Food Fairy Lord

Chapter 812 Eyes flashing with swords and spears, hearts burning with hatred and enmity (Part 5)
Spring rain fell like silk in the courtyard of Mingyue Palace, the flowers and trees were fresh and lush, and the air was filled with a cool, light fragrance.

Pei Ye stood quietly to one side.

"What's wrong?" Yue Muzhou asked.

"It's nothing," Ying Suyu said softly.

"You cried."

"I miss you."

"Isn't that right here?"

Ying Suyu didn't speak, she just cried.

“…Miss Ying”.

"Great Hero, I had a dream."

"What dream?"

“I dreamt that you went north and were killed, and there was no news of you since,” Ying Suyu said. “They tortured you until you were unrecognizable, smashed your meridian tree, and took your sword, your eyes… You are no longer in this world.”

"It doesn't sound like it's entirely impossible."

"My dream felt very real."

"That's how the martial world is. I roam around, killing whoever I want without any scruples, and maybe one day I'll be killed by someone else," Yue Muzhou said. "Then my life will be over, and there's nothing to regret."

"You said that before."

“Yes, three years ago. I survived by the skin of my teeth, killing Lou Wuxiao and your master. My bones were almost all broken, and I was lying on the carriage back to the capital,” Yue Muzhou said. “You were the one who spoke to me first.”

Ying Suyu was silent for a moment, then said, "Great Hero Yue, shall we say it again?"

"Of course."

Ying Suyu smiled, then composed himself and looked down at him: "Young Master Yue, take good care of your injuries. Once I've settled the sect's affairs, I'll go to the capital to find you and repay your kindness."

Yue Muzhou pretended to look at Liu Ye: "My injuries are severe, and Shenjing is a very large city... so it may not be easy for us to meet."

Ying Suyu said, "Didn't Young Hero Yue say that the Hundred Playhouse in Shenjing is still there? I'll go to the Hundred Playhouse to wait for you on February 1st next year. I'll send a letter to Young Hero Yue before I go."

"Haha, after I recover from my injury, I will go about my own business and my whereabouts will be uncertain. I may not be able to receive any letters from Miss Ying."

Ying Suyu said earnestly, "Then every year on February 1st, I will wait for you at the Hundred Playground."

“…Miss Ying, you have already seen how dangerous the world is. I wander to the ends of the earth, killing those I want to kill, but one day I will be killed by someone else.” Yue Muzhou said, “You don’t need to worry about me.”

"As long as Young Hero Yue lives, I will remember you." Ying Suyu said, "If that day ever comes, I will definitely avenge you."

"..."

Ying Suyu looked at him and smiled: "Young Master Yue still came to see me at the Hundred Plays Garden the following year."

Yue Muzhou sighed softly: "I know Miss Ying is a hero who keeps her word. If you stand there every year, even if there is nothing between us, people outside will say that Yue Muzhou is a heartless man."

Ying Suyu looked at him tenderly.

Pei Ye looked into the woman's eyes, which held countless emotions, like a jar of aged wine. Pei Ye was captivated by her gaze.

Yue Muzhou did not realize that the woman was not the same woman who had left, just as He Jiu of Huanlou would not say that they were not the guests from back then. Perhaps the disguise really worked, or perhaps in such a gentle mirage, there was no such thing as reality or falsehood.

“Teach him to use the Unfettered Sword properly,” Ying Suyu said softly. “You want to be alone, but you don’t like being alone. I cling to you shamelessly, and you find it annoying but also protect me. Teach him to use the sword properly. If you die, there will still be someone in this world who can continue to use your sword and do what you want to do.”

Yue Muzhou glanced at the boy beside him again: "Then it's settled, I don't take on apprentices."

Pei Ye said in a low voice, "Take it or leave it."

Yue Muzhou clicked his tongue.

"Is that person very strong?" Yue Muzhou waved to Pei Ye, who walked over and sat down next to him. The two of them looked at the rain under the eaves, the lower half of their sword sheaths soaked in the rain.

Ying Suyu leaned against the side with a smile.

"...He has a very, very fast sword technique."

"How fast? Faster than Unrestrained?"

“How could it be faster than Wuju?” Pei Ye pursed her lips. “Wuju is the fastest sword in the world.”

"of course."

“So it’s not faster than Wuju,” Pei Ye said, “it’s just faster than me.”

"Faster than you?"

"……Um."

Pei Ye looked at the drizzling rain under the eaves.

Even if he could clearly see the clumsiness of that sword strike and realize its mere form, even if Ying Daoshou said that the sword strike was slow in her eyes, to Pei Ye, that sword strike was indeed faster than anything else.

The same must be true for the entire Fu Bang.

