chapter 40

Hearing Feng Qiu say such things, a wave of pain and despair rose in Jiang Xunyi’s heart. He couldn’t even tell whether this was his own true feelings, or whether it was the influence of the plot’s designation that “Jiang Xunyi likes Feng Qiu.” Blood rushed to his head and the world seemed to spin before his eyes, Feng Qiu’s words continuously echoing in his mind——”Ruined, everything is ruined!”

In this instant, the original body’s emotions swarmed forth and overwhelmed him, to the point where there was a moment where Jiang Xunyi lost sight of reality. It almost seemed as if every word coming out of Feng Qiu’s mouth was the absolute truth, and the culprit she was accusing really was himself.

After a long while, the first to break the silence was Yun Xie. He took a deep breath and slowly let go of Feng Qiu’s hand behind him, using this action to conceal the uneasiness in his mind. Only he himself knew the sheer degree of fear in his heart. Fearing Jiang Xunyi would misinterpret his fear as distrust, he kept his face indifferent and casual, and spoke without an ounce of hesitation: “Qiu-shijie, you’re likely confused. Ah-Xun would absolutely never do such a thing. You were undoubtedly wronged, and I understand how you must feel, but such words cannot be tossed around lightly.”

Feng Qiu looked at him with wide eyes, the heartbreak in her gaze equal to her affection. Large teardrops rolled down her cheeks. Her face was utterly pale and ashen, akin to that of a dead man.

With a trembling hand, she opened her tightly fastened collar, revealing a slender neck with shocking marks and traces. Jiang Xunyi only needed one glance for his brows to furrow deeply. He gritted his teeth and quickly stepped forward. Before Feng Qiu could recoil in panic, Jiang Xunyi had already moved with lightning speed to stop Feng Qiu’s next action, preventing her from opening up her clothes. He whispered: “Don’t do this.”

His back was straight and proud, but his voice was hoarse and muffled. As if burned by his touch, Feng Qiu pushed Jiang Xunyi’s hand aside and darted a glance at him. Before anyone else could catch the look in her eyes, her gaze had already drooped back to the ground.

Of course, everyone present would believe the emotion in her eyes to be hatred.

Upon being pushed by Feng Qiu, Jiang Xunyi’s wide sleeves slipped down his arm, revealing the delicately protruding wrist bones and beautifully-shaped forearm. A bright red streak of blood stood out from his otherwise pale complexion.

Chen Yuanxin’s eyes were sharp: “Young master Jiang, what is that on your arm?”

That was the fierce scratch left last night by Wanderer Zihui after her temptation failed——Jiang Xunyi remembered it as clear as day, but he could not say it out loud.

Immortal Master Ti Ming had raised him from childhood, and the Hidden Spirit Sect was akin to a second home for him. Wanderer Zihui had many years of fame under her belt, and was also his elder. If he made this incident public, Hidden Spirit Sect’s centuries-old clean reputation would be destroyed in an instant. Even Jiang Molou, currently far off in the Western Region, would not be able to lift his head upon returning to the Central Plains.

He was caught in the horns of a dilemma. At this very moment, Jiang Xunyi finally sensed the immense power and elusiveness of destiny. It seemed as if there was an invisible hand amidst the darkness, stirring forth the dark waves lurking in the heavy fog. He wanted to avoid them, to extricate himself, but was ultimately lost in this maze.

A faint idea even entered his mind——could it be that because of his own resistance and refusal to cooperate, Feng Qiu’s suffering had been intensified? Was this the revenge of the plot? If he wished to resist again, will he again drag others down with him, or even… affect the protagonist Yun Xie? And last night, he slept for so long… what happened during that time?

Even after all these years had passed, even if he had now grown up from a little child into a great power… was he still only allowed to endure and surrender?

