"Your explanation this time around has really a.s.suaged my doubts, Lord Supreme Cloud, but I am truly delighted to know that you regard us as rivals of life and death."
"If that is truly the case, there is no harm to have Lord Supreme Cloud divulge further the secrets behind the Residence of Nine Supremes. This reputed one has lived a good, long life, and I"ve had my fair share of knowledge and experiences, yet this is the first time I"ve met with such an unusual event." Mr. Nian smiled as he continued.
A cynical smirk broke out across Yun Yang"s face. "The secrets behind the Residence of Nine Supremes only belong to the Nine Supremes. I"ve already mentioned the frank truth earlier — only the cultivation methods exclusive to the Nine Supremes can activate the secrets concealed within the Residence of Nine Supremes, and no other would possess these techniques besides the Nine Supremes. Therefore, as for the so-called secrets behind the Residence, it will not add to any benefit, Mr. Nian, even if you have such knowledge, for they will only be a burden to you. Nature and its mysteries would naturally exceed the boundaries of our understanding by so much more — so why demand the answers, especially now when the Residence of Nine Supremes has already vanished?"
For the first time in the entire time, there was a slight change in Mr. Nian"s expression. "Vanished? Was it not concealed by Lord Supreme Cloud with some secret technique to not leave it out in plain sight?"
Yun Yang returned the question with a wry smile on his own face. "I know you have always l.u.s.ted after the Residence of Nine Supremes, Mr. Nian, but now… it"s a little too late to do anything about."
"Too late?" Mr. Nian murmured, perplexed.
"Too late, indeed. The destiny of the Residence of Nine Supremes has already ended — such a deific ent.i.ty should never overstay its due in the mortal realm, right? Furthermore… our Daos are different from each other," Yun Yang reaffirmed.
"Men with different Daos… need no reason to collude," Mr. Nian murmured after a smile.
"The secrets behind the Residence of Nine Supremes could possibly be as numerous. Any more will not add to your benefit, and it"ll only add to your worries."
Mr. Nian"s eyes reflected traces of iciness. "Whatever it is, this reputed one has finally untangled one of the greatest doubts in my heart. I have to thank you, Lord Supreme Cloud, for this. Nine Heavens Dictum, hoho, that"s a good one."
Yun Yang held his tea and took a sip. "The tea is really good," he murmured.
Mr. Nian was silent for a moment. "Such a shame — the tea has gone cold."
Yun Yang sn.i.g.g.e.red. "The words have all been uttered, the tea has grown cold; G.o.d"s plans will always supersede our own — fate always has a way of toying with men."
Mr. Nian smiled slightly. "The other day, when Lord Supreme Cloud suggested having this battle, I thought he"d be full of confidence, yet here he is, talking about destiny, so on and so forth. Judging by the situation now and looking at how Lord Supreme Cloud has only brought along one other companion to attend this deathmatch — I don"t know if you"re placing blind faith in destiny, or you"re underestimating the Four Seasons Tower!"
Yun Yang"s eyelids were half-closed. "Mr. Nian, if you don"t believe in destiny, why is there a need to imprison Gu Chaliang for years? When the Nine Supremes were not eliminated completely since the day of that battle at Tianxuan Cliff, it was already proven who such destiny shall belong to. The ending of this realm"s matters and the avenging of wrongdoings are sorted out as they should have been."
"Since we met, I"ve already understood the meaning behind Lord Supreme Cloud"s words, but now I understood it even more. Lord Supreme Cloud, you are truly loyal to the nation and to the people. You are truly the world"s number one hero — you are literally what they call… a n.o.ble patriot!" Mr. Nian replied indifferently.
"It"s such a shame that this Tea of the Nine Supremes… will vanish from this world forever!"
Mr. Nian let out a melancholic sigh. "The Nine Supremes will also disappear from the face of the earth — that"s a shame as well."
Hands behind his back, he slowly made his way outwards as he calmly informed, "Supreme Cloud, today, Tianxuan Cliff is filled with the pinnacle forces of the Four Seasons Tower. They consist of the twelve heirs of G.o.d"s Bones, alongside the brothers of the Four Seasons Tower"s twelve Months; furthermore, there are also the four Season Bearers — Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter, respectively. Finally, there is me, the leader of the Four Seasons — Nian!"
