When the Student Becomes the Master
He was certainly a powerful foe, despite the casual way with which he carried himself.
We'd already experienced a hint of his strength then, when he invaded our room during the Family Hierarch war and swiftly took out his target before leaving.
…….
There are slithering noises coming from above.
<More Heishou...>
We can't fight him and the Si branch off at the same time...
But if we were to try to create a distance between us and where the Si branch are waiting to strike us, the Night Drifter'll definitely try to exploit that opening.
Considering that we had to keep Xichun safe... I wasn't sure how much longer we could hold out here.
Hah hah, is it hard to recall your training outside our lessons?
Remember that your gaze is form as well; your enemies will take notice if you don't stop constantly eyeing at the door like a novice.
See? The snakes have already mobilized to close off that exit.
…….
Ah... you're stalling until the Heishou Packs of the Family Hierarch arrive... Your strategies and thoughts are plain as day.
I see, that's why...
…!
... these snakes are so impatient to complete the deed and slink back into their holes.
The Night Drifter produced another tree branch from his clothes, and quickly cast it toward the doorway behind which the Heishou were gathered.
... And with a thwack, the heavy roof atop the large door instantly crumbled, burying it and blocking off the snakes from entering. It was as though he hit an invisible weakness of the brickwork.
I thought I'd given you snakes enough warning to head back.
What are you doing? Why...
Tsk tsk, the bumbling Hierarch's promise to bring real change to Hongyuan has given rise to a certain intrusive thought that was put to sleep long ago.
Once upon a time... a blade fiend of an infamous Syndicate earned himself the hollow honor of joining the Ten Blades of the East.
Yet what use is all that, if he could not stop his little girl from passing on before her old man on a Restructuring Day?
The world averted its gaze from me, so I looked away in return. Leaving behind my rooms, my steel, I picked up a simple tree branch to be my sole companion as I drifted about the City.
When I abandoned both my honor and name, all that remained was a life of living for the sake of living, nothing more.
And... I believed the same fate would doubtless come for the rotten land of Hongyuan as well, just as it had for this useless drunk, devouring it in the surging darkness as the sun falls yonder.
Yet...
... doubt reared its head, for the first time.
It is the rooster's cry that signals the night's end.
Do you see? The sun rises, even in Hongyuan.
Listen well, for your final lesson begins.
Emptiness of sound. Keep the venom within, and let it not leave your tongue.
Emptiness of form. One who aims to bring change to these lands must do so without the knowledge of curmudgeons too logged in wicked traditions to see a better path.
Emptiness of mind. In Hongyuan, a land where even the sky lies out of sight... do not let your mind be too transparent.
... Do not let the Heishou stray from your presence again, not even for a moment. Rule of fear is a detestable thing indeed, yet you will gain nothing by appearing like an easy mark.
…….
Yes, master.
Then, do what you must.
It won't be very becoming of the Hierarch of Hongyuan to let live a fell assassin who dared to make an attempt at her life.
Jia Xichun wordlessly tightened the grip around her weapon.
Very good. Emptiness makes for such a pleasant sight, doesn't it?
The Night Drifter grinned, having caught the encroaching scent of death.