Ji Yuan bowed slightly with cupped hands as he spoke, retuning Yan Fei’s greeting.

Compared to the heroic young warrior from back then, the Yan Fei of the present had clearly lost a lot of his previous immaturity, and gained some more difficult experiences in his life.

With Ji Yuan’s hearing, he could tell that Yan Fei no longer had the tassel on the hilt of his sword — the same was probably true in his heart.1

Yan Fei didn’t feel any sense of ridicule or offense at Ji Yuan’s words. He just smiled slightly.

“Sir, you are astute. We meet again as old friends in a foreign land, so let us not talk about these things that spoil the mood. Let’s head out, it’s getting dark. There is no other decent town within a hundred li. I’ll invite you into the city for a drink.”

As he finished speaking, Yan Fei had already left the pavilion, and Ji Yuan followed him out. When he reached those individuals’ corpses, Ji Yuan paused.

Seeing Ji Yuan stop, Yan Fei also paused in front of him, and turned to look at him.

“Mr. Ji, do you want to collect their bodies for burial?”

Ji Yuan looked at Yan Fei and shook his head.

“They are neither relatives nor friends, and they wished to kill me. As they mentioned, there are many wild beasts here at night. Why bother?”

Yan Fei thought that Ji Yuan would preach about righteousness and try to persuade him to help bury the bodies, so he was quite stunned at his words.

“Then what are you looking at, sir?”

“It’s nothing. I was just looking at the lonely ghosts. Let’s go.”

Done speaking, Ji Yuan took another step forward, walking ahead.

Some of the nine individuals’ ghosts had squeezed out of their corpses, while others were still half inside. They were all in a daze and confused, not yet aware that they had perished.

There were no ghost messengers on the way, and no land god to lead them back. There was no one to see them off, and no family members to bring their spirit tablets back and guide souls on.

Lonely ghosts, lonely ghosts indeed: that was what Ji Yuan had determined them to be, and because they didn’t hold deep resentment when they died, that was all they could become. Now, they were still connected to their bodies, and still had some Yang energy. If there was a surge of Yin in the nighttime, they would become true ghosts. If they were particularly stupid, they would be in trouble come sunrise tomorrow.

Yan Fei stood there for a while, glanced at the corpses on the ground, and thought for a while, then squatted down to search the bodies. After taking some silver and coin from the nine people on the ground, he caught up with Ji Yuan.

Watching Ji Yuan in front of him, his white robe fluttering in the wind, his whole figure leisurely making his way forward, Yan Fei couldn’t help but say something.

“Mr. Ji, your clothes now are much better than they were before.”

The last time Yan Fei saw Ji Yuan was in the inn in Ning’an County. Ji Yuan had just changed out of his ragged beggar’s clothes, and had not yet developed any classical aesthetics. His attire was still quite shabby.

In addition, he still did not hold the magnanimity he held today. It was not an exaggeration to say that the Ji Yuan of the past was very different from the present.

Everyone liked to be flattered. It was rare, even for Ji Yuan today, to hear such words. He looked at Yan Fei and smiled.

“Warrior Yan, you speak very well. Drinks today are on me!”

. . .

Although Ji Yuan and Yan Fei didn’t deliberately speed up their pace, it didn’t take much effort for them to walk five li, and they soon returned to Nandao County.

Rongyuan Restaurant2 was a well-known restaurant in Nandao County, and it was here that Ji Yuan and Yan Fei traveled.

When they arrived outside the restaurant, the sky was already growing dark. A waiter spotted Yan Fei and Ji Yuan from a distance, and immediately came out to greet them with a smile.

“Hey, Warrior Yan, you’re here? It’s been a while! Who is this?”

“This is Mr. Ji, an old friend from my hometown. Although Rongyuan Restaurant is not as expensive as those in the big city, it’s still one of the better ones in Nandao County. At least here the wine is not diluted with water.”

After Yan Fei answered the waiter, he turned and introduced the place to Mr. Ji. The water beside him smiled without any embarrassment.

