Chapter 12

Feng Yan returned to the bedroom, Chen Hao looked at his appearance, understood something, and directly said: "Let's start, there are some things we cannot decide; even if we don't succeed, just keep it in mind, waiting for the day we forget." "Mm." Feng Yan nodded, directly put on the thing, and entered.

When they entered again, they directly arrived at the inn; the sword floated in midair, Feng Yan stretched out his hand, and the sword flew into his hand. Feng Yan knew the sword was now his; he looked at the sword, its body was transparent black, with a thin red thread winding around the middle, the hilt pure black. Feng Yan asked Chen Hao, saying: "Should I give it a name, this sword?"

The sword stood upright before Feng Yan, as if waiting for his name; Chen Hao looked at it, about to say something, but was drawn outside by the chatter: "Hey, you know? That madman is going to be executed!" "You mean the madman who spouts nonsense?" "Exactly, him!" Chen Hao pushed the door open and asked one of the two people there: "Just now, what you said—can you tell us everything you know?" The person, seeing someone inquiring, immediately perked up and said: "It's that madman who kept wandering the residential area earlier; what's up with you? He, together with an adventurer, found the nation's treasure and even forged a sword—heard it's a black sword. The Marshal asked them to hand over that sword; guess what? The sword seemed to be controlled by something, and in a swipe it cut off the weapons of the soldiers beside the Marshal! Later the adventurer vanished into thin air, the madman was taken back to the great prison, awaiting punishment; today he was announced to be executed, the execution will be the day after tomorrow."

The day after tomorrow?" Feng Yan pondered inwardly; it seems these people truly live up to the name Lilliputian Kingdom. Then he said to Chen Hao: "Shall we first go to the Grand Preceptor's residence?" "Why?" Chen Hao asked, puzzled. Feng Yan shoved open the gate, walking and saying: "Anyway, you'll understand once we go." So the two arrived at the Grand Preceptor's gate, where servants blocked them. Feng Yan said nothing, directly knocked a servant to the ground. The people of the Grand Preceptor's residence gathered, surrounding Feng Yan and Chen Hao; all servants rushed forward. At that moment the sword descended from the sky, straight toward stabbing into the crowd—"ding!"—the servants all stepped back. "Fall back!" the Grand Preceptor arrived and said directly; the servants retreated. The Grand Preceptor stepped forward and asked: "Why have you come uninvited?" Feng Yan drew the sword planted in the ground; the Grand Preceptor gasped—it was— the sword of the former Ju Ren Guo General Hou Fangjie! The Grand Preceptor widened his eyes, watching Feng Yan loosen his grip; the sword floated beside Feng Yan. Feng Yan glanced at the Grand Preceptor and said directly: "I and Chen Hao came here for only one thing: release him, that madman." The Grand Preceptor shook his head and said: "There's no way; he must die." "Why?" Chen Hao shouted. The Grand Preceptor laughed and said nothing. Feng Yan gripped the sword, his hold tightening, finally he let go and said: "Let's go." Feng Yan said helplessly, "But—" Chen Hao hadn't finished when Feng Yan cut him off: "Let's go." Feng Yan said; Chen Hao gritted his teeth and finally left.

"Why?" Chen Hao asked Feng Yan. "You didn't notice?" Feng Yan said. "They just want to kill the madman; why ask?" Chen Hao was very doubtful, he asked puzzled: "Why?" Feng Yan was about to speak when a notice appeared on the nearby wall, reading: "Criminal Feng Qingshu, colluded with enemy state, committed treason, to be hanged at three o'clock three days from now."

"It seems he is Feng Qingshu's descendant; that explains it well." Chen Hao said. "Should we break him out of prison tonight?" "Do you know where the prison is?" Feng Yan asked. "I don't," Chen Hao said. "So," Feng Yan said, "we need the Marshal's help." "Will he help us?" "As the Grand Preceptor's rival, we can only try." Feng Yan said. Thus Feng Yan and Chen Hao came to the Marshal's gate and told the guard: "I have an important matter to discuss with the Marshal; please report it." The servant's face full of contempt, Feng Yan kicked him up; the servant flipped over backward. "I'm speaking nicely and you still won't listen? Who are you?" The servant instantly surrounded Feng Yan and Chen Hao again. Only then did Feng Yan raise his right hand; the sword flew through the air and stopped before him. Feng Yan curled the corner of his mouth slightly and said to the sword: "This time you can have fun." As soon as he finished speaking, the sword flew straight into the crowd; the servants dared not act rashly. The sword flew again; a servant lunged forward, holding a long blade; the sword met the blade and passed straight through—only a sound was heard, the blade split into two.

Clap-clap-clap, applause followed as the Marshal slowly walked out, saying: "After all, it's the Ju Ren Guo treasure sword; alas, this item has no name—perhaps no one is worthy to give it a name." Feng Yan ignored what the Marshal said, staring at him for a long time, then said: "I came for Feng Qingshu's matter." "Sorry, I am incapable." The Marshal laughed and said. Feng Yan stepped forward, walking toward the Marshal. He came before the Marshal and whispered: "This place is inconvenient; may we step aside to talk?" Chen Hao saw them find a secluded corner. Feng Yan kept speaking. The Marshal nodded. Then he walked over and directly told a servant: "Bring out the map of the great prison." The servant went to get it. While the servant was fetching it, the Marshal said to Feng Yan: "I hope you keep your promise." Feng Yan nodded. The map was brought. Feng Yan said to the Marshal: "Farewell."

