Sentimental Swordsman, Ruthless Sword Ch. 63 Onwards (Little Li Flying Dagger)

[myko85]

yay thanks!

[ChronoReverse]

Crud. LHX is showing affection for SXH? This could spell disaster for her =(

[patricia n]

finally, lxh shows some affection for my sxh. even if the outcome may be sad for her, i have a feeling that sxh is one to prefer the experience of requited love and die tragically then to never be loved in return and live a normal healthy life. ohhh, thank you so much bliss. i always look forward to your updates.

[CC]

I bet when they hugged at least a couple of you readers must have wept with joy!

[eliza bennet]

Although SXH is nice and all, I can not identify with her in the least And one person in that relationship carries too much lagguage for my taste!

But I like the fact that LXH once again is acting heroic towards SGJH's games.

I wonder what Ah Fei is doing, I hope he will live through the whole ordeal and come out stronger than before.

[patricia n]

I bet when they hugged at least a couple of you readers must have wept with joy!

i certainly did!!! ahem, once again, i stated the obvious.

[Wellesley]

I wasnt really a fan of the carriage driver in the earlier part of the story, but now Im very interested in finding out his past. This chapter ended with quite a cliffhanger Thanks again for your efforts bliss.

"Since master Wang was willing to entrust this heavy responsibility with you, of course he wouldn't have doubts about you. But he was not entirely confident in your martial arts at the time, he was afraid that once word leaked out, there would be many people who would try to come steal the manual. That's why he instructed my second brother to stay there just in case you were in need of help." Mr. Sun said.

It seems to me that Li Xun Huan was already world famous 12 years ago, before he lived in exil, thus his skill was already excellent.

During his 10 years in exil, it seems that Little Li lived a very depressing and unhealthy life, he hasn't dueled other people or done anything of note other than getting drunk. And from when he 1st met Ah Fei until this part of the story, he did not train his inner power or practice his shots.

Although he defeated many foes, the story does not give any indication that he improved his skill, unlike SGJS who specifically said that he improved 7 years ago.

So my point is that LXH had already reached his prime before his exil, and that either Wang is leagues above LXH in terms of martial arts, or he underestimed LXH greatly.

[bliss]

I think Li XunHuan definitely did improve during his 12 year exile. SGJH stated that he reached the 'formless' stage of his martial arts 7 years ago. We find out that Li XunHuan had also reached this stage. But remember, when they were all ranked in Bai XiaoSheng's book of weapons, Li was ranked 3 while ShangGuan was ranked 2. This ranking was based on prior to Li XunHuan's exile since no one could have known how strong he was during that time. And since SGJH had reached 'formlessness' during that time, we have to assume that Li had to have at least gotten stronger during that time as well, or he would have been ranked higher than SGJH prior to that. This was sort of implied during their pre-fight discussion.

I think Wang LianHua said those words since he was from the prior generation and was just not very confident in the new generation of fighters. He probably also underestimated Li XunHuan's abilities because even Old Man Sun said that the two people who he could not accurately gauge in terms of fighting ability were Li XunHuan and Hu BuGui.

[Ren Wo Xing]

Bai Sheng might very well have been wrong. Remember, just before he died, he thought to himself, "Wrong, wrong! Li Xunhuan's dagger is much faster than I thought it was!"

[bliss]

Bai Sheng might very well have been wrong. Remember, just before he died, he thought to himself, "Wrong, wrong! Li Xunhuan's dagger is much faster than I thought it was!"

Heh well Bai XiaoSheng could very well have been wrong about his last words as well. Remember, those who think they know everything really know nothing at all.
Anyway, I got the feeling from Li XunHuan that he knew that ShangGuan JinHong was slightly better than him. Here's another update, enjoy!

[bliss]

Chapter 79 - A Righteous and Loyal Comraderie

GongSun Yu let out another roar as he crawled on top of his body, "We must have been wrong, he definitely didn't ..."

His voice died out again.

Another spear had been plunged into GongSun Yu's back!

The spear was pulled out. Under the dim light from the lanterns on the walls, there appeared to be a hazy mist in the tunnel.

A light pink mist.

A mist of blood!

Where twenty six people originally stood, sixteen had already fallen.

This bloody massacre didn't seem to be over yet. The stronger and weaker sides seemed to be even further apart now.

A medicine peddler who had about six wounds on him said in a husky voice, "Tie ChuanJia is already dead, let us leave this place!"

There were only three of them left in this losing battle. There really was no way that they could hold off any longer.

One of them who wielded an axe in his hand, a 'Mt. Hua Splitting' axe, gritted his teeth and said, "Second brother, should we retreat?"

The blind man replied, "Retret? The 'Eight Righteous Ones of the Central Plains' would rather die before retreating. I'll strike down whoever mentions the word 'retreat' again!"

One of the men in yellow laughed and said, "Good! You've got some guts! Then today let us deliver on your death wish ..."

His voice was suddenly cut short as well. His eyes bulged out like a dead fish.

He died rather quietly, only a *GAAK* *GAAK* sound came from his throat.

His breath hadn't stopped, but he just couldn't finish his sentence. He tried with all his strength but not a single word would come out. Because protruding from his throat was what appeared to be a dagger.

A dagger seven inches long:

Little Li's flying dagger!

All movement suddenly stopped, everyone's eyes were fixed on that dagger!

No one knew where in the world that dagger had come from, but every single one of them knew who had arrived.

Everyone in that underground tunnel had their mouths drop wide open.

Li XunHuan was standing right before them.

But no one dared to turn their head to look at him, they feared that once they turned their head, that soul-searching life-taking dagger would suddenly appear in their throats.

They were all the most loyal and accomplished members of the 'Gold Currency Union', not a single one of them was a coward that feared for his life. But by now, they were all exhausted and weak, they had seen too much death and too much bloodshed.

This had already sapped them of much of their courage, and in addition, 'Little Li's flying dagger' was renowned throughout the world not just as a dagger, but as an almost demonic entity!

Now those four words became even more closely tied with the meaning of death.

Or perhaps only now did they truly understand the meaning of death.

The dead body of one of their companions laid at their feet.

Just a blink of an eye ago, he was still a living breathing human being.

Then, that dreadful dagger instantly turned him into a dead corpse.

His life suddenly became completely meaningless, before he could ever realize it.

Nothing else was more terrifying than this suddden change, what they feared was not death, but this horrifying apprehension.

