Jing Jiu led Liu Shisui into the courtyard house, arriving in the courtyard where the begonia tree should have been.
Xiao He was sweeping the broken porcelain pieces on the ground. Seeing the two of them, she let out a surprised cry, and then came back to her senses and bowed to them hastily.
Liu Shisui walked over and knelt down beside her, bowing to her reverently.
"Is this a marriage?" asked Jing Jiu.
Liu Shisui thought that it was fine if Jing Jiu thought so.
The door of the courtyard opened slightly, and Jing Li walked in hurriedly. He knelt down on the ground with a "pah" sound, his shoulders trembling slightly, but he couldn't make a sound.
Looking at this man with white hair on his temples and an obvious old age, Jing Jiu sighed in his mind.
…
…
In this life, his name was Jing Jiu.
The Jing House, not far from Taichang Temple, was regarded by him as his home.
It was here that he asked Gu Qing to send him home before he fell asleep.
He had indeed regarded Jing Li as his nephew. He asked Master White Ghost, the guard of Aoyama, to teach him, and Gu Qing to teach him the sword work. Even if Jing Li's talent was ordinary, he shouldn't have such a low Cultivation state and become so old at the age of one hundred.
This indicated that Jing Li didn't cultivate diligently. The reason he didn't cultivate diligently was that his heart was as dead as a doornail.
Jing Jiu didn't say anything. He went to the study room after shooting two glances at Jing Li in Silence.
"The grandmaster of the Jing family passed away many years ago, and so did Jing Shang and his wife thirty years ago. Jing Li's wife was not in good health, and the two of them had no children. After Jing Li's wife passed away a few years ago, he became what he is now," said Liu Shisui sentimentally. "He's too sentimental; he's not suitable for Cultivation."
"What about your family?" asked Jing Jiu.
Liu Shisui fell silent.
Xiao He said in a low voice uneasily, "The two elders in the village passed away many years ago, and so did their children."
This was the story of the Liu family in that small village.
One hundred years was nothing more than a nap for a Cultivation practitioner like Jing Jiu, but it was the difference between life and death for mortals.
It was said that life was but a dream, and it was indeed so.
All these years, Liu Shisui had been guarding the Jing House. He wanted to take care of him, but also because there was nothing in the world that he needed to worry about.
Jing Jiu raised his right hand.
Liu Shisui lowered his head.
Touch.
Xiao He didn't dare to have any feelings of jealousy anymore. She just stood obediently at the side.
Jing Jiu glanced at her and thought of her kind in the Imperial Palace. He slightly raised his eyebrows.
Back in the Sea-God Temple outside Haizhou City, Xiao He's chest was pierced by the Lone Sword. Since then, she had been extremely afraid of Jing Jiu. Seeing him raise his eyebrows, she was so scared that her legs went soft and she knelt down, although she didn't know why.
"It's none of your business." Jing Jiu motioned for Xiao He to stand up and said to Liu Shisui, "Bu Qiuxiao should be here soon. You have to go back."
Liu Shisui had experienced many parting of life and death, but he still couldn't get used to it. He was especially sensitive to the words "soon" and "soon"; his face suddenly turned pale.
"Don't worry," said Jing Jiu. "It's a good thing."
Liu Shisui understood what Jing Jiu meant, feeling pleasantly surprised. "I'll go back as soon as possible," he said.
If it were Gu Qing, Yuan Qu or Zhuo Rusui, Jing Jiu wouldn't leave as soon as he woke up. However, Jing Jiu had always been a straightforward person. Now that his Young Master wanted him to go back to Yimaozhai, he packed up his luggage and left Zhaoge City with Xiao He. As for the need to spend more time together to deepen the bond and affection … it was unnecessary for him and his Young Master to have such an empty relationship.
With a flutter, the green bird landed on the windowsill and looked into the courtyard.
Jing Jiu's line of sight followed it.
It was unclear where the begonia tree had gone.
Jing Li was still drinking wine.
Prime Minister Qin was still alive, but that little girl who could only make cold tea had gone far away.
This was the sufferings of mortals.
Jing Jiu came to the street.
The sceneries on the street were completely different from one hundred years ago. The other buildings were all new, to say nothing of the Buddhist hall that had been moved here from the Net-Perception Temple. Of course, they were also old now.
The words "things remain the same, but the people have changed" would have a great impact on the minds of the mortals, but the Cultivation practitioners were used to it. If they came to the human world.
Jing Jiu walked through the deserted street and climbed up the stairs. He entered the Buddhist hall and came to the back hall under the guidance of the receptionist monk, where he saw Zen Master.
The spring breeze caressed the willow branches, bringing with it the catkins. Though it was beautiful, it was a bit annoying.
This was probably the feeling Zen Master had toward Jing Jiu.
The bell rang loudly.
The wind chimes tinkled.
Two cups of weak tea.
Two futons.
Zen Master picked his feet and sniffed, saying, "You're really lucky."
Yin San had said the same thing in the old plum garden.
What he said was that Jing Jiu could wake up, and also that he could break through the Heavenly Arrival State.
