Chapter 26: Beyond Your Guessing

At midday the next day, in the most elegant chamber on the upper floor of the Peace Inn, there was no soft carpet of entwining peonies, no bronze crane incense burner in the corner breathing out blue smoke, and no twelve-panel sandalwood screen bearing a master’s brushwork. Yet the bamboo-stitched embroidery inlaid on the wall, the paper, ink, and inkstone arranged neatly in a corner, and the ready-made garments all revealed an exquisite thoughtfulness in every tiny detail.

The dishes on the table were likewise refined beyond measure. There were the delicacies from the earlier debate banquet, and other carefully prepared dishes as well.

"Who are you?" Guo Lin said. Though he could not make out the newcomer’s appearance, he could feel a vast, sky-dark resentment radiating from the other party. Did the man hate him? Why?

And now, that place was dyeing half the sky above Mercenary City a blazing red. Compared with the strange sight in the Darkfall Mountains a few days ago, it was even more eye-catching.

In the bustling city, among the coming and going crowds on the streets, she stood dazed before the tangled maze of roads and suddenly found herself at a loss. This familiar street, which she had walked countless times hand in hand and shoulder to shoulder with him, somehow seemed strange today.

Thinking of her sister’s earlier odd behavior, Xia Xueqing could not help doubting whether her concern was justified. Yet if all of this had been arranged by Ye Chengxuan, then it was far too unreasonable.

Sun Fei’s two palms struck my chest. I only felt my body sway slightly; there was no sense of injury at all. Still fearing some hidden internal damage, I quietly circulated the Lunar Depths inner power through the meridians all over my body. Finding nothing amiss, I finally felt relieved.

"Your Majesty..." The Prince of Faith’s body sank even lower, as if he were about to refuse. Everything had come too abruptly, with not the slightest warning; he had not yet prepared himself.

"I like you too, Guo Lin." Their hands, resting on the railing, moved closer and gently touched. Lin Xian’er’s hand sprang back as if shocked by lightning, only for Guo Lin to seize it. At last, the two hands joined softly together, and their hearts found understanding in that instant.

The two walked side by side, slowly pacing along the flower path. Spring was beguiling, the blossoms were lovely, and the fragrance that filled the courtyard blossomed like a carpet of flowers. All of it was Shi Weilan’s handiwork, with help from Duan Shiyu and Li Zhaolin. The whole of the Chu residence now seemed as refined and graceful as a garden of orchids and herbs.

From where I stood, that black-clad county princess wore a tight black outfit, her graceful curves appearing and disappearing in the moonlight.

Liu Siren sighed. "The Pursuing Feathers Sword Sect was born for this river. Old Feng may be unable to bear harming his beloved disciple and thus stubbornly blocks the way, but we cannot bear to see Black Rock Cliff let the innocent be slaughtered." He looked at the special letter in Wang Hong’s hand and said no more.

"So what troubles the master is that the identities of your godfather and your child have left you rather confused?" The Azure Heaven Immortal stroked his chin, only to discover that he had no beard.

Upon hearing that this matter was actually connected to the county yamen, and that it involved life and death, Luo Ping’s thoughts turned over a hundred times. Then his face suddenly brightened, his brows relaxed, and he revealed a spring-breezed, warm, and utterly shameless smile.

This inner-sect elder was one of them. It was precisely because he knew Luo Ping that he was stunned by Luo Ping’s cultivation.

In the broad training grounds before the Gao family’s martial hall, Gao Chong gathered together more than one hundred and sixty people: a newly selected portion of the Gao family’s guards, those Gao family youths chosen from among the clan’s younger generation, and more than twenty of Guan Yu’s sworn brothers.

The second route was the Tangluo Road, entering from Yang Prefecture into the Tangshui River Valley. After crossing the watershed, it followed the Luo Valley road into the heartland. Though shorter, Tangluo Road had a longer waterless stretch than the Baoxie Road, and its mountain paths were steep and treacherous, making passage difficult.

Li Tianchou was astonished. Within Uncle Geng’s private domain, there should not have been such a dangerous feeling. Before he had time to think further, he clearly sensed the other party slowly drawing closer to the door, and every muscle in his body tensed at once.

Yet although they were not restrained, when they ate, they carried themselves with such elegance that it was a delight to behold.