Gate of God

Even though Qian Yu didn’t look like she was angry, what she just said still left Ling Yun Tower’s disciples in shock.

“Lady Qian Yu wants to punish Fang Zhengzhi for invading Ling Yun Tower?” The disciples stared at each other, unable to comprehend the situation.

However, they quickly realized that Qian Yu was protecting Ling Yun Tower’s dignity as the new leader.

However… Did karma come around too quickly?

The disciples were surprised but also felt a little weird when they looked at Fang Zhengzhi.

“Mom, Fang Zhengzhi is… He…” Ping Yang wanted to say something, but she felt a hand on her shoulder at this moment. Ping Yang was startled, and she looked at Fang Zhengzhi. However, Fang Zhengzhi winked at her with a bright smile as if he wasn’t angry about Qian Yu’s ‘betrayal’.

He stopped Ping Yang from speaking, then ‘courteously’ paid his respect to Qian Yu and said, “Auntie, how do you know that I’ve taken the Penta-coloured Wonder Flowers? If I recall correctly, you were still sealed away when I took the flower, right?”

“Not only do I know that you’ve taken the flower, I also know about what you did to Yang Er beside the Icy Pond. That’s because I’ve been staying inside the Icy Pond for the past dozen years.” Qian Yu replied calmly. From her countenance, it didn’t seem like she wanted to go hard on Fang Zhengzhi right away.

“Icy Pond?!” Ping Yang was obviously stunned, and she seemed to have recalled something.

“So, the shadow that I saw in the Icy Pong was actually…”

“Yeah, that’s me… I could always see you every single day… I was the shadow that taught you those body movement and techniques.” Qian Yu nodded. Her snow-white hair was swaying with the wind.

“Then, did Cang Yue know…” Ping Yang stopped herself even though she wanted to say something.

“Yes, she knew that I was sealed inside the Icy Pond, because she had also seen my shadow inside the pond before. She was naturally smart enough to guess that I was sealed inside the pond.” Qian Yu nodded again.

“Shadow inside the Icy Pond?” Having heard that, Fang Zhengzhi finally understood how Ping Yang had improved so quickly and learned all those impressive techniques in half a year.

Cang Yue…

Fang Zhengzhi didn’t know he should forgive her or continue to hate her. However, since she had already passed away, he knew that he should let it go.

Speaking of ‘letting it go’, Fang Zhengzhi looked and Ping Yang and Qian Yu, and he felt bad for standing in their way of reminiscing about their past memories.

“Ping Yang, I’ll take my leave first. You’d keep chatting with auntie.”

“Hold it! Do you think you can leave without repaying the debt?”

Qian Yu obviously wasn’t falling for Fang Zhengzhi’s trick, so she stopped him immediately.

“So… Auntie, do you mean that… I can leave after paying my debt?” Fang Zhengzhi curled his lips and put on a sincere expression.

“You wish!” Qian Yu replied fiercely after she was dazed for a second.

“Auntie, you see… Although we’ve only met for the first time, we hit it off right away. Since this is a fateful encounter, why do we have to be hostile to each other? Furthermore, you must have already accepted me as a junior since you replied when I called you ‘auntie’, right?”

“Smooth-tongued!” Qian Yu condemned Fang Zhengzhi again. Then, she looked at him and continued, “Fang Zhengzhi, I’ll be frank with you. The Penta-coloured Wonder Flowers is Ling Yun Towers’ treasure, so you can’t take it away. Furthermore, I can’t let you off easily for invading Ling Yun Tower.”

“Auntie, what are you suggesting?”

“It’s simple. Although Ling Yun Tower had never accepted a male disciple, I will allow you to join the sect since you’ve passed my sister’s trial. Therefore, you can stay here. Additionally… Since you’ve had physical contact with Ping Yang, we shouldn’t delay this matter any further. The eighth of next month is a good day to get married. You can complete the traditional wedding rituals in Ling Yun Tower first before hosting the wedding ceremony in Flame Capital City.” Qian Yu replied flatly.

All of Ling Yun Tower’s disciples were dumbfounded by what she had just said. Even Ping Yang was astounded.

None of them could comprehend the situation.

Marriage? Wasn’t Qian Yu going to restore Ling Yun Tower’s dignity by killing Fang Zhengzhi? How did that turn into a marriage? What was going on?

“Auntie, are you forcing me to marry Ping Yang?” Fang Zhengzhi was a little surprised, but he wasn’t completely caught off-guard.

After all, he knew that he was attractive, and it was also not the first time that something like this had happened to him. Therefore, he was mentally prepared.

“Are you not willing?”

“Well… To be honest, I’m still fairly young. Our ancestors have said that a man must be ambitious. Hence, a real man like myself should be fighting gloriously in wars…

“You could still do that even after marrying Yang Er. Furthermore, Yang Er is Great Xia Dynasty’s princess, so you’d become the emperor’s son-in-law if you marry her. I’d also offer you a place in Ling Yun Tower. I would appoint you as Ling Yun Tower’s next leader 100 years later, if you are willing to accept that offer.” Qian Yu waved her hand and interrupted Fang Zhengzhi’s nonsense.

“That sounds great.” Fang Zhengzhi smiled and nodded.

“So, does that mean you have agreed to my suggestion?” A smile appeared on Qian Yu’s cold expression as if the snow had melted.

“I would love to, but….”

“But what?”

“I’ve already said that I’m a real man. Hence, I’d like to make it by myself rather than accepting someone’s charity. Furthermore, there’s still a long time until the eighth of next month. I don’t have time to stay in Ling Yun Tower until then.” Fang Zhengzhi shook his head.

