Finest Servant

Chapter 437 Thousand-Forsaken Peak, Hundred-Foot Chain

The mountain air was cold and crisp, all else silent. The two of them stood in place, saying nothing, and for a moment the atmosphere was heavy with tension. Lin Wanrong took a furtive glance at Fairy Ning, whose expression was inscrutable. Her lovely face betrayed no emotion, emanating an aura of indifference. Lin Wanrong felt that he had at least secured his life with his daring gamble, but he dared not show the slightest hint of his inner triumph.

As the night deepened, a layer of mist condensed into droplets on the edges of Ning Yuxi's hair, clear and translucent. Under the soft moonlight, they shimmered brilliantly. Her delicate hand and fair face, her clothing whiter than snow, and her hair fluttering lightly in the cold wind, all made her seem like a celestial maiden who had descended to the mortal realm. Her ethereal beauty left Lin Wanrong in awe.

"Did you think that would be enough to save you?" Ning Yuxi's voice grew colder, each word tinged with frost. "From childhood, I was separated from my parents. My aunt is like my mother, teaching me reading, writing, and martial arts alongside my master. They are the most important people in my life. I will never forget their kindness in nurturing and educating me. You caused her death; do you think I could simply let you go?"

"Do you wish to discuss ethics and revenge with me?" Lin Wanrong chuckled coldly. "Very well. You claim that my actions led to your aunt’s death. Did you see it with your own eyes, or hear it with your own ears? I may be a scoundrel, but I have never killed anyone outside of the battlefield. I had no personal grudges against your aunt; why would I kill her? What reason would I have?"

"Don't play coy. Your words exhausted her to the point of death; this is known to all," Ning Yuxi retorted coldly. "How can you deny it?"

"So you’re saying I killed your aunt with words?" Lin Wanrong asked with a smile.

Fairy Ning was taken aback. Lin Wanrong's ability to twist words was indeed extraordinary. While her aunt had died because of him, it couldn't be said that he had killed her.

"If that's what you believe, I won't argue," Lin Wanrong sighed. "Your Jade Virtue Fairy Hall is the embodiment of justice, right? Then act justly. Covert assassination will only make you the laughingstock of the world. It will disturb your aunt's soul in the afterlife. I offer you a fair chance: kill me with your words. I will die without regret."

"You—" Ning Yuxi had an unparalleled beauty and was unmatched in martial skills. But when it came to verbal battles, she was no match for Lin Wanrong. Furious at his deflection, she raised her hand. A flash of silver light shot out, striking Lin Wanrong's knee. Already limping, both his legs now wracked with pain, he collapsed to the ground, his head hitting the earth. Stars danced in front of his eyes as everything went black.

"So you can talk? I'll cut off your tongue, and we'll see how you defend yourself then," Ning Yuxi said coldly, holding her sword.

Laughing heartily, Lin Wanrong showed no fear. "Is this the style of the Jade Virtue Fairy Hall? When you lose an argument, you resort to violence? I'd say your aunt had far better judgment than you. I've had enough of talking. Kill me or do as you wish."

He leaned back, lying on the ground as if it were the natural place for him, his eyes staring up at the sky. His face was a picture of calm.

Ning Yuxi raised her jade-like hand several times, tempted to end him with a single stroke, but each time she hesitated. It seemed too easy to let him die like that. Her mind wandered to his past exploits in Shandong—how he strategized behind curtains and flaunted his feather fan. Now, as she looked down at his indifferent expression, her emotions surged uncontrollably.

The rocks on the mountain were freezing. Lin Wanrong lay on the ground, shivering uncontrollably. Annoyance welled up within him. ‘Even if I survive her sword, I'll freeze to death at this rate,’ he thought. After waiting for a moment, tensely drawing his hands and feet close to his body, and hearing no sound from the fairy, he finally lost patience. He opened his eyes abruptly and saw that Ning Yuxi stood several feet away from him, near the cliff's edge, seemingly lost in thought as she looked at the distant peak across the way.

‘Maybe my insults awakened her conscience, and she’s contemplating suicide,’ he mused. With a grimacing grin, he chuckled to himself. Despite the growing cold, only he would have the audacity to jest in such a precarious situation.

