In the night, a gentle breeze stirred, and the entire Xilin royal palace was immersed in laughter and merriment. Dozens of tables were laid out with food and drinks on the open ground outside the main hall.
Everyone ate, drank, and rejoiced. However, one person was absent: Wu Dao, who was still in his room accompanying Helian.
Helian watched him sit at the table for a long time before she couldn't help but lift her veil and speak to him.
"I know you are a good person, and I know you have feelings for me."
Bi Shouyuan listened quietly as she spoke.
"But love is something that should develop slowly. So, before I fall in love with you, let's not share a room."
During his days in the royal palace, Wu Dao had also heard rumors from the guards and maids that Helian's beloved was the Demon King.
He hadn't had any feelings for her before, but the moment he saw her, he couldn't help but be smitten. Perhaps this was a destined marriage, even though he knew she didn't love him.
"Alright, I promise you."
Helian was surprised by his quick agreement and was quite pleased. She then looked at him carefully.
She noticed he was gentle and refined, with a handsome and delicate appearance, someone who would grow on her. Her guard towards him lessened.
She was just curious why he wasn't out drinking and reveling tonight. "Why aren't you out drinking and having fun?"
"I'm not much of a drinker. I was worried you would be lonely staying in the room by yourself, so I wanted to stay and keep you company."
"Where do you plan to sleep tonight?"
"I'll sleep on the floor."
"That's fine."
Wu Dao looked at the fruit platter and desserts on the table, thinking that after a long day, she must be hungry. He brought the desserts to her and said,
"Have some. You haven't eaten anything today."
Helian smiled slightly, picked up a dessert, and took a bite. She asked him,
"You haven't eaten either. You should have some too."
He then picked up a dessert and ate it. Just then, someone knocked on the door.
"Young Master, Miss, the elder has sent some food for you both."
Wu Dao put down the dessert and replied, "Okay, I'm coming."
He walked to the door, opened it, took the food, thanked the person, and returned to the room, placing the food on the table.
"Helian, come and eat quickly. The dishes today are very delicious."
Helian walked over and, without hesitation, picked up her chopsticks and began to eat. She also beckoned him, "You eat some too."
Bi Shouyuan also picked up his bowl and chopsticks and ate with Qiu Yu.
After an unknown amount of time, everyone was quite full and reluctantly departed.
On their way back, Shui Fang and Ying Lu reminisced about the time they had spent on the rooftop. So, they took a few bottles of wine and flew up to the roof.
At this moment, Yue Jiu, who happened to be passing by, was also called to the rooftop.
Then came Xue Guocheng and Yan Wushuang, the Four Great Villains, Hei Feng, and Xue Ruyi.
Later, to make up the numbers, they sent someone to invite Liu Shinian and me.
From beneath the rooftop, I asked them, "What kind of gathering is this tonight?"
Shui Fang replied with a smile, "Tonight is a gathering of us, the Twelve Star Generals, and the Demon King."
Hearing this, I felt it made sense, so I flew up to join them for drinks and conversation.
At this moment, Feng Xiaoyi, who was passing by, curiously asked them, "Why are you drinking here without inviting us?"
Hei Feng said, "I don't know if you have a habit of drinking on rooftops. This one, in Black Mountain, can be considered a tradition."
"We don't have any taboos. I'll go and call others over too."
Before long, all twenty-four Mountain Lords were summoned. The person they brought with them was Lin'er.
"Wow, this is truly a complete gathering," Ying Lu said, slightly surprised, looking at the people arriving below.
Liu Shinian looked at Lin'er in the group and teased him.
"You've brought the right person. I've never seen the Elder drink before. Today, I'll finally get to witness it. Drag him up!"
"Alright!" So, a few people brought the somewhat awkward Elder up to the rooftop. Then, the other Mountain Lords also flew up.
Suddenly, the entire rooftop was crowded with people. Fu Zimo said with some concern, "With so many people, will this rooftop collapse?"
Xue Guocheng said,
"No, the palaces of the Four Cities are built with golden nanmu as pillars, and the roof frames have more wood than ordinary houses.
Therefore, the load-bearing capacity of the roof should be able to support the weight of several hundred people."
Fu Zimo looked up enviously. "Brother Xue is so amazing."
Hearing the word "Brother," Ye Changfeng shot him a murderous glare. Fu Zimo immediately understood and quickly covered his mouth.
