It took 15 minutes for Qian Shuhua to return with two bowls in hand.

The bowls looked ordinary, but they were as wide as three fists. Ordinarily, they would be used to hold noodles, and even brash martial artists and mountain bandits rarely used them for drinking liquor. Even though stories frequently described drinking by the bowls and eating in big mouthfuls, one would still have to choose the right size of drinking bowl or cup to avoid death by intoxication.

Qian Shuxiao’s expression immediately changed as he saw the bowls Qian Shuhua was bringing over. “Sister, how could you use that for drinking? Let’s stop this foolishness, alright? Normal cups are good enough.”

Qian Shuhua placed the bowls on the table without even bothering about her brother. Her eyebrows arched as she said, “What do you think about using these bowls for drinking? If you think they’re too big, I can change them. It wouldn’t be a problem; not everyone can use them for drinking, you should judge your own abilities. There’s a saying that’s very true—take one step back and you’ll realize how small your troubles are.”

Red Bean pouted as she swept her gaze across the bowls, seeming a little disdainful of it. “It’ll be too much trouble switching bowls again. It’ll do.”

She picked up one of the bowls and filled it loudly with wine before sizing them up. “In fact, it could be even larger.”

Red Bean signaled to Qian Shuhua, and gulped down the wine in her bowl heroically without even bothering to toast. She even let out a long sigh after drinking, as if she was greatly unsatisfied.

Drinking in this manner was fitting for her character.

In fact, there was no need for any of the two young ladies to toast each other. They were obviously competing to see who would get drunk first. Tonight, only one of them could walk out of the Divine Sect Seminary sober. No one took even one bite of the dishes placed on the table, and the two ladies drank bowl after bowl of wine, each time draining the contents of their bowls in one mouthful.

By the time it was dusk, they had already drunk two huge jars of apricot flower wine on the third storey of the seminary.

The fragrance of the wine pervaded the air.

Neither of the ladies sitting by the table admitted fear. In fact, their expressions were completely unchanged, as if they were drinking plain water instead of liquor.

Even though apricot flower wine was not the strongest form of liquor, it was known for its after kick.

Both Ye Que and Qian Shuxiao drank a few cups of wine as well. They spent most of their time looking at the other two compete, and it was an eye-opening experience for them. In fact, Ye Que knew that he was not a match for many people when it came to drinking. One’s level of cultivation counted for little, and really good drinkers were born, not cultivated.

Some people were born with a constitution that allowed them to consume large amounts of liquor without being intoxicated. This had nothing to do with one’s gender.

Red Bean was born of the Dragon Clan, and she was a dragon girl from Southland. The amount of liquor she could consume was predictably huge.

However, he never expected that Qian Shuhua’s capacity for liquor was so terrifying. It looked like that the last time they drank together was not a proper indication for her true drinking ability. During that time, she was heart-broken and was “intoxicated” before she had even begun drinking. Her heart was intoxicated with sorrow, and it had nothing to do with her constitution.

This time, it was different. She was out to compete.

It was a battle of spirits.

Winter in Luoyang was warmer than that of Northern You, but it was still winter anyway. At night, the temperature in the Divine Sect Seminary gradually dropped.

Chu Dongnan had not left all this while. He walked stealthily up to the third storey and came up to Ye Que and Qian Shuxiao. “Sect Leader, Elder, it’s getting dark. Should I get more charcoal urns? The temperature in Luoyang over these few days will be very cold. Ice has started to form in some places.”

Ye Que glanced at the two young ladies beside him who were still competing with each other and shook his head. “Forget it, and I don’t think we need more urns of charcoal. They’ll be feeling extremely warm after drinking such huge amounts of liquor. Why would they feel cold?”

Ye Que paused for a moment before continuing, “It’s getting late; you should be heading home.”

“It’s fine, Chief. It’ll be alright even if I don’t go back; there’s no one home anyone. I might as well continue training in the seminary,” Chu Dongnan replied softly.

