Chapter 1398

Hu Xiaotian's eyes were half-open, half-closed; in fact, he had already noticed the other party when they appeared in the bamboo grove. He slowly sat upright, scrutinizing the other carefully. If he hadn't heard the voice, Hu Xiaotian would never have believed that the person before him was Ji Feihua. He said somewhat incredulously, "Brother Ji, why are you dressed as a woman?"

Ji Feihua chuckled, lifted the red veil covering his face: "How's that?"

Hu Xiaotian's gaze wandered from his face down to his feet, and he had to admit that Ji Feihua in women's attire was more womanly than a woman, yet a woman's bearing lacked his heroic vigor, while a man's rarely possessed this yin, eerie quality—perhaps only a eunuch could possess such a peculiar trait.

Hu Xiaotian grinned, revealing a mouthful of even, white teeth: "If you were a woman, I might fall for you."

Ji Feihua's expression suddenly froze.

Hu Xiaotian thought his remark had offended him; he had always felt an inexpressible awe toward Ji Feihua deep down, a feeling he himself couldn't explain, and he hurriedly apologized: "Brother, I spoke without thinking; please don't take it to heart."

Ji Feihua laughed instead: "Your words just reminded me of my days in the palace; when it comes to flattery, few can match you."

Seeing that Ji Feihua wasn't angry, Hu Xiaotian relaxed and recounted his meeting with Hu Buwei in detail. After listening, Ji Feihua pondered for a long time before saying: "In that case, the other skull must be at Qixuan Temple."

Hu Xiaotian said: "I'm not sure either, but since he gave me so many clues, it's probably not wrong, though we can't rule out that he might be setting a trap to harm me."

Ji Feihua shook his head: "He has no need to put you to death; you said before there should be two skulls, one of which almost certainly fell into the hands of Qiqi and Hong Beimo, and the other might be here."

Hu Xiaotian said: "I really can't understand it. The Heaven-Human War took place at Qixia Lake in Dakang, and the skulls should have remained in Dakang, so why did one end up here?"

Ji Feihua said: "Hu Buwei once taught Long Xuanjiao to play the qin; you may have heard of their relationship."

Hu Xiaotian nodded; he had heard this secret from Li Yuncong, compared to Li Yuncong. Ji Feihua was evidently more tactful, after all he still had to consider Hu Xiaotian's dignity.

Ji Feihua said: "I don't know this person Su Yujin, but since Long Xuanjiao trusts her so much, she must be no ordinary figure. If what Hu Buwei told you is true, this skull very likely passed into her hands through Long Xuanjiao."

Hu Xiaotian said: "Not bad! Quite possible!" This gave a reasonable explanation for why Hu Buwei had him seek the skull; it seemed he and Long Xuanjiao were not the inseparable pair of legend—indeed, a man like Hu Buwei truly cherished only himself, and he never cared about others' lives or safety.

Ji Feihua said: "I'll go with you."

Hu Xiaotian said: "What?"

Ji Feihua said: "I'll go with you to scout Qixuan Temple!"

With the terrain map provided by Hu Buwei, infiltrating Qixuan Temple was not difficult. Qixuan Temple lies west of Piaoxiang City; although it is famous and was once a place of cultivation for the Empress Dowager Long Xuanjiao, there are few worshippers here. First, because of the temple itself, its gates open only on the first and fifteenth of each lunar month for incense offering. Second, its geographical setting also plays a role.

Although Qixuan Temple is only fifteen li from Piaoxiang City, the whole complex sits on the sheer cliffs of Tanqing Mountain. Access is via a single iron-chain suspension bridge, which is normally guarded and closed to all.

Hu Xiaotian and Ji Feihua arrived at Tanqing Mountain at dusk. From their vantage point, the suspension bridge spanned a valley about fifty zhang wide, its middle section lost in mist; Qixuan Temple was built on the opposite cliff face, its halls clinging to the near-vertical rock, connected by a zigzag plank way.

Hu Xiaotian looked down; clouds and mist shrouded the depths, but he could hear the rush of the mountain stream at the valley bottom.

Ji Feihua stood beside him, studying the map in the evening glow, and said softly: "The bridge is fifty zhang long; our position is about seventy zhang from the opposite side. Are you confident you can fly that far?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "Pretty much." Relying on the Art of Soaring, although he couldn't fly directly to the same height on the opposite side, a diving glide should let him land safely on the other cliff without issue.

Ji Feihua said: "Bu Wu's teaching of the Art of Soaring is indeed useful."

Hu Xiaotian, however, felt a bit worried about him; although Ji Feihua's martial arts were superb, he had been seriously injured in the siege by Hong Beimo, Mu Rongzhan, and Li Yuncong, and it was unknown whether he had fully recovered.

Ji Feihua asked: "Do you see that pine tree on the opposite side?"

