Proofreader & Editor: Lotas
In Li Garden, Li Ziye was practicing his swordsmanship under the moonlight. Not far away, Zhu Zhu, draped in a red cloak, sat quietly by his side. Under the bright moon, her beauty shone like jade, and the sword qi was as frosty as the moonlight itself.
Zhu Zhu seemed to always be folding paper sparrows, one after another.
The lifelike paper sparrows, fiery red, added a touch of warmth to the cold night.
A faint red glow appeared on Li Ziye, barely visible to the naked eye.
As Li Ziye's sword movements quickened, a continuous stream of spiritual energy from heaven and earth surged towards him, quietly entering his body.
Unconsciously, his stagnant cultivation level began to show signs of wavering.
Sensing something, Zhu Zhu looked up at the young man practicing his sword, a smile appearing on her beautiful face.
The paper sparrows took flight, like firebirds, dancing in the courtyard, accompanying the young man in his sword practice.
At the window, Li Youwei watched the scene outside, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes.
Although she didn't know Zhu Zhu's true identity, it was clear that the girl cared deeply for her younger brother.
In the quiet courtyard, with sword qi crisscrossing and paper birds fluttering, the beauty was intoxicating.
"Boom!"
At that moment, Li Ziye swung his sword, and with a single stroke, he split the night sky; instantly, his sword technique was complete, and his realm was broken.
Around him, the spiritual energy rushed in torrents, quickly absorbed into Li Ziye's body.
In a nearby room, Slovenly Zhang, with bleary drunken eyes, sensed the commotion outside. He looked over, his aged face showing surprise at the power of the paper sparrow.
Inside the courtyard, Li Ziye, having broken through his realm, looked at his hands, his eyes filled with undeniable shock.
Had he really mastered the fourth technique? And his cultivation level had broken through as well?
Why?
Why had his cultivation speed suddenly increased so much?
"Congratulations, my husband."
Zhu Zhu gathered the dancing paper birds from the air and smiled sweetly.
"Zhu Zhu."
Li Ziye looked at the woman before him, his expression complex, "Are you helping me?"
He wasn't a fool; he could tell that his change was very likely related to the mysterious woman before him.
"Just a little."
Zhu Zhu stretched out her little finger, showing a small gesture, and laughed, "The main reason is still your husband's hard work and accumulation. Today's breakthrough was just a matter of course."
"Hmm… that makes sense."
Flattered, Li Ziye started to get carried away, grinning, "I think, at this rate, I could take on three Huo Lin'ers in two years."
"Pfft!"
In the nearby room, Slovenly Zhang spat out the wine he had just sipped and started coughing violently.
Outside the room, Zhu Zhu listened to the young man's bold ambitions, her smile growing even brighter as she nodded, "My husband will surely be able to do it."
"Let's sleep, Zhu Zhu. You should rest early too."
Feeling good after his breakthrough, Li Ziye found Zhu Zhu's imposing beauty much more pleasing to the eye. He expressed his concern and turned to go back to his room to rest.
"My husband."
Behind him, Zhu Zhu called out.
"Hmm?"
Li Ziye turned back subconsciously, looking puzzled.
"You must never part with the token of affection I gave you, even when you sleep," Zhu Zhu said with a charming smile.
"This?"
Li Ziye took out the paper sparrow from his chest, glanced at it, and nodded, "Got it, rest early."
With that, Li Ziye, in high spirits, hummed a tune and returned to his room.
Zhu Zhu watched his retreating figure, her lips curving into a slight smile, and then turned to go back to her room.
Her husband was more interesting than she had imagined.
Just a bit too weak.
The battle in two years' time would not be easy for him to win.
Inside her room, Zhu Zhu sat down at the table, gazing at the flickering candlelight, lost in thought.
As she pondered, she subconsciously raised her right hand, and her fingers moved lightly. Instantly, red paper sparrows took flight, circling the candlelight.
The paper birds dove into the fire, the flames dazzling. The endless spiritual energy from the surroundings was ignited by the flames on the birds, and in an instant, the fire spread rapidly, creating a sky-burning momentum.
"Oops!"
Zhu Zhu snapped back to reality, startled, and quickly waved her hand to disperse the flames. Seeing the charred table and chairs before her, she stuck out her tongue in embarrassment.
She had almost forgotten that this was Li Garden, and she couldn't reveal too much of her strength.
Outside, the cold moon shone brightly, gradually moving westward, and the lights in the inner courtyard went out one by one, settling into silence.
The night passed without incident.
At dawn, as the sun began to rise.
"Younger brother, come out quickly, look who's here."
Li Youwei, who had risen early, hurried back to the inner courtyard and knocked on Li Ziye's door.
"Who is it? So early in the morning, can't you let people sleep?"
Li Ziye opened the door, about to continue his complaints, but when he saw the peerless beauty in the courtyard, his face lit up with excitement, and he rushed forward.
"Fairy Master, you're here, I've missed you so much!"
Li Ziye spread his arms, ready for a big hug.
"Are you itching for a beating again?"
Qin E'nuo's eyes narrowed slightly, a dangerous glint flashing, as she spoke indifferently.
"This… I just missed Fairy Master!"
