“Sir Xie, it has been some time since we last met.”
Yang Chuannan rested his right hand on his sabre, straightened his back, and stood outside the cell bars, his voice deep and resonant:
“This winter has been especially hard to bear. I thought you would die in prison, Sir Xie, yet you managed to survive.”
Xie Lu moved his head slightly, his gaze trailing through his dishevelled hair as he looked at Yang Chuannan outside the bars. His voice was hoarse:
“What are you here for, to persuade me to join the rebels?”
Yang Chuannan nodded. “This is your only way out. Don’t count on the court to rescue you. A dignified Provincial Governor has been imprisoned for half a year, and no one cares. Sir Xie, you are a clever man, surely you know what this means.”
Xie Lu spoke slowly:
“Yunzhou has already slipped from the court’s control. If I’m not mistaken, even before my appointment, the Yunzhou officialdom was already in your hands.”
Yang Chuannan smiled.
“It’s not in my hands, but in the City Lord’s. Ever since I became the Provincial Governor of Yunzhou, I have been secretly cultivating my faction and supporting my own people. It was not until a year ago, when the Church of the Warlock God faction led by Song Changfu was eradicated, that I truly gained control over the officialdom of Yunzhou.
“Now, the whole of Yunzhou is entirely under our control, including your life.”
The local gentry, prominent families, and the scholar-official class of Yunzhou had all submitted to Qianlong City.
Some did so of their own volition, having no choice, and some were secretly supported by Qianlong City to begin with.
The whole of Yunzhou, stretching for ten thousand li, managed to break away from the Great Feng court’s control in such a short time, a testament to the centuries of foundation Qianlong City had built.
“Sir Xie, you passed both imperial examinations and have an excellent reputation as an official. Qianlong City needs such talent. Sir Xie, a wise bird selects a fine tree to nest in, and a wise minister chooses the right lord to serve.”
Yang Chuannan tried to persuade him earnestly, “Qianlong City is where your abilities will flourish.”
Xie Lu smiled, “What a pity.”
“A pity?”
“It’s a pity this seven-foot-tall body, stuffed with the sage’s teachings, can only wield a pen, not kill. People say scholars are useless, and though I never wanted to admit it, right now it’s true,” Xie Lu said regretfully.
Yang Chuannan’s expression grew a little cold.
“Ten years of hard study was no easy feat. For Sir Xie to rise from a humble background to this position, are you really willing to see all your life’s work destroyed overnight?”
“I am not willing,” Xie Lu leaned against the cold wall, once more lifted his head towards the sunlight shining through the vent, and murmured in his hoarse voice:
“But I am even more afraid that a hundred or a thousand years from now, I’ll be despised by later generations. Yang, do you know who I admire most?”
Yang Chuannan stared at him coldly.
“It’s Zheng Xinghuai, the Provincial Governor of Chuzhou. He showed all the scholars under heaven what it means to ‘sacrifice oneself for righteousness’.”
Xie Lu let out a cold laugh. “Whatever, there’s nothing more to say to someone like you.”
Yang Chuannan nodded:
“In that case, I’ll not waste words. Sir Xie, this is your own choice.”
He drew his longsword and cut through the chains.
Clang!
The cell door was kicked open. Yang Chuannan strode forward, thrust the steel sword, and stabbed Xie Lu in the chest, pinning him to the wall behind.
Xie Lu gripped the blade with both hands, struggling in pain.
His hands were covered in warm blood and his life ebbed rapidly away with it.
Yang Chuannan sneered,
“I forgot to give Sir Xie a chance to write his last words. If you’ve anything left to say before you die, say it now, or you’ll never have the chance.”
Xie Lu had nothing left to say, only thoughts drifting back to his youth, burning the midnight oil as he studied by lamplight.
Back then, the Battle of Shanhai Pass had not yet broken out, the late emperor had not yet sought the Dao, and all was well in the Great Feng, good weather for the crops, the country at peace.
Yet after the Battle of Shanhai Pass, everything changed. The power of the Great Feng waned, disasters struck every year, and things only grew worse and worse.
Xie Lu had lived through days of peace. He had watched this nation decline, growing ever older and weaker.
Like many other scholars, he had poured his soul into the hope of saving the country, restoring it to its former glory.
But he failed, because today he would die.
With his last breath, Xie Lu cried harshly,
“Someone will avenge me. You traitors will die without a grave.”
He stared hard at Yang Chuannan, laughing wildly.
When his laughter reached its peak, it abruptly fell silent.
…
Yunzhou City, Commander’s Manor.
Yang Chuannan returned to the residence, marched swiftly to the study, pushed open the door, and found Ji Xuan reading through memorials.
“My lord! The enthronement ceremony is about to begin, why are you still here?”
Yang Chuannan frowned repeatedly.
“We have gathered less than ten thousand refugees, the numbers fall far short of expectations,” Ji Xuan put down the memorial and asked,
“What’s happened?”
Yang Chuannan forced a laugh, “Yang Gong has sealed the borders of Qingzhou, so the refugees can’t get through. Only by braving the mountains, or detouring through neighbouring provinces, can they possibly reach Yunzhou. This Yang Gong is not an easy man to deal with.”
