Chapter Thirteen Old Memories

  The whole room was left with only me, I looked at the ceiling and worried about Zi Xue. She didn't come early or late, but just in time when Teacher Zhuang's true feelings were revealed. This little girl usually looks gentle, but once she makes up her mind, it's really hard to persuade her. Forget it, don't think too much, I can't do anything in this state anyway.

  I focused my mind to examine the situation inside my body, and found that it was empty and hollow, with a severe depletion of qi. The Tianmo Decision was still intact, with most of it remaining in its original place. I'll just take a nap, these aren't things that can be recovered from through cultivation alone. With worries about Zixue on my mind, I gradually fell asleep.

  When I woke up, my spirit was much better, and a nurse walked in, surprisingly it was Cran.

  "I exclaimed in surprise: 'Kelan, it's you again taking care of me.'"

  Keran said in a bad mood: "It's not like I'm the one, you're a heartless person, after leaving last time, you disappeared without a trace. When I went to the academy to find you, your teacher said you were under house arrest. The house arrest should have been over by now, but you still didn't come, humph."

  I awkwardly said: "No, I was preparing for the competition and didn't have time to spare. Now that it's over, I rushed here as soon as possible."

  "Ah, yes, yes, you're back again after being beaten half to death. Hurry up and eat something, it's the director's special instructions to give you a good nutritional supplement. You've become our hospital's honored guest now. If not for taking care of you last time, I wouldn't have been assigned to you this time either."

  Kelan brought over a hospital-specific table and placed it on the bed, arranging the food on the table. It was truly sumptuous - a small pot full of porridge made from unknown ingredients, as well as fruit and various pastries. At once, my appetite was piqued.

  Ke Lan said, "This porridge was specially prepared for you by someone. It's called Snowy Chicken Porridge, and I spent all night cooking it with snowy and chicken just for you. Try some."

  One mouthful of porridge and it's instantly fragrant and savory. I slurped it down in one breath, finishing a big bowl, and couldn't help but exclaim how delicious it was.

  Kelan refilled my bowl with a satisfied expression and said, "Eat some of the other dishes too."

  ……

  All the food was swept away by me, and my stomach is full and comfortable. I suddenly thought of something, I must inform Cran about what happened with Zi Xue. Now Zi Xue is already angry with me, I can't let her catch any more excuses.

  Kelan put away the dishes and sat down beside me on the bed, saying: "How are you feeling? Is your body a bit more comfortable?"

  I nodded and said, "Kelan, I have something to talk to you about."

  Kuang cried out in alarm.

  "I said: 'Do you still remember that girl we met in the stable last time?'"

  "Is it that pure and beautiful girl?"

  I nodded.

  Kelan seemed to have a premonition and said calmly: "What's wrong with her."

  I took a deep breath and mustered up the courage to say: "She's my girlfriend now."

  Ke Lan's originally rosy face suddenly turned white, staring at me with wide eyes for a long time before asking: "When did you two start?"

  I didn't answer her question and said: "Sorry, Keren, I already have her, I know you're good to me, but..."

  Kelan stood up and said, "Whoever wants to be with you is none of your business, don't get too emotional, rest now, I'm going out, call me if there's anything." She tried her best to control her footsteps, walking calmly out the door. As soon as she stepped out, she leaned against the wall and tears flowed uncontrollably down her face.

  I sat half on the bed, feeling uncomfortable in my heart. Within just two short days, I had hurt the hearts of two girls. Maybe I shouldn't have gotten involved with emotions after all.

  Ke Lan still sends me food and medicine, takes care of my daily life, but her attitude is much colder, rarely talks to me. However, she still takes care of me meticulously, every day still cooks that delicious snow fungus chicken porridge for me. My heart is filled with a sense of guilt. But I know, now absolutely cannot be soft-hearted, otherwise, who knows what the consequences will be.

