Chapter 3: Bright Moon at the High Mansion

[originally translated by metwin1 and edited by Chowbeng and RWX]

Thick smoke slowly dispersed.

This is a life taking smoke. There were simply too many renowned heroes who had fallen suddenly and noiselessly to this thick smoke.

As the smoke was dispersing, Wood Man’s eyes were shining with elation. He was certain that his opponents had fallen.

In fact, he hoped to see them on the ground, still struggling to the last. He hoped that they would crawled in front of him and begged for the antidote.

Even Shi Batian and Bronze Tiger had knelt in front him before, and begged piteously for the antidote.

They were the most terrifying strongmen in the martial world; but when facing death, even the bravest would become cowardly.

To him, the suffering and hopelessness of other people were a source of pleasure and gratification.

But this time, he was disappointed.

Fu Hongxue and Yan Nanfei did not fall. In fact, their eyes were still shining.

The light in Wood Man’s eyes was extinguished, just like the flames on his torso. His clothes were burnt to ashes and were scattered into the winds along with the thick smoke. Only a person with soot blackened skin was left. It looked like cast iron that was inflammable, yet like burnt charcoal too.

Yan Nanfei suddenly spoke, “These two people are the Double Killers of the Five Elements.”

Fu Hongxue gave a “humph” in reply.

[Wood hiding within Metal, Water and Fire coming from the same source], [Hidden movement in borrowed Earth, Ghost hands grabbing legs], normally these assassination moves were practically impossible to defend against. The Double Killers of the Five Elements were one of a few professional assassins who commanded the highest price. It was rumoured that they were already men of huge fortunes, if not millionaires.

Unfortunately, in this world no matter how many times a millionare you were, to some people you were essentially worthless.

Mud Man laughed uneasily, and spoke first, “He is Metal-Wood-Water-Fire, and I am Earth. I am nothing really, a stupid donkey, a useless potato and a worthless dog.”

He was looking very intently at the sabre in Fu Hongxue’s hand.

The sabre was already back in its sheath. A pitch black hilt and a pitch black sheath.

Mud Man sighed, and laughed bitterly, “Even if we did not recognise Hero Fu, we would have recognised this sabre.”

Wood Man said, “But we could not imagine that Hero Fu would save him.”

Fu Hongxue retorted coldly, “This life is already mine.”

Wood Man answered, “Yes.”

Fu Hongxue:”Apart from me, no one else can touch a strand of his hair.”

Wood Man, “Yes, yes.”

Mud Man pleaded, “If Hero Fu promises to spare my life, I would immediately scram somewhere far far away.”

Fu Hongxue said, “Scram.”

His words were barely out of his mouth when Wood Man and Mud Man scrammed off. In fact, they actually rolled out like two balls.

Yan Nanfei suddenly laughed, and said, “I knew you definitely would not kill them,”

“Oh?” Fu Hongxue replied.

Yan Nanfei explained, “because they are not worthy enough.”

Fu Hongxue looked intently at the sabre that was in this hand, but there was an unspeakable sense of loneliness in his expression. He never had many friends to begin with. Now even his remaining enemies were dwindling in number. Under the heavens, how many people were still worthy of his sabre?

Fun Hongxue said slowly, “I heard that their price for killing Shi Batian was three hundred thousand taels.”

Yan Nanfei replied, “Absolutely correct.”

Fu Hongxue said, “Your life is obviously worth more than Shi Batian’s.”

Yan Nanfei said, “Far more.”

Fu Hongxue said, “Not many people can afford their price for you.”

Yan Nanfei shut his mouth.

Fu Hongxue said, “I didn’t ask as you had known that person’s identify long ago.”

Yan Nanfei’s mouth was still shut tight. Silence without words.

Fu Hongxue continued, “Your unfulfilled wishes was to deal with this person?”

Without warning, Yan Nanfei laughed coldly, “You had already asked too much!”

Fu Hongxue, “You are not willing to say?”

Yan Nanfei, “Not willing.”

Fu Hongxue, “Then, you go!”

Yan Nanfei, “I am even more unwilling to go!”

Fu Hongxue, “Don’t forget that I had already loaned you a year. What you still own me was the span of a year.”

Yan Nanfei, “You want me to repay it? In what way?”

Fu Hongxue, “By clearing up your unfinished business.”

