nightfall

“When the Ever Night approaches, the radiance of the sun will be concealed, the sky and Earth will soon fall into the darkness, men shall rejoice, for that is when men are truly living.” Before Ye Su became a saint, he said such a statement which was similar to a prophecy.

And countless years ago, the Buddha viewed the seven heavenly books, then he wrote a note on the Bright Volume of The Tomes of Arcane, and there was a similar record in his notebook, which wrote something like this.

“In the Ever Night Latter Days of Dharma, the moon appears, and nature restores. Such a way does not die out, the world has another alternative. In this case, thou shalt patiently wait for the arrival of the long night, why bother to forcefully act against the law of nature. Is the day also waiting for the arrival of the night? Or is it afraid of the coming of it? Does it fear the night itself, or the moon that comes with the night?”

What was happening currently testified Ye Su’s prophecy, and it was the perfect answer to the questions left by the Buddha. There was a day waiting for the night’s coming. There was a day afraid of the night’s coming. It feared the night itself, and also the moon that came with the night, because the night also came with the moon.

The world was filled with darkness, the sun was being covered, the Divine Kingdom was hidden in the thick ink coloured darkness, bleak and extremely difficult to be seen. Abbey Dean who was roaming in front of the Chang’an looked unusually complicated.

There were rules, but how could one fight when one lost the source of power? The pillar of light that fell from the Divine Kingdom had long disappeared, and the warmth of the world had been replaced by coldness.

There was no longer any force that could prevent the talisman written by Ning Que.

The two abysses rapidly spread across the surface of the Earth. The Chinese character of “people” grew larger and larger, and the ground surface really felt like a piece of paper being strained up, and then slowly lifted from the ground, making a thunderous sound.

This process was slow but it was unstoppable.

A few moments passed, the horizon appeared at the end of the sky, and only the tip of the sail could be seen from the sailboat at the sea. If one’s footing was high enough, even the slightly curved arc could be seen in the distance.

“Is this the new world?” Sangsang asked.

Ning Que replied, “Perhaps.”

The perfect bubble appeared again in front of her, and the two tiny cracks on it had become very deep that the bubble could burst at any time, which meant that her world was about to be destroyed.

Sangsang calmly observed the world, waiting for her own death. Ning Que held her gently, and waited with her.

Countless desire of willpower or strength, along with the two cracks on the ground surface that grew deeper with time from all sides of the world, into the streets of Chang’an and entered Sangsang’s body through the God-Stunning Array.

Sangsang had certainly encountered this kind of willpower, she listened to the prayers of the believers in the Divine Kingdom for thousands of years, but this was the first time she came across such a genuine desire, which made her somewhat moved.

In an instant, she understood the Academy and the New Stream founded by Ye Su. It was not important whether the world loved or did not love her. It was also not important whether she loved or did not love the world. She and the human were one body, and she was not the objective rule of this cruel world, but the human understanding of the world’s … RULES!

A beam of light flashed by. If the rule was the product of the human understanding of the world, then it could be changed naturally, she could grow naturally with the knowledge of mankind!

Sangsang quietly looked at Ning Que and said, “I… seem to be alive.”

Ning Que’s arm trembled slightly, looking into her eyes and said, “Then live forever.”

Sangsang said, “But I will serve you no more.”

Ning Que said, “I will serve you”

Countless desires and willpower that came from all over the world, were turned into strength by the God-Stunning Array. Countless cracks appeared on the walls of Chang’an.

Sangsang looked up to the dark night sky, staring at the looming Divine Kingdom. She gently waved her hand. Silently, a beam of colourless light pillar shot from inside the Chang’an City up to the night sky. That beam of light pillar came from the God-Stunning Array, but passed through her hand. Therefore, it was a transparent light. She knew best how to break open her own world. The transparent light pillar passed through the body of Abbey Dean, and fell on the night sky.

Sangsang took off the sunglasses, and carefully let Ning Que to put them on. The moon was still in the night sky. The sun seemed to be closer to the ground, thus revealing a bright edges. The light had returned to the human world once more, but it was not as scorching and devastating as before. The pale sky became blue again, like the precious water-washed porcelain hidden secretly in her Yanming Lakeside house.

Three cracks appeared in the clear blue sky. They were far away from the three cracks in the ground. They were all “people”. The transparent light pillar contained unimaginable power, it actually intended to directly tear up the sky! The light pillar was transparent, but the atmosphere inside it was not pure, but a complicated mixture. Billions of people have billions of wills, how could they be completely consistent, but they had lived their lives to the fullest.

Ning Que reminisced the steam from the steamed bun stall at the side of the street beside the lake, the footprints on the bluestone board. Sangsang reminisced the night at the side of the Snow Sea, that hot spring.

Nobody knew what was the Abbey Dean thinking. He looked at the transparent light pillar, felt the grandness and petiteness of it, and was moved by the beauty of the far superiority. He asked with a slight frown, “What power is this? What aura is this?”

“This is the power of the human world,” Ning Que said.

The Abbey Dean was silent for a moment and said, “Oh, I see.”

Deep in the blue sky, the looming Divine Kingdom, under the consequence of the power of the human world, decayed at an unimaginable speed, and then collapsed into the most subtle dust.

Soon to be collapse was the blue sky itself, as it turned into countless thin jade pieces that were as light as a goose feather, which swayed and sprinkled down the world. They could no longer blind the eyes of the people looking toward the outside world.

What lay above the sky? It used to be the Divine Kingdom, but now the Divine Kingdom was destroyed, so what on earth was there? It was a dark universe, it looked extremely cold, distinctively desolate, uninhabited, and it had a very unpleasant feeling, as if it was a real ghost.

The whole world was calm once again. Nobody was talking.

Was this the netherworld? the people thought.

Ning Que and Sangsang were very clear of what they would see, but they were not surprised. However, it did not mean that others would not be surprised.

In a mountain village in the Great River Kingdom, a child picked up an egg was previously soft-boiled by the sun, looking at the dark sky in a daze, and wondered why the sun had suddenly become so far away? Why were the stars getting further away too? The child was so frightened that he was about to cry. The egg in his hand fell to the ground and cracked with a snap. The wind blew at the shell of the egg, together with the soon to be condensed egg white, and the yolk. The bubble in front of Sangsang was also broken.

…

In the vast universe, there was a burning ball of fire. That was a star. From the color of the surface of the star, it was still very young. There were seven planets orbiting around the star. About 150 million kilometers away from the stars on the orbit, there was nothing. It was blank, as the system was stable, but somehow, there was always a feeling of something missing.

At some point, that space suddenly warped slightly. After a very long time, two distinct cracks appeared on the surface of the distorted space. Then another long period of time passed, the cracks were distorted and then disappeared.

A blue planet appeared there. The process was hard to describe, this planet seemed to have taken a long time to emerge from that crack in space, and also seemed to appear in this orbit all at once.

The reason why the planet was blue was that the oceans cover most of its surface. With the sudden appearance of the blue planet, an invisible gravitational force was dispersed to the surroundings. The galaxy that was formed around the star appeared to have signs of instability. Fortunately, the distance of the few massive planets in the galaxy were far enough from the blue planet. However, its appearance had caused an impact after all. The orbits of several planets had changed suddenly, or it would take a long time to re-stabilize itself again.

Worse still, in the space of about 300 million kilometers away from the star, there were full of countless asteroids, and the sudden appearance of the blue planet, was like a piece of delicious cake, attracting their course.

