Chapter 220

Zhang Dingyun led them all the way to the top floor and sat down in a room overlooking the lake and the willow forest.

Qi Zhaohua went to the window, took a look, turned back, and smiled, "Young Master Zhang has gone to great expense."

Zhang Dingyun waved his hand with grand spirit, "There is no business more profitable than currying favor with seven talents at one table simultaneously."

When Zhang Junxue arrived with two elders, everyone sat down for the banquet, which was naturally filled with hearty drinking and free-flowing conversation. After they were full of food and wine, dusk had fallen, and everyone scattered to rest.

The so-called Willow-Viewing Tower was named precisely for this large expanse of willow forest by the lake below. At this time, as the season entered autumn, the forest was already a patch of warm orange and covered in golden leaves, just like a color dipped from the last traces of the setting sun's radiance.

Everyone had things to do for the moment, so Pei Ye strolled through the forest alone, holding a book. It was not until the handwriting became too dim to see that he finally raised his head and put the book away.

There were already few tourists, and twilight and cold wind had shrouded the area. The golden hues all around had faded, and only a distant patch of brilliance remained in his field of vision. On the other side of the dark lake surface, it was a pagoda-shaped light, which was the highest point in Bowang—the nine-story Moon-Catching Tower.

Pei Ye stood watching it for a while and was about to continue moving when he heard the young woman in front say with a smile, "You have to be first to be able to climb up."

It was Qi Zhaohua, who had come down earlier; she was sitting under a pavilion holding a cup of tea, the cool night breeze dancing through her hair.

Pei Ye walked over with a smile, "Shall we stroll deeper in?"

"It's already not shallow here."

"I heard from Piaoqing that there is a wonder of moonlight deep in the forest."

"Oh, the 'Bright Frost Ground,' right? Most people really don't know about it." Qi Zhaohua smiled and stood up, "Then let's go."

"Is it still far?"

"Not exactly close."

The two walked quietly for a while, and gradually, pedestrians were completely invisible. The afterglow of the sunset had completely vanished, the bright moon had risen, and a few sparse stars hung in the cold, indifferent sky.

It was indeed very deep in the forest; looking back, the lights of the Willow-Viewing Tower were only a faint, shimmering speck.

"How does it feel today?" Qi Zhaohua smiled, "To distinguish victory and defeat with others in the center of thirty thousand people."

Pei Ye thought for a moment, "It feels... bare. As if I could stir something up with every movement."

And when he arrived, many people realized that what he had lunged out in was not a straight line, but a graceful arc. By means of this arc, Feng Guangsui tilted his body, allowing the sword light to strike upward from the boy's left flank—it was precisely an angle that made it quite awkward for the opponent's right-handed sword to exert force.

Pei Ye was stunned for a moment, "... That was a long time ago."

"In the county?"

"Yes, our Fenghuai holds a Mid-Autumn Martial Arts Society every year, and I've fought in it twice."

"How were the results?" Qi Zhaohua asked with a smile.

Pei Ye tilted his head slightly and smiled, gesturing to the sword at his waist for the young woman to see.

Qi Zhaohua looked at him with a puzzled expression.

"The prize for first place in the Martial Arts Society," Pei Ye said calmly.

"..." Qi Zhaohua laughed in spite of herself, "Then the young hero shouldn't be a stranger to this kind of gaze and cheering today."

Pei Ye smiled, "That's right, many people watched our Martial Arts Society too, back then—"

Memories collided with his mind in an instant: fervent gazes, excited cheers, excited, flushed faces.

He opened his mouth, but no sound came out. His expression then drooped, and the corners of his mouth pursed into an expressionless arc.

After a moment of suffocation, the youth exhaled gently and said in a low voice, "I am not a stranger to it."

"..." Qi Zhaohua looked at him; the deep forest was quiet, with only the sound of the wind brushing against the willow branches.

After a long while, looking at the youth's silent, cold, and hard expression, Qi Zhaohua continued to smile, "Then have you felt that gazes are not as 'heavy' as cheers?"

