The two looked at each other in silence for a long time.
Zero thought to himself, 'Dan Feng... what exactly did you do?'
'How come you didn't leave Dan Heng with a single patrol token?!'
At first, Zero hadn't planned to dig into everything that had happened on the Luofu.
But when Jingliu from another world took the initiative to attack them and dismissed the greatsword as "nothing more than an ordinary iron weapon," he realized something was wrong.
He began probing for information while trying to take the moral high ground, speaking up for his lover, who was currently fighting out on the street.
They had come to the Luofu as tourists.
They had simply been walking around when they were suddenly attacked.
His lover had repeatedly held back, afraid of hurting innocent passersby.
Yet the other party refused to let it go and insisted on deciding a winner.
Was that their fault?
Of course not.
Zero had originally thought Dan Heng was the one trying to sound him out.
But after a closer look, he noticed the badge unique to the Nameless hanging from the hem of his clothes.
It had long been agreed between the Vidyadhara and the Xianzhou that the Imbibitor Lunae would remain to guard the Ambrosial Arbor.
Only because Zero was there had Hua finally relented and instructed the Sky-Faring Commission to approve the Imbibitor Lunae's request to leave.
Zero looked at the Dan Heng before him, now one of the Nameless, then glanced toward the Ambrosial Arbor standing in the center of the Luofu.
'Could it be... that the Xianzhou in this world had also found a way to deal with the traces of Yaoshi's plague?'
If so, he had to ask on Matthias's behalf.
As an outsider, Zero criticized the Xianzhou and asked about compensation.
Ordinarily, any Xianzhou native would have argued with him a bit.
Members of the Six Commissions would probably have smiled and thrown the question back at him, asking why Jingliu looked exactly like their former Sword Champion, then used the excuse of protecting the Luofu's safety to assign Cloud Knights to keep an eye on him.
But Dan Heng didn't.
He showed no reaction at all.
He only said that Zero shared the same name as one of his companions.
Zero immediately guessed who that companion was.
Akivili.
He then casually steered the conversation toward Luofu's physicians, hoping to learn about Yingxing.
Instead, Dan Heng mentioned a completely unfamiliar name.
Zero fell into thought.
'Yingxing died of old age?'
'That doesn't sound right.'
They had been extremely close.
If Yingxing had truly passed away, leaving behind only a weapon for his friend...
Jingliu's greatsword was Yingxing's life's work and his final keepsake.
How could it earn nothing more than "an ordinary iron weapon"?
Zero couldn't make sense of it.
The five of them had all been once-in-a-generation talents.
They had been destined to stand at the highest level.
If they had caused some major incident... it might never have been recorded in the history books.
So Zero bought history books and popular novels.
If the official histories didn't mention it, surely there would be rumors among the people.
Someone had to have written it into a story.
After buying the books, Zero took the initiative to talk about his childhood.
Talking about childhood often revealed the kind of environment someone had grown up in.
He talked for quite a while.
Dan Heng remained unmoved.
Was his guard simply too high?
Or... had his childhood been so miserable that he had no proper stories worth talking about?
Zero had no choice but to ask about pocket money.
The moment he asked, he understood.
Dan Feng had gotten himself into serious trouble.
Because of it, his reincarnation, Dan Heng, had ended up penniless and exiled.
Dan Heng quietly watched him.
This wealthy young master, who had clearly never known hardship, finally seemed to realize the problem.
He had finally realized that not everyone grew up with the same comfortable life he had.
"I don't like Xianzhou tea."
Eric took out his long-range communicator and opened a food delivery app.
"Do you want some coffee?"
Dan Heng glanced at the tea that had already been refilled once, then shook his head.
Eric wasn't at fault.
In his understanding, a million was just a small amount of money.
It had only been an ordinary question.
Why would he need to compensate Dan Heng for it?
Eric ignored the refusal.
Still acting as self-centered as ever, he ordered coffee and desserts for Dan Heng anyway.
Even after ordering afternoon tea, he still felt it wasn't enough and smiled as he asked about Dan Heng's preferences.
Dan Heng wouldn't answer.
Eric acted as though he was about to buy everything.
Left with no choice, Dan Heng finally told him what he liked.
Eric bought a huge pile of snacks.
After a while, he put away his communicator and looked at Dan Heng with his amber eyes.
Dan Heng suddenly found him unfamiliar.
The man before him seemed like a different person.
