Chapter 211 — Embrace
The Sword Questions the Heavens · Page 1 of 5
Burning Cloud Valley.
The majestic Hall of Mountain and River stood silent now. Apart from Li Xun and that group of elite disciples who had entered the mysterious Ten Thousand Wilderness Mountains, most of the Burning Cloud Valley disciples at this hour were either standing watch and patrolling the valley, or shut away in their own rooms pursuing their cultivation. Few came to the main hall of Burning Cloud Valley. Apart from deep in the night, this was the loneliest hour of the day in the Hall of Mountain and River.
Yet at this moment two figures stood within the great doors of the hall, motionless and silent, gazing toward the distant southern sky.
Far off at the edge of the heavens, deep within the mysterious and perilous ranges of the Ten Thousand Wilderness Mountains, an enormous pillar of fire was surging into the sky, bearing with it rushing, roaring crimson magma and thick clouds of black-grey, shot through with countless fragments of rock, hurled high into the heavens by some vast force and then bursting outward, splattering in every direction.
Though the distance was great, one could still seem to feel that tremendous roar resounding between heaven and earth; even beneath their feet they could faintly sense the ground trembling. If it was so a thousand li away, what unimaginable spectacle must it be there, deep in the Ten Thousand Wilderness Mountains, where the eruption had broken forth?
No one knew. At least, the two men standing in the Hall of Mountain and River did not know.
Yun Yifeng's face was cold and remote. For a long while he had not spoken a single word, only watched in silence that towering pillar of fire which, though it had erupted long since, showed not the slightest sign of abating. The man standing behind him was his junior brother, Shangguan Lue, who was also gazing at the great fire pillar, though his expression was far more complex, the look on his face shifting like cloud and clearing sky.
A long while passed.
In the silence darkness crept in, and the light of day gradually faded. A few disciples passed by, but they soon sensed that something was not quite right in the air here and quickly withdrew. Later, as the last trace of twilight ebbed away, even gazing into the distance, that strange spectacle at the far edge of the sky slowly blurred into indistinctness.
Somewhere far off, in a corner of Burning Cloud Valley, a faint chirping of insects arose, now sounding, now still, near and far by turns, calling to no one knew what—and only deepening the icy desolation of the vast Hall of Mountain and River.
Yun Yifeng's form in the shadows stirred, and then he slowly turned around.
Shangguan Lue looked at him in silence. Yun Yifeng's gaze met his for a moment in midair, then, for some reason, slid away. He turned slowly and walked deeper into the Hall of Mountain and River. Shangguan Lue sighed inwardly, cast one last glance toward the southern sky, and turned to follow him in.
Low footsteps echoed through the silent Hall of Mountain and River, and seemed so very loud.
Those heavy footfalls—on whose heart did they fall, one wondered?
Yun Yifeng slowly seated himself in the chair at the center of the great hall. Night had fallen, yet no lamps were lit here. It was not that the Burning Cloud Valley disciples were shirking their duties; it was only that a night like this seemed somehow different from all others, and they had the tact not to come.
Yun Yifeng sat in the darkness, his features grown somewhat indistinct. After a long while he suddenly said, "To think that in this world there truly is someone who could destroy the Zhenmo Ancient Cave, who could kill that demon."