Though no wedding was held tonight, not a single red lantern had been taken down. Thousands of lanterns still cast a soft red glow amidst the darkness, like joy frozen in time.

  Suddenly, a shadow soared over the rows of lanterns, causing the flames to flicker. The figure moved with agile swiftness; the arts of lightness and wall-climbing were carried to utter silence before the figure flipped over the wall crest with grace and precision. Even as the figure leaped forward, not even the faintest sound of a footfall could be heard.

  "Kangkang (康康), you aren't asleep yet, are you?" a woman's voice whispered at the window of the grand hall within the Defying Heaven Sect fortress.

  In an instant, a lamp flared to life inside the previously dark room. A light cough followed before the light moved closer to the window. The shutters were opened, revealing the figure of Shi Moyong in loose sleepwear; his face was as calm as water without a ripple.

  "You should not have come at such an hour," he said in a flat tone.

  The woman standing outside the window was, in fact, The Frostflower Maiden, Han Yuexin. She stood under the light of the red lanterns, her face pale, yet her eyes remained resolute.

  "I have nowhere else to go," she said softly. "I hope you will consider our past relationship. If only you would allow me to stay here, even if you were to have hundreds or thousands of other wives, I would not utter a single word of reproach."

  Shi Moyong looked at her with cold eyes. "Such words... are they not ridiculous?"

  "They are not ridiculous at all," Han Yuexin replied instantly. "As long as I can be by your side, I care for nothing else."

  Shi Moyong fell silent for a moment before asking in a harsh tone, "Care for nothing else... in that case, if you are to stay in the Defying Heaven Sect, in what capacity do you intend to remain?"

  The question was like the edge of a blade. Han Yuexin closed her eyes slightly, as if letting go of all her dignity. "In any capacity."

  The answer was without hesitation. But what she received in return was a statement colder than winter.

  "Within the Defying Heaven Sect, there is no place for someone surnamed Han."

  Han Yuexin’s body trembled slightly. "You... do you not consider our relationship at all?" she asked with a quivering voice, referring to the bond they once shared.

  Yet Shi Moyong answered without the slightest hesitation, "Past relationships... are merely a dream of a single night." Those words were entirely devoid of lingering affection.

  Han Yuexin’s gaze suddenly turned fierce. "That you treat me this way... is it because you wish to take revenge for that woman, Qi Yiling?" Upon mentioning that woman's name, her voice was laced with pain and jealousy.

  Shi Moyong replied calmly, "She is the woman I have always loved." That answer was like an iron hammer smashing into the center of her heart.

  Han Yuexin bit her lip hard before gathering all her strength to speak. "But I love you."

  Shi Moyong looked at her steadily before speaking slowly, "How can you love me, when you already love Jin Tianwang, do you not?"

  Han Yuexin’s anger flared. "How can you say such things? That man surnamed Jin, how could he ever be worthy of me?"

  Shi Moyong laughed softly in mockery. "He is not worthy... then how am I worthy?" He paused for a moment before continuing in a cool voice, "At that time, everything I did... was merely an imitation of that wandering smiler."

  "You are nothing like him! Jin Tianwang is utterly foolish, knowing only how to think and act with The Drunken Scholar, Ou Xiatian," Han Yuexin said, recounting her past dissatisfaction with Jin Tianwang.

  "Because Jin Tianwang could never be apart from Ou Xiatian, you felt he valued his friend more than you. Thus, you turned your affection toward me—a wretched man who did not even have a single friend."

  "No! I only know that I like you. I don't like that man surnamed Jin or whatever!"

  "If that is the case, it is most tragic, for I do not feel any affection for you." Having said this, Shi Moyong paused briefly before saying, "You should leave." He then slowly closed the window.

  Han Yuexin’s shame turned into rage. She stomped her foot, shattering a number of roof tiles, before soaring away.

