864 Surveillance (1/2)
Humming a happy tone, Tie Linglong wiped her narrow saber over and over multiple times, and then slowly inserted it into the sheath, as if she were undergoing a sacred ritual.
Standing ten steps away, Chu Nanping stared at her silently. His eyes had been fixed on her the whole time.
”Why don't you forge two swords that are better paired with each other?” asked Tie Linglong, as if she had forgotten about her resentment towards him.
”The Dragon King gave this sword to me, and a Central Plainsman gave me the other. Both of them are… good swords.” Chu Nanping was very glad that he could talk to her in a normal manner again.
”Oh.” Tie Linglong raised her head slightly as if understanding had suddenly dawned on her, her green eyeballs gleaming like gemstones by the candle light. ”So you do attach sentiments to things people gave you as gifts… But don't you want to be ruthless and emotionless? Isn't this going to adversely influence your swordsmanship?”
Tie Linglong asked these questions in a curious tone, but even Chu Nanping could tell that they were laced with sarcasm. He pondered over the questions carefully for a while. ”This is different. I don't have true feelings for these swords. If they break one day, then I'll just get another one. But you're different-”
”Don't mention me,” interjected Tie Linglong severely. Her attitude had instantly changed.
”Some people are… different,” Chu Nanping adjusted his words. ”They're too important to me, and they become irreplaceable, which makes me feel like I have something to lose, which then influences the strength of the Emotionless Swordsmanship.”
Tie Linglong snorted coldly. Chu Nanping frequently accidentally said some sweet words that moved her, but this time, he just displeased her. ”So how's it going? It's been two months since we stopped seeing each other. Has your swordsmanship recovered?”
”More or less.”
”But you still want to make progress.”
”After forgetting you, I still have to forget myself. There's a long way to go yet.” Chu Nanping told the truth without considering the damage it might cause.
”So you haven't completely forgotten about me yet?”
”I don't know. Everything's fine when you're not in my sight, but once I see you-”
”I'm sorry, but it was the Dragon King who ordered us to perform this task together. Do you want me to cover my face up right now?” Suppressing her indignation, Tie Linglong uttered these words in a tone so calm that one would almost think that she was genuinely sorry.
”No, no, no. This isn't your fault.” Chu Nanping hastily explained, ”My will is not strong enough. It has nothing to do with you.”
Tie Linglong let out a couple of cold snorts, put on a mask, and left the room.
Chu Nanping followed her, finally realizing how hard it was to truly end a relationship.
Xu Xiaoyi immediately told them the address. Then he grabbed Chu Nanping's arm and wanted to talk with his good friend briefly. Tie Linglong walked out of the room with her head erect and waited outside.
Both of them had been in Jade City, but they seldom had any chances to meet. Looking at his best friend, Xu Xiaoyi suddenly felt very embarrassed. It felt just like two little birds who had grown up in the same nest only to realize that one of them was a magpie and the other was a sparrow, and that they barely had anything in common.
”Little Chu, what exactly are you doing?” Xu Xiaoyi hoped to regain the feeling of friendship between them by talking to him.
”Following the Dragon King's orders and monitoring a house.”
”Not that. I mean – her.” Xu Xiaoyi pointed towards the outside. He knew that killers had sharp ears, so he deliberately lowered his voice. ”You've got yourself such a good girl. To be honest, you really surprised me. Why did you give her up? I'm confused.”
”Um…” Chu Nanping pondered over how to clearly explain this issue. ”The first year after I met you, I once tried to kill you.”
”I know. You wanted to practice that Emotionless Swordsmanship, but we played around for a full day and you still didn't do it.” Recalling the past, Xu Xiaoyi felt his feelings for this friend swelled in him. ”Seriously, Little Chu. You're hurting both yourself and others.”
Xu Xiaoyi had a lot of clichés in his mind, but none of them were appropriate for this occasion. After pausing for a while, he continued, saying, ”I think that you can see it yourself. Tie Linglong's a pretty girl, and she's no longer a child. Tsk, tsk… Little Chu, when another guy lands her, you'll regret it, but it will be too late by then.”
”If I regret it, then it means that my swordsmanship cultivation will have failed,” Chu Nanping replied blandly. He didn't seem convinced at all.
”Alas, you're my best friend. I'm your best friend too, aren't I?”
”Um,” after thinking for a while, Chu Nanping answered affirmatively.
Xu Xiaoyi knew him well. And he also knew that this ”Um” after a brief hesitation was more valuable than ten thousand sweet words from someone else. ”Then let me be honest with you. You won't make a good killer, much less a ruthless swordsman. That's not who you are. Practicing the Emotionless Swordsmanship is a mistake for you. Stop this while you still can and be a normal guy. Nobody is forcing you to be invincible – the Dragon King wouldn't do that either. He's a reasonable man… ”
”Thank you,” Chu Nanping interjected inexplicably.
”For what?” Xu Xiaoyi was confused.
”From now on, we're no longer friends.” Chu Nanping turned and left.
Stroking his moustache, Xu Xiaoyi mumbled, ”It's so much easier to be a fair weather friend. Alas.”
But he was not anxious, since this wasn't the first time that they had gotten in trouble with each other and he believed that they would eventually make up. Then he thought of Tie Linglong. ”She's grown up,” he mumbled. Putting aside any immoral thoughts, he was truly worried about his best friend.
Lotus had been hiding Shangguan Shaomin and Han Xuan in a large courtyard in northern Jade City and the owner of this courtyard was the King of An Kingdom of Xiaoyao Lake.
When the Dragon King and the Unique King were fighting for the control of Xiaoyao Lake, King An had been the first one to take sides, and it was for that the very reason that he lost any room to maneuver and eventually had been left with no choice but to retreat to Jade City with Golden Roc Army, letting the crown fall into the hands of another royal family member who was of a younger generation.
Xu Xiaoyi had discovered this shelter totally by accident and he had always wondered how King An had ended up colluding with Waning Moon Hall.
After crossing a river and climbing over some walls in southern Jade City, Chu Nanping and Tie Linglong sneaked into a small dwelling near King An's mansion. Along the way, they had cooperated tacitly and not spoken a single word.