  Under Keren's careful care, I quickly recovered my physical strength and my condition basically returned to its original level. On the day of discharge, Keren didn't come, one of her colleagues brought a letter to me on her behalf, the letter was very simple, only three words, which read - I hate you. Deep love and deep responsibility, Keren, I owe you an apology. I didn't say anything and left the hospital directly.

  Kelan lay on the second floor window, watching me leave with a tear-stained face.

  I didn't return to the academy, but instead rushed to the Duke's mansion. I want to explain everything clearly to Zixue. Since I've already hurt Kurenai, I absolutely cannot let Zixue get hurt again.

  I had a servant go and inform them for me. After a while, the servant came out and said to me: "The second young lady says she doesn't want to see you, please leave."

  "I said: 'Would you mind helping me pass on a message again? Just tell her I have something very important to say to her.'"

  The servant said: "No need, Second Miss said, no matter what you say, she doesn't want to listen."

  It seems that Zixue has really made me angry, what can I do about it?

  Ziyan's figure suddenly appeared in my line of sight, and she said coldly: "Lei Xiang, you dare to come to my home to find my sister. I want to kill you." A light arrow shot towards me, and I hastily dodged it. Just as Ziyan was about to continue her attack, the Duke walked out from inside and said: "What's going on? Why is it so noisy? Ah, Lei Xiang, it's that little scoundrel. I was just about to go find you to settle accounts."

  Everyone comes to me for settlement, what exactly did I do wrong?

  "I respectfully said: 'Duke, I have come to clear up a misunderstanding.'"

  Ziyan angrily said: "What else is there to explain? My sister caught you red-handed, go and fool around with that shameless teacher!"

  My face sank, and I said, "Speak more politely, who's lost their shame? I won't let you insult my teacher."

  Ziyan said: "Am I wrong? She just doesn't have a sense of shame, seducing her own student."

  I angrily said: "You..."

  The duke said, "Enough, stop wasting words with him. Come on, take him down." As soon as his voice fell, four black shadows flew out, obviously guards of some sort, each one's kung fu not inferior to mine. This time I'm in trouble, not only can't explain myself, but also have to fight first.

  Four guards rushed up quickly, their kung fu was very solid, forcing me to be busy defending myself. If it wasn't for my super strong defensive power, I'm afraid I wouldn't have been able to hold on for a few more rounds.

  I dodged to one side, avoiding a guard's attack, and with a clinking sound, a blue dagger fell from my bosom, emitting a clear ring.

  The duke's whole body shook violently, and he shouted: "Stop!"

  Four guards scattered, leaving only me in a sorry state. The duke beckoned with his hand and picked up the things I had dropped. Ah, it was the little bell my mother had given me. The duke muttered to himself: "It's this, it's this, it's really this. You, where did you get this thing from?" He was so excited that he was almost incoherent.

  "I said: 'Can't I first explain about Zi Xue? Return this bell to me for now.'"

  The duke hastily said: "You tell me about this first, I'll take care of Zi Xue's matter, come with me. Zi Yan, you all go down first."

  The duke dragged me hastily through the mansion and soon arrived at a room filled with bookshelves, which should be his study.

  As soon as they entered the study, the duke shut the door tightly and asked urgently: "Quickly tell me, where did you get this thing from."

  I had a sudden movement in my heart and said, "I once protected merchants who did business on the beastman side. This is something an old woman gave me by chance, asking me to hand it over to someone named Lin Feng in the Empire."

  The duke grasped my shoulder with one hand and said excitedly: "I, I am Lin Feng. What else did she say? Tell me quickly."

  I frowned and said, "You're kidding." I didn't expect that the person Mom asked me to find was actually the Duke. What a coincidence!

  The duke relaxed his hands, with an expectant look on his face. I calmed down and said: "That woman also said to tell Lin Feng, that is you, that Lingling owes him an apology."

  The duke's body shook violently, and he involuntarily shed hot tears. The sharp edge of the bell cut through his palm. Suddenly, the duke tightly grasped my arms and said in a hoarse voice: "Tell me, where is she now? I want to go find her."