Hu Xiaotian followed his gaze and indeed saw a pine tree growing on the opposite cliff, its branches extending like an arm from the rock face, but aside from the tree there was nowhere to stand.

Ji Feihua said: "Let's reach that tree first; after dark we'll climb the cliff upward to the Kongyin Pavilion."

Hu Xiaotian nodded: "No problem!"

He glanced toward the suspension bridge; Ji Feihua had already walked off to the right, where starting from there he could completely avoid the guards' line of sight, and he didn't say much more to Hu Xiaotian. Ji Feihua leapt into the air, arms spread, his body like a great bird flying toward the opposite cliff; his black cloak streamed straight behind him in the mountain wind, and from afar he looked like a black bat unfurling its wings, breaking through the clouds and mist. Just as he was about to reach the pine tree, he twisted in midair, his toes landing on the horizontal branch ahead, his body rising and falling lightly with the branch.

Hu Xiaotian secretly admired him; Ji Feihua's lightness skill had reached a miraculous level, seeming even stronger than before his injury, making his own worry clearly unnecessary. He drew a deep breath, his dantian qi sea expanded, he lifted himself and leapt upward, his body rising diagonally about five zhang, then he rapidly expelled his inner breath; having cultivated the Art of Soaring to his present level, he could not only glide farther but also control his gliding speed in midair by regulating his breath.

As for the grace and beauty of flight, Ji Feihua naturally excelled, but in terms of practicality and speed Hu Xiaotian clearly had the edge; this guy was deliberately showing off in front of Ji Feihua, shooting forward like a rocket man. Ji Feihua was startled, his vision blurred—this guy had already swooped over his head, reaching up to grab the pine branches above. Perhaps because his forward speed was too fast, his momentum too fierce, the branch couldn't bear his weight and snapped with a crack—Hu Xiaotian's body plummeted suddenly from above.

Ji Feihua reacted swiftly, grabbing his arm; Hu Xiaotian used that pull to leap up again, sitting steadily on the branch beside him, grinning foolishly as he looked at Ji Feihua.

Ji Feihua then realized he was joking—he had deliberately broken the branch to fake a slip and fall, just to scare him. Ji Feihua glared at him fiercely, noticing that his aura of authority over him was fading; if they were still in Kangdu or the palace, a single stare would have made this guy tremble with fear. Life is fickle, worldly affairs unpredictable—who would have thought that their former superior-subordinate relationship would suddenly turn into brothers sharing hardship? Back when he commanded the winds and clouds, shaking the court, who could have imagined that his fall from peak to nadir would be so swift, and that Hu Xiaotian would no longer hold him in awe.

Hu Xiaotian said: "What should we do now?"

Ji Feihua said: "Wait until dark!" He then took out the map again.

Hu Xiaotian moved close to his side; the two leaned against each other, Ji Feihua visibly uncomfortable, he shifted a bit away, but Hu Xiaotian grabbed him and kindly warned: "Don't fall off."

Ji Feihua couldn't help but laugh and cry; he had Hu Xiaotian hold the map and pointed to the key locations marked on it: "After dark, we'll first go to Kongyin Pavilion, then split up—I'll head to the Orchid Mist Hall where Su Yujin cultivates, you'll go via the Three-Foot Beam to the Flowing Moon Pavilion; this is where Qixuan Temple stores its Daoist scriptures, and the skull is most likely kept in one of these two spots."

Hu Xiaotian said: "You don't trust my martial arts?" In fact he understood that Ji Feihua's decision to meet Su Yujin was a deliberate assumption of risk.

Ji Feihua said: "Your martial arts aren't weak, but your style is easy to recognize; if you came face to face with Su Yujin, you'd likely be exposed. You still want to become the prince consort of Tianxiang Kingdom, don't you? If your identity were revealed, even if Hu Buwei tried to protect you, Empress Dowager Long Xuanjiao would not agree."

Hu Xiaotian, having his thoughts laid bare by him, stopped insisting and nodded: "Hu Buwei holds Su Yujin in the highest esteem, saying she is the most formidable person he has ever met; I think you should still be extra careful."

Ji Feihua couldn't help but laugh: "When did I become someone others worry about? Little whiskers, you should be worrying about yourself instead."

Hu Xiaotian said: "Within two hours, whether we find that blue skull or not, we must leave this place and return to the agreed meeting point."

Ji Feihua nodded and added: "You must remember, that light sword is not to be used lightly; if someone with ill intent sees it, they might think the blue skull is in your hand."

The two waited on the pine tree until night fell and all was silent before moving; both were top-tier masters, Hu Xiaotian used the Golden Spider Eight Steps to climb the cliff, watching Ji Feihua move ahead like a gecko, he began to relax, Ji Feihua's martial arts should have fully recovered; even if he hadn't reached his peak, his current skill was more than enough for self-defense. (To be continued~^~)