Ji Xuan nodded.
Yang Chuannan urged him again, “In just over an hour it will be His Majesty’s enthronement ceremony. As the Crown Prince, you cannot be absent.”
But Ji Xuan shook his head. “I will not appear at the enthronement. I have other matters.”
Qianlong City had been their hiding place during the years in concealment. Now that his father was to be crowned emperor, it naturally needed to become public, and the ceremony would be held at the centre of Yunzhou City, at the White Emperor Temple.
Ji Xuan asked, “That Xie Lu, did he agree to surrender?”
Yang Chuannan shook his head, “I have already killed him.”
“Just as well.”
Ji Xuan spoke as if chatting idly, “Scholars fear most for their reputations at the end of life. In a way, it’s a mercy to them.”
…
White Emperor Temple.
Today, all the officials of Yunzhou City gathered at the White Emperor Temple, including officials from Qianlong City. A dense mass of figures stood on the square, civil officials on the left, military officials on the right, arranged in perfect order.
To the accompaniment of drums and music, a middle-aged man dressed in a bright yellow dragon robe and wearing a flat-topped imperial crown slowly stepped out of White Emperor Temple.
Ordinarily, the enthronement of an emperor in waiting was a matter of great national importance, and the ceremony was complex, especially during a transition between an old and new emperor, which was usually accompanied by mourning rituals. Thus, only whips would be cracked, but no music would be played.
The new monarch would also have to wear mourning clothes, kneel three times and kowtow nine times before the deceased emperor’s spirit, and then hold a sacrificial ceremony in the ancestral temple, among other rites.
However, none of these applied to the current situation, and so they were omitted.
After leading the civil and military officials in a sacrifice to Heaven, the yellow-robed emperor stood on the high platform before the White Emperor Temple, looking down over the assembled officials with an air of authority.
A white-robed arcanist from the Sitianjian stood to one side, facing the officials. He unfurled the imperial edict in his hands and proclaimed in a loud voice:
“Since the Wuzong Rebellion, our ancestors have hidden away in the wilderness, enduring humiliation and hardship, passing on down the generations. We have never dared for a moment to forget our forebears’ teachings and are determined to govern with diligence and reclaim our land…
“Now, the Great Feng court is rotten, the new monarch incompetent, resulting in a people impoverished and cries of misery everywhere. As a descendant of the Ji clan and the true blood of the royal family, we are heartbroken, but must rise up and try to turn the tide…
“Today we proclaim ourselves emperor here in Yunzhou, naming this era ‘Guangfu’, and hope that you will all serve loyally as we strive for supremacy.1
“It is a national principle that the heir be chosen from the eldest and the direct lineage, the foundation of the realm rests on this. Our direct son, Ji Xuan, is accomplished in both civil and military matters and is favoured by Heaven. He is hereby named Crown Prince, and shall take his rightful place in the Eastern Palace.”
Having finished reading, the white-robed arcanist put away the edict and stood silently to one side.
All the civil and military officials knelt and cried out, “Long live Your Majesty!”
Above Yunzhou City, the Wind-riding Boat hovered silently.
Ji Xuan stood at the edge of the deck, listening to the thunderous cheers below, he could hear them clearly even high in the air.
Crowds of Yunzhou citizens filled the streets and alleys outside White Emperor Temple to witness the ceremony.
To them, it mattered little who was emperor, the people’s eternal concern was always “food and clothing”. His father-emperor had easily won them over by exempting three years’ taxes.
“If you do not ascend to the beyond-mortal realm now, when will you?”
A gentle voice suddenly spoke up. A beam of clear light rose, and Xu Pingfeng, dressed in white, appeared inside the Wind-riding Boat.
“Just waiting for you, National Teacher!”
Ji Xuan smiled.
Xu Pingfeng nodded very slightly and raised a hand, grasping at the air.
The scattered fragments of Dragon Qi gave a silent roar, unwillingly captured and drawn into his palm.
With a flick of his finger, a dozen streams of Dragon Qi surged into Ji Xuan’s body.
Golden dragon shadows seemed to swim in his eyes, shooting forth dazzling golden light.
Xu Pingfeng then flicked out two more invisible threads of fortune, which merged into Ji Xuan’s body.
These were the fortunes of Vajra Du’nan and Vajra Dufan. Using the means of a second rank Fortune refiner, he converted these fortunes for his own use.
Of course, personal fortune and national fortune could not be compared, relying on these three methods alone, Ji Xuan could not refine the Blood Pill and advance to the third rank.
That was why the investiture ceremony had just been held.
As the Crown Prince of Yunzhou, he naturally attracted fortune.
Yet this fortune was still far inferior to Xu Qi’an, who bore half of the Great Feng’s national fortune.
“I can only keep the Dragon Qi in your body for a quarter of an hour, advance quickly,” Xu Pingfeng said.
Even for a second rank arcanist, it was difficult to manipulate Dragon Qi, he could only apply influence, and only for a limited time.
Ji Xuan took a box from his chest and snapped it open. A wisp of pure blood-red light shone into his eyes.