The blind man suddenly said, "Li TanHua?"

Although he couldn't see a single thing nor did he hear any sound whatsoever, he could somehow sense Li XunHuan's presence, he could sense a terrifying killer aura.

"Yes." Li XunHuan replied.

The blind man let out a long sigh and slowly sat down.

Jin FengBai and the woodcutter followed as he did and slowly sat down as well. They sat down right in the pool of blood where GongSun Yu and Tie ChuanJia's bodies laid. By the looks of their eyes, they had seemingly sat down in another world.

In that world, there was no vengeance and there was no suffering.

Li XunHuan slowly walked over in front of the men in yellow.

His hands were empty, no dagger was in sight.

But it seemed as if there was a dagger in his eyes.

He stared at them and asked, "Where is the person that they brought with them?"

The men in yellow were are staring at their own feet.

Li XunHuan sighed and slowly said, "I don't want to force you, but I hope you all won't force me to either."

One of the men in yellow who stood across from him, whose face was full of cold sweat and whose body was trembling, suddenly asked, "Are you looking for Hunchback Sun?"

"Yes." Li XunHuan responded.

That man in yellow suddenly had a weird smile on his face and said loudly, "Fine! I'll take you to find him, just follow me!"

His weapon was a tiger-head hook, after that sentence was finished, his hand raised up. The tip of the hook penetrated into his own throat.

He could no longer withstand that horrifying apprehension. Death became his quickest way of escape.

As Li XunHuan watched his body fall to the floor, he slowly clenched his fists.

"Hunchback Sun was already dead!"

The death of that man in yellow was his reply!

But what about Lin ShiYin?

A hint of fear suddenly appeared in Li XunHuan's eyes. His eyes slowly moved up from the corpse as his pupils contracted.

Then, he suddenly heard Tie ChuanJia's voice. Sweat and blood was all over his face and covered his eyes. He could barely see and panted heavily and said, "Yi MingTang, Second Brother Yi ..."

The blind man whose expression was usually like stone started to twinge, he bit down on his teeth and answered, "I am here."

"Has ... has my debt been repaid?" Tie ChuanJia said.

"Your debt has been repaid." Yi MingTang said.

"There is one more thing that I want to say." Tie ChuanJia said.

"Speak." Yi MingTang said.

"Although I have wronged Brother Weng, I never betrayed him, I only ..." Tie ChuanJia said.

Yi MingTang interrupted him and said, "You don't have to say anymore, I understand."

He really did understand.

A person who betrayed his friends would never sacrifice his own life in such a situation.

Not only did Yi MingTang understand this, Jin FengBai and the woodcutter understood this as well.

It was a pity that they all realized too late.

Tears started to form in Yi MingTang's eyes, eys that had been blind for so many years.

Li XunHuan saw it, he saw it very clearly.

It was the first time that he realized that blind people were able to shed tears as well.

Warm tears were already flowing from his eyes.

Warm tears that fell onto the cold face of Tie ChuanJia. He knelt down and lightly wiped off the blood and sweat from Tie ChuanJia's face.

Tie ChuanJia finally opened his eyes, as soon as he saw Li XunHuan, he exclaimed, "Young master! Young master ... you really came!"

He was overcome with joy, he struggled to stand but kept collapsing back to the floor.

Li XunHuan knelt down beside him and said, "I have come, we will have plenty of time to talk later."

Tie ChuanJia struggled to shake his head as he said with a painful smile, "I can die now with no regrets, there is nothing else left for me to say."

Li XunHuan said with tears in his eyes, "But there are still things that you must say. The fact that you hadn't betrayed Brother Weng, why don't you clear everything up? Why did you avoid it for so long?"

"I avoided it not for my own sake." Tie ChuanJia said.

"Then for whom?" Li XunHuan asked.

Tie ChuanJia slowly shook his head from side to side.

His arms and legs were convulsing in pain, but the expression on his face remained calm and at ease, a gleeful smile formed from the corner of his lips.

His death was very peaceful.

One of the most difficult things to do in life is to die a peaceful death!

Li XunHuan knelt motionlessly beside him, his entire body fell numb.

He obviously knew who Tie ChuanJia had died for.

He had most likely arrived at Happy Cloud Manor before Li XunHuan and discovered ShangGuan JinHong's plans to ambush him and had followed them to this underground tunnel. If for any reason he knew that Li XunHuan was in danger, there wasn't a place that Tie ChuanJia wouldn't go to help him.

But how did he uncover ShangGuan JinHong's plot?

And what were the secrets between him and Weng TianJie, Brother Weng? That even in death he was unwilling to disclose?

"Just what are you hiding? Although you can die with no regrets, how can I ever rest peacefully not knowing how you came to this end?" Li XunHuan said sullenly.

"I think I know what he was hiding." Jin FengBai suddenly shouted.

"You ... you know?" Li XunHuan said.

Jin FengBai's face had always been dark and foreboding but now it was sickly green.

He gritted his teeth and said, "The friendship and loyalty that Brother Weng showed towards others was widely known, I'm sure you've heard about this as well."

"I have." Li XunHuan said.

"As long as it was from a friend, there wasn't a single request that he'd deny. And because of this, his expenses were always very great. But he wasn't like you, he didn't have a father who was an Imperial Magistrate." Jin FengBai said.

Li XunHuan smiled.

"So he was always in poverty. Somone who lived in poverty, but had many friends, and also demanded respect, would be forced to think up other ways to repay his debts." Jin FengBai said.

"Are you saying ... that Brother Weng engaged in illegal businesses?" the woodcutter said.

"Right, I had accidentally overheard about this. But I could never bear to reveal the truth, because everything that Brother Weng had done was out of necessity." Jin FengBai said.

He suddenly continued loudly, "But everyone who Brother Weng had taken advantage of must have had it coming to them and probably deserved it! Although what he did was take advantage and rip people off, it was never anything that went against his morals or his conscience."

"And what relation does Tie ChuanJia have with this matter?" Yi MingTang asked.

"After many deals, people had started investigating his business dealings. One of Tie ChuanJia's close friends turned out to be the inspector that was given this case. The two of them had long suspected Brother Weng, but weren't certain of his guilt.

"So that's probably why Tie ChuanJia befriended Brother Weng, so that he could investigate further and act upon finding evidence." the woodcutter said.

