Monarch Night

Chapter 1392: Chapter 75: Enemies Cross Paths [2-in-1] (3)

He’d been this cautious, and still managed to slam straight into An Ruoxing’s arms!

You couldn’t pull off a coincidence like this even in a dream!

"This is so fucking unlucky..."

Yin Shen Palace was fleeing for his life.

In terms of cultivation, Yin Shen Palace was far above An Ruoxing; if they really fought to the death, he’d probably be able to kill An Ruoxing within a hundred moves!

But that was exactly the problem: Yin Shen Palace could kill anyone else in this world, except for one person—he couldn’t kill him, wouldn’t kill him, and couldn’t bear to kill him!

That person was An Ruoxing!

Ridiculous as it sounded, An Ruoxing really was the greatest solace Yin Shen Palace had in this mortal world!

As long as An Ruoxing was still alive, Yin Shen Palace felt his own life still had meaning.

Yet An Ruoxing couldn’t wait for Yin Shen Palace to die on the spot!

The quicker the better, the more miserable the better!

The ways of the world were often this bizarre.

So facing An Ruoxing, apart from the bare minimum of dodging and blocking, he wouldn’t even swing a single threatening sword at An Ruoxing!

So when it came to An Ruoxing, all he could do was run for his life!

Fortunately his cultivation was far greater than An Ruoxing’s, and on top of that he used the Blood Burning Skill, his speed pushed to the absolute limit, so he could keep far ahead.

But An Ruoxing was clearly burning his life potential to chase him...

Yin Shen Palace was even afraid An Ruoxing would damage his very foundation by burning like this—what if he died?

So he actually slowed down for a while, letting An Ruoxing catch up, so he wouldn’t have to burn his life and could just keep chasing...

His mind was a mess right now, yet by sheer instinct he’d made this kind of ask-for-death decision.

No denying it, the Sect Hierarch Yin right now... was in an extremely chaotic, tangled state.

His feet were still running, his brain still blanked out, still wondering how the hell he’d gotten so unlucky today to run into him.

The current Yin Shen Palace—his former vicious, ruthless, scheming side—had all been thrown outside the Ninth Realm.

Only one word was left: panic!

Maybe one more word: stunned!

He’d thought before: my speed’s faster, several times faster than An Ruoxing’s; as long as I go full throttle and shake him off, then duck into some random hiding place...

Use the Turtle Breath Technique to hole up for a few days, then come out in disguise, and I’ll be able to get back safely.

But he’d laughably, even in his own eyes, chosen not to do that.

Because in his heart there was an obsession: he wanted to look at An Ruoxing a few more times.

Because that face looked far, far too much like his elder sister’s!

Anyone could see that when An Ruoxing first discovered Yin Shen Palace, if Yin Shen Palace had just gone all out to flee, he’d have been absolutely certain—ten out of ten—to break out before the encirclement in the Southeast fully formed!

And get back safe and sound.

But he just didn’t do it!

By the time he fully sobered up and realized this, it was already too late.

...

On a mountaintop.

Yin Shen Palace had restored his true appearance and stood atop the peak, watching An Ruoxing flying through the air, sword in hand, approaching. An extreme pain flashed through his eyes, and he even felt a faint urge in his heart: ’If I just die here and end it all...’

The two of them were firmly in the first echelon.

The next nearest people were still hundreds of miles away, totally unable to make it in time.

An Ruoxing became Body and Sword as One; he didn’t even want to talk, just charged in with savage, desperate moves.

Yin Shen Palace raised the Blood Spirit Sword with a clang to block An Ruoxing’s sword, and said with a bitter smile, "Little brother, long time no see. You still hate me that much."

"Cut the crap!"

An Ruoxing’s longsword came down like a raging storm.

Yin Shen Palace met every move calmly, breaking each as it came, and said with a bitter smile, "You can’t kill me. You know your cultivation is still a notch below mine."

"All along the way, I saw you deploying your forces. You know it yourself, and I know it too: at this point this whole area is already a Heaven and Earth Net. This time, I’m afraid I won’t escape calamity... Even if I manage to cling to life for a few more days, under the command of you, the Deputy Chief, it’s only a matter of time before I die."

Yin Shen Palace sighed. "Why can’t you just sit down and have one proper talk with me?"

With a bang, their two swords clashed and locked in midair.

Then An Ruoxing drew his sword back and retreated.

He stood opposite Yin Shen Palace, brows knitted. "You knew I was deploying troops and arranging the net—why didn’t you run?"

"Run?"

Yin Shen Palace let out a wretched smile. "I’ve been running for hundreds of years already."

An Ruoxing sheathed his sword, his gaze drifting toward the sea of clouds at the side, and said faintly, "You and I have nothing to talk about."

Yin Shen Palace looked at his profile—just that side view was almost identical to An Ruochen back then.

A sour ache rose in his heart. "Your sister... Ruochen... where is she buried?"

An Ruoxing suddenly turned, his eyes spitting fire. "Don’t say my sister’s name. You’re not worthy! You Demon of the Wei Wo Zheng Sect! Yixin Sect Leader!"

Yin Shen Palace’s eyes dimmed. He lowered his head.

Only after a long time did he say, in a trembling voice, "I didn’t want it either."

He quickly added, "Back then, I didn’t want it either!"

An Ruoxing ground out each word, "There are a lot of things in life we don’t want to do, but some people hold back, and some people don’t. Saying you didn’t want to now—what’s the point? Can you turn back time? Can my sister come back to life?"

"..."

Yin Shen Palace bowed his head in silence.

"What about your Three Mountains Association? Didn’t they slaughter your whole family? And your Blood Evil Sect, so what? Didn’t they just bring your enemies down on you? All those friends and fellow disciples from your Wei Wo Zheng Sect—why didn’t they come save you? Why did my sister have to pay with her life?"

An Ruoxing’s every word was like a Sword. "You really think you became the Yixin Sect Leader because of your Blood Evil Sect connections?"

Yin Shen Palace let out a sigh. "No. I fought tooth and nail to become the Yixin Sect Leader myself. Only after I took the Sect Hierarch’s seat did those upper ranks of the Blood Evil Sect, who had scattered and then returned to the Wei Wo Zheng Sect, start paying attention to me again."