“Hey, Warrior Yan, look what you’re saying. What do you mean diluted with water? Our Rongyuan Restaurant would never do such unconscionable things. We would never mix water and wine. Please, come in!”

The waiter extended a hand at the door to invite them in. After asking whether they wanted a private room or a regular seat, he led the two of them to a seat along the periphery of the second floor.

In addition to a jar of local wine, they also ordered four vegetable dishes and four meat dishes, plus a bowl of soup, which could be considered a very rich meal.

After the waiter took note of the dishes, he left happily.

This area on the second floor actually looked as though there were no windows or walls at all. Aside from a low wooden railing that only reached chest-height while seated, there were only some wooden pillars and reed-woven curtains.

However, there were some wooden boards facing each other at all four corners of the second floor. If it was windy or rainy, these wooden boards would be raised all around the building, such that the second floor could become a closed indoor environment.

This kind of design was rarely seen in Dazhen — least, Ji Yuan had almost never seen it — but it had to be said, it was quite distinctive.

At this moment, the waiter had rolled up and tied the curtains beside the table Ji Yuan and his friend were sitting at so the view was particularly clear. It felt like a table set up next to the railing as they dined, and the effect was quite good.

“Mr. Ji, why did you come to the country of Zuyue? Ji Province is quite far from here.”

Yan Fei’s impression of Ji Yuan remained as it was twelve years ago. He thought that the latter was likely a mysterious Taoist master, but in all honesty, he was not very clear about his abilities.

“I just came out for a walk. I wanted to explore this new world, and make some new friends.”

“Then, Sir, you have traveled far enough!”

“Perhaps…”

Ji Yuan didn’t say much on this topic, but looked at Yan Fei.

“It’s quite surprising to see you here, Warrior Yan. Ever since we parted in Ning’an County, I have only met three out of the nine of you. You, Warrior Yan, are the third.”

“Oh? Who were the first two?”

Before the food was served, Yan Fei passed the dishes around the table and poured a cup of tea for Ji Yuan and for himself. Even he would be curious upon hearing Ji Yuan’s words.

Ji Yuan took a sip of water to moisten his throat and replied.

“The first was Warrior Du Heng. The second was Warrior Lu Chengfeng. Each of them had their own troubles, obstacles, and enlightenment. Perhaps both would truly be worthy of the title of ‘hero’ in the future.3 By the way, why are you here, Warrior Yan?”

Yan Fei listened quietly, sipping the tea from his cup. Only when Ji Yuan asked his question did he put it down and reply.

“I’m just sharpening my sword.”

He didn’t say what kind of chivalrous act he was performing, only that he was sharpening his sword. Ji Yuan looked at him in silence. Yan Fei was certainly not telling the whole story, but at least this part was true.

Just as Yan Fei said, although he seemed to have changed a bit, ordinary people might not have been able to tell; however, in Ji Yuan’s eyes, Yan Fei carried a faint sense of sharpness.

“Warrior Yan, Mr. Ji, your food has arrived. This is fresh horse meat stew.4 It tastes best when hot out of the pot.”

The waiter was carrying a tray with a large array of warm meat dishes and a small jug of wine. He put down the dishes first and then the wine, chattering on with special attention.

“And this is the jar of aged wine. Please take a good look, Warrior Yan. The seal has not been opened yet, and it will never be mixed with water! Take your time enjoying it, I will bring your other dishes!”

Horses were never cheap no matter where one went, and even inferior horses would not be slaughtered so casually. Ji Yuan took a look at this fragrant horse meat; either it was not fresh, or someone was unlucky.

As soon as the waiter left, Yan Fei broke the seal on the wine jar and poured wine for the two of them, using the same cups that had previously been used for the tea.

“Sir, you have met with Du Heng and Lu Chengfeng. Do you know how I might compare to them in terms of martial arts? Which is better, theirs or my own?”

Ji Yuan didn’t shy away from the question, nor did he need to. He took a sip of wine first and then answered.