Noticing that he had opened his eyes, the fairy suddenly flashed a faint smile. "I hear you're someone who loves excitement, never idle for a moment, always drawn to crowds. Is that true?"

‘Is that even a question?’ Lin Wanrong was inwardly amused. ‘Anyone you ask would know that wherever there’s money and beautiful women, that's where you’ll find me.’ But seeing Ning Yuxi smile, a sudden chill rose within him. He hastily waved his hand, "No, no, what I really like is solitude and contemplation, especially at the summit of such isolated peaks. It’s the perfect setting for a man of depth like myself."

"Is it?" Ning Yuxi chuckled. "Do you know what the most painful thing in life is?"

"For men, it’s impotence; for women, it’s infertility."

This uncouth comment made Ning Yuxi grit her teeth. Lifting her delicate hand, she pointed and asked, "What do you see over there?"

Following the direction of her finger, Lin Wanrong was met with an insurmountable mountain peak, towering sky-high, its cliffs sheared as if cut by a blade, impossible for humans to ascend.

"What a massive peak!" Lin Wanrong exclaimed.

"That peak is called Thousand-Forsaken Peak," Ning Yuxi said calmly. "Above a thousand feet, there exists an unparalleled peak. On that peak, one can touch the starry sky. Since ancient times, only one person has ever ascended it."

"Who?" Lin Wanrong couldn't help but ask.

"I don't know," Ning Yuxi replied, her expression placid. "Probably the person who named this peak."

"You’re teasing me," Lin Wanrong laughed. "If even you don't know who it was, how can you claim someone has climbed it?"

"Because I have eyes," Ning Yuxi’s expression turned icy. She picked up a small stone and flicked it with her finger. With a crisp sound, the stone plummeted as if it had hit something solid.

Lin Wanrong's eyes widened. On closer inspection, he saw that the formidable peak was bound by a dark iron chain that reached all the way to their own mountain. The chain was several hundred feet long and rusted in spots, its age unguessable. Given Ning Yuxi's skill, the stone she had flung caused hardly a ripple in the chain, attesting to its solidity.

Could there truly be one who feared not death? Lin Wanrong was dumbfounded. Not only had someone ascended the insurmountable Thousand-Forsaken Peak, but that person had also managed to anchor an iron chain from the summit. How could this have been possible? The chain was rusty and appeared unused for centuries, corroborating Fairy Ning's claim that only one person had ever made it up there, a claim that seemed highly credible.

"What do you think?" Ning Yuxi asked, her expression as still as an ancient well.

"Incredible," Lin Wanrong muttered, only to startle himself with a sudden realization. "Fairy Sister, this towering peak has nothing to do with me, does it?"

Ning Yuxi cast him a glance, impassive as ever. "Initially, it didn't. But something you said reminded me that justice must be served. You may have been the catalyst for my aunt's death, but you didn't kill her with your own hands. If I were to kill you now, it would neither quell the rage in my heart nor leave you at peace."

"Exactly, exactly! It's good that you think that way," Lin Wanrong exclaimed joyfully. "Killing benefits neither of us. Why not sit down and chat amicably? Share some stories and enjoy each other's company? Wouldn't that be much better?"

Gazing toward the distant Thousand-Forsaken Peak, Fairy Ning's expression remained unreadable. "Vengeance is a complex matter, one that leaves no room for joy or happiness. Do you know what the most painful thing in life is? A chasm as wide as the heavens can be but a hair's breadth away. You have torn me from my aunt for all eternity. I'll repay you by making you taste the same bitter sorrow of eternal separation."

Lin Wanrong found her words perplexing, but a chill ran down his spine as he instinctively sensed that something was awry.

"You look down on my sacred hall, don't you? You pride yourself as a common man?" Ning Yuxi suddenly grinned. "Then I'll make you an immortal of another realm, within sight but forever out of reach of worldly attachments."

Swiftly, Ning Yuxi leapt forward, lifting Lin Wanrong's body and heading for the cliff's edge. His heart pounded wildly as he screamed, "What are you doing? I'm not jumping!"