No longer the spoiled, self-centered rich young master.
Instead, he seemed more like an elder who inspired trust and accepted everything.
Eric said softly, "This is the first time I've ever met one of the Nameless."
"Could you... tell me about your experiences?"
———
On the shopping street across from the teahouse, Jingliu looked at the woman who shared her face.
The other woman seemed to have misunderstood her age because of the casual sword flourish she had performed.
She apparently thought Jingliu was a young woman under two hundred years old, and voluntarily covered her own eyes with black cloth.
Even her swordsmanship was no longer as fierce as before.
Jingliu opened her mouth to speak, then stopped, unsure how to explain.
What was she supposed to say?
That she was already over a thousand years old and not young at all?
That she had twirled her sword simply because her husband was present, and she was used to using more graceful techniques?
It was rare for Jingliu to encounter such a worthy opponent.
And since that opponent was another version of herself, she naturally didn't want the other side to hold back.
Just as she was thinking, the woman took the initiative to explain what the black cloth was for.
Jingliu froze.
'Didn't want to be reminded of painful memories?'
'Could it be...'
'...that the woman before her had already fallen to mara?'
Of course.
Judging by the timeline, the other version of herself should have died centuries ago.
Combined with her opinion of her greatsword...
Jingliu's heart sank.
She had nearly forgotten.
This was another Xianzhou.
Why had the Imbibitor Lunae left the Xianzhou?
Had he been exiled?
What exactly had he and Yingxing done?
The woman asked again, "How old are you?"
Jingliu stared at the slightly obsessive expression on the woman's face.
'Why are you so fixated on this?'
'Why do you insist on knowing my age?'
'Do you not want me to walk the same path you did?'
After thinking it over, Jingliu decided to lie.
She wouldn't flaunt her own happiness while someone else was suffering.
Zero would do the same.
Jingliu answered softly, "Two hundred."
The woman before her knew only how to attack.
She wanted only to cut down every obstacle before her.
Up close, she seemed less like a person and more like a divine weapon forged from solid ice and driven by hatred.
Once her revenge was complete and the ice melted away, all that would remain would be flesh stripped of its bones.
'If you truly have fallen to mara... then you probably don't remember the first time you met Yingxing.'
'Nor would you remember that the greatsword had been the gift you received on the day you became Sword Champion.'
'Now...'
'...you could stop the tragedy you never wanted to happen.'
'You could tell me everything.'
The woman's expression turned dazed.
She murmured, "Two hundred..."
Jingliu held her breath and prepared to listen carefully.
Instead, the woman tore away the black cloth over her eyes, revealing scarlet pupils.
Her smile twisted with madness.
She suddenly swung her sword at Jingliu.
Jingliu: "???"
She hadn't been on guard.
She could only retreat a few steps and block the strike.
The woman scolded coldly, "Still not fast enough..."
Before she finished speaking, the icy blade, carrying killing intent, slashed toward Jingliu again.
In all of their past battles, the outcome had never been in doubt.
But this time...
She had finally met an opponent who awakened her desire to win.
Jingliu retreated quickly, constantly planning her next move.
She had to pretend to be her two-hundred-year-old self so the other side wouldn't notice anything.
At the same time, she couldn't afford to be injured.
Her eyes shone brightly as a faint smile appeared on her lips, completely different from the smile of the woman before her.
The other woman snorted.
"Nice eyes."
Jingliu did everything she could to play the role of a Cloud Knight who had just turned two hundred and didn't have much combat experience.
Fortunately, she was used to using more elegant techniques whenever she sparred with Zero.
So nothing suspicious showed during the fight.
Little by little, Jingliu shifted from defense to offense.
The battle between them grew increasingly fierce as they fought all the way from the shopping street to another intersection.
Before they could decide the winner...
Jing Yuan arrived.
Jingliu acted as though she hadn't seen him, keeping her full attention on blocking her opponent's attacks.
The two-hundred-year-old version of herself couldn't possibly know Jing Yuan.
Soon, the other woman voluntarily stopped.
Jingliu also sheathed the greatsword.
Jing Yuan had already been informed of her existence, so he didn't linger on her face.
He merely glanced casually at her weapon.
"I am Jing Yuan, General of the Luofu."
After introducing himself, he pointed helplessly at the shops and streets damaged by their battle.
"Our guest has certainly given the Realm-Keeping Commission quite a headache."