Countless asteroids, even small meteorites, left the space where they had originally settled and flew quietly toward the blue planet. Naturally, it was impossible to go in a straight line, but there would always be a moment of encounter.

The universe was dead quiet.

The extremely light-toned trailing tails of those asteroids and meteorites were like traces from the walking tracks left by the God of Death.

…

The sky was full of meteorites, drifting towards the ground in the dark night sky. In a moment, the world would be destroyed. Above the sky, was indeed the netherworld.

“You are the son of Invariant Yama,” said the Abbey Dean, looking at Ning Que.

The netherworld was a legend, a lie created by Haotian, which had been accepted.

But was it true? Many years ago, Wei Guangming met Ning Que at Chang’an City and thought that he was the son of Invariant Yama. Later, Sangsang was believed to be the daughter of Invariant Yama. Long Qing thought that he was the rightful son of Invariant Yama. Going round and round, an endless cycle. In the end, the title was given to Ning Que. He destroyed Haotian’s world and welcomed the coming of the new world.

But this new world had not been around for very long before it was destroyed. The real universe, was so bleak and dangerous, and also cold, what’s the difference between it and the netherworld? He did not lead the netherworld to the human world but instead brought the human world to the netherworld. He was, of course, the son of Invariant Yama.

“It shouldn’t be like this.” Ning Que’s voice sounded a little cold.

…

In the small town, Jun Mo waved his hand. He looked at the death messengers who were about to descend to the human world and said, “Pick up your knife.”

The Butcher picked up the heavy knife, walked over to him, and looked up together with him.

Jun Mo raised the iron sword, and said, “Would you like to fight?”

The Butcher answered, “Very well.”

…

At the Divine Hall of West-Hill, the battle was long over. The believer of the New Stream was sitting in between the cliffs, on top of the mountain road while looking at this scene lost in thought, shocked beyond words.

Chen Pipi stood up, frowned slightly, and said, “It shouldn’t be like this.”

Tang Xiaotang held the iron bar and did not speak.

Ye Hongyu stood on the edge of the cliff, the blood-colored Gown of Judgement was blustering along with the night wind.

She looked at the night sky and said with a blank expression, “The devil outside the realm of demons? It is only a matter of time before I slaughter you.”

…

People in this world did not know what those meteorites with the aura of death were. But the cultivators were able to sense another clear reality.

The sky was gone. Their bodies had become a lot lighter, as light as feathers. It seemed to be possible to leave the ground by just thinking of it.

The rules of Haotian’s world that had suppressed the cultivators for countless years ceased to exist. The cultivators had gained true freedom. The cultivators who were not bewildered with the state, suddenly achieved the See-Through State.

The cultivators who were in the See-Through State looked at the real stars in the sky and knew the destiny. The Grand Cultivator who was in Knowing Destiny State easily crossed the path of the gateway. The human world was stronger than ever.

They did not expect that the moment when they were free, they would have to face the battle of life and death. However, no one was afraid because the feeling was so good, that it was worth fighting for. And they had the confidence to defeat all foreign enemies.

…

Countless cultivators were ready to fight. But they did not have the chance to strike. Even the iron sword of Jun Mo was never used.

The ocean was facing the star, and the land was facing the depths of the universe. From where the cultivators stood, they could see the sky full of stars, and also the true appearance of the moon that was being revealed.

With the vision of the cultivators, they could see clearly that it was a round sphere made of rocks. The surface was extremely smooth, reflecting the light from the back of the earth which was in total perfection.

Perhaps it shouldn’t be called the moon but should be called planet moon. That bright moon had blocked all the meteorites.

The loud boom sound could not reach the ground, but the people on the ground felt it. Such a dense impact, such a terrifying force. Even the Knowing Destiny Zenith, or even the Grand Cultivator who crossed the five states, could hardly survive it.

That moon bore all the attacks for mankind, could it hold on? No one knew how long the time had passed. The terrifying crash finally stopped. The moon was no longer perfect. Craters were formed by the impact all over the surface, and magmas spurted everywhere, forming the high and low ground, some places were bright, and some were dull.

Such a moon was really not good-looking, ugly even, but still perfect in the eyes of the people. He had quietly protected the human world for thousands of years. In the future, will it still be protecting for millions and billions of years?

…

The night was over, and the dawn was cracking, as the morning sun rose slowly from the east. The sky reappeared, and it was still blue, but with more vague feelings than before. Yes, the sky was wider, and there was endless space behind it.

“This feeling… turns out to be really good.” The Abbey Dean looked at Ning Que and asked, “But the people have changed and are no longer what they used to be, is the human world still the one that we care about?”

“The place where people live is the human world, isn’t it?” Ning Que said, “The Drunkard thinks that the cultivators, especially those who have reached a certain extent, are no longer human beings, but I do not think so. I think that the cultivators are supermen.”

The Abbey Dean asked, “Superman?”

Ning Que said, “Yes, just like the world needs to change, humans also need to evolve eventually, but I do not think that it is a bad thing, as I believe that the apes used to think the same.”

As soon as he finished speaking, a straight white line appeared in the sky. He could see clearly, that at the front end of the while line, was a cultivator. That cultivator was wearing a blue gown and was reddened by the sun.

The Abbey Dean said thoughtfully, “That is a lost cultivator from the Liang Kingdom, whose state is very bad.”

Ning Que smiled as he watched the white lines fly out of the atmosphere, into outer space. Then, thousands of thin white lines were raised from the ground surface, flying out toward the atmosphere. The front end of each thin white line was a cultivator, and the scene was spectacular.

Mankind had begun a new journey of its own.

“Interesting,” the Abbey Dean said calmly and then turned into countless spots of light, dissipating in the first-morning breeze of the new world.

Ning Que knew that, when the transparent light pillar passed through his body, he was already dead. The conversation with him before was the residual consciousness that he had forcibly left in this world in a very high state. Because he was not at peace, as he wanted to see whether the new world could survive in the netherworld and whether human beings could live on.

In the end, he thought they might, and so he died. Seeing that the Abbey Dean had no name, he called the Abbey Dean Chen Mou.

The word “Mou” in Chen Mou meant someone who could be seen everywhere in the human world. He represented a part of humanity.

Ning Que looked at the moon at the corner of the sky that was gradually covered by the morning light. The Headmaster of Academy represented another part of humanity. On the cliff bank of Peach Mountain, Chen Pipi was worshiping the land, looking calm. Tang Xiaotang bowed down together with him.

…

There was no Ever Night. The human world was getting colder and colder, which was the coldness invading from the outside world. From this point of view, whether there was a Headmaster of Academy or not, and whether there was an Academy or not, in the end, the world would not be left alone forever.

When the sun shone, the snow on Snow Mountain melted gradually, then it became a trickle, which then flowed south into a stream, or flooding the wilderness, but it also brought water needed for irrigation.

Yu Lian sat for many days on the cliff Eldest Brother in his arms. Many days later, the Eldest Brother’s injury was healed. She put him down. The Eldest Brother had become an ordinary man, if he were to want to restore his previous state, it may take god-knows-how-long. Or perhaps, that day would never come.

The old ox left the West-Hill, dragging the carriage, and waited at the foot of the cliff. The Eldest Brother went up to the oxcart and opened the last pot of wine left by the teacher in this human world, carefully drank a sip, and then gave a sigh of satisfaction. He was so satisfied that he could not be any more satisfied than that. He even wanted to change his name to Satisfied Lee.

