Chapter 66 Xinghe, why did you hurt me?

"Why didn't you say so sooner?" Feng Shisan stamped his foot in frustration. "You're always so meddlesome, but you didn't say a word about something this important?"

Ji Fang looked aggrieved. "Cang Yu is strong-willed. He never mentions the old stories of the Lou family. Only you few don't know. He has to stand tall in front of you, so how could I dare to say anything? Besides, I've already told you everything now."

Feng Shisan rubbed his hands together, glancing repeatedly outside the door. "It's getting late. Where could he have gone? Should we... go and find him?"

"The inner quarters." Guan Ye and A Jiu looked at each other and said in unison. As soon as the words left their mouths, they both got up and chased after them.

Just as Feng Shisan was about to get up and follow, Xiao Ma pressed down on his shoulder and shook his head, "The two of them going is enough."

Fearing that the two might cause trouble again, Ji Fang hurriedly raised his white hands and fawned over them, pouring them some tea. He looked around expectantly and, seeing that the two were sitting facing each other without moving, his mind raced. He got up and quickly bolted the door, then sat cross-legged in front of the doorway.

“Young Master Thirteen wouldn’t go out recklessly.” Xiao Ma was amused by Ji Fang’s silly actions.

"Hey?" Feng Shisan hated being looked down upon the most. "You think I'm spineless, inferior to you, and even inferior to Lou Cangyu?"

Xiao Ma glanced out the window, which Ji Fang took as a hint that Feng Shisan was going to jump out. He leaped up and slammed the window shut, spreading his arms to block the way, as if he wanted to step on him to get out.

"You're the most spirited one." Seeing that no one was outside the window, Xiao Ma spoke up, "And now, you're the most composed one."

Sensing the hidden meaning in Xiao Ma's words, Feng Shisan softened his tone, gave a low snort, and turned away, no longer looking at him.

"On Canglang Island, you exposed my secrets, but you never mentioned your own affairs." Xiao Ma lowered his voice, "Only today did I find out that you probably don't even have the surname Feng."

Feng Shisan stood firm as a rock, while Ji Fang was completely confused. He just hoped the two of them wouldn't cause any trouble. Rongdu was a dangerous place, and he couldn't get through it. He just hoped they wouldn't block his way back to the island.

Inner and outer

Facing the sunset, the sea of ​​clouds on the horizon surged, as if a wind was about to rise. Lou Cangyu didn't know how he had arrived at the entrance of the inner workshop. As dusk fell and the setting sun was like blood, Lou Cangyu stared at it for a long time. A sense of sorrow rose in his heart. He gripped the sword in his hand, looked up at the endless eaves of the inner workshop, and couldn't help but sigh.

The guards recognized the man as a swordsman from Xingguo Ward. Fearing he might be up to no good, they exchanged glances, debating whether to go in and report. Just as one of them was about to turn around, Lou Cangyu raised his head and shouted, "Lou Cangyu from Xingguo Ward, I want to see Wushuang!"

Before nightfall, lights were already lit in the Jingwu Pavilion. The door was open, and Wushuang, dressed in a green robe, was grinding something with her sleeves rolled up. Hearing the approaching footsteps, Wushuang stopped what she was doing, calmly showing Lou Cangyu only a quiet profile, as if she had guessed that he would eventually come to find her.

Lou Cangyu wanted to question her. Wushuang, who had lured him, was only half a zhang away. If he drew his sword, he could hold it to her neck within a few steps and force her to tell him why she had tampered with the sword in Xingguofang. However, staring at her frozen figure, Lou Cangyu felt as if his feet were locked, and he could not take a step forward.

Wushuang rolled up her sleeves, turned around and smiled lightly at Lou Cangyu. The two faced each other silently for a moment. Then Lou Cangyu took a deep breath, picked up his sword and walked into the Jingwu Pavilion.

Lou Cangyu pressed down on his sword. On the table, a porcelain bowl contained freshly ground pyroxene powder. The powder was mixed and extremely difficult to distinguish with the naked eye. Wushuang noticed the confusion in Lou Cangyu's eyes, poured the powder into a fine sieve, sifted out the large particles, and then poured the sieved pyroxene powder back into the porcelain bowl, gently beginning another round of grinding.