Jingliu quietly avoided his gaze and carefully looked over the badly damaged street.
She should have turned the blame toward the other Jingliu and asked why the Xianzhou had attacked them without reason.
Her initial retreat had been meant to keep their group from ending up at a disadvantage.
But after pretending to be her two-hundred-year-old self all this time...
She could no longer refute Jing Yuan's words.
The two-hundred-year-old Jingliu wouldn't argue.
She would simply accept responsibility.
After a moment's thought, Jingliu didn't make excuses.
She only asked Jing Yuan to meet someone.
Jing Yuan nodded.
He and his master followed Jingliu back to another street.
They walked until they reached a pastry shop.
This place hadn't been affected.
The shopkeeper was still stubbornly keeping his store open.
When Jingliu saw the neatly arranged, delicate pastries, she stopped almost instinctively.
Seeing Jing Yuan, the shopkeeper's eyes widened in disbelief.
Like presenting a treasure, he offered all of the day's pastries to Jing Yuan for free.
Jing Yuan smiled and declined.
The shopkeeper refused to give up.
After going back and forth for quite a while, Jing Yuan finally won.
Thoughtfully considering that Jingliu might not have any patrol tokens, Jing Yuan offered to treat her.
Jingliu shook her head and declined.
She stepped forward, picked the pastry Jing Yuan had recommended, then paid with her jade communicator.
Jing Yuan happened to glimpse the photo on her screen.
His expression froze.
A black-haired man with amber eyes held a white cat while smiling toward the camera.
Jing Yuan: "..."
He blinked slowly and couldn't help looking again.
The other world's Jingliu finished paying, and the screen returned to the home page.
It was still the same man holding the cat.
He hadn't seen wrong.
It wasn't an illusion.
The woman, far less observant than the previous Sword Champion, finally noticed Jing Yuan's gaze.
She looked down, smiled slightly, then introduced the man on the screen in an extremely calm tone.
"He is my husband."
Jing Yuan: "..."
'Who? What? Hus... what? Husband?'
The previous Sword Champion, who had remained silent beside them the whole time, seemed unable to understand this other version of herself.
She frowned deeply, utterly confused.
"Is his swordsmanship very good?"
Afraid the woman might want to spar with Zero, Jingliu hurriedly shook her head.
"He works in administration."
The woman's interest vanished instantly.
Jing Yuan, on the other hand, looked even more interested.
Jingliu knew he was probably trying to gather information.
So she only shared insignificant details.
"We've... been married for many years."
Jing Yuan smiled and casually offered his congratulations.
She's guarding against me probing for information.
She already called him her husband.
Of course they're married.
Soon, the group arrived at the teahouse.
Various takeout bags were scattered across the ground.
The man Jing Yuan had only seen in the jade communicator now stood before them.
He was holding a book and chatting enthusiastically with Dan Heng.
Hearing footsteps, he turned toward them.
His gaze never lingered on the previous Sword Champion.
Instead, it landed precisely on Jingliu from the other world.
The previous Sword Champion glanced at him once before walking straight toward Dan Heng.
"Let's go to the Artisanship Commission..."
The man's eyes lit up as he smiled at his lover.
"Darling..."
The previous Sword Champion's expression stiffened.
She slowly turned her head.
"You call her Darling?"
Zero had no idea why she was asking.
He replied with a polite smile.
"Is there a problem?"
The previous Sword Champion didn't answer.
She turned to look at Jingliu.
'You said you've been married for many years.'
'But you're only two hundred years old.'
'Yet he calls you Darling.'
'So when exactly did the two of you get married?'
Jingliu calmly set down the pastries and sat beside Zero.
"Many years" meant something completely different to long-life species than it did to short-life species.
This wasn't a question that could be examined too closely.
If anyone dug any deeper, she'd probably end up in the Ten-Lords Commission.
Sitting on the wooden bench, her line of sight met only the epiphyllum tattoo on the woman's right arm.
Then she heard the woman ask, "Will you come with me?"
Without hesitation, Jingliu shook her head.
The woman didn't insist.
She only said they still hadn't decided the winner, and if another chance came, they would settle it once and for all.
Before leaving with Dan Heng, she vaguely said that Jing Yuan could explain everything in her place.
Jing Yuan's smile disappeared immediately.
After the two left, he sat across from the man.
A short dagger rested beside him.
It was General Huaiyan's handiwork.
This man could be trusted.
