Thousand Autumns

—AH-QING WAS QUITE YOUNG. He had grown up in Weizhou ever since he was a child, and had never seen the outside world, but was quite satisfied with things as they were. And now, all of a sudden, two more people had arrived in their house. Naturally, he found it incredibly curious. Though Wu-bo had told him over and over not to trouble them, each day Ah-qing would take advantage of the time he had to bring food to Shen Qiao and exchange a few words with the other man.

Of course, had he run into Yan Wushi, he would never have engaged in any small talk with the person, even if he had nerves of steel[30]. Young boys[31] had that natural instinct, similar to that of knowing a wild beast was nearby. Who was easy to talk to, and who not to disturb—he knew these things himself very well.

That day, he was passing by as usual with a meal in his arms. He knocked on the door to Shen Qiao’s room.

No one in the room responded, but Ah-qing had already become used to this. After waking, Shen Qiao would often go into the courtyard and practice his sword. Ah-qing simply pushed the door open and entered, placed the basket on the table, and took the zhou and small dishes and laid them out.

Ah-qing raised his head at the sound of footsteps behind him. He grinned and said: “Shen-langjun, you’re back! Just in time—“

But his sentence came to an abrupt stop. He almost choked on his own saliva before quickly coming to his feet. The broad smile he wore had quickly become a reserved and forced smile: “Hello, zhugong[32].”

“You look as if you don’t want to see me,” Yan Wushi frowned as he walked in, self-possessed as always.

He was not wearing the women’s clothing that he had worn at the door. Even the hair at his temples had returned to their original color, and he was dressed in black, wearing a deceitful smile. His appearance was quite refined and distinguished.

However, Ah-qing suddenly experienced a sense of fear. He did not even dare to meet his eyes. The ease he had felt earlier had also gone away. He quickly stood and brought his hands together: “Ah-qing would not dare. Wu-bo had explained that Ah-qing must treat zhugong with utmost respect, and not to offend in any way.”

The corner of Yan Wushi’s lips turned up somewhat. He simply took a seat at one end of the table as he liked. “You’re so reserved with me, and yet you’re so at ease with Shen Qiao. You clearly like him, don’t you?”

“Shen-langjun...he is a very good person!” Ah-qing could not help but stutter.

Yan Wushi gave a small en: “He certainly treats everyone very well. Even if he were put off and felt as if he were being disturbed, it wouldn’t show on his face.”

In Ah-qing’s eyes, Shen Qiao seemed to possess a completely perfect character that he yearned for: he had a good temperament, he was beautiful, his wugong was skilled, and he treated others with kindness. This sort of person would be adored and liked by many young people Ah-qing’s age, not to mention Ah-qing himself. Ah-qing only had Wu-bo by his side every day. He didn’t have even a single friend that was within his age, and now suddenly, there was Shen Qiao. It was only natural that he would feel close to and want to speak with him every now and again. This was such a normal thing.

But to hear it said from Yan Wushi had caused Ah-qing to feel as though he were strange. When Ah-qing heard this, he felt hurt and as if he had lost something. He thought to himself, so every day I had come here to talk to him, I had actually been making trouble for him instead?

The boy hung his head, like that of a sick puppy.

But Yan Wushi did not spare him any pity. Instead, he had added more to the flame, and gave the final word: “So you’re well aware then.”

“Yes,” Ah-qing said.

His voice was small. He seemed so hurt that he was about to cry.

Right at this moment, Shen Qiao had come in with his sword in hand. There was light sweat on his forehead, but because his face was all the more fair, it seemed as though a faint halo were radiating from him.

“What’s wrong?” He only saw the two of them—one sitting, the other standing—and did not understand the situation.

“And what are you doing in my room?” The second question was directed at Yan Wushi.

“Your food smelled so nice that I wanted to come over and take a bite,” Yan Wushi said, smiling.

Shen Qiao frowned.

“Did Ah-qing not bring some to you?”

Yan Wushi was as carefree and at ease as ever: “One’s own meal never smells as nice as another person’s. Seeing someone else have an appetite makes them want to eat all the more.”

Shen Qiao did not believe a word of what he said. He still felt that something was strange—that something had happened just before he had come in.

“Ah-qing?” Shen Qiao saw the boy hanging his head, and spoke to him in a gentle voice. “What’s wrong?”