That was the afterimage left by the man at the very top of the palace, just before he was about to ascend into the Heavenly Tower. Even though he was just a shell, his speed was beyond human comprehension.

Pei Yehui had two unrestricted paths: one was from the steps below his seat to the Bright Moon Palace; the other was within eight zhang of each other, on a flat, open ground, from his sword to the other's throat.

The sword strike he saw on the Winter Sword Platform yesterday was almost identical to the first one, but much faster than the second.

He told Ying Daoshou that when there was no [Sleeve Tiger], the two swords were almost the same, but in fact, even if [Sleeve Tiger] was activated, Wuju would not become "faster".

It's just more "absolute".

Are you afraid of him?

"Not afraid."

Pei Ye was not afraid to fight against Yong Ji; in fact, he found it almost unbearable.

But Yong Ji has indeed become stronger. He possesses the old man's former Immortal Eyes, which allow him to see through many swords. And since he has the blood of mountains and seas, Pei Ye's Unbounded Strike might not be able to kill him, but Yong Ji's Unbounded Strike will definitely sever Pei Ye's head.

Pei Ye pursed his lips, making no attempt to hide his low spirits.

It would be a tough battle, but Pei Ye wasn't worried about tough battles; he was used to them. However, he was genuinely concerned that the sword had ended up in the hands of someone surnamed Yong.

He turned to look at the man beside him. Yue Muzhou's deep and bright eyes were also looking at him. The strange pattern was still spreading across his left eye. It was neither swollen nor terrifying. In fact, it had an ancient and beautiful feel, like the pattern on a bottle from thousands of years ago.

Pei Ye thought of Ying Suyu's description of its "recording" effect and recalled [Zhaoyou].

"Who can you beat?" Yue Muzhou asked.

Pei Ye was silent for a moment: "If one day someone else gets hold of your eye and uses the Unbound you left inside, how will you fight back... It's not that you can't beat them, I'm just asking you."

Yue Muzhou turned his head: "You see, what annoys me is his sharp tongue..."

“You’re way worse than him.” Ying Suyu glared at him. “Answer quickly.”

Yue Muzhou turned back and said, "Then it's not unrestrained."

"But it's fast."

"Fast isn't good either."

"It's not fast either."

Yue Muzhou looked up at him: "No matter how fast it is, Wuju is the fastest sword in the world. Now that you have mastered it, what is there to worry about?"

Pei Ye paused for a moment, then said, "I haven't mastered it... I'm not good at using it." Yue Muzhou looked at him intently for a second, then said, "You have to believe in yourself."

"……what?"

Yue Muzhou looked down at his sword: "Swords are magical things. They can bring miracles and are omnipotent. If you worry that you can't beat them, you're bound to lose. If you believe that the opponent is just a piece of trash, your sword will give you the answer."

Pei Ye had never heard such a mysterious theory from Ming Qitian before, and he was stunned: "Then I believe I can beat you."

“No, you don’t believe me,” Yue Muzhou said.

"..." Pei Ye was stunned. "Yes, I don't believe it."

He paused for a moment, then said, "Can you teach me how to truly use 'Unfettered'?"

Yue Muzhou frowned: "I already said, no—"

Ying Suyu said, "Be gentle."

Yue Muzhou tilted his head: "Who is this person to you?"

“Teach children to be gentle,” Ying Suyu repeated.

"There is no such thing as true freedom." Yue Muzhou lowered his head, drew a section of his sword, which gleamed brightly. "If you ask, I will tell you that [freedom] is a sword that can be wielded at will. As long as you desire and believe, you can use it."

"...Desire? Belief?"

"Yes. You know how to use this sword, don't you?"

"I know both."

Yue Muzhou stood up and took the sword from his lap and handed it to him: "Come on, give it a try."

Pei Ye was slightly taken aback and stood up as well. Ying Suyu watched them from the side. The two were eight zhang apart. Pei Ye closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

A gentle spring breeze stirred, then the sound of the wind in the courtyard ceased with a "clang," and Pei Ye stood behind Yue Muzhou, a gleaming sword in his hand. Yue Muzhou held the sword horizontally to his throat, his clothes and hair fluttering.

"Do you think you didn't use this 'Unrestrained' technique well?" Yue Muzhou asked.

Pei Ye was silent for a moment: "You said 'unrestrained' means instantaneous, but it's not fast enough in my hands. You've blocked it."

“I’ve already said it, that’s because you don’t believe you can beat me,” Yue Muzhou said.

“…” Pei Ye was stunned.

“Because you don’t believe that this sword can really be faster than me, can really sever my throat—your ‘thought’ hasn’t reached it,” Yue Muzhou sheathed his sword. “How could the sword reach it?”

"..."

