Stranger Danger

“You managed to block my ‘Opening Yin and Yang’. Very good. Now receive my third attack!”

Xiahou Qi squinted a little and summoned a small red knife.

The knife was only three inches long and looked more like a toy than an actual weapon. It was delicate and beautifully crafted.

The atmosphere was filled with razor sharp tension after it appeared though.

The knife began rotating slowly in Xiahou Qi’s palm, gentle and graceful. At the same time, it emitted a fantastical, dreamlike halo. It was as if the knife was a one-of-a-kind beauty who was performing a graceful dance, attractive and delightful.

For a time, everyone was uncontrollably absorbed in its beauty.

The next moment, Xiahou Qi pinched the blade with two fingers and rotated it once, swinging it in the direction of Fang Muyun. The light it unleashed was overwhelming like a beautiful dance that stunned even time itself.

Everyone was intoxicated by its beauty. In fact, it was too beautiful. The spectators found it hard to believe that it was a killing technique.

Fang Muyun seemed to think otherwise though. The blood drained away from his face, and his face contorted with shock and wariness as he backed away from Xiahou Qi.

Every time he took a step, he crossed hundreds of meters of distance in an instant.

Every time he traversed three meters of distance, a painting would unfold rapidly in front of him.

Sometimes, it was the sun and moon illuminating the nine provinces with their infinite radiance.

Sometimes, it was a sea of stars illuminating the boundless sky.

Sometimes, it was millions of celestials and gods standing in formation.

Sometimes, it was the Buddhas chanting and shining with Buddhist light.

Sometimes, it was the myriad red dust and the hundred faces of humanity.

Sometimes, it was a hundred ghosts carrying coffins and the hells of Yama.

……

Each painting was a world of its own, and each world was so fantastic one could almost believe that it was real.

All these really took place in just an instant, but it was enough to reverse heaven and earth, put the sun and moon in the same sky, filled every inch of space with celestials and demons, and conjure all other grotesque and variegated sights.

Fang Muyun himself was nowhere to be found. It was as if he had hidden himself in the myriad worlds he summoned.

Xiahou Qi’s gorgeous saber light vanished as soon as it slipped into the myriad worlds. It did not elicit even the slightest splash.

Nine breaths later, the myriad worlds abruptly grew transparent and wavy like a bubble that was about to burst. Then, it vanished and revealed Fang Muyun. At first glance, the scholar looked no different from before.

Xiahou Qi’s crimson knife sank into his palm in a flash of red light and transformed into a saber-shaped imprint.

“That wasn’t the ‘Nine Blades That Melt The Sun’, was it?” Fang Muyun asked quietly after landing on the ground.

Xiahou Qi answered, “No. It is a move I invented named ‘Stunning’.”

“Stunning, huh? It deserves its name. Color me impressed, Brother Xiahou.” Fang Muyun saluted him.

“Save your breath. You have received three of my attacks, so the grudge between us is resolved.”

Xiahou Qi turned around and left immediately after he said that.

“Thank you very much for showing magnanimity, Brother Xiahou,” Fang Muyun replied smilingly.

There was a flash of coldness and killing intent in his eyes as he stared at Xiahou Qi’s departing back though.

“Thank you for saving our lives, Mister Farseeing!”

“Your strength is most impressive, mister!”

Yuan Buchen, Xia Gongyang and the rest of the Jixia Academy disciples rushed forward to meet Fang Muyun after Xiahou Qi was gone.

“Now that that is done,” Fang Muyun turned to look at them, “let us speak of your mistakes.”

“Mister…” Xia Gongyang and the others looked taken aback.

Fang Muyun began, “Those who read the books of the Sages are expected to help others and be capable of self-reflection; to know the rules and understand right from wrong. The imperial court has its own laws, the common folks follow their own rules, and the jianghu abide by their own code. There is no such thing as one true law that encompasses everything, and anyone who says otherwise is just a foolish gossiper who doesn’t know right from wrong!”

“This student understands his mistake!” Yuan Buchen replied with a salute. His juniors were silent as well.

“Mm. You are still young and lacking in jianghu experience, so your mistake is understandable. That said, I expect all of you to learn from this lesson and not repeat your mistake again. From now on, you will think before you act; put caution before recklessness, understand?” Fang Muyun asked seriously.