“In terms of martial arts, Lu Chengfeng is far inferior to you. If I were to compare you with Du Heng, I am not certain who might be stronger.”

This answer surprised Yan Fei once more. Du Heng had lost his arm back then, yet he was unexpectedly stronger than Lu Chengfeng.

Soon, all the dishes had been served. The two of them ate and drank, chatting casually about various topics.

It was only then that Ji Yuan learned that Yan Fei had left Dazhen eight years ago and traveled to the country of Zuyue, where he had earned a reputation and the moniker of “Flying Swordsman.”

Yan Fei also learned that many things had happened in Dazhen over the years, such as the death of the emperor.

“So Emperor Yuan De has passed away? What will the new emperor’s title be?”5

After all, Yan Fei was from Dazhen; no matter how stone-hearted he was, he was slightly shocked when he heard the news of the emperor’s passing.

“I am not certain. When I left Dazhen, His Royal Highness Prince Jin had not yet ascended the throne. However, the state funeral was quite grand.”

“What’s the use of posthumous ostentation?”

“True indeed, Warrior Yan, you are absolutely right. The old emperor was no better than an ordinary farmer before his death. When he rested his head on Prince Jin’s neck to leave him with his final arrangements, he revealed his desire for life and fear of death.”

Yan Fei chewed on a piece of horse meat and asked subconsciously.

“Sir, how do you know so much about this?”

“Well, I was watching from the sidelines.”

Ji Yuan’s teasing words left Yan Fei stunned for a moment, before he laughed and shook his head.

At this moment, the sky was growing dark, and as the two men ate and drank, a woman scream echoed from a distance.

“Oooohhh–“

To Ji Yuan, it sounded like a contrived scream. He turned his head to look in the direction of the sound, and Yan Fei spoke.

“Yuanqi Inn, honey trap.”

“Oh…”

Ji Yuan was a little speechless. This truly was a place with “simple folk customs.”6

“Aaaah–!”

The screams rang out again. Ji Yuan frowned, and immediately stood up.

“Mr. Ji, you don’t need to worry about it. There are too many similar things here. It’s better to teach those blinded by lust a lesson and make them remember it.”

“The screams are wrong this time.”

Ji Yuan glanced at him. As soon as he finished speaking, he jumped over the railing, touched the eaves with his feet, and flew away, light as a swallow.

“What beautiful Qinggong!”

Yan Fei stared at Ji Yuan’s back in a daze. After praising him in surprise, he tossed piece of silver on the table and quickly used his own Qinggong skills to chase after Ji Yuan.

----------------------------------------

T/n: Oh my gosh imagine having a conversation with JY after a decade and being like

JY: “right so when the emperor died–“

YF: “wait how do you know how the emperor died?”

JY: “oh dw I watched it happen”

YF: O_O

But like… for EVERY SINGLE major event that’s happened in the entire span of time since you’ve seen him. I’m cracking up here, this is too funny

1. The tassel of the sword is a decoration meant to enhance the visuals of the movements, not for any practical purpose. JY is saying that YF has grown out of the emphasis on visual beauty and aesthetics in favor of practicality.

2. 荣 (róng): glory/honor, 楼 (lóu): root/source – “Source of Glory,” frankly an AWESOME D&D-esque name for a restaurant. Technically speaking the word “Restaurant” is still the same word that I previously translated as “Building,” but it works differently here in context

3. I have been translating the title (大侠) dàxiá as “Warrior,” when in fact it can mean knight/swordsman/noble warrior/chivalrous hero. JY is saying that although they already have the title of Daxia, perhaps they can truly be worthy of the “noble hero” part of the meaning, instead of just being “Swordsman”

4. T/n: rabbit hole time! The consumption of horse meat varies quite a bit depending on what region of the world you’re in. In most English-speaking countries, it’s generally considered a taboo. It is quite a common delicacy in Central Asia, South America, France, and especially in certain parts of Italy.

5. Reminder that Yuan De is a courtesy title, like how Prince Jin is a title as well

6. It’s an ironic euphemism for “crude or base practices”