She seed to have anticipated his arrival, remaining as calm as a still water.
Chen Yi slightly lowered his gaze, striding forward.
......
The moss-covered path beneath his feet twisted and turned inward, leading to an old pine tree under which stood a pavilion made of bamboo.
Compared to the previous majestic atmosphere, this place was especially tranquil; turning one's head revealed towering azure stones in the distance, the creek winding around them, flowing from afar to pass by the verdant bamboo pavilion.
Zhou Yitang had always loved silence, but this level of quietness inevitably made people feel eerie.
Chen Yi was originally worried there might be an ambush along the way, so he stayed close to the Twin Yin Lords and sowhat distanced from Zhou Yitang, but upon reflection, he realized he was overly concerned.
The cool breeze gently passed by, making the raised tendrils of moss tremble slightly, as if crying beside the serene face of a woman; cloud shadows drifted over, casting a vast darkness, pressing down on the bamboo pavilion.
Inside and outside the pavilion, there wasn't much clutter—only tables, chairs, tea sets, and books,
Along with a chessboard in the middle.
"Oh, it's quite tasteful."
Chen Yi chuckled, making the surroundings seem less quiet.
The one-ard woman did not respond, rely quietly sitting down at the table, as if a small stone had returned to the tranquil water.
Chen Yi naturally sat opposite her and patted the Little Fox, instructing her to prepare the tea.
Yin Weiyin naturally sat beside Chen Yi, and before his seat was warm, the always silent one-ard woman suddenly said, "You go prepare tea too."
The female crown felt displeased,
After not seeing each other for days, Zhou Yitang commanded like this, not taking her seriously. However, considering she was inside Donggong Ruoshu's body, she might not be aware of it, perhaps mistakenly thinking she was Chen Yi's new favorite.
Thinking thus, Yin Weiyin disregarded her disrespect. Since the First Lady could command the second and third ladies, it was only fitting for the third lady to command the newcors.
Yin Weiyin thus rose and went to be with Xiao Yin, while Donggong Ruoshu, not understanding the situation, scratched his head and eventually joined them.
They had all gone outside the pavilion, leaving only Chen Yi and Zhou Yitang, the ntor and disciple, inside.
Chen Yi's thoughts were chaotic, though when climbing the mountain, he was naturally full of vigor and glowing with pride, like a victorious rooster. But in this deep, quiet place, despite having thousands of words to say, he didn't know where to begin.
Amidst his tangled thoughts, he picked up a black stone and played with it for a long ti before saying:
"You knew I would co up the mountain."
"Couldn't stop you."
"Quite unable to stop ."
Hearing her tone, Chen Yi sneered, dropping a stone with a "snap".
"Zhou Yitang, what kind of trick are you playing?"
Seeing him place his stone at the center, Zhou Yitang slightly furrowed her brows, then calmly placed her stone, saying, "It's not a trick."
The creek water flowed swiftly, yet she remained calm. Chen Yi was used to seeing this deanor from the one-ard woman; before, rely watching her quietly brought happiness, but seeing her now made him wish to crush her, whether through words or physically, an instant of malicious intent surged.
Yet, Chen Yi restrained his thoughts, softly saying, "Master, there's no need for verbal sparring with . What you intend to do, I can almost completely guess."
After speaking, he placed another stone.
Zhou Yitang responded with her stone, and his voice slowly ca through,
"Senior sister, in her past life or this life, you've always been satisfied with her, even though her progress often seems slow. But like water wearing away stone, rope cutting through wood, most cultivation matters follow these slow, grinding processes, and given ti, she won't disappoint your reputation.
Yet even so, you still forced her to be like you, forgetting about the world and oneself. She is indeed your heir, but you pushed matters too urgently, almost too nitpicky. Rather than wanting her to inherit your mantle, it's more like you want to mold another Zhou Yitang."
Chen Yi had long detected Zhou Yitang's strictness toward Lu Ying, initially thinking it was because of her previous life's mories, avoiding past mistakes. But now it seems otherwise.
The Sword Intent Realm of forgetting oneself greatly affects one's nature; aside from that, it bears no harm. Chen Yi tried to redy this, just wanting senior sister to walk a new path he had explored, to live carefree as before. Due to this, while there's disagreent with Zhou Yitang, it's not fatal—the so-called discord is more bark than bite. In fact, Chen Yi had hesitated about his actions.
Looking at it now, Lu Ying's change was only the tip of the iceberg in the plan; Chen Yi stared at Zhou Yitang, speaking piece by piece:
"If you weren't right in front of , I'd doubt you want to possess Lu Ying."
