Chapter 398: Chapter 298: Sighing at a Last Glance of Jianghu

An Jing, the immortal, lay dead on the ground, this person, who had been dominating and manipulating events through several dynasties in history, had died.

Whether in the Great Qin Dynasty or in the major events of the Great Zhou Dynasty, he was always a trendsetter of his era, even the biggest manipulator behind the scenes.

He manipulated the rise and fall of dynasties and sects in the human world.

Among all the great grandmasters in history, he was consistently one of the top figures, having excluded An Jing, he truly was the foremost, undefeatable person; countless great grandmasters had died by his hand, including emperors who ruled the Four Seas and sect leaders who shook the world, indicating his great skill.

Such a master also harbored many secrets unknown to others, such as how he came to understand the relationship between the Earth Vein Spirit and the Evil Spirits, and how he achieved immortality…

And all these secrets vanished with his death, dissipating like smoke, becoming secrets unknown to anyone.

Indeed, a person like him, burdened with too many secrets he couldn’t share, was utterly lonely.

“Crack! Crack!”

At the moment the immortal An Jing closed his eyes, the Earth Vein Spirit, laden with evil spirits in the sky, also shattered, the embodied form showing cracks that spread continuously into the distance, eventually fully dissipating into a mass of clouds and smoke.

As the Earth Vein Spirit disappeared, the surrounding evil spirits also gradually dissipated.

The heaven and earth regained their clarity once more.

“Let’s go quickly!”

Qi Shu, seeing this, hurriedly leapt and flew into the distance.

An Jing raised his eyebrows, then stretched out his palm, and the Evil Suppressing Sword split into six magnificent waves rushing forward.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

Though there were clearly six sword lights, the sky and earth were filled with pervasive Sword Qi, dense and overwhelming, obscuring the sun.

That day, was like the era of the ancient sword immortals.

Everyone looked up at the sky, their hearts so overwhelmed that they couldn’t speak.

Qi Shu felt a chilling sharpness on his back, and when he turned his head, he saw the reflection of that chilling light in his eyes. He wanted to dodge, but found that at the moment the sword light pierced through, his body couldn’t move as if it had been completely frozen by the chill.

Why!?

Why couldn’t his body move?

Even the True Yuan inside him had solidified; despite struggling desperately, his eyes cracking from the effort, all was in vain against such absolute power, appearing utterly insignificant.

“Pfft! Pfft!”

Ten thousand sword lights successively passed through Qi Shu’s body, leaving even the body of a great grandmaster riddled with countless holes.

Finally, his body fell heavily to the ground, his breath completely cut off.

Qi Shu was dead!

This leading master of Goguryeo had also died in the Great Yan’s Yujing City, never to return to distant Goguryeo ever again.

And as the ten thousand sword lights pierced through, not only was Qi Shu tragically killed, but Pang Ban of the Heavenly Slaughter Divine Palace and Qi Xuan Dao of the Black Ice Platform also died under this sword light.

That’s right, An Jing killed three people with one move.

A great grandmaster and two Five Qi Grandmasters.

This scene was even more spectacular and astounding than the earlier battle of the immortal An Jing against a host of heroes.

Now, in this world, probably all the grandmaster-level experts combined were no match for him alone.

He truly was an invincible Great Sword Immortal throughout the ages!

An Jing stretched out his palm, capturing two strands of Heaven and Earth Spirit Essence and two of Heaven and Earth Spiritual Essence, then his gaze shifted towards King Xu.

King Xu’s expression was complex, “Jing’an, I didn’t expect you to still be alive.”

An Jing smiled lightly, “Jing’an is dead, I am An Jing.”

King Xu looked at those bright eyes, as if seeing An Jing for the first time, yet there seemed to be something more, and something less.

“An Tributor!”

“Son-in-law!”

The experts of the Demon Sect also rushed forward, their eyes filled with a touch of ecstasy, especially Duanmu Xinghua and Ouyang Ping, who were overjoyed to the point of tears, their old tears flowing freely.

Life is unpredictable, with huge ups and downs all happening in the blink of an eye.

Li Fuzhou, usually so composed, was also flush with excitement, but when An Jing looked at him, it was clear that his gaze still evaded.

An Jing nodded slowly, then said, “Sect Master Duanmu, Third Elder, Elder Ouyang, Elder You, Grandmaster Lin, Grandmaster Yi… from now on, this Outer Heaven is yours to lead.”

Li Fuzhou asked, “Son-in-law, what does this mean?”

An Jing calmly said, “I only want to sleep amidst the marketplace, no longer wishing to hear of Jianghu’s affairs.”

Wow!

Upon hearing this, all the masters present were greatly shocked.

You must know that An Jing was just in his early twenties, having just slain two current grandmasters; it is no exaggeration to say that he was the number one master in this world, with supreme power and fame at his fingertips, capable of controlling countless lives and deaths, yet at this moment he chose to withdraw from Jianghu.

In the distance, both the Sword Demon and the Sword God exchanged smiles, perhaps only they understood An Jing’s feelings at this moment, and why he made such a choice.

