strikes, Pei Yan had to dodge, his Yuan Power failing, forcing him to land. He snatched a long sword from a Guangming Si guard and engaged in fierce combat with these masked men.
Inside the hall, seeing the Emperor’s body halfway into the secret passage beneath the incense table, Wei Zhao gritted his teeth. Ignoring Pavilion Master Ye’s incoming blade, he left his back exposed and lunged at the Emperor.
He grabbed the Emperor’s right foot, pulling him forcefully back out of the passage entrance. But Pavilion Master Ye’s blade pierced his left shoulder.
Wei Zhao let out a wild cry. Enduring another sword slash to his left leg from a masked man, his right hand moved like the wind, aiming for the Emperor’s acupoints. But the Emperor had already risen, countering with an elbow strike to Wei Zhao’s chest. Wei Zhao summoned all his Yuan Power to block this full-force attack, and before blood could spray from his mouth, he struck the Emperor’s back with his palm. The Emperor fell to the ground with a howl.
“Run!” Pei Yan’s shout came through, and at that moment, the mountain wind suddenly intensified, shaking off thousands of snow-laden pine needles.
At this moment, Wei Zhao fell into complete despair. He spat out a mouthful of blood, pulled the short blade from his shoulder, and stood before the collapsed Emperor, blocking the attacks from Pavilion Master Ye and the masked men.
But severely wounded, he couldn’t withstand the assault of these dozen or so experts. Just as he was about to falter, Yi Wu finally arrived with several men, rushing up Fang City and into the Spirit Hall, engaging the masked men in combat.
Wei Zhao tore off his blood-soaked fox fur coat, whirling it to create a fierce wind as he battled with Pavilion Master Ye.
“Your Majesty, flee quickly! Protect the Emperor!” When Pavilion Master Ye’s shout, filled with Yuan Power, echoed in the distance, Dong Fang raised his head abruptly outside Xianzhang Gate.
Why had chaos erupted in Fang City before Gao Cheng’s remnant troops, intentionally released by Marquis Suhai, arrived? Before he could think further, the officials were already in turmoil. Everyone looked up, clearly seeing the scene in Fang City:
On Fang City, Pei Yan seemed to be desperately fending off a group of masked men. The Crown Prince, under his cover, fled rapidly but was stabbed by Prince Zhuang’s short blade and collapsed. Pei Yan shouted in anger repeatedly but was surrounded by the masked men. From the distance, it wasn’t clear, but from his shouts, it was evident he was injured.
In the towering Spirit Hall, Wei Zhao, the Emperor’s most favored, had struck the Emperor down with a palm strike.
The officials were in chaos. Dong Fang rushed across the Jade Belt Bridge, shouting tremblingly, “Protect the Emperor! Protect the Emperor!”
Seeing Dong Fang approach, Jiang Yuan quickly whistled urgently. From all corners of the Imperial Mausoleum, Guangming Si guards swarmed towards Xianzhang Gate. But inside Xianzhang Gate, the Guangming Si guards who had been on duty suddenly shouted and attacked the incoming guards.
Jiang Yuan seemed dumbfounded, staring blankly as guards in identical brocade uniforms fought each other, unable to remember how to command his subordinates to protect the Emperor.
Seeing the situation spiral out of control, Dong Fang halted his steps. He gazed at the fighting figures in Fang City, anxious like an ant on a hot pan, yet helpless to act.
The officials were in disarray. The civil officials, unaccustomed to such bloody scenes, fainted in droves. The military officials, unable to distinguish who the rebels were, could only roar in frustration.
Inside the Spirit Hall, the Emperor lay dying before the secret passage entrance, struggling to crawl towards it inch by inch.
Wei Zhao noticed this as he dodged and swiftly struck the Emperor’s back with his fox fur coat. The Emperor collapsed softly to the ground. As Pavilion Master Ye’s palm strike came, Wei Zhao lost his balance and fell onto the Emperor.
Pavilion Master Ye leaped over, intending to push Wei Zhao aside. A cold light flashed in Wei Zhao’s eyes as his right hand, channeling all his remaining inner force, struck Pavilion Master Ye’s chest. Caught off guard, Ye was sent flying backward, spewing blood in mid-air. Despite this severe injury, he was incredibly tenacious. Upon landing, he snatched a long sword from a masked man and attacked Wei Zhao again.