"I think that's what most likely happened." Jin FengBai said.

He continued, "Tie ChuanJia was unwilling to reveal this because Brother Weng had always been good to him. He soon came to regard Brother Weng as a good friend, there was no way that he'd reveal this to ruin Brother Weng's reputation after his death. So he took all the blame and false accusations upon himself. He really wasn't running away this whole time for his own sake."

"But why haven't you ever told us about this?" Yi MingTang said.

"Me ... ? How would you expect me to reveal this to everyone? Brother Weng had always been so generous and kind towards me. Even Tie ChuanJia was unwilling to reveal this, how could I ever bear to do it?" Jin FengBai said.

"Great! You really are a true friend of Brother Weng's. A true friend!" Yi MingTang said.

There was a cold smile on his face but his entire body was trembling.

"I know that it was really unfair to Tie ChuanJia but I had no other choice, I really had no other choice ..." Jin FengBai said.

His voice kept lowering as he spoke, he suddenly picked up a sabre, it was the same sabre that had just taken Tie ChuanJia's life. He turned it towards himself and plunged it into his chest at exactly the same place that the sabre had stabbed into Tie ChuanJia.

Although he was writhing in pain, he had the same type of smile on his face that Tie ChuanJia had earlier, "I really owed him too much, but now, at least that debt has been repaid in full!"

He died very peacefully as well ...

One of the most difficult things to do in life is to die a peaceful death.

Yi MingTang suddenly started laughing madly, "Excellent! You were brave enough to reveal the truth, and brave enough to repay this debt, you really are a true friend of mine! At least we 'Eight Righteous Ones of the Central Plains' never do anything that would disgrace ourselves!"

His laughter started to sound like a weeping cry.

The woodcutter suddenly knelt in front of Tie ChuanJia's body and bowed once, then he turned to Yi MingTang and said, "Second brother, I will go ahead first."

Yi MingTang's laughter abruptly stopped as he changed immediately to a cold and calm demeanor and said, "Okay, go on ahead."

"I'll be waiting for you." the woodcutter said.

His axe rose up, blood sprayed across the floor, he died even faster, and even more peacefully.

If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, Li XunHuan would've never believed that there people who were this unafraid of death.

There wasn't a trace of emotion on Yi MingTang's face as he turned to Li XunHuan and said, "I haven't left yet, because there is still something I must tell you."

Li XunHuan could only nod his head.

"You should've figured out by now that we had been hiding out here for a very long time, because we expected Tie ChuanJia to return here sooner or later, so there is much that we know about what happened." Yi MingTang said.

He slowly continued, "We knew about ShangGuan JinHong's plot from the very beginning. Long Xiao4Yun knew about it as well. I had always found it weird why you would befriend such a person."

Of course Li XunHuan had nothing to say to that either.

"Tie ChuanJia found out about this trap from Long Xiao4Yun, he had purposely leaked this information to him because he wanted to send Tie ChuanJia to his death. But he didn't anticipate that we would have followed him here because there was no way that we would allow Tie ChuanJia to die in the hands of someone else." Yi MingTang said.

He continued, "But concerning Madame ... Miss Lin ShiYin, she did not fall into harm's way, nor did she fall into ShangGuan JinHong's hands. If you pay a visit to Happy Cloud Manor, you will definitely be able to see her there."

Li XunHuan felt a warm surging feeling in his chest, was it gratitude? Or was it happiness?

"And now all enmities concerning us eight have been settled, I can only hope that you will bury all of us together. And if anyone should ask about the 'Eight Righteous Ones of the Central Plains', I only hope that you will tell them that although we had made mistakes during our lives, that we tried our best to right our wrongs in death." Yi MingTang said.

The remaining men in yellow had already quietly slipped away. Although Li XunHuan had seen them leave, he didn't bother to stop them.

Nor did he bother to stop Yi MingTang.

Because he knew that Yi MingTang really would not be able to live on.

As long as a person could die with his mind at ease, what else could he ask for?

Death meant nothing to them.

But now as Li XunHuan looked at the floor that was littered with corpses, he couldn't help but start shuddering, because he realized the brutality and horror of 'vengeance'.

No matter how deep that vengeance was, it had all been settled now.

Yi MingTang was perfectly correct, although they had made mistakes during their lives, they were able to die with honor, dignity, and a clear conscience.

There are few people in this world who are able to die as they did.

Li XunHuan's arms and legs were cold to the point of trembling now, the burning in his chest felt like fire.

He fell to his knees in a pool of their blood.

It was the blood of true men!

He calmly knelt there, he preferred the company of these dead men much more than the devious smiles of the living.

"A real man is unshaken by joy in life and unshaken by fear in death!" If a person can really die without regrets, then what is so frightening about death?

But it really is hard to die in such a way!

Sun XiaoHong hadn't stepped foot inside that place the entire time. It wasn't that she was afraid, but she couldn't bear to witness such a gory scene. She realized that men really were different from women.

She realized that being a woman was a blessing in its own way.

________________________________________

Night.

In the small shop, there was a single light and two people.

The light was very dim, their mood was even dimmer ...

The light lay in front of Li XunHuan. Wine also lay in front of Li XunHuan. But it seemed like he didn't even have the strength to lift his cup, all he could do was stare idly into it.

The flame danced and flickered.

After who knows how long, Li XunHuan finally let out a sigh and said, "Let's go."

"I ... am I coming with you?" Sun XiaoHong asked.

"We came together so of course we'll leave together." Li XunHuan responded.

"We're leaving? But aren't you going to pay a visit to Happy Cloud Manor?" Sun XiaoHong asked.

Li XunHuan shook his head.

"But wasn't the whole reason we came for was to go to Happy Cloud Manor?" Sun XiaoHong asked.

"There's no need to now." Li XunHuan replied.

"Why not?" Sun XiaoHong said.

He stared into the light and said, "Yi MingTang assured me that she is safe, that is enough for me."

"And you're relieved by simply hearing his words?" Sun XiaoHong said.

"He is the type of person who is definitely trustworthy." Li XunHuan said.

She blinked and asked, "But ... don't you want to see her?"

Li XunHuan fell silent and then slowly answered, "Seeing her will be like not seeing her. Since she is safe, there's no need for me to go."

"But since you're already here, would it hurt to just see her?" Sun XiaoHong said.

