Dusk Returns to the Ruined Building

Humans are born free, yet every step they take seems to be shackled.

Beneath the green persimmon tree, Shen Yichen questioned his fate!

Mount Guanxing may seem like a cage, but it offers freedom. And the martial world? It may seem free, but Shen Yichen feels that fate is a shackle and the path is a calamity!

Shen Yichen knew that his question was a nonsense, but he felt that Wulang Academy might really be the best place for him, since there were no Ji family members there!

"Are you really that hung up on those two scars? They were bitten by a woman, weren't they?"

Shen Yichen was taken aback upon hearing this, and released his hands, unsure of where to put them for a moment.

"Qingchen, you don't even realize that you spend most of your free time touching the scars on your wrists; it's become a habit!"

Shen Yichen looked down at the two bite marks; he didn't want to answer the question.

"Yi Xuan, leave Jingyun Gorge, let's separate. I am the demon of the Ji family, and I'm not good to you!"

"In my eyes, there is only one demon of the Ji family, Ji Xuanfeng. You can only be considered a successor of the demon of the Ji family. However, one day you may really become another demon of the Ji family. I know some things about you. You must have suffered a lot, right? Can you tell me about Jian Ying's ending?"

Shen Yichen touched the scars on his hands and responded calmly:

"I forgot!"

“I’ve never been to the martial world, so I don’t know what it’s like, but I do know what the Ji family is like. You shouldn’t send me away. We can be friends!”

"My surname is Shen, and my given name is Yichen. I am not a member of the Ji family, and I will not be friends with members of the Ji family!"

"If you kill that person in the small building, I will leave you immediately, and I will admit that you are not a member of the Ji family. But do you dare? Do you have the courage? Do you have the ability?"

Yi Xuan sat up and quietly looked at Shen Yi Chen.

Shen Yichen was stumped by the question, or rather, he was dumbfounded!

"I don't need to prove anything to anyone!"

"Hmph, just like your master, a useless piece of trash!"

Yi Xuan was referring to Ji Xuanfeng, of course.

"I really don't know Ji Xuanfeng. Why does everyone who has seen the Holy Emperor's Technique of Unity of Heaven and Earth think that I am Ji Xuanfeng's successor? Can't I comprehend the Holy Emperor's Technique on my own?"

After Shen Yichen finished speaking, he suddenly realized something.

"That's right, if I comprehend the Holy Emperor's Technique myself, wouldn't I be able to sever ties with Ji Xuanfeng?"

"Ji Xuanfeng's Heaven and Earth Unity Saint Emperor Technique is hailed as the strongest path of the Ji family. Are you really willing to give it up?"

Yixuan's expression showed both curiosity and shock.

Shen Yichen leaned against the tree, looking at the green leaves in the thick fog. He did not respond. He needed this power, at least for now!

"I eagerly await your Holy Emperor's Path!"

After Yi Xuan finished speaking, he lay down again, playing with the Tianxianglong in his hand. He had entered the martial world to seek the path of his Holy Emperor Technique.

Like Shen Yichen, Yixuan also carries a legacy, but he also wants to have his own Holy Emperor Technique and surpass Ji Xuanfeng. What he wants to do is not to be the number one in the Ji family, but to be the only one in the Ji family!

"Yixuan, have you ever been to the Wangyue Tower Stargazing Platform?"

Shen Yichen wanted to know about the things in his memories. He might not know about other things concerning the Ji family, but the things in his dreams were his own.

“I went there, when I was about six years old. I made all three of you brothers cry at the observatory. Don’t you remember? Don’t you remember anything at all?”

Shen Yichen was shocked upon hearing this.

"You, you...we've met before?"

Yi Xuan suddenly stood up, staring at Shen Yi Chen in astonishment!

"Are you just forgetful, or is there really something wrong with your memory? You should have a scar on your left shoulder!"

Shen Yichen stared at Yixuan in shock. He really couldn't remember anything, but there was indeed a scar on his left shoulder.

Ik-hyun's words are likely true; he not only knew about the scar but also its exact location.

"Hmph, no wonder you've always refused to admit you're a member of the Ji family. So you've lost your memory. Interesting. But that's fine too. We can get to know each other all over again. You've changed so much since you were a child. You've lost all the domineering, arrogant, and stubbornness of the young master of the Ji family!"

