Song Tingfeng and Zhu Guangxiao, up ahead, instantly froze, rooted to the spot.
The surrounding Nightwatchers reacted much the same.
Zhu Chengzhu’s pupils contracted. The voice was both familiar and unfamiliar; one that had haunted his dreams countless times, a living nightmare.
He hated and cursed this person, yet also feared and despaired, believing he had no hope of revenge.
Now, that person was right behind him.
Yet he did not even have the courage to turn around.
Footsteps slowly approached. Zhu Chengzhu’s legs trembled slightly, cold sweat breaking out on his back.
But the footsteps walked right past him, heading to Song Tingfeng and Zhu Guangxiao.
Wearing azure robes and carrying that weapon which was half-sabre, half-sword, Xu Qi’an kicked both Song Tingfeng and Zhu Guangxiao, mocking,
“You two don’t look like you’ve had it easy.”
Zhu Guangxiao was overcome with emotion, his eyes filling with tears.
Song Tingfeng, sulking, did not turn around but choked out, “You bastard, why are you still here? Do you have a death wish?”
The surrounding Nightwatchers were shocked, confused, and anxious. Not only had he not left the capital, but he had also dared to return to the Nightwatchers constabulary. Did he not know the Zhu family father and son were back? Did he not know Yuan Xiong had succeeded Duke Wei, and become Duke Yuan?
No, he did not know. All this had happened only yesterday.
“Xu Ningyan, hurry up and leave.”
Someone in the crowd quietly reminded him.
At that moment, Zhu Chengzhu seemed to break free of his shackles and regained control of his legs, sprinting madly deeper into the constabulary.
Now the Nightwatchers no longer held back, urging all at once,
“Xu Ningyan, you shouldn’t have come back! Go quickly, get out of the city.”
“Ningyan, the Nightwatchers’ constabulary is now under Yuan Xiong. He’s brought the Zhu father and son back. Gold Gong Zhao has almost been sidelined.”
“The Nightwatchers now belong to Yuan Xiong and the Zhu family. Zhu Yang is fourth rank, you need to leave at once.”
Xu Qi’an listened calmly, looking at Song Tingfeng and Zhu Guangxiao, “What’s happened these past few days? Tell me.”
“Why not let me tell you myself?”
Zhu Yang’s voice reached them before he did.
In the courtyard, the crowd’s vision blurred momentarily, and in the next instant they saw Zhu Yang in his Nightwatcher uniform, with a Gold Gong on his chest, standing tall.
A few seconds later, Zhu Chengzhu rushed over, pointing at Xu Qi’an and shouting furiously,
“Father, this bastard actually dared come back to the constabulary. Kill him! Kill him now!”
Zhu Yang did not move, but faced Xu Qi’an in a standoff, until Gold Gong Zhao arrived.
Still reluctant… Zhu Yang sneered inwardly, then said coolly, “Gold Gong Zhao, let’s work together to take down this criminal. Only then will Duke Yuan and His Majesty truly trust you. Duke Yuan is watching from the Tower of Noble Spirit.”
Gold Gong Zhao glanced back. Sure enough, atop the seven-storey Tower of Noble Spirit, a crimson-robed figure stood alone at the observation deck, watching them.
Gold Gong Zhao turned back, his expression complex, and said, “Why did you come back?”
Xu Qi’an smirked, “To collect a debt!”
More and more Nightwatchers watched from afar, but those present in the courtyard kept retreating.
A battle between fourth-rank experts could well tear down the constabulary. They didn’t know Xu Qi’an’s true strength, but it was certainly not weak.
Still, this was the capital, two Gold Gongs joining forces could easily deal with him. If any more experts joined in, Xu Ningyan would have no way out.
“Why has he come back?”
“With Duke Wei dead, who’s there to support him? He’s thoroughly offended His Majesty. Why come back?”
“Foolish, Xu Ningyan, what are you thinking? Dammit, we’re all colleagues, I really can’t bear to see him die.”
“We’re just nobodies. Even if we feel bad, what can we do? Can you risk your whole family for him?”
“Exactly, didn’t you see Gold Gong Zhao give in? He’s going to join forces with Zhu Yang against Xu Ningyan. Yuan Xiong is watching from the Tower of Noble Spirit.”
“New emperor, new officials, the Nightwatchers are no different. Duke Wei’s era is over and will never return.”