“Sister, goodbye,” he said softly, looking at Yu Lian.

Yu Lian pulled back the curtain and sat up.

The Eldest Brother looked slightly strange, pointing to a white line somewhere in the sky, and said, “Don’t you want to go out to have a look?”

In the present human world, a white line would appear at any time and anywhere, which meant that a cultivator had left the world.

Cultivation was not a gift from Haotian to humans, but it was humans’ will. Cultivators wanted to know more, experience more.

Such a Grand Cultivator as Yu Lian was neither an exception, nor did they have any fear of the seemingly dangerous outer world.

Yu Lian was impatient, and said, “There is no cover on the river, you can dive at any time if you want to commit suicide. Now that there is also no cover on the sky, you can fly out if you want to, what’s the rush?”

The Eldest Brother thought about it and said, “Makes sense.”

Yu Lian asked, “Where do you want to go?”

The Eldest Brother said, “I want to walk around the new world first, see if I can go back to the original place… teacher and Youngest Brother said so, but someone has to go through it to prove it.”

Yu Lian said, “Then it would take a very long time.”

The Eldest Brother said, “The old ox is old now, it is inevitable to be slower.”

The old ox looked back at the two, lazily ignoring them.

Yu Lian said, “Very good.”

The Eldest Brother said, “How is it good?”

Yu Lian didn’t say anything.

“The time is long.” These four words were very good.

The oxcart was squeaking westward. One day, it was passing by a place called Letter Valley. The oxcart was stopped by an old Taoist man. The old Taoist man knelt in front of the cart, crying and shedding tears, talking about the wonderful Taoism followed by the death of the Abbey Dean, the chaos in the Divine Hall of West-Hill had disappearing completely, and the book in the cave of the Academy cliff was ruined in the dynasty previously, as he begged Mr. First to leave some Dharma for Taoism.

The principle that he was asking for, neither Chen Pipi, nor Ye Hongyu could provide, but could only be asked by Mr. First. The Eldest Brother was silent for a moment, ready to prepare the book at his request.

Yu Lian asked, “How many volumes are you going to prepare?”

The Eldest Brother said earnestly, “Three thousand Grand Tao, three thousand volumes is appropriate.”

Yu Lian said, “How long will it take? Some days ago, I heard that peony fish appeared in the mud pond, and I am afraid that it will be eaten by the old black donkey if you didn’t go and do something about it. Brother, hand it over to me.”

She was the Devil’s Doctrine Grand Master, the archenemy of Taoism. During the 23 years of studying in the Academy, she had intensively read many Taoism books. Her Eldest Brother knew about her talents, and had no objection.

“I will talk, and you will take note,” Yu Lian said.

That old Taoist man dared not to oppose, hurriedly picked up a pen and listened carefully.

“Tao can Tao, very Tao…”

A moment passed.

“Finished?”

“Finished.”

“Only five thousand words!”

“Isn’t that enough?”

“The mystery of mysteries… Mr. Three, this is too mysterious… I am too dumb, I really cannot understand it.”

“Read slowly if you don’t understand.”

The oxcart continued west.

Hearing that there was peony fish in front available for eating, the old ox finally got some spirit.

The Eldest Brother looked at Yu Lian and smiled quietly. Yu Lian looked calm. The Eldest Brother started to laugh. Yu Lian also laughed.

“Actually, there is something I have always wondered about,” the Eldest Brother said.

Yu Lian was impassive but somewhat uneasy.

The Eldest Brother was a little astounded, and asked, “Why is Youngest Brother always wanting me to find a person named Ah Man as a disciple? He also said that he would be able to learn the Distanceless State?”

Yu Lian was slightly distressed and decided that when cutting the peony fish, she would absolutely not the one doing it.

…

There were two people who were the best in the world at cutting the peony fish, which was the Eldest Brother and Sangsang. The Headmaster of Academy did not count. And the key was the dipping sauce. Therefore Gaga was extremely not satisfied, it chewed the raw fish like firewood, while looking at the Goddess Horse which was fighting fiercely with the big black one, and thought to itself that when the old ox came later, it would frame the naive ox that the peony fish inside the pond were all eaten by the ox.

…

The new world and the old world were not really that different.

Those who were fond of eating the peony fish were still fond of it; those who were fond of being emotional were still fond of it.

Fifth Brother and Eighth Brother were still used to be playing chess at the back of the mountains, Ximen and Beigong were still fond of playing Chinese piano and flute by the side of the lake, because they felt that nobody in the world was qualified to listen to their melody, the rightful companion was still each other. Wang Chi went to Yuelun Kingdom, and it was rumored that he met Flower Fanatic. As for what had happened to them, nobody knew.

Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang stayed in the Divine Halls of West-Hill.

Jun Mo and Seventh Sister went to a very far place, the increasingly fertile wasteland still spreading his legend, no one knew where his iron sword was speaking of his teachings.

The Academy was still that Academy, and Chang’an was still that Chang’an. The House of Red Sleeves was currently managed by Xiaocao, the Tang Emperor had officially ascended to the throne, Li Yu was living in the Qing Palace, and was rarely seen. Shangguan Yangyu was the ugliest prime minister in history. After the Zeng Jing and his wife drank that cup of tea, they had longevity. The sound of the bell from Wanyan Tower was still as far away.

The sound of laughter from Chao’s residence in the Spring Breeze Pavilion never stopped, Elder Chao had accepted Zhang Sanli as his son. Chang’an’s famous Three Sticks of Old and Young had officially become a family, the brothers from the gang were sitting in the banquet hall listening to the play, while the women were in the flower hall enjoying the melon seeds. Chao Xiaoshu was looking quietly at the night sky in the garden.

In these two months, more than ten cultivators were gone, rumor has it that there was a special saying currently, called Soar? Chao Xiaoshu looked dim as he thought that it would be difficult for him in his life to see the scenery of the Opposite World.

Yes, the world had a moon now, according to the phases of the moon.

In the streets outside of the Chao’s residence, there was a carriage slowly approaching towards the forty-seventh lane.

“It was hard to get Pipi to refine the Heavenly Power Pill. Why do you want to sneak them into his cup? Aren’t you worried about him chucking the tea out of his cup?”

“He might chuck the tea that someone else’s has poured, but you as the sister-in-law who pours the tea for him, how could he not drink it? How many people in this world are qualified to let Haotian pour the tea for him? Although that guy always likes to pretend to be cool, but don’t forget his famous saying: If Heaven allows me, then I can live… Did you hear that? It is being polite to you!”

“Fair enough… but why should I serve him tea today?”

“Because I owe him a bowl of fried egg noodles.”

“That makes sense.”

“When have I, your man, ever made sense?”

“You are not Second Brother.”

“Hey, can you not mention that cold-blooded, heartless man with a broken arm?”

The conversation in the carriage continued until it stopped in front of the Old Brush Pen Shop.

Ning Que and Sangsang walked down. Sangsang was as plump as ever, holding a… green dog. Standing in front of the Old Brush Pen Shop, Sangsang looked at the night sky, and asked softly, “Is this the world that you came from?”

Ning Que replied, “It should be.”

Sangsang looked at him and asked, “Why are you so certain?”

Ning Que pointed to the bright moon in the night sky and said, “Because there is a moon.”

This sentence was actually very unreasonable, but weren’t that the disciples of the Academy as such?

Sangsang asked, “The Qi of Heaven and Earth of this world is dissipating to the outer world, and it will be completely drained one day in the future, have you ever thought about what to do after that day comes?”