“N-nothing! Zhugong and Shen-langjun, please enjoy your meal. Once you’re done, I’ll come by and tidy up!” He said this quickly before turning around and dashing off.

From the corner of his eye, Shen Qiao had noticed that the boy’s eyes were somewhat red. Further doubtful, Shen Qiao gazed at Ah-qing’s back, before turning to Yan Wushi: “Did you say something to him just now?”

Yan Wushi continued with a smile: “Ah-qiao ah, you sound like a mother hen protecting its eggs! Don’t forget that Ah-qing belongs to me. I can treat him however I like; that’s just how it is. A stranger gets a little close to you, and you treat him in such a favorable light. But the two of us have been traveling together for so long! Why haven’t you changed your attitude towards me?”

If one could describe Shen Qiao’s expression earlier as completely normal, then they would say that he looked completely unmoved now: “Yan-zongzhu does not care what my attitude is like.”

When the flaw in his demonic core had been exposed and his disposition fragmented, Yan Wushi was actually capable of seeing and experiencing the world. However, he could only watch—he did not have any means to control his body.

Therefore, he had ‘seen’ the ways that Shen Qiao treated the other dispositions. Even if that ‘Ah-yan’ was gentle and sincere, Shen Qiao still approached him with great vigilance. Only in Ruoqiang when ‘Xie Ling’ had once more taken control—he was never supposed to have awoken in that time at all—and returned to look for Shen Qiao, the supposedly fast asleep Yan Wushi had looked on with cold eyes as Shen Qiao smiled at ‘Xie Ling’, and could feel the sudden movements of Shen Qiao’s heart.

To have such a soft heart in this life. When others offered him a piece of theirs, he would return the favor with ten of his own. Others who withstand the likes of Chen Gong and Yu Ai would feel their hearts become cold as ash, not to mention filled with hate. But this person had instead valued kindness even further, even if such kindness was, in the eyes of others, insignificant.

So this was why Shen Qiao had treated Xie Ling so favorably.

Or perhaps, ever since then, Shen Qiao had taken ‘Xie Ling’ as a completely independent person all together. Only when confronted with him did Shen Qiao separate Xie Ling and Yan Wushi from one another. Shen Qiao treated the former with good nature; the latter with cool indifference.

But the clearer this was, the more Yan Wushi found it wonderfully interesting.

Before, he had teased Shen Qiao for two reasons. One was because this person was rather ridiculous. He had suffered the betrayal of others repeatedly, and had yet a thing at all. Every person’s heart, deep down, carried a certain malice. It was simply a question of whether or not it was hidden deep down or closer to the surface. Shen Qiao could not possibly have been an exception to this. As a result, he wanted to pull to the surface the cruelty deep within his heart using every possible means that he could. The second reason was to see what would happen if the demonic core and Daoist core melded together, as he had planted the demonic core within him. He had taken Shen Qiao as a sort of experiment for himself.

How could he expect that nothing would change? Shen Qiao, even from the start, had never gone according to the way Yan Wushi had planned him to. Instead, he had walked a completely different path all together. Though he had gone through such trials and confronted the cruelties of humanity, his inherent nature had never changed. He even willingly treated the ‘Xie Ling’ that fragmented from Yan Wushi with such contented gentleness, with such adoration.

Was this sort of person foolish or stubborn?

In Yan Wushi’s eyes, however—regardless if it was Xie Ling or Yan Wushi, regardless if it was evil or good, painful or perfectly fine—all of it should have been special to Shen Qiao. They did not need any Ah-yan, Ah-mao, or Ah-gou to further dilute this unique quality.

Upon hearing Shen Qiao’s words, Yan Wushi laughed and said: “Who said that I didn’t care? I care so much, you know. If you could only give me a fraction of what you give to Xie Ling, I don’t know how happy I’d be.”

Shen Qiao heard, but he wasn’t listening. He simply looked down and ate his zhou.

Right now, if Yan Wushi were to say ten things, Shen Qiao would barely listen to half of one, unless ‘Xie Ling’ appeared. And this half-of-a-thing, once processed, would have to be pulled apart and chewed to pieces before it was polished, so as to avoid making the same mistake as he did before. If someone were to fall into the same river twice, then that would be much too sad. Though Shen Qiao believed that he himself was not an especially smart person, he knew that he was, at least, not that foolish.

