Time flies, with a flick of the fingers, two and a half years like a white horse passing by, and in the blink of an eye, it is another year of spring flowers.

In a mountain forest on the border of Chu and Vietnam, the mountain peaks turned green, wild flowers poked their heads out of the soil, and the clear stream meandered, knocking on the rocks with a crisp sound. Birds fly freely across the sky, singing the music of a winter silence.

In the depths of the winding path, the white clouds are leisurely, the shepherd boy rides on the back of the buffalo, and plays with a piccolo in his hand, he puts the flute to his mouth, and plays it gently, the flute sound is a little clumsy, and the notes stumble, although not unpleasant, but not pleasant.

The shepherd boy was a little anxious, and tried to play again, but the naughty piccolo seemed to be deliberately bad, and could not play a beautiful music. The shepherd boy furrowed his brows, pouted and put away the piccolo. He grabbed the horn with one hand and slid off the cow's back.

The buffalo mooed back, as if to laugh at his clumsiness.

"Little boy! Feed! A voice came from afar.

The shepherd boy looked at the voice, and in the distance came two horses, two at once, a man and a woman, both dressed as chivalrous, each carrying a sword, and the woman with a short bow hanging from the side of her horse.

When he came to him, the man jumped off his horse and saluted the shepherd boy, "Hello little boy." ”

The shepherd boy returned the salute with a decent return: "Hello sir." ”

"Is there a blazing mountain around here?"

The shepherd boy nodded, pointing into the distance, "Walk over there for half a day, and the highest one will be." ”

The man leaned down and saluted again, "Thank you, boy." ”

"No thanks, no thanks. These days, people often ask about Blazing Phoenix Mountain, I really don't know what's going on, why do you all have to go there? ”

"Oh? Anyone else asked? ”

"Yes, yes, a few people came a few days ago, and they happened to run into me, and they also asked about Blazing Phoenix Mountain."

"Oh, I see, thank you boy, then, farewell."

"Goodbye." The boy said goodbye.

The two waved goodbye to the boy and continued to ride their horses in the direction of Blazing Phoenix Mountain, the man yawned, although his face was tired, he couldn't hide the handsome temperament on his face.

He is none other than Yan Heyu, and the woman next to him is his wife, Jianyue. Compared with that year, Heyu is much more mature now, and there are a lot of vicissitudes on his face. When the moon is seen, it fades away from immaturity, just like a flower that has just bloomed, which is particularly beautiful and moving.

"Seeing the moon, I'm afraid we are the last to arrive, fortunately we didn't delay on the road, if it's half a day late, we won't be able to catch up with the succession ceremony of the new giant tomorrow, then it's a pity!"

Jianyue nodded and said, "Yes, the succession of the new giant is a big event, and all the brothers and sisters in the world have to come to celebrate, so we can't be late for anything." ”

"Well, the brothers and sisters of the Phoenix Ink Sect know no borders and are all over the world, I'm afraid that only this kind of big event can bring everyone together. But it's also strange to say, it is said that those who can be invited to participate in this kind of ceremony should be big shots, the two of us have not joined the Phoenix Ink Sect for a few years, why will this ceremony let the two of us come? ”

"I don't understand, but it's a good thing after all, the other brothers and sisters are very envious, who wouldn't want to meet the new giant? Even if it's just a glance from a distance. ”

"yes." He Yu nodded, he seemed to remember something, and smiled: "I just heard Brother Xiao Xun and them talk about it before, the most powerful chivalrous organization in this world is called the Phoenix Ink Sect, and I also heard that the Phoenix Ink Sect's secret weapon is unparalleled in the world. Hehe, it's really unexpected, all these years have passed in a blink of an eye, and we have become a member of the Phoenix Ink Sect. ”

"I just couldn't have imagined that, who would have thought that I would marry you? Back then, I still wanted to marry a few men and become a patriarch in Yuenu Mountain. ”

"Alright, alright, Patriarch, let's hurry up, we have to go up the mountain before dark."

The two talked and laughed, and rushed to the foot of Blazing Phoenix Mountain before dark.

Blazing Phoenix Mountain is extraordinary, standing impressively in the mountains, and the foot of the mountain is connected to the earth's veins, stretching for more than 100 miles. The north side of the mountain is steep and straight up, exposed with hard boulders, and the south side is slightly gentle, with a variety of lush plants, and a path winds and turns, taking over the road into the mountain from the east, and walking along the path to the mountain, the mountains and rocks are stacked on top of each other, gradually disappearing into the clouds.