He fell silent again, then suddenly smiled and said, "I suddenly feel happy again. Since my mood has come back, it makes no difference whether I see her or not."

Sun XiaoHong sighed and smiled, "You really are a strange person, other people can never understand the things that you do."

"You'll understand sooner or later." Li XunHuan replied.

She stared dumbly at him for a few moments before saying, "But you should at least stay to ensure that they get a proper burial."

"They can wait, but ShangGuan JinHong can't." Li XunHuan said.

He smiled a very bittersweet smile and continued, "Dead people are much more patient than the living, wouldn't you say?"

[bliss]

I don't really like these guys, the 'Eight Righteous Ones of the Central Plains'. For some reason they remind me of the bumbling idiocy of The 7 Heroes (Freaks) of Jiangnan, never really liked them much either. They both even have a blind guy who's brash, arrogant, and hellbent on vengeance (Ke ZhenEr and Yi MingTang). Bleh, I dunno, think it just pisses me off that they totally f'ed up Tie ChuanJia's life.

[fastclock]

I'm wondering whether Gu Long presented this revenge theme as a contrast to the "true chivalric" way that Li XunHoan walks; the one with compassion and love. So while revenge theme is there in the story, it serves as a background and an old way to resolving an issue.

[bliss]

Chapter 80 - A Terrible Mistake

"So you're not as loyal as I had thought. Well at least more loyal to the living than to the dead." Sun XiaoHong said jestingly.

"When did we start heading out yesterday?" Li XunHuan suddenly asked.

"It was nighttime, about the same time as it is now." Sun XiaoHong replied.

"And at what time did we arrive here today?" Li XunHuan asked.

"Late afternoon, it wasn't yet dark outside." Sun XiaoHong said.

"And how did we get here?" Li XunHuan said.

"We rode a carriage for quite some time, then traveled by foot until this morning, and afterwards we went on horseback." Sun XiaoHong said.

"So even if we traveled the same way as we had before, we still wouldn't be able to get back before late afternoon." Li XunHuan said.

"Right." Sun XiaoHong replied.

"But now, we haven't slept for quite some time. We won't have as much energy as we had yesterday, so there's no way we can travel at a faster pace than yesterday." Li XunHuan said.

"But yesterday I wasn't quite able to keep up with you. No wonder grandpa had said that your speed is just as incredible as your dagger." Sun XiaoHong said.

"So even if we left now, I may still not be able to make it back in time to duel with ShangGuan JinHong" Li XunHuan said.

Sun XiaoHong suddenly fell silent.

He lifted his head, looked at her and said, "You should be encouraging me to leave now, you know that I can't miss this meeting."

Sun XiaoHong turned away and bit down on her lips as if she was trying to hide from his gaze.

After a while, she said softly, "I only want you to promise me one thing."

"What is it?" Li XunHuan said.

"This time let's only go by carriage, lets not go on foot or on horseback." Sun XiaoHong said.

"You want me to rest on the way." Li XunHuan said.

"Yes. If you don't rest now, you'll be exhausted when you finally do see ShangGuan JinHong. You can't really duel with him if you're knocked out on the floor." Sun XiaoHong said.

Li XunHuan smiled and said, "Okay, I'll listen to you, we'll take a carriage."

Sun XiaoHong immediately lit up with happiness, "We can bring wine onto the carriage as well. If you can't fall asleep, I'll drink with you along the way."

"Once I start drinking, eventually I'll be able to fall asleep." Li XunHuan said.

"Great, as long as you can get some rest during carriage ride, ShangGuan JinHong won't be a match for you." Sun XiaoHong said with a smile.

"You really have a lot of faith in me." Li XunHuan responded with a smile.

She looked into his eyes and said, "Of course I have faith in you, otherwise why would I ..."

Her face started to blush, she suddenly ran out and said gleefully, "I'll go look for a carriage while you prepare the wine. And if there's time, you should go see her, I promise that I won't be jealous."

Her ponytail flew up and down as she ran and within a few moments she was out of sight.

Li XunHuan saw her off before slowly standing up and walking out of the door himself.

He looked up high, above the walls was a small room in one corner.

The light in that small room was lit.

What about the person inside?

Was she quietly sewing clothes for her beloved son?

The extent of a mother's love was like an unending thread of string.

But it still wasn't as lengthy as loneliness, nothing in this world was as lengthy as loneliness.

One year after another, one mouth after another. A thread that could not be sewn. A loneliness that could not be mended.

She had already buried her own life, that small room was her grave.

A person ... a woman ... without youth, without love, without joy, what did she live for?

"ShiYin ... ShiYin ... you have suffered way too much."

Li XunHuan suddenly bent down and started coughing, coughing out blood!

How could he not want to see her?

Although his body was standing still, his heart had already flown into that small room.

Although his heart had flown into that room, his body was still standing right there.

He didn't dare to go, he just couldn't go. Even if it were to be the last time he'd ever see her, he still just couldn't go ... seeing her would be like not seeing her. And what could he do even if he did see her?

She was no longer his, she had a husband, a son, and her own world.

She was really in an entirely separate world.

She used to be his, but now he couldn't even cast a single eye on her.

Li XunHuan wiped the blood off his lips and tried to swallow back down the blood in his mouth.

Even the blood tasted bitter, extremely bitter.

"ShiYin ... ShiYin, I'll be satisfied no matter what just as long as you're safe and at peace. Whether in hell or in heaven, the day will come when we can see each other again."

But was Lin ShiYin really at peace?

Blistering cold wind, he looked even more emaciated than a chrysantheum flower.

Li XunHuan stood lonesomely in the western wind. Was he hoping that the wind would carry him away?

After some time Sun XiaoHong had returned. She looked at him foolishly and said, "You ... you didn't go see her?"

Li XunHuan shook his head and said, "Did you find a carriage?"

"The carriage is waiting just ahead, if you're really not going to see her, then let's get going." Sun XiaoHong said.

"Let's go!" Li XunHuan replied.

The carriage rocked back and forth along the road, wine wavered back and forth inside his cup.

It was finely aged wine.

The carriage seemed even older than the wine, while the horses seemed even older than the carriage.

Li XunHuan wagged his head and said with a smile, "If only the horse pulling this carriage were Lord Guan's 'Red Hare', then this carriage would instantly become an antique. It's pretty amazing that you were able to find such a carriage."

Sun XiaoHong couldn't contain her laughter, she lifted up her chin and said, "You're not pleased with my arrangements?"