  The following day, Shi Moyong exchanged martial skills with Ouyang Laobai from dawn until dusk; the two learned from one another. Shi Moyong found Ouyang Laobai to be a man of calm and collected spirit, perfectly suited for martial cultivation. Furthermore, he possessed sharp intelligence; if he continued to train, he might one day reach a stage beyond even Shi Moyong himself.

  However, Shi Moyong was born with the Seven-Star Meridian; his veins and tendons were exceptionally broad, making them uniquely suited for nourishing and circulating internal energy. This was the unbridgeable gap between the two men.

  As the sun set and darkness gradually blanketed the sky, a petite woman walked slowly into the Defying Heaven Sect. She had large round eyes, long slender eyebrows, and a nose slightly upturned in stubbornness. Her lips were thin, and her face tapered down to a triangular chin. She wore eye-catching light orange robes. While her beauty was not so striking that it was hard to look away, she was still considered a beautiful woman. However, her gait carried a bold majesty like that of a man. She walked through the inner courtyard, heading straight for the largest hall of the sect.

  "Reporting to the Sect Leader, I have returned." Her voice rang out from before the door.

  The door opened immediately. Shi Moyong stepped out hurriedly carrying a lamp, a faint smile on face. "Did you meet with Jin Tianwang?"

  The young woman in light orange bowed slightly, her head still lowered. "I met him."

  "Then... did you tell him what was in your heart?"

  She went still for a moment before answering softly, "Now, there is another woman by his side." This young woman in orange was none other than Zhou Songyi, Shi Moyong’s bride-to-be.

  Shi Moyong said calmly, "Even if he has a woman, someone like you would surely speak your heart." They had grown up together. He knew her heart better than anyone.

  "I have already told him." The answer was as he expected.

  "And how did he react toward you?"

  Zhou Songyi was silent for a moment before replying, "He did not show any reaction. However, that woman... became my sworn sister last night."

  At this point, she suddenly knelt before Shi Moyong, her head bowed low, her voice firm. "Songyi has offended the Sect Leader by fleeing the wedding. Now that I have returned, I ask the Sect Leader for punishment."

  Shi Moyong looked at her before speaking in a softened tone, "Songyi... stand up." He still addressed her intimately, not asserting himself as a master over a subordinate.

  Zhou Songyi remained kneeling. "In returning this time, besides accepting punishment... I have one matter I wish to ask of the Sect Leader..." Her voice carried hesitation and shame.

  Shi Moyong replied calmly, "If you have something, then speak it."

  "This subordinate has a request... I ask that the Sect Leader does not engage in a martial duel with Jin Tianwang."

  Shi Moyong gave a low chuckle before looking at Zhou Songyi with amused eyes. "Heh heh... truly, are you worried for me, or are you worried for Jin Tianwang?"

  A faint smile lingered in his eyes. The two had been friends since childhood; previously, they never addressed each other so distantly. Although Zhou Songyi was four years younger than him, back when they lived in the Mystic Valley, they were friends in the same group. At that time, he was merely an orphan without parents, not the high and mighty Sect Leader of today.

  Zhou Songyi replied with a serious tone, "With the Sect Leader’s achievements, how could anyone compare?"

  Shi Moyong shook his head slightly. "Do not comfort me. Brother Jin’s fist power... is more formidable than can be fathomed."

  "Jin Tianwang is certainly no match for the Sect Leader," Zhou Songyi maintained her opinion firmly.

  Shi Moyong replied calmly, "I... do not think so." These words made Zhou Songyi go still for a moment before he continued softly.

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  "Songyi, you know well yourself. Besides the Nine Heavens Armor Art, I do not possess martial skills like my father. Brother Jin has a swift movement style and is as unpredictable as Ou Xiatian. How could I have the ability to break his techniques?" He paused before continuing.

  "The only thing I can take pride in is this Armor Art. As for my palm power and the Hundred-Storm Kicks, my success is still very limited. In this duel... the one who loses his life might not be Brother Jin, but could very well be me."

