Chapter 149: White Moonlight
From Xunyang City to Wanliu Garden, Zhu Luo had suffered two consecutive blows and was no longer at his peak, but when he drew his sword, he was still a master of the sacred domain, with wind and rain following in his wake.
Tonight's torrential rain had lasted a long time, and even now, much rainwater was still flowing down from the hills. These waters converged into the white shallow channels, and the water in the channels gradually grew turbid.
Suddenly, the murky channel water turned pure white, like snowflakes.
This was not due to purification, but to the refraction of light.
An incomparably bright radiance appeared at the foot of the Heavenly Book Mausoleum.
This radiance came from the sword in Zhu Luo's hand.
Immediately after, in the night sky where clouds had scattered and stars appeared, a cluster of pure white light emerged. Everyone knew it was an illusion, yet it looked so real.
Zhu Luo's sword slashed toward the Heavenly Book Mausoleum.
A moonbeam followed the motion.
Another moonbeam simultaneously appeared in the night sky.
The water in the shallow channels became extremely bright, a white that was almost blinding.
The Divine Path, built of white jade, was also illuminated to an immaculate whiteness.
A sword intent, two moonbeams, one rising and the other following, like a tidal wave.
This was precisely the strongest sword technique Zhu Luo had comprehended hundreds of years ago after seeing the demon moon on the extreme northern snow plains.
It was with this sword technique that he had directly slain the Second Demon General of that time, establishing his unparalleled reputation thereafter.
Tonight was his final night, and this sword strike was presumably his last, so of course it would be his strongest.
The entire Heavenly Book Mausoleum was illuminated by moonlight. This unparalleled master of Tianliang Commandery, despite his severe injuries not yet healed, had pushed his sword intent to such a realm—it was truly awe-inspiring.
Yet... such a powerful and exquisite sword strike failed to even enter the Divine Path, let alone reach the summit of the Heavenly Book Mausoleum.
At the very moment the two moonbeams rose with the sword intent, another light suddenly erupted from below the Heavenly Book Mausoleum.
This light was brighter, whiter, and more murderous than the moonbeam Zhu Luo had brought.
It was also a sword light.
A sword light like a blizzard, within an extremely short time, enveloped the world below the Divine Path.
The two immensely powerful sword intents met.
The water in the shallow channels leaped as if boiling, spraying countless crystalline droplets into the night sky, which were then cleaved in two.
Countless straight sword scars appeared on the hard black stone pavement, deeply etched into the ground, several feet deep.
Countless shrill sounds of cutting filled the space between heaven and earth, appearing exceptionally terrifying.
Would the two moonbeams dispel the blizzard, or would the blizzard ultimately shroud the moonbeams?
A piercing sound of metal breaking rang out!
The blizzard raged, the moonbeam in the night sky was shattered and scattered, and the moonbeam before the Divine Path also vanished without a trace!
Zhu Luo's figure suddenly dissipated.
The next moment, he returned to before his wheelchair.
His face was very pale, and the sword in his hand had broken.
His graying hair gently fluttered in the night breeze, with a few strands occasionally breaking off.
He had struck this sword at the Heavenly Book Mausoleum with the determination to die, utterly resolute, so naturally he would not choose to retreat.
He had been forced back by that blizzard-like sword intent.
The Saintess of the Heavenly Sea had not yet made a move. Whose sword intent was so powerful?
Zhu Luo's body trembled slightly, as if the next moment he would be blown to the ground by the night wind.
The Star Gazer glanced at him.
Zhu Luo slowly shook his head, slowly sheathed the broken sword in his hand, and slowly raised his head to look ahead.
He could have made these movements more graceful, but he did not; he only did them very seriously and slowly, because he knew this was the last time he would sheathe his sword.
That blizzard-like sword intent gradually dissipated, vaguely revealing the scene below the Divine Path, where a pavilion could be seen.
Someone was sitting in that pavilion.
Zhu Luo looked over and said with emotion, "I never expected you to have become this strong."
With a soft sound, the front of his robe split open, revealing a clear and deep wound, from which blood slowly seeped.
"Two years ago, Xun Mei went to his death seeking the Dao, which moved me. That night, I decided to break through the realm. From that moment on, I was already this strong."
An ancient voice arose from beneath the pavilion.
This voice came from within the armor, as if the dust and rust on the armor's surface had imbued it with enough flavor of time.
As the words fell, dust began to rise, followed by the sound of metal scraping.
Then, the pavilion collapsed, and a great cloud of dust arose, within which a mountain-like figure loomed, appearing and disappearing.
He had sat beneath this pavilion for over six hundred years, and tonight he finally stood up.
He was the Guardian of the Heavenly Book Mausoleum.
The First Divine General of the Continent, Han Qing.
...
...
Watching the pavilion collapse with a crash, watching the figure in the dust, the people were shocked, their expressions becoming extremely grave.
The masters who had come to the Heavenly Book Mausoleum could not forget the existence of this legendary figure, but people had grown accustomed to seeing him as a statue or a symbol.
Guarding the mausoleum for over six hundred years, the First Divine General Han Qing had earned the respect of the entire world, and even the Eight Winds and Rains dared not underestimate him.
Everyone knew that if it weren't for his oath to guard the mausoleum, he might have entered the sacred domain many years ago.
Yet tonight, people realized that he had already broken through the realm long ago!
He stood before the Divine Path, his left hand holding the scabbard, his right hand holding the military sword. Though alone, he seemed like a thousand troops and ten thousand horses.
"Before Emperor Taizong returned to the Sea of Stars, you swore an oath that you would never enter the sacred realm in this life."
Zhu Luo, ignoring the increasingly deep wound on his chest and abdomen, stared at Han Qing and said, "Now that you have broken your oath, what face will you have to meet His Majesty in the future?"
