【Nighttime Serenity】(1-2)

(I)
The silvery light of night shone down, and bloodstains
dripped from the neck of a man in blue robes on the uneven road. His breath quickly dissipated into the cold air, making his short body appear even more hunched.
Escape, escape.
At this moment, I was frantically moving through the woods, and I seemed to hear the sounds of pursuit behind me. My muddled mind
gradually blurred as blood flowed from my carotid artery, but only my heart remembered these
words that I could never forget.
Qing'er is dead. I seemed to smell my beloved maid being cut in half at the waist while intercepting the enemy, leaving behind a woman's desperate
scream. The trace of blood at the corner of my mouth began to writhe painfully again. I would rather have died long ago
under that cold, moon-like woman's sword.
But...
I cannot die, I must avenge myself. Even a weak groan seemed like a luxury. I clenched my fists, trembling, and
the image of a refined gentleman transformed into that of a ferocious ghost.
"Guo Xiao, you vile man! How dare you defile my sect's holy maiden! This day next year will be your death anniversary! Prepare to
die!" Several women, swords drawn, surrounded my elderly father and the villagers. Seeing the silver phoenix
pattern adorning the hem of the girl's dress, and under my mother's stern yet helpless glare, my heart trembled with pain. I couldn't believe that just hours
before, the beautiful woman I had been with, so tender and fragrant, the woman whose virginity I had taken, the
gentle girl I had rescued who had lost her memory, was actually... was actually... was actually
Yin Lian'er, the ruthless and bloodthirsty holy maiden of the Phoenix Sect.
Did she remember nothing?
Did she not remember how the Guo family had cared for her so tenderly when they found her wounded at the foot of the cliff
?
Did she forget the passionate embrace of man and woman under the silvery moonlight by the village well?
Did she not remember the joy of their wedding night, the embroidered mandarin ducks on the wedding cup?
How could she forget?
How could she do this?
"You ungrateful beast!" the old father spat angrily at the even more aloof and beautiful Qi Qingmei
. A cold glint flashed in the beauty's eyes, a murderous intent rising within her. With a flash of cold light, amidst the mother's sorrowful and hateful cries
, the father slowly collapsed.
"You vile wench, I'll fight you to the death!" The mother, born into a scholarly family, grabbed the father's knife in grief and rage
, aiming it at Qi Qingmei. Before she reached halfway, she slowly fell, her eyes wide open, blood seeping through her silk robes and down her back
. My mind went blank, as if struck by lightning. My gentle and refined face instantly contorted with rage. I drew my sword and pointed it at
Yin Lian'er, who had turned away with a hint of guilt. The affection we had shared for the past few days vanished instantly.
"Why!" I looked at Lian'er with grief and indignation, only to see her face as pale as paper, clearly not
expecting this at all. She murmured, "Who told you to take my virginity, to destroy my
'Jade Shaping Skill,' which was far superior to Master's? Master will surely be questioned by the three elders. Although I don't remember our
marital bond, I didn't want this to happen." "Him? This weak, pathetic man is unworthy to be your husband
?" Qi Qingmei glanced at me contemptuously. "An ant-like man, he's dead, so be it. Why should Lian'er be heartbroken over him
?" "Master!" "Since you've done it, do it cleanly." Qi Qingmei blinked her beautiful eyelashes and
uttered these heinous words, one by one, "Mei, Lan, Zhu, Ju, kill everyone in Guo Family Village and burn
the village down." "You!" I shouted resentfully, seeing fear in the trembling eyes of my fellow villagers, the impending
carnage seemingly obscuring their clear, innocent eyes.
I hated it all, hated my own powerlessness.
Did power make me so great? One day, I…
"Master!" "Send the Holy Maiden back to the sect." Qi Qingmei sternly swept her gaze over the remaining followers. I
smiled coldly, knowing she was establishing her authority. With the Holy Maiden's power greatly diminished, her influence within the sect was undoubtedly far less
than before.
"You wretch, today you repay kindness with enmity, disregarding our marital bond! I, Guo Xiao, swear that one day I will humiliate you in every way possible!!
" My venomous gaze fell upon Qi Qingmei, a woman whose true age was over thirty, secretly plotting how to escape
the encirclement. Today, the situation was against me; I was at their mercy, but I swore I
would not be human until I avenged the blood feud of my parents! I roared inwardly,
a surge of boundless hatred for Qi Qingmei and her Phoenix Cult followers burning within me.
"Haha," with each scream, Qi Qingmei's tightly furrowed brows relaxed.