Ning Que said, “I think that people may have already left this place by then.”

Sangsang was silent for a moment, and said, “Are you willing? This is our home.”

Ning Que took her in his arms, looked at the night sky and said, “The journey of mankind, should have always been a sea of stars.”

“But, isn’t it a pity that so many people have lived here without leaving a trace?”

“The air current will always be blown away by the wind and rain. No matter how strong a building is, and even the inscription of the writing on the stones, will be weathered by time. But I think that there will always be something spiritual left behind.”

Ning Que said, “Or maybe after countless years, there will be a new civilization reappearing here. In that civilization, the teachers, the Abbey Dean and the Eldest Brother will become legends and myths.”

Sangsang earnestly asked, “What will be left behind?”

Ning Que smiled slightly, and said, “For instance… what Confucius said?”

…

The Old Brush Pen Shop door was opened, and there was a customer inside. The woman was wearing the blood-colored Gown of Judgement, who would it be none other than Ye Hongyu?

Ye Hongyu said directly to Sangsang, “I have something to say to him, do not get jealous.”

Sangsang said, “I eat dumplings only with soy sauce.”

Ye Hongyu said with a poker face, “I heard that the owner of the sour and spicy noodle soup shop on the streets was rewarded with a gold brick by you?”

Sangsang, who was holding the green dog, headed toward the backyard.

“Is this the woman that you wanted to marry badly that you were even willing to set an apocalypse to the whole world?” Ye Hongyu looked at Ning Que and mockingly said, “Send a pair of children to the Grand Secretary Mansion. Holding a green dog and strolling around everyday, such a lady. Did the Headmaster of Academy know about this previously?”

Ning Que spread out his hand helplessly, for it could not be explained.

Ye Hongyu said, “Business calls, I have to go.”

Ning Que was silent, although knowing that this was an inevitable matter, his mood was still somewhat complicated.

Ye Hongyu took out a letter from her arms, handed it to him and said, “I will go with her, this is her letter to you.”

Obviously it was from Mo Shanshan. Ning Que took the letter, took a glance at the backyard, and tucked it under his sleeve.

“You are such a loser,” Ye Hongyu sneered.

Ning Que was in great anger, and said, “If you act like this again, I will be angry with you!”

Ye Hongyu reached out and grabbed his face, and said, “I will help you with that.”

Ning Que used the Natural Stream Magical Finger and was going to stab her chest.

Ye Hongyu suddenly came forward to embrace him.

His hand fell on her chest. Her lips rested on his. Very soft, very elastic, very wet, eagerly wanting to kiss again. At the time when Ning Que felt that way, Ye Hongyu had already backed off to her original position.

She looked at his poker face and said, “This is for Shanshan.”

Ning Que looked at her lips, laughed grimly and said, “Unless she kissed you first.”

Ye Hongyu was a little angry, and said, “That was full of heart and soul, don’t you understand?”

Ning Que suddenly became quiet and said, “Take care.”

Ye Hongyu was also silent.

After a long time, she said, “There used to be a saying from the cultivation realm, that the joys and sorrows of the two worlds cannot be interlinked. If you could do this, you will be a saint… Ning Que, you are a sage.”

Ning Que quietly looked at her, and said, “You are a saintess.”

Ye Hongyu smiled and said, “You are still as shameless as before.”

Ning Que greeted her with a bow with his hands cupped in front of him. “You said before, the universe is so huge, it is hard to meet again.”

Yu Hongyu said, “But, I hope we can meet in another world.”

Ning Que said, “When the children are older, and after the problems of the eldest child and the third child are solved, we will come.”

Ye Hongyu sighed, “You loving couple will not bring children, why take this as an excuse?”

Ning Que was very embarrassed, and said, “Help me give two kisses to Shanshan, or, should I kiss you again?”

…

The people who should not leave were gone, but the people who should leave were still there.

Ning Que sat beside the bed, looking at the thick pile of letters in the box, thinking silently to himself.

Sangsang looked at him indifferently and said, “Who is the one who should not leave? Who is the one who should leave? Me?”

Ning Que was just able to react to the situation, she knew everything that he was thinking. He suddenly felt that this kind of life was really meaningless, mainly because there was no privacy, and it was too easy to misunderstand.

Sure enough, as predicted.

“Today in the Chao’s residence, what were you thinking when you looked at the little girl at the stage, do you think I didn’t know? Tsk, that waist was thin, tender, and soft… if you like it you should go and touch it then!”

“Now that the House of Red Sleeves is in charged by Xiaocao, the previous prohibition has been lifted, if you like, you can casually touch, I will let Xiaocao pick you the hottest.

Sangsang who was holding the green-skinned dog kept blabbering.

“Enough!”

Ning Que was unable to take it anymore and stood up, “I just silently praised the waist, and how did that provoke you?”

Sangsang was about to cry with slightly wet eyes, and said, “You are just unsatisfied with my thick waist.”

Ning Que was very depressed, he did not know how to explain. With a broken heart, he simply broke a jar, and yelled, “Does this have any relation to the waist? I am just not satisfied that you are not willing to cook! Not willing to clean the table! Not willing to pour me water for my foot! Refusing to save money! Spending money every day! Holding a dog and stroll everywhere everyday! A look of indifferent at any instance! You need to understand that you are my wife now! And not Grand Master Haotian!

Sangsang cried and said, “Ning Que, you liar.”

Ning Que was a little panicky, and said, “What did I lie about?”

She said sadly, “Previously I said that I would no longer serve you again, and you said you would always serve me in the future.”

Yes, this was the first sentence she thought of during the intersection of the old world and the new world in front of the Chang’an City. It seemed that the sentence was really important to her.

Miraculously, after that day, Sangsang really forgot all about the practices of the chores. Ning Que observed secretly for a very long time and found out that it was true, that she was not lying to him. Sangsang had become a lady who would only know to stroll around while holding a dog.

So before this, he really did not know how to explain to Ye Hongyu.

He sighed. “Shouldn’t you learn to do something at least?”

Sangsang didn’t listen to anything he said, and sadly said, “You are just unsatisfied with my thick waist.”

Ning Que was silent for a very long time, softly said, “Alright… I admit that I am a little bit, the baby has been born for quite a long time, I thought you would lose some weight, but…”

Sangsang turned to exit the Old Brush Pen Shop.

Ning Que stood up, anxiously asked, “Where are you going?”

Sangsang answered without turning her head, “I am going to the Secretary Mansion.”

Ning Que was very angry, he fetched the clothes pole from the patio and was about to cause an uproar.

“If you dare to run away from home again, I will beat you to death!”

Sangsang did not pay attention to him and went out directly. A moment later, the sound of the door closing came from the front of the shop. Ning Que was stunned in place and was so worried. He instantly changed his clothes, and was going to stop her. Just because he was too nervous and uneasy, it took forever for him to wear his shoes properly.

When he was putting on his shoes, he looked up, and Sangsang was at the door.

As she wiped her tears, she said, “Ning Que, are you hungry? I am going to cook some noodles for you.”

She did not leave at all, she never left. Ning Que went forward to her, holding her hand and walked to the kitchen. He began to teach her how to cook, how to cut the green onions, and how to fry an egg… just like many years ago.This was not that hard, right? This was very happy, wasn’t it?

The moon shone on the new world and shone on the Old Brush Pen Shop. On the wall of the courtyard, there was an old cat lying lazily.