It was well known that Jing Jiu was reborn by means of the All in One Turn Sword in this life, and what he cultivated was not a regular Cultivation method. It was very fast for him to break through the states in the early stage, but it was more difficult for him to do so in the later stages. First of all, he would encounter the problem of the Sword Ghost when he entered the Free Travel State. He sneaked into the Fiend Prison and discussed it with the King Of The Underworld for many years, and he had finally solved this problem by means of the Underworld Fairy Sword. After he entered the Broken Sea State, he would face a more troublesome problem, which was that he needed more spiritual energy of heaven and earth than regular human Cultivation practitioners.
It wasn't just an ordinary amount, it was a massive amount. Back when he broke through the Broken Sea State on Bihu Peak, he relied on the thunder and lightning drawn by the Great Formation of Aoyama to barely have enough energy. If he wanted to break through the Heavenly Arrival State, he would have to go deep into the Thunder Region to absorb enough energy, and he might not even be able to do it.
Liu Ada had been worried about this back then.
Unexpectedly, Jing Jiu killed the replica of the Fairy Lady Bai Ren in the Battle of Zhaoge City and seized all the fairy energy in the Fairy Book, and he successfully entered the Heavenly Arrival State by virtue of the fairy energy. There were only a few Fairy Books in the world, and they were all under the control of the Zhongzhou School; but Jing Jiu had used two of them. Zen Master and Yin San were right; Jing Jiu was indeed lucky.
But was it really just luck?
The layer of dark cloud enshrouding Zhaoge City, tens of thousands of swords descending from the sky, the replica of the Fairy Lady emitting a golden glow, the round windows and the lake at the Three-Thousand Nunnery, the blocking of his palm strike toward Lian Sanyue, and the light specks scattered like butterflies in his chest …
Jing Jiu closed his eyes and opened them slowly after a long while, saying, "Maybe."
Zen Master knew what Jing Jiu was thinking about. "What are you going to do next?" he asked after a moment of silence.
"I want to solve the problem of Yuan Qijing," said Jing Jiu.
The expression on Zen Master's face changed slightly, as he said, "The reason I didn't want to see you was because I knew you would say this … I really can't do it, and nobody can. You shouldn't be too persistent."
After a moment of silence, Jing Jiu didn't continue this topic. "I'll solve the problem of Taiping first, and then the problem of the Zhongzhou School. After that, I'll focus on my Cultivation."
What he said was common and nonchalant, like eating a bowl of white rice porridge at noon and a hotpot at night … but how could these two problems be solved so easily?
Zen Master said, "It's your problem whether it's Taiping or the Zhongzhou School. But what about your Cultivation?"
"I'll go out when it's time," said Jing Jiu.
Zen Master said, "The problem is, how can you go out? One Fairy Book can help you reach the Heavenly Arrival State; how much energy of heaven and earth do you need to ascend? It's useless even if the Zhongzhou School gives you the last two Fairy Books, and it's useless even if you dare stay in the Thunder Region for ten years. "
Jing Jiu said, "As long as I have enough time, it'll be enough."
Zen Master said with a grave expression, "What I'm worried about is that even a complete spiritual source isn't enough for you to ascend. How much energy do you need? If all the energy of heaven and earth in the world is given to you, what about the other Cultivation practitioners? "
"We'll talk about it later," said Jing Jiu.
Zen Master was aware that Jing Jiu didn't care about this matter. "I'm going to White Town," he said while rubbing his head. "Do you want to go with me?"
He hoped that Jing Jiu would stay as far away from Zhaoge City as possible.
"No," said Jing Jiu without a second thought.
Then, he thought of Lian Sanyue again. What did he say when she asked him if he wanted to go to the snowland with her many years ago? Don't disturb my ascension … In fact, it was not a big deal to disturb him. Perhaps it was because he thought of this remark, Jing Jiu explained, "I'm not a match for the Queen of the Snowy Kingdom, and neither are you, nor Cao Yuan."
Zen Master said, "Cao Yuan's injury hasn't healed yet. He can't do it anyway."
Jing Jiu knew that Cao Yuan went to the snowland to have a fit of rage because of the death of Lian Sanyue, but he didn't say anything about it.
Zen Master left Zhaoge City on the same day and went to White Town to guard the place.
Jing Jiu saw him off outside the town. He went to the Zhao Garden after seeing the lotus cloud disappear into the horizon.
Zhao Layue's parents were still alive. Jing Jiu didn't disturb them. He boarded the small boat, letting it drift on the surface of the lake.
During the day, he covered his face with a conical hat.
At night, he gazed at the stars in a daze.
…
…
It was quiet in the royal palace.
Lying on the bed, Gu Qing had recovered from his injury.
Ping Yong-Ka had been taking good care of him, and Zhen Tao came to the royal palace every day. Apiao was certain that Jing Jiu wouldn't die, so she drifted around the royal palace, discussing with Jing Yao the affairs of the emperor.
Empress Hu could only sneak a peek at Jing Jiu when it was late at night.
The stars in the sky looked like countless bewildered eyes that were infatuated by the love and didn't even blink.
Sitting by the bed and looking at Jing Jiu's pale face, Zhao Layue revealed a sympathetic expression in her eyes, but it soon turned into sadness. "Do you … have a death wish?" she asked in a low voice.
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