Li Ziye stopped in his tracks, awkwardly retracting his arms, but soon he was excited again, "Fairy Master, the New Year is coming, let's celebrate it here at Li Garden this year!"
"Hmm."
Qin E'nuo did not refuse, simply nodding her head.
"Great."
Seeing Fairy Master agree, Li Ziye's expression became even more excited.
"Creak."
At this moment, Slovenly Zhang and Zhu Zhu, hearing the noise outside, also opened their doors.
In the courtyard, Qin E'nuo and Slovenly Zhang exchanged glances and nodded to each other in greeting.
Zhu Zhu stepped out of her room and bowed gracefully to the woman ahead.
Qin E'nuo nodded and asked, "Are you accustomed to living in Li Garden? Has this boy not bullied you?"
"I'm used to it."
Zhu Zhu smiled, "My husband has been very good to me."
"You know each other?"
Li Ziye, seeing this, was surprised.
How did Old Qin know Zhu Zhu?
It turned out that he, the so-called husband, was the only one who didn't know who his own wife was!
"Don't ask what you shouldn't."
Qin E'nuo said indifferently, then continued, "How is your practice of the fourth technique of the Flying Immortal Sword?"
"It's complete."
Li Ziye said proudly.
"Oh?"
Qin E'nuo was slightly surprised, but after seeing the smile on Zhu Zhu's face, she understood the reason and nodded, "Not bad, come, show me your technique."
"Okay!"
Li Ziye, upon hearing this, scurried back to his room and took out the Pure Jun Sword.
"Attack me."
Qin E'nuo stepped aside and said, "I won't dodge or fight back."
"This… that's not good."
Li Ziye said somewhat embarrassedly, "Although Fairy Master is very powerful, if you don't dodge or fight back, I'm afraid I might hurt you."
"Stop talking nonsense, draw your sword." Qin E'nuo said flatly.
Zhu Zhu, guessing what was about to happen, immediately retreated far away.
At this moment, in the courtyard, Hong Zhu and Bai Wangyu both came out to watch the excitement as bystanders.
"Fairy Master, be careful, here I come!"
Ten steps away, Li Ziye, with sword in hand, was eager to show off.
Today, he would let everyone in Li Garden see what it meant to be a son of the realm, a natural-born genius, an invincible transmigrator!
"Clang!"
The Pure Jun Sword unsheathed, a flash of cold light dazzling, Li Ziye moved, his sword swift, leaving a trail of afterimages, hard to distinguish between real and fake.
The Flying Immortal Sword Technique, known as the fastest sword and movement technique in the world, was almost invincible at the same realm.
In the blink of an eye, Li Ziye's figure had already swept forward, and among the swirling afterimages, his face revealed a radiant and twisted smile.
He was about to win!
However!
Li Ziye seemed to have forgotten that the person standing before him now was the culmination of the world's swordsmanship, the Plum Blossom Sword Immortal.
Just as the sword tip neared within three feet of Qin E'nuo.
Qin E'nuo, who had been motionless, casually raised her right hand, her two fingers coming together, effortlessly stopping the sword tip that was slicing through the air.
Immediately, the sword in Li Ziye's hand could not advance even half an inch further.
Damn!
Could it really be like this?
Li Ziye found it hard to accept for a moment.
"Still so weak."
Qin E'nuo said indifferently, then flicked her fingers, and with a loud bang, the young man before her was sent flying, crashing into the courtyard wall.
"Cough, cough, cough!"
Li Ziye landed, coughing violently.
"Disperse, everyone disperse."
The outcome was unsurprising, and Slovenly Zhang, bored, spoke up before returning to his room to drink.
Not far away, Li Youwei and Hong Zhu also left, with the New Year approaching, there was much to do in the house.
Li Garden, with the arrival of Qin E'nuo, finally began to ring in the New Year.
The garden was filled with celebration, and even the hardworking servants could steal half a day of leisure.
***
And in this nationwide celebration of the New Year.
In the Desert North, under the cover of night, the soldiers of the Eight Divisions and the monstrous creatures of the extreme winter began another round of slaughter.
Blood stained the ground, and bones piled into mountains!
"Amitabha!"
On the road paved with skeletons, a young monk in light yellow robes walked forward, his face as pure as a child's, with a blood-red Buddhist seal on his forehead now completely stained with black ink.
"A monk?"
Under the night, a group of creatures shrouded in black mist saw the newcomer and cackled with laughter before charging at him.
In an instant, the monk's figure was engulfed by countless creatures.
"Bodhi's Three Transitions."
In the next moment, amidst the heavy encirclement, a calm and indifferent voice rose, and suddenly, a bright Buddha light surged like a tidal wave in all directions.
"Ah!"
A series of agonizing screams followed, echoing across the wilderness!
In the surging Buddha light, all the creatures that had swarmed over were devoured by the light, reduced to ashes.
Once, the monk did not kill, but now, atop the mountain of skeletons, there was no compassion in the monk's eyes.
Step by step, San Zang walked on the path paved with corpses, continuing northward.
On San Zang's back, the beautiful girl slept quietly, never parting from him from Great Shang to Desert North.
No one knew when the girl would awaken, not the monk, perhaps not even the heavens.