All the disciples saluted him. “This student will remember your teachings, mister.”

“To err is human; to correct a mistake is the greatest good.”

Fang Muyun cracked a smile. “Buchen, you’re the elder of the group. It is your responsibility to take good care of them. Take them everywhere and show them more about the world. I’ll be taking my leave now.”

“As you wish.”

Yuan Buchen, Xia Gongyang and everyone replied respectfully, “See you later, mister.”

By the time they lifted their heads, Fang Muyun was already nowhere to be found.

“That’s… it?”

“Is it over?”

“What an anti-climatic ending!”

A few seconds after Fang Muyun was gone, the quiet crowd suddenly burst into discussions.

Was the fight exciting? Of course it was. It was most exciting.

Be it Fang Muyun’s magical and powerful paintings or Xiahou Qi’s mighty saber techniques, they were most impressive, grandiose, and one-of-a-kind.

It was just unfortunate their final clash felt somewhat anticlimactic. Looking at their techniques, it would not be surprising to think that the clash between Xiahou Qi’s “Stunning” and Fang Muyun’s myriad paintings would shake the entire city. In reality, it didn’t generate so much as a peep, so much so that some people were starting to think that Xiahou Qi and Fang Muyun were just playing around during their third and final clash.

It was why many of them were feeling unhappy and dissatisfied.

The battle was over. Despite the heated discussions, the crowd eventually dwindled to almost nothing. Even Chao Haisheng’s body was slowly but surely being pulled into the sea by the tidal waves. It wasn’t long before he was gone forever.

“Fang Muyun is injured.”

Ye Qing said softly while enjoying a leisurely stroll with Feng Qingyou at the beach.

“Of course he is.”

Feng Qingyou smiled. “Xiahou Qi’s final attack looked unimpressive, but it is easily the strongest attack of them all. Assuming that I was caught by surprise, not even I would be able to protect myself from the attack unscathed.”

From most people’s perspective, they thohught that Xiahou Qi and Fang Muyun’s final clash was anticlimactic. Xiahou Qi’s beautiful attack especially seemed almost ceremonial. But from Ye Qing and Feng Qingyou’s perspective, his final attack more than deserved its name—”Stunning”.

It was because it was a saber technique that fell under the category of time; an attack that transcended time itself.

The moment Fang Muyun saw Xiahou Qi’s “Stunning”, the moment he was astounded by its beauty, the saber intent was engraved into his mind, and he was already struck by the attack. Although Xiahou Qi did not do anything else after the attack, the saber intent remained in Fang Muyun’s memory and mind.

One might say that a stunning dance was timeless. Even if the dance was over, even if it had become a part of the past, the memory of that dance remained perfectly vibrant in one’s mind. In that sense, it was as if the dance had never faded.

Why did Fang Muyun throw out countless paintings after Xiahou Qi unleashed his “Stunning”? It was to fight off and remove the saber intent engraved into his memory and mind. However, since the clash had taken place at a location where the spectators could not see or probe, it felt as if their final clash was perfunctory and anticlimactic.

In any case, Xiahou Qi’s “Stunning” was definitely stunning beyond words. Strong as Fang Muyun was, he could not help but suffer some damage. The only reason no one realized it was because the injury was mental, not physical.

In fact, if Ye Qing hadn’t been paying close attention to Fang Muyun this whole time, if he failed to notice that Fang Muyun’s energies were stuttering a tad while he was rebuking the Jixia Academy disciples, he might have been fooled into thinking he was unharmed either.

But of course, that was the extent of his discovery. It was impossible to say how hurt Fang Muyun really was.

A smiling Feng Qingyou picked up a crab scuttling beside her foot and tossed it into the waves, asking, “So? Did you gain anything from this test?”

Ye Qing chuckled happily. “I did. I am quite happy with the results.”

That’s right. He was the one who manipulated events so that Xiahou Qi and Fang Muyun would clash against each other. No, he had no hand in the battle between Chao Haisheng and Xiahou Qi, but he was the one who incited Xia Gongyang to taunt Xiahou Qi. What happened after that was just the domino effect.

He was the one behind it all.