Yan Nanfei, “But, I...”

Fu Hongxue lifted his head slowly and looked hard at him, “If you are a true man, even when facing death, you would want to die with integrity.”

He had lifted his head up high, but Yan Nanfei followed his head, as if unwilling to let him see the expressions on his face.

Nobody could explain what was that expression. – Was it sadness? Pain? or Fear?

Fu Hongxue said, “Your sword is still alive, your body still alive. Why did you have no courage to face him?”

Yan Nanfei lifted his head up, held his sword tightly in his hand, “Fine, I would go. After a year, I would certainly return.”

Fu Hongxue said, “I know!”

There was still wine on the table.

Yan Nanfei suddenly turned around to grab the wine bottle, “You still do not drink?”

Fu Hongxue said, “I don’t drink!”

Yan Nanfei looked at him, “People who don’t drink, are they always sober?”

Fu Hongxue replied, “Not necessarily.”

Yan Nanfei tilted his head backwards, guffawed loudly and drank half the bottle of wine in one gulp. Then he walked out of the tavern in large strides.

He walked very fast. Because he knew the road ahead was not only difficult, but also very long. So long that it was mind-boggling.

Dead town. Deserted street. Lonely world. Lonely bright moon too.

Tonight was a night of a full moon.

The moon was full, but the heart was already empty.

Yan Nanfei walked under the moon light. He was walking in large strides, walking very fast.

But Fu Hongxue kept following behind him. No matter how fast he walked. The moment he turned around, he would immediately see the lonely cripple, using that clumsy looking and strange posture, slowly shuffling behind.

The stars were dispersing, the moon was dimming and the night was almost over. He was still following, still keeping the same distance behind.

Finally, Yan Nanfei could take it no more. He turned around and yelled loudly, “Are you my shadow?”

Fu Hongxue said, “No.”

“Then why do you kept following me?” Yan Nanfei questioned.

Fu Hongxue answered, “I am not willing to allow you to die in someone else’s hands.”

Yan Nanfei gave a cold laugh, “I don’t need you to worry for me. I have always been able to take care of myself.”

Fu Hongxue asked, “Can you really?”

He did not let Yan Nanfei but immediately continued, “Only the a truly emotionless person can take care of themselves. You feel too much.”

Yan Nanfei asked, “What about you?”

Fu Hongxue said grimly, “I may used to have feelings, but I had forgotten them. Long forgotten them.”

His pale face was without emotion. Who could have noticed that behind this cold, grim mask hid deep, heart wrenching pain? Who could have seen those painful memories?

If a person’s heart was truly dead, feelings totally extinguished, no one in the world could hurt him.

Yan Nanfei gazed hard at him and unhurriedly said, “You are wrong if you think you can take care of yourself.”

“Oh?” Fu Hongxue replied.

Yan Nanfei said, “There’s one more person in this world that can hurt you.”

Fu Hongxue asked, “Who?”

“Yourself,” Yan Nanfei answered.

The day broke, and the sun rose.

The sun had already illuminated the dark, gloomy and cold Earth. And also the words on a stone plaque at the side of the road: “Phoenix Settlement”.

Only this stone plaque, and these three words, remained the same as they had been a year ago.

Fu Hongxue was not a man who shown his sadness easily. But when he walked past this plaque, he could not help but turned and looked at it again.

The lands were broad as the seas were wide. Changes that happened in this world were often large. But the change that occurred here was undoubtedly too fast, so fast that it was unnatural.

Yan Nanfei could guessed Fu Hongxue’s feelings, and asked suddenly, “You didn’t expect this at all?”

Fu Hongxue nodded his head slowly, and said, “No, I didn’t, but you already knew.”

Yan Nanfei said, “Oh?”

Fu Hongxue answered, “You already knew that this town was dead, that was why you brought your wine and your music with you.

Yan Nanfei did not deny this.

Fu Hongxue said, “You obviously know why this town ended up in such a sorry state too.”

Yan Nanfei answered, “Of course I know.”

Fu Hongxue asked, “Why?”

Yan Nanfei’s eyes suddenly showed a mixture of pain and anger. After a long time, he muttered, “Because of me.”

Fu Hongxue said, “Because of you? How did you turn the entire bustling town to transform into a grave?”

Yan Nanfei clamped his mouth shut.