Seeing that he did not wish to respond, Yan Wushi only continued to smile. He did not say anything, and started on his zhou.

For the two of them, these past few days were perhaps the most peaceful and comfortable ones. Let us not mention the series of disturbing events that took place in the underground city of Ruoqiang. Ever since they departed from Tuyuhun, Shen Qiao had to deal with Yan Wushi’s changing dispositions, for the flaw in his demonic core had yet to have been eliminated. At the same time, Shen Qiao had to pay close attention to their surroundings, simply because Yan Wushi’s enemies were great in number and scattered across all the world. Therefore, he could not put his guard down for even a moment. Only when they reached this place was he able to gradually feel at ease, and begin to focus his efforts on using the true qi of the Zhuyang Ce to cultivate.

As for Yan Wushi, it was clear from just his expression that his dispositions had gradually become stable, though Shen Qiao did not ask about this. It was rare to have any situation where his disposition had become completely different any longer. Most likely, whatever the sheet of silk contained had given Yan Wushi a sort of revelation and, with his abilities, the healing of his demonic core was going to happen sooner or later. And when the time comes, his studies of the Fenglin Yuandian would advance another level. Though the progress of his wugong is yet to be unparalleled, he wasn’t far from reaching this point. By that time, when the five great masters once more make an attempt on Yan Wushi’s life, they may not necessarily be able to.

It’s just a pity that Xie Ling...

The thought flashed within the depths of Shen Qiao’s mind, leaving him faintly melancholic. He sighed to himself.

“Why do you treat Ah-qing especially well?” Yan Wushi suddenly asked. “It isn’t because he resembles Xie Ling that it makes you so affectionate towards him, is it?”

Before him, Shen Qiao had suddenly become more silent than usual. If he had the choice not to speak, then he would not say even a word. However, Yan Wushi seemed as if he had guessed Shen Qiao’s mood, and smiled somewhat: “You might like him, but I find him a pain to look at. If you don’t tell me the reason why, then once you’ve left, I’ll have Wu-bo make him leave.”

Shen Qiao was unmoved: “Yan-zongzhu has always done as he pleases. Do what you want. It’s not like I have a say.”

Yan Wushi laughed. “All right, all right. I won’t have him leave then, okay? Won’t you tell me?”

A leader can submit or stand tall as required. Yan-zongzhu will reach his final goal by any means possible, without any regard for moral rightness. He has never cared for the concept of moral integrity. He didn’t care that a dignified master of great learning and integrity would say anything to further his own means, while others couldn’t

Shen Qiao was open to being persuaded, but not coerced. Yan Wushi had long ago known this very fact about him. In any case, sympathetic words were always superficial in nature. Though others are often concerned with honor and integrity, people of demonic sects did not care so much for this.

As expected, though Shen Qiao’s expression seemed somewhat unwell. However, he continued: “Ah-qing reminds me of a disciple I recently took in.”

Yan Wushi laughed. “How is it that I didn’t know you took in a disciple?”

“You know him,” Shen Qiao said, his tone becoming insipid. “He is Shiwu, that boy from Bailong Temple.”

The moment he mentioned this, he couldn't help but remember Guanzhu and Chuyi, as well as their deaths.

Still, he blamed himself. And naturally, whatever pleasant expression he wore in Yan Wushi’s presence had disappeared.

All right, are you happy now? Of all the kettles you could’ve picked, you picked the one that wouldn’t boil.  Yan Wushi was highly intelligent; and he wasn’t ill, either. How could he not have realized this series of causes and effects?

However, he did not seem to notice the “I really don’t want to talk to you anymore” written across Shen Qiao’s face. Instead, he continued to speak, with a smile: “I did see Shiwu once. His foundations and natural talents are indeed quite good. If he comes upon a wise teacher, he just might make some great achievements in the future.”

This sort of shameless behavior was something that Shen Qiao had also accepted.

He wanted to ask Yan Wushi to leave. However, suddenly, a knock rang out through the residence.

The distance between this courtyard and the main entrance was at least two hallways away. However, those who study wugong have good hearing; therefore, the two of them were able to hear Ah-qing’s “Coming!” and the sound of him rushing to open the door.

The Xie Residence was always quiet; rarely did anyone ever visit. Wu-bo had gone out once more to buy groceries, and had also left through the back door. He almost never left through the main door.