Ping Yang’s blush turned a little pale when she heard that. However, she just kept quiet and gazed at Fang Zhengzhi.

“Don’t have time?” Qian Yu seemed displeased by his reply.

“That’s right. I need to go to Yin Yang Hall immediately to look for a person!” Fang Zhengzhi nodded.

“It is less than a month away till the eighth of next month, and there’s barely enough time to plan a wedding. Can’t you wait that long?”

“No, I can’t.”

“What if I demand you to wait?”

“Auntie, a forced relationship won’t work out.”

“At least it’s better than not having a relationship.”

“Auntie, we just met for the first time, so we don’t know much about each other. Isn’t it better if we get to know each other before making a decision?”

“You’ve said it yourself that we hit it off right away. I believe that this is a fateful encounter too, and we are destined to meet each other.”

“Would His Highness agree to this?” Fang Zhengzhi finally felt like he had met his match. It seemed like the saying ‘Cougars are the scariest’, was actually accurate.

“He listens to me.”

“Auntie, do you really want to do this?”

“That’s right!”

“Auntie, I’m not trying to blow my own trumpet, but even if you’re so powerful, are you so sure that you could stop me from leaving?” Fang Zhengzhi smiled confidently.

“You are right. I may not be capable of stopping you. However, you seem to have forgotten about something.” Qian Yu also smiled confidently.

“What’s that?”

“You are in Ling Yun Realm now.”

“So?” Fang Zhengzhi’s expression changed a little, because he had actually forgotten about that. Most importantly, since Qian Ye died, Ling Yun Realm was now complete.

“Yang Er, let’s go!” As Qian Yu said that, Fang Zhengzhi felt Ping Yang’s body disappearing. She was gone.

It wasn’t just Ping Yang. Qian Yu, as well as all of Ling Yun Tower’s disciples, had disappeared in the blink of an eye. The only thing that remained was the mountain range.

The breeze was blowing through the jungle.

The eight moons in the sky were already gone. The golden sun was the only thing in the sky, casting Fang Zhengzhi’s shadow on the ground.

“…”

Fang Zhengzhi glanced around and looked at his lonely shadow. Even though he didn’t like to curse, he really felt like saying, “God damn it!”

…

There was a piece of land covered in snow. Even though it was summertime, snowflakes were floating in the air, eventually turning into frost on the ground.

Nangong Mausoleum, a place that was covered in snow all year round.

There was nothing but countless stone tablets standing in a thick layer of snow here. No one knew how long these stone tablets had been standing here, and the writings on the tablets were no longer legible.

Of course, there was also a giant tree standing in front of Nangong Mausoleum at the moment.

The giant tree was so high that it had reached the clouds. Many white flowers had bloomed on its branches. The petals were exuding a dazzling silvery radiance that reached all the way below.

“Do you see that?”

A plump middle-aged man standing at bottom of the tree pointed towards the treetop. He was wearing a thin garment with a hide on his shoulder. This man was the current master of the Nangong Nobles, Nangong Tian.

There was a crystal-clear fruit hanging on the treetop, covered in cloud-shaped engravings.

Most importantly, there seemed to be an extremely rich aura flowing in the fruit. The aura was shapeshifting between trees and flowers randomly.

“Yup.” The young man standing in front of Nangong Tian nodded. His turquoise shirt had long been painted white by the snow, and the scar on his face looked a little barbaric. However, his expression was extremely determined. He was clenching his fists so tightly that they were cracking softly.

Nangong Mu, who had been ignored by his family since he was young, was now standing in front of the tree that the Nangong Nobles had placed all their hopes on.

He didn’t know if he should feel lucky or abhorred.

However, he knew that this was his fate, something that had been imprinted deeply inside him since he was born. He couldn’t fight it.

“Are you really ready for this?” Nangong Tian stared at Nangong Mu and asked.

“Yup.” Nangong Mu nodded again, and he didn’t even say another word. Nevertheless, his determination remained unaffected.

“If you aren’t strong enough, your body would definitely blow up after eating that fruit, and you’ll die. Even I wouldn’t able to save you. Are you sure that you can survive?” Nangong Tian stared intently at Nangong Mu for a full ten minutes before he asked again.

“Yup.” Nangong Mu didn’t nod this time, but he gritted his teeth tightly and unleashed an intense aura from his body.

“Go. You are a descendant of Nangong Nobles. Even if you aren’t as talented as your brother, Nangong Family’s bloodline still flows within you!” As if he had made up his mind, Nangong Tian stopped questioning Nangong Mu and pointed towards the treetop instead.

“Father!” Nangong Mu’s body trembled, and he finally couldn’t keep calm anymore. He clenched his fists so tightly that they turned pale.

“What’s wrong?” Nangong Tian shot Nangong Mu a puzzled expression.

“One day, I’ll defeat my brother by myself!” As Nangong Mu said that, he accelerated tremendously towards the tree.

Crack!

The snow on the tree fell down with the snowflakes. It was not a thick layer of snow, but it was still clearly visible.

Nangong Tian was startled for a moment.

He didn’t avoid the fallen snow nor swipe it away. He just allowed the snow to fall on his face.

The turquoise figure above his head was moving up the tree nonstop. Snow fell down from the tree and started piling up at his feet.

“Defeat Hao Er?” Nangong Tian’s lips moved a little. He seemed to feel conflicted, but he soon shook his head and said, “It’s good to be motivated. However, it’s impossible to beat natural talent with hard work!”

Snowflakes were still falling.

Nangong Mu stared intently at the crystal-clear fruit at the treetop and blocked out Nangong Tian’s words, because he knew the answer. He had always known the answer since he was young.