The Flowing Clouds

The moon was the same as usual, which accentuated the beauty of the plum blossoms.

The line was about one's state of mind, and Ye Liuyun had a strong feeling that something about Shen Lian changed, and he was more celestialized than before.

"They are equally good. Brother Shen, I'm in awe of your impressive literary talent."

Shen Lian pushed open the door and walked in, he carried himself in great composure. "Brother Ye, you are wrong again. Whether it is the poem from before or the current poem, both of them are not written by me. I recited them as they were fitting for the occasion," he replied casually.

Ye Liuyun was shocked. He was a genius himself, and Mingjian Peak had a far greater books collection than the Shen family. However, he had never come across these great poems. If it was just one, he would have understood. To think that he had never heard of these two great poems, which were neither written by Shen Lian nor were they found in one of the books that he read before, that itself was intriguing.

Moreover, his learned and talented father too had not heard of any sentences along the lines of 'white blossoms that bloom in the snow and bitter cold' before.

Although the Shen family was rich, they were nothing more than uncultured rich landlord from a rural area to the Mingjian Peak. 

Any books that the Shen family had in their possession, the Mingjian Peak would definitely have it; whereas the books that the Shen family did not have, the Mingjian Peak would have plenty of them.

If Shen Lian was not the author, where did the poems come from?

All of these were intriguing, just as how Shen Lian successfully cultivated the Deity Vanquishing Sword without straying from the righteous path and without being an extremist.

Xiao Zhu stood on the side and thought Ye Liuyun and Shen Lian were very similar to each other. Both of them had a complicated thought process. However, there were some slight differences between them which she could not pinpoint exactly.

"Fated meetings, fated partings. Life is as such. I have not been put at a disadvantage in life, which is why I'm so bothered by my defeat by you. This is why I wanted to see you when spring comes and the flowers are in bloom." Even though Ye Liuyun openly admitted to his defeat, he was still gracious and maintained his impressive composure.

However, these did not work on Xiao Zhu.

"Since both of you are not supposed to meet up today, but when spring comes and the flowers are in bloom, why don't you both stay true to your promise and return in two days?" she suggested in a cavalier manner.

She squinted her eyes playfully as she finished speaking. 

What Xiao Zhu said was ridiculous, yet logically sound. Of course, what she really wanted was to diss both of them.

"At our level of attainment, we would feel warm even when normal people find the weather unbearably cold. As for the flowers, they are blooming in our heart. Why should we bother with time and place if we long to see each other? If I feel like it, I might even tune in as you both consummate your marriage," Shen Lian replied without shame and as a matter of fact.

"What is the point of just eavesdropping? I wouldn't mind a threesome," Xiao Zhu retorted after blushing at what Shen Lian said.

She glared fiercely at Shen Lian. Clearly, she was not about to lose this fight.

Back in his past life, Shen Lian left digital footprints all over the internet. He was used to the harsh words of the fujoshi, Xiao Zhu's words did not come as a surprise to him. "Master Kuhui, have you come to eavesdrop on us?" Shen Lian replied with a smile.

"Amitabha, that was quite a joke, Young Man Shen. I have ceased longing for worldly desires, I am not blessed enough to partake in such activities."

"It's getting late and the moon is perfect tonight. Why don't we continue with our little reunion outside where it's more spacious?" Ye Liuyun laughed and replied.

Shen Lian nodded. On the other hand, Xiao Zhu knew something big was brewing. Ye Liuyun and Shen Lian were going to have an epic battle.

Shen Lian and Ye Liuyun moved at the same time.

They exited the door after one another.

Both of them were as quick as shooting stars, Xiao Zhu found it hard to keep up.

Under the moonlight, a faint trail made by the wheelchair could be seen on the muddy ground. The trail was leading to where Ye Liuyun and Shen Lian were at.

"How annoying is that! Ye Liuyun, how can you still move around so quickly in a wheelchair?" Xiao Zhu said grudgingly.

A person drifted past her soundlessly, as through clouds and smoke breezed past. "Miss Xiao, this is something that I have to say. You are struggling to keep up with him even though he is crippled, just think about the amount of hardship he must have gone through. To be married to a man like him, I must say he is not the lucky one here," he whispered.

The last sentence was not spelled out, but Xiao Zhu was not stupid. She knew exactly what Kuhui meant – it was her who was lucky.

Xiao Zhu was slightly surprised. Since she was spoilt by everyone in the Guiyun Peak, she had always thought that she would be marrying a great hero who had both looks and talent. This was why she hated Ye Liuyun for his disability and showed no mercy nor sign of pity.

She hated the fact that she had to marry a crippled man.

Never even once did she put herself in Ye Liuyun's shoes and think about why he had to achieve so much in spite of his family background. With his background, he could waste his life away and still not starve, no one would even blame him for being useless. If anything, they would pity him.

Out of all the past successors of Mingjian Peak, everyone including her father thought that Ye Liuyun was the best of them all.

The trail struck her heart like a whip.

"I'm not in the wrong," Xiao Zhu replied grudgingly.

Kuhui was long gone.

Kuhui had tens of years of experience in Buddhism and mastered Ruyi Shapeshifting. He could travel for thousands of miles in a day. It was similar to what the Daoists called the Shenxing Method.

However, he was still left behind by two of them. Partially, it was because they were taking the lead. The route in the forest was complicated. It still showed how skillful Shen Lian and Ye Liuyun were.

...

Shen Lian had never seen anyone like Ye Liuyun before. He had nothing but respect for him.

He did not slow down on purpose; in fact, he gave his best. However, he still did not put a distance between Ye Liuyun and him.

Ye Liuyun was very focused. He had only lost once in his entire life. This time round, he was determined to retrieve his victory from Shen Lian.

All Shen Lian wanted was to know more about joining Qing Xuan, but he knew that he would not be able to get his hands on any information without fighting Ye Liuyun.

Besides the plum blossoms, there were hundreds of flowers at Mingjian Peak.

In this forest, there were peach trees and pear trees.

Given Ye Liuyun's familiarity with the place, Shen Lian got to decide on the location of the battle.

The final battle would begin the moment Shen Lian stopped.

Shen Lian had no pity or mercy for Ye Liuyun, his spirit was rising and he could feel the excitement channeling from the sandalwood sword on his waist.

A wooden sword was still a sword.

The fundamental value of a sword would not change; it would always be a tool used to defeat the opponent.

The marks left by Ye Liuyun on the grounds got lighter and eventually faded off completely. It was as though he was flying while being in contact with the ground.

Shen Lian was akin to the carefree clouds and was floating in the air. The circulation of his inner Qi got more intense, while gravity's pull on him weakened.

Just when he was about to shake off gravity's pull completely, he stopped.

The clear lake water was right in front. Under the moonlight, the surface of the lake sparkled peacefully. The moon was hanging right in the middle, indeed a sight to behold.

The wind blew, while the waves flowed.

Ye Liuyun too stopped.

On the ground was Ye Liuyun, and in the sky was a piece of 'wu yun'– dark cloud.

It marched on slowly until it covered the moon in its entirety.

It did not take long for the world to fall into darkness.