  I shook my head and said, "When I saw her, she was already very weak, and I'm afraid she won't be able to hold on for much longer. Originally, I wanted to take her back to Longshen, but she said she had no face to return with, so she ran away."

  The duke was taken aback and said, "Why didn't she want to come back? Since I found out she went missing, I've been searching for her for nearly 20 years. Lingling, why? No matter what you've become, as long as you can come back, I'll accept you." Hearing the duke say this, could it be that he and mother were a couple?

  "I asked: 'What's wrong with you? What relationship do you have with that woman?'"

  The duke's eyes were red, and he sighed, saying: "In those days, I was also a commoner, did you know that?"

  I exclaimed in surprise: "So you're also from a commoner background."

  The duke nodded and continued: "My name is Lin Feng, I have been fascinated by literature and martial arts since childhood. My father saw my progress and spent all his wealth to support my education. Seeing my father who looked much older than usual, I secretly vowed to achieve something extraordinary to repay his kindness."

  The duke seemed to have returned to his youth, and as he spoke of these things, a hint of nostalgia appeared on his face.

  "In the process of learning, I had to work harder than others. With my innate intelligence and diligence, I began to make a name for myself in the imperial capital at the age of 17. To further my studies, I used my own savings from part-time jobs and my abilities to successfully enroll in Tian Du Academy. As it turns out, I'm even your and your two daughters' senior. I worked hard to cultivate myself in the academy, and that's when I met Lingling, who was two years younger than me. At first, I thought she was just an ordinary noblewoman. To be honest, I don't mind if you laugh at me, but when I first saw her, I felt a strong electric shock. For the first time in my life, something other than wealth and power caught my attention. Initially, I only dared to secretly watch her from afar, but as time passed, every smile and frown of hers moved my heart. One day, I finally mustered up the courage to talk to her for the first time, and from then on, I fell deeply in love with Lingling. She was so gentle and kind-hearted. On the eve of her graduation, she finally accepted my love, and I was overjoyed. At that time, I had already become a minor official in the imperial court. I wanted to marry her as soon as possible, but after that, I lost track of her. Later, others told me that she had gone missing while accompanying the emperor to a grand battle against the demon beasts. It turned out that she was actually the sixth princess of the previous emperor, and this bell was the token of our love that I gave her back then."

  Listening to Mother's old lover talk about their past, I have a very strange and unusual feeling in my heart.

  The duke wiped away his tears and stared at the blue light flashing bell in a daze.

  "I said: 'Then you haven't gone to the two countries of Monster Beast to look for her trail?'"

  The duke said: "How could I? I've disguised myself and gone to both countries several times, but what effect can this method of searching for a needle in the ocean have? In the end, they all ended in failure."

  I thought the duke was a sharp and cunning official, but I didn't expect him to have a sentimental side. I said: "What happened later? Did you marry the current duchess?"

  The duke nodded and said, "Yes, although I couldn't forget Lingling, I still had to live on. With my exceptional intelligence and vast knowledge, I finally gained the recognition of a prince who was willing to marry his daughter to me, but on one condition: I had to become a member of their family by marriage. This is also why the Ziyuan sisters didn't share my surname. Are you thinking that I'm someone who would do anything to achieve my goals? But do you know, if I hadn't married the prince's daughter, I would have had to struggle for thirty more years? If Lingling were still here, perhaps I would have given up everything and lived a happy life with her. However, I no longer had anything to hold onto except for the oath I made as a child, so I married the prince's daughter, who is now my wife, the duchess. I obtained the power I desired and fulfilled my oath, but was I happy all these years? No. The only times I felt somewhat better were when I thought back to the days Lingling and I spent together. When we first met, you asked me if I would give up on a noble's daughter if I were in your shoes. It stirred up the memories I had buried deep within my heart. Ah, yes, if Lingling hadn't gone missing back then, would the king have allowed his daughter to marry someone as lowly as myself? Definitely not. But with the feelings Lingling and I shared, we wouldn't have given up on each other either. It's precisely because I thought of these things that I agreed to let you be in a relationship with my daughter."