The Nightwatchers watched from a distance, discussing, some sighing, some unwilling, some helpless.
Zhu Yang flicked his thumb and drew his sabre, a flash of bright blade streaking through the air.
Everyone present felt a chill in their hearts as the blade-light swept over them, the hair on the backs of their hands standing up.
Zhu Yang took a step spanning more than ten yards, swinging his sabre straight for Xu Qi’an’s neck.
Regardless of whether the rumours about Yuyang Pass were true, Xu Qi’an’s current cultivation was enough to face a fourth-rank head-on. On his own, Zhu Yang might not be able to take him, but with Gold Gong Zhao’s help, capturing or killing Xu Qi’an would be easy.
Xu Qi’an gave him a backhand slap!
Crack!
His opponent’s head burst like a watermelon, bone fragments, brain matter, blood, and eyeballs splattered in all directions, leaving stains on the blue flagstones of the courtyard.
Zhu Yang’s body staggered forward a few steps more before collapsing lifelessly.
For a moment, the Nightwatchers’ courtyard was deathly silent.
Zhu Yang’s Bronze Skin and Iron Bones could not withstand even a single slap. Such a casual slap, if it were me, I’d be dead too… Gold Gong Zhao’s pupils shrank to pinpoints, as if faced with a dazzling light.
Zhu Yang, a fourth-rank Gold Gong, was killed with a single slap? He, at Yuyang Pass, slaying tens of thousands alone, was it true?! The distant Nightwatchers watching were all struck dumb, suddenly realising that the legends circulating among the people were not exaggeration, but solid fact.
Song Tingfeng and Zhu Guangxiao were dazed. They could hardly accept that this colleague, who had often joined them in the goulan and the Jiaofangsi, had grown into such a terrifying figure.
To shatter a fourth-rank Gold Gong’s skull with one slap, what terrifying cultivation was that?
Xu Ningyan, what- what rank is he now?
A wild thought flashed through everyone’s mind, but they quickly suppressed it, it was too wild, too absurd, too far beyond reason.
Zhu Chengzhu’s face turned paper white, his lips quivering. His whole body trembled like a tree in the wind.
His father, whom he had revered like a god, his only support, his fourth-rank martial father, had just been slapped to death by this man.
No harder than killing an ant.
A tremendous terror exploded in Zhu Chengzhu’s heart. He suddenly shivered, and a foul, rank liquid trickled down his crotch.
“Step back and I’ll spare you. Otherwise, you’ll end up like Zhu Yang,” Xu Qi’an said, looking over at Gold Gong Zhao.
Gold Gong Zhao forced himself to suppress his fear, clasped his fists in salute, and quickly left.
Xu Qi’an then looked at Song Tingfeng, pointing at Zhu Chengzhu: “I’ll leave him to you.”
With that, he strode forward, heading towards the Tower of Noble Spirit.
All eyes followed him, some wanting to go after him but lacking the courage, until Xu Qi’an’s figure disappeared from sight. Then everyone turned to look at Song Tingfeng.
Song Tingfeng walked up to Zhu Chengzhu, legs spread wide: “If you want to live, crawl through here.”
“I will, I will…”
Zhu Chengzhu frantically dropped to his knees, terrified and trembling, crawling through Song Tingfeng’s legs while begging for mercy.
At that moment, Zhu Guangxiao suddenly drew his sabre and struck down. A head rolled across the ground.
The terror was frozen on Zhu Chengzhu’s face, a tear glistened at the corner of his eye, his lips quivered, and at last, he fell into eternal silence.
“Hahahaha!”
Song Tingfeng covered his face, simultaneously laughing and crying, as if possessed.
He had finally vented all his long-held resentment.
Just then, someone pointed at the top of the Tower of Noble Spirit and cried out, “Xu Ningyan is going to kill Yuan Xiong…”
All at once, everyone looked up. On the seventh-floor observation deck, Xu Qi’an was gripping Yuan Xiong by the collar, dangling him half out over the edge.
…
“Yuan Xiong, oh sorry, Duke Yuan!”
Xu Qi’an grinned as he scrutinised the pale, struggling Yuan Xiong.
“I hear Duke Yuan worked himself to the bone, listed Duke Wei’s ten great crimes, imprisoned the constabulary’s corrupt elements, and cleaned up the Nightwatchers. In exposing Duke Wei, the traitor who ruined the nation, you played a crucial role.”
