It is December 23rd, one thousand and three years in the calendar of Dafeng.
Liu Sanyue, who was rarely sober, sat quietly on a bridge behind Liuhe Beishui Lane.
Opposite him, a woman in orange clothes was walking slowly over the soft snow on the ground.
Liu Sanyue raised his head and looked at the woman quietly, as if he was about to smile. However, with his distorted face, his smile probably looked like a ferocious look of evil.
Liu Sanyue naturally knew what he looked like now, but he didn't care and just smiled softly.
"I never thought that Cliff Master would come to see me."
The woman with a peach blossom in her hair stopped at the center of the stone bridge, looking at the Liuhe River where some scattered lights drifted away with the snow in the night.
After watching quietly for a long time, Qiu Shui said calmly: "After all, you are the only person in the world today who has had a profound interaction with Yao Ji."
Liu Sanyue said softly: "If possible, I would rather not have these interactions."
After hearing these words, Qiu Shui turned to look at the twisted Taoist Qingtian.
"Being able to say such words, Liu Sanyue, proves that the bet you had with Yao Ji has begun to decline."
Liu Sanyue was stunned for a long time, then lowered his head and looked at the river in front of him.
Some lanterns are scattered on the wall of the alley behind the water. The lights are flickering in the night snow, but they are not enough to illuminate this long and quiet river. Let Liu Sanyue at the bridge head take a look at his expression and read. Read your own mind.
After a long silence, Liu Sanyue said slowly: "Yes."
"Since when?"
"I don't know, Cliff Master."
Maybe it's when those emotions from the time of decline inevitably remain in the time of sobriety.
Liu Sanyue didn't know, he just looked at Liuhe for a long time.
"The cliff master came to see me just to tell me that maybe I am about to lose?"
Qiu Shui said calmly: "Of course not. Even meeting you is just a coincidence."
Liu Sanyue turned back and looked somewhere in the night.
After walking along the Liuhe River for a while, and then passing through some alleys, there was an ancient, dust-covered Si Ya hidden deep in the alleys.
That was one of the former Huangliang Nine Divisions, the Demon-Suppressing Division that replaced Dianke Division.
After the demon clan left the Youhuang Mountains, it became the Demon Crossing Division.
Then there was war in the world, and Shenhe accepted the throne of Li Asan in the north, and after pacifying the world, he came here.
This great human demon who once grew up under the guidance of a cripple in the Youhuang Mountains with a certain Zhongsi and Qiu Shui of the Demon Suppression Division, did not mention whose path was right and whose path was wrong.
I just stood in front of the already deserted Si Yamen for a long time, and then left a word.
——The demon tribe has crossed over, so abandon it.
So the office was sealed.
Although Huangliangjiadu still has a complete set of governance systems that do not participate in human affairs, the Demon Suppression Division and the Demon Crossing Division no longer exist among the Nine Divisions.
Naturally, no one cares about it anymore.
Liu Sanyue looked over there quietly. Qingtian Dao has a long history.
So he probably knows some things from back then, but he's just not as clear as those people back then.
"Demon Suppression Division, Gou Qian." Liu Sanyue said softly.
"Yes." Qiu Shui said very calmly, without any emotion, and then looked at Liu Sanyue aside. "This is what I suddenly remembered and wanted to meet you and talk to you."
Liu Sanyue looked seriously at the woman with white hair and orange clothes on the bridge.
"Cliff Master, please speak."
Qiu Shui looked at Liuhe quietly, perhaps thinking about the indifferent person holding a knife who listened to all the cries in his heart, but finally left in despair.
"Whether Liu Sanyue is awake or Liu Yuyue is sinking, I hope you can make a choice, either to truly wake up or to sink forever, living between sobriety and chaos. You will never get out of that place. A long river of pain. I know you want to use yourself to prove something to Yao Ji, but Liu Sanyue..."
Qiu Shui turned to look at the silent man in the darkness at the bridge.
"What you can't prove is that human nature is an unarguable existence, and sinking cannot prove sobriety. Vice versa, when you walk into the quagmire, you will be stuck in the quagmire forever, just like now, just like in front of the palace of the King of Chu, you put everything aside. Blame it on Yao Ji, you feel that all the evil you have done comes from Yao Ji's gift. You are not just starting to show your decline now, you have already begun to lose control of your own decline at that time. "
The cliff is 3,600 feet high.