The lines of his mouth were thin and cold; in fact, they were almost cruel. So the moment he closed his mouth, anybody could see that he would no longer discuss the matter any further.

So Fu Hongxue closed his mouth too.

But their eyes were not closed. They both saw a stallion approaching towards them from the side road. Galloping, galloping at a high speed.

The stallion was a thoroughbred, and the rider’s skills was superb. By the time they saw the horse, both the rider and his horse were already in front of them.

Yan Nanfei suddenly shot out like an arrow, and did a flip midair as he leaped over the stallion’s head. He was already pulling on the reins of the stallion when his feet touched the ground again.

He stood there like a nail driven into the ground; with just one hand, he managed to rein in a galloping horse.

The stallion was startled, and reared up.

The rider was so angry; he cracked his whip and lashed it in the direction of Yan Nanfei’s head.

Suddenly he found himself sprawled on the ground; his perspiration-drenched face was already pale and tense with fear and terror. He stared at Yan Nanfei, stupefied.

Yan Nanfei was smiling. “Why are you such in a terrible hurry to get to your destination?” he asked.

The rider was trying to keep his temper. He had to, after witnessing Yan Nanfei’s skill. He felt that he had to answer Yan Nanfei’s question. “I am rushing to get to a funeral wake.”

“A relative of yours died?” Yan Nanfei asked.

The rider answered, “Yes, my second uncle.”

“By hurrying there, will you be able to save your uncle?”

It was a rhetorical question, for who could raise the dead?

“Nothing changes anyway, why travel in such haste?” Yan Nanfei asked.

The rider was confused, and asked, “What exactly do you want from me?”

Yan Nanfei said, “I want to buy your horse.”

The rider answered, “The horse is not for sale.”

Yan Nanfei reached into his pocket casually, took out a bundle of gold leaves and threw it in front of the rider. “Is this enough?”

The rider was shocked by Yan Nanfei’s gesture. He stared blankly at the bundle of gold leaves. He finally gave a long sigh, and said, “A dead man cannot come back to life. Why do I need to rush to get there?”

Yan Nanfei laughed. As he was stroking the mane of the stallion, he smiled at Fu Hongxue, and said, “I know I can’t get away from you, but now I have six legs.”

Fu Hongxue was speechless.

Yan Nanfei guffawed, and waved good bye, “So long! I’ll see you in a year’s time!”

He was about to jump onto the intricately designed saddle that was on this beautiful thoroughbred. Suddenly, there was a flash of sabre light.

Fu Hongxue had already pulled out his sabre. The sabre flashed with light, and returned to its sheath.

The horse was not startled, and nobody present was injured in anyway. This flash of sabre light looked like shooting stars in the sky; shooting stars that gave people beauty and hope, not fear and horror.

But Yan Nanfei was shocked. He looked at the sabre in Fu Hongxue’s hand. “I know you very seldom drawn your sabre.”

Fu Hongxue grunted an agreement.

Yan Nanfei said, “Your sabre was not meant for viewing pleasure.”

Fu Hongxue grunted once again.

“Then why did you pull your sabre out for no reason whatsoever?” Yan Nanfei asked.

Fu Hongxue answered, “Because of your legs.”

Yan Nanfei did not understand, “My legs?”

Fu Hongxue continued, “You don’t have six legs. In fact, the moment you mount this horse, you won’t have even one leg.”

Yan Nanfei tensed, and turned back to look at the horse. He saw blood!

Crimson red blood was flowing out. The blood did not flow out from anybody, nor the horse.

The blood was flowing out from the saddle of the horse.

The horse rider, who had been sitting on the ground all this time, suddenly jumped to his feet and sprinted away, as quickly as a flying arrow.

Fu Hongxue did not stop him, neither did Yan Nanfei; they did not even glance at the rider.

Both their eyes were glued to the horse saddle. Yan Nanfei cautiously used two fingers to lift the saddle. – Only one half of the saddle.

This intricately designed saddle had been severed into 2 halves by the flash of sabre light.

How could the horse saddle bleed?

It couldn’t, obviously.

The blood was cool, and was flowing out from snakes. The snakes were in the horse saddle.

There were four poisonous snakes, and they were too cleaved into two by the flash of sabre light.

