Chapter 26| Rise of the Midnight Moon The girls also participated, but not in obvious combat. They deigned to “perform” with their opponents, creating a display or dance of some sort. After a few sisters and friend pairs went, Xia Meixiang received a signal from Lan Yu. The two rose in sync and met on the platform before bowing once to the emperor and then to the crowd. Together did a tandem sword and fan dance which released a pleasant and well controlled mist into the air that was beautiful to look at. As they mirrored each other's action, there was an unspoken balance between the two. Xia Lan Yu’s Eight Treasures Steel Fan and Xia Meixiang’s Chilling Moonlight Sword were like two dancers of different styles. Xia Lan Yu’s fan was jade green with polished steel plates and a precious Hutian jade tassel with her family name carved on the surface. It was usually at odds with Lan Yun’s personality and bearing, but today, when shown under the moonlight in such a way, it was as if the previous Lan Yu was but an illusion. This Lan Yu was so graceful and dainty, lithe and willowy. Xia Meixiang’s weapon was a sword forged from Ardent Steel, and was given to her by her father after she officially passed the entrance test for Tianlong Academy. The handle was wrapped in jade green silk, with a tassel made from Hutian jade with her family name carved in the surface. Her movements were fiery and strong, swift and powerful. But it was clear Lan Yu was leading the performance! When Lan Yu’s fan fluttered gently to the east, Meixiang’s sword would race after it. When she slowed her hand a fraction, Meixiang would follow her. The two cousin-sisters were in a delicate balance that could only be formed after years of understanding and cooperation. When the performance drew to a close, there was a hush of silence before Yun Li Tien stood to applaud his fiancee. “Marvelous!” he surmised, his eyes never leaving Xia Lan Yu. Xia Meixiang quirked her lips upward and stealthily pushed her cousin toward the Prince. Xia Lan Yu’s already flushed face brightened to a red so deep if one pinched her cheek, they would draw blood. She shot an aggrieved look at Xia Meixiang, mentally promising retribution, before stepping forward to bow. “Praying our display pleases the Emperor and Empress.” Xia Meixiang followed her cousin and echoed her words. The Emperor beamed with delight. “Such a skillful lady. Little Third has truly good eyesight.” Yun Li Tien dutifully deflected. “It is Imperial Mother who has graced me with marriage to such a fine lady. This filial son only obeys.” With his simple phrase he made the Empress the matchmaker and himself only a filial son. He skillfully avoided such praise that could potentially smear Lan Yu later. “It is true. Imperial Mother cares so deeply for us brothers. Imperial Father, if there is a need to praise someone, it should be Imperial mother.” Second Prince chimed in. The Empress beamed. She nodded in approval at her soon-to-be daughter-in-law. Speaking to the emperor, she gloated, “All of chenqie’s daughters are so wonderful. Emperor, this palace wants to bestow something to them all.” The Crown Princess and the Second Prince’s Princess Consort both glided to the front to bow. “Imperial Mother, you are too kind to us…” Xia Meixiang wisely slipped from the platform back to her mother’s side, silently watching as Wei Qiang Fei seethed in her seat, glaring daggers at Xia Lan Yu. The Empress bestowed a set of Phoenix hairpins onto the Crown Princess. Onto the Second Prince’s Consort, she rewarded a pair of jade bracelets inset with pearls and quartz. For Xia Lan Yu, she gave her a milky white jade pair of earrings with blue sapphires. It should be noted that all of these were treasures. It was showing the naysayers in the Imperial Clan that their words meant nothing to the Empress, as she personally approved of these daughters in law. Xia Meixiang could only imagine the white eyed wolves would kick up a fuss later. This made it even more important for Meixiang to make the next few months pass by quietly, until her cousin was securely married in. Xia Ling-Er you are lucky your surname is Xia… Xia Meixiang and her mother stayed for another hour before Ruan Xiuxiang feigned a severe headache to leave tactfully. Xia Meixiang the ever dutiful daughter followed her mother home, saying a quick goodbye to her cousins and promising to send the design sketches to Gu An Ring’s house. Xia Meixiang barely spared a glance to the cluster of young misses around Xia Ling-Er. She simply alighted to the carriage with Xiao Zhong’s help. Xia Ling-Er couldn’t understand what was going on thoroughly, but she had an inkling. She shot