The people on the cliff naturally know everything.
Just never paid attention to it.
If it hadn't been for this chance encounter, Qiu Shui probably wouldn't have come to meet this man who bet with gods and ghosts.
Liu Sanyue sat there in silence.
"You just sank as you wished, with a self-righteous moment of clarity to analyze and refute the crimes you committed in the chaos, but you never changed. You allowed yourself to sink into the boundless sea of suffering little by little, and then emerged as a winner. Standing on the shore of sobriety, I feel that my sober self is extremely noble. Liu Sanyue, you are wrong to do this."
Liu Sanyue was trembling all over and opened her mouth in a daze, but couldn't say anything.
After a long time, a hoarse voice came from the bridge.
"What should I do?"
"Restrain yourself." Qiu Shui said softly and gently, perhaps remembering the same person who had fallen into despair.
"The sins on the hands will be tied up, and the sins in the mouth will be blocked. The sins in the mouth will be blocked, binding one's body, restraining one's mind. Liu Sanyue, who will sink into the world, is tied to the bridge, locked on the spiritual platform, and trapped in Square inch. Don’t let him dominate himself, but let you change him.”
Qiu Shui looked at Liu Sanyue quietly in the darkness.
"This is a very simple question, Liu Sanyue, but under the influence of Yao Ji, you have made it too complicated."
Liu Sanyue sat there in a daze, then slowly knelt down and bowed to Qiu Shui with great piety and sincerity.
"Yes, Cliff Master."
Qiu Shui watched this bridge for a long time and did not choose to kneel down to the gods and ghosts. Instead, he knelt down to his own Liu Sanyue.
"You should have inherited the Qingtian Dao, but since you refused, then you should go on with your own path in the world completely."
Qiu Shui left the bridge with his sword in the night and headed towards the ancient office.
Maybe he will stay there for a long time, maybe he will just take a quick glance at the world back then, and then leave directly.
...
After Qiu Shui left, the woman in black skirt holding an umbrella also came to the bridge.
Whether Qiu Shui or Yao Ji, they are all naturally in the fake capital.
However, the two may not have any intention of meeting in the human world.
Just coming and going like the rest of the world.
Yao Ji stood there, looking at Liu Sanyue kneeling in the darkness for a long time.
Then he held an umbrella and walked through the snow.
She knew that this person was not kneeling to her.
...
Someone braved the wind and snow and walked down from the Youhuang Mountains coughing.
I walked into a small town at the foot of the mountain, found a noodle shop, sat in the corner, and ordered a steaming bowl of steamed noodles.
After eating two bites, I saw a person sitting quietly by the window of the noodle shop.
He was a thirty-year-old swordsman with his sleeves tied up and his legs wrapped around his legs.
The sword was placed on the table.
There was a bowl of finished noodles in front of him, the grease on it had condensed, and the orange-red oil soup seemed like a bowl of twilight at the bottom of the bowl.
The fallen leaves are cold.
The setting sun is chilly.
Yun Zhusheng looked at it in silence for a long time, then lowered his head and continued to eat the noodles in his bowl.
"Has your meal finished, sir?"
The waiter's voice came not far away.
"When you've finished eating, please put the bowl away, thank you."
The man's voice was very polite.
When he sat across from Yun Zhusheng's table with his sword in hand, he was also polite.
"Do you mind if I watch you eat?"
Yun Zhusheng picked out a chopstick noodle, looked at it for a long time, and then said softly: "Whatever you want."
"good."
So Han Chan sat down opposite Yun Zhusheng and quietly watched this Taoist who came from the north coughing all the way eating noodles.
"After traveling so far through the Youhuang Mountains, eating a bowl of noodles can always keep you warm."
Han Chan was like a wandering passerby, sitting opposite Yun Zhusheng and talking to himself.
"Senior brother, do you think this is right?"
Yun Zhusheng nodded, coughing while suppressing the sword wounds in his body, and said, "That's true."
"I think so too, but I didn't go through the Youhuang Mountains. I came from Daze. The Youhuang Mountains are sometimes easier to walk, but they are still farther. Since I wasn't injured, I'd choose the easiest way. way."
Yun Zhusheng raised his eyes and looked at Han Chan across the table, chewing the noodles in his mouth carefully, then lowered his head again and said calmly: "I thought I was the only one who would think of killing my fellow apprentice."