"Hmm?"

Qi Zhaohua sipped her tea, "You fought very gently today, and people still don't have much of a feeling for you, so you haven't experienced it—when every sword strike you make is accompanied by a towering wave of sound, you will feel as if you have grasped the emotions of thirty thousand people in your hands, all tied to a single sword. At that moment, the thing you will want to do most in your heart is to sweep away everyone who dares to compete with you and enjoy this massive cheering alone."

"... That sounds very blood-boiling." Pei Ye took a deep breath and pulled himself out of the memories.

"That's right, because—" Qi Zhaohua smiled, but then suddenly stopped.

The two fell silent at the same time.

A layer of silver frost was spread on the ground.

Three to five zhang in circumference, it was as if fallen moonlight had been captured here, and a silver plate had grown upon the earth.

However, there was indeed nothing spread upon it; this was a color bursting directly from the soil, and in the dim forest, it made the grass and trees appear as if they were draped in a layer of glistening, thin radiance.

'This is the Bright Frost Ground.' These words were in Qi Zhaohua's throat, but she did not say them.

Because in the center of this silver frost, a black figure was sitting cross-legged with his head lowered. The moonlight also cast a layer of thin frost upon him. A deep red long scabbard was placed to one side, and the man was gripping the sword hilt, the long sword deeply inserted into the soil before him.

He raised his head to look at the two, and the smile on his deep, stern face slowly faded.

That was an obsessed immersion, a heart-intoxicated joy, which now faded away with it. With a light sigh, the man drew his long sword; the bright sword body was not stained with a single speck of dirt. He returned the sword to its scabbard and, without saying a word, passed by the two and headed back.

Pei Ye tentatively gripped the sword hilt, and sure enough, a heavy, dangerous gaze in the forest immediately locked onto him firmly. Pei Ye released his hand as if nothing had happened.

Luo Defeng really would not leave Qijiao Shang Huaitong's side for even half a step.

Pei Ye was not worried about their safety; the Seven Serpents were determined to send Qijiao Shang Huaitong into the Sword Academy and would not do something like killing an opponent outside the arena, which would cut off their own path.

Zhang Junxue was also on the third arena, and she went up right after Li Piaoqing. Her opponent was a saber-wielder from Can County. After exchanging only one move, the woman pressed the opponent's saber down with her own. The man pulled with all his might three times without moving it, and had no choice but to concede in embarrassment with a red face, sparking happy roars of laughter on the field.

"You could say that."

"I didn't think you would also like such silver-white, pure things."

Qijiao Shang Huaitong gave a light sneer, "How can the swallows and sparrows know the vision of the swan?"

His footsteps did not stop, and he had already walked far away.

"I have seen him look this joyful before," Qi Zhaohua suddenly said.

"What?"

"When we were at the Moon-Catching Tower, he liked to raise grass."

"Grass?"

"Yes, just ordinary grass," Qi Zhaohua recalled in a low voice, "One day, all the grass he was raising died, and he showed this kind of smile."

"That 'Grass-Pulling Chapter'?"

"Perhaps... I don't understand things about the sword."

"It is normal for those with talent to be obsessed with the sword."

"There is one more thing," the young woman suddenly said.

"What?"

"Of course it does!" the little fatty shouted, "Qiyun is from the neighboring prefecture coming to grab territory! Do you know how much we spent on promotion over the past month? Now the expectations of the whole city have been raised by us; everyone knows that the martial artist chosen by Dingyun Firm is very formidable. At this time, they suddenly bring in someone hired at a great price, wearing the 'Qiyun' signboard to beat our person—doesn't that mean all our promotion was just making wedding clothes for them! Isn't that stepping on our heads to make money?!"

"... There were quite a few tourists at that time, and it wasn't necessarily just to see the Seven Serpents."