Zhou Yitang lowered her gaze, calmly saying, "If I were to possess, I'd possess you first and fulfill a longti wish."
Chen Yi instantly showed a panicked, fearful expression; the one-ard woman saw it, and suddenly felt a flutter that urged her to tap her fingers, but she turned her hand to pick up a stone instead.
At another location, the Twin Yin Lords were preparing tea; Yin Tingxue occasionally glanced at the bamboo pavilion, afraid that, without words, the two would resort to swords against each other, in which case she'd have to prepare for sacrificing herself to the Northern Dynasty.
Fortunately, this mont was not too tense.
"Fulfilling a longstanding wish…" Chen Yi pondered over this seemingly unintentional comnt.
Zhou Yitang rarely spoke without purpose; she hardly spoke falsehoods, otherwise, there wouldn't be concealnts and unspoken truths—that is, at most, she misguides by trimming truth.
Recalling her various deeds earlier, Chen Yi caught onto key clues, coldly questioning, "Zhou Yitang, all this ti you've been preparing for the aftermath?"
During their conversation, several stones had been laid on the board, and looking at the unpredictable chess paths, Zhou Yitang frowned slightly, not denying, "The ancients determined their death posthumously."
The words echoed; Chen Yi's pupils shrank, instinctively responding, "If Changsheng never dies, what aftermath is there? Don't tell you can't ascend; if you can't go, I'll go. You stay as dostic animals and I'll carry you up."
The one-ard woman was unperturbed; her expression unchanged. Halfway through Chen Yi's words, he abruptly realized her heart was set on eting her demise...
Her so-called planning for aftermath was all for others, yet she had never planned for her own, fearing to linger, bent on dying—a straight path forward—ultimately dying as a light extinguishes.
Why does she harbor this thought... Chen Yi pressed his hand into the stone table, digging in a few inches deep, almost knowing without asking, firmly stating, "You intend to repair the Heavenly Gate for ."
His voice rose like sudden heavenly fire, filled with rage.
Zhou Yitang remained unmoved, placed a stone on the board, calmly saying, "Your move."
Seeing her in such a deanor, Chen Yi wished to smash the chessboard to pieces, but the surrounding extraordinary tranquility, along with the coolness carried by the water's flow, eased his anger.
She deliberately chose this place to et—a table, a chair, every plant and tree arranged thoughtfully.
Knowing her ticulous efforts, Chen Yi coldly chuckled, calming himself, picking up a black stone, and placing it heavily on the board, saying, "Do you think I would agree? eting here to negotiate? Amusing, Zhou Yitang. If anyone's to die, it won't be you."
His tone carried a hint of jest, not offensive to the ear when familiarized; the one-ard woman placed her stone slowly, saying, "It's not necessary for you to agree."
"...Was seeing here your way of preparing to reveal everything?"
"Correct."
Zhou Yitang always acted with hidden clues, never explicitly stating it, yet over ti, accumulated traces naturally revealed secrets; she had already prepared.
Chen Yi squinted his eyes, not rushing, preferring a proper conversation rather than a complete fallout, picking up and placing his stone.
"Zhou Yitang, preparing your affairs so early, aren't you afraid I might act recklessly? Or do you believe you can control ?
No matter that I haven't exposed you all this ti, but with the Heavenly Gate still so ti away from cracking, I might still live to repair it, or perhaps find another person or way to repair it. What you're doing is largely futile."
"Still so ti? Do you recall when the chaos across the land should occur?"
"Supposedly in two or three years," Chen Yi slightly furrowed his brows, instantly adding, "you want to tell the Heavenly Gate will crack earlier."
Zhou Yitang didn't deny it.
Chen Yi casually placed his stone, coldly saying, "Regardless, don't even think of repairing Heaven for . You lack one hand; your body is deficient."
"Great Perfection as if Deficient."
"You're not deficient as if—you truly are deficient!"
The firm words echoed, Chen Yi disregarded the chess ga, pushed the table to stand, cutting this conversation short.
She still sat there, silent and pondering.
They understood each other's nature; both were stubborn in their ways. With words spoken to this extent, there was nothing more to say.
Yet just as Chen Yi was about to decisively turn and leave, the always tranquil her suddenly spoke,
"Do you rember, in your previous life, who you repaired Heaven for?"
Chen Yi instinctively was about to respond, but a flash of a long-lost mory flickered in his mind; he turned back in surprise, the one-ard woman's tear sliding down her cheek.
Her voice trembled softly,
"It was for ."
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