Xu Changge

In Cangyuan, entering the cave estate required nothing more than leaping off Xuantian Cliff. The screen would fade to black, light back up, and the character would already be inside. Yet when all of this became an experience lived in the flesh, plummeting through the open air felt endless. Wind howled past his ears. An inexplicable drowsiness steadily crept into Xu Yuan's mind, swiftly turning into a heavy exhaustion that spread through every limb and bone. Time seemed to lose all meaning during the fall. In the end, Xu Yuan's eyes drifted shut, and his consciousness was slowly drawn from his body. Amidst the boundless sea of clouds, only two figures remained, locked in an embrace. *** Atop Xuantian Cliff, the cold wind blew bleak and desolate. Barely a quarter of an hour after Xu Yuan took the initiative to leap off the precipice, four or five figures had already arrived one after another on this vast summit. After a brief silence, the whistle of breaking wind sounded again as two figures, a man and a woman, landed upon the mountain peak. The stubble-jawed man bearing a sword glanced around. A smile immediately spread across his face, and he waved cheerfully to the people gathered nearby. "Everyone's here early. Where is the Third Young Master?" "..." Silence reigned over the peak; no one paid him any mind. The stubble-jawed man felt no embarrassment. Having worked with these people for so long, he was thoroughly accustomed to it. Every last one of these miserable bastards loved acting like cold, aloof experts. Just then, an effeminate man standing near the cliff's edge with his arms folded across his chest, leaning against a tree trunk, cast him a glance. A faint smile touched his eyes, though his tone was cool and indifferent. "Zhou Chen, the Third Young Master was taken by a woman. The mist below Xuantian Cliff blocks spiritual soul detection." Hearing this, the stubble-jawed man looked over and raised an eyebrow. The next instant, he appeared right beside his old friend, chuckling. "Oho, Si Ziyu, your breath-concealment technique is getting more refined by the day. If you hadn't spoken, I wouldn't have even noticed you." As he spoke, Zhou Chen reached out familiarly to drape an arm over his shoulder. "It's been quite a while! Weren't you accompanying the Crown Prince on an embassy to the Northern Barbarians? When did you get back? Once this business is settled and we return to Jingjiang City, big brother will treat you to drinks at Zuixian Tower—" Before he could finish speaking— *Hum—* A faint shockwave rippled out from Si Ziyu, knocking Zhou Chen's outstretched hand aside. He issued a cool reminder: "The Eldest Young Master has already gone down into Xuantian Cliff. Show some restraint." Feeling his hand go numb, Zhou Chen gave it a gentle shake and dropped the act of buttering him up. "Fine, we'll talk about drinks in private." With that, Zhou Chen reined in his laziness and shifted his gaze toward the colossal serpent head resting in the center of the peak. The snake eyes on the Seven-Life Python's head remained wide open. Having settled over half a day, the deathly qi emanating from it had practically enveloped the entire summit. If a great monster was not dealt with after dying, it would corrupt the earth and spawn sinister creatures. However, this trace of deathly qi posed no threat whatsoever to the experts present. After staring at it for a long while, Zhou Chen's gaze took on a trace of wistfulness. Just two days ago, he had been tracking this giant python from traces of battle. Now, seeing it again, all that remained was its head. A great monster that had cultivated for centuries, dead just like that. Caught in his sigh, Zhou Chen casually asked Si Ziyu beside him, "Ziyu, who among you arrived first?" Si Ziyu said nothing, merely casting a glance into the distance. Zhou Chen followed his line of sight. Several dozen meters away, beside a large boulder, a kind-faced, bald monk leaned back with his eyes closed, resting. Seeming to sense their gazes, the monk opened his eyes and nodded toward them in greeting. Knowing what Zhou Chen wanted to ask, Si Ziyu said softly, "Juexing and I rushed over together. After Ran Qingmo's spiritual soul locked onto him, we took the initiative to send her a voice transmission." Zhou Chen's pupils contracted, and his gaze darted toward the other side of Xuantian Cliff. "What? That monk Juexing sent a transmission, and Ran Qingmo still fled with the Third Young Master?" Si Ziyu nodded slowly. "Yes. You should understand what that means, right, Zhou Chen? The Imperial Preceptor and the Lord Chancellor..." "Stop right there, Si Ziyu! Shut your mouth!" Zhou Chen waved his hands frantically to cut him off. "I have no clue what that means. I don't know a thing! I'll buy you a drink when there's another chance. I'm leaving!" With that, Zhou Chen patted Si Ziyu on the shoulder, turned on his heel, and walked away, giving Si Ziyu no opportunity to say another word. "..." Si Ziyu cast a rather helpless glance at his peer, but said nothing more, closing his eyes to rest against the tree once more. Zhou Chen strolled back to the side of the woman in tight martial attire and a ponytail, his expression slightly grim. He knew what Si Ziyu wanted