a look over Wei Qi Qi, who was currently glaring at Xia Long Yu. A million thoughts danced across her eyes before she smiled mirthlessly. It seemed she’d have to pry into this Wei Qiang Fei as well, for resources… Meanwhile, miles away from Fortune City’s bustling palace, near the docks, a rauncious group of men and women made the streets unsavory. Of course these were the Black River Bandits, their ominous black and brown garb making many of the pedestrians give them a wide berth. The Black River Bandits had a long history in Fanrong. Formerly a part of the Black Serpent Gang of the bordering range of the Four Dragons King Valley, it had an intimidating heritage and malicious tactics with which it dealt. In recent years, due to successive attacks by the Imperial Guard, its power was waning, but the common folk still feared them. The group snatched food from the hands of the people walking by and groped some of the unsuspecting women. Occasionally, a member of the group would just waltz into a shop and come back with a fistful of cash. A time or two they would come back with jewelry and pricey jade tablets. “Ey, Older Brother Yang, what shall we do today?” one member snickered as he counted his newly gained spoils. He had a waist pouch full copper coins, a small fortune for a common man. The man he addressed was Xi Yang, the left lieutenant of the Black River Bandits. He had a handsome face and well-toned build. His body was littered with scars, most notably the ong scar that went from his brow to his upper lip. No one knew that the wound was caused by his deceased wife, the night he killed her. They all thought it was a battle scar. The scar only served to make the prostitutes fawn over him more, looking charming when his face was relaxed and in pleasure. But that is a tale for another time. For now, Xi Yang stood menacingly at the center of the swarm of locusts known as the Black River Gang. Xi Yang fondled his scruffy chin for a moment, before a disgusting leer crossed his face. “I heard the lineup of Red Lily Palace has changed since we’ve been away…” The Red Lily Palace was a lower end brothel that did good business around the docks. In the couple of years that the Black River receded into the countryside inland, Red Lily Palace had indeed changed its lineup. All of the men in the group started hooting and laughing. Farther inland there were only dainty brothels that didn’t cater to their rough ilk (though that didn’t stop them from roughing them up). But it made it hard for them to move around then they broke a few women here and there, so most were pent up. Now that they were back on their home turf, they were itching to return to the passionate embrace of the women of the Red Lily Palace. Of course none of the women of the Black River Gang could satisfy them- it wasn’t out of camaraderie but out of pure distaste. The women looked nice enough, but they would sooner but a dagger in them than engage in pillow talk. “Not even boss’s gone over there since we came back,” another member pointed out. “I hear the prices rose, on accounta them new girls.” Xi Yang’s handsome face stretched wider as his grin did. “Then we’ll need some more money…” His eyes fell on a couple of drunk men who lumbered from a gambling den. Xi Yang locked eyes with his right and left hand men, the Kun brothers- a pair of savage brothers with matching brown bandanas over their right and left eyes respectively. They followed his gaze and matching grins soon formed on their handsome faces. As one unit, they broke away from the group of Black River members and began to follow the drunk men like tails. When the two reached the end of the street, and turned the corner into what was a dead end, the three dastardly hounds pounced. Quick as lightning, the two brothers surged forward, intending to restrain the men so that Xi Yang could kill and rob them. Xi Yang, who was grinning from ear to ear, watched on as the duo formed claws with their Qi. He expected to see blood dripping from the torn limbs of the men, to hear anguished and slurred cries of pain. What he actually saw made him pale, the grin on his face fading. The two brothers found their surprise attack intercepted by the two suddenly-not-so-drunk men. The brothers stumbled back in a defensive stance, glaring at the men who shed their intoxication veneer. The sudden burst of pressure the men exuded made Xi Yang frown. One was a Gold Rank Fighter and the other was a Seventh Qi Realm cultivator. Both wore sets of armor, increasing their defense and durability. None were people that Xi Yang recognized. He stepped forward using his own Eighth Qi Realm aura to allay the pressure on his two