Nightfall

A while ago, Liu Yiqing asked if Mr. Thirteen had been watching from Chang’an. But no one around the imperial city paid much attention because they were too nervous from seeing the Eldest Brother. They thought the dying leader of Sword Garret was recalling his past. It wasn’t until when Long Qing said it again that people started to realize something and became terrified.

After that spring rain, Hengmu Liren was turned from a manservant into the most powerful and unpredictable cultivator in Taoism. He was enlightened and bestowed with wisdom therefore immediately understood what Long Qing meant. He got stiff and extremely pale, and could not help from looking toward the far north.

In the far north under the dark sky, there was a magnificent city named Chang’an. He had never been there but could almost see its moss-covered city wall now, and the person standing on top of it with an iron bow in his hand. If it was not because of Long Qing, he would already be dead by now.

Although that person shot from thousands of miles away, he was almost killed.

Long Qing looked into the Eldest Brother’s eyes and said, “No wonder you’ve been so calm. You were never nervous because you’ve been waiting for our strike. When you stepped right previously I thought you were leaving. Now I know you were simply making way for it.”

He made way for the iron arrow that came from thousands of miles away.

Recalling what happened just now, Long Qing sweated profusely. If it was not because of Hengmu Liren’s Divine Skill, what would he be like now?

The Eldest Brother stared at him and said, “We didn’t expect you to see it through and break it.”

It was not an easy thing to see through the Academy’s plan. It was even harder to make a correct move and stop Hengmu Liren’s Divine Skill in such a short period of time. The Eldest Brother was alerted by Long Qing’s power. Now he felt even more worried that he would be a big trouble for Ning Que in future.

“I should have been pleased by Mr. First’s compliment.” Long Qing sounded sad and continued, “Or probably it was only because I knew that iron arrow from years ago therefore I could predict it. It was no big deal.”

Many years ago, the iron arrow appeared in the cultivation world for the first time in the snow mountains in North Wilderness. It was shot at Long Qing. His Taoist career or even his entire life was completely changed by that arrow.

The Eldest Brother said, “Indeed, you could not defeat the Youngest Brother’s arrow after all these years.”

Long Qing said, “So he is indeed watching us from Chang’an.”

The Eldest Brother answered, “Like I’ve said, perhaps not clearly enough, but he was definitely watching.”

Long Qing kept looking into his eyes and asked, “Is this the Academy’s plan? But if Mr. First had not shown up, Liu Yiqing could not have made Hengmu expose himself to Ning Que by himself.”

The Eldest Brother answered, “The Divine Halls have planned it well. They wanted you to kill Mr. Liu. Or it would be better if you could also trap and kill the Youngest Brother. That was your plan… The Academy just followed your momentum. Since I was forced to be here, you were definitely exposed.”

As long as they were exposed, they would be shot by the arrows.

It had happened previously. When the Second Brother brought his new wife to Qinghe Prefecture, he entered the manor by the brook and told calmly who he was.

It was because he was Jun Mo, the Elder Cui and another hidden powerful cultivator at the state of Knowing Destiny had to apply their real power and were exposed like two bright lamps in the world.

The iron bow was in Peach Mountain at that time. The person holding the bow saw the two bright lamps in Qinghe Prefecture. The next moment, they died.

“The Academy… is so insidious.” Hengmu Liren’s fear was turned completely into fury. He shouted to the Eldest Brother, “To trap us, you, the so-called righteous Mr. First chose to watch Liu Yiqing die rather than take action!”

The Eldest Brother paused and said, “You are wrong. I did not choose to stay idle. But I could not take any actions. Even if I could, why do we need to expose you to the person in Chang’an?”

Hengmu understood and got even more furious.

Long Qing certainly understoof too. He said, “To take action… it’s not necessarily to take any actions. Your showing up is the action. Otherwise we wouldn’t have dared to attack you.”

The Eldest Brother said, “Even if I had not shown up, I believe you wouldn’t waste this chance.”

Long Qing said, “If Hengmu was shot dead and I was killed by you, Mr. First, then do you think you could survive?”

The Eldest Brother said, “We could never be sure of anything in this world.”

Long Qing became solemn and asked, “To sacrifice Mr. First for the two of us, isn’t that unworthy?”

“You are right. I was prepared to leave when I stepped right. But you kept me here. What I am not sure about was what to do next.” The Eldest Brother looked into the darkness and said, “I’m not sure if he would make me stay here.”

The bouquet appeared again from the darkness, together with a voice of vicissitudes. It sounded like mellow vintage wine.

“So you’ve been waiting for me to act.”

The Eldest Brother looked there and said, “Yes. If you don’t act, theh the Academy could never proceed.”

A scholar stepped out of the darkness. It was hard to tell his age. He seemed extremely old but still had a long way to go. It was weirdly integrated into this man. In his hand there was just a flagon. He was the Drunkard. The Drunkard walked to the Eldest Brother and stood in front of him silently.

The Eldest Brother’s cotton-padded gown was stained by dust, yet he seemed extremely pure from inside out. The Drunkard’s clothes were dustless, yet he looked dusted from inside out.

Ever since he kneeled in front of Sangsang, the Drunkard had become the most powerful in Taoism. It was because of him that Hengmu was certain that the Eldest Brother did not dare to interfere.

The Eldest Brother did stay idle. But the Youngest Brother was prepared for an attack.

Tonight, Taoism wanted to kill the Youngest Brother of the Academy but the Eldest Brother showed up instead. They were willing to kill any of them. But they did not know that the Academy had also planned for a kill.

Tonight, the Academy wanted to kill the Drunkard. The Drunkard was the most powerful cultivator who had survived the previous Ever Night. He was a legend and an important figure to keep the balance in the human world. To kill such a person was definitely a revolution.

Yet it was a pity that the revolution had failed.

The Drunkard placed the flagon by his lips and kept drinking for a long while until his lower abdomen was plump. When his face regained some colors he said sentimentally, “Indeed close, it was indeed close.”

The Eldest Brother answered sentimentally, “Close indeed, but it was just close.”