to say. If Ran Qingmo hadn't known their identities, it wouldn't have been a problem. But now, fully aware that the pursuers were men from the Chancellor's Manor, she had still fled. That practically cemented her status as the culprit who kidnapped the Third Young Master. If the culprit were anyone else, it would be no big deal. But behind Ran Qingmo stood the Sword Sect—the current Imperial Preceptor of the dynasty! Did such a development indicate that some undisclosed rift had opened between the Lord Chancellor and the Imperial Preceptor? One had to remember, rumors in the palace claimed the Emperor's health was failing. If those two giants clashed... Zhou Chen quickly cut off his train of thought. Such matters were not something a retainer like him, who merely waited around to collect his stipend, should be pondering. It was better to follow the Eldest Young Master's arrangements obediently. With the most talkative man, Zhou Chen, falling silent, a deathly stillness descended over the mountain peak. The seven people present quietly awaited the Eldest Young Master's arrival. Time trickled past. Suddenly, a gale swept through, and a figure draped in green quietly leaped up from beneath the face of Xuantian Cliff, landing lightly upon the precipice's edge. The newcomer possessed sword-sharp brows and star-bright eyes, blessed with an exquisite, handsome countenance. He wore a dark, narrow-sleeved python robe embroidered with golden auspicious clouds at the cuffs, cinched by a vermilion-and-white jade belt. His sleeves and ink-black hair fluttered gently in the mountain wind. Leaping up alongside him was a slender woman dressed as a shadow guard. A black veil masked her face, revealing only a pair of chilling eyes. She was clad in thin, form-fitting black garments that accentuated the contours of her chest, leaving her pale arms bare. A pair of hidden-blade armguards strapped to her exposed forearms glinted with a sinister chill beneath the sunlight. With the young man's arrival, the seven people atop the summit rose one after another. Clad in green, Xu Changge paid no attention to the crowd behind him. He simply gazed in silence at the sea of mist below. After a long while, Xu Changge shook his head in faint helplessness, murmuring softly, "The Dianyuan Phantom Mist Array... Hah, truly premeditated. To think Ran Qingmo actually knew such an illusion array existed here." As he spoke, Xu Changge slowly turned to face the people behind him, offering a faint smile. Infused with Source Qi, his warm, mellow voice carried precisely into the ears of everyone present. "This array was constructed in tandem with Tianmen Mountain; it cannot be breached by force. However, once its Source Qi is depleted in a month, the mist will disperse on its own. In the meantime, I must trouble you gentlemen to stand guard here." Having said this, Xu Changge cupped his hands in a polite salute toward the group. Seeing this, Zhou Chen and the others said nothing, silently returning the bow. With that done, Xu Changge glanced sideways at the woman behind him and spoke softly, "By the way, Ying'er, do not follow me for now. Just wait here." The slender woman in shadow guard attire froze slightly, her voice somewhat raspy. "Eldest Young Master, you... where are you going?" Xu Changge glanced at the python head whose eyes remained wide open in death, remaining silent. Ying'er seemed to realize something, but before she could speak, a tempest had already lifted Xu Changge's figure into the air. Rising aloft with him was the colossal python head resting on the peak, more than ten meters wide! Xu Changge stood suspended in midair, his long hair billowing behind him. His obsidian eyes looked down upon the people below, his voice exceedingly soft. "Gentlemen, I must depart for Guyuan for a time. The journey is long, and I may not be able to return within the month. I leave Ran Qingmo in your hands. There is no need to hold back; simply strike her down the moment she is found. As for Changtian..." Here, Xu Changge's tone suddenly shifted. The gentle light in his sword-like eyes turned bone-chillingly cold. He slowly swept his gaze across every person present, enunciating each word with soft, unhurried deliberation. "Changtian may be foolish, an utter and irredeemable waste, but no matter how useless he is, it is not the place of outsiders to discipline him. "I implore you gentlemen to ensure Changtian's safety at all costs. "Three years ago, Chang'an left us. If something happens to Changtian now, what Father might do... as his son, I will not be able to stop him." "..." Silence. The air atop Xuantian Cliff seemed to freeze solid under the green-robed young man's words. Back then, on account of the Second Young Master's death, countless lives had been extinguished in the Imperial Capital. After a long silence, the handsome face of Xu Changge regained its usual genial warmth. He smiled and said in a clear voice, "I leave Changtian's matter to all of you. For your hard work, Changge will report it truthfully to Father afterward." As his words fell, Xu Changge cupped his hands once more to the people below. Then, together with the massive python head, he transformed into a streak of light, tearing through the sky toward the west.