Shock, sorrow, guilt, hesitation… all kinds of emotions intertwined and were extinguished in turn within his heart, like the crashing of turbulent waves. Beads of cold sweat dripped from Jiang Xunyi’s forehead and soaked his clothes. He did not dare to continue that line of thought, and the only thing ringing in his ears was Chen Yuanxin’s merciless repeated questioning: “Why aren’t you saying anything? Young master Jiang, why is it that to me, this mark on your arm looks very much like the result of a scratch from a woman’s nails?”

If this was set normally, Jiang Xunyi definitely would not hesitate to retaliate back with a snide remark of his own: “Sect Head Chen speaks with such confidence, he must definitely boast a multitude of experience when it comes to oppressing and tyrannizing innocent men and women.” However, he was not remotely in the mood to do so at this time. In the eyes of the surrounding onlookers, Jiang Xunyi stood unmoving before Chen Yuanxin, looking as cold and proud as always. Only he himself knew that his entire body was frozen stiff, and he had to fiercely clench his teeth to swallow back the words on the tip of his tongue.

He didn’t want to admit to a crime he had not committed, nor did he dare to resist the plot as unscrupulously as he had previously. He felt deep sorrow and sadness for Feng Qiu’s suffering, yet had no way of finding the truth in this tortuous maze.

When Yun Xie first heard Chen Yuanxin condemning Jiang Xunyi, he was very unhappy yet also firmly believed Jiang Xunyi would never do such a thing. He was only confused why Feng Qiu would vilify Jiang Xunyi for no reason. However, now seeing Jiang Xunyi’s reaction or lack thereof, Yun Xie’s heart dropped in his chest, and doubt rose in his mind.

Having grown up together, he was too familiar with Jiang Xunyi: If Jiang Xunyi was truly ignorant of such an event, given the care and affection he held for Feng Qiu… Although Jiang Xunyi would be furious, he would definitely first beat up this slanderous Chen Yuanxin, and then dig up the person who did assault Feng Qiu. Jiang Xunyi had never been the type of man to be overwhelmed by such a minor setback.

But right now, his face was completely pale and he did not utter a single word.

This thought was too horrible. If Jiang Xunyi had indeed done that with another woman… Yun Xie did not know how he himself would react. He had never respected any ghosts or gods, but at this moment he could only secretly pray that this incident was not true. Even as he attempted to suppress his emotions, a burst of violent rage emerged from the depths of his heart, and he had to expend a great deal of effort to maintain a calm external appearance.

This place was originally the liveliest location on Hidden Spirit Mountain, since people had to pass through this crossroads to get to any other location on the mountain. As a result, more and more people began to gather around. Chen Yuanxin did not let up his questioning and Feng Xue was glaring fiercely from the side, yet Jiang Xunyi was still standing silent as if he had lost his soul. The debating voices grew ever louder and it seemed as if things were about to spiral out of control, when Yun Xie clenched his fists and sucked in a deep breath. He suddenly raised his voice: “Sect Head Chen, Family Head Feng, calm down and please listen to what I have to say.”

Despite their similar roles as the Dual Jades of the Spirit Stage, Yun Xie’s position was different from Jiang Xunyi’s: Yun Xie’s Shizun had long since passed away, so he already held the esteemed identity of sect leader. In addition, the Solar Envy Sect never had the Hidden Spirit’s problems of fractured factions and dark secrets, so it was comparatively unified. Yun Xie had also further consolidated his authority since accepting the position of leader. As a result, although everyone knew he and Jiang Xunyi were incomparably close, Yun Xie’s words could not be ignored, and the crowd on the mountain immediately fell silent.

“Young master Jiang has been very fatigued these past few days for the sake of sealing away Xuan Li, and his mind has been rather distracted and absent-minded as a result. I would like to ask for everyone’s forgiveness on his behalf. Although I personally know nothing about what happened, I just found it curious: given Jiang Xunyi’s ability, as well as the fact that Hidden Spirit Mountain is his own territory, if he… truly felt like this towards Miss Feng, I’m afraid he would have ten thousand methods at his disposal to cover this incident up. Why would he ever allow this matter to spread so widely and publicly? Last but not least, we only just finished such a fierce battle yesterday, one that left everyone exhausted and wounded, wishing for nothing but three nights’ worth of restful sleep. In these circumstances, how could he possibly be leisurely and carefree enough to do such a thing?”