After leaving the Marshal's residence, Chen Hao only then asked: "What did you promise him?" "It's the Lilliputian Kingdom's treasure, you see—when we woke up that day we had closed off the treasure; they didn't dare, but we have it!" Feng Yan pointed to the sword following behind and said. Chen Hao nodded and said: "Then should we prepare a bit and go straight to rescue the madman?" Feng Yan opened the map, looked at it, and said: "Do we need to devise tactics?" Chen Hao asked: "Is it necessary? Can we not handle these people?" Feng Yan said: "Indeed, let's just walk through the main gate!" So they went straight to the great prison; seeing Feng Yan and Chen Hao, the soldiers shouted: "Who are you?" The two turned back; the soldiers dared not provoke further. Feng Yan said to the soldiers: "I am the king's honored guest; what else do you want to do?" The soldiers dared not speak, slowly opened the gate, and entered the prison.

Upon entering the prison, a musty smell rushed straight into the nostrils; Feng Yan wondered, thinking: "How can there still be such a thing?" Their gaze swept over one cell after another, hoping to find him—the madman—they had been searching, feeling anxious, time pressing; finally they found him in a cell. Feng Yan slashed his sword, breaking the lock on the wooden door; the man wore prison garb, his body covered in wounds; the white uniform showed red bloodstains, one after another, old wounds unhealed, new ones added. Looking at the madman's body, Chen Hao felt both shock and anger, saying: "These are our own people." He then hoisted the madman onto his back and left the cell; they walked this way down the prison corridor. Feng Yan looked at the wounded madman, recalling his behavior when they first met, thinking: "How absurd—entering a game to save a person? Or perhaps this isn't a game?" Feng Yan's ear again recalled that saying: "All people are innocent; opening a window to let light shine on the filthy person—that is the sin." The madman slowly woke, seeing Chen Hao carrying him, Feng Yan's right hand gripping the sword as he walked forward, he said: "Put me down; this way you can still begin your journey." Feng Yan told him: "We will send you out of this country; your family was sentenced for opposing hidden weapons—why won't you leave? You are the most humane person in this nation!" "This is my country," the madman chuckled weakly, "so no matter what he is like, I cannot leave."

Feng Yan still wanted to say something when the king, leading troops, had already surrounded this place. The king said to Feng Yan: "I gave you my most precious throne; if you don't appreciate it, fine, but you still openly humiliated me and the ministers in the great hall, and now you want to take away the criminal—come on, seize these two!" The soldiers surged forward; the prison corridor was narrow, the soldiers couldn't dodge; Feng Yan directly threw his sword out, it flashed a faint red light and thrust straight at the soldiers. The king stared, his heart startled, eyes wide, stammering: "This is the sword from the duel of the two nations' generals back then!" The king watched his own soldiers being pierced by that sword; the sword, stained with blood, seemed even more excited, flying straight toward him. The soldiers moved toward the king; the captain of the guard shouted: "Protect the king!" "Come back." After Feng Yan's sentence, the sword returned to his hand. Feng Yan held it, examining closely; although that instant had wounded many soldiers, it had only stained a little blood. Feng Yan said to the king: "Let's discuss a condition." "What condition?" the king asked. "Simply, you let us walk out of this heavenly prison, and I will give you all the treasure except this sword—what do you think, Your Majesty?" The king nodded, letting the three pass by; the soldier asked: "Your Majesty, this?" "It's fine; if we fought inside this prison, the sword would kill us all without leaving a trace—just now they held back, so the soldiers only suffered superficial wounds, and besides, the prison's narrowness prevents us from maneuvering; we can only think of a solution after we get out." The king said.

Feng Yan and the three ran all the way; "The gate is right ahead! Let's hurry!" Feng Yan said. Thus they sped up, bursting out of the prison gate; Feng Yan was the first to sprint out of the prison, he looked at the sun and recalled that dark, damp prison: "One door separates the human world from hell." Feng Yan said. "Mm," Chen Hao replied after setting down the madman.

"How are you, gentlemen?" the Grand Preceptor said, leading troops to surround Feng Yan's group. Feng Yan saw the Grand Preceptor and said: "It seems you're still like this—searching for treasure is just your pretense, isn't your goal to lure out the madman?" "One shouldn't say that," the Grand Preceptor replied, his face ferocious: "I still want to spare his life, to torment him properly!" "If it weren't for him opposing, my father wouldn't have been killed by the Ju Ren Guo general!" the Grand Preceptor continued, waving his hand; a group of soldiers immediately surrounded Feng Yan's party. The madman slowly woke, opened his eyes, saw this scene, and in a daze realized he had been saved by the two before him; the madman stood up, Chen Hao slowly helped him to his feet, weakly he said to the Grand Preceptor: "Ancestors' grudges—why still quarrel? We all serve the country; besides, our forebears have already entered paradise—why still quarrel?" The king walked out of the prison gate and shouted directly at the Grand Preceptor: "Send troops to annihilate them; they hold our nation's supreme treasure!" The soldiers surged forward; Feng Yan gripped his sword, a single slash severed the arms of the charging soldiers from their bodies; that soldier fell to the ground; the remaining soldiers rushed forward and trampled him into mincemeat; Feng Yan threw his sword out, it pierced through the soldiers' chests one after another, and instantly a large pile of corpses lay on the ground.

