Li Guanyi had a leisurely conversation with the old Magician for an hour, during which an offhand comment from Li Guanyi, "If you die, there won’t be anyone left to know about your disciple," left the old Magician silent for a long time before he finally sighed.
He decided to follow Gongsun Wuyue and others to Jiangnan for a brief journey.
"After I die, who will remember that child?"
The aged Magician smiled wistfully and decided to leave behind his legacy before he grew old and slowly met his own end. However, the Magician lineage was not the orthodox path of Martial Arts cultivation, and finding a successor was difficult.
Therefore, Li Guanyi took up the pen to write a letter of recommendation for the old man.
It was supposed to be for Yan Daiqing.
But after some thought, Li Guanyi decided to write the letter to the Qilin Army Seven Old Ghosts instead.
The old Magician’s experience was truly too legendary.
In the introduction, Li Guanyi used a method that could instantly excite the Seven Old Ghosts.
"This senior is the ancestral master of Hou Zhongyu."
Then he carefully folded it and handed it to the elderly Magician, saying, "Senior, go in peace. Once you get to Jiangnan, you will have a flock of disciples wanting to inherit your teachings."
He watched the old Magician leave and thought to himself.
Hopefully the senior wouldn’t be frightened.
After dealing with these matters, Sword Madman personally arranged a banquet here, using the remaining fine wine of the Gongsun Family to invite Gongyang Su Wang and others for a drink and chat before they left. After toasting, Li Guanyi excused himself from the gathering.
The Gongsun Family had almost all departed, and Wan Mingyi, the man who only had "nay" on his lips, had returned to his own clan. The grand hall of the Gongsun Family stood atop a mountain like stone pillars, now seeming a bit empty.
Li Guanyi searched for quite a while before spotting that silver-haired figure.
Since yesterday, when that ’Big Brother’ suddenly fled as if sunk by a blow, Shaking Light had undergone some emotional changes. Even though her face remained as calm as ever without any ups and downs, Li Guanyi could sense Shaking Light’s mood.
Li Guanyi saw Shaking Light quietly sitting on the stairs, watching the evening wind and the stars in the night sky. After thinking for a moment, he reached out to beckon Qilin to leave first, then slowly approached the girl from behind.
The front part of the grand hall had already crumbled, replaced by cliffs formed by the tearing force of fierce Jin Qi. The night wind rolled below this cliff, where the girl dressed in simple Magician attire sat with her knees hugged to her chest.
Her hood was down, and her silver hair fluttered in the wind.
The silver starlight fell upon the shoulders of the girl, making her look frail and lonely. Li Guanyi watched quietly, then slowly walked over.
A pastry suddenly dropped down, swaying in front of Shaking Light.
The silver-haired girl’s gaze followed the pastry, and there stood a young man in a blue Taoist robe beside the remaining pillars, bending over and smiling at her with a hooked finger, Inner Qi turning into a thread connected to the pastry.
It was clearly an impressive method of controlling Inner Qi, but used for such a purpose.
Shaking Light’s eyes were calm, and she returned the gaze without showing any Ripples, her voice peacefully saying, "You’ve come."
Li Guanyi saw the pastry’s ploy fail.
He awkwardly retracted the pastry and with a flick of his wrist, using a very standard and natural move, tossed it to Qilin, who wasn’t picky and ate it happily.
Li Guanyi’s movement technique was graceful as he sat next to Shaking Light, shoulder to shoulder on this remnant of a great battle. The wind blew up from below, and Shaking Light’s hair swept past Li Guanyi, all around was serene.
Li Guanyi said, "Is it because of ’Mr. Ye’?"
Shaking Light hummed in acknowledgment.
Li Guanyi had actually seen Whale Hunter’s silver hair, similar to Shaking Light’s, during the final escape. Being a clever individual who had fought to survive thus far, he pieced together Shaking Light’s reactions and the lingering memories from the drunken aftermath to form a rough guess.
He turned to look at the girl who had accompanied him through dangers over the past year, seeing Shaking Light just quietly looking into the distance, her ordinarily impassive and delicate face, in Li Guanyi’s view, was filled with sorrow.
Shaking Light’s eyes were on the horizon, and she took the initiative to speak, "I’m sorry."
Li Guanyi asked, "What for?"
The silver-haired girl turned towards Li Guanyi, her voice calm:
"I may not be able to accompany you to pay respects to Sword Madman’s drinks."
"This must be a violation of our agreement, the covenant between the Shaking Light lineage and the White Tiger Sect."
Li Guanyi looked at Shaking Light.
Suddenly, Li Guanyi felt that deep down, the girl had always been living in fear, her Mystical Skills’ calm, the trust forged between life and death encounters, yet also the fear ingrained like an Imprint from her childhood experiences.
Li Guanyi stood up, and Shaking Light saw the young man move in front of her, then suddenly, he lifted his Taoist robe and knelt on one knee, his black hair tied up with a wooden pin, lowering himself to bring his gaze level with Shaking Light’s.
Then he extended his right hand, gently asking, "May I have your hand?"
"Don’t worry, it’ll only take a moment."
It was like when they first met.
The silver-haired girl was puzzled but still extended her hand: "If it’s your request."
Li Guanyi reached out with both hands, those that had wielded the Battle Halberd amidst the conflict of this world, and gently cradled the girl’s delicate hand in his own, then looked down in silence. Shaking Light asked, "Do you also comprehend the adages of the Stargazing School?"