  Zhou Songyi hurriedly interrupted, "If the Sect Leader would only write a letter to cancel the duel, a man like Jin Tianwang would surely not take offense."

  Shi Moyong shook his head, his expression resolute. "The duel between us is like a destiny written by heaven. Even your request cannot change it."

  Having said this, he turned back to another matter. "Songyi, it is good that you have returned. Aunt Zhou is very worried about you. Go back and rest. As for the matter between us, let us wait until this duel is over, and then we shall speak of it again."

  Zhou Songyi had no more words to say. She slowly stood up before turning and walking away silently. Meanwhile, Shi Moyong slowly closed his door.

  The next morning, the "Cheerful One," Ouyang Laoxian—who had not attended the wedding two days prior—finally arrived. Upon learning the wedding was canceled and that there would be a duel between Shi Moyong and Jin Tianwang tomorrow, he immediately woke Shi Moyong before dawn. Having once crossed fists with Jin Tianwang, he spared nothing in his guidance. When Ouyang Laobai joined the conversation and guidance, the entire day passed as if on wings for this descendant of the Fiend.

  Jin Tianwang, after receiving the word to duel Shi Moyong, had traveled away with Fan Qingqing. The large red lantern he had struggled to build as a wedding gift had to be carried back by hired laborers. Currently, Jin Tianwang lived as husband and wife with Fan Qingqing. Since they came for the auspicious event, they had rented a room in the town near this Starving Wolf Mountain.

  They lodged in a small hut partitioned from a farmer’s house. Inside, there were only four walls and a roof thatched with dry grass. There were almost no household items to be seen. Jin Tianwang was merely a wandering vagabond; he naturally had no great wealth like a typical affluent husband. Such a life was not one most women would choose.

  But Fan Qingqing did not think so.

  Fan Qingqing was a woman of beauty rarely found under heaven. Her beauty today even surpassed that of the Frostflower Maiden, Han Yuexin. Now that she was Jin Tianwang’s wife, even if her husband were poorer than this, she would never think of abandoning him. New couples are often thus. But how long such a bond would last—Jin Tianwang never thought about it.

  His life had changed completely with Fan Qingqing by his side. Their mutual care grew into love and a deep bond, making a life that was once solitary no longer lonely.

  Tonight, the air was very stifling. Jin Tianwang and Fan Qingqing were still inside the hut, helping each other arrange a pile of straw to prepare a bed. Suddenly, the shadow of a woman appeared before the door.

  Even though Jin Tianwang had not yet opened the door, he spoke first. "Lady Zhou, please come inside to talk."

  The door was opened softly. The woman in light orange stepped inside. She saw the two of them arranging the straw in the middle of the room. Zhou Songyi stepped forward slowly; her light orange clothes appeared darker under the soft yellow lamplight.

  To her, Jin Tianwang was the man who had always been in her heart. She had never had the chance to look at him closely like this before. When she saw him smile at her, her heart beat violently as if it would leap from her chest. But then, her gaze shifted to Fan Qingqing.

  A woman with beauty like a goddess from heaven, surpassing any woman in the martial world. Shame rose within her. Fan Qingqing smiled politely but said nothing, continuing to arrange the straw.

  Jin Tianwang walked forward to welcome this late-night guest. Zhou Songyi spoke with a slightly trembling voice, "I am so very foolish."

  Jin Tianwang replied calmly, "Under heaven, where would one find so many clever people?"

  Zhou Songyi gathered her courage before speaking the words she had long kept hidden. "I like you." She was a stubborn woman, willing to flee her sect just to say these words. Having said them, her body trembled uncontrollably.

  Jin Tianwang lowered his head slightly before replying politely, "In the future, Lady Zhou will surely find a man suited for you."

  Tears immediately flowed down Zhou Songyi’s cheeks. She raised her hand to cover her mouth, turning to leave. But before her stood another figure—Fan Qingqing.