“This is diopside.” Wushuang seemed to be talking to himself, but also to Lou Cangyu. “It needs to be ground and sieved at least three times. Even so, the impurities cannot be completely removed using ancient methods. But to the average person, this stone powder is not visible and can be used to a limited extent.”

"So," Lou Cangyu watched Wushuang's skillful movements, "that's the end of it?"

With eyes as bright as sparkling peacocks, she said, “I never force anyone.” Then she sifted through the sieve again, taking only the purest stone powder from the top layer. She repeated this process a hundred times, layer by layer. In the porcelain container, the translucent stone powder shimmered with iridescent light, like tiny specks of the Milky Way cascading down from the heavens.

"You grind the ore into powder to make a refining tool, what are you going to do with it?" Lou Cangyu stared intently at it.

Wushuang glanced at Lou Cangyu. The lamplight flickered on their faces. After waiting for a while without a response, Lou Cangyu looked up and saw the way Wushuang was looking at her. Lou Cangyu suddenly realized that she seemed to have forgotten why she came to the inner workshop.

The man with the blank eyes remained calm. "You have a clever face, but a stubborn mind. The world's ores aren't just for forging tools. There are countless gems; using them for fighting and killing would only tarnish their brilliance." As he spoke, he dipped his fingertip in emerald stone powder, then mixed it with warm water, turning his fingertip a vibrant green that shimmered in the lamplight. "Is it beautiful?"

"Beautiful." Lou Cangyu was lost in the verdant greenery, murmuring to himself, not even knowing what he was saying.

"Kunwu Stone, unparalleled in its strength and sharpness." Wushuang suddenly grabbed Lou Cangyu's wrist, pried open his palm, pressed the green of his fingertips against it, and just as Lou Cangyu was about to pull his hand away, she gripped it tightly again. "Do you know that Kunwu Stone is the color of blue steel, and its transparency is like that of an ice river or the deep sea? Lou Cangyu, have you ever seen it?"

He had only mentioned it once, yet she had remembered his name… Lou Cangyu froze, unable to break free, or perhaps he had fallen into the hunter's trap, the more he struggled, the tighter she bound him. “I come from Canglang Island, of course I've seen the blue of the deep sea. Kunwu Stone… Vajra Kunwu, unparalleled in its strength and sharpness, only such a weapon can cut… cut my sword…”

Wushuang slowly released her grip. "There are thousands of jade stones, not just for forging swords. Lou Cangyu, take a look."

Lou Cangyu opened his palm, which was stained with green ink, and there was a starry river in his palm. When he looked at Wushuang's smiling face, it was like a deep sea whirlpool, pulling him down together.

"My sword..." Lou Cangyu struggled to maintain his composure. Images flashed before his eyes: his ancestor who had died by striking his sword, Pei Chong who had spent half his life in seclusion in a deserted mansion on a remote island, and himself on the Lingbo Terrace, clutching a broken sword, intent on dying. "My sword... was it you... was it you... was it you who used Kunwu Stone..."

"What do you want me to give you in return?" Wushuang raised her head, revealing her slender and bright neck like a swan. "Isn't what I just gave you enough?"

Lou Cangyu stared blankly at the woman before him, slowly bringing his palm close to his eyes. Her eyes were shimmering with a vibrant green, a perfect pair against his reflection. As he hesitated, Wushuang suddenly grabbed his sword. Lou Cangyu instinctively reached out to snatch it, but Wushuang didn't dodge, letting his elbow strike her. She swayed slightly and was about to fall to the ground when Lou Cangyu quickly pulled back, grabbing Wushuang's waist. The girl's soft, boneless body crashed into his arms, her fingers intertwining with his, their palms pressed together, reflecting the starry sky.

"Your sword." Wushuang held the sword and handed it to him. "I, Wushuang, am all alone. If you insist on returning it, all I have is... this life."

