Section Six: The Weeping Immortal

Qiu Ye was equally taken aback, and so she activated her mystical sight, calculating with perfect clarity that July’s combat power had reached thirty thousand, her stamina and inner strength still climbing. To witness someone’s fighting strength double in an instant truly defied belief. Only then did she realize why she had been so easily overpowered in their earlier clash—she had held back, afraid of injuring July, and had only pursued her with a little over ten thousand in combat strength. It was little wonder she had been repulsed by a single palm strike.

July, a master of concealed weapons and palm techniques, wore a face twisted with grief as she slaughtered the foes within a hundred-foot radius with one blow. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she wept aloud in agony. Yet her long sleeves whirled about her, their movement graceful as a dancer’s, and soon the inner energy imbued in those sleeves began to glow faintly red, taking on an almost sinister, bewitching light. With every sweep, cold gleams flashed—nine hundred and ninety-nine razor-sharp steel lozenges hidden inside her outer robe burst forth in all directions. Within that deadly circle, not a single Black Wolf soldier could draw near.

Each lozenge found its mark at a throat, the cold light flashing without end. She cried and spun in a wild dance, as if pouring out her heartache, yet the trailing sleeves glittered with fatal brilliance.

At first, the black mass of Black Wolf soldiers at the cliff surged forward in a frenzy, but after a swathe of them fell almost instantly, their commander shouted a retreat. Fear clutched every heart in the presence of this sudden, crazed master.

In less than half a minute, all nine hundred and ninety-nine lozenges had been unleashed in a whirlwind of lethal precision. July then pressed her palms together, channeling a force as mighty as mountains crashing down, and drove the fleeing enemy before her.

Stones erupted and shattered beneath her palms; the soldiers packed five abreast along the mountain path tumbled in a domino of bodies, thirteen full ranks collapsing. A third died instantly from the shockwave, another third were gravely wounded and could not rise, while the remainder staggered up, clutching their wounds and their terror, scrambling after the main force in flight.

It was at this moment that Chu Gaoge arrived with a contingent of Feixian Sect disciples and Zheng ****, all stunned by the devastation at the cliff’s edge. Even as the enemy retreated, July, lost to reason, was intent on pursuit. Qiu Ye leapt forward to intercept her. This time, with her mystical sight, she precisely gauged July’s combat strength. At the first clash of palms, July was sent skidding back twenty yards before she could regain her footing.

Blood welled from July’s lips, but she still struggled to fight on, spitting blood with every step. Qiu Ye darted close and, with a single finger, brought her down.

Zheng Linran, seeing over a hundred reinforcements—all elite Four Seasons Hall fighters—immediately gave the order: “Seize the momentum! Crush the enemy without mercy!”

A hundred figures swept across the treacherous terrain, treading over the Black Wolf corpses, chasing down the routed foe.

Chu Gaoge watched in silent awe and finally understood why the Northern Spirit elder always praised the Feixian Sect’s lightness skills. With such an ally, Zheng’s enemies could never rest easy, not even within palace walls.

Qiu Ye cradled the unconscious July and, without so much as a word to Zheng Linran, vaulted over the cliff and rode away.

The Feixian Sect warriors pursued the enemy for six miles, not turning back until the fleeing troops had rejoined their main force. When Zheng Linran learned that at least two thousand enemies had been slain in the pursuit, he was overjoyed. Casting one last glance at the chasm between the cliffs, he returned, his heart light with satisfaction and the fruits of victory.

When Ling Luo awoke, Princess Tianlai was at his side. His first words were, “Has Second Brother left?”

“Marquis Xin, he has gone,” she replied.

Immediately, the light faded from Ling Luo’s eyes. In silence, he suddenly struck the wooden cabinet beside the bed with a savage palm, shattering it. A raw, guttural wail burst from his throat, and he cried in anguish, “It’s my fault! I never should have let Second Brother come with us—I never should have... I doomed Third Brother to this!”

“Marquis Xin!” Princess Tianlai called, tears streaming as she recalled Bujingxian’s solitary figure on the bridge. She wept quietly, restraining herself from sobbing aloud. She had met Bujingxian only twice and was already so moved; how much deeper would the pain be for Ling Luo, who lived alongside him day after day? Fearing he might blame himself too harshly, she urged, “Please, Marquis Xin, do not torment yourself so. It may not be your fault.”

“Your Highness, spare me your comfort,” Ling Luo replied, voice thick with grief. “Second Brother feared that if I saved Third Brother, he himself would be unable to escape. That’s why he struck me down and left Third Brother behind! If I had only sent Second Brother away earlier, perhaps Third Brother would not have come to harm today!”