Facing the cold blade with bare hands, Wei Zhao’s white robe was dyed red with blood. But each of his moves was lethal, unyielding.
His snow-white, beautiful face was now covered with a deathly grey pallor. As he lost more and more blood, his vision blurred. In his ears, he seemed to hear the “sizzle” of the fuse burning towards the gunpowder beneath Fang City. Before his eyes, he seemed to see her bright smile once more.
“I want you to swear you’ll never leave me again, for the rest of your life.”
“Alright, I’ll never leave you for the rest of my life.”
“I want you to swear it.”
“Fine, if I ever leave you again, may I be punished by being consumed by raging flames—”
The vow made in the stone house of Xingyue Valley pierced through layers of cold wind and chilling sword aura, breaking through space and time.
Not wanting to leave, yet having to leave you;
Not wanting to taint your purity, yet still letting you fall into the dust;
Not wanting you to be swallowed by darkness, yet not realizing, I am the endless darkness;
Perhaps, only today’s raging flames can redeem a lifetime of sins. Only these consuming flames can cleanse the endless shame in my soul—
Phoenix, oh Phoenix, your feathers have long been soiled, why not return to the West, why not be reborn?!
But who will protect my Yue Luo? Who will give my Yue Luo decades of peaceful days?!
His vision gradually blurred. Looking out, he saw only Pei Yan’s purple figure outside the hall, like a bolt of lightning illuminating the entire dark sky—
“Secret passage!” Wei Zhao suddenly came to his senses, shouting these two words with all his might.
Pei Yan, unable to break through Fang City, was in a state of frenzied anger when he heard Wei Zhao’s shout and understood. He channeled a spiral of Yuan Power, waiting for the masked men’s sword momentum to falter under its influence. Then he swiftly floated backward, leaping into the Spirit Hall. The masked men had only been guarding against him breaking through Fang City forward, not expecting him to return to the hall, and couldn’t stop him in time.
Mid-air, Pei Yan thrust his sword forward. This bone-chillingly cold strike silently pierced Pavilion Master Ye’s waist, causing him to collapse.
At this moment, Prince Zhuang, surrounded by masked men, exhausted his strength and lost his stance. A flash of cold light streaked by, leaving a trail of blood dust, and Prince Zhuang slowly fell to the ground.
Meanwhile, Yi Wu, in fierce combat, fell simultaneously with a masked man. His last gift to Wei Zhao was only a painful cry: “Master, flee quickly!”
More and more people swarmed onto Fang City, turning it into a chaotic melee.
Outside Xianzhang Gate, the officials looked up from afar, watching everything unfold in Fang City.
Wei Zhao’s face had turned a cold jade-like white, with blood staining his lips and chest. His wounds continued to bleed profusely. He staggered to his feet, his eyes seeming to burn with raging flames.
Pei Yan saw this clearly and was about to pull him into the secret passage when Wei Zhao suddenly gripped his sword-wielding right wrist. Caught off guard, Pei Yan couldn’t break free. Thinking Wei Zhao was delirious from blood loss, he urgently called out, “San Lang!”
Blood continued to flow from the corner of Wei Zhao’s mouth. He stared intently at Pei Yan’s face, his gaze sharp, and said fiercely, “Pei, you owe me. Remember to repay it, or I won’t let you go even as a ghost!”
Before Pei Yan could react, Wei Zhao grabbed his wrist and, with a loud shout, drove Pei Yan’s long sword deep into his side.
Pei Yan was shocked. Wei Zhao spat out a mouthful of fresh blood, his face growing even paler. Yet he struggled to hold his head high, glancing sideways at Pei Yan with a cold smile, and said softly, “Shao Jun, let’s be friends again in our next life—”
Pei Yan suddenly understood. He shouted, “No!” and quickly reached out to grab Wei Zhao, but Wei Zhao had already spun around, using the last of his strength to kick Pei Yan in the chest.
Pei Yan felt a great force kicking him backward. Instinctively, he reached out, tearing off a piece of Wei Zhao’s white robe with a ripping sound. In an instant, he was thrown out of the Spirit Hall, flying through the air towards the base of Fang City.
