The duel between Yan Liang and Yao Yue later became almost a tradition in the martial arts world. Whenever Yao Yue visited, a crowd would inevitably gather to watch. Neither side cared about it, but Yao Yue always made a grand and bustling entrance when she left the palace, so even if one didn't want to, one would still notice.
Those who initially came to watch the spectacle left afterward, marveling that even someone as skilled in martial arts as Yaoyue was no match for Yan Liang, and also thinking that Yan Liang could be so ruthless towards someone as beautiful as Yaoyue—but even in her disheveled state, the stunning beauty was still beautiful.
The Yihua Palace naturally wouldn't allow anyone to see the Palace Master Yaoyue in such a disheveled state. Later, when anyone heard the news of Yaoyue leaving the valley and wanted to go and watch, they were often stopped by the Yihua Palace disciples not far from where the two were fighting.
But they were also very cunning; if they weren't allowed to watch, they wouldn't, and instead waited around, determined to see the outcome of the competition with their own eyes.
Unsurprisingly, Yan Liang wins every time.
Having witnessed the spectacle and learned the outcome, they were satisfied and ready to leave. However, Yan Liang had a sudden inspiration and discovered a business opportunity.
Many people came to confirm the outcome of the match. Yan Liang said he wanted his fortune told, and indeed, some restless people went to him. After a few times, he even made a lot of money.
When Yaoyue learned of this news, she was so angry that she vomited blood, feeling that Yan Liang was completely unreasonable.
Yi Yaoqing and Xuan Yuantianjiu felt that Yan Liang's actions were inexplicably subtle, but Yan Liang was happy to receive the copper coins, and then went to buy some small gifts for Jiang Feng's two sons with the money bag in his hand.
Jiang Feng and Hua Yuenü officially married in Jiangnan for more than half a year before giving birth to twins.
The older brother is more mature, while the younger brother is mischievous. The two little guys were playful when they were young and would often switch identities, making it impossible for others to tell who was who.
Yi Yaoqing and Xuan Yuantianjiu had both been fooled, but Yan Liang could always recognize them. Occasionally, when he was in the mood, he would play along. However, his younger brother was too naughty and fell from a tree while climbing it, leaving a short scar on his eyebrow, which became a mark.
Yan Liang thought of using scar removal cream to remove the scar on the little guy, but to his surprise, the little guy proudly puffed out his chest and refused, believing that the scar was proof that he was better than his brother.
The scar was inconspicuous, short and shallow, so his parents didn't care and let him have it.
But after that, the two could no longer fool anyone when they switched identities, and the scar became a symbol of their identities.
The two brothers were a bit distressed. After struggling for a few days because they found they could no longer play the game, they decisively abandoned it, came up with a new game, and enjoyed it immensely.
—————
Hua Yuenü was worried that Yaoyue would seek revenge in twenty years, so she taught her two children martial arts from a young age. However, she only taught them the martial arts techniques of the Yihua Palace. Yaoyue was the master of the Yihua Jieyu and Mingyu Gong techniques. Yan Liang and Yan Nantian then discussed teaching them together. After the two brothers grew up a little, they also took them out to see the world.
When Yaoyue came to challenge him to a duel, she saw the two brothers and her expression changed drastically. They looked very much like Jiang Feng, which made Yaoyue feel a pang of pain in her heart. After the pain, a subtle feeling of confusion and helplessness washed over her.
Lianxing had already prepared herself mentally, but seeing the twins who looked so much like Jiang Feng still made her feel sad.
Yan Liang and Yao Yue fought. Yao Yue was already in a state of turmoil. After being defeated by Yan Liang under the watchful eyes of the two children, she became even more furious. She gave Yan Liang a cold look, uttered some harsh words, and left with a flick of her sleeve.
Lianxing didn't rush back with her sister. Instead, she walked up to Yi Yaoqing and asked, "Are you coming back?"
Her gaze shifted slightly towards Yan Liang, who was lazily leaning on his talisman and giving her a friendly smile. Xuan Yuan Tian Jiu, holding the hands of two children, frowned slightly at Lian Xing's words.
The two children looked at Lianxing, then at Yi Yaoqing, and tilted their heads in unison.
Yi Yaoqing hesitated for a moment: "I..."
Lianxing said, "You don't have to come back if you don't want to."
Yi Yaoqing was a little confused, blinked, and didn't know how to reply.
Lianxing looked at her. Yi Yaoqing had been away from the palace for many years, and the changes were obvious. Now, she looked at him calmly, without any of the fear she used to have.
"Never mind, you'd better watch yourself." After looking at her for a while, Lianxing finally spoke, "Report his whereabouts on time."