"No, no, I'm satisfied, very satisfied." Li XunHuan said.

He closed his eyes and said, "As soon as I stepped foot into this carriage, I suddenly remembered something from a very long time ago."

"Oh? What did you remember?" Sun XiaoHong said.

"I remembered a wooden horse that I used to play with when I was younger, it feels like I'm rocking back and forth the same way on this carriage." Li XunHuan said.

Before he could finish his sentence, he felt something go into his mouth.

"After you finish eating these dates, hurry up and get some rest." Sun XiaoHong said with a smile.

"If I really could fall asleep and never wake, it would be pretty nice, unfortunately ..." Li XunHuan said.

Sun XiaoHong cut him off and said, "I got this carriage because I wanted you to be able to sleep well. As long as you can fall asleep, we can swich carriages in the morning."

Li XunHuan downed his cup of wine and said, "If that's the case then I'll drink a few more cups so I can sleep soundly."

The wine in his cup swung back and forth, her ponytail wagged back and forth as well.

Her eyes were warm and radiant like the starlight outside the carriage.

The starlight was like a dream.

Li XunHuan was falling into inebriation.

On such a beautiful night, with such a bueatiful companion, how could he not fall into a drunken stupor?

Since he was drunk, how could he not fall asleep?

Li XunHuan leaned to one side and lifted up his legs onto the seat of the carriage and mumbled, "Sages and heroes were always plagued with loneliness and had nothing but alcohol to keep them company ... but isn't drinking the night away just as depressing?"

Everything fell quiet, soon there was only silence.

He had finally fallen asleep.

Sun XiaoHong stared at him quietly. After a long while, she reached out and ran her hand through his hair and said softly, "Sleep, sleep peacefully. After you wake up, all your sadness and trouble will be a thing of the past. And when that time comes, I won't let you drink so much anymore."

Her eyes started to glow brightly, they filled with joyous expectations.

She was still young.

Youths are always optimistic about the world, they assume that things will always go the way they planned.

She didn't understand that the world simply didn't work that way. The way things turn out are always far off from what we expect. If she knew just how far off her expectations were, her clothes would be soaked with tears.

The carriage driver was leisurely sipping his wine as well.

He didn't seem to be in a hurry.

Because the young lady that called for the carriage had instructed him so!

"Take your time on the road, we are not in a rush to get anywhere."

The carriage driver smiled to himself. If he were riding in a carriage with his sweetheart, he wouldn't be in a hurry to get anywhere either.

He was really envious of Li XunHuan, he felt that Li XunHuan was really lucky.

But if he knew the kind of situation that Li XunHuan and Sun XiaoHong were in, he probably wouldn't be able to swallow that wine in his cup.

The next day had arrived.

When Li XunHuan woke up, sunlight had already flooded through the carriage window.

He didn't know how he had fallen asleep for so long. Was he simply tired? Or was it the wine?

Li XunHuan picked up his cup and sniffed it but slowly put it back down.

The carriage was still shaking back and forth as it rolled down the road. It was moving very slowly, stopping here and there, as if the driver was slowly dozing off.

Sun XiaoHong had fallen asleep on his lap.

Her long hair flowed down his legs like water.

Li XunHuan stuck his head out the window but couldn't see the carriage's shadow.

The sun was directly overhead.

After some distance there was a stone tablet by the side of the road that had the name of the village ahead.

The time that he had agreed to meet with ShangGuan JinHong was fast approaching, a little less than six hours away.

But they were only half way there.

Li XunHuan suddenly felt his hands go cold as they started to tremble.

There were times when he was worried, sad, or troubled, and there were times when he was happy, but rarely was he ever angry.

Right now he wasn't quite angry, but very close to it.

Sun XiaoHong suddenly awoke and felt him shaking. She looked up and saw the angry expression on his face, it was an expression that she had never seen before.

She lowered her head, her eyes already turning red, and said, "Are you upset at me?"

Li XunHuan's mouth was shut, shut very tightly.

"I knew that you would be upset at me but I still would've done the same thing. I don't care if you scold me or hit me, just as long as you understand that I did this for your own good." Sun XiaoHong said.

Li XunHuan let out a long sigh. His entire body relaxed, his heart softened as well.

What Sun XiaoHong did really was for his sake.

What did she do wrong? As long as she whole-heartedly wanted the best for him, how could he blame her?

"I understand how you feel, I don't blame you. But why can't you try to understand how I feel as well?" Li XunHuan said.

"You ... you really don't think I understand how you feel?" Sun XiaoHong said.

"If you understood how I felt, you would know that even if you did stop me from meeting with ShangGuan JinHong this time, what about in the future? I have to confront him sooner or later, it could even be tomorrow." Li XunHuan said.

"By tomorrow, everything will be different." Sun XiaoHong said.

"What will be different by tomorrow?" Li XunHuan said.

"By tomorrow ShangGuan JinHong will already be dead, he probably won't live past tonight." Sun XiaoHong said.

The way she spoke was particularly strange, as if she was very confident in what she said.

Li XunHuan couldn't figure out why she sounded so confident so he thought for awhile.

"No one will blame you for not showing up today. Besides, it was all ShangGuan JinHong's doing. If he didn't force you to go to Happy Cloud Manor, then you wouldn't have been this late." Sun XiaoHong said.

Li XunHuan was still lost in thought, but the expression on his face slowly changed.

Sun XiaoHong's mood seemed to lighten as she leaned beside him and said, "Once ShangGuan JinHong is dead, no one will say that ..."

Li XunHuan suddenly cut in and said, "Did your grandfather tell you to do this?"

Sun XiaoHong blinked and said jokingly, "Well, maybe it was, maybe it wasn't."

"Is he going in my place to confront ShangGuan JinHong?" Li XunHuan said.

"Correct, you should know that once ShangGuan JinHong sees my grandpa, it'll be like a mouse seeing a cat. I think he is the only person in this world who can deal with ShangGuan JinHong." Sun XiaoHong said.

She held his hand and wanted to continue on but suddenly fell silent because she felt that his hands were colder than ice.

If a person's heart wasn't filled with fear, why would their hands turn this cold?

But what was he afraid of?

Seeing the expression on his face she was afraid to ask.

"Did you grandfather want to go himself, or was it you who had asked him to?" Li XunHuan questioned her.

