Book 3 - Before and After The Duel

“Rumour has it that just last night alone, there has been at least 30 deaths in the city because of this. Even the WestImperialPalace’s warden, “Iron Palm Turns the Sky”, was ambushed by someone in the alley behind Iron Lion Lane because he placed an eight thousand tael bet on Xi Men Chui Xue.”

“She’s still in the kitchen, making you some of her best desserts: butter soaked snails.”
Ou Yang Qing was actually making desserts for Lu Xiao Feng?
Lu Xiao Feng could not help but let out an ironic laugh: “Is she trying to poison me?”

But even if he tried not to think, he still could feel that, lurking in a corner somewere in this ancient city, there was a pair of eyes, even more cunning the the shrewdest of foxes, even more poisonous than the most poisonous of snakes, staring at him, waiting to take his life!
No matter who this person was, without a doubt it would be the most frightening and most powerful foe he had ever faced in his life. He seemed to also have faintly figured out who this foe could be!

He did not say anything about Ye Gu Cheng. He had wanted to several times, but decided against it everytime. Li Yan Bei was his friend. If a friend was leaving, why not let him leave smiling? If a friend could be smiling, then never make him suffer or regret. -- This was another principle of Lu Xiao Feng’s. But he must clearly distinguish who was a friend and who was a foe first.

Honest Monk, the Wooden Taoist, Gu Qing Feng, and Sheng Tong from that little temple, all seemed to be closely related to this whole matter.
“Monks all wear white socks,” Lu Xiao Feng continued. “If there are societies based on green shirts and red shoes, there could very well be one based on White Socks.”
Honest Monk laughed again.

“You little bastard, which hole did you just crawl out of?” Lu Xiao Feng shouted, standing there barefoot. “Where have you been hiding these last couple of days?”
“A person shouldn’t talk to his savior like that!” Xi Men Chui Xue coldly countered.
“Savior?” He was still shouting. “You saved my life?”

How precious is life? Life will always be filled with hope. Xi Men Chui Xue’s eyes were flickering with that warmth once again. This was not the reflection of the flickering flames his eyes, but the reflection of the molten glacier in his heart.
Lu Xiao Feng looked at him and suddenly patted him on the shoulder.
“You finally saved a life today, how does it feel?”
“Better than taking a life!”

He had also seen Sun Xiu Qing. The talkative and frank Sun Xiu Qing of yesterday had also changed, changed into a gentle and patient woman. Because no longer was she the female swordsman that was slashing her way through the martial world, she was a soon to be mother.

Lu Xiao Feng was dumbstruck. Only now did he realized that he had completely forgot to save a belt from himself. Could that possibly be the reason why Honest Monk ran away so quickly as soon as he got his hands on the belt, he was afraid that Lu Xiao Feng would suddenly remember?
“Tehehe!” Seeing the look on his face, Ou Yang Qing could not help but let out a little laugh. Running into such a fool did not happen very often. Lu Xiao Feng sat there with a dumbstruck look on his face for a long time, completely speechless. Suddenly he leapt to his feet and flew out of the gazebo.

Honest Monk was biting into another steamed bun when he saw Lu Xiao Feng ran up. Hurriedly, he tucked the steamed bun away and made some vague sound to acknowledge Lu Xiao Feng, hoping that he did not see the steamed bun.
Lu Xiao Feng laughed: “Seeing that in your hands, I suddenly realized something.”
“What?”
“I realized that I forgot to eat dinner again.”
Honest Monk rolled his eyes: “Are you going to try and trick this steamed bun from me again?”