Chapter 98

Xiangyang.

The moat.

A small boat drifted on it.

The drizzle was like a hazy mist. Yue Yuan and Yin Zhiping sat quietly in the black-roofed boat, listening to the water in the small stove hissing, about to boil.

"Good tea!"

"Good water!"

Yin Zhiping, dressed in a pink Taoist robe, sat opposite the small table, smiling as he watched Yue Yuan pour the water. The boiling water flowed from the pot into the jade-green teacups, filling them to about eight-tenths full. Stopping, Yue Yuan smiled and listened to Yin Zhiping, saying, "This is one of the best in Xiangyang!"

"Hmm!"

Yin Zhiping reached out to take the jade-green teacup from Yue Yuan. With his current abilities, he didn't need to worry about the cup being too hot. Besides, the water wasn't completely boiling.

He took a whiff of the tea's fragrance, sipped it lightly to dispel the cold of March, and casually stroked his long hair at the temples, then said in his now strangely alluring voice, "After so long, Brother Yue is still as carefree and unrestrained as ever!"

"Ha, ha!"

With a light laugh, Yue Yuan also put down his teacup and said in a nostalgic tone, "I do miss the time when we climbed Zhongnan together. That mountain path took us a long time to reach the top!"

His gaze fell on Yin Zhiping's face, which had become increasingly feminine. Yue Yuan was genuinely shocked. Back then, he had only injected Yin Zhiping with a dose of female hormones, and even the medicine he later gave him only contained female hormones.

This kind of medicine could bring coldness or other effects to Yin Zhiping, but it certainly couldn't cause the current situation.

When he first saw Yin Zhiping on the street, Yue Yuan's first thought was that he had practiced the *Kuihua Manual*.

But upon further reflection, it seemed unlikely.

There were people in the world who dared to castrate themselves, but not everyone was willing to do so. In Yue Yuan's view, Yin Zhiping probably didn't have such a hard heart, otherwise, he wouldn't have been like this back then. Moreover, Yue Yuan had never heard of such a technique in the Quanzhen sect.

Yue Yuan wanted to thoroughly understand what had happened to Yin Zhiping. What kind of martial arts had made him look like this?

Was it the *Kuihua Manual*, or something else?

Or was it the severe blow of the news of Xiaolongnü's passing?

Therefore, he bought a small boat in Xiangyang and drifted along the moat, which was also a pleasure in Xiangyang.

"Yes!"

Hearing Yue Yuan's sigh, Yin Zhiping's voice also became slightly low, saying, "Back then, Brother Yue still had me carry his sword up the mountain! Now, it's been a long time! With Brother Yue's current skills, you don't need me to carry your sword to Zhongnan anymore."

"Ha!"

With a faint smile, Yue Yuan had already finished his tea. After refilling his cup, he sighed, "Brother Yin, you've changed a lot in this period!"

"Ha ha..."

Hearing this, Yin Zhiping laughed, his face full of joy, saying, "In this world, only the sky above our heads remains unchanged. Everything else changes. Whether it's the sea or the fields, the sea can turn into fields, and fields can turn into the sea!"

"Isn't Brother Yue the same?"

With a smile, Yin Zhiping's gaze fell on the two streaks of white hair at Yue Yuan's temples, saying, "The notorious Red练Fairy could be persuaded by Brother Yue to return to the righteous path, contributing to the anti-Mongol cause, and even becoming Brother Yue's Daoist companion. I never thought any of this would happen."

"Forgive me for my rudeness!"

Smiling and bowing, Yue Yuan said, "National and family grudges, with national grudges taking precedence, I feel guilty towards those with family grudges. I can only contribute to the anti-Mongol cause to alleviate Muchou's sins!"

"Red练Fairy is fortunate to have a Daoist companion like Brother Yue!"

Yin Zhiping had investigated Li Muchou's past and understood the events. Therefore, he said this.

For Red练Fairy, having a Daoist companion like Yue Yuan was her greatest fortune in life.

"Ha ha..."

Yue Yuan couldn't say much about this, so he just smiled. At the same time, he took the small stove off the table and placed it to the side. Then, he took out a new Taoist scripture from his sleeve, tore it page by page, and threw it into the stove to add fuel.