Yi Yaoqing nodded vigorously, watching Lianxing gracefully leave. She then turned to look at her two friends with a puzzled expression, but they didn't care about the reason why Lianxing had said those things.
Yan Liang said, "It seems you're reluctant to part with us."
Xuanyuan Tianjiu also said, "It's good that we're not going back."
Although the two children didn't know what had happened, they also shouted, "It's good that we're not going back!"
Yi Yaoqing sighed helplessly, but her mood strangely brightened.
The two children followed them on their travels across the land and learned that Yan Liang was both "the most handsome man in the world" and "the deadly Yama," a title they found very contradictory.
"Uncle Yan, if you are the most handsome man in the world, why do they still call you Yama? Yama is very ugly."
His younger brother asked him.
To children, the King of Hell, with his blue face, fangs, and fierce appearance, is incredibly ugly and terrifying.
Yan Liang rested his chin on his hand as he looked at the two little ones and laughed, "I used to be really ugly, my face was covered in scars."
The two brothers looked at him, their expressions of confusion mirroring his fair and handsome face.
"Uncle is very handsome."
"That's what my brother said."
Yan Liang reached out and patted the two children on the head, smiling as he said, "Thank you—do you want to know who was the most handsome man in the world before me?"
The younger brother answered quickly: "Uncle Xuanyuan!"
Xuan Yuan Tian Jiu laughed from the side, while Yan Liang shook his head: "No."
The older brother thought for a moment and said, "Father."
Yan Liang clapped his hands: "That's right!"
Knowing that their father was once the "most handsome man in the world" and had the nickname "Jade Gentleman," the two brothers couldn't help but pester Jiang Feng to ask him about his exploits in the martial arts world when they returned home.
When they were a little older, they learned about the agreement between Yihua Palace and Yan Liang, as well as their mother's relationship with Yihua Palace. They resolved to practice martial arts diligently, striving to ensure that Yaoyue would never have the opportunity to seek revenge twenty years later.
By then, they had witnessed Yan Liang and Yao Yue's matches several times, and their only impression of Yao Yue was that she "always lost to Uncle Yan." Thus, they were certain of one thing—if they could defeat Yan Liang, they could defeat Yao Yue.
However, they failed to defeat Yan Liang until Yan Liang died twenty years later, but they defeated Yao Yue twenty years later.
————
Yan Liang had also been to the Valley of Villains—some onlookers in the martial arts world, curious about Yan Liang's true strength, set a trap to lure him in. Yan Liang knew it was a trap, but he still entered the Valley of Villains carrying an official wanted poster, and eventually dragged three people bound with ropes out of the valley.
There are five notorious villains in the Valley of Villains. The authorities only issued arrest warrants for Du Sha, Li Dazui, and Haha'er, so Yan Liang ignored Yin Jiuyou and Tu Jiaojiao, instead giving them a warning. Both of them were intelligent and not indiscriminate killers, so they accepted Yan Liang's warning.
They have occupied the Valley of Villains for many years, and even righteous masters dare not easily enter the valley. Yan Liang entered the valley alone, but no one could defeat him. Only a fool would not listen to him.
After a fierce battle, Yan Liang and his five men achieved an overwhelming victory, but he was still injured. He left the valley with his injuries, and others could only see his blood-stained figure in the swirling dust. Yi Yaoqing and Xuan Yuantianjiu felt a pang of anxiety, and then they noticed the rope he was holding.
The two fell silent.
Yan Liang defeated the five villains in the Valley of Villains and handed three of them over to the authorities. This greatly surprised the martial arts community, who felt that his strength was unfathomable, and no one dared to provoke him anymore.
He was renowned in the martial arts world and became a legend many years later.
Yan Liang's origins are unknown, but he possesses exceptional martial arts skills, and no one has ever been defeated by him. If such a person doesn't become a legend, then who will?
On a snowy day, they overheard several people discussing the deeds of the "Deadly King of Hell." Their words were full of admiration; some said he had an eccentric temper, some said he was a wolf in sheep's clothing, and some said he was as cold as ice.
After listening to some speculation about Yan Liang's character, they left the tavern. After walking for a while, Yan Liang suddenly sighed.
Xuan Yuan Tian Jiu and Yi Yao Qing looked at him in confusion, only to see that he had his hands in his sleeves, gazing at the vast white expanse in the distance, his expression complex, with a hint of melancholy.
"It's lonely at the top."
He sighed.
Yi Yaoqing responded by kicking him, splashing snow all over him, while Xuan Yuan Tianjiu watched silently from the side.