Shen Yichen was somewhat annoyed. He hadn't even asked what he wanted to ask, but Yixuan had already discovered his secret. Shen Yichen really didn't expect that he and Yixuan had met when they were children and even fought.

Shen Yichen felt like he had tried to steal a chicken but ended up losing the rice instead, but he still had to ask!

"Qianzong Mountain, Yunshuiyao Mountain, and Yunxia Mountain—those three mountains are inhabited by the three major royal families of the Ji family, right?"

Yi Xuan put away the Heavenly Jade and yawned!

"I'm tired, I want to sleep. If you don't want me to leave anymore someday, I'll talk to you about it in detail!"

Shen Yichen shook his head helplessly. Yixuan's intentions were too obvious!

Shen Yichen touched his left shoulder. Back then, he was still the young master of the Ji family. Yixuan dared to injure him and even leave a scar. Was the Ji family royal family really that domineering?

Shen Yichen also closed his eyes for a short rest. They were going to wait until dark. Of course, Shen Yichen didn't know the reason and didn't dare to ask.

In the small courtyard pavilion, the man in purple robes kept watching Shen Yichen and his companion, his expression remaining unchanged from beginning to end.

This time, Yixuan slept soundly, seemingly quite certain that the people from the Zhidian Hall wouldn't harm the two of them.

Shen Yichen didn't dare to sleep deeply, remaining in a detached state, as he genuinely didn't trust the Ji family.

After dark, the lanterns became inexplicably dazzling again, and the atmosphere at the bottom of Jingyun Gorge seemed to change as well.

Shen Yichen slowly opened his eyes. He felt very strange. The people in the small building hadn't done anything. It was really strange!

Yi Xuan stretched lazily, feeling quite disappointed. It was because the people in the small building hadn't done anything, while his Tian Xianglong had been monitoring everything around him.

Yixuan wanted to know who that person was, hoping to find a reason to press for an answer. But alas, all I can say is that the person was too cautious!

"Let's go, Qingchen. I must say, this is really a great place to sleep!"

Shen Yichen also stood up.

The gate to the courtyard opened, and the person on the upper floor used their finger to control the air, writing four characters at Shen Yichen's feet:

"Congratulations to the young master!"

Shen Yichen bowed slightly and replied:

"Thank you, senior!"

"Qingchen, you have too much of a江湖气 (jianghu spirit)!"

The one-armed man carrying the lantern came out. Shen Yichen saw the man's face clearly and unconsciously took half a step back. That was not a face at all.

Shen Yichen shook his head, then looked at it again. This time it was better; it was a mask, and in the thick fog, it looked almost too realistic.

The person carrying the lantern made a gesture of invitation, which Shen Yichen didn't quite understand.

"Get in the car, Qingchen. How come you don't know as much about the affairs of the martial world as I do?"

Yi Xuan pouted; Shen Yichen could be so adorably clueless sometimes.

Shen Yichen got on the flatbed cart, still not quite understanding what was going on.

"why?"

"It's like a ghost has possessed me; how could I possibly be walking the usual path? I must remind you, whatever you do, don't open your eyes!"

After Yi Xuan finished speaking, he closed his eyes first. Surprisingly, he used the Heavenly Jade to bind their wrists together again.

Shen Yichen once again embarked on that strange path, and this time, he could circulate his internal energy.

Shen Yichen used the art of meditation to merge with heaven and earth, hoping to understand the situation here. As a result, his body trembled during his meditation.

The thick fog on both sides was filled with skull mountains!

Shen Yichen understood; this was yet another mountain of withered bones in the Abyss of Death.

Shen Yichen vaguely felt that this place must be related to Xi Miling, which is to say, related to the melancholy of the Qin Saint's Record. Those skeletons were very similar to the skeletons in the Dry Bone Mountain, both in their aura and their mountain-like appearance.

Shen Yichen murmured to himself:

"Could these people be hiding here because of their sorrow?"

This is Shen Yichen's judgment and guess based on his recollection of the couplet and Yixuan's words.

The man in purple was clearly not one of Xi Miling's people, but rather someone from the Zhidian Hall that Yi Xuan had mentioned, so he must be hiding here.

After recovering from his meditation, Shen Yichen suddenly said:

"I want to see the Emperor Tree here!"