The sword floated in midair; the red thread within the blade slowly separated from the sword, slowly becoming another red sword! The king widened his eyes; the two swords flew straight into Feng Yan's hands. Seeing Feng Yan, the soldiers watched him leap into midair, his whole body enveloped in killing intent—Chen Hao had never seen Feng Yan like this—"Could it be?" Chen Hao couldn't think further; Feng Yan gripped both swords and charged straight into the crowd; instantly a gap opened in the crowd, those people were slain by Feng Yan in an instant! Then Feng Yan rushed straight to the king's position; the king collapsed straight to the ground, revealing a terrified expression; "Protect the king!" the soldiers cried, hastily withdrawing to the king's side. Feng Yan waved his right hand, releasing a black sword aura that burst upon the ground; seizing the moment, Feng Yan thrust the black sword straight at the king. At that instant, the Grand Preceptor's face flickered with an imperceptible smile; shortly after, he shouted loudly: "The king!" and ran over. Afterwards he stopped his steps, as if he had seen something he couldn't believe.

The madman stood before the king, his abdomen already pierced through by Feng Yan's black sword; his hands gripped the sword shaft, blood dripping from his palms, drop by drop falling to the ground, staining the earth red. The king, still shaken, collapsed to the ground; seeing the madman block the sword for him, he too trembled as he rose. The Grand Preceptor rushed over quickly to support him. Feng Yan gradually regained his senses; he saw the madman before him, the sword already having pierced his body; the madman spat a mouthful of blood and said: "Don't blame me; blocking the sword for His Majesty is also a great blessing." The madman's eyes gradually lost their luster, slowly closing. Hearing this, the king sighed: "Alas, I shall never again have such a loyal subject." Feng Yan withdrew the black sword; the red sword slowly returned into the black sword, reverting to its original form. Feng Yan gripped the sword; the soldiers dared not advance; he directly told the king: "They say what is lost is most precious—I see only that some people do not cherish it."

Feng Yan carried the madman on his back; Chen Hao said: "We should bury him." Thus they found the nearest coffin shop; Feng Yan told the owner: "The best—someone will come later to pay the bill!" The owner dared not speak; Feng Yan had just left when the Grand Preceptor entered, asking: "How much?" "One thousand taels." So the Grand Preceptor paid, watching Feng Yan and Chen Hao's retreating backs, he said: "It seems they do not belong here."

Feng Yan returned to the place where they first met, laid the madman on the ground, and said: "We regard him as a madman, yet we have never truly understood anyone." "Exactly," Chen Hao replied, "people think they can see through others, but in fact who can truly see through a person?" Feng Yan buried the madman, cupping yellow earth in both hands and gradually covering the coffin; then he drew his sword, carved a nearby stone into a stele, and set it before the grave. Feng Yan didn't know what to say; his heart held many feelings, so he inscribed on the stele: "Born for the nation, died for the nation, long endured wind and frost, the world does not know his thoughts; if reborn in the next life, may he not forget his original intent to die for the nation."

After Feng Yan set up the stele, servants of the Marshal and the Grand Preceptor came to invite him; the two servants said to the pair: "Our masters request your presence at their residences." Feng Yan said to the Marshal's servant: "Please tell your lord, your household is too clean; we filthy folk cannot go there." Chen Hao said to the Grand Preceptor's servant: "The Grand Preceptor's household is even cleaner; we cannot go there either." Chen Hao added: "To you, we are rotten to the core."

Yang Xin fled half-dead, feeling his life ebbing away bit by bit; "This feeling—doing this is truly impressive," he thought, then collapsed before the Grand Preceptor's gate. A servant opened the door and told the steward: "Outside is a half-dead person." "Just throw him out, wouldn't that be fine?" the steward scolded. "Wait a moment; perhaps this person could be useful," the Grand Preceptor said. He stepped out, saw Yang Xin, smiled, and thought: "Now things are finally getting interesting."

"Then, where is our next stop?" Feng Yan asked.

"Ju Ren Guo, I hear it's an ideal land there!" "Mm, let's go there."

The two servants watched Feng Yan and his party walk away, wondering how to respond, when they noticed the Grand Preceptor and the Marshal already standing behind them, gazing at the stele Feng Yan had erected; their faces showed disbelief. Indeed, the king had pardoned the madman's family; they stared at the inscription, standing there for a long time.

Feng Yan and the two's bodies gradually turned transparent; they knew, dawn had broken.