Xue Guocheng said humbly, "I only have a slight understanding. This is nothing."
At this moment, Liu Shinian was the first to stir up trouble. "Elder, why are you sitting at the back? Hurry up and bring him forward."
So, a few people got up and ushered Lin'er to the front. Lin'er said sheepishly, "I've never participated in this kind of rooftop gathering. Don't make me drink."
Then everyone started egging him on, "Drink, drink!"
Lin'er walked to my side a bit shyly and sat down. At this moment, Liu Shinian handed him a bottle of wine and said with a smile, "Elder, a rooftop without drinking is not much fun."
Seeing his difficulty, I stepped in to help him. "The Elder doesn't drink much, so don't force him. Elder, just try a sip." This statement seemed to have no effect.
Then everyone egged him on, "One sip, one sip!"
Lin'er, unable to refuse the enthusiastic urging of the crowd, opened the bottle and took a sip, which made his face turn red from choking.
Everyone praised him, "Great, Elder, you're amazing!"
At this moment, Gui Hai Cheng, the Mountain Lord of Gui Hai Mountain, asked doubtfully, "The Elder has been with us for so long, and I've clearly seen him drinking. Aren't you just worried about us getting you drunk?"
Lin'er explained, "The wine at the banquets was prepared water in advance, which is why you were mistaken."
Shui Fang exclaimed, "The Elder is so clever! We didn't notice at all."
"My uncle said that drinking leads to mistakes, so he never allowed me to drink."
Everyone nodded in agreement.
"Then it's understandable that you drank a little today. The Demon King gets all muddled after every drink."
As they spoke, the topic shifted back to me. I defended myself, "Not at all, not at all. I just can't hold my liquor."
Everyone burst into laughter.
Yan Wushuang was also attending such a rooftop gathering for the first time. She looked at the pitch-black rooftop and said,
"In the past, when you all went up to the rooftop, there would be a moon. But tonight, it's completely dark, which is a bit of a pity."
At this moment, Feng Wen Yue, the Mountain Lord of Feng Xiang Mountain, said, "I have a way."
"What way?"
Everyone became curious.
He took out a piece of white paper from his怀, tore it into a round moon shape, and rubbed it in his hand, making it larger until it became a large sheet of paper the size of a table.
Then he plucked a few strands of his hair, blew on them to turn them into thin ropes, used them to prop up the moon, and then threw it forward.
The moon landed on the opposite rooftop, the thin ropes hooked onto the tiles, hanging high in the air. The moon swayed back and forth in the gentle breeze.
"What a great idea!" everyone praised.
At this moment, Yan Wushuang stood up and said, "I think the moon is missing something. It's not bright."
As she spoke, she rubbed her hands together and waved her palm, scattering white powder onto the paper. Instantly, the entire paper began to shine.
Then Liu Shinian also said, "What's so good about a white moon? Red is more beautiful."
As he spoke, he took out a red cloth bag from his怀 and threw it towards the moon. Instantly, red powder covered the entire moon.
At this moment, Feng Xiaoyi also said, "I think we should add some stars."
He waved his hand and summoned a leaf, throwing it towards the moon. Instantly, a few green stars appeared around it.
Everyone displayed their skills and opened their minds. Before long, the opposite rooftop was adorned with crescent moons, green, white, and pink stars.
There were also red moons and white clouds, blue clouds, like a doodle painting. With the participation of many people, it transformed into an artistic painting.
I sighed, "If only we could capture all of this."
"Capture it?" Everyone was very confused.
However, Bai Li Wen Qing, the Mountain Lord of Bai Li Mountain, felt it wasn't a difficult task. He said, "I have a way. Watch me."
As he spoke, he took out a small clay bird from his怀. The clay bird turned into a real bird upon seeing the wind. It flew to a spot and then split into several small birds.
Bai Li Wen Qing explained, "These are clay birds that can paint. Let them paint all the beautiful scenery of today."
"That's wonderful. Then everyone, please be seated."
For a moment, the entire rooftop fell silent. Everyone watched the painting birds with curiosity. They saw them spit out a square piece of drawing paper.
Two birds held it, while other birds flew back and forth on the drawing. Before long, it was finished.
The little birds retracted their clones and brought the drawing back to Bai Li Wen Qing. Bai Li Wen Qing glanced at it and was very satisfied. He then passed the drawing to others to see. When it reached my hands, I was simply amazed; it was like a photograph.