"Does ... does it make a difference?" Sun XiaoHong said.

"Yes, it makes a big difference." Li XunHuan said.

"It was I who asked him to go, because when dealing with people like ShangGuan JinHong, it doesn't matter who kills him. It doesn't necessarily have to be you." Sun XiaoHong said.

He nodded his head as if he was in agreement with what she said, but there was an entirely different expression on his face.

Not only did he look frightened, but extremely grieved as well.

Sun XiaoHong couldn't help but ask, "Are you worried?"

Li XunHuan didn't have to answer, his expression answered for him.

"I don't quite understand what you're worrid about ... is it grandpa?" Sun XiaoHong said.

Li XunHuan finally sighed and said in a low tone of voice, "I'm worried for you."

"You're worrid for me? Why?" Sun XiaoHong said.

"Everybody makes mistakes in life. There are some mistakes we make that can be fixed but there are others that are forever irretractable." Li XunHuan said.

Now there was not only grief in his eyes, but a deep feeling of pain as well.

He looked straight at her and continued, "If you make a mistake that can never be fixed, no matter what your intentions were, you'll have to carry this burden for the rest of your life. Even if other people forgive you, you will never be able to forgive yourself. It really is a horrible feeling."

He understood this feeling very well.

Because of one mistake that he made in his life, he had to pay a terrible price.

She looked back at him and suddenly felt a strange foreboding feeling, "Are you worried that I am going to do something wrong?"

After a long pause, Li XunHuan asked her, "All these years, have you always been traveling with your grandfather?"

"Yes." Sun XiaoHong said.

"Have you ever seen him use his martial arts?" Li XunHuan asked.

"I don't think so ..." Sun XiaoHong replied.

[eeyoore]

Bliss Your translation is soooooooo good. I 've been looking everywhere for the English copy of this novel to show to my boyfriend (he only reads ENglish and I can translate), and when I found your threat, ouw... my heart gave sucha jolt.
Thanks a huge bunch, I actually registered just to thank you

[bliss]

Bliss Your translation is soooooooo good. I 've been looking everywhere for the English copy of this novel to show to my boyfriend (he only reads ENglish and I can translate), and when I found your threat, ouw... my heart gave sucha jolt.
Thanks a huge bunch, I actually registered just to thank you

Most of your thanks should go to Meh, he translated the bulk of the story (ch.1-62). I'm just trying to finish it off for him.

[ChronoReverse]

Oh noes. This story doesn't end in tragedy does it? =/

[eeyoore]

well, Meh did the bigger part of the job and he deserves a humongous thank too, but to pick up what's left and finish it off, you need a lot of courage and motivation. I can't read Chinese and therefore I can't translate wuxia, but i did some translation from English to another language. Because of the slow speed of translation (in comparison to reading), my zeal and patience had to go through quite a challenge.
so, many thanks to you all

[JigSta]

I love you bliss and meh!

[bliss]

Sun XiaoHong quickly added, "But this is because he never had the chance to, he never needed to."

"He never needed to?" Li XunHuan said.

"Because he has no equal." Sun XiaoHong said.

"But what about ShangGuan JinHong?" Li XunHuan said.

"He ..." Sun XiaoHong said.

She suddenly stopped talking, did something just occur to her?

"Your grandfather must have objected to ShangGuan JinHong's actions and deeds." Li XUnHuan said.

"He ... he really was very annoyed with the way that ShangGuan JinHong acted." Sun XiaoHong said.

"But he never went to face him." Li XunHuan said.

Sun XiaoHong lowered her head and said, "No, he didn't ..."

"Why would he just tolerate it for so long? And why would he only decide to confront ShangHuan JinHong after you had asked him to?" Li XunHuan said.

Her mouth suddenly felt parched, she was at a loss for words.

"When a person's martial arts reaches its peak, a certain fear is bound to arise. Fear that others will catch up with you, fear that your own skills will recede. And when that time comes, you will try your best to avoid it. In fact, you will try your best to avoid doing anything at all." Li XunHuan said.

He sighed and continued, "And the more that you refuse to act, the sooner that you will really be unable to act. Some suddenly decide to go into seclusion, while others become self-destructive - perferring to just end everything in death ... this has always been the common trend in history. Unless you are really able to step past the material world and enter a stage where you forget about human emotions, and become completely oblivious to the world and its people."

Sun XiaoHong felt her body slowly stiffening up, cold sweat covered her face.

Because she knew that her grandfather was not 'emotionless'.

He still cared about a lot of things, and a lot of people.

"But I could be wrong ..." Li XunHuan said.

Sun XiaoHong suddenly flung herself over and embraced him tightly.

Her body was shaking like the cotton underneath a bowstring.

She was scared, very scared.

Li XunHuan gently brushed her hair. Was it compassion? Sympathy? Or sorrow?

A person who didn't have feelings would never do such a thing.

A person like that would never make a mistake.

But why did the heavens always force the passionate ones in this world to make mistakes that could never be corrected?

Was a person wrong simply for being sentimental?

Sun XiaoHong started to twitch as she burst into tears, "Please, please hurry back with me. Just as long as we can hurry back there ... no matter the price ... I'll do anything."

There were sounds of horses neighing coming from the window, they were in a stable.

If there was one thing Li XunHuan could do, it was picking out horses. Many people knew that this was so, Li XunHuan was not only an expert with woman, but also with horses. It wasn't easy to be an expert in these two fields.

Beacause horses and women were both very difficult to understand.

He picked out the two fastest horses he could find.

The prettiest woman was not necessarily the most lovable one. The fastest horse was not necessarily the strongest one. Beautiful women lack sincerity, fast horses lacked endurance.

Two horses fell over.

Two people started to run frantically.

The evening sun drew near.

Two people ran as hard as they could, they didn't care what the people around them thought, they didn't care how tired their bodies felt.

They didn't care about anything.

The night drew near.

There was no longer anyone on the road.

The stars and the moon were nowhere to be seen on this night, there was not a single light in sight.

A dark forest lay to the side of the road, outside of the forest was the outline of a pavilion.

Wasn't this the arranged place for the duel?

In the middle of the dark night, there seemed to be a glimmer in the distance.

As the light started to get brighter, an outline of a person could be seen.

Sun XiaoHong suddenly let out a sigh of relief as her entire body loosened up.

It was a miracle that she was able to keep running for so long, or perhaps she was driven by fear.