Although standing at the heights was glorious, it was also lonely.

One may enjoy endless glory, but no one can endure loneliness year after year.

The Sword Demon said, “Let’s go, we’ll leave before he does.”

Sword God Liu Moyuan smiled, “Always striving to be first, even in retiring from Jianghu, must you still compete to be first?”

“Hahaha!” “Hahaha!”

As everyone’s attention converged on An Jing, the two once top swordsmen laughed and then disappeared from a piece of land, vanished from Jianghu.

From that moment on, there was no further news of the two in Jianghu.

Luo Chongyang, stroking his palm, stepped forward and smiled, “Right and wrong lie within oneself, praise and criticism come from others, success and failure are not considered. The green mountains remain unchanged, the flowing water continues long.”

An Jing, looking at the old Daoist, also smiled, “Uncle Master, I will visit you if I have time in the future.”

Luo Chongyang said, “You might find it very difficult to locate me.”

An Jing asked, “Oh? Why is that?”

Luo Chongyang replied, “I wander about everywhere, with no known destination, nor know where I will return.”

An Jing said, “Then, nephew hopes, we meet no more in Jianghu.”

Luo Chongyang and An Jing exchanged a smile.

At this moment, Yong’an Emperor and Dai Ling, along with Tianpeng Ancestor and others, also came over.

Yong’an Emperor asked, “Do you really intend to leave here?”

Her voice was somewhat gentle, even carrying a hint of plea.

Her demands on him were not high; she just wished to see him occasionally.

An Jing looked at the woman before him, thought deeply, and felt somewhat guilty. He could clearly sense Zhao Xuening’s affection for him, even having Xi Hafu protect him in Ba Mountain, but he already had someone he loved.

A hero, toasting to the river’s moon, is unfortunate not to enjoy a beauty’s favor.

An Jing looked at her eyes brimming with autumn waters, “Your Majesty, take care.”

Yong’an Emperor’s lips parted slightly, words failing her, as if tears swirled in her eyes.

Fate always steps quietly to your side when you least expect it.

You turn your head for a moment, you meet, he walks on with his head down, missing out.

An Jing waved his sleeve and glanced at the gathered crowd.

Yong’an Emperor, Luo Chongyang, Xiao Qianqiu, Li Fuzhou, Dai Ling, Duanmu Xinghua, Yi Daoyun, Lin Tianhai, King Xu and others were all briefly surveyed.

His mind involuntarily thought of Fa Zhi, Jiang Sanjia, Lou Xiangzhen, Mu Xiaoyun, Mu Xiaowan, Li Yue, and the many masters like Qi Shu, Qiu Fengsheng, Zongzheng Huachun who had once died by his hand.

The years of life in Jianghu flashed before his eyes, then vanished altogether.

It was as fleeting as a passing cloud.

An Jing exhaled softly and walked toward the distance, everyone hastily moved aside, clearing a path for him.

These included not only experts from Great Yan but also those from Zhao Country, Southern Barbarians, and all other top warriors across the lands.

Zhao Xuening took a step forward but only managed one step.

Everyone looked up, watching as the figure in white vanished from their sight.

A long time later, there was utterly no sound between heaven and earth.

Yong’an Emperor gently closed her eyes, emitting a faint sigh.

Dai Ling also watched the departing figure, feeling inexplicably empty inside.

In dreams, horns resound far and wide, heroes on unfamiliar paths, valiant yet tender-hearted, endlessly turning and returning.

……

Outside Yujing City, on Wangjing Mountain.

Honghu rested on the mountain summit, and sitting on its back was a strikingly beautiful woman, gazing in the direction of Yujing City.

This woman was Zhao Qingmei.

Tonight, under the bright moon, everyone gazes with longing, unaware whose home the autumn thoughts fall upon.

Her gaze remained fixed, constantly looking toward the distance, her stunningly beautiful face seeming as though it was etched into the landscape, yet surpassing any scenery in its beauty.

After a long while, a figure gradually appeared in the distance.

The moment Zhao Qingmei saw the figure, she was enveloped with overwhelming joy, crazily leaping down from Honghu’s back and rushing towards An Jing.

Soon after, the two tightly embraced each other, leaving no space between them.

Happiness isn’t so complicated: the sunshine is splendid, time is long, life is long, as is the time with you.

An Jing gently pinched her delicate nose and chuckled softly, “My lady, shall we go?”

Zhao Qingmei, buried in An Jing’s embrace, whispered, “Mm.”

An Jing asked, “Shall we go?”

Zhao Qingmei still clung to An Jing, unwilling to let go, tightly embracing him.

An Jing blew a warm breath into Zhao Qingmei’s ear and chuckled, “Let’s go, I’m hungry.”

Zhao Qingmei playfully scolded, “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you’re well-fed tonight.”

……

PS: I intended to finish writing today, but the conclusion was somewhat difficult to pen. There are still a few minor details to fill in. Tomorrow I’ll take a break, and then I plan to release the final chapter on October 2-3.