…

“When the Ever Night approaches, the radiance of the sun will be concealed, the sky and Earth will soon fall into the darkness, men shall rejoice, for that is when men are truly living.” Before Ye Su became a saint, he said such a statement which was similar to a prophecy.

And countless years ago, the Buddha viewed the seven heavenly books, then he wrote a note on the Bright Volume of The Tomes of Arcane, and there was a similar record in his notebook, which wrote something like this.

“In the Ever Night Latter Days of Dharma, the moon appears, and nature restores. Such a way does not die out, the world has another alternative. In this case, thou shalt patiently wait for the arrival of the long night, why bother to forcefully act against the law of nature. Is the day also waiting for the arrival of the night? Or is it afraid of the coming of it? Does it fear the night itself, or the moon that comes with the night?”

What was happening currently testified Ye Su’s prophecy, and it was the perfect answer to the questions left by the Buddha. There was a day waiting for the night’s coming. There was a day afraid of the night’s coming. It feared the night itself, and also the moon that came with the night, because the night also came with the moon.

The world was filled with darkness, the sun was being covered, the Divine Kingdom was hidden in the thick ink coloured darkness, bleak and extremely difficult to be seen. Abbey Dean who was roaming in front of the Chang’an looked unusually complicated.

There were rules, but how could one fight when one lost the source of power? The pillar of light that fell from the Divine Kingdom had long disappeared, and the warmth of the world had been replaced by coldness.

There was no longer any force that could prevent the talisman written by Ning Que.

The two abysses rapidly spread across the surface of the Earth. The Chinese character of “people” grew larger and larger, and the ground surface really felt like a piece of paper being strained up, and then slowly lifted from the ground, making a thunderous sound.

This process was slow but it was unstoppable.

A few moments passed, the horizon appeared at the end of the sky, and only the tip of the sail could be seen from the sailboat at the sea. If one’s footing was high enough, even the slightly curved arc could be seen in the distance.

“Is this the new world?” Sangsang asked.

Ning Que replied, “Perhaps.”

The perfect bubble appeared again in front of her, and the two tiny cracks on it had become very deep that the bubble could burst at any time, which meant that her world was about to be destroyed.

Sangsang calmly observed the world, waiting for her own death. Ning Que held her gently, and waited with her.

Countless desire of willpower or strength, along with the two cracks on the ground surface that grew deeper with time from all sides of the world, into the streets of Chang’an and entered Sangsang’s body through the God-Stunning Array.

Sangsang had certainly encountered this kind of willpower, she listened to the prayers of the believers in the Divine Kingdom for thousands of years, but this was the first time she came across such a genuine desire, which made her somewhat moved.

In an instant, she understood the Academy and the New Stream founded by Ye Su. It was not important whether the world loved or did not love her. It was also not important whether she loved or did not love the world. She and the human were one body, and she was not the objective rule of this cruel world, but the human understanding of the world’s … RULES!

A beam of light flashed by. If the rule was the product of the human understanding of the world, then it could be changed naturally, she could grow naturally with the knowledge of mankind!

Sangsang quietly looked at Ning Que and said, “I… seem to be alive.”

Ning Que’s arm trembled slightly, looking into her eyes and said, “Then live forever.”

Sangsang said, “But I will serve you no more.”

Ning Que said, “I will serve you”

Countless desires and willpower that came from all over the world, were turned into strength by the God-Stunning Array. Countless cracks appeared on the walls of Chang’an.

Sangsang looked up to the dark night sky, staring at the looming Divine Kingdom. She gently waved her hand. Silently, a beam of colourless light pillar shot from inside the Chang’an City up to the night sky. That beam of light pillar came from the God-Stunning Array, but passed through her hand. Therefore, it was a transparent light. She knew best how to break open her own world. The transparent light pillar passed through the body of Abbey Dean, and fell on the night sky.

Sangsang took off the sunglasses, and carefully let Ning Que to put them on. The moon was still in the night sky. The sun seemed to be closer to the ground, thus revealing a bright edges. The light had returned to the human world once more, but it was not as scorching and devastating as before. The pale sky became blue again, like the precious water-washed porcelain hidden secretly in her Yanming Lakeside house.

Three cracks appeared in the clear blue sky. They were far away from the three cracks in the ground. They were all “people”. The transparent light pillar contained unimaginable power, it actually intended to directly tear up the sky! The light pillar was transparent, but the atmosphere inside it was not pure, but a complicated mixture. Billions of people have billions of wills, how could they be completely consistent, but they had lived their lives to the fullest.

Ning Que reminisced the steam from the steamed bun stall at the side of the street beside the lake, the footprints on the bluestone board. Sangsang reminisced the night at the side of the Snow Sea, that hot spring.

Nobody knew what was the Abbey Dean thinking. He looked at the transparent light pillar, felt the grandness and petiteness of it, and was moved by the beauty of the far superiority. He asked with a slight frown, “What power is this? What aura is this?”

“This is the power of the human world,” Ning Que said.

The Abbey Dean was silent for a moment and said, “Oh, I see.”

Deep in the blue sky, the looming Divine Kingdom, under the consequence of the power of the human world, decayed at an unimaginable speed, and then collapsed into the most subtle dust.

Soon to be collapse was the blue sky itself, as it turned into countless thin jade pieces that were as light as a goose feather, which swayed and sprinkled down the world. They could no longer blind the eyes of the people looking toward the outside world.

What lay above the sky? It used to be the Divine Kingdom, but now the Divine Kingdom was destroyed, so what on earth was there? It was a dark universe, it looked extremely cold, distinctively desolate, uninhabited, and it had a very unpleasant feeling, as if it was a real ghost.

The whole world was calm once again. Nobody was talking.

Was this the netherworld? the people thought.

Ning Que and Sangsang were very clear of what they would see, but they were not surprised. However, it did not mean that others would not be surprised.

In a mountain village in the Great River Kingdom, a child picked up an egg was previously soft-boiled by the sun, looking at the dark sky in a daze, and wondered why the sun had suddenly become so far away? Why were the stars getting further away too? The child was so frightened that he was about to cry. The egg in his hand fell to the ground and cracked with a snap. The wind blew at the shell of the egg, together with the soon to be condensed egg white, and the yolk. The bubble in front of Sangsang was also broken.

…

In the vast universe, there was a burning ball of fire. That was a star. From the color of the surface of the star, it was still very young. There were seven planets orbiting around the star. About 150 million kilometers away from the stars on the orbit, there was nothing. It was blank, as the system was stable, but somehow, there was always a feeling of something missing.

At some point, that space suddenly warped slightly. After a very long time, two distinct cracks appeared on the surface of the distorted space. Then another long period of time passed, the cracks were distorted and then disappeared.

A blue planet appeared there. The process was hard to describe, this planet seemed to have taken a long time to emerge from that crack in space, and also seemed to appear in this orbit all at once.

The reason why the planet was blue was that the oceans cover most of its surface. With the sudden appearance of the blue planet, an invisible gravitational force was dispersed to the surroundings. The galaxy that was formed around the star appeared to have signs of instability. Fortunately, the distance of the few massive planets in the galaxy were far enough from the blue planet. However, its appearance had caused an impact after all. The orbits of several planets had changed suddenly, or it would take a long time to re-stabilize itself again.

Worse still, in the space of about 300 million kilometers away from the star, there were full of countless asteroids, and the sudden appearance of the blue planet, was like a piece of delicious cake, attracting their course.