Outside the burning houses, several elegant young women indifferently brandished their swords, killing unarmed villagers. Perhaps
blending into the tragic scene, a strange smile flickered in their beautiful eyes, like a ghostly
figure in the deep darkness.
My mind cleared, and I trembled as I stealthily approached a pretty young woman who coldly watched the slaughter. Her indifferent
face sent a chill down my spine.
"Die, you will all die." I gritted my teeth, suppressing the heartache of bloodshed, my sword pressed against the girl's terrified
expression, a bloodthirsty urge rising within me.
"Get out of my way!" I ruthlessly slashed my sword, cutting a line of crimson blood across the girl's swan-like neck. Under
Qi Qingmei's cold and disdainful gaze, I seemed to gain a strange courage from this act of taking a hostage.
Images of my parents, renowned philanthropists in the surrounding county, nurturing and educating me from childhood flashed through my mind,
fueling my hatred.
"Let Luanluan go!" several girls beside me shouted angrily. The girl in my arms, her stiff body seemingly recovering
, trembled as I had, clearly terrified: "...No...no...kill me
..." I glared fiercely at Qi Qingmei, only to see a mocking sneer in her eyes: "Let him go, let's
see how far he can go."I dragged the girl into a low-lying grove of trees behind the manor. The area in front of the manor was flat, and I'd heard that the 　　Phoenix Cult members were exceptionally skilled in light-footed martial arts; going that way would be certain death. A short walk through the grove would lead to Yazhou Prefecture. 　　Even if the Phoenix Cult members were audacious, I doubted they would dare commit such a heinous act openly in the city. With only a few poor relatives, I couldn't bring myself to do it.

Seeking refuge with them, it seems I can only hide first and then seek revenge.
They didn't chase after me? I wondered, but my hands moved swiftly. The hilt of my sword struck
the girl's head heavily, and gritting my teeth, I twisted the sword sharply, plunging it into the woman's chest. A spurt of blood gushed out,
staining my blue robe. "I...I killed someone." In my dazed state, I felt
a piercing pain in my shoulder, and I ducked in horror, only to feel a sharp pain in my neck. Thick blood immediately flowed down,
and I heard an angry, anxious cry. A girl rushed towards me. Without a moment's hesitation, I
ran frantically into the depths of the woods.
Escape, escape!
The faces and voices of my loved ones flashed before my eyes. Struggling between life and death, I
suddenly sank downwards during my escape, and a gray, gloomy darkness began to fill my mind.
I don't know when the unique, delicate voice of my pursuer gradually faded. A comforting and warm guidance enveloped me, and before I knew it,
my eyes were brimming with tears. The icy touch I felt seemed to invade the contradiction and entanglement between life and death. I heard
the babbling of a stream and, with all my strength, opened my eyes.
I remembered Qi Qingmei's vicious laughter.
I remembered Yin Lian'er's guilty expression.
I recalled the terror and despair of the girl who pierced Luanluan's heart.
My father and mother's pre-wedding admonitions. The death and coldness brought upon me by the curse of beauty.
I almost fell, didn't I?
How beautiful it is to be alive.
That night, the stars filled the sky.
(II)
By the stream, I tugged at my tattered fleeing jacket, gazing at my reflection, only to find I no longer recognized myself
. My hair had fallen out, disheveled, a ghostly figure. Perhaps I could regain my former gentle appearance,
but the three-centimeter gash on my left cheek, carved by a branch, marred my handsome features. My cheekbones were sunken, and my eyes,
though bloodshot, shone brightly. "
I've died once," I murmured, touching my face, a surge of hatred rising within me for Qi Qingmei. The thought
that such a beautiful woman could be so heartless filled me with a burning rage, a desire to tear her to pieces. Guo
Family Village was an ordinary village, but my father had painstakingly built a vast fortune, yet remained cautious in his words and actions, earning a good
reputation in the surrounding county. My father was fond of martial arts, honing his skills but remaining uninvolved in the martial world. He had also shown kindness to many martial artists.
I had heard of the Phoenix Sect from past martial artists; it was one of the major forces in the martial arts world, headquartered
near Baoshi Mountain in Hangzhou. All members were women and they did not marry outside the sect. The sect leader, Yin Fei, had an ambiguous relationship with a high-ranking official in the imperial palace.
I never imagined that fate would be so cruel, allowing good people to die tragically and evil people to run rampant!
I changed my clothes at a nearby farmhouse, grabbed some food, and fearing the Phoenix Sect would
completely wipe out this area, I found a cave and stayed there for a few days, allowing the sword wound on my neck to heal slowly, scabbing over and peeling
away a layer of dead skin. Afterwards, I cautiously went out to investigate, only to find that not a single Phoenix Sect disciple was looking for
me. What happened? Had that vicious woman, Qi Qingmei, given up searching for me? I immediately dismissed
that possibility. No, it couldn't be. Didn't she say she wanted to eliminate all traces of the culprit?