————
For twenty years, Yaoyue failed to kill Yanliang. She was stronger, but Yanliang was stronger, and she could never defeat him. The long back-and-forth led to a gambling game between Yanliang and Yaoyue in the martial arts world. The stakes were very low, and people would always guess whether Yaoyue would win. However, after Yanliang won many times, people lost interest and stopped the gambling game.
Yan Liang also joined in the fun and placed bets for himself, earning a little money. Yi Yaoqing was disgusted by his behavior and criticized it as extremely shameful. Yan Liang righteously retorted that believing in himself was not a shameful thing.
For some reason, it made a lot of sense, and Yi Yaoqing didn't know how to refute it for a moment. Then she realized that what she and Yan Liang were talking about was not even on the same level. But by then, the opportunity to refute it squarely had already passed. Yi Yaoqing couldn't help but feel a lump in her throat and thought to herself that if she ever argued with Yan Liang again, she would be a dog.
...However, she couldn't resist and became a dog for many years.
————
Halfway through their journey, they bought a house next to the Jiang family in Jiangnan and became neighbors with Jiang Feng's family.
During holidays, they would return to Jiangnan to reunite with Jiang Feng and his wife and their two children. Occasionally, Yan Nantian would also come to Jiangnan.
Xuanyuan Tianjiu had several ambiguous conversations with Yan Liang—in fact, even without those conversations, he had long understood that Yan Liang was not Feng Lai—some things are better left unsaid; Feng Lai was his friend, and Yan Liang was also his friend.
Yan Liang barely made it to the nineteenth year in this world. In the last few years, his health deteriorated, so he reduced the number of times he went out and happily retired in his final year.
Yi Yaoqing and Xuan Yuantianjiu searched far and wide for renowned doctors, hoping to cure his inexplicable illness, but Yan Liang quickly stopped them.
Having studied medicine himself and experienced similar situations several times, he naturally couldn't bear to see them work in vain.
But Yi Yaoqing said, "Whether it can be cured or not, at least let's try."
Xuanyuan Tianjiu watched him from the side, their expressions pleading.
Yan Liang smiled wryly, but still listened to them and drank the ineffective medicine on time.
Finally, gazing at the clear blue sky, he lay back in his rocking chair, hands tucked into his sleeves, and closed his eyes with a smile.
Yi Yaoqing stepped into the courtyard carrying the medicine bowl and found that her friend had already closed her eyes, which were as bright as stars.
The medicine bowl slipped from her hands and shattered with a crisp sound, releasing a bitter medicinal aroma into the air. Yi Yaoqing stood there for a while, then realized that tears had unknowingly streamed down her face.
Xuanyuan Tianjiu stepped into the courtyard carrying a jar of candied fruit. He was stunned when he saw the scene inside and almost dropped the jar.
...Is Yan Liang dead?
Xuan Yuan Tian Jiu still found it hard to believe when he recalled Yan Liang's usual lazy smile this morning.
...He lost another friend.
————
When Yaoyue learned that he was about to die, she was bewildered and angry. When she arrived at Yan Liang's house in Jiangnan, she did not break down the door, but stayed in the inn for a few days. However, a few days later she heard the news of Yan Liang's death.
He died.
It had been a year since Yan Liang and Yao Yue last met. Yao Yue was thinking that the twenty-year deadline was approaching and she was determined to kill Yan Liang in the last year. Therefore, she went into seclusion to cultivate and hoped to improve her martial arts skills. Little did she know that that meeting would be the last time they met, and it would also be the last competition.
Yan Liang's friends looked grief-stricken, while Yao Yue stood on the second floor of the inn watching as Yan Liang's coffin was carried through the long street, her expression indifferent.
Now that Yan Liang is dead, she should settle old scores a year from now.
Thinking this, Yaoyue felt a sense of loss and complicated emotions.
Yan Liang should have died at her hands, but he didn't give her that chance and died young.
Even at the very end, he was still angry with her and didn't let her have her way.
Yaoyue felt even more disgusted with the dead man.
Jiang Feng's twins' martial arts style is quite similar to Yan Liang's. Yao Yue was defeated by the two of them and went into seclusion after returning to Yihua Palace. She did not leave the valley for many years.
Yi Yaoqing never returned to Yihua Palace. Yaoyue seemed to have forgotten her, and Lianxing didn't contact her much either. So she and Xuanyuan Tianjiu continued to live in the house they had bought together, and occasionally they would go out for a trip.
But a journey for two is always different from a journey for three.
Author's Note: Alright, this world is over—
Just a heads-up, the next world is related to "old friends" _(:з」∠)_ Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants between 2020-04-29 23:03:47 and 2020-04-30 23:42:44!
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: Xiaolouwangduan 30 bottles; Liunian and Shouwang 10 bottles; Beishilanxi 5 bottles;
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
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