Countless asteroids, even small meteorites, left the space where they had originally settled and flew quietly toward the blue planet. Naturally, it was impossible to go in a straight line, but there would always be a moment of encounter.

The universe was dead quiet.

The extremely light-toned trailing tails of those asteroids and meteorites were like traces from the walking tracks left by the God of Death.

…

The sky was full of meteorites, drifting towards the ground in the dark night sky. In a moment, the world would be destroyed. Above the sky, was indeed the netherworld.

“You are the son of Invariant Yama,” said the Abbey Dean, looking at Ning Que.

The netherworld was a legend, a lie created by Haotian, which had been accepted.

But was it true? Many years ago, Wei Guangming met Ning Que at Chang’an City and thought that he was the son of Invariant Yama. Later, Sangsang was believed to be the daughter of Invariant Yama. Long Qing thought that he was the rightful son of Invariant Yama. Going round and round, an endless cycle. In the end, the title was given to Ning Que. He destroyed Haotian’s world and welcomed the coming of the new world.

But this new world had not been around for very long before it was destroyed. The real universe, was so bleak and dangerous, and also cold, what’s the difference between it and the netherworld? He did not lead the netherworld to the human world but instead brought the human world to the netherworld. He was, of course, the son of Invariant Yama.

“It shouldn’t be like this.” Ning Que’s voice sounded a little cold.

…

In the small town, Jun Mo waved his hand. He looked at the death messengers who were about to descend to the human world and said, “Pick up your knife.”

The Butcher picked up the heavy knife, walked over to him, and looked up together with him.

Jun Mo raised the iron sword, and said, “Would you like to fight?”

The Butcher answered, “Very well.”

…

At the Divine Hall of West-Hill, the battle was long over. The believer of the New Stream was sitting in between the cliffs, on top of the mountain road while looking at this scene lost in thought, shocked beyond words.

Chen Pipi stood up, frowned slightly, and said, “It shouldn’t be like this.”

Tang Xiaotang held the iron bar and did not speak.

Ye Hongyu stood on the edge of the cliff, the blood-colored Gown of Judgement was blustering along with the night wind.

She looked at the night sky and said with a blank expression, “The devil outside the realm of demons? It is only a matter of time before I slaughter you.”

…

People in this world did not know what those meteorites with the aura of death were. But the cultivators were able to sense another clear reality.

The sky was gone. Their bodies had become a lot lighter, as light as feathers. It seemed to be possible to leave the ground by just thinking of it.

The rules of Haotian’s world that had suppressed the cultivators for countless years ceased to exist. The cultivators had gained true freedom. The cultivators who were not bewildered with the state, suddenly achieved the See-Through State.

The cultivators who were in the See-Through State looked at the real stars in the sky and knew the destiny. The Grand Cultivator who was in Knowing Destiny State easily crossed the path of the gateway. The human world was stronger than ever.

They did not expect that the moment when they were free, they would have to face the battle of life and death. However, no one was afraid because the feeling was so good, that it was worth fighting for. And they had the confidence to defeat all foreign enemies.

…

Countless cultivators were ready to fight. But they did not have the chance to strike. Even the iron sword of Jun Mo was never used.

The ocean was facing the star, and the land was facing the depths of the universe. From where the cultivators stood, they could see the sky full of stars, and also the true appearance of the moon that was being revealed.

With the vision of the cultivators, they could see clearly that it was a round sphere made of rocks. The surface was extremely smooth, reflecting the light from the back of the earth which was in total perfection.

Perhaps it shouldn’t be called the moon but should be called planet moon. That bright moon had blocked all the meteorites.

The loud boom sound could not reach the ground, but the people on the ground felt it. Such a dense impact, such a terrifying force. Even the Knowing Destiny Zenith, or even the Grand Cultivator who crossed the five states, could hardly survive it.

That moon bore all the attacks for mankind, could it hold on? No one knew how long the time had passed. The terrifying crash finally stopped. The moon was no longer perfect. Craters were formed by the impact all over the surface, and magmas spurted everywhere, forming the high and low ground, some places were bright, and some were dull.

Such a moon was really not good-looking, ugly even, but still perfect in the eyes of the people. He had quietly protected the human world for thousands of years. In the future, will it still be protecting for millions and billions of years?

…

The night was over, and the dawn was cracking, as the morning sun rose slowly from the east. The sky reappeared, and it was still blue, but with more vague feelings than before. Yes, the sky was wider, and there was endless space behind it.

“This feeling… turns out to be really good.” The Abbey Dean looked at Ning Que and asked, “But the people have changed and are no longer what they used to be, is the human world still the one that we care about?”

“The place where people live is the human world, isn’t it?” Ning Que said, “The Drunkard thinks that the cultivators, especially those who have reached a certain extent, are no longer human beings, but I do not think so. I think that the cultivators are supermen.”

The Abbey Dean asked, “Superman?”

Ning Que said, “Yes, just like the world needs to change, humans also need to evolve eventually, but I do not think that it is a bad thing, as I believe that the apes used to think the same.”

As soon as he finished speaking, a straight white line appeared in the sky. He could see clearly, that at the front end of the while line, was a cultivator. That cultivator was wearing a blue gown and was reddened by the sun.

The Abbey Dean said thoughtfully, “That is a lost cultivator from the Liang Kingdom, whose state is very bad.”

Ning Que smiled as he watched the white lines fly out of the atmosphere, into outer space. Then, thousands of thin white lines were raised from the ground surface, flying out toward the atmosphere. The front end of each thin white line was a cultivator, and the scene was spectacular.

Mankind had begun a new journey of its own.

“Interesting,” the Abbey Dean said calmly and then turned into countless spots of light, dissipating in the first-morning breeze of the new world.

Ning Que knew that, when the transparent light pillar passed through his body, he was already dead. The conversation with him before was the residual consciousness that he had forcibly left in this world in a very high state. Because he was not at peace, as he wanted to see whether the new world could survive in the netherworld and whether human beings could live on.

In the end, he thought they might, and so he died. Seeing that the Abbey Dean had no name, he called the Abbey Dean Chen Mou.

The word “Mou” in Chen Mou meant someone who could be seen everywhere in the human world. He represented a part of humanity.

Ning Que looked at the moon at the corner of the sky that was gradually covered by the morning light. The Headmaster of Academy represented another part of humanity. On the cliff bank of Peach Mountain, Chen Pipi was worshiping the land, looking calm. Tang Xiaotang bowed down together with him.

…

There was no Ever Night. The human world was getting colder and colder, which was the coldness invading from the outside world. From this point of view, whether there was a Headmaster of Academy or not, and whether there was an Academy or not, in the end, the world would not be left alone forever.

When the sun shone, the snow on Snow Mountain melted gradually, then it became a trickle, which then flowed south into a stream, or flooding the wilderness, but it also brought water needed for irrigation.

Yu Lian sat for many days on the cliff Eldest Brother in his arms. Many days later, the Eldest Brother’s injury was healed. She put him down. The Eldest Brother had become an ordinary man, if he were to want to restore his previous state, it may take god-knows-how-long. Or perhaps, that day would never come.

The old ox left the West-Hill, dragging the carriage, and waited at the foot of the cliff. The Eldest Brother went up to the oxcart and opened the last pot of wine left by the teacher in this human world, carefully drank a sip, and then gave a sigh of satisfaction. He was so satisfied that he could not be any more satisfied than that. He even wanted to change his name to Satisfied Lee.