Yun Xie’s words were reasonable and concise, and the surrounding people could not help but feel a little shaken. Jiang Xunyi had always had an illustrious reputation. Even after the rumors spread of him rebelling against his sect, many young cultivators still admired him almost blindly and were unwilling to believe Jiang Xunyi to be some wicked traitor. Then when he proved himself innocent upon his return and sealed away Xuan Li, the fame of the Dual Jades of the Spirit Stage grew even more unparalleled. It was indeed quite difficult for everyone to believe he would do such a thing.

Moreover… Just looking at Jiang Xunyi’s exquisite and beautiful face, just his appearance was much better than Feng Qiu’s. It seemed at least a little farfetched that he would jump to using force to obtain someone he was attracted to.

Seeing doubt appear in the audience’s faces, Yun Xie hurriedly shot a meaningful look at Jiang Xunyi, yet Jiang Xunyi remained silent. Instead, it was Chen Yuanxin who sneered and slowly said: “Sect Leader Yun Xie has no evidence to back his words. Everyone knows that you and Jiang Xunyi have always come as a package. If he murdered someone, you’d be right behind him burying the corpse. While he was making the beast with two backs1, Sect Leader Yun very well might have been right there standing sentry! Why should anyone believe you?”

These were not pleasant words. Yun Xie was already annoyed and irritated in the first place, and no amount of acting skills in the world would be enough for him to keep pretending. He immediately raised his hand and struck his sword’s scabbard. Bright River answered him with a hum of its own and flew towards Chen Yuanxin, a brilliant stream of light trailing behind it. Chen Yuanxin’s expression turned serious and he raised his own sword to block, but Bright River had not reached him before it suddenly plummeted to the earth and stabbed itself into the empty ground, letting out a loud bang.

A cloud of dust and sand billowed up from the earth, making several people in the vicinity start coughing uncontrollably as they retreated as fast as they could.

Yun Xie coldly said: “Very well, I’m perfectly fine with you refusing to believe me. Since words won’t solve this dispute, let’s fight! Whoever’s still alive and standing at the end, their words shall be the truth!”

Yun Xie had always been willful, and right now he was clearly ready to flip the entire mountain at the next slightest sign of a disagreement. Jiang Xunyi himself was already mired in this trouble, and seeing this, he knew he could not drag down his brother any further. He called out: “Yun Xie!”

In contrast to his usual gentle smile, Yun Xie’s face was currently extremely chilly and harsh. His clenched teeth made his cheek muscles appear sharp and angular. He didn’t even look at Jiang Xunyi as he spoke through gritted teeth: “Shut up, wait for me to solve this problem first. I’ll settle our bill with you later.”

Heaven knows which bill between the two of them could be settled. Feng Xue had no desire to break all bridges2 with Yun Xie, but Yun Xie’s mind was clearly set on getting involved in this incident that was originally unrelated to himself, to the point where he was even more excited than the direct participants. With no other choice, Feng Xue could only say: “Sect Leader Yun, if I may be blunt, this matter is ultimately a personal dispute between us and… Young master Jiang. If you do not know the inside story, you should not speak out.”

Yun Xie’s eyes veritably crackled with electricity, and his voice was as cold as ice: “The Dual Jades of the Spirit Stage have always advanced and retreated as one, accompanying each other through life and death, sharing honor and disgrace together!”

Footnotes:

1. 颠鸾倒凤 is a somewhat fancy-sounding euphemism for sexual intercourse, which uses two mythological birds (鸾= “firebird, usually seen as male”, 凤 = “phoenix, usually seen as female”).

2. 撕破脸 lit. “tear faces” means to completely fall out with someone, to shed even the appearance of cordiality