The thunder and fire faded, and ruined blossoms and shredded leaves drifted down on the night breeze, brushing past the three figures standing before the solitary grave.
"Huff, huff-"
Daoist Kongkong had exhausted everything he had. Once he stopped attacking, his body could no longer hold out, and he dropped onto his backside. His clouded eyes gazed at the familiar-looking swordsman ahead, bewilderment in their depths, but more than that, the melancholy of knowing he could never catch up in this lifetime.
Xie Jinhuan put away his weapons too, first glancing back into the distance.
Their battle had alarmed everyone inside and outside the school. Sister Ye had taken the teacher and the three young heroines from the Azure Nether Sword Manor, whose names he still did not know, somewhere safe. They were now nowhere to be seen.
Ye Yunchi stood outside the peach grove, holding her worn sword, Nihility. Her gaze held neither outrage nor shocked uncertainty, but a dazed look, as though she did not understand what had happened-or perhaps she knew who this man was but had been completely unprepared, leaving her rooted to the spot.
Xie Jinhuan turned his gaze back to the figure holding the flying sword before him. This was not his physical body, but an apparition condensed from sword qi. It was pale blue-white throughout, yet its robes and hair fluttered in the night breeze, making it look little different from a real person.
Xie Jinhuan knew full well the weight of that last strike. He did not believe Ye Sheng could catch it with a mere wisp of sword qi, but the facts lay before his eyes. He could not help wondering whether Ye Sheng had already Found a Sect and Become a Patriarch.
Twin Saints Ye Ci, who held the flying