A vast vitality filled the Wind-riding Boat.
Ji Xuan’s hand trembled uncontrollably, he could hear his own heart pounding wildly in his chest.
Once this Blood Pill entered his stomach, there would be only two outcomes: either he would become a beyond-mortal martial artist and stand atop the continent of Jiuzhou, or he would die on the spot, disappearing into dust.
The National Teacher had said, even with the Dragon Qi, the fortunes of the two Vajras, and his status as Crown Prince, his chance of successfully refining the Blood Pill was still less than fifty percent.
Time to gamble my life… Gripping the Blood Pill, Ji Xuan closed his eyes.
Flashing through his mind were the twenty years of patient endurance, the secret sweat and toil spent in training, the hopes Daoist Jiaoye had entrusted to him on his deathbed.
Gulp,
The Blood Pill transformed into a searing torrent and rushed into his stomach.
Ji Xuan’s skin turned red at a rate visible to the naked eye. Wracked with agony, he clutched his belly, curling up on the deck.
Pain, pain that tore at his heart and soul…
Agony beyond the limits of human endurance overwhelmed him. In just an instant, he lost most of his consciousness.
“Huff, huff…”
Blood flowed from Ji Xuan’s mouth, and blood seeped from his eyes, nose and ears as well.
His skin split open over large areas, his flesh was torn apart from the inside out.
If this continued, the collapse of his body would be unstoppable.
Xu Pingfeng looked on coldly.
Am I dying, is this death? My body is already destroyed, my organs damaged, my vitality rapidly snuffed out. Why hasn’t the National Teacher saved me…
In his half-dazed state, the vestiges of Ji Xuan’s will still turned over these thoughts. He tried to cry for help, but could make no sound.
His vocal cords had been destroyed as well.
The Blood Pill’s power was too overbearing, no mortal body could withstand it.
It is unimaginable how Xu Qi’an endured this… But yes, if he could survive, why can’t I?
As soon as this thought surfaced, Ji Xuan’s stubborn will could no longer be suppressed.
Xu Qi’an did it, why can’t I?
Are you really willing to die like this?
Are you willing to watch him bask in glory?
Are you willing to see your dreams of empire come to nothing?
“Huff, huff…”
He let out meaningless, hoarse roars, cries of anger and unwillingness.
Blood streamed from his eyes, his eyeballs had melted.
Ji Xuan did not see the golden dragon shadows coiling around his body, nor did he see his ruined flesh beginning to heal.
His flesh would rupture, then heal, rupture, then heal… again and again.
No one knew how long passed, but Ji Xuan’s consciousness, pushed to the brink of collapse, gradually began to recover and clear.
And then he heard the National Teacher’s amused voice in his ear:
“Congratulations on stepping into the beyond-mortal realm.”
Ji Xuan opened his eyes and saw light once more.
The dawn of a new life!
…
Southern Marches, Heaven Gu Tribe.
Heaven Gu Grandma stepped out of the courtyard with a skylight, then ascended to the rooftop in one stride, gazing into the sky.
“The Ziwei Emperor Star stirs, the contest over legitimacy in the Central Plains has begun. Old man, all you prophesied has come true. The Gu God’s return cannot be far off now…”
Heaven Gu Grandma sighed, fell silent for a moment, then murmured to herself:
“The great chaos is upon us. Who will be the gatekeeper?”
…
Mount Jing City.
On a barren mountain ridge, Sarun Agu hugged a lamb and gazed southwest.
The mountains around Mount Jing City had been drained of all their spiritual energy during that great battle, turning them into a wasteland.
Although Mount Jing City had been rebuilt, the land was no longer fit for habitation.
“Wei Yuan, the last breath you bought for the Central Plains is nearly spent.”
Sarun Agu drew a new shepherd’s whip from his belt and tapped it lightly by his foot.
In the next instant, a figure appeared in answer to his summons.
It was Irbu.
“Two tasks: deliver the Dark Sounding Stone to Xu Qi’an; go to the Great Feng, gather the refugees, and bring them back to repopulate the three nations of Jing, Kang and Yan.”
Sarun Agu instructed.
“Yes!”
Irbu bowed in agreement and rode the wind away.
…
The first year of Yongxing, at the end of November, a descendant of the Ji clan proclaimed himself emperor in Yunzhou under the reign name “Guangfu”, and Yunzhou officially split from the Great Feng.
The dynasty was pushed even further towards destruction.
When Xu Qi’an received Huaiqing’s transmission and learned of these events, he was already at the border between the Southern Marches and the Great Feng.
Guangfu: restoration ↩
Comments for this chapter. You will need a GitHub account. Please follow all terms and conditions of GitHub issues and maintain etiquette in the comments. Cookies are required for this functionality.
If you want to talk with other readers about Nightwatchers (or other cultivation type books) you can join our cultivation groupreading discord server!
I also have a Kofi, which for legal reasons is definitely for supporting my digital art only (promise!): ko-fi.com/yanxin ... plus I guess server space isn't free, and I don't want to put ads/trackers... ever, so thank you if you do!