In the painting, directly opposite us were colorful moons, stars, and clouds. On our rooftop, at the very front sat Lin'er and I.
In the middle were the Twelve Star Generals, with the Twenty-Four Mountain Lords behind and to the sides.
Yan Wushuang also praised after looking at it, "It's as if we've entered the painting ourselves. Everyone is so realistic. I think this painting can be framed and hung in the main hall."
"That's a good idea."
So, everyone laughed and agreed to frame it. In the end, Lin'er kept the painting. He would have it framed according to our wishes.
As the night grew darker, I said to everyone, "Let's call it a day. Everyone should go back and sleep."
"Okay."
With that, they began to leave one by one. Lin'er looked at the moon on the opposite rooftop and asked me, "Demon King, what about those things?"
"Leave them. They are also a beautiful memory."
"Alright then, I'll be going back now."
"Go ahead."
After Lin'er left, I also returned to my sleeping quarters. The moment I touched the bed, I fell fast asleep.
Thus, a wonderful day came to an end.
The next morning, good news arrived from the ice cellar: the ice silkworm clothes were finished.
Before I had even woken up, someone was already knocking on my door in a hurry.
"Demon King, Demon King, the ice silkworm clothes are finished!"
I was too excited to believe it. "Really?"
"Yes, the elders and the senior members have all gone to see."
"Good, quickly take me there."
"Yes."
So, I followed the maid all the way to the ice cellar. The ice cellar was located behind the main hall, through a rockery gate. By the time we arrived, many people had already gathered there.
At this moment, I saw people carrying ice silkworm clothes one by one coming out from inside. Everyone wisely made way.
As I watched the rows of ice silkworm clothes pass before my eyes, my heart was filled with excitement.
At this time, fearing a shortage of hands, people nearby also rushed into the ice cellar to help. It took them nearly the entire morning to move all the hundreds of thousands of ice silkworm threads.
However, I didn't see Lin'er. I saw several elders, Hei Yun, and Yan Niang coming out from inside, chatting and laughing.
Seeing Yan Niang, I was also very excited and quickly went forward to hold her hand. "Madam, you've worked hard. You've helped us greatly this time."
Yan Niang smiled and said, "It's not a big deal. It's just that my ice silkworms are starving this time and will need a period of rest."
As she spoke, she opened the wooden box in her hand, and I saw that the once plump and chubby little meat worms had become thin and small.
Yan Niang said, "Demon King, since this ice silkworm has helped, may I take it away to be well cared for?"
"Of course."
It was then that I remembered Lin'er. I asked the elders, "Elders, have you seen the Elder?"
Elder Mo Xuefu replied, "The Elder, along with Xue Guocheng and Yan Wushuang, has already transported the ice silkworm clothes to the military camp for distribution."
"I see."
Elder Zhu Liuyun said, "Demon King, our war is approaching, and we will have to set off soon."
"Indeed." I then said to Hei Yun and Yan Niang, "Senior Hei, Madam Hei, the war is approaching, and we must also set off. Therefore, I will send you back today."
Hei Yun asked doubtfully, "Why is the Demon King in such a hurry?"
Elder Hei Yi explained.
"Mountain Lord Hei, you may not know this, but Beishen Capital has already agreed with us to have a decisive battle in Zhulu ten days from now.
From Xizig Kingdom to Zhulu, it takes at least three days of non-stop travel. So, today is the seventh day, and we will likely set off today."
"I see. If you need anything, please let me know. I will help in any way I can."
"Okay."
"Then, this time, let Bi Shouyuan, Qiu Yu, and Madam leave with you." I said.
"That's fine."
As I spoke, I instructed the maid, "Prepare the carriage and provisions."
"Yes."
After the maid left, I invited them to walk towards the main hall.
Hei Yun asked me, "Regarding this battle, what is the Demon King's confidence level?"
I replied, "If there are no other unforeseen circumstances, then we will win this battle."
Hei Yun still seemed a bit worried.
"Beishen Capital is not like other capitals. Everyone there can be considered a master, and the generals are all hidden dragons and crouching tigers.
Moreover, they have never lost a battle, which shows their terrifying strength."
"We have considered these points and have also strengthened the training of our soldiers.
We have also carried out some external attacks on Beishen Capital, which will cause them heavy losses."
Hei Yun nodded. Although somewhat worried, he believed that with the Elder and several elders present, the army would surely be well-organized, and the most effective plan would be devised.