Han Chan smiled and said, "Of course Chen Qingshan thought earlier than you."
Yun Zhusheng said slowly: "I have some important things to do. How much money my senior brother gave you, maybe I can afford it."
Han Chan whispered: "Twenty thousand strings."
Yun Zhusheng was silent for a long time and said softly: "It's really not fair. I'm not as rich as my senior brother, so I really can't afford it."
"In the face of the position, justice can naturally be discarded. If it were my senior brother Ye Hanzhong, he probably wouldn't need so much, maybe only two thousand guan, but my senior brother has a problem. I don't know what the problem is at the moment. It's probably like The same goes for you, but I don’t care. And 20,000 yuan is enough to buy everything to death.”
Yun Zhusheng sighed softly and said: "Yes, this price really sold me to death. People who can afford to pay a higher price to make you regret it probably won't want to get involved in these crappy things in Shanheguan." .”
The two of them talked in a friendly manner, as if they were discussing who had spent a lot of money to buy a beautiful raccoon slave yesterday.
Han Chan nodded in agreement.
Yun Zhusheng lowered his head and coughed, and raised his hand to wipe the blood on his lips. Fortunately, there was already red spicy oil in the noodles, so the blood color coughed into the noodles was not unexpected, and it might make people more appetizing.
The two of them said nothing more. Although the context of the story was clear, no one could do anything, so they could only eat noodles quietly.
Yunzhusheng ate very slowly, so Hanchan was probably a little bored, so he called the waiter and planned to order some wine.
"do you want?"
Han Chan looked at Yun Zhusheng and asked.
Yun Zhusheng was eating noodles by himself and shook his head.
Han Chan then only asked for a pot of wine.
Taverns will also have small noodles to go with wine, and noodle shops will also have small wine to go with the noodles.
It's just that the wine in the noodle shop is probably not as good as the wine in the pub, and maybe it's mixed with some water to increase profits.
Although Han Chan was a disciple of the Liuyun Sword Sect's inner sect, he didn't have the habit of clapping his sword to kill people if he didn't feel happy after drinking. He just sighed and drank.
Yun Zhusheng finished the noodles quietly, took out the money from his arms and paid the bill, then stood up with a cough and walked out the door.
This is a small town within the gate of Moque City.
It’s not quite the south. Even to the Huangliang people, this place can be considered the north.
For example, those Wugui Taoists who guard this side of Mo Que are called Northern Wu Dao.
Yun Zhusheng stood at the door of the small town noodle shop, looking up at the snowstorm quietly.
Han Chan also walked out holding a sword and a wine bottle.
"Ahem, are you going to follow me all this time?" Yun Zhusheng raised his hand to cover his lips and coughed twice, then turned to look at Han Chan beside him.
The thirty-year-old sword sect from Liuyun Sword Sect nodded sincerely.
"After all, I've already collected the money."
A place that dares to set up a world-wide reward list naturally needs to keep its word.
Yun Zhusheng was silent for a while and said: "Although I was seriously injured, I am still a Taoist of Shanhe Temple."
Han Chan stood under the snowy eaves, drinking the extremely unpleasant yellow rice wine and bitter yam wine, and said calmly: "It doesn't matter, you are too close to me."
For most sword cultivators in the world, it is natural to stay as far away as possible, so that they can take advantage of the sword's will.
But Liuyun Sword Sect naturally wouldn't.
This Sword Sect, which also practices the Great Dao and has made many changes during the changes in the way of swordsmanship, still adheres to the principle of wielding the sword with one's own body.
Therefore, the close combat capabilities of sword cultivators from such a place are far stronger than those of ordinary sword cultivators.
Within three feet, the sword in hand is naturally accurate and fast.
Yun Zhusheng was silent for a while, and then said softly: "Since you are here, your senior brother will naturally come too."
Han Chan chuckled and said: "Liuyun Sword Sect is not a mountain and river temple. After all, we still care about the friendship between our masters. As long as you die, he will naturally leave."
Yun Zhusheng thought for a long time and said, "It seems that I have been sold to death."
"Yeah, so do you want some wine?"
Yun Zhusheng nodded.
Han Chan looked at the few bottles of wine left in his hand, thought for a while, then walked back to the noodle shop and asked for a bottle of wine.