Fear can bring out a person's hidden strength.

But now, she saw it, she saw the one thing that she was hoping to see. Her panting suddenly stopped.

She collapsed onto the ground.

Li XunHuan didn't dare to let out a sigh of relief yet.

As he saw that light flash back and forth, he noticed that it flickered in a strange rhythm. Sometimes it was exceedingly bright, while other times it would dim dramatically.

Suddenly, that light flared up like a giant lantern.

That day, outside a different city, under a different pavilion, Li XunHuan had seen this exact type of flickering light.

That day, Old Mr. Sun was in that pavilion puffing on his pipe.

With the exception of Mr. Sun, Li XunHuan had never seen that bright of a light come from someone smoking on a pipe.

Li XunHuan felt warm tears swelling up in his eyes.

Sun XiaoHong was on the floor, slowly sobbing as she got up.

These were tears of joy, these were tears of gratitude.

The heavens really didn't dictate that she would commit a grave mistake.

Li XunHuan helped her up as the two walked towards the pavilion.

The pavilion seemed to be full of smoke, a person was sitting right in the middle.

The fragrance of the smoke was very familiar to Sun XiaoHong.

She felt a surge of warmth in her chest, she let go of Li XunHuan's hand and dashed towards the pavilion.

She only wanted to run straight into her grandfather's arms to tell him how grateful she was.

She couldn't help and screamed out, "Grandpa! We're back ... we've come back!"

The light in the pavilion suddenly went out.

Then, they heard a person solemnly say, "Excellent, I've been waiting for the two of you!"

The voice was cold, aloof, and resolute, completely void of tone and completely void of emotion.

Sun XiaoHong suddenly stood still. The warmth that she felt suddenly turned freezing cold, so cold that it froze her in place.

That voice was like a club, striking her from heaven back down to earth.

Suddenly, four lanterns lit up.

Four yellow lanterns hung from sticks of bamboo.

Under the glowing yellow light, sat a single person. He looked as cold as gold, as resolute as gold, even his heart seemed to be forged out of gold.

He was puffing on a pipe.

The pipe that he was puffing on was Old Mr. Sun's pipe.

But he was ShangGuan JinHong!

The person puffing on the pipe in that pavilion was ShangGuan JinHong!

Blistering cold wind, torridly freezing rain.

Nobody knew when it had started to pour.

Sun XiaoHong just stood in the rain, her body entirely still, entirely stiff.

She wanted to scream, but didn't have the strength. She wanted to rush in, but her body wouldn't move.

Her chest was convulsing, she was about to vomit.

But not even a single tear would come out.

Li XunHuan had been walking at a slower pace than her, but now he just kept walking towards the pavilion, his steps hadn't stopped.

But his breath had already stopped.

He slowly walked up to the pavilion and stood face to face with ShangGuan JinHong.

ShangGuan JinHong didn't turn his head towards him, his eyes were still focused on the pipe in his hands.

"You're late."

After a long pause, Li XunHuan responded, "Yes, I'm late."

He felt his entire mouth dry up. Bitterness. It was as if his tongue was rubbing up against iron, it was an indescribable taste.

Could it be the taste of fear?

"Better late than never." ShangGuan JinHong said.

"You should've known that I would come sooner or later." Li XunHuan said.

"Its a pity that the person that should've come arrived late, and the person that shouldn't have came early." ShangGuan JinHong said.

After those words, both of them fell silent. They stood face to face staring at each other, none of them moving a muscle.

They were both waiting for the opportune moment.

Once they made a move, it could not be taken back!

________________________________________

In the midst of the rain and wind, under the dark forest, there were two more people, two more pairs of eyes.

Those two pairs of eyes were fixed on Li XunHuan and ShangGuan JinHong.

One pair of eyes was as soft and gentle as water, bright and radiant like stars. Even if you searched the entire world, it'd be hard to find another pair of eyes as beautiful as this.

The other pair of eyes was deathly pale, they seemed to meld into the lifeless night. Even if you searched all of hell, it'd be hard to find another pair of eyes as frightening as this.

Even if there were ghosts and demons secretly hiding in that forest, they would've long fled.

This pair of eyes could make ghosts and demons tremble on their feet.

Lin XianEr and Jing WuMing had arrived long before anyone else, and they had been hiding here for a very long time.

Lin XianEr stood beside Jing WuMing and was clenching tightly onto his shoulder.

Jing WuMing didn't make a sound, and didn't move a muscle.

"If you want to kill him, now is the best chance, there won't be a better one than this." Lin XianEr said.

"Someone else is trying to kill him right now. There is no need for me to attack." Jing WuMing said.

"I'm not telling you to kill Li XunHuan." Lin XianEr said.

"Then who?" Jing WuMing asked.

"ShangGuan JinHong, kill ShangGuan JinHong!" Lin XianEr said.

She was trembling with excitement, her fingernails dug into Jing WuMing's skin.

Jing WuMing didn't move, nor did he feel the pain.

But there was a strange fire in his eyes, it looked like the flames of hell.

"He is fully concentrated on Li XunHuan right now, he won't have the strength to deal with anyone else. In addition, he has no idea about your right hand, you'll definitely be able to kill him." Lin XianEr said.

Jing WuMing still didn't move.

"You're the most familiar with the operations of the 'Gold Currency Union', once he is gone, you will be its new Chief." Lin XianEr said.

She started to grunt under her breath.

Her grunting didn't sound very pleasant at all. She sounded like a pregnant dog.

"Even if you don't want that position, you should at least pay him back for what he did to you. So that when he gets to hell, he'll regret how he treated you." Lin XianEr said.

Jing WuMing's eyes still looked like they held the flames of hell. Those flames started to flare intensely.

"Go, hurry, if you miss this chance, you'll be the one who will regret it, not him." Lin XianEr said.

Jing WuMing nodded his head and replied, "Okay, I'll go!"

"Hurry, I'll wait for you here. Once you succeed, I'll be yours forever." Lin XianEr said.

"You don't have to wait for me." Jing WuMing said.

"Why?" Lin XianEr said.

"Because you're coming with me!" Jing WuMing said.

Lin XianEr suddenly felt that something was wrong.

A hint of fright showed in her beautiful eyes as Jing WuMing started to squeeze her wrist.

Lin XianEr never liked to fall to tears. She felt that women who had to turn to tears were not only weak but repuslive and foolish as well.