Pei Ye looked at this patch of silver frost in front of him and still felt it was quite magical. He squatted down and picked up a bit of the "silver frost" to look at it, which led him to discover the mystery. It was indeed not the soil that was glowing, but rather that this substance capable of reflecting moonlight was mixed into the soil in large, dense quantities—some extremely fine threads and grains.

"Look at this," Pei Ye rubbed his fingertips lightly, and these threads and grains were easily crushed.

The young woman, however, did not answer and remained standing silently to the side.

"Qijiao Shang Huaitong did exactly that," she suddenly said.

"... What?"

"Just sweep away everyone who dares to compete with him and enjoy that massive cheering alone."

"..."

"Aren't you surprised by his overly violent strike today?"

Pei Ye remembered looking back after his victory and seeing the man looking over with an expressionless face, while the Bai Zhu disciples below the arena had their collars stained with blood.

"I wasn't surprised... isn't this just who he is?"

"... These methods are indeed his, but he isn't like this to everyone," Qi Zhaohua said slowly, "You haven't spent time with him. Those disgusting methods of his... are only used on the grass that blocks his path."

"..."

"A martial arts competition is really not much of an obstacle, especially an opponent like the first round, and under the gaze of the masses... according to my understanding, he should have started performing his grace."

The young woman looked at the sky and said slowly, "Unless... he truly views this as an obstacle."

"..."

"I saw that 'none but me' temperament of his today; he went on stage with a purpose."

"What do you mean?" Pei Ye glanced at her, "We know he wants to take the championship."

"Yes, that is the purpose, but not entirely, or rather, not truly," the young woman said after weighing her words, "He wants to take the championship, but it doesn't seem to be for the sake of the championship itself, but rather for some implication hidden behind it... it seems to be a symbol, a piece of evidence... or a realization."

Pei Ye was bewildered.

It was only after a long while that he said, "... You mean, he has other purposes."

"It is a deeper purpose," the young woman corrected.

"... Just because you saw him make one move?"

"A poet's intuition."

Qi Zhaohua smiled at the youth's rather speechless face, "Or a woman's intuition, believe whichever you like."

Pei Ye did not smile; he looked at the young woman and said earnestly and gently, "Layman Qi, it's alright."

"..."

Qi Zhaohua lowered her head and saw that the fingertips she was using to pinch the teacup were turning slightly white.

"... Alright," the young woman smiled helplessly and sighed softly, "Young Hero Pei, ever since I met you in that state, I lost the ability to pretend to be indifferent in front of you."

Yes, even though she tried hard to cover it up with jokes, these overly heavy thoughts already represented everything.

From the moment she saw Qijiao Shang Huaitong, the young woman's body had been tense and stiff. She stared intently at every move Qijiao Shang Huaitong made, analyzing with worry—those things might actually all stem from worry, unease, and even fear.

The man's calm and confident attitude and the signs of him firmly advancing toward something they could not know all made her increasingly uneasy.

This was the enemy she hated deeply, but ever since she stabbed that one knife at the poetry society, she had been left with nothing but powerlessness.

"Qijiao Shang Huaitong, the Seven Serpents Cave... I'm afraid they will turn defeat into victory again," the young woman said in a low voice.

"Rest assured," Pei Ye comforted her again.

"... Hmm."

The already chilly lake vapor rose with the wind and poured into Pei Ye's collar. The youth shivered, but Qi surged into his limbs, driving away the chill.

He couldn't help but tilt his head to look at the young woman, "Miss Qi, your clothes are thin, stop letting the wind blow on you so much."

"It's fine, I've liked the cold since I was a child," the young woman said with a smile, hugging her arms, "I'm happy whenever I see rain or snow, and it's the same now that I'm grown; the colder it gets to the marrow, the more I like it."

"... Your preference is too hard on your body."

"That's why I only let it blow for a while," Qi Zhaohua took a deep breath and smiled lightly, "When the Young Sect Master comes in a while, I'll go back."

When they went down, Li Piaoqing was sitting and talking with Zhang Junxue's parents.

"... Ah?"

"Ah what?"

"... I feel like Miss Qi is like a fortune teller today."