At nearly the same time, both Yan Wushi and Shen Qiao found it abnormal, so much that it was difficult to describe. It was as though they had read each other’s minds; the truth was that, once reaching a certain level, martial artists would experience this sort of reaction.

The Shanhe Tongbei sword was by his side. As Ah-qing ran to open the door, Shen Qiao’s hand had already fallen upon its sheath.

“Who is it?” Ah-qing’s voice echoed distantly.

“Young shizhu[33], I hope you are well. May I ask if this is the Xie residence?”

The moment he heard his voice, Shen Qiao’s complexion darkened.

Though they had rarely interacted, how could Shen Qiao not have known who this was?

Yet they were incredibly cautious this entire way. Of course they weren’t perfect, but they left almost no trace of their whereabouts. How could Xueting-chanshi possibly have found them so quickly?

Is it possible that Chen Gong had...?

He exchanged a look with Yan Wushi who was surprisingly composed. His expression had not changed even a little bit.

With their present cultivation, the two of them were not fit to be Xueting’s opponent. However, Xueting’s target was not Shen Qiao. Even if Shen Qiao were unable to defeat him, he would be able to escape from him.

“It seems that we’re too late,” Yan Wushi frowned.

Just as he said this, Xueting’s voice echoed from the courtyard.

“As one would expect, Yan-zongzhu is a truly extraordinary man. This poor monk truly respects you.”

In the blink of an eye, he had moved from the gate to the courtyard outside their room. At that moment, Ah-qing had begun to chase after them from behind, wearing himself out of breath with his shouting. But he couldn’t even catch up with Xueting’s shadow, much less the corners of the others sleeves.

To move so quickly that dirt would not touch the bottoms of their feet, and cover such a large distance—very few people in jianghu would be able to do such a thing.

Before, the door to their room had yet to be closed. From where Shen Qiao and Yan Wushi were, they naturally were able to see a monk dressed in black silk.

Yan Wushi sneered. “It’s truly difficult to get rid of you, old bald ass. I haven’t yet settled things with you from that day you and those clowns conspired against me. You have some nerve showing your face here!”

Xueting-chanshi brought his hands together in greeting, before continuing: “This poor monk did not think that Yan-zongzhu would be so powerful. The five great masters had besieged you, and yet, by some trick, you had come out unscathed.”

He once more looked in Shen Qiao’s direction to greet him: “Shen-daozhang is here with us as well. What a coincidence.”

Xueting-chanshi’s voice was gentle. There was not the slightest anger. Even the way that he said “what a coincidence,” did not carry with it any audible irony. If it did, then only he would have known.

Yan Wushi laughed.

“All the rest were mediocre, save for you, old bald ass Xueting. It was five against one, yet you couldn’t even kill me. Such a useless bunch you all were, and yet you think you have the right to call yourselves ‘masters’? To think that you, Xueting, would even lump yourselves in with them! It’s true that the longer you live, the worse off you end up!”

Xueting-chanshi did not seem angry in the least. He wore a mild expression, and gazed at Yan Wushi without any malice.

“The generation of the new shall take the generation of the old. This poor monk has aged. Sooner or later, I will allow someone more qualified to take my place. Given some time, Duan-shizhu, Dou-bangzhu and the rest will not necessarily remain beneath this poor monk.

“This poor monk must admit, the fact that Yan-zongzhu has returned from the dead as though nothing has changed is truly something admirable. Certainly Yan-zongzhu must know that the path of wudao is one that continues onwards longer still. To come upon a partner with equivalent skill becomes more difficult by the day. If there was a choice that could be made, this poor monk would much rather have tea and play a round of weiqi[34], and study wugong from you—all as friends, and as opponents.

“However, these are not ordinary circumstances. As such, they call for extraordinary actions. When Yuwen Yong has Yan-zongzhu by his side, he will proceed amorally, and Buddhism will once more be suppressed. In the interests of Buddhism, this poor monk can only proceed in this way. It is not for any personal grudge. Hopefully Yan-zongzhu will excuse us.”

The meaning of these words was this: he had come today with the clear goal of not returning empty-handed—that there would be an end to all of this.

“I must ask, da-shi,” Shen Qiao said. “How were you able to learn that Yan Wushi was here?”