Had Bujingxian escaped, Chu Gaoge would surely have waited for Ling Luo to recover before taking his leave. His sudden departure spoke of his fear that Ling Luo, upon waking, might vent his anger at Bujingxian’s fate and refuse to let him return to Chu. Ling Luo, wracked with remorse, wept uncontrollably, and Princess Tianlai could only grasp his hand and offer what comfort she could.

Before long, memories of his meetings with Bujingxian rose up in Princess Tianlai’s mind, and the stifling sorrow overwhelmed her as well, and she, too, began to weep.

All the way back to Zheng’s capital, both Ling Luo and Princess Tianlai were sunk in grief.

Just before they reached the city, Princess Tianlai suddenly remembered her duty and said, “Marquis Xin, the Northern Spirit elder and Master are on Maple Leaf Mountain...”

At the mention of the Northern Spirit elder, Ling Luo was instantly revived. He ordered the carriage to change course, but the princess quickly stopped him. “Master instructed us to visit in secret with Sect Leader Linran and only three of us may go,” she said, her voice heavy with sorrow. “The Northern Spirit elder had wanted your Second and Third Brothers to come as well...”

Ling Luo could only murmur in self-reproach, “It was my duty as eldest brother to care for Third Brother, my duty alone...”

On Maple Leaf Mountain, the leaves blazed like fire, casting the slopes in a riot of scarlet flame beneath the evening glow.

Zheng Linran led the way, with Princess Tianlai and Ling Luo following, their steps crunching through a carpet of red maple leaves as they climbed to the summit.

Hidden among the trees stood a thatched cottage, with a clear brook behind and, at the front, a round stone table dappled with floral patterns, upon which rested a Go board.

When an old man emerged from the cottage, hands trembling, hair as white and wild as withered grass, Ling Luo stared in disbelief, hardly daring to recognize the Northern Spirit elder. He immediately fell to his knees, crying out in a voice both joyful and sorrowful, “Master!”

The Northern Spirit elder now seemed no more than a frail old man without martial strength. Supporting Ling Luo with feeble hands, his words were mumbled and unclear.

“Come, come, come, speak standing...” he repeated over and over before Ling Luo understood, hastily wiping his tears and helping the elder inside to sit.

Only then did he see another white-haired elder lying upon a bed within the cottage. Ling Luo could hardly believe that this wrinkled, wizened face was Zheng Feixian, but Zheng Linran’s sorrowful cry left no room for doubt.

“Master, your disciple has returned! I have returned...”

With the aid of Princess Tianlai and Zheng Linran, the figure on the bed managed to sit up. His clouded eyes rested on Zheng Linran, and a smile of deep relief spread across his face. “You have returned, and that is all that matters. Tell me, quickly, what became of the Black Wolf army.” In recent days, Zheng Feixian had survived only by the constant infusion of the Northern Spirit elder’s energy. Now, both were at the end of their strength.

Zheng Linran choked with tears, and Princess Tianlai, thinking her overcome by grief, recounted all that had transpired.

Zheng Feixian listened in silence, then—where he found the strength, none could say—suddenly burst into wild laughter. “Ha ha ha! Li Kuang, Li Kuang, you and I have vied all our lives without settling the score, but now at last I have prevailed! I, Zheng Feixian, have left behind successors! And your greatest martial art, the one you could never let go, is lost forever—lost forever! You have lost, Li Kuang, you have lost!”

Joy turned quickly to madness, and then to sorrow. Proud as she had always been, Zheng Feixian now wept openly before her disciples. “Oh, Li Kuang, I have failed you. The Soul Technique is lost, lost forever—” Her trembling, withered hand pointed straight at Zheng Linran’s face. Furious, she cried, “You unfilial disciple! I ought to strip you of your title—”

Her voice broke off abruptly. The Northern Spirit elder rushed to the bedside, but Zheng Feixian’s eyes stared wide, tears streaming and growing cold as she passed from this world.

“Feixian!” cried the Northern Spirit elder, reaching for her pulse, but his hand soon fell limp, his ancient eyes brimming with tears.

All three disciples fell to their knees, wailing in grief, their sobs echoing long and loud.

After a long while, the Northern Spirit elder managed to rise, waving away Ling Luo’s attempt to help him.

“I had much to entrust to you three, but now my heart is dead and there is nothing left to say. One day, Lady Li will come to you with my final words.” With that, the Northern Spirit elder lay down beside Zheng Feixian. “In heaven, may we be as birds flying side by side; on earth, as branches intertwined. In this life, fate brought us together but would not let us unite—may we try again in the next...”