As the incident between Dan and the two men unfolds beneath, three figures float high in the sky, shrouded by the night’s veil as they observe. The figure in the middle remains alert, his aura infused towards his feet as he prepares to intervene.
“DAN! SNAP OUT OF IT!”
The figure loosens his stance upon seeing the attack freeze midair. His lips curl into a smile as he withdraws the aura from his feet.
“Bahahaha! I was itching to intervene, but I guess it wasn’t necessary.” Grandmaster Liu bursts into laughter, throwing both of his arms around the elderly man and woman beside him. “You were right, old fart! He did indeed overcome- albeit with an assist from the Zhou brat. Bahahaha!”
Grandmaster Yi releases a heavy sigh before smiling in response as he watches his son stray from the main road and enter a dark alleyway.
“Don’t call my prince a ‘brat’. And unhand me, stupid geezer.” The elderly woman clenches the thin blade hanging from her sash, tilting the handle towards Grandmaster Liu’s side before jabbing it into his side. Grandmaster Liu withdraws his arm from her shoulders, exaggerating his pain in response to her irked glare. Ignoring his laughter, disguised as wailing, she turns towards Grandmaster Yi and smiles. “Your boy is quite talented, Zhenren.”
“Gyohoho!” Grandmaster Yi chuckles in response to the bickering between the woman and his old friend. “Thank you, Miao. Praises from the Sword Saintess herself, this old soul is quite honored.”
“Save it for after the convention.” Grandmaster Liu grumbles as he clutches his side, still aching slightly from the jab. “Best to not assume we’ll succeed in re-implementing the Saints system.”
“Stupid geezer, you’re one to talk-” Miao snaps back, flicking the handle of her blade towards Grandmaster Liu’s side once again. This time, Grandmaster Liu shifts his hip back, causing the handle to pierce through empty air.
“Bahaha! Miao, what’s up your a-” Before he can finish his sentence, Miao flicks the handle of her blade backwards and jabs the crossguard into Grandmaster Liu’s gut. “Ow!”
“There would be no need for reimplementation if you didn’t trigger its removal in the first place.” Miao continues her rant, glaring at the bumbling geezer beside her. With fury in her heart, her voice rises steadily as she continues. “Do you have any idea how hard it was to be restrained by those stupid laws whilst those rats ran rampant across my Zhou? Do you even have a brain, stupid geezer? You think you can just brute force through all your problems with your fists?! We lost years of progress for you and your brother’s rampant crusade to re-”
“Sorry, Miao.” Grandmaster Liu cuts her off, his expression troubled by the genuine anger in her voice. “That was not my intention.”
“Tsk!” Despite having much more to vent, Miao clenches her jaw and cuts her ranting short upon hearing the rare words escape Grandmaster Liu’s lips. With her anger quelling, Miao suddenly recalls a certain line in Headmaster Mo’s message. “By the way, who is this… ‘slumbering dragon’ figure Mo spoke of?”
“Bah!” Grandmaster Liu spits, suddenly riled by Miao’s sudden shift in subject. “We’ve only just reunited and you’re already straight to business.”
“Shut your trap, stupid geezer!” Miao snaps back, her hand clenching around her blade once more. “Watch that tongue of yours. Is that how you repay a favor? I go out of my way to follow your wishes blindly and th-”
“Bah! Don’t act like you didn’t get extreme satisfaction from slaughtering those fucking demonic arts practicing rats!”
“That’s not the p-”
“It can wait!” Grandmaster Liu cuts her off again before taking a swig from his near empty gourd. “Ah! As I was saying, you can meet him tomorrow. Best not disturb his residence whilst his little Yuyu is asleep.”
If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
Grandmaster Yi, a silent bystander to the bickering, chuckles internally before turning towards the tall tower in the distance. Stepping on the wind, he floats forward towards the glowing tower.
“And where are you going?” Miao turns towards Grandmaster Yi’s fading figure, confused by his sudden departure.
“Gyohoho! Miao, Jingang, if I may-”
“You may not.” Grandmaster Liu jests, his previously annoyed face curling into a grin.
“I shall anyway.” Grandmaster Yi brushes off his old friend’s unnecessary comment. “You two clearly have unfinished business, so bicker on all you want. But this is no place for a reunion of friends. If you want to bicker, why not do so over drinks and sustenance?”