"I'm being quite fair," Ning Yuxi said flatly. "I'll cross this hundred-foot chain with you. If we fall, it will be both of us; you won't suffer alone."

Lin Wanrong's hairs stood on end, his body as cold as stone. He struggled frantically, shouting, "I'm not going! I don't like rock climbing—"

With unyielding determination, Ning Yuxi clenched her teeth, lifted him up, and gracefully leapt onto the rust-covered rope, poised like a swallow. Lin Wanrong's scream abruptly halted. Glancing downward, he saw only a boundless sea of clouds, unable to discern the ravine below. Gusts of cold wind whistled by, turning his cheeks crimson, but he no longer felt any pain.

Walking a tightrope was an acrobatic feat he had only ever watched, never imagining he'd experience it himself—especially not hoisted in someone else's hands, above a bottomless abyss. Lin Wanrong didn't know how to describe the emotions welling up inside him. He suddenly recalled how he had arrived in this world. Was he going to return everything today? A jumble of sorrow and joy seized him, and yet, he found himself unable to cry.

Ning Yuxi stood solemnly on the Hundred-Foot Chain, utterly still. She took a deep breath and cautiously took a step forward. The rope swayed slightly, eliciting a startled cry from Lin Wanrong. In response, Ning Yuxi tapped her feet quickly, advancing five steps in one breath. Then she stopped, as steady as a rock, harmonizing her movements with the swaying rope.

‘I really wish I were dead,’ Lin Wanrong inwardly muttered, his face twisted in a grimace. ‘Not everyone can enjoy the sensation of swinging in mid-air like this.’ He sighed, "Fairy Sister, you look so slender, not fat at all. Why does the rope keep shaking like this?"

"Silence!" Ning Yuxi's face turned pale, her teeth clenched. "You're the one who needs to lose weight; you're as heavy as a pig!"

Gazing at the Hundred-Foot Chain ahead, Lin Wanrong realized he couldn't move forward or backward. His life was once again in her hands. He shook his head, gaining a new understanding of Ning Yuxi's stubbornness and determination.

"Sister, let go of me," he suddenly spoke, his expression incredibly calm.

"Why?" Ning Yuxi was taken aback.

"Because I've experienced something like this before," he said sincerely. "Falling twice doesn't scare me. It's just flesh and bones, nothing important."

"Do you think this is my first time?" Ning Yuxi replied coldly.

Lin Wanrong paused, understanding her meaning. He remembered how she had risked her life to save him back in Shandong. He looked at their current situation, so different yet strangely the same. His feelings were complicated.

"Close your eyes!" Ning Yuxi commanded softly. Before he could react, she moved again. This time, she didn't stop, executing several leaps and covering a significant distance.

Wind howled past Lin Wanrong's ears, and for a moment he felt as if he were walking among clouds. When he opened his eyes, he saw Ning Yuxi standing on the rope, her face pale as paper, her body trembling slightly. In a rash decision, he tore off his coat and plummeted down.

At that moment, he was filled with regrets for everything he was leaving behind—Qingxuan, Ning'er, Qiaoqiao, and his unborn son. But his mind was calm. "Am I finally going back? I didn't expect even the circumstances to be the same, truly hitting rock bottom—"

"You idiot!" A sharp cry rang in his ears. At the last moment, Ning Yuxi had grabbed the collar of his shirt.

Looking up, Lin Wanrong was struck dumb. Ning Yuxi's eyes were red, her face as white as paper. She was hanging upside down from the rope, like a monkey reaching for the moon, gripping his collar tightly. As they locked eyes, their breaths seemed to sync.

On the Hundred-Foot Chain of Thousand-Forsaken Peak, their fates converged in the most magical way. Lin Wanrong grinned, unable to conceal his tears from her beautiful eyes.

‘He's so ugly,’ she thought, confused but intensely emotional. Her hand clenched his collar even tighter.

‘Do I want to cry or laugh?’ Lin Wanrong pondered, but felt incredibly calm. At this point, he had nothing to lose. He leaned in and kissed her red lips deeply. "Sister," he whispered, "I need to lose weight."

A solemn warning: Do not imitate the 'Kiss of the Stacked Tower' without Fairy-level skills; it could lead to serious injury!

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