Besides, she had much better ways to get men to do what she wanted.

But now, she was in so much pain that she couldn't help but start tearing.

She could almost hear the bones in her hand shattering, "What did I do wrong? Why are you treating me like this?"

"In your whole life, you've made one mistake." Jing WuMing said.

"What?" Lin XianEr said.

"You shouldn't have assumed that everyone loves you the way that Ah Fei does!" Jing WuMing said.

________________________________________

Li XunHuan had his back to the forest.

He did not see Lin XianEr and Jing WuMing as they emerged from the forest, he was focused solely on ShangGuan JinHong. But what he did see was a strange look come over ShangGuan JinHong's face.

ShangGuan JinHong's concentration was suddenly broken.

He never gave his opponent such an opportunity before, and he definitely would never reveal such an opening ever again.

But Li XunHuan didn't strike, his dagger stayed in his hand.

Because he felt a terrifying killer aura coming from behind him.

His flying dagger was not thrown with just his hand, it was thrown with his entire body and essence. If he had released his dagger, he would have had no way to defend an attack from behind him.

His foot turned and slid seven feet. And he saw Jing WuMing.

Jing WuMing was standing directly behind him.

Then, he saw Lin XianEr, he had never seen such a look of distress on her face.

It started to pour even harder.

Every one of them was completely drenched.

Even though lanterns hung from the corners of the pavilion, their lights paled in the darkness of the night.

Jing WuMing stood in the darkness, he looked like a shadow, as if he wasn't even there.

But Li XunHuan had shifted his gaze from ShangGuan JinHong to him.

ShangGuan JinHong had also shifted his gaze from Li XunHuan to him.

Because they both felt that victory and defeat no longer lay in their hands, but in Jing WuMing's.

Jing WuMing started to laugh, very loudly.

In his entire life he had never laughed so hard before.

ShangGuan JinHong let out a sigh and said, "Just keep laughing, because you have every right to be laughing."

"Why aren't you laughing?" Jing WuMing said.

"It just won't come out." ShangGuan JinHong said.

"Why's that?" Jing WuMing said.

"You know the reason." ShangGuan JinHong said.

"You're right. I do know the reason." Jing WuMing said.

He stopped laughing, slowly stood up straight, and said, "Because now I am the one who can decide both your fates, while both of you won't even dare to attack me."

He was right, no one dared to attack him.

If ShangGuan JinHong made a move on him right now, he would leave his defenses wide open for Li XunHuan. There was no way he would risk giving Li XunHuan such a chance.

Li XunHuan was in the same exact situation.

"I can help you kill Li XunHuan, or I could help Li XunHuan kill you." Jing WuMing said.

"I believe that is so." ShangGuan JinHong said.

"Do you? I'm not just a cripple who has outlived his usefulness anymore?" Jing WuMing said.

"Everyone makes mistakes in judgement from time to time." ShangGuan JinHong said.

"How do you know you've made a mistake? I really could be just a cripple." Jing WuMing said.

"Your right hand is even stronger than your left." ShangGuan JinHong said.

"How can you tell?" Jing WuMing said.

"Lin XianEr is not a weak woman, it'd be difficult for anyone to hold her down with just one hand." ShangGuan JinHong said.

Jing WuMing slowly nodded his head and said, "You really can tell. Its a shame that you realized a little too late."

"Not only can I see that, I can see that I've made a mistake as well." SHangGuan JinHong said.

"You really regret what you've done to me?" Jing WuMing said.

"Yes I really do regret what I've done to you, I should've killed you instead!" ShangGuan JinHong said.

"So why didn't you kill me?" Jing WuMing said.

"I couldn't bear to." ShangGuan JinHong said.

A strange look came over Jing WuMing's face, "Even you can't bear to kill sometimes?"

"I'm also human." ShangGuan JinHong said.

"So you think I won't kill you either?" Jing WuMing said.

ShangGuan JinHong glanced over at Lin XianEr and said, "She definitely wanted you to kill me."

"She did." Jing WuMing said.

"But if you really wanted to kill me, you wouldn't have brought her over here." ShangGuan JinHong said.

Lin XianEr suddenly burst out in laughter.

She had fallen to the ground and was laughing madly, it really was quite a startling sight.

"Of course he is afraid to kill you. If you were dead, he wouldn't be able to live on either. I finally understand now that he only lives for you. He came here because he wanted you to acknowledge his worth. But in front of anyone else, he wouldn't be worth a penny." Lin XianEr said.

"But it'd be very easy for him to kill you." ShangGuan JinHong said.

"You think he is willing to kill me? ... When you wanted to kill me, he wanted to save me, do you know why?" Lin XianEr said.

ShangGuan JinHong said coldly, "Because he wants to kill you in front of me."

"You're wrong, he doesn't want to kill me in front of you, he wants you to kill me with your own hands ..." Lin XianEr said.

She laughed and said, "When we were together, he was insane with jealousy. Back then I thought it was because of me, but now I understand that it was because of you. He despises anyone who gains favor with you. Even your son is not an exception ... you do know who killed your son, don't you?"

"As long as he kills for me, it doesn't matter who he kills." ShangGuan JinHong replied emotionlessly.

The smile on her face slowly vanished. She let out a long sigh and said, "I always thought that I understood men very well, but I really don't know what the two of you are thinking. I really don't understand what the relationship is between the two of you."

She smiled coldly and continued, "All I know is that whatever is is, it is undoubtedly disgusting. I don't care what the two of you have to say, I won't hear a word of it."

"Although you know very little, you've said way too much." ShangGuan JinHong said.

"But no matter what I say, there is no way I can convince you to kill him, isn't that right?" Lin XianEr said.

"There is no way!" ShangGuan JinHong said.

Lin XianEr turned to face Jing WuMing and said, "And there's obviously no way I can convince you to kill him either, right?"

"Right." Jing WuMing said.

Lin XianEr let out a sigh and said, "It looks like I'm going to die in your hands. The only question is by whom? Will it be you? Or you?"

Jing WuMing didn't say another word.

He lifted his hand and threw Lin XianEr towards the ground at ShangGuan JinHong's feet.

Lin XianEr didn't struggle to get back up this time, she didn't move at all. She just crawled up into a ball on the ground.

But she was a woman.

You could expect her not to move and not to resist, but you couldn't make her shut her mouth.