Yuan Xiong saw a chilling murderous intent in his eyes, and said in a low voice, “Xu Qi’an, I am a court official, a proper third-rank. You, you can’t kill me.”
But seeing Xu Qi’an’s cold gaze remain unchanged, he assessed the situation and swiftly changed tack, begging,
“It was His Majesty who forced me, I had no choice! As a minister, how could I refuse? I really had no choice, it wasn’t my will. Forgive me, Xu Qi’an, please forgive me…”
The sky was pitch black, the darkest time before dawn. The cold wind cut through Yuan Xiong, chilling him to the bone.
“If you leave the capital right now, I’ll delay for you. If you’re late, those running dogs down there will report you, and once the city gates close, you’ll never get out.”
He refused to give up any chance of survival, just hoping to grovel through this and then report to His Majesty and have Xu Qi’an killed.
“Forgiving you or not is for Duke Wei to decide. My task is to send you to meet him.”
Xu Qi’an let go.
Yuan Xiong toppled backwards, falling from the seventh floor. With a loud thud, he lay face up, eyes bulging wide, staring lifelessly at the sky.
He died instantly.
In the distance, the Nightwatchers who witnessed this scene were dumbfounded.
“Xu Ningyan, he, he’s rebelling…”
A third-rank official, killed just like that, a true figure of power, one of the highest officials.
“I’ve long despised those lot. Good riddance,” someone muttered in a low voice.
After a short silence…
“Good riddance.”
“The Nightwatchers are Duke Wei’s Nightwatchers, who is Yuan Xiong, anyway?”
“The Zhu father and son betrayed the constabulary, they were dismissed ages ago. Pah, good riddance.”
The repression of the past day was finally released.
Xu Ningyan was still the same Xu Ningyan, fearless and unruly. He was back, and all the resentment and frustration was gone.
…
Xu Qi’an returned to the tearoom. The furnishings were just as before, except that there would never again be someone in azure robes sitting at the table, waiting for him with gentle gaze.
He lifted the cup. The water in the teapot was still hot, probably prepared by Yuan Xiong that morning.
Xu Qi’an poured two cups, sipped, and shook his head: “Tea is dull. Today, I’ll drink wine. What do you think, Duke Wei?”
The room was empty and quiet. No one answered.
He took out the Earth Book fragment, poured out a jar of fine wine he had long prepared, cracked the seal, and drank deep.
The first mouthful was bold and proud; the second he drank slowly, sip by sip, soon draining most of it.
He drank, murmuring memories to himself.
Soon, he was slightly tipsy, but not drunk, the highest point in life.
Vaguely, Xu Qi’an seemed to see an old man in azure sitting opposite, eyes full of the wisdom of countless years, gazing gently at him.
“Duke Wei, this subordinate will sing you a song.”
You always wanted to hear it. Now, I’ll sing it for you.
He grabbed the wine jar and walked slowly to the observation deck. The morning wind was biting. He recalled the past and sang loudly:
“I stand, in the fierce wind, wishing I could sweep away the endless pain in my heart…”
He raised his fingers like a sword, sweeping his gaze over the capital, his voice soaring:
“I gaze at the heavens, The clouds stir in all directions. Sword in hand I ask the world who is the hero?”
Then he turned, gazing at the palace, at the inner court, his voice turning gentle:
“Among all the beauties in the world, I love only your kind. At the road of parting, who does not grieve? So many years of love and affection, all buried in haste…”
“In my heart, you weigh the most, joy and sorrow, life and death together. You etched tenderness into my bones, I returned with boundless passion.”
“In my heart, you weigh the most, my tears soar to the sky. In another life, I shall still be king, returning as the setting sun glows bright.”
“Returning as the setting sun glows bright…”
He drained the jar in one gulp.
Xu Qi’an hurled the wine jar from the tower, turned back, looked at that figure in azure, and laughed loudly, “Duke Wei, how was my singing?”
In his ear, it seemed that gentle voice replied, “Very good.”
Xu Qi’an laughed heartily, but tears spilled from his eyes. He dared not look again, and staggered away from the tearoom.
Where was he headed now?
To shatter the heights.
And if he never returned?
Then he would never return!
…
Jinluan Hall.
Emperor Yuanjing sat high upon the dragon throne, his expression solemn as he looked down at the assembled ministers.