Although both of them had high martial arts, the damp and cold feeling of March was still uncomfortable, especially at this time.

"..."

Yin Zhiping watched Yue Yuan's actions with a faint gaze. If it were before, he would have asked, but now he didn't care at all, just quietly watching Yue Yuan tear the new Taoist scripture page by page and stuff it into the stove.

The flames rose, carrying a hint of blue smoke.

In an instant, the cold in the black-roofed boat was dispelled.

His gaze still lingered on Yue Yuan's white hair at the temples. Yin Zhiping was quite puzzled. How could his hair have turned white in this period? Even if only the hair at the temples was gray, it was still an unusual situation for a martial arts expert.

After a while.

"Brother Yue, you seem to look more haggard and aged. Even the hair at your temples has turned gray!"

Yin Zhiping played with his own hair, comparing it with Yue Yuan's, and laughed.

"Ha ha..."

Yue Yuan laughed, not minding Yin Zhiping's girlish gesture. He raised his head and looked at Yin Zhiping, saying, "Just tired, but you look much younger."

Yue Yuan wasn't wrong. The current Yin Zhiping's skin was definitely much better than before, almost comparable to a woman's, described as delicate.

"Oh? Is that so?"

Yin Zhiping was taken aback, a smile creeping onto his face, saying, "Brother Yue is joking!" He then raised his pink sleeve and suddenly asked, "Brother Yue, what do you think of my pink Taoist robe? How does it compare to your former golden robe?"

"..."

Yue Yuan was slightly stunned. He hadn't expected Yin Zhiping to suddenly change the topic to clothes. However, this conversation with Yin Zhiping was casual, so Yue Yuan quickly recovered.

"Very pretty!"

This was Yue Yuan's evaluation of Yin Zhiping's pink Taoist robe.

"Ha ha!"

Yin Zhiping was satisfied but said, "Actually, I really wanted a snow-white Taoist robe, but..." He didn't finish, his tone becoming extremely low, his eyes slightly unfocused.

White Taoist robe?

Yue Yuan was taken aback but quickly understood. He finally knew one of the reasons why Yin Zhiping looked like this.

Huang Rong and Quanzhen's plan had indeed trapped several people.

Probably...

The six of the Quanzhen Seven Sons never expected things to develop to this extent. To be honest, Yue Yuan hadn't expected it either.

"Brother Yue,"

After a long time, Yin Zhiping put down his sleeve and said in a serious tone, "Back then, you said that your martial arts weren't enough to protect Miss Long. You were right! I didn't protect Miss Long!"

"..."

Yue Yuan was speechless.

"And now that my martial arts are somewhat accomplished, I feel much stronger... Do you think if I had this ability back then, I could have protected Miss Long's safety?"

His tone was slightly murmuring, Yin Zhiping looked at Yue Yuan with utmost seriousness, waiting for his answer.

"..."

The paper in his hand was completely burned, and a cold wind blew, taking away all the warmth in the black-roofed boat.

The two sat quietly, their gazes meeting, silent.

The sky was overcast, the clouds low, as if about to destroy Xiangyang completely.

On the moat, the drizzle wove a unique chill of spring.

Rumble!

A low rumble of thunder came from the sky, like a flood, rolling in.

Another gust of wind and rain made the small boat unstable.

With the sound of the door curtain, Yin Zhiping moved.

His left hand formed a palm, striking the side of the boat. The boat, which had been swaying in the wind, immediately stopped. Then, as if a thousand-pound stone had been placed on the bow, the bow began to press into the water, and the stern rose out of the water.

With this palm, the long sword at his side also jumped up, horizontally in front of him.

His right hand lightly stroked the scabbard, gripped the sword hilt wrapped in pink silk, and suddenly drew it.

Clang—

A long sword cry echoed in the black-roofed boat, like a flash of lightning. The cold light of the sword left a long streak of light on the faces of Yue Yuan and Yin Zhiping.

Then!

The long sword thrust forward!

Piercing through the darkness in front of him with determination.