Recalling the woman's inexplicable, sinister smile as I fled and the scene after I entered the woods, a sense of doubt and fear
rose in my heart.
What was this woman thinking?
Stepping into Yazhou City, gazing at the long-unseen inn and houses, a wave of sorrow washed over me. Filled with
the pain of being lost and alone, I fiddled with the silver pouch tied to my waist and entered the lakeside inn, a place I had never frequented before
.
"Waiter, a pot of good wine and a plate of sliced meat, please." "Coming right up, sir, please wait a moment." The waiter's
fawning smile vanished instantly upon seeing the coarse clothes I had stolen from the farmer's house. Just then, a fierce-looking镖师 (bodyguard/escort) entered, and the kind,
timid commoners scattered like birds. The waiter dared not delay, tossing out a few words before going to attend to the other customers,
leaving me with only a self-deprecating smile.
"Have you heard? The Phoenix Cult raided the nearby Guo Family Village, and the entire Guo family was wiped out!" "Really
? Didn't they say the young master of the Guo family escaped?" "Haha, you've all been fooled. The young master of the Guo family is probably
dead already. It's just some busybody spreading rumors!"
"How do you know…?"
"Of course. In recent years, have any people who offended the Phoenix Cult survived? Besides…" "Besides what?
" A sleazy bodyguard interjected.
"The Phoenix Cult didn't even conduct a thorough search. I refuse to believe they'd let the Guo family off so easily.
" "I heard the young master of the Guo family abducted a female disciple from another cult…hehe, that cult is full of beauties
! Ah, the young master of the Guo family is truly living a life of romance, even as a ghost…" "Come on, beauties need to be alive
to enjoy them."
"That Guo family, I've heard of them too," the old shopkeeper said, coming out from the inner room, "The patriarch of the Guo family
was a very good man. Many people have benefited from his kindness. Guo's Laifu often came here for pure yellow osmanthus wine.
I knew him; he was an honest and kind man. I never expected him to be gone like this…" "Sigh, with the Phoenix Cult's ruthlessness
, who in Hangzhou doesn't know? A group of women living together like that, and the court doesn't even send anyone to manage it?
What kind of behavior is this? It's morally reprehensible!" "Shh, keep your voice down. A woman who looks like she's from the Phoenix Cult checked in yesterday.
Don't anger them; they're ruthless killers!" The innkeeper pulled aside a few scholars who were gossiping and whispered.
"This world, sigh..." One scholar wanted to say something, but he pursed his lips and suddenly stopped.
During the conversation, I, who wasn't a big drinker to begin with, had already emptied several bottles of wine. The alcohol was rising in my head. Hearing the innkeeper's
cowardly words, I glared at him, staggered to my feet, slammed my hand on the table, and roared, "What's there
to be afraid of? The Phoenix Cult is committing all sorts of evil deeds; is there no law anymore?" The inn suddenly fell silent.i=67> The scholar who had just spoken seemed to have seen something extremely terrifying; his teeth chattered, and 　　he couldn't utter a single word. 　　 Seeing that no one agreed with my resounding words, I thought to myself, "This world is so dark!" Enraged, I laughed and cursed:

"You bunch of scholars and intellectuals, spouting 'for the country and for the name,' yet you dare not even comment on this filthy Phoenix Cult?
Heh, bah! You're not even as good as me, a scholar who hasn't even taken the provincial examination!" I never imagined that
the few words I uttered in the inn, so perfectly reflecting my own state of mind, would change my life forever. At that moment, in that place, I began to fall
into a mystery I could never understand or sort out, and finally, following the clues, I found an
answer I neither expected nor wanted to have. As I said those words, I had already begun to frown
and suspect Qi Qingmei, the woman who killed my entire family but spared me alone. If I'm not mistaken, this story should have
started with Yin Lian'er, the injured and amnesiac girl, moving into the Guo family.
"Is there such a thing as a scarred, vicious scholar like you?" one of the scholars said in a low, aggrieved voice.
I was startled, realizing in my drunken stupor that I was still a "fugitive" struggling in danger and unable to act conspicuously.
Just as I was about to take a step away, I felt a chill on my neck, which had just healed, and goosebumps rose all over my body.
Suddenly realizing what was happening, my expression changed drastically, only to hear a clear, cold female voice say in my ear, "
My sir, you surely understand the saying 'disaster comes from the mouth.'"
(To be continued)

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