His gaze swept over a certain empty seat, and he asked in a deep voice, “Why is Duke Yuan not present?”
Yuan Xiong had not requested leave, yet was absent from court. According to Great Feng law, being late or absent from court resulted in a three-month docking of pay and fifteen strokes of the cane.
For a frail scholar, fifteen strokes meant at least ten days or half a month confined to bed.
Emperor Yuanjing was not actually angry about Yuan Xiong’s absence; it was simply that, for what was to come, he still needed Yuan Xiong as a vanguard to lead the charge.
As time passed, Emperor Yuanjing no longer counted on Yuan Xiong. He glanced at the Assistant Minister of War, Qin Yuandao.
With Yuan Xiong gone, the job of taking the lead naturally fell to him, a core member of the Emperor’s clique. Qin immediately stepped forward, saluted, and said,
“Your Majesty, regarding the war with the Church of the Warlock God and Duke Wei’s posthumous affairs, matters have dragged on far too long and must not be delayed further. The families of the fallen soldiers are still waiting for compensation.”
Emperor Yuanjing nodded slowly, asking, “What is Lord Qin’s view?”
Qin Yuandao replied with feigned grief, “Wei Yuan was greedy for merit and reckless, ignoring the big picture and forcing an assault on Mount Jing City, leading to the sacrifice of more than eighty thousand soldiers, costing Great Feng its elite. Wei Yuan’s death is no loss at all.
“After Mount Jing City, the armies of Yan and Kang besieged Yuyang Pass. Though they ultimately withdrew, their elites remain, ready to strike again at any time.
“Xiangzhou, Jingzhou, and Yuzhou are in crisis and may fall to the Church of the Warlock God’s army at any moment. The people of the three provinces are in grave danger. The best course is to send envoys to negotiate with the Church of the Warlock God and remedy the disaster Wei Yuan caused.
“As for Wei Yuan, I beg Your Majesty to grant the posthumous title ‘Li’.”
‘Wuli’, meaning martial and savage.
Emperor Yuanjing looked around at the ministers and said calmly, “What do my lords think?”
No one spoke. Some looked at another empty seat, that of Prime Minister Wang Zhenwen.
To all the ministers, the Prime Minister had given up.
Since even the Prime Minister was not involved, there was no need for them to oppose His Majesty on Wei Yuan’s behalf.
Everyone present was clever. Given all that had happened in recent days, how could they not see Emperor Yuanjing’s scheme?
Wei Yuan’s reputation was now ruined. To ask for a title for him, or to plead for ‘Duke of Zhongwu’, was pointless.
First, he must be exonerated, but the man on the dragon throne would never allow it.
There was nothing they could do!
As for the former Wei faction, they had long since given up on Yuanjing, shifting their hopes to the next sovereign and planning to redress Duke Wei’s name when the new emperor ascended.
A smirk flickered at Emperor Yuanjing’s lips, but his voice was low: “Very well, as Lord Qin suggests…”
Before he could finish, a clamour arose outside the hall.
The commotion swelled, layer upon layer, never stopping.
Utter chaos.
“What is this disturbance?”
The ministers were shocked. Inside the hall, they could hear the panicked cries outside, and the sound of people fleeing in all directions.
This made the ministers realise something was very wrong, but they could not guess what had happened.
Baffled, the ministers rushed to the doors of the hall, only to see chaos in the square below, officials and courtiers fleeing in terror, scattering everywhere.
A figure in azure robes, sabre in hand, charged up to Jinluan Hall. Behind him, corpses of palace guards littered the ground.
Shock and disbelief gripped every minister’s heart.
In the six hundred years since Great Feng was founded, apart from the usurping Wuzong Emperor, had anyone else ever stormed the palace and reached Jinluan Hall?
Never!
In this instant, even these veteran statesmen at the summit of Great Feng’s power, masters of court intrigue, found it impossible to maintain their composure.
One by one, their faces changed, some were shocked and furious, some terrified, some in despair, some trembling with fear…
The man in azure, sabre in hand, with a small brass Bagua compass hanging from a red cord at the hilt, strode into the main hall. As the ministers recoiled in panic, he hurled his sabre at the king upon the throne.
Accompanied by a thunderous roar:
“Dog— Emperor—!”
The sabre howled through the air.
In every minister’s mind, only one thought remained:
Xu Qi’an has rebelled!
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