Chapter Sixty-Three: The Abandoned Pawn

Mo Yun looked around and realized that this place was actually beneath the Western City.

He had believed that by using the Mirror of Sumeru to capture Su Ziye, he would be able to carry out his plan smoothly and return to Star City. Never had he imagined that, after all his efforts, it seemed as though he were playing a child's game.

"This can't be," Mo Yun muttered painfully, lowering his head.

He thought he had achieved perfection, even going so far as to mobilize every assassin he could command at the Dongxuan stage for a desperate attack, all to win himself the chance to complete his mission.

He had even glimpsed the future through the Seer's Eye beforehand, but never would he have guessed that the future would turn out like this.

"Everyone has their own ending. You and I are no different," Su Ziye said, his tone calm as he looked at Mo Yun, then turned to the Mountain Lord. "Thank you for your assistance."

"A mere lift of the hand," the Mountain Lord replied tranquilly, watching as Su Ziye departed with Liu Ru.

At some point, Xi Ye had already left, and in the blink of an eye, only Mo Yun, lost and devastated, remained facing the Mountain Lord.

"Do you admit defeat?" The Mountain Lord regarded Mo Yun with a strange pity.

"If not for your intervention, how could I possibly have failed?" Mo Yun nearly ground his teeth in frustration.

The greatest agony in this world is to see one's plans collapse at the final moment. He had paid a tremendous price for this scheme, yet never expected the Mountain Lord himself to step in and disrupt everything.

"The Mirror of Sumeru is also a spiritual artifact of the Star Lord. With your authority, you could never truly wield it. That means the Star Lord intervened in secret as well," the Mountain Lord said, unmoved. "Besides, the origin of all this lies in your attack on the Burial Snow Society. Once you crossed that red line, the power of Leaf Night City could be used against you without restraint."

"My intervention was, in fact, the most gentle option."

"I clearly saw everything through the Seer's Eye; all was within my calculations," Mo Yun gritted his teeth. "So why?"

"I activated the Mirror of Sumeru, endured its tremendous backlash, but in the end, the world within the mirror did not deliver me to the place I should have reached..." He spoke in confusion, but his expression slowly shifted from bewilderment to clarity and fear.

"With your intellect, I think you have already understood," the Mountain Lord said calmly.

Mo Yun gazed at the man before him with pale violet eyes and finally sighed. "So Yunmengze is in your hands."

"This is no lofty secret," the Mountain Lord replied serenely.

"The Seer's Eye is merely an imitation of Yunmengze. If you possess Yunmengze, you can easily confound the visions I see. If all of Leaf Night City is under Yunmengze's influence, then not even the Mirror of Sumeru can take the world within the mirror away. Did Su Ziye know this all along?" Mo Yun gradually understood, but the price of understanding was a deepening furrow in his brow.

If it truly was so, then he was nothing more than a clown in the grand scheme.

"You finally see the gulf between you and that man," the Mountain Lord said. "If you had not refused my offer back then, we would not be meeting like this now."

"So you already placed your bet," Mo Yun said, his voice despairing. "But have you considered the risk?"

"He is destined to die, a discarded piece. Even if he is a genius, he is but a young ant. When the tide of the era surges forth, all obstacles will be crushed."

"I know," the Mountain Lord replied softly. "But have you considered that he might be the man who brings the tide?"

"Him?" Mo Yun's eyes suddenly lit up. He looked at the Mountain Lord. "What must I do to leave here alive?"

"You need not carry this intelligence back, for the Star Lord knows it as well. For many reasons, he chooses not to tell everyone," the Mountain Lord shook his head. "Besides, you have no right to leave here alive."

"The Seventh Prince trusts me because we have made many transactions before. This time, my responsibility is to ensure you die here."

"You are truly candid, Mountain Lord," Mo Yun sighed. "Then I have no last words."

"But I have a question for you," the Mountain Lord said quietly.

"Though I would prefer to refuse, since you ask, please go ahead," Mo Yun nodded.

"The weapon has arrived at Leaf Night City. Is this your doing?" The Mountain Lord asked as casually as the day's weather.

Mo Yun's eyes widened in disbelief. He was just about to speak when his expression froze.

He stood there, motionless, as all life drained from him in an instant.

"I understand," the Mountain Lord said quietly.

He approached Mo Yun, reached out, and pierced his chest, but not a drop of blood spilled. In that instant, Mo Yun had already become a sculpture.

The Mountain Lord withdrew his right hand, holding a gray crystal orb.

"The Seer's Eye," he sighed, then squeezed gently. The orb shattered in his hand, gray mist swirling and finally merging completely into his body.

He turned and walked away.

Behind him, Mo Yun's body slowly crumbled like a statue made of sand.

...

...

Xi Ye returned to his private villa in Mount Bin.

He had gone today at Su Ziye's invitation to protect him, but never expected to witness such a drama beyond his imagination.

Now he finally understood why Su Ziye had left War Banner City and traveled thousands of miles to this foreign land.

He also realized that by following Su Ziye here, he had been saved.

The question now was what he should do next.

"The prince seems troubled," a voice sounded behind him.

Xi Ye smiled calmly. "General Wu, I have simply heard things I shouldn't have."

"You have met with Prince Xi Che already?" General Wu was not surprised.

"I have, though we barely spoke," Xi Ye sighed. "But he truly deserves his reputation. He did not say a single word to me, yet perfectly answered all my questions."

"It is just that the answer is hard for me to accept."

"Can you share it with me?" General Wu asked.

Xi Ye thought for a moment, then shook his head. "I don't think I can."

"That is a pity," General Wu said, offering no further comment.

At that moment, a quiet knocking sounded from outside the courtyard.

Xi Ye was surprised.

This was a secluded villa, and there was no door.

"Who is it?" he asked instinctively.

"Me," came a cold, ethereal voice nearby. Xi Ye looked over and saw a long-haired girl in a silver cloak, knocking against the air as she approached.

He saw her eyes.

They were golden, brilliant, just like his own.

She knocked at the air before her, and the air responded with a real knocking sound.

Thus, she knocked her way to him.

"Xing Xi," Xi Ye sighed, calling her name. "Why are you here?"

The girl known as Xing Xi stopped and looked at him calmly.

"I have received orders to kill you," she said quietly.