If a person sat on this horse saddle, that had holes for snakes to crawl out, whose seals had been removed, and if the four venomous snakes had crawled out and bit the legs of this person...

Would this person still have legs?

Yan Nanfei broke out in a cold sweat at the very thought of this horrifying scenario.

He was still perspiring, when he heard a wretched cry. This cry was so chilling, he felt as though a sword was being stabbed into his chest.

The escaping rider had used his lightness skill, the [Swallow Pecking Water Trice], to escape, and was already about seven to eight feet away.

He suddenly gave a cry of horror, and collapsed.

That flash of sabre light earlier not only severed the saddle and cleaved the snakes, it injured the rider’s heart, spleen and liver.

He collapsed onto the ground, and was writhing like snakes.

No one turned around and looked at him.

Yan Nanfei slowly released the severed horse saddle, raised his head, and gazed intently at Fu Hongxue.

Fu Hongxue’s hand was on the hilt of his sabre, and his sabre was in its sheath.

Yan Nanfei contemplated silently for a while, and suddenly sighed. “I regret very much that I was born too late, and never had the opportunity to see this.”

Fu Hongxue asked, “You have never seen Ye Kai’s blade?”

Yan Nanfei answered, “I regret that I never had the fortune. I...”

Fu Hongxue interrupted him, “You may not have had the fortune, but you are nevertheless also lucky. There were people who had seen his sabre in the past...”

Yan Nanfei asked, “They had all died?”

Fun Hongxue answered, “Even if their bodies are still alive, their hearts were already dead.”

Yan Nanfei said, “Their hearts had died?”

Fu Hongxue said, “All who had seen him use his blade, dared not use a blade for the rest of their lives, without exception.”

Yan Nanfei said, “But his blade is really just a flying knife.”

Fu Hongxue replied, “A flying knife is a type of blade as well.”

Yan Nanfei agreed, could only agree.

There were all sorts of knifes and sabres. Every single type of sabre and knife can be used to kill.

Fu Hongxue asked, “Have you ever used a sabre?”

Yan Nanfei replied, “Never.”

Fu Hongxue asked, “How many people have you seen, who do actually know how to use sabres properly”

Yan Nanfei answered, “Not too many.”

Fu Hongxue said, “Then you have no business to be talking about knifes and sabres.”

Yan Nanfei laughed, and said, “Perhaps I really do not have any business to be talking about knifes and sabres; perhaps your sabre technique isn’t unmatched under the heavens. These, I am not too sure. But I am sure about one thing.”

Fu Hongxue said, “And what is that?”

Yan Nanfei said, “Now I have six legs again, but you only have two.”

He gave a loud gaffaw again, and leaped onto the horse.

The horse saddle may be severed, and the snakes may be slashed, but the horse was still very much alive and alert.

The horse ran like the wind, and left behind a swirl of fine dust.

Fu Hongxue looked down at his feet; his eyes had the indescribable look of self ridicule, and whispered to himself, “You are wrong. I don’t have two legs; I only have one.”

There were wine tavern in every town; and every wine tavern with long histories had something that was special or unique.

The “Ten Thousand Longevity” tavern was unique in one way, and that was the exorbitant prices that it charged. Everything that was served, food or wine, were at least double the price of other taverns.

Man has many weakness. Spending tons of money for the sake of appearance was surely one of them.

This was why places that charged ridiculous prices also had ridiculously good business.

When Yan Nanfei walked out of the “Ten Thousand Longevity” tavern and looked at the horse tied outside the tavern, he could not help laughing.

Two legs were really of no match to six legs.

Every Man hopes to escape their shadow. This was certainly another of Man’s many weaknesses.

But as he was untying horse reins, he could no longer laugh.

The moment he raised his head, he saw Fu Hongxue again.

Fu Hongxue was standing across the street, and was staring at him coldly. His face was deadly pale, his eyes silently cold, his sword pitch black.

Yan Nanfei smiled.

He gave the horse a small pat and the horse trotted away. He, however was still where he was, smiling and looking at Fu Hongxue.

The horse that was worth thousands of gold, turned into swirl of dust with a mere pat of his hands.

A thousand taels. Ten thousand taels. Tens and Tens of thousand taels. What are they in his eyes? To him, they are nothing but dust.

The dust settled, and he walked across the street towards Fu Hongxue. He smiled, and said, “You still managed to catch up after all.”