Monarch of Evernight - Chapter 1010

Chapter 1010

Chapter 1010: Calm Face-to-Face

Soon, it was once again the frigid night .

Qianye was already well-experienced at this point . He quickly picked a temporary place to camp and started laying a circle of traps around it . By the time he was back, Ji Tianqing and Li Kuanglan were already preparing dinner .

The few wild beasts he had hunted during the day was enough to fill Qianye to the brim . He didn’t need to eat anything more at this point, but he did pick up some food out of consideration for the ladies’ hard work .

Li Kuanglan spoke out of the blue, “I’m sorry . ”

Puzzled, Qianye looked up with a big piece of meat in his mouth .

Li Kuanglan inhaled deeply and then waved her hand in front of his face . “I’m sorry . ”

Qianye’s adam’s apple moved slightly—the piece of meat felt stuck in his throat, unable to go down or up . He pointed at himself, saying, “Me?”

“Yes . ”

“You did nothing wrong, why are you saying sorry?” Qianye suddenly became cautious and started looking left and right . “Oh wait, are you planning on doing something?”

Li Kuanglan clenched her jaws and sent a piece of meat flying toward Qianye . “You’re courting death!”

Qianye caught the incoming food with his mouth . “Now that’s more like you . ”

Li Kuanglan collected her thoughts and said, “I haven’t been performing well since I entered the Great Maelstrom, and many times I’ve been a burden to you guys . With so many things happening and the Cold Moon’s Embrace gone, my mind is in disarray . ”

Qianye glanced over at Ji Tianqing, who shrugged as though it had nothing to do with her . Not knowing how to placate Li Kuanglan, Qianye could only listen in silence . Fortunately, this meant that she had cleared out a knot in her heart and that was a good thing .

Li Kuanglan hugged her knees for a good while . “You were just an inexperienced young fellow back when I first met you . Apart from fighting with your life on the line, you were just lucky most of the time . Mmm… but you weren’t a bad person and that’s what matters most . ”

“Later on, you became stronger and stronger, but you were still a ways off from catching up to me . I was quite surprised, though, that Zhao Fourth would step up to cancel our appointed duel . Everyone knew how singular and proud he was . It could be said that no one apart from Zhao Ruoxi could enter his eyes, including me . ”

Ji Tianqing snorted disapprovingly .

Li Kuanglan chuckled . “You merely rose to power earlier . You might not be his match if you fight him now . ”

“He merely fooled around on the battlefield for a few years . ”

“You know full well what kind of battlefield he’s been on, and yet he’s managed to stay alive through all that . There’s no way you can beat him without a cultivation-level advantage . ”

“Cultivation…” Ji Tianqing couldn’t quite continue .

Zhao Jundu’s progress in cultivation was one of the fastest in the world . Qianye was perhaps the only one who could keep up with his brother, with Song Zining trailing slightly behind . Li Kuanglan and Ji Tianqing were both one level inferior . The most terrifying fact was that Zhao Jundu was never known for having an unstable foundation . Everyone knew that the war between the two factions was the best furnace to forge steel .

It was just that one’s life was forfeit after stepping into battle—countless heroes had fallen along the way . Every peak expert’s hands were stained with the blood of countless enemy geniuses .

Hence, the clans of the Empire formed an unspoken rule that descendants with potential would only be let onto the battlefield after becoming champions . Even then, they would carefully pick the battlefields to avoid needless casualties . Only some true geniuses would join the war to train themselves at an earlier stage, but they would still avoid fighting enemies they couldn’t defeat .

Ji Tianqing stopped interrupting and allowed Li Kuanglan to continue . “Qianye, every time I meet you, you would be a bit stronger than before . There’s a difference even during this short period in the neutral lands . I think I was just unwilling to admit that I can no longer win against you here . ”

“What’s this fuss about . Just beat him up and see if he dares to fight back . If he doesn’t listen, I’ll help you beat him up . ” Ji Tianqing was there to fan the flames .

Li Kuanglan ignored her completely . She looked straight at Qianye and said, “Actually, I’ve always been thinking about what I would do in the future without my sword . I’ve been panicking for the past few days because I know the blade is likely lost . Even if we can find a similar weapon after leaving the Great Maelstrom, it wouldn’t be as easy to use as the Cold Moon’s Embrace . ”

Qianye nodded . The Cold Moon’s Embrace was a perfect match for her, a weapon that would increase her power exponentially . Without her sword, Li Kuanglan’s combat strength would drop an entire level below Qianye and Ji Tianqing .