“Monks do not lie,” Xueting said. “The truth was that this poor monk had run into Chen Gong in Chang’an. As Yan Shou[35] from the Hehuan Sect had once wounded this poor monk’s disciple, and because Chen Gong worked closely with the Hehuan Sect, this poor monk had asked to hear where Yan Shou was located from him. Chen Gong said that he didn’t know, so as to free himself, he told us that Yan-zongzhu was not dead, and had even told us that he had taken the remaining volume of the Zhuyang Ce.”

Just before departing, Chen Gong had promised not to divulge Yan Wushi’s whereabouts. However, Shen Qiao did not place much hope in Chen Gong’s so-called ‘promise’. Hearing Xueting’s words, he felt somewhat as though he had expected this.

“But between Chang’an and Tuyuhun,” Shen Qiao said, “there are many residences in different states. Chen Gong could not possibly know where we were going, and where we would stop.”

“That’s true,” Xueting said. “This poor monk searched everywhere this entire journey from Chang’an, and decided to rest in Weizhou. We were meaning to leave tomorrow. But we heard two people speaking with one another; one of them was a vendor who said that each day he had gone to every house to sell vegetables, and that only one house had suddenly, without reason whatsoever, needed twice as many than it usually did, which made him quite happy.”

Shen Qiao sighed. “Da-shi is very meticulous, having inspected everything in every way. If this type of ability were used to arrest robbers and settle accounts, I’m sure that there would never be injustice in this world again.”

“Thank you for your praise, Shen-daozhang,” Xueting said. “Today, this poor monk came here for Yan-zongzhu. Shen-daozhang is unrelated in any way. I must ask that you do not involve yourself, so that you do not hurt yourself accidentally.”

“How strange,” Shen Qiao said. “Da-shi, you want to kill him, whereas I want to protect him.”

Xueting’s expression betrayed an ounce of astonishment: “According to what this poor monk knows, the demonic sects have never had friendly relations with that of the Daoist sects. And Yan Wushi treats Shen-daozhang with such ingratitude, repaying your good with evil. For what reason does Shen-daozhang wish to protect him?”

“It is as Da-shi says,” Shen Qiao said. “Whenever he is present, Yuwen Yong remains safe and sound. When we survey the present countries in the world, we see that Qi has fallen, and only Zhou and Chen can be said to be the strongest. However, the southern dynasties protect and support the Confucian schools. There is no room for the Buddhists to step in there. Could it be that the reason why Da-shi wishes repeatedly to kill Yan Wushi is because you want to pave a road and allow the people of Tujue to enter the Central Plains?”

Xueting chanted an amitabha: “Shen-daozhang, are you saying that you wish to stand on the side of the Emperor of Zhou?”

“You’re correct,” Shen Qiao said.

Xueting sighed somewhat. “Then it seems that today, this poor monk will have to pass through Shen-daozhang first.”

Once he said his final word, his golden staff gently tapped the limestone floorboards. An oppressive sound almost seemed to burst by Shen Qiao’s ears.

At the same time, Shen Qiao had unsheathed the Shanhe Tongbei sword with a clash of metal and stood quickly. The sword and staff met one another in the air; lights and shadows interweaved with one another in the span of a moment. The neili from their combat had dispersed layer by layer into the air. For those who did not have any foundational wugong, like Ah-qing, the vibrations were so strong that his ears had begun to ache and he gave a sharp cry, before retreating until he could hide behind a wall for the time being.

Shen Qiao had assumed that Yan Wushi would be skilled in reading the room. What great master would want to burden someone? There was no need to explain himself; if he saw that he would only impede upon Shen Qiao’s fight against Xueting, then he would certainly turn around and leave. But who would have guessed that while Shen Qiao was exchanging moves with Xueting, out of the corner of his eyes, he could spot Yan Wushi standing where he was, without moving an inch.

“Why aren’t you running?! What are you standing there staring off for!” Shen Qiao shouted, furiously.

“Ah-qiao, calm down. I want to run off, but you’ll have to ask that old bald ass if he’ll let me or not.”

The corner of Yan Wushi’s lip curled upwards somewhat. However, his eyes were hardly smiling.

Almost as though in response to his words, two young monks appeared on his left and right at the same time, both bald and wearing the same black silk clothes. They both stood upon the tiles of the roof.

“This poor monk is Lian Sheng.”

“This poor monk is Lian Mie.”

Both of them spoke together: “We wish to pay a visit to Yan-zongzhu!”