Jinghua Yulian Mountain
Within the grand courtyards of Cang Ming Yuan Academy, a storm of voices filled the air. Students had gathered from every corner of the realm, crowding the open square beneath the ancient twin stone walls that stood like sentinels of time.
Upon those colossal walls were inscribed words....rules and doctrines of the Jinghua Yulian Mountain and its venerable Academy....etched in an ancient, sacred language so old that not even the most learned scholars could decipher a single verse.
The crowd fell into murmuring awe, eyes squinting to understand what none could read.
But amid that restless hum, Ai Ning's eyes burned red.
For at that very moment, Huan li Wushi Taoyi, the grand mistress herself, was crossing the corridor ahead...surrounded by her elite retainers and four personal disciples.
And just as she drew near Ai Ning...
Without warning, without hesitation....
Ai Ning unsheathed her sword.
The sharp metallic hiss tore through the air like a bolt of lightning. The blade gleamed under the sunlight, its edge alive with fury. All eyes turned instantly toward her.....the girl whose gaze now blazed brighter and sharper than her own weapon.
Her sword was raised.....aimed straight at Wushi Taoyi.
The grand mistress paused mid-step. For a single breath, silence devoured the courtyard. Then, with a mere flick of her fingers, she summoned a glimmering talisman seal. Light flared, and her own blade appeared before her...drawn with a swift, radiant motion that mirrored Ai Ning's defiance.
Steel faced steel.
The air grew taut, trembling under the pressure of unspoken rage.
Students stumbled back, retreating into the corridors, their hearts pounding in dread. Everyone knew that even a single spark could ignite a battle that would stain the sacred ground with blood.
Now, the two women stood eye to eye.
In Ai Ning's gaze, hatred blazed like wildfire.
In Wushi Taoyi's, fury shimmered like molten gold.....rage at being insulted before her own subordinates.
Then, Ai Ning spoke....her voice as cold and solid as carved stone, every word cutting through the air:
"My brother was right.
Murderers and sinners are the ones most respected by society…
just like this killer standing before me."
Her words struck the academy like thunder.
It was as if a flower had begun to bleed tears of blood in defiance of beauty itself.
Wushi Taoyi's composure cracked. She hissed through gritted teeth, her tone sharp enough to wound:
"Watch your tongue, foolish girl! You don't even possess the worth to stand before me....
and yet you dare accuse me of such things?
If you despise the noble, then why have you come here at all?"
Her retinue, seeing their mistress threatened, unsheathed their own swords in unison.
In an instant, the courtyard blazed with steel.
Dozens of blades gleamed.....red, gold, and silver...
while only one blade, Ai Ning's, stood defiantly against them all.
The atmosphere trembled on the edge of violence.
Students held their breath; fear thickened the air like smoke.
Whispers broke out across the crowd:
"Is she insane? She's going to die!"
"Doesn't she know who Huan Li Wushi Taoyi is?"
"She looks so innocent… but she's acting like a fool!"
Meanwhile, poor Lin Zu and Ming Yu Jin stood frozen, their minds blank, unable to utter a single word as they watched Ai Ning defy the most powerful woman in the Academy.
Before Ai Ning could speak again.....
A powerful voice roared from behind, shaking the heavens themselves:
"SHEATHE YOUR BLADES...IMMEDIATELY!
Or prepare yourselves for punishment!"
It was Chancellor Wen Huan.
He strode into the courtyard, his very presence commanding silence.
Relief washed over the crowd like a cool wind after a storm.
The soldiers hesitated, then one by one, the sound of blades sliding back into their sheaths filled the air.
Peace....fragile and trembling.....returned to the Academy grounds.
But everyone knew… the storm had merely been delayed.
Not silenced.
The night had fallen and the darkness had hidden the whole world within itself.
The Shenzu Wey Mountain had completely sunk into the darkness of night.
Along the dim and lonely trail, Mu Chen walked toward Luwen City, each step echoing against the silence. Yet, his heart kept urging him to turn back....toward Jinghua Yulian Mountain. An invisible force pulled at him, whispering that he should go back.
But he crushed that feeling beneath the weight of his reality.....poverty, and the future of his little sister.
He knew well that it was impossible to arrange the required silver within fifteen days. Wushi Taoyi had offered him many times the privilege to attend the academy free of charge, but he had refused each time. He could not bear the burden of someone's favor....especially not from her, the one he despised the most.
Even while staying in the Shuang Ying Sect, every coin he earned, he gave to those in need. He loathed that money, the way it smelled of corruption and compromise.
Because of that hatred, he now endured scarcity.
To him, the world felt like an empty well.....one that never filled with rainwater, one that quenched no one's thirst.
It simply remained hollow.....forever.
As Mu Chen walked down the narrow trail, he absently spun a small stick in his hand. Then, suddenly...he sensed a familiar presence behind him.
In the darkness, Wushi Taoyi followed.
She knew her master was still somewhere on this mountain.
Without turning around, Mu Chen's voice came, sharp and cold.
"I have no disciple named Yan. Stop pretending, and leave me alone."
Wushi Taoyi slowed her steps, her voice calm but edged with emotion.
"I know that, Master… that you do not recognize me as your disciple. But my loyalty remains with you, my Shu An.
My father sent me here...to ask about last night.
He wishes to know what you saw… between Prince Heng Yao Ren and the others.
Why is he so silent now? And those wounds.....those old scars on his body.....only you can tell what truly happened there. My father only seeks the truth, so that the investigation can proceed."
Mu Chen didn't turn.
But his body grew still, alert.
He stopped walking and stood beside a quiet river.
The water reflected both his face and the pale moon above.....two fractured images merging into one trembling ripple.
Wushi Taoyi silently came to stand beside him.
Tall, poised, and impossibly beautiful, her white robes glimmered under the moonlight, while Mu Chen's grey attire seemed to swallow all light, as though even the moon could not touch him.
He said nothing.
Only the sound of the river spoke between them.
Mu Chen's thoughts drifted.....to that night.
That dark, horrifying night.
Flashback
The same night when he and Wushi Taoyi had set out together, under daylight, to rescue Heng Yao Ren.
But by the time they reached the palace....
the sun had fallen,
and night had devoured everything.