“What about your boy and the Zhou br- er… boy?”
“Like you said, old friend.” Grandmaster Yi smiles as he glances back towards the alleyway. “He’ll overcome.”
“Bahahaha! She doesn’t call me ‘smart grandpa’ for no reason.” Grandmaster Liu laughs as he sloshes the nearly empty gourd in his hand before kicking off after his old friend. “Since you suggested it, you’re paying. Bahahaha!”
Miao clicks her tongue as she watches the two blur away in the night sky. Her eyes focus on Grandmaster Liu’s back, causing her scrunched brows to loosen as she recalls their childhood. As he turns around to gesture for her to come along, he spots a smile bearing striking resemblance to a youthful boy she once knew.
Instead of the wrinkled smile, stained with a hint of trouble from his tumultuous years, she sees an untainted and vibrant grin. Instead of the infamous figure known by many in the martial world for his actions six years prior, she instead sees her rival of almost a century; she sees a young boy who had matched her every step on her martial journey towards the peak.
As the seconds pass, his youthful smile persists even amidst his trials and tribulations on the path to becoming a man. But as he turns away, she catches the glimpse of a somber man- broken by the loss of someone they all held dearly in their hearts. Perhaps, just behind Chunjian, the owner of that once vibrant smile was broken the most by the lost.
“Comon, Miao! We’re going to be late for the Exchange! Last one there is an automatic second. In other words, you! Bahahaha!”
As the innocent grin fades away, never to be seen again, Miao closes her eyes and sighs. As she recalls the harsh words on that day, she can’t help but feel her heart ache.
“LIU JINGANG! SNAP OUT OF IT! TAKE IT BACK! TAKE BACK WHAT YOU SAID! WE ALL LOVED HER, BUT YOU SHOULD KNOW BETTER THAN ANY THAT THIS IS NOT HIS FAULT!”
Her weathered heart aches as the sound of distant steps fill her mind; the heavy and resounding steps of the sworn brothers walking away from one other.
She recalls the period that follows. The heartbreak she endured following her naive attempt to mend his heart.
“Jingang… The alcohol isn’t going to ease the pain. We’re all suffering, it’s only you wh-”
“WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU KNOW ABOUT MY SUFFERING?! TELL ME, MIAO! HOW COULD YOU POSSIBLY KNOW HOW I FEEL?!"
“Maybe I don’t know… But I know how I feel. Tell me, Jingang, where is the rival I once respected? Because whatever this is- it’s certainly not him. Where is the ambitious boy who bested me at both the junior and senior Exchange?! Because you’re nothing but a fraud compared to him! Where is the brave boy who didn’t hesitate to jump headfirst into the fray to protect his friends?! To uphold his justice?! The only thing you are is a disgrace to that brave boy! A disgrace to her memory! I won’t say this again, so listen closely. Pull your head out of your ass, Jingang! You’re pushing away everyone who cares about you- and for what?! Wallowing is not a good look for you, so please! Pull your head out of your ass and get back on your feet! Yes, she’s gone! But your brother is still here! Zhenren is still here! Linlin is still here! Mo is still here! Chunjian, as much as you blame him, IS STILL HERE! I’m… She’s gone… but I’m… Nevermind. I can’t stand to see you the way you are. Drown yourself in alcohol for all I care. I’ve said what I need to.”
Her eyes, despite having witnessed the darkness and most atrocious side of humanity, begin to water as she recalls her lie. There was not a single part of her, even now, that meant those final two sentences. She did not want him to drown away his pain. She did care. And she did not say all she needed to.
Her biggest regret through those years still lingers within her heart. As that feeling flares up, she turns her gaze towards her hands. From the darkness, a brush, an inkwell, and a scroll appear out of thin air. A pair of elegant and pale hands replaces hers', reaching for the brush and dipping it into the inkwell. The elegant hand skillfully weaves across the unfurled scroll, writing a message riddled with lies regarding her loveless arraigned wedding.
Unable to stomach the gut-wrenching reminder of writing that message, Miao flicks her sleeves, causing the brush, inkwell, and scroll to vanish from her sights.
The past is the past.
She wipes the tear away and gazes at the glowing tower piercing through the empty night sky.
Even if it's just a remnant of what it once was... It's good to see that smile again.