“Sister, goodbye,” he said softly, looking at Yu Lian.

Yu Lian pulled back the curtain and sat up.

The Eldest Brother looked slightly strange, pointing to a white line somewhere in the sky, and said, “Don’t you want to go out to have a look?”

In the present human world, a white line would appear at any time and anywhere, which meant that a cultivator had left the world.

Cultivation was not a gift from Haotian to humans, but it was humans’ will. Cultivators wanted to know more, experience more.

Such a Grand Cultivator as Yu Lian was neither an exception, nor did they have any fear of the seemingly dangerous outer world.

Yu Lian was impatient, and said, “There is no cover on the river, you can dive at any time if you want to commit suicide. Now that there is also no cover on the sky, you can fly out if you want to, what’s the rush?”

The Eldest Brother thought about it and said, “Makes sense.”

Yu Lian asked, “Where do you want to go?”

The Eldest Brother said, “I want to walk around the new world first, see if I can go back to the original place… teacher and Youngest Brother said so, but someone has to go through it to prove it.”

Yu Lian said, “Then it would take a very long time.”

The Eldest Brother said, “The old ox is old now, it is inevitable to be slower.”

The old ox looked back at the two, lazily ignoring them.

Yu Lian said, “Very good.”

The Eldest Brother said, “How is it good?”

Yu Lian didn’t say anything.

“The time is long.” These four words were very good.

The oxcart was squeaking westward. One day, it was passing by a place called Letter Valley. The oxcart was stopped by an old Taoist man. The old Taoist man knelt in front of the cart, crying and shedding tears, talking about the wonderful Taoism followed by the death of the Abbey Dean, the chaos in the Divine Hall of West-Hill had disappearing completely, and the book in the cave of the Academy cliff was ruined in the dynasty previously, as he begged Mr. First to leave some Dharma for Taoism.

The principle that he was asking for, neither Chen Pipi, nor Ye Hongyu could provide, but could only be asked by Mr. First. The Eldest Brother was silent for a moment, ready to prepare the book at his request.

Yu Lian asked, “How many volumes are you going to prepare?”

The Eldest Brother said earnestly, “Three thousand Grand Tao, three thousand volumes is appropriate.”

Yu Lian said, “How long will it take? Some days ago, I heard that peony fish appeared in the mud pond, and I am afraid that it will be eaten by the old black donkey if you didn’t go and do something about it. Brother, hand it over to me.”

She was the Devil’s Doctrine Grand Master, the archenemy of Taoism. During the 23 years of studying in the Academy, she had intensively read many Taoism books. Her Eldest Brother knew about her talents, and had no objection.

“I will talk, and you will take note,” Yu Lian said.

That old Taoist man dared not to oppose, hurriedly picked up a pen and listened carefully.

“Tao can Tao, very Tao…”

A moment passed.

“Finished?”

“Finished.”

“Only five thousand words!”

“Isn’t that enough?”

“The mystery of mysteries… Mr. Three, this is too mysterious… I am too dumb, I really cannot understand it.”

“Read slowly if you don’t understand.”

The oxcart continued west.

Hearing that there was peony fish in front available for eating, the old ox finally got some spirit.

The Eldest Brother looked at Yu Lian and smiled quietly. Yu Lian looked calm. The Eldest Brother started to laugh. Yu Lian also laughed.

“Actually, there is something I have always wondered about,” the Eldest Brother said.

Yu Lian was impassive but somewhat uneasy.

The Eldest Brother was a little astounded, and asked, “Why is Youngest Brother always wanting me to find a person named Ah Man as a disciple? He also said that he would be able to learn the Distanceless State?”

Yu Lian was slightly distressed and decided that when cutting the peony fish, she would absolutely not the one doing it.

…

There were two people who were the best in the world at cutting the peony fish, which was the Eldest Brother and Sangsang. The Headmaster of Academy did not count. And the key was the dipping sauce. Therefore Gaga was extremely not satisfied, it chewed the raw fish like firewood, while looking at the Goddess Horse which was fighting fiercely with the big black one, and thought to itself that when the old ox came later, it would frame the naive ox that the peony fish inside the pond were all eaten by the ox.

…

The new world and the old world were not really that different.

Those who were fond of eating the peony fish were still fond of it; those who were fond of being emotional were still fond of it.

Fifth Brother and Eighth Brother were still used to be playing chess at the back of the mountains, Ximen and Beigong were still fond of playing Chinese piano and flute by the side of the lake, because they felt that nobody in the world was qualified to listen to their melody, the rightful companion was still each other. Wang Chi went to Yuelun Kingdom, and it was rumored that he met Flower Fanatic. As for what had happened to them, nobody knew.

Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang stayed in the Divine Halls of West-Hill.

Jun Mo and Seventh Sister went to a very far place, the increasingly fertile wasteland still spreading his legend, no one knew where his iron sword was speaking of his teachings.

The Academy was still that Academy, and Chang’an was still that Chang’an. The House of Red Sleeves was currently managed by Xiaocao, the Tang Emperor had officially ascended to the throne, Li Yu was living in the Qing Palace, and was rarely seen. Shangguan Yangyu was the ugliest prime minister in history. After the Zeng Jing and his wife drank that cup of tea, they had longevity. The sound of the bell from Wanyan Tower was still as far away.

The sound of laughter from Chao’s residence in the Spring Breeze Pavilion never stopped, Elder Chao had accepted Zhang Sanli as his son. Chang’an’s famous Three Sticks of Old and Young had officially become a family, the brothers from the gang were sitting in the banquet hall listening to the play, while the women were in the flower hall enjoying the melon seeds. Chao Xiaoshu was looking quietly at the night sky in the garden.

In these two months, more than ten cultivators were gone, rumor has it that there was a special saying currently, called Soar? Chao Xiaoshu looked dim as he thought that it would be difficult for him in his life to see the scenery of the Opposite World.

Yes, the world had a moon now, according to the phases of the moon.

In the streets outside of the Chao’s residence, there was a carriage slowly approaching towards the forty-seventh lane.

“It was hard to get Pipi to refine the Heavenly Power Pill. Why do you want to sneak them into his cup? Aren’t you worried about him chucking the tea out of his cup?”

“He might chuck the tea that someone else’s has poured, but you as the sister-in-law who pours the tea for him, how could he not drink it? How many people in this world are qualified to let Haotian pour the tea for him? Although that guy always likes to pretend to be cool, but don’t forget his famous saying: If Heaven allows me, then I can live… Did you hear that? It is being polite to you!”

“Fair enough… but why should I serve him tea today?”

“Because I owe him a bowl of fried egg noodles.”

“That makes sense.”

“When have I, your man, ever made sense?”

“You are not Second Brother.”

“Hey, can you not mention that cold-blooded, heartless man with a broken arm?”

The conversation in the carriage continued until it stopped in front of the Old Brush Pen Shop.

Ning Que and Sangsang walked down. Sangsang was as plump as ever, holding a… green dog. Standing in front of the Old Brush Pen Shop, Sangsang looked at the night sky, and asked softly, “Is this the world that you came from?”

Ning Que replied, “It should be.”

Sangsang looked at him and asked, “Why are you so certain?”

Ning Que pointed to the bright moon in the night sky and said, “Because there is a moon.”

This sentence was actually very unreasonable, but weren’t that the disciples of the Academy as such?

Sangsang asked, “The Qi of Heaven and Earth of this world is dissipating to the outer world, and it will be completely drained one day in the future, have you ever thought about what to do after that day comes?”