Jing Yuan quickly reached his conclusion.
His gaze drifted for a moment.
'The design at the end of the hilt...'
'Why does it look like Yingxing's engraving?'
The man spoke kindly, "I'm Eric."
Jing Yuan knew immediately it was a fake name.
Since the man hadn't revealed his identity, Jing Yuan likewise concealed the fact that he was the general and only gave his name.
He looked at the book in Eric's hand and smiled.
"I really like one of the Latin sayings in it..."
Eric immediately understood.
"The one that's been translated into several different versions?"
Jing Yuan nodded.
"That's right. The most well-known version is..."
"'May this journey end among the stars.'"
"Besides that version, there's also, 'Through this bitter journey, to reach the heavens.'"
Eric shook his head.
"I don't like the word 'bitter.'"
"Suffering is suffering."
"It isn't something worth praising."
"I prefer another version."
The two looked at each other and spoke in unison.
"Through adversity, to reach the stars."
As soon as he finished speaking, concern appeared on Eric's face.
He immediately began talking about the trouble he had encountered during his journey.
Namely, the previous Sword Champion who had attacked them.
"Is this how the Xianzhou treats its guests?"
"It's really... quite unique."
Since Jing Yuan was hiding his identity, he naturally couldn't shift the blame onto the Jingliu who looked exactly like the previous Sword Champion.
Even if this man was trustworthy, no one would ever benefit another person for no reason.
Jing Yuan looked surprised, his tone full of concern.
"Huh? That happened? Really?"
He shook his head and sighed.
"In all these hundreds of years, I've never heard of anything like that. Then... aren't you going to hide somewhere?"
Eric blinked.
"It doesn't matter."
"My friend says that even if the house collapsed, as long as it didn't kill me, I'd just keep sleeping."
"Besides, this is the Xianzhou Alliance."
"I believe the Xianzhou will definitely give us a reasonable explanation."
"At the very least, they should show some sincerity."
Jing Yuan asked, "What would count as sincerity, in your opinion?"
Eric lowered his head, turned a page of his book, and answered casually, "Withdraw the guards first."
After thinking for a moment, Jing Yuan gestured to the Cloud Knights waiting in the distance.
Once the Cloud Knights withdrew, Jing Yuan decided to trust the judgment of the other Jingliu.
He would speak openly with this man.
"I am Jing Yuan, General of the Luofu..."
Eric nodded and was just about to respond when a red figure suddenly stepped onto the wooden bench.
Jing Yuan's heart skipped a beat.
He had never sensed this person's presence.
Their strength was at least above that of an Emanator.
When had someone like this arrived on the Luofu?
The young man had curly red hair and a carefree smile.
Squatting on the tea table, he stared at Eric with great interest.
Eric ignored him.
After a moment of thought, his expression became troubled.
Jing Yuan observed quietly.
The young man leaned closer without the slightest hesitation and tilted his head.
"Do you like it here?"
'Want to stay?'
Immediately afterward, another red-haired youth hurried over.
Jing Yuan couldn't smile anymore.
Why was there another major figure?
The second youth's hair was even curlier, and their appearance was so delicate it was impossible to tell whether they were male or female.
With a trembling finger, they pointed at the youth on the table.
"Oh? So you actually... you actually..."
Eric frowned slightly and rubbed his forehead.
The newcomer quickly walked over, put a hand on Eric's shoulder, and declared loudly, "Standing before you is Zero, the 'Higher-Dimensional Descender'..."
Jing Yuan clearly saw the smile on the man's face become extremely forced.
The curly-haired youth swiftly leaped away from them and, imitating the tone of an opera performer, announced loudly, "'The Hunt' is his beloved son, 'Destruction' is his fanatical believer. Countless Aeons are willing to die for him. Even if he wounds me and betrays me, Aha will still never abandon him..."
The youth on the table stood up and applauded happily.
One hand over his chest, the curly-haired youth continued, "He is the 'Father of the Xianzhou,' who conquered nearly ten thousand planets for the Xianzhou..."
"His name is known throughout the universe. He is the rightful 'Crownless Emperor'..."
His eyes rolled as he polished the title "strongest human" slightly and said with mock annoyance, "I almost forgot. He's the strongest man in the universe and personally solved the Vidyadhara's reproduction problem..."
The youth on the table nodded repeatedly in agreement.
"That's right. He's the man who let the Vidyadhara reproduce again..."
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