  Fan Qingqing said with a gentle smile, "It is so late, and Lady Zhou is alone. If you do not mind this coarse straw, please stay the night here." Having said that, Jin Tianwang walked out of the room and closed the door silently. Tonight, he was willing to stand guard outside, leaving the two women alone.

  Inside, Zhou Songyi's heart was in turmoil. Suddenly, Fan Qingqing placed a gentle hand on her shoulder and led her to sit on the straw.

  Fan Qingqing said softly, "Previously, I myself never thought I would have to sleep on straw like this. But with him by my side, I want for nothing else. Do not be sad. Sorrow is merely mist; it will soon fade."

  Fan Qingqing smiled gently before saying, "Upon first meeting, I felt a connection with you. If you do not mind, shall the two of us become sworn sisters?"

  Zhou Songyi remained silent. Fan Qingqing continued softly, "I am likely slightly older than you. May I be your elder sister?"

  Zhou Songyi’s broken heart suddenly felt warmer. She leaned into Fan Qingqing's shoulder, using it to wipe her tears. Fan Qingqing stroked her head gently and said, "A person can cry to release sorrow. So cry. When the tears flow, the sorrow will fade."

  When Zhou Songyi heard Fan Qingqing’s words, her tears flowed like a broken dam. The sorrow pressed inside her heart poured out uncontrollably. But after a while, the tears gradually stopped.

  Fan Qingqing looked at her gently before speaking slowly, "The two of us are quite lucky. At least we can still cry. There are some people who, no matter how sad they are, cannot shed a tear. In times of misery, they can only smile, just as they do in times of happiness." She paused before continuing in a soft voice, "Sister, think about it. What kind of person would that be?"

  Zhou Songyi nodded slowly. "That person... must be someone both very resolute and very lonely." She was silent for a moment before continuing, "Shi Moyong is such a person. He was born with the Seven-Star Meridian. Since childhood, his body has suffered from pain shooting through his bones and tendons. Every day he only knew how to cry. But when that pain faded... his tears dried up as well."

  Fan Qingqing suddenly showed a startled expression. "Sect Leader Shi also has the Seven-Star Meridian? Previously, I understood that only Jin Tianwang had such a tragic fate."

  Zhou Songyi’s eyes widened. "Jin Tianwang also has the Seven-Star Meridian?"

  Fan Qingqing nodded slightly. "He was raised by a benefactor in a cruel way, forced to consume various medicines and bathe in thousands of poisons until finally, his body changed, becoming one with the Seven-Star Meridian."

  Zhou Songyi was stunned. "There is such a thing...?"

  Fan Qingqing sighed softly. "Truly, the two of them should call each other brothers, for both share the same tragic fate."

  Hearing this, the images of both men appeared in Zhou Songyi’s mind. "The two of them... are so very similar."

  Fan Qingqing smiled faintly. "But how could he compare to the elegance of Sect Leader Shi?"

  Zhou Songyi shook her head. "I do not mean their appearance, but a certain aura that is very similar."

  Fan Qingqing was silent for a moment before saying in a serious tone, "People like them should be brothers, not enemies. And they certainly should not duel to the death."

  Zhou Songyi nodded. "The two should not have to fight."

  Fan Qingqing looked at her. "If possible, we should find a way to stop this duel. The entire martial world knows that no skill is superior to Sect Leader Shi’s Nine Heavens Armor Art."

  Zhou Songyi said firmly, "If there is anything I can help with, Sister, please tell me."

  Suddenly, a voice came from outside the hut. "There is no need for you two to worry." The voice was calm, like water at night. "The duel between me and Sect Leader Shi is something that cannot be avoided. It is late now; you both should rest." The one who spoke these words was Jin Tianwang, who would stand guard at the door tonight.

  The two women said no more to each other, but in their hearts, they had both made a decision. Fan Qingqing helped Zhou Songyi lie down before flicking her sleeve gently. A gust of wind passed, and the flame in the lamp was extinguished.