  Author: Crazy GodThe last three chapters of the second book are now online, with exciting content, including the protagonist's first use of Fallen Angel transformation to respond to the enemy. At the same time, from the last few chapters of the second volume, it also ended the protagonist's school life. Welcome everyone to buy.

  It turns out that mother's charm is so great, I secretly sighed, even if mother can come back, what's the point? She has already over-aged, compared to the duchess, she is far inferior. Will the duke still like her? Hard to say. Besides, mother can't come to ruin someone else's family, right?

  "I said, 'Duke, your past is indeed moving, but the past has already passed. Cherish the present life.'"

  The duke nodded silently and said: "Thank you for giving me this bell, what happened between you and Zixue, I'll give you a chance to explain."

  My face turned red as I told a different story about what had happened that day.

  The duke listened and said with a puzzled expression: "So that's how it is. You won't deceive me, will you?"

  I composed my countenance and said: "I swear by a warrior's honor that if I speak falsely, I wish..."

  The duke waved his hand to stop me from continuing, saying: "Alright, alright, what kind of person you are, I can see at a glance. Since it's a misunderstanding, go and clarify with Zixue, this girl loves to nitpick, and sometimes her temper is also very stubborn. You need to coax her more. This semester has already ended, do you have any plans?"

  I nodded and said, "I want to find a quiet place to cultivate for a period of time. Since the battle with Rivaille, I have realized that my strength is still far from enough, and I must make some progress in order to stand firm here."

  The duke has woken up from the sorrow of just now, and upon hearing me say this, he showed an expression of approval and said: "You think so correctly, you are like I was in those years, very ambitious, and also, I heard that you have a crazy physique, which is great. However, there is one thing I want to ask you, what is your goal?"

  I was taken aback, what is my goal, ah, what is my goal?

  The duke said: "Everyone must have a lofty goal of their own, this is the driving force for you to move forward, do you understand? Just like me back then, my goal was to obtain unparalleled power, no matter what method I used, and now I've got it. What about you? What's your goal?"

  My mind is a complete blank, did I ever have goals? When I was younger, my goal was to become an unparalleled strongman, but what about now? Is it still just that simple thought? No, that's not enough.

  The duke said, "Child, setting a goal is not that easy. I hope you can think carefully during this holiday. If you need a quiet place to cultivate, I can provide it for you." I shook my head and said, "No need, thank you. I've decided to leave now. What you said is very right. I'm currently very confused about my future and really need to think carefully. If I stay here, I won't be able to focus because I'll always be thinking of Zixue, and it's likely that I won't be able to control myself and will go look for her."

  The duke said in surprise: "Didn't you explain it to Zixue?"

  I said: "No, you just help me tell her, I'm afraid that after seeing her, I won't be able to bear leaving. When two people are in love for a long time, how can they be apart morning and evening?"

  The duke smiled and said: "A child can be taught, well, you go now, I hope that when you come back next time, you will have made some progress. I look forward to seeing you again."

  I took off the necklace that Mother had given me from around my neck and handed it to the Duke, saying: "You should recognize this."

  The duke's hands trembled as he took the necklace and looked at it carefully, excitedly saying: "Of course I recognize this, it was the betrothal gift I gave to Lingling in the first place, how did it end up in your hands?"

  I sighed and said, "It was that woman who gave it to me, saying it was a reward for delivering the message." As I spoke, my mother's painful voice seemed to echo in my ears again.

  "The duke muttered: 'She actually gave this to you, why is that, it doesn't make sense.' Of course, he didn't know that I was actually Lingling's only son."

  I said: "You give this to Zixue, let it be the token of my engagement to her. When I achieve success and fame, I will definitely come back to marry her. During this holiday period, I won't be returning, I want to find a secluded place to cultivate myself well. What you said is right, I should set a goal for myself."