The sun sets in the west, the clouds surge, reflecting the flowing rainbow light on the blazing phoenix mountain, looking from a distance, it looks like a divine phoenix perched on the top of the mountain is about to flutter its wings and fly, and the crimson clouds are the flames surrounding her.

He Yu and Jianyue didn't have time to enjoy the beautiful scenery here, they had to enter the mountain gate before dark, otherwise they could only spend the night in the mountain.

The two of them walked forward for another half hour, and the sky grew darker and darker, and the glow faded crimson, leaving a few bright sparks in the sky.

At this time, a mountain gate appeared in front of me.

"Great, we're here, I thought we'd be spending the night in the mountains tonight!" Mizuki looked very happy.

"Yes, it's good that we didn't delay our efforts, otherwise we didn't enter the mountain gate, but instead fed the wolves at the bottom of the mountain, wouldn't it be a joke."

Jianyue pushed Heyu, "Pure nonsense, the weather of this blazing phoenix mountain is extraordinary, even tigers dare not come, where will there be wolves?" ”

"Hehe, yes, yes, I'm just talking about it."

"Hmph, don't play around when you enter the mountain gate, the people in the province dislike us." Jianyue said, helping Heyu tidy up his clothes, "You go to the mountain gate to report." ”

He Yu smiled and responded: "Yes, my patriarch!" ”

Then, Heyu led the horse to the front of the mountain gate and saluted the waiter, "In Xia Yu and Yu, I am invited to participate in the succession ceremony of the giant son, please take us in." ”

"Are you Yu, Yu?" The waiter stared at Heyu, looking a little excited.

"Exactly."

"Then it's the moon that is with you?"

"That's right." He Yu was a little confused, "Do you know the two of us?" ”

"Oh, you're here, I've been waiting for you all day. Come on, come with me. ”

He Yu didn't know why, and Jianyue couldn't figure it out, it was said that the two of them were not big names, and they didn't have any reputation in the Huangmo faction, why did this waiter wait for the two of them? He Yu couldn't figure it out, but he vaguely felt that it might indicate something important.

The waiter took Heyu and Jianyue to walk along a wide white jade staircase to the mountain, there are all kinds of buildings built on both sides of the steps, there are huge high platforms, there are low houses, there are courtyards full of flowers and plants, there are also sentry posts for observation and reconnaissance, different buildings are intersected and scattered, complement each other, overlooking from above, the whole building complex is beautiful. At this time, the sky was dark, and the buildings were lit with sparkling fires, and the firelight and starlight reflected in the light, as if the gods had moved the heavenly palace to the world.

He Yu couldn't help but sigh: "What a blazing phoenix mountain, I can't imagine that it will be so magnificent." ”

When he saw the moon, he kept silent, and his expression was secretly sad.

He Yu looked up and looked up, only then did he understand why the moon was sad, it turned out that there was a statue of a goddess standing at the end of the white jade steps, although the posture was not the same as the statue of the goddess in the Yue Nu Mountain, but He Yu knew that this statue of the goddess was also depicted by the ancestor Huang Mo.

He Yu stretched out his hand to pull up Jianyue, the warmth of his palm made Jianyue feel some comfort, this place is so similar to Yuenu Mountain, I don't know what Yuenu Mountain has become now, is it already rotten, piled up with broken rubble?

Passing by the statue of the goddess, the attendant led the two forward. Outside a courtyard, the messenger opened one of the guest rooms and said to the two: "We have arrived, please live here, tomorrow will be the ceremony of the succession of the new giant, please rest early, don't miss the ceremony." ”

He Yu saluted: "Thank you, thank you!" ”

The waiter returned the salute and left.

He Yu can only take care of looking around the guest room, the room is clean and tidy, although it is not gorgeous, but it is definitely comfortable and pleasant. He Yu put down his salute, fell down, and lay flat on the wide bed.

When he lay down, a sense of exhaustion swept over his body, and he beckoned Jianyue to come over and rest, but Jianyue ignored him.

Kazuki sat up and saw Mitsuki leaning against the window and looking up at the statue of the goddess.

"Seeing the moon, are you homesick?"

"Hmmm......"