“But your other sword is faster than mine, isn’t it?” Yue Muzhou said. “You are very determined about that sword.”

"..."

The spring rain fell quietly and gently. Yue Muzhou held his sword to his chest: "Wuju is my sword. I never expected that anyone else in this world would learn it. Since you have learned it, I take it as a blessing from heaven. So what I have in my heart, you must also have."

The man raised a finger and gently tapped his chest; the powerful thumping was felt by both of them.

Yue Muzhou looked at him: "If I say this out loud, I'll inevitably be ridiculed. But this is how I think. No matter how weak I am, no matter how strong the enemy is, I will always believe that I can defeat them with this sword. No matter how fast the enemy's sword is, I will definitely be faster than him."

"Now, I ask you, Pei Ye," Yue Muzhou said, "do you not believe you can defeat me, the one who has been summoned to the capital?"

Pei Ye was stunned.

Yue Muzhou looked at him earnestly: "The only true freedom in the world is the similarity between our hearts. Look at me, Pei Ye, if I were to kill you right now, would you dare to accept the challenge?"

"..."

Pei Ye stared at him intently.

The wind and rain came and went in the courtyard, and the willow branches rustled and swayed.

……

……

"Is it stressful to talk to him at this time?" The leader of Shenxiao Dao asked the young man as they walked in the woods outside Mingyue Palace.

Pei Ye gripped his sword and looked up at the night sky: "...No, actually I quite like it. Grandpa Yue has never taught me swordsmanship like this before."

“The Spirit Realm is indeed wondrous,” Ying Suyu said. “If I come tomorrow, will he still remember me?”

Pei Ye shook his head: "That was just a shadow, Senior Ying."

"……yes."

“The mirage changes with the reality it is in. If Senior Ying comes to the Bright Moon Palace every day for dozens of days, just like me, his shadow will also be left there. That way, he will remember Senior Ying,” Pei Ye said. “However, an old shadow is an old shadow. I can imprint myself into the mirage, but I can never bring Grandpa Yue out.”

"Did you understand what he just taught you?" Ying Suyu asked.

Pei Ye paused for a moment: "Senior Ying. In January and February, I came here every day to practice Wuju. I thought to myself, I must learn it, I must learn it... Later, as I practiced, I was actually faster than Grandpa Yue. At that time, I didn't know what Wuju was, I just thought that I was practicing diligently. Only today do I understand."

Ying Suyu tilted his head: "What?"

“Either, this Grandpa Yue doesn’t know how to use [Unfettered] at all,” Pei Ye smiled, “he’s just a shadow left behind by the Mirage. Or… Grandpa Yue back then wasn’t actually confident.”

"..."

“He wasn’t actually confident that he could protect Empress Wei,” Pei Ye said.

Ying Suyu remained silent for a long time before saying, "Perhaps that's the case."

Pei Ye said, "Senior Ying, thank you very much."

Ying Suyu looked at him.

"To be honest, Senior Ying, the first thing I thought of when I saw that sword at the Winter Sword Platform the other day was this Bright Moon Palace," Pei Ye said softly. "I really wanted to come here... It was like, like I was desperately seeking comfort, seeking proof. Proving that the sword was mine, proving the relationship between me and Grandpa Yue... I felt like they were touching places I couldn't touch."

Ying Suyu looked at him tenderly.

Pei Ye said earnestly, "Senior Ying brought me here, and the young Grandpa Yue taught me how to use a sword. I feel very warm and at ease... It's as if I had become your disciple twenty years ago, and none of this has ever happened."

Ying Suyu said gently, "If we had met twenty years ago, I would definitely have taken you as my disciple."

"Is it not possible now?" Pei Ye smiled.

Ying Suyu laughed and said, "It's possible now. Would you like to become a Taoist priest?"

Pei Ye tilted his head back, and the two walked quietly for a while.

“Should be the first.”

"Ok?"

"Do you think I need to confirm here that I am Grandpa Yue's successor?"

Ying Suyu said, "Of course not."

“Yes. Of course not,” Pei Ye said. “My acquaintance and friendship with Grandpa Yue were already completed during the seventeen years in Fenghuai. Back then, we ate and lived together, and I remember better than anyone how good Grandpa Yue was to me.”

“I always say I’m not worthy to be his successor, but it’s actually just self-pity,” he said. “I feel like he’s dead, just like he doesn’t want me anymore. I’m getting angry at someone who doesn’t exist.”

"..."

“Senior Ying, you see, he must really like me. He was willing to teach me his secret skills after only a few meetings. We spent seventeen years together afterward, how could he not regard me as his successor?”

Pei Ye lowered his head and slowly tightened his grip on the hilt of the sword at his waist.

(End of this chapter)