  The Duke said: "I want to go into the palace to see His Majesty, if His Majesty knows about Lingling's news, he will definitely be very happy." I was shocked in my heart, and I won't start a war between humans and demons again because of this. Forget it, this is no longer something I can control, what I need to do now is to quickly improve myself.

  I bid farewell to the duke and left the study, only to run into Ziyan, who was staring at me with a hostile expression. "Is Father just going to let you go like that?" she asked.

  I helplessly shrugged and said: "Then what do you want to do, kill me or beat me up?"

  "According to my intention, you should be killed. Hmph."

  My face sank and I said: "With your temper, if you don't change it, I'm afraid no one will dare to want you in the future." After finishing speaking, I turned around and walked out.

  Ziyan said behind me: "Whether or not you get married is none of your business, are you leaving just like that? Haven't seen Zixue?"

  I stopped in my tracks and said, "I've already explained everything to the Duke, you can just ask him. Tell Purple Snow for me that my feelings towards her will never change."

  After leaving the Duke's mansion, I felt a lot more relieved in my heart. After all, I had completed the task entrusted by my mother. Now, what should I do? Go back to the academy? Teacher Zhuang didn't ask me to find her? Seeing her once, I will start my own cultivation journey.

  The school was no longer bustling with activity, the campus was quiet, I walked to Mr. Zhuang's office and knocked gently on the door. Mr. Zhuang's voice came from inside: "Who is it? Come in."

  I pushed open the door and walked into Principal Zhuang's office, she seemed to be reading a book, looking quite leisurely.

  "Is it you, Lei Xiang? Come quickly, have you recovered from your injuries?"

  I nodded and said, "Everything has been restored."

  Mr. Zhuang smiled and said, "That's great, you performed too well in this challenge match against Riviera."

  I smiled bitterly: "What's so great about it? Didn't we still lose, and didn't even have the power to fight back?"

  "Come on, how could that be? Although you were at a disadvantage at first, but after your crazy transformation later, you caused quite some trouble for Riva, and made those guys who used to gossip about me in the school tournament shut their mouths, and also won an argument for me."

  Mr. Zhuang stood up, walked to the side, and poured me a glass of water. I took over the cup, sighed, and said: "I can only compete with him because of my special physique. With my current strength, I am still far behind Riva."

  Mr. Zhuang comforted me, saying: "It's okay, he is four or five years older than you, and in four or five years' time, don't you have the confidence to catch up with him? By the way, Liva has successfully joined the Dragon Knights team as a probationary dragon knight for the time being. After some days, he will go to Longgu to seek the legacy of the giant dragon. Once he succeeds, he will become an official dragon knight, and his power will be greatly enhanced at that time. So, you must not relax and take him as your goal."

  I nodded and said, "Don't worry, I can definitely beat him."

  Teacher Zhuang walked back to her desk, bent down and picked up two wooden boxes from under the table. She pointed at one of the long rectangular boxes and said: "This is the championship prize you won in this competition, I helped you pick it out from the college armory, it's a pretty good thing, take a look inside."

  Weapons? Rewards? I had long forgotten about this matter, I walked forward, grabbed the wooden box with one hand, it's so heavy! With my strength, I felt my hand drop down, Teacher Zhuang gave me a proud smile, indicating for me to open it.

  I lifted the lid and took a look, it was a long sword with a dark body, both long and wide. Except for the black transparent crystal on the hilt, there was no particularly eye-catching place. Upon closer inspection, I found that it emitted a cold aura, and even though I couldn't distinguish between good and bad weapons, I couldn't help but exclaim: "Good sword."

  "Of course it's a good sword, this sword is one of the best weapons in the academy, it's an antique. If you hadn't shown that crazy performance in your match against Riviere, the principal wouldn't have taken it out. He now considers you the most suitable candidate to take over Riviere's position."

