Chapter 523: Tangled, Hard to Untangle
This was the first time they had spoken since the Battle of Naihe Bridge began.
It was also the first conversation between "Chen Changsheng" and "Xu Yourong."
Xu Yourong said she had lost.
Chen Changsheng said, "Say that again."
If the person who said this was Tang Thirty-Six, then this sentence would undoubtedly be a highly lethal form of mockery. Xu Yourong would definitely have used the Heavenly Phoenix True Blood to burn down this bridge. But she knew Chen Changsheng's temperament and character, knew that he had guessed something and was somewhat nervous, so she was not angry, just smiling silently.
The white gauze covered her face, so her smile could not be seen, only the faint feeling of some meaning flowing in the air.
Just then, a slight wind and snow stirred, and the white gauze hanging from the edge of Xu Yourong's veiled hat was lifted.
Throughout this battle, sword intent had raged everywhere, especially the terrifying power of the Great Brightness Sword. Her dress and veiled hat were protected by true essence, but the white gauze could not escape.
The fluttering white gauze tore apart and slowly fell to the ground.
The misfortune of the white gauze was Chen Changsheng's fortune.
Because he finally saw her face.
It was a face of indescribable beauty, with brows and eyes like a painting, skin so delicate it seemed it would break at a touch, whiter than snow by three parts.
She was truly beautiful, beautiful enough to steal the morale of an army and the light of heaven and earth.
But this face was unfamiliar to Chen Changsheng.
Just as he felt a wave of regret wash over him, he saw her eyes.
They were a pair of extremely beautiful phoenix eyes, filled with countless starlight, as if they were burning, bright and dazzling.
But he opened his eyes wide, staring into her eyes, looking all the way to the deepest part.
There were no stars there, no light, no holiness, no responsibility, only the freshness after a rain in an empty mountain.
At this moment, these moving eyes also held many words and much laughter.
Of course Chen Changsheng recognized these eyes. He could never forget these eyes. He had once thought he would never be able to look into these eyes again, until this very moment, until this brief moment of tranquility after the rain and snow battle at the head of Naihe Bridge, when a gentle breeze had blown away the white gauze covering his opponent's face...
A while ago, sitting in the Zhou Mausoleum, he had truly experienced what it meant for sadness to surge in like a tide.
At this moment, he finally understood that what the books wrote about being struck by lightning was not an exaggerated description, but a real situation.
In the slightly dim snowy sky, it was as if an invisible bolt of lightning had formed, striking him directly.
His body was stiff, unable to speak. The hands gripping the sword hilt were ice-cold, but inside his body, it was scorching hot.
With extreme difficulty, he pulled his gaze away from her eyes. Clumsily, he turned around and looked towards the upper reaches of the Luo River, at the vast expanse of white sky and water.
After a while, he turned back again, looked at her, opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end, nothing came out. He had to look again at the uninhabited area upstream of the Luo River, because he was afraid that if he continued to look at her, his already slightly trembling legs might just go weak.
Seeing his clumsy and comical appearance, the laughter in Xu Yourong's eyes grew stronger. She covered her mouth with her hand and laughed, a flower blooming in her eyes.
She walked to the side of the bridge, stood beside him, and looked towards the upper reaches of the Luo River, saying calmly, "Is there something interesting to see?"
"You... don't talk to me for a moment. I'm a bit confused right now."
Chen Changsheng's face was a little red, not from the lingering power of the Heart Link Finger, nor from the freezing cold, but from nervousness.
He looked at the Luo River, smelled the faint fragrance coming from beside him, and felt his heart flustered. He didn't dare to glance to the side at all.
Before the battle started, he had also been very nervous, so he had watched the snow falling into the Luo River by the bridge, finally finding inner peace from the unity of motion and stillness.
But now, no matter how he watched the snow fall into the Luo River, he could not calm down.
Xu Yourong gently tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, looked at his profile, and, not wanting to make him too embarrassed, suppressed her smile and said calmly, "In that final sword strike just now, why didn't you follow the initial position of the Lodging Star and go straight, but instead suddenly brought the sword back level with your brow?"
When it came to swordsmanship, Chen Changsheng did calm down a bit. He murmured, "I guessed."
When Su Li taught him the Sword of Wisdom, he had made it very clear that in many situations, you had to guess. This way of putting it sounded somewhat unreasonable, but with Xu Yourong's talent, she could naturally understand. She had originally not wanted to tease him anymore, but hearing this, she couldn't help but say, "Then how come you couldn't guess who I was?"
She said it calmly, but if you listened closely, there was still a hint of a plaintive tone.
Chen Changsheng was already dumbfounded by now. He lowered his head and couldn't speak at all.
Xu Yourong said nothing more. She stood quietly beside him, watching the snow fall into the Luo River.
...
...
From the start of the battle until now, the banks of the Luo River had been filled with thunderous cheers and discussions. When the smoky snow met the rainy mist, and the Zhai Sword and the Stainless Sword bloomed with their brightest colors, the cheers and discussions reached their peak. The common people couldn't understand this battle, but the dazzling scene on Naihe Bridge was already enough to move them.
This highly anticipated battle was finally over, but the praise and discussion continued, because the people couldn't tell who had ultimately won.
"I think it should be Little Dean Chen. Wasn't the Holy Maiden the first to retreat?"
"Both of them were injured. Little Dean Chen was even more seriously injured. Why do you say the Holy Maiden lost?"
"But didn't you see that in the end, both swords landed in Little Dean Chen's hands?"
"What does that prove? The Holy Maiden hasn't even used her truly powerful methods. Did you see the legendary Phoenix Blood?"
"Can you be sure that Little Dean Chen went all out?"
News soon came from the front of the riverbank that Xu Yourong had admitted to losing under Chen Changsheng's sword.
The banks of the Luo River were quiet for a time before gradually digesting this fact.
"Hey... look at the bridge!"
Countless pairs of eyes looked towards the distant Naihe Bridge and saw Chen Changsheng and Xu Yourong standing side by side there, seemingly still whispering about something. After a moment, they stopped talking and stood there quietly, letting the light snow fall on them. Because they were far away, it almost looked like their bodies were leaning together.
The discussions on the banks of the Luo River gradually subsided, becoming exceptionally quiet. People looked at this scene on Naihe Bridge, somewhat surprised. Just a moment ago, they had been fighting with swords, and now they could stand side by side and look at the scenery? What was going on?
"The Holy Maiden... went easy on him, didn't she?"
Among the people watching from the shore, only a very small number supported Chen Changsheng. Even these people were silent, because it was clear that although this battle was extremely exciting, neither side was fighting to the death. The people couldn't understand those miraculous sword techniques in the rain and snow, but looking at the scene on the bridge, they could feel some meaning faintly flowing between them.
The scene on Naihe Bridge was beautiful. The two of them standing together in the picture were harmonious and peaceful. People couldn't bear to make a sound to break it. It was only after a very, very long time that a murmur of similar sentiment gradually arose from the crowd on the banks of the Luo River.
"Such a pair of celestial lovers, why did they have to draw their swords against each other?"
...
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(There will be another chapter tonight.)