He Yu stepped forward and hugged Jianyue, "Why don't you ...... I'll accompany you to Yuenu Mountain in the summer, right? ”

Jianyue shook her head, "No...... Don't go ...... It was already in ruins. ”

"Hey......" Heyu didn't know what to say, so he could only hold Jianyue tightly in his arms.

Jianyue leaned her head on Heyu's chest, "Husband, my home is ruined, since the day we left Yuenu Mountain, you have been my home." ”

"Well, I'm the same, you're my home too."

"The Phoenix Ink Sect was also founded by the ancestor Huang Mo, so from now on, this is our home."

"Hmm!" He Yu nodded vigorously.

The next day, the new giant succeeded to the ceremony, and the brothers and sisters gathered in the temple behind the statue of the goddess. Kazuyo sat down at the outermost level and couldn't help but admire the exquisite craftsmanship of the temple.

This temple is very similar to the sacrificial shrine of Yue Nu Mountain, with seven pillars made of basalt supporting the entire temple overhang, and above the ceiling, a relief of a divine phoenix comes to life, she is covered in flames, and the back of each wing has a fire feather carved from crystal ore, and the sunlight diffracts through the fire feather like a flame.

Below the suspended roof, the structure of the entire temple is completely different from that of the temple of Yuenu Mountain.

The steps of the temple of Yuenu Mountain are gradually raised from the outside to the inside, and the pure gold altar is located at the highest point of the temple, while this temple is just the opposite, the steps are arced from top to bottom, and the height is gradually reduced from the outside to the inside, each step expands a circle of seats on both sides, and there is no pure gold altar in the center, instead of a simple case.

On the whole, it is not so much a sacrificial temple, but a huge lecture hall.

Soon, the hall was packed, and people were separated to form four distinct sections. These four parts are the four basic factions of the Huangmo faction - "Li", "Bing", "Strategy", and "Xia". ”

This corresponds to the knowledge of seal carvings in the Yue Nu Mountain, and "Li" focuses on the study of natural knowledge such as light, force, fire, and minerals; "Bing" focuses on military behaviors such as fighting, archery, formation, and strategy; "Strategy" focuses on politics, economy and people's livelihood at the level of national governance; "Xia" replaced "Shu" and became the action unit of the entire Huangmo Sect.

He Yu and Jianyue are in the "chivalrous" faction.

With a brief drum beat, the entire temple fell silent, and people waited eagerly for the appearance of the new giant.

He Yu looked at the center even more intently, he was eager to see the giant son, not only because he was the new leader of the Huangmo faction, but also because he was the respected teacher of the three brothers, Yan Lingyu.

A moment later, the drum beat again, and Yan Lingyu slowly walked into the field, his hair was snow-white, obviously he was old, but there seemed to be no wrinkles on his face, his skin was ruddy and shiny, and there was no old age at all.

Yan Lingyu stood still in front of a few cases, and then folded his hands in front of him and saluted everyone.

Everyone stood up and saluted back.

Yan Lingyu sat down slowly, and then said to everyone: "Two hundred years ago, my ancestor Huangmo founded a sect, passed on its infinite wisdom to future generations, and taught me to calm the world and appease the common people. ”

"However, how difficult is the great cause of the ancestors, and it is not possible to do it with the ability of the ancestors, and we are stupid people who dare to act recklessly? However, in the past hundred years, the princes have fought and killed, and the people have been miserable, and the world is miserable, and I can't bear to look at it. Although we are ordinary people, how dare we not inherit the legacy of our ancestors? ”

"Today, I am the new giant, and I will definitely assist you and others, and devote my whole life to calm the world and appease the common people!"

"I, Yan Lingyu, have no regrets even though I have died!"

As soon as the words fell, the crowd boiled, and everyone shouted in unison: "Although we have died a hundred times, we have no regrets!" ”

At night, Yan Lingyu leaned on the window alone, looking at the statue of the goddess standing impressively, he poured a full wine glass gloomily, and tasted it alone.

At this time, the waiter came to report that there was a Mr. Sun who asked to see him.

Yan Lingyu was overjoyed and hurriedly ordered someone to bring Mr. Sun in.

An old man with gray hair came to Yan Lingyu, the two of them hadn't seen each other for many years, and the joy in his heart was indescribable.

"Mr. Sun Wu."

"Giant."