Except for sacred domain masters like Zhu Luo, the Star Gazer, and Bie Yanghong, no one knew about this matter, nor did they understand why Emperor Taizong, before his death, had demanded such an oath from Han Qing.
Even the head of the Qiushan family clearly did not know the inside story, his face showing a thoughtful expression.
Han Qing remained silent, not answering Zhu Luo's words. The shadow of his helmet obscured his face, making it impossible to know what expression was on it now.
"The old people of the past, the stale oaths—none of it matters anymore."
Zhu Luo said with emotion, "That's right. Even I broke my oath under the stars in Xunyang City and struck at Wang Po, so how can I hold you to a higher standard?"
After saying this, he slowly sat back into his wheelchair, then slowly closed his eyes.
The blood seeping from the wound on his chest and abdomen gradually changed color, becoming crystalline, as if mixed with many fragments of crystal.
Those crystalline blood droplets dissolved in the night wind, turning into countless rays of light.
His body also turned into countless rays of light, like the brightness on the demon snow plains hundreds of years ago.
The light was gradually scattered by the night wind, drifting in all directions until it vanished without a trace.
Only an empty wheelchair remained.
...
...
Zhu Luo was dead.
Regardless of what the world thought of him, especially after that rainy night in Xunyang City, he was ultimately a great figure of the continent.
Although he had suffered two crushing defeats at the hands of the Southern Saintess and Su Li, he was still a supreme master of the sacred domain, a grandmaster of the human race.
In his youth, he had journeyed north to the snow plains several times, achieving great merits. He was skilled in poetry and wine, extremely dashing, and an idol to many.
After all, he was the Sect Master of the Heartbreak Sect, the Lord of Tianliang Commandery, and one of the Eight Winds and Rains.
Under normal circumstances, the death of a great figure like him would surely be a major event shaking the entire continent.
Tonight, his death seemed so ordinary.
This was not only because his death appeared too plain (pingdan), but also because, when people saw him die, their emotional reactions were not so exaggerated.
This meant that everyone vaguely had some psychological preparation—that such things would continue to happen, and such scenes would continue to appear.
There would inevitably be more sacred domain masters falling.
It was just unknown whether it would be one of the Eight Winds and Rains or the sage atop the Heavenly Book Mausoleum.
Tonight was indeed a very terrifying night.
...
...
With a clatter.
The scabbard in Han Qing's hand fell at his feet, splashing a bit of rainwater.
The turbid water in the channel leaped up in response, then fell back, returning to stillness, daring not to move again.
Two deep, far-reaching gazes, from the darkness beneath the armor, looked around the Heavenly Book Mausoleum.
A voice also came from the darkness beneath the armor, spreading around the Heavenly Book Mausoleum.
"Those who ascend the Divine Path shall die."
This was the instruction the Saintess of the Heavenly Sea had given him before she led Chen Changsheng to the summit of the Heavenly Book Mausoleum.
A silence fell. No one spoke.
The Star Gazer silently looked at the empty wheelchair. His bamboo hat had been removed at some point, revealing his plain, unremarkable face.
Bie Yanghong's expression was very grave. Wuqiong Bi stood beside him, the horsetail whisk resting in the crook of her arm now hanging down to her waist. Her hand was clenched extremely tightly, faintly showing white.
Although Zhu Luo's injuries were not healed, he was still one of the Eight Winds and Rains.
And if what Han Qing said was true, he had only entered the sacred domain two years ago. In principle, his understanding and mastery of the laws of heaven and earth should be far inferior to Zhu Luo's.
Yet, he had killed Zhu Luo with a single sword strike.
This fact was hard for them to accept, and their hearts were somewhat heavy.
But no matter how hard to accept, the fact had already happened, and what needed to be done still had to continue.
The three Winds and Rains had vaguely sensed that the Saintess of the Heavenly Sea's divine soul had gone elsewhere. At this moment, only her physical body stood atop the Heavenly Book Mausoleum. Moreover, she had just fallen in realm due to defying fate for Chen Changsheng and had suffered a spiritual shock from the fact that Chen Changsheng was not Crown Prince Zhaoming. This could be said to be her weakest moment in over two hundred years.
This also meant that this was the moment when Her Holiness the Saintess was most likely to be defeated.
They could not miss this opportunity.
To ascend the Divine Path and do battle with the Saintess of the Heavenly Sea, they first had to defeat Divine General Han Qing below the Divine Path.
Moreover, although others did not know, they were well aware of Han Qing's greatest secret, and they even wanted Han Qing dead more than anything.
Wuqiong Bi's expression was visibly tense, with a flicker of fear occasionally appearing in her eyes, but ultimately replaced by madness.
In the eyes of the Saintess of the Heavenly Sea, she was foolish, incompetent, and nearly idiotic, but she was still a master of the sacred domain. An occasional setback in her Dao heart could not completely affect her state of mind.
"Han Qing must be injured. This is an opportunity." She said sharply to Bie Yanghong. "Go now!"
The small flower on the fingertip of her little finger swayed gently, with its own rhythm, stirring the night wind into a pleasing shape.
Bie Yanghong remained silent, not heeding his wife's words.
The rain had long stopped. The clouds parted, and the stars appeared. Suddenly, the countless stars in the sky seemed to brighten a little.
It gave people a feeling that the stars filling the sky were closer to the ground.
Beside the wheelchair, the Star Gazer's figure was no longer there, only a bamboo hat in the rainwater.
The stars filling the sky, seeming both real and illusory, descended upon the Heavenly Book Mausoleum, swirling with that figure toward where Han Qing stood.
Han Qing slightly raised his head. The dark face, hidden by his armor for over six hundred years, was finally illuminated by starlight.
It was an incomparably aged face.