In the cold wind, Pei Yan flew backward through the air. His eyes were wide with disbelief, the last image he saw was of Wei Zhao standing in the Spirit Hall, his white clothes stained with blood, seeming to smile at him one last time.
“Shao Jun, let’s be friends again in our next life—” These words echoed endlessly in Pei Yan’s ears. His mind was in chaos, instinctively used the force of Wei Zhao’s kick to control his body, and touched down rapidly on Fang City’s wall as he fell towards its base.
That white figure grew more and more distant as if separated by a river. On this side of the river was lively, warm life; on the other side was cold, endless hell—
The clear winter sky, looking up, showed a somewhat bleak blue.
As Pei Yan landed at the base of Fang City, the immense impact force from the high fall forced him to roll rapidly on the ground. A soft “crack” sounded, and his shoulder blade exploded in pain.
Amidst the pain and rolling, before his eyes flashed alternately the bleak blue sky, the blood-stained white, and the dark red of Fang City’s walls—
“Boom!”
As if countless evil spirits had surged out from hell, the ground trembled slightly.
Following this tremendous explosion, a mushroom-like cloud of fire slowly bloomed above Fang City, like a flower of hell opening on the most sacred altar.
Even with two fuses cut, the gunpowder ignited by this last fuse still caused half of Fang City to collapse, with one corner of the Spirit Hall crumbling.
A wave of heat rolled towards him like flowing water. Pei Yan struggled to roll away from this heat wave. Tiles and stone fragments flew everywhere, constantly falling on his face and body.
Raging flames shot skyward, engulfing the entire Spirit Hall.
Watching Pei Yan’s figure float away in the distance, Wei Zhao smiled desolately.
No longer able to support his faltering body, he staggered back a few steps and collapsed beside the Emperor.
“Boom!” With a thunderous roar, the explosion violently shook the Spirit Hall. The beams overhead creaked and fell one by one, with one crushing the Emperor’s leg, waking him with pain.
Surrounded by towering flames, the Emperor could barely withstand the intense heat. Summoning his last bit of strength, he crawled towards the secret passage entrance. Wei Zhao, his consciousness fading, instinctively pounced on the Emperor’s body, firmly gripping his waist.
The Emperor had long lost the strength to break free from his grip and gradually sank into pre-death delirium. His vision blurred, his breathing like that of a dying old man: “San Lang, I absolve you of all crimes. Come with me—”
Wei Zhao seemed not to hear, only tightening his hold on the Emperor’s waist. The flames entered the Spirit Hall, the bone-searing pain gradually engulfing them both.
So this was the pain of being consumed by raging flames;
So this was the pain of a phoenix’s rebirth—
Wei Zhao felt the blood in his body about to drain completely. His jade hairpin fell from his hair with a “clang,” his long hair whipped wildly by the wind stirred up by the flames, like black fire, tragic and heart-wrenching.
He laughed wildly to the heavens, fresh blood continuously flowing from the corner of his mouth: Finally, liberation—
Amidst the roaring flames, a high, passionate song pierced through the clouds:
“Phoenix, oh Phoenix
When will you return to the West,
Your resplendent feathers soaring to the sky,
Rising straight to the ninth heaven, looking down on sparrows,
Break my shackles and free me from sorrow.
Phoenix, oh Phoenix
Never to return,
What joy in life, what fear in death,
Wings broken mid-flight,
My heart and liver were crushed.
Phoenix, oh Phoenix
When will you return to the West,
Reborn through fire,
Who will weep for you?”
The bone-deep sorrowful song, seemingly carrying the immense joy of breaking free from shackles, gradually faded, becoming as thin as a gossamer thread, finally slowly disappearing into the raging flames—
Pei Yan could no longer roll. He gasped violently, lying face-up on the ground, gazing at the towering flames in Fang City. Unconsciously, he reached out his hand, calling softly, “San Lang!”
His fingers loosened, and the white sleeve he had been clutching was caught by the cold wind, fluttering upwards, flying towards the raging flames.
Under the winter sun, he seemed to see that snow-white face smiling behind the flames, seemed to hear his last words left in this mortal world.
“Shao Jun, let’s be friends again in our next life—”
In the cold wind, something slid from the corner of Pei Yan’s eye, seeping past his ear, and silently permeating into the dust.