The two saluted each other, and Yan Lingyu immediately filled a wine glass for Sun Wu, and Sun Wu raised his glass to apologize, "Brother Yan, I am ashamed, I should have attended your succession ceremony on time, but I didn't want to be delayed on the way, and all kinds of reasons cannot be used as an excuse, so I have to use this glass of wine to apologize." ”

"Mr. Sun Wu is serious, it is my great honor for you to come. Since the gentleman wants to apologize, then I might as well accompany this glass of wine, and it will be regarded as a catch for you. ”

"Then you and I will drink this cup together."

"Please."

"Please."

The night breeze was slightly cool, a little breeze mixed with a light fragrance caressed into the window, as if brewing a drunken flower dew, the two talked very happily, and unconsciously they were already slightly drunk.

"Brother Yan, your apprentice still failed. Hey, I really didn't expect that the Son of Heaven would be killed by a small snake in the field, tell me, is this the will of God? ”

"Providence? Hehe, we did everything that needed to be done, and since he was nine years old, I specially trained him, taught him the best swordsmanship, and taught him the most solid way to use soldiers. After he left the division, I ordered them to go to Gusu and secretly cooperate with all the arrangements of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. Finally, we forced him to the kingdom of Yue, and later, you trapped him in the valley and tried him with a game of chess, and he passed your test, and you also taught him the unpublished book of war. What's more, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince did not hesitate to self-immolate and exchange his life for the favor of the Son of Heaven, but ...... Who would have thought the end result? We've got ...... win."

"Hey......" Sun Wu shook his head, "Perhaps, this is the will of heaven." ”

Yan Lingyu didn't answer, but asked, "You should know that there are four factions in the Phoenix Ink Sect. ”

"Well, I naturally know that they are Li, Bing, Luo, and Xia."

"That's right, my ancestor Huangmo has passed down the wisdom of the ages, but the Huangmo Sect does not have all, the ancestor led his clan to Yuenu Mountain before his death, and left the most secret wisdom after the Shenwu trial. The Yue Nu clan has been guarding for a hundred years, and I thought that there would be a person like His Royal Highness the Crown Prince among the princes, and perhaps that person would be able to obtain all the wisdom of the ancestors through the trial of divine martial arts, and realize the ideals of the ancestors. But fate was not good, and the Yue Nu people did not wait after all. ”

"But ......," Sun Wu raised his glass and smiled, "They waited for your other apprentice." ”

"yes." Yan Lingyu clinked glasses with Sun Wu, then drank the wine in the cup, and put down the cup, but Yan Lingyu looked a little sad, "I arranged for them to go to Yuenu Mountain." Who would have thought that they would pass the Divine Martial Trial? Hehe, maybe this is providence. But they also brought destruction to those wisdoms. Reason, soldier, strategy, and chivalry, among which the 'chivalry' should have been 'art', but now, the 'art' that could have predicted the future has been wiped out forever. ”

"Brother Yan doesn't have to be sad, how can mortals like me try to figure out the will of heaven through 'magic'?"

"You're right, where are we qualified to fathom providence? We can't even really figure it out. Yan Lingyu smiled bitterly, "I used to think that I could understand human nature, especially for my apprentices, and I left a note for each of them, hoping to help them in times of crisis. But...... Can ......"

Yan Lingyu spoke, his eyes moistened, he raised his wine glass, his wrist trembled slightly, and he drew a circle of ripples on the surface of the elixir.

Then, Yan Lingyu slowly got up, sprinkled the elixir in the cup outside the window, and whispered, "Ran'er, why don't you listen to the teacher?" ”

"People can't be resurrected after death, Brother Yan, please mourn and change."

"Hey, I'm wondering if I was wrong from the beginning......"

"Brother Yan is not wrong, any ideal must pay a price, you have already paid too much."

"Perhaps."

Sun Wu helped Yan Lingyu back to his seat, raised his glass and sighed: "Brother Yan, the beacon smoke will rise again, and there will definitely be a battle between them." ”

"Yes, it's come to this, and no one can stop it, but I still have to try my best to correct my mistakes."

"What is Brother Yan going to do?"

"I found Yu Heyu, I will meet him tomorrow, I need him to help me do something, this matter does not affect the final result, but can try to make up for my mistakes, and...... In the final battle, Yu Heyu will definitely participate in it. ”