  I pulled out the long sword from the box, and the palm pattern fit perfectly, it felt very comfortable to hold. As soon as the long sword was in my hand, a cool and refreshing feeling instantly passed from the hilt into my body, and the Tianmo Decision inside me quickly released energy in response to this cool air. The long sword in my hand emitted a faint black light.

  "Wow, how did this sword change when it got into your hands? When I held it, there was no change at all. The sword is four feet three inches long, three inches wide, and three-tenths of an inch thick, belonging to the heavy sword category, named Mo Ming. I heard from the principal that it was originally a demon tribe's object, and one of the seven great famous swords in the world. There are three famous swords in the sky, one given to Liva, one given to you, and one left in the academy."

  I waved the heavy inkstone in my hand and said in surprise: "Director, you're actually willing to give me something so precious...this..."

  Mr. Zhuang smiled slightly and said, "You don't have to be too grateful to him, this sword is generally used by ordinary people and there is no difference with ordinary swords. It was the vice president who said that you had practiced dark magic on your own before, so you may be able to exert the power of this sword. The principal thought that this sword was black and not very auspicious, plus your strong performance, so he decided to pass it on to you."

  It was like this, I just studied the most authentic dark magic, not black magic.

  "Legend has it that a good sword can recognize its master by dripping blood. I don't know if this sword has ever recognized a master before, but you try it out. If it recognizes you as its master, it will be able to unleash its greatest power in your hands."

  I nodded slightly, and with a light touch of the silent blade, I cut my index finger. A drop of fresh blood instantly seeped into the blade, and the black glow of the ink surged suddenly, conveying an exceptionally joyful emotion to me. The dark magic within me was fully mobilized by it, rapidly flowing into the blade. With each circulation, I felt that the dark magic became more refined. A sense of connection through flesh and blood appeared between me and the ink.

  After a long time, the black millet gradually faded away, and Mo Ming returned to its initial state. Principal Zhuang said, "It seems that it should have recognized you as its master."

  I gently stroked its sword back and said, "Mo Ming, from now on you will be my best partner. Thank you, Teacher Zhuang, for getting me such a good sword."

  Mr. Zhuang smiled and said, "Don't say that, I should thank you for winning me face too. I once said that no matter who it is, as long as he can win the grade champion, I will give him something as a reward. This small box is what I gave you."

  I waved my hand repeatedly and said: "This inkstone is already too precious for me, how can I want your things again?"

  Mr. Zhuang's face sank, and he said, "I said I'd send it, so I'll send it, take it quickly." After finishing speaking, he handed over the small square box.

  Seeing her serious expression, I subconsciously took over the small box and Principal Zhuang finally revealed a smile, saying: "Open it and take a look."

  I lifted the lid and was taken aback - it was a wristband about four fingers wide, with a dragon carved on it, in a dark blue color. In the center of the wristband there was a circle of sky-blue gemstones, I counted them, there were eight in total. It looked quite beautiful, but as a boy, wearing it would be a bit... I awkwardly said to Teacher Zhuang: "Teacher, this is for girls, isn't it? Wearing it would seem..."

  "Zhuang teacher said angrily: "You fool, what is called for girls to use, this bracelet others asked also can not get, is mine..., you try to wear it."

  Helpless, I had to stretch my hand into the hole of the bracelet, but the hole was really too small and could only barely fit four fingers. Suddenly, Master Zhuang whispered a spell, and the bracelet emitted a dazzling blue glow. With a snap, it actually slipped onto my wrist, fitting extremely well, just like a small guard ring.

  "Ha! How's that, suitable? This magic-boosting bowl will automatically increase the power of your spells when you use them. It only works for spells below level 6, but it can basically boost their power by one level. And even with higher-level spells, it'll still have some amplifying effect."

  What? Increase a level, that's great? That means if I use sixth-level magic, it will have seventh-level power, and using higher-level magic can also amplify. Thinking of this, I quickly went to take off the bracelet, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get it off, as if it had grown on me.