"Don't you believe that Miss Li will come over in a while?"

"... She might come over, or she might not," Pei Ye said, feeling inexplicable, "And there's nothing going on—unless you called her."

"No. I didn't call her; it's just because there's nothing going on, Miss Li will come over," Qi Zhaohua looked at the youth quietly and smiled, "What do you think?"

"..." Pei Ye was stunned.

When the conversation reached this point, she became the confident one, while the youth was somewhat bewildered and at a loss.

Fortunately, he didn't need his confused brain to spin rapidly; reality had already helped him answer—behind him, two light, quick footsteps and a clear, ethereal voice sounded: "Looking so serious, what are you chatting about?"

Pei Ye turned his head and looked at the young girl in front of him, who was tilting her head and smiling with sparkling eyes; he was stunned and speechless.

"Hey?" Li Piaoqing looked strangely at the two who were not speaking.

"What was the Young Sect Master chatting about with the two elders just now?" Qi Zhaohua took the conversation with a smile.

"I inquired about the Zhang family's movements, asked the uncle and aunt if they could pass on some news about the Zhang family, and some cooperation with the Zhang family... things of that sort."

"How did the talk go?"

"All rejected."

"Oh?" Qi Zhaohua was surprised, "Why?"

"Knowing the lord's heart is like the sun and moon, swearing to live and die with the husband," Li Piaoqing tilted her head and smiled helplessly.

"... Truly an honest and upright person."

Pei Ye leaned forward.

"... That is to say, the uncle is very grateful for our care of Junxue and has always sincerely admired Cuiyu. If he were the head of the family, he would definitely push for the Zhang family and Cuiyu to cooperate with all their might," Li Piaoqing explained to the youth with a smile, "But now that he is only a member of the Zhang family, he only follows the direction of the head of the family and has absolutely no second thoughts."

"... Oh," Pei Ye nodded slowly, "Then, it actually also shows that this head of their family doesn't really want to be close to Cuiyu."

"Yes. But it doesn't matter; it's just that if we can be friends, we will," Li Piaoqing said.

Then she still remembered what happened just now: "You still haven't said what you were chatting about?"

"Qijiao Shang Huaitong," Pei Ye said, "Didn't you run into them when you came?"

"No."

"We just ran into them. Miss Qi feels he has some purpose we haven't grasped."

He then told the young girl what had just been said.

"Oh... actually, this is something Cuiyu has been worrying about for a year, wanting to find out Qijiao Shang Huaitong's reliance," Li Piaoqing said slowly, "From the moment he appeared in our field of vision, he has always been in this state."

"What state?"

"Proud, confident—the state that the Senior Brother finds unpleasant," the young girl said, "We want to know where this mentality comes from. Everyone grew up in Bowang, but he seems to have looked down on this place from the beginning, placing himself on another level—arrogant, viewing people as grass, wanting to enter the Sword Academy."

"He has very high talent in the sword path."

"Yes, we knew that at the poetry society; he can create his own sword techniques. This is one explanation, but I feel it is still not a concrete reliance," Li Piaoqing looked at the sky and said, "He doesn't seem to just know that he has the possibility of ascending to heaven, but has already found the ladder to heaven—'Holding Heart · Non-Invasion,' isn't it?"

Qi Zhaohua nodded slowly, "Only by already climbing the heavenly ladder can one remain calm when the view is blocked by buildings and hills."

"..." Pei Ye looked at the two and clapped his hands, "Good analysis, so do we have any countermeasures?"

Qi Zhaohua: "..."

Li Piaoqing thought for a moment, reached out and pointed: "Release Pei Ye!"

——

On the other side of the lake, in a water pavilion, Qijiao Shang Huaitong walked into the room and lit a candle, driving away the moonlight and darkness together.

Under the candlelight, a box of grass plants was revealed; in the soft, dark, and damp yellow soil, seven small blades of grass were planted.

He walked over, pulled out the first one, and threw it on the ground.

(End of chapter)