men. His mind was formulating plans as he spoke. “What is the meaning of this?” The cultivator snickered maliciously. “Left Lieutenant Xi of the Black River Gang, do you know your sins?” he cackled. As his voice fell, three more Fighters in black and red clothing fell from the tops of the buildings, to cage the trio in. Xi Yang’s face darkened, taking in the scene. Although everyone knew his face and name, none would blatantly speak his identity. The Black River Gang had some clout in Fortune City after all. “Who have I offended to bring such violence?” he asked, stalling for time. If he did not return in half an hour, the rest of the group would trail them. Contrary to popular belief, he was a calculative man. He was not so pigheaded as to think that the three of them could take on four Silver-and-above Fighters and a Seventh Qi Realm cultivator. If he could ditch the two brothers here and escape, he could meet them halfway and get revenge for this embarrassing ambush. The Gold Fighter sneered and spat, “Xi Yang, you’ve offended so many people, we are only the long lost retribution.” Xi Yang sneered despite his predicament. “Retribution is what the weak depend on for justice. The strong make their justice!” The cultivator narrowed his eyes and said with a cold finality. “Then we shall see if you are strong enough!” As if shot from a longbow, the cultivator surged towards Xi Yang, disregarding the Kun brothers. When the duo tried to intercept, as if by magic, there were two Silver Fighters there to engage them. The Kun Brothers were at the Fifth Qi Realm, but they had never fought Fighters- that is to say, solely physical practitioners, before. They were unprepared for the straightforward and relentless attacks from the men. Meanwhile, Xi Yang had tried to use the distraction of two of the three Silver Fighters to escape from the cultivator, but he was steps too late. Both the Gold rank Fighter and the remaining Silver rank Fighter moved in sync to assist the cultivator, blocking Xi Yang’s retreat and forcing him to trade blows with the vicious man. Boom! Sparks flew from the meeting of their fists, throwing both back from each other in pain. But the cultivator was like a mad man, immediately throwing himself at Xi Yang again, this time with a layer of qi around his whole arm instead of his fist. Xi Yang’s eyes widened in horror then narrowed. Qi Forming! At the mere level of the Seventh Qi Realm? This was unheard of in the Four Dragons King Valley! It should be pointed out that Qi Forming was an advanced technique used to strengthen a cultivator’s body and increase attack prowess. Martial art techniques taught this, but could only be used effectively after reaching the true threshold of cultivation Martial Scholars. This man was only at the Seventh Level, yet he was able to execute a technique like this? Xi Yang quickly defended using his arms, hissing in pain as an audible crack sounded in the alley way. The cultivator he was facing barely paused as he struck out again, this time with his regular fists, aiming at Xi Yang’s face. “This kind of face should also be broken!” he viciously declared, raining punch after punch onto his handsome visage. The only thing Xi Yang could do was try and protect his face, but he was woefully unable to throw the man off of him. Not only were his arms in pain, the armor the cultivator wore made his heavier. One punch dazed him. Two punches split his lip. Three hits and his eyes swelled shut. Mercilessly the cultivator delivered punch after punch, his fists heavy and unrelenting. It was only after the formerly handsome face was unrecognizable that the Gold Fighter pulled his comrade off of the man. “Do not be too hasty, Brother Ning. Soon the left lieutenant will know how to fear…” the Gold Fighter spoke lazily to his partner, before turning to look down on Xi Yang. “We killed your two dogs.” He spat the words out like a curse. “Let this be a lesson to you Black River Dogs. The Blood Moon Syndicate won’t allow the Black River to run through here any longer. Leave now with dignity or be disgraced.” With a flap of his robe, he and his comrades disappeared, leaving a beaten Xi Yang and the corpses of the two Kun brothers in the alley way.
Every time I read about the fiance I can't help wanting Meixiang to just break the engagement and a few of the scum's rib. Although cousin Longyu has avenged Meixiang I still didn't think it was enough. Great job~ Hope to read more soon~
Your Novel looks very interesting, it makes me really want to read, but you can "air, improve " (i don't know the word) your prologue and your chapter 1. Edit : I don't want to read the chapter 2 before the one. Thank!