Ning Que said, “I think that people may have already left this place by then.”

Sangsang was silent for a moment, and said, “Are you willing? This is our home.”

Ning Que took her in his arms, looked at the night sky and said, “The journey of mankind, should have always been a sea of stars.”

“But, isn’t it a pity that so many people have lived here without leaving a trace?”

“The air current will always be blown away by the wind and rain. No matter how strong a building is, and even the inscription of the writing on the stones, will be weathered by time. But I think that there will always be something spiritual left behind.”

Ning Que said, “Or maybe after countless years, there will be a new civilization reappearing here. In that civilization, the teachers, the Abbey Dean and the Eldest Brother will become legends and myths.”

Sangsang earnestly asked, “What will be left behind?”

Ning Que smiled slightly, and said, “For instance… what Confucius said?”

…

The Old Brush Pen Shop door was opened, and there was a customer inside. The woman was wearing the blood-colored Gown of Judgement, who would it be none other than Ye Hongyu?

Ye Hongyu said directly to Sangsang, “I have something to say to him, do not get jealous.”

Sangsang said, “I eat dumplings only with soy sauce.”

Ye Hongyu said with a poker face, “I heard that the owner of the sour and spicy noodle soup shop on the streets was rewarded with a gold brick by you?”

Sangsang, who was holding the green dog, headed toward the backyard.

“Is this the woman that you wanted to marry badly that you were even willing to set an apocalypse to the whole world?” Ye Hongyu looked at Ning Que and mockingly said, “Send a pair of children to the Grand Secretary Mansion. Holding a green dog and strolling around everyday, such a lady. Did the Headmaster of Academy know about this previously?”

Ning Que spread out his hand helplessly, for it could not be explained.

Ye Hongyu said, “Business calls, I have to go.”

Ning Que was silent, although knowing that this was an inevitable matter, his mood was still somewhat complicated.

Ye Hongyu took out a letter from her arms, handed it to him and said, “I will go with her, this is her letter to you.”

Obviously it was from Mo Shanshan. Ning Que took the letter, took a glance at the backyard, and tucked it under his sleeve.

“You are such a loser,” Ye Hongyu sneered.

Ning Que was in great anger, and said, “If you act like this again, I will be angry with you!”

Ye Hongyu reached out and grabbed his face, and said, “I will help you with that.”

Ning Que used the Natural Stream Magical Finger and was going to stab her chest.

Ye Hongyu suddenly came forward to embrace him.

His hand fell on her chest. Her lips rested on his. Very soft, very elastic, very wet, eagerly wanting to kiss again. At the time when Ning Que felt that way, Ye Hongyu had already backed off to her original position.

She looked at his poker face and said, “This is for Shanshan.”

Ning Que looked at her lips, laughed grimly and said, “Unless she kissed you first.”

Ye Hongyu was a little angry, and said, “That was full of heart and soul, don’t you understand?”

Ning Que suddenly became quiet and said, “Take care.”

Ye Hongyu was also silent.

After a long time, she said, “There used to be a saying from the cultivation realm, that the joys and sorrows of the two worlds cannot be interlinked. If you could do this, you will be a saint… Ning Que, you are a sage.”

Ning Que quietly looked at her, and said, “You are a saintess.”

Ye Hongyu smiled and said, “You are still as shameless as before.”

Ning Que greeted her with a bow with his hands cupped in front of him. “You said before, the universe is so huge, it is hard to meet again.”

Yu Hongyu said, “But, I hope we can meet in another world.”

Ning Que said, “When the children are older, and after the problems of the eldest child and the third child are solved, we will come.”

Ye Hongyu sighed, “You loving couple will not bring children, why take this as an excuse?”

Ning Que was very embarrassed, and said, “Help me give two kisses to Shanshan, or, should I kiss you again?”

…

The people who should not leave were gone, but the people who should leave were still there.

Ning Que sat beside the bed, looking at the thick pile of letters in the box, thinking silently to himself.

Sangsang looked at him indifferently and said, “Who is the one who should not leave? Who is the one who should leave? Me?”

Ning Que was just able to react to the situation, she knew everything that he was thinking. He suddenly felt that this kind of life was really meaningless, mainly because there was no privacy, and it was too easy to misunderstand.

Sure enough, as predicted.

“Today in the Chao’s residence, what were you thinking when you looked at the little girl at the stage, do you think I didn’t know? Tsk, that waist was thin, tender, and soft… if you like it you should go and touch it then!”

“Now that the House of Red Sleeves is in charged by Xiaocao, the previous prohibition has been lifted, if you like, you can casually touch, I will let Xiaocao pick you the hottest.

Sangsang who was holding the green-skinned dog kept blabbering.

“Enough!”

Ning Que was unable to take it anymore and stood up, “I just silently praised the waist, and how did that provoke you?”

Sangsang was about to cry with slightly wet eyes, and said, “You are just unsatisfied with my thick waist.”

Ning Que was very depressed, he did not know how to explain. With a broken heart, he simply broke a jar, and yelled, “Does this have any relation to the waist? I am just not satisfied that you are not willing to cook! Not willing to clean the table! Not willing to pour me water for my foot! Refusing to save money! Spending money every day! Holding a dog and stroll everywhere everyday! A look of indifferent at any instance! You need to understand that you are my wife now! And not Grand Master Haotian!

Sangsang cried and said, “Ning Que, you liar.”

Ning Que was a little panicky, and said, “What did I lie about?”

She said sadly, “Previously I said that I would no longer serve you again, and you said you would always serve me in the future.”

Yes, this was the first sentence she thought of during the intersection of the old world and the new world in front of the Chang’an City. It seemed that the sentence was really important to her.

Miraculously, after that day, Sangsang really forgot all about the practices of the chores. Ning Que observed secretly for a very long time and found out that it was true, that she was not lying to him. Sangsang had become a lady who would only know to stroll around while holding a dog.

So before this, he really did not know how to explain to Ye Hongyu.

He sighed. “Shouldn’t you learn to do something at least?”

Sangsang didn’t listen to anything he said, and sadly said, “You are just unsatisfied with my thick waist.”

Ning Que was silent for a very long time, softly said, “Alright… I admit that I am a little bit, the baby has been born for quite a long time, I thought you would lose some weight, but…”

Sangsang turned to exit the Old Brush Pen Shop.

Ning Que stood up, anxiously asked, “Where are you going?”

Sangsang answered without turning her head, “I am going to the Secretary Mansion.”

Ning Que was very angry, he fetched the clothes pole from the patio and was about to cause an uproar.

“If you dare to run away from home again, I will beat you to death!”

Sangsang did not pay attention to him and went out directly. A moment later, the sound of the door closing came from the front of the shop. Ning Que was stunned in place and was so worried. He instantly changed his clothes, and was going to stop her. Just because he was too nervous and uneasy, it took forever for him to wear his shoes properly.

When he was putting on his shoes, he looked up, and Sangsang was at the door.

As she wiped her tears, she said, “Ning Que, are you hungry? I am going to cook some noodles for you.”

She did not leave at all, she never left. Ning Que went forward to her, holding her hand and walked to the kitchen. He began to teach her how to cook, how to cut the green onions, and how to fry an egg… just like many years ago.This was not that hard, right? This was very happy, wasn’t it?

The moon shone on the new world and shone on the Old Brush Pen Shop. On the wall of the courtyard, there was an old cat lying lazily.

…