Yun Zhusheng quietly watched Feng Xue coughing at the door.
Daofeng's short distance is naturally not faster than the sword light.
What's more, the world needs to be more stable, and no one wants to make some noise and let people on a certain cliff have more ideas.
Han Chan went in for a long time before coming out.
When Yun Zhusheng took the wine bottle handed over by Han Chan, he was stunned for a moment.
Han Chan chuckled softly and said, "I specially asked them to warm up senior brother."
Yun Zhusheng said slowly: "Then I really have to say thank you."
Han Chan walked into the snow and said, "You're welcome. After all, the price is 20,000 yuan. I will try my best to satisfy both parties."
"You're going in the wrong direction."
Yun Zhusheng coughed with a pale face, took a sip of wine, stopped the cicada, and pointed towards the south.
"We're going to the False Capital."
"I know."
Han Chan walked north in the snow with a sword hanging on his waist.
"I'm going to see if the wine sold in the tavern I passed by earlier tastes good. If it tastes good, I'll bring you a bottle too."
Yun Zhusheng said nothing more. He stood at the door holding a wine bottle and looked in the direction where Han Chan went. He didn't see the tavern in the wind and snow. It was probably a little far away.
So the Shanheguan Taoist lifted the curtain again and walked into the noodle shop with the stove.
Although the noodle shop has its windows open, it is still much warmer than outside.
The shopkeeper sitting behind the counter probably heard what Yun Zhusheng and the others said. He looked at Yun Zhusheng there for a long time, then turned to look outside the door where the cold wind occasionally blew open the curtain.
"That person is gone?"
Yun Zhusheng looked at the shopkeeper and didn't know why he mentioned this. He nodded and continued to cough.
The shopkeeper looked at Yun Zhusheng strangely, looking at the Taoist robe that was covered in blood as red as plum blossoms.
"You Huai'an people are so strange. He wants to kill you, but you don't run away?"
Yun Zhusheng smiled palely and said: "There is nothing to run away from. He uses a sword. Those who use swords can run faster than us cultivators. When I came to the south, I never thought about going back alive. Instead of running away in embarrassment, It’s better to take a leisurely walk.”
The shopkeeper was silent for a while and said: "That's better than waiting to die. From what I see, you must have been injured. Maybe if you run and your injuries heal, you can beat him?" "
"There's no point in beating him." Yun Zhusheng chuckled. "I have my own things to do."
The shopkeeper asked: "What do you want to do?"
Yun Zhusheng was sitting on a stool next to the table, bent over and coughing, covering his lips with one hand and pointing to the south with the other.
"I'm going to kill someone on vacation."
The shopkeeper was stunned, then sat down at the counter without saying a word.
It turns out that after all, there is no good person!
Yun Zhusheng sat in the noodle shop for a long time before Hanchan finally came back with two bottles of wine, feeling quite happy.
"The wine in the tavern is indeed better. I also asked them to heat it up for senior brother."
Yun Zhusheng nodded and said, "Thank you very much."
The two walked out of the noodle shop again.
Only then did Yun Zhusheng realize that Han Chan not only bought wine, but also bought an umbrella, a small heater to hold in his hands, and a thick velvet coat.
Yun Zhusheng looked at the sword cultivator from Liuyun Sword Sect beside him strangely.
Han Chan stuffed those things into Yun Zhusheng's hands very seriously and said: "In the cold winter months, senior brother must take care of himself. After all, you also know that although our Liuyun Sword Sect is unreasonable, we are very trustworthy. Just in case. Senior brother did not survive until next year and died on the road, so I can only return the 20,000 yuan to senior brother Qingshan."
Yun Zhusheng was silent for a long time, then took the umbrella, picked up the heater, and put on the fleece jacket over the thin blood-colored Taoist robe.
It's also strange to say.
Obviously knowing that Han Chan bought these things for herself was for the 20,000 yuan.
But Yun Zhusheng still felt a little warm inexplicably.
Ever since I left Xuanxuyuan and went to Shanhe Temple, I haven't felt this way for a long time.
Yun Zhusheng took a sip of warm wine and found that he no longer coughed like before, so he held an umbrella and walked towards the south on the snowy long street of the town.
"Thank you."
This thank you is indeed very sincere.
Twenty thousand dollars can indeed satisfy both parties.