Wushuang's neck was exposed right in front of him. Lou Cangyu could easily take her life with just a swipe of his hand and a little force. The cold collar touched the girl's captivating face. She should have had a dazzling and radiant face, but her eyes were so innocent that they made people feel sorry for her.

Lou Cangyu gently choked her throat, his arm slowly pushing her down and pressing her against the table. Cangyu's expression was complicated, while Wushuang showed no fear. Their eyes locked, neither giving an inch. "I shouldn't have lost that day when we tested our swords."

"It's just a temporary win or loss; your vision shouldn't be so shallow." Wushuang's words were playful, causing Lou Cangyu's heart to stir.

Lou Cangyu loosened his grip with difficulty, stood up straight with a deep breath, and said, "Who exactly are you? You came to Rongdu to be a swordsman in the inner workshop, so why did you help the inner workshop plot against me?"

Wushuang met his resentful eyes and said, "I have no grudge against you, why would I harm you? I never thought that the swordsman from Xingguo Ward would be the one."

Lou Cangyu chuckled self-deprecatingly, "No matter who tested the sword for Xingguofang that day, they would have ended up like me. It's just that I was too obsessed and almost committed suicide to die for this broken sword. Looking back now, it's really a joke."

Wushuang reached for Lou Cangyu's neck, but Lou Cangyu, with his head held high, did not flinch. "You won't die, and you won't really want me to die."

Lou Cangyu's eyes darkened. "You caused my crushing defeat before the Emperor, and Xingguo Ware almost suffered another defeat. I hate you to the bone, how could I let you off so easily!"

"You still don't know who I am." Wushuang's smile vanished. "And why I plotted to harm you? If I die, you'll never know."

"If there's a next time!" Lou Cangyu turned his back and took a few steps, then suddenly pointed his sword directly at Wushuang's heart. "If you dare to harm Xingguofang again, I will definitely kill you."

Wushuang remained silent, opening her left palm towards him with a light laugh, her brows seemingly seeing right through Lou Cangyu. Lou Cangyu rubbed his palm together fiercely, but when he opened it again, the color remained as pure as ever.

Wushuang suppressed a laugh, "Diopside dye can last for seven days without fading. Even if you rub your hands raw, you won't be able to remove a single bit."

Lou Cangyu rubbed harder and harder, while Wushuang leaned against the beam with his sword in his arms. A faint smile appeared on his lips, seemingly mocking, but his eyes were full of affection as he watched Lou Cangyu go by. This made Wushuang feel flustered and confused, not knowing what to do.

"Lou Cangyu." Wushuang called out his name again, "On Lingbo Platform, your ambitions were not fulfilled, so I owe you that."

"On the Lingbo Terrace, you said I shouldn't believe in fate, but should believe in myself." Lou Cangyu picked up his sword and then slowly lowered it again. "Today, I can't even believe in myself, so how can I really believe in you?"

As they were talking, a sudden gust of wind arose, and large raindrops began to fall. Lou Cangyu looked up blankly, letting the raindrops patter against his face. Wushuang found an umbrella, stepped out of the Jingwu Pavilion, walked to Lou Cangyu's side, and opened the umbrella to shield him from the rain. "I'll see you out."

Lou Cangyu gazed at Wushuang. Night was falling, and her eyes, like the afterglow of the setting sun, brushed against Lou Cangyu's cold face. Lou Cangyu had once thought that Xingguo Workshop had fallen to this deserted island because of her family's broken sword. Her grandfather and father would never forge swords again, willing to spend their lives burning materials, and she herself would become a swordsman, willing to risk her life for Xingguo Workshop. A century of decline, the Lou family owed everyone. But today, Wushuang actually said to her:

"Your ambitions remain unfulfilled, so I owe you one."

How could the resentment of the Lou family and his own humiliation truly be attributed to a woman? Lou Cangyu, having lived to this day, had never imagined that anyone would shelter him from the storm, especially not… a woman who had seduced him. Overwhelmed with emotion, Lou Cangyu couldn't help but sigh softly, stepping forward to walk with Wushuang into the rain.