"The twenty-nine men here are the pinnacle forces of Four Seasons Tower — they are the ultimate pillar of strength we possess."
"In other words, if you have it in you to kill all twenty-nine men here, there will never be a Four Seasons Tower in Tianxuan ever again!"
Mr. Nian had already reached the gates.
Yun Yang questioned quietly, "Would Tianxuan be the only one who will be rid of the Four Seasons Tower"s presence? What you meant is… the Four Seasons Tower exists in other places?"
Mr. Nian flashed a slight smile. "Perhaps there is, or perhaps there really isn"t. Bound of Universe… is somewhere I"ve not stepped foot on!"
Yun Yang remained silent.
Mr. Nian"s physique vanished like a ma.s.s of dissipating fog when he reached the gates. "The Year and his four Seasons had already existed since the dawn of time, but the so-called Nine Supremes appeared out of the blue to challenge it. Supreme Cloud, focus on preparing yourself for battle. After an hour, we shall commence this battle of life and death to end this feud once and for all!"
"I have no guarantees of victory in this battle, but I also believe that you, Lord Supreme Cloud, do not have confidence in winning this as well. However, when it comes to the final moment — whether it is you who will walk the path of death, or it is me whose existence will be erased — we will both have no regrets."
"If you lop my head off, I hope you will drink to me and tell me the secrets you have not yet revealed. If I am the one to take your head… I will, too, drink to you."
The voice vanished.
In the s.p.a.ce of silence, the flawless tea set and table made out of exquisite jade had been abandoned by Mr. Nian without the slightest hint of regret.
…
Throughout the exchange between the other two, Ji Lingxi had not uttered a single word. When Mr. Nian had left, and Yun Yang was left to his thoughts in a corner, she finally spoke out, "From how I see it, that Mr. Nian… seems like a rather influential and impressionable character in the martial world. Good or evil aside, by merely judging his manners and demeanor, he is undoubtedly one of the best in the world."
"Those who can rile up such drama in the martial world — are there any who weren"t outstanding talents of the world? The Four Seasons Tower had conquered the martial world of Tianxuan and built a formidable name for themselves for over thousands of years — the talents they possessed will be naturally outstanding. If Mr. Nian was not exceptionally skillful, how can he have the right to lead the Four Seasons Tower?" Yun Yang replied seriously.
"To sum it up, it was nothing but a dispute caused by differences in perspective, yet when driven by fate, it had evolved into an unresolvable topic. Clearly, Mr. Nian and the Four Seasons Tower must finish me off before they can completely claim G.o.d"s Grave for themselves, a.s.suming the position of G.o.d to achieve a great deed; on the contrary, I must eliminate the Four Seasons Tower from the root itself — this is vengeance on behalf of my eight brothers!"
"Whatever Mr. Nian has said today was all true — he wasn"t lying in the slightest," Ji Lingxi replied. "There"s no doubt about this — I was monitoring him telepathically with Ice Core Charm the entire time," said Ji Lingxi.
"This is expected — we owed each other that much. The battle today has always been the ultimate battle that determines each party"s survival — there is no room for lies at a moment like this," replied Yun Yang solemnly.
"Instead of pandering around with words and trickery, why not face and respect your opponent with sincerity? It is also a form of respect for our own life. He will not utter untruths at a moment like this."
"When this one hour is up, what"s your strategy? Have you thought it out yet? Our opponent has many men on his side — that much can"t be denied!" Ji Lingxi probed, more than a little worried.
Yun Yang flashed a smile. "Who says it has to be twenty-nine men only? Even if there were more, why would that be a problem? We will fight till every one of them topples to the ground. It was my suggestion, and Mr. Nian has agreed to it. It was simply the way of life in the martial world — purely the best way to resolve this dispute."
"The final battle this time will be resolved entirely through the means of the martial world."
"The surest way to resolve this by means of the martial world is no other than to fight, live or die!"