"Others could not do it, but I am certain of my ability to complete the task. What do you think, my lovely Zhu?" A calm voice came from the top of the hill.
Xiao Zhu was shocked, but she could only see the empty hill as she looked up. The wind blew over her clothes while she sat on the wheelchair by herself. The red dot in between her brows was as beautiful as the stars.
"Ye Liuyun!" Xiao Zhu uttered the name.
Ye Liuyun stared at Xiao Zhu, his fiancé. Two hooks flew out from the handles of the wheelchair, sinking into the soil in front of Xiao Zhu.
In the blink of an eye, Ye Liuyun was in front of Xiao Zhu, and the hooks were kept.
Xiao Zhu was slightly taller than the average girls. When Ye Liuyun looked at her, he had to tilt his head.
He sighed. "Regardless of how mischievous you were before, I was never angry. This time around, you even took away the Ice Jade. Do you really want me to fail Qing Xuan's Wenxin Road so badly?"
"You always claim that you're a born with celestial potential. How is it possible that a mere Wenxin Road can trap you?" Xiao Zhu looked down at Ye Liuyun with a light smile on her face, but her eyes fell onto Ye Liuyun's legs.
There was no insult worse than staring at the legs of a crippled man.
However, Ye Liuyun was not mad, he simply said, "I just want to go prepared so I have less to worry about. Moreover, I have never been through this road, how could I possibly know the difficulty of it? If I get stuck at the last step, the Ice Jade may be able to help me get out."
"Can you still walk with these?" A look of sarcasm flashed through Xiao Zhu's impeccable face.
"Stop throwing your temper around, give me the item." Ye Liuyun lowered his head. There were not many people in the world that could make him do that, but Xiao Zhu was different.
"I can give it to you, but under the condition that you break our engagement."
"You know this is impossible."
"Why?"
"Because you are Xiao Zhu, and I am Ye Liuyun. We are destined to be together." Ye Liuyun looked up again, staring at her. His eyes looked as if they were two deep pools, hiding away many things unbeknown to the public, with a tinge of sorrow.
It was probable that ninety-nine percent of the women in the world would not be able to resist the look in his eyes, but Xiao Zhu had a heart of stone.
Xiao Zhu said, "Ye Liuyun, you must have thought that all the women in the world should like you and sympathize with you. But let me tell you something, I don't, I am in love with someone else."
"Tell me who that person is, I will kill him." Ye Liu Yun sprouted the words slowly. Even after hearing what Xiao Zhu said, he was not angry.
"His name is Shen Lian," Xiao Zhu said grinning.
"I am not surprised to hear that he is the person behind this. How did you two make acquaintance?"
Xiao Zhu pointed to the direction of Su's Fort, and said this slowly, "I dare you to challenge him over there."
The area was a flat land and Su's Fort was visible.
Kuhui put his palms together and said, "Brother Ye, please do not listen to Lady Xiao's nonsense! It was only her first time meeting Shen Lian today. There is an eccentric man over there, who seems to be a celestial expert"
Kuhui clearly understood that Ye Liuyun was a proud man. He would definitely go the opposite as he was advised. It would be better to just let him make the decision himself.
Ye Liuyun looked over to Kuhui, and let out a light laugh. "My personal matter has distracted me from greeting you, Master Kuhui! Please forgive my manners."
"Do not worry about it, for our friendship, it is the exchange of the heart that matters." Kuhui stood tall, and his old cowl fluttered. He wondered about Shen Lian's situation, and whether he managed to obtain teaching from the owner.
In the field of Kung Fu and Celestialism, it was only after one worked hard, only could one understand the importance of family background and serendipity.
"Well, do you not dare to head over now because he is a more powerful man?" Xiao Zhu continued.
Ye Liuyun gazed at Su's Fort direction and spoke lightly, "I remember how that place used to be – it was merely a bare land with nothing."
Xiao Zhu laughed and teased him again, "You are a coward."
"If there is something wrong over there, why should I go?"
In between speeches, Ye Liuyun's fingers moved as fast as lightning and landed on various vital points on Xiao Zhu's body.
The depth of his Kung Fu was even more unpredictable than the last time Shen Lian met him. Xiao Zhu only felt a slight headache and a mild fainting, and she was already under the control of Ye Liuyun.
Kuhui nodded. Both of them were likely to enter the path of Celestialism. He would not want to miss the chance to observe the encounter of the two.
...
The moon blended in well with the night, shining over the lonely looking arbor.
There was only Shen Lian left in the arbor. The second challenge was for him to walk out of it.
Shen Lian felt his pulse. The clock was ticking, seconds and minutes passed.
It was a revelation to him that they were asked to have a meal before, as the second challenge required time.
Shen Lian did nothing but wait.
He was waiting for the night to be over and for the sun to rise.
It had been eighteen hours since the moment the owner left.
The food he had before was being digested, bit by bit.
The moon was indeed fading in the picture, but it was not starting to disappear. It did not seem like the sun would rise anytime soon too.
The entire arbor, along with the garden outside was real. The smell of the grass and the flowers, the flowing water – they were not imaginary.
However, there was an oddity – there were not any insects buzzing or humming.
Speaking of insects, there was not even an ant.
Shen Lian's spiritual eye could detect even the tiniest objects. However, he did not detect any living things.
Other than the occasional wind, there was not any other sound.
Staying in this situation would make anyone feel uncomfortable, even for just an hour; not to mention the eighteen hours Shen Lian had endured.
Shen Lian tried to meditate, but he realized he could not enter the
The unspoken loneliness seeped in his heart. He felt that under this situation, he was not too different from the non-living objects around him – the grass, the trees, the bamboo, and even the rocks.
It was only in the extreme silence and boredom, that one would meet the most formidable enemy – loneliness.
It was only until then he realized the importance of having someone around to speak to. He would go as far to accept a cat or an insect.
He needed a correspondence.
The only correspondence he could get was probably the moonlight and the wind.
Other than the slight change in location for the moon, nothing much changed in the garden.
The wind came from all four corners, and the strength of each wind did not differ much.
To be exact, the scenery of the garden from all corners were the same. The only difference would be when the moonlight changed direction as time went on as the shadow changed.
Shen Lian finally stood up and he walked towards one direction. He went across the flower bush and saw the thick fog again.
Underneath his feet was a green stoned pavement. His every step was firm.
Beyond the thick fog, there were four doors.