She looked up at the night sky, saying, “This sword used to be my sister’s, but she stopped using it at one point . At first, I thought she had passed it to me because she no longer needed to fight after entering the palace . After obtaining the sword and gaining some achievements, I thought I had already surpassed my sister in swordsmanship . But only after losing the Cold Moon’s Embrace did I slowly realize her mood when she renounced her blade and gave it to me . My sister’s swordsmanship was never stagnant . ”

Ji Tianqing cut in at this point . “Please don’t tell me that the sword lives in the heart, that the tangible and intangible are both valid paths . Too cliche!”

Li Kuanglan chuckled . “The sword already lives in my heart, there’s no need for further discussion . After thinking it through, I should just use whatever is available to me, but of course, it’s best if I can get a good sword . I won’t say no if you’re going to give me one!”

Ji Tianqing rolled her eyes . “Fat chance! You think money can buy a sword on par with the Cold Moon’s Embrace? I’d switch to swordplay if I had one, why would I give it to you? Humph, you even lost Cold Moon’s Embrace . Who’d dare to take a loser like you?”

Li Kuanglan snorted . “Stingy! You can’t even part with a sword . I feel embarrassed for your grandpa . ”

Ji Tianqing had had enough . “Is that an ordinary sword we’re talking about? How many swords like Cold Moon’s Embrace are there in the entire empire? I only touched you a bit and slept with you for two nights, the price shouldn’t be that high, should it? Naturally, I might consider it if you’re willing to give yourself to me up until the next life . I could just grab a random old sword for you to swing around . ”

Li Kuanglan gnashed her teeth . “You’re courting death!”

“Come kill me if you can!” Ji Tianqing provoked .

How could Li Kuanglan endure this? She pounced over immediately but was knocked back from the impact and pinned to the ground . Li Kuanglan’s forte was her speed—now that she was clashing head-on against Ji Tianqing, it wasn’t surprising that she would lose .

“You, a sword? Easy, go and ask the person who has seen and touched you all over! With me around, you don’t need to worry about him not taking responsibility . Our long-legged and big-busted lady can’t be inferior to anyone else . ”

Qianye was hiding on the sidelines and eating his meat when he started choking . Yet, there were only three people here, so how could he escape?

“Qianye, stop hiding . I’m talking about you! Bring out your sword for Kuanglan . ”

Qianye laughed wryly . “I only have East Peak and she can’t use it . ”

“Just take it out . Even if she can’t use it, it’ll serve for good decoration . ” Ji Tianqing stretched her hand out, so Qianye had no choice but to pass her his sword .

Ji Tianqing grunted softly as the sword landed in her grasp . Her expression changed several times as the sword’s weight far exceeded her expectations . It would be an embarrassment if she were to drop it .

She was actually channeling a different secret art each time her countenance transformed . Her power increased exponentially after activating numerous arts, allowing her to just barely stabilize East Peak . Despite that, her hand was trembling slightly—she was at her limits .

She spun her wrist around and thrust East Peak into the ground beside Li Kuanglan . “This sword isn’t bad at all . As I see it, it’s quite enough to trade for you . Now that he has agreed to exchange the sword for you, you’ll be his for the rest of your life . ”

Qianye was shocked out of his wits . “Tianqing, don’t joke about this . ”

Ji Tianqing chuckled and then retreated to the side . “Not fun at all . ”

Qianye heaved a sigh of relief after seeing that the girl had given up on the mischief . Her words were a mixture of truths and lies, truly a headache .

The commotion brought them fairly deep into the night . Qianye was feeling quite relaxed against the frigid night . The gravity on them was much lighter now, probably less than ten times that of normal . The intensity of the frigid night would also decrease accordingly .

It was just a small relief to his burden, but his endurance would increase severalfold because of it . Meanwhile, Ji Tianqing and Li Kuanglan were also getting stronger with the repeated use of the white fruit . Although Qianye couldn’t help both of them at the same time, he could easily help one of them—it was no longer as risky and dangerous as before .

At this point, it was time to decide how they would pass the night . Ji Tianqing produced a jar of wine and made known her intentions . Qianye frowned in objection . Although Ji Tianqing seemed fine on the surface, his intuition told him that wasn’t the case .

“Tianqing, we still have white fruits, there’s no need to save them . ”

“No, I have uses for them . ” Ji Tianqing wasn’t willing . Qianye wanted to dissuade her again, but she had already removed the seal and started drinking .

Helpless, Qianye turned to Li Kuanglan . “Just take the white fruit tonight, it can only be beneficial . ”

Li Kuanglan didn’t reply . Instead, she stood in front of Qianye and removed every piece of her armor . Then, she faced him naturally without any sign of embarrassment .

Although he had already seen her from head to toe, Qianye was still shocked . The nights before, he had no choice, but things were different right now .

“Embrace me,” Li Kuanglan said calmly .