  The next morning, as the sky began to break, Zhou Songyi woke up. She still felt her hand in the warm palm of Fan Qingqing. She rose soundlessly, intending to leave without saying goodbye. When she reached the door, she stopped, remembering Jin Tianwang was outside. She listened carefully and found that besides Jin Tianwang, there was another person there, and the two were talking.

  "Nephew, do you know that Shi Moyong also has the Seven-Star Meridian?" A raspy but powerful voice rang out in the silence of dawn.

  Another voice replied steadily, "I never expected anyone to have the same meridian as I, and certainly not Sect Leader Shi."

  The raspy voice continued slowly, "In the past, The Stone Fiend, Shi Wusha, attained the fifth stage of the Nine Heavens Armor Art, and none could oppose him. But that supreme skill is not without a weakness."

  The determined voice paused. “The Armor Art… has a weakness?” The voice carried surprise.

  "I and Shi Wusha were friends of different generations and always exchanged skills. One day, while discussing internal energy, I learned that this skill relies on shifting the 'Death Point' within the body, rotating its position. Every day at noon, the Death Point must move to the very top of the skull."

  There was silence for a moment. "In that case, the Stone Fiend was not invincible."

  "Yes," the voice drawled. "But Shi Moyong is not like Shi Wusha."

  "Because of the Seven-Star Meridian...?"

  "A person with the Seven-Star Meridian, if they train the Nine Heavens Armor Art to the fifth stage, no longer needs to move the Death Point."

  The answer was heavy. "Then Shi Moyong truly has no weakness."

  "When there is no weakness, the Nine Heavens Armor Art is a supreme skill with no equal."

  The determined voice fell silent; there was only a long, faint breath. The raspy voice continued, "Nephew, do not go to the duel."

  "I know well... that I might lose."

  "Knowing you will lose, why still risk your life?"

  A moment passed before the answer came. "Since I was young, I had a dream that one day I would be the one to conquer this Armor Art."

  "Is it your dream... or is it the hope that Zhang Zhufan and Wang Yi left with you?"

  The reply was still but firm. "At first, it may have been their hope, but as time passed, it became my own dream."

  The raspy voice sighed. "What should be said, I have said. Nephew, weigh your heart once more."

  "Thank you, Senior."

  After the voices stopped, the conversation ended. Zhou Songyi, listening inside, immediately guessed that the owner of the raspy voice was none other than Like the Demon Lord, Gao Qingxin, who had come to warn Jin Tianwang not to go to a pointless death.

  "Lady Zhou, you are up early," a voice called from the door.

  Zhou Songyi knew the other party was well aware she had heard every word. She opened the door without evasion. Before her was only Jin Tianwang; the owner of the raspy voice had left.

  Jin Tianwang was still sitting leaning against the wall, his eyes on the morning sun, not turning to look at her. "Lady Zhou, please close the door. The morning wind is not good for a pregnant woman." He turned and smiled faintly.

  Zhou Songyi said in a sharp voice, "You are about to be a father. Why do you still think of dueling, even knowing you must lose?"

  Jin Tianwang laughed softly, scratching his head. "Then perhaps I am unfit to be a father."

  Zhou Songyi shook her head. "The most unfit father is a dead father. Now you are still alive; why choose to be such a father?"

  Jin Tianwang was still for a moment. "Your words are as valuable as gold. I will remember them."

  Zhou Songyi left him with a final word: "What should be said, I have said. Weigh your heart once more." She intentionally used the same words as Gao Qingxin so he would know she had heard everything.

  Jin Tianwang watched her back until she disappeared. Then he stood and returned to the small hut. He would spend the last two days at her side. After that, he would travel to the Defying Heaven Sect to duel Shi Moyong—to fulfill the dream buried deep since childhood: to conquer the Nine Heavens Armor Art.