Ye Que took a close look at Chu Dongnan after listening to him. He was the first disciple that Ye Que had selected externally within Luoyang. Chu used to be a hooligan who used to smuggle salt, yet he slowly improved from an official Divine Sect Seminary disciple to become a practitioner of peak Later Heaven then half Psychic Realm level. All this while, Ye Que had continued to observe the youth’s progress.

He patted Chu Dongnan’s shoulder lightly and did not speak further, as if he had made a choice.

He turned his head back toward the table. The two ladies were already in the heated stages of competition.

“Qian Shuxiao, go fetch another two jars of wine. We won’t leave until we’re wasted today,” Qian Shuhua shouted loudly as she slapped the table.

“Get more wine!” Red Bean shouted. She did not speak much, but her words were loud and clear.

“It’s too hot here, and it’s not conducive for drinking. Follow me,” Qian Shuhua said as she poked Red Bean.

Without even so much as acknowledging the presence of Ye Que and Qian Shuxiao, the two ladies climbed up the rooftop of the Divine Sect Seminary.

Luckily, Ye Que had sharp sensory abilities and directly sensed movement on the roof.

He had no choice but to accompany them.

What else could he do? He could not possibly strike or scold them.

There was some wind during the day in Luoyang. It was rather strong; all of the wind in the skies had been blown away.

There were no clouds for thousands of kilometers in the starry night sky. A full moon hung high above them.

Under the cool wind and bright moon, four youths sat on the roof of the Divine Sect Seminary. Three jars of wine were beside them. Red Bean and Qian Shuhua each had a jar to themselves, while Ye Que and Qian Shuxiao shared a jar among themselves.

Qian Shuxiao was the first to speak. He lifted his head and looked at the starry sky, saying, “Brother Ye, what kind of life would be the most perfect and comfortable to you?”

Ye Que did not expect that Qian Shuxiao would ask him about such a thing. He thought that the youth would ask him about what he saw in the Imperial Mausoleum.

Ye Que shook his head after a moment’s thought. “I’m not very clear on what kind of life is the best. I’m still searching for it, I guess.”

“The question sounds simple, but it’s the most difficult kind to answer,” Ye Que replied languidly before glancing at Qian Shuxiao. “What do you think? What’s the best kind of life, or rather, the kind of life that you’re most looking forward to having?”

Qian Shuxiao lifted his head to gaze at the night sky. “Tending to horses on the plains is a lifestyle that’ll be free of stress, love, hate or vengeance. I wouldn’t have to deal with Jianghu tricksters and family feuds. All I have to be concerned about is whether my horse is still with me. I’m lazy, so I’ll only tend to one horse; it’ll be troublesome if there are too many of them. I won’t even be able to count them.”

Qian Shuxiao patted Ye Que and continued, “Think about it carefully, we can sleep while the horse grazes. How good is that?”

Ye Que smiled and remained silent.

Qian Shuhua, who was beside him, suddenly spoke up. “What’s so good about that? Sleeping while your horse is grazing? What kind of life is that? Can you get any lazier than that?”

“What kind of life do you wish to have then?” Qian Shuxiao glared somewhat angrily at his sister.

“Of course it’s a life where I venture into everything bravely,” Qian Shuhua replied without giving it any thought.

“No matter what kind of difficulty I encounter, even if I end up without anything left after my struggles, I will face it with grace and courage. This is called faith and strength.”

“Bottoms up!”

Qian Shuhua was sitting on the roof and cradling a jar of wine in one hand. She stretched the other arm out, as if she wanted to embrace the entire night sky.

By this time, Red Bean’s cheeks had already turned slightly red. The after effects of apricot flower wine had finally taken effect on the young dragon girl. “Bottoms up,” she said.

She looked at Red Bean and suddenly remarked, “I seem to be taking a liking to you now. You’re really free-spirited; you’re the first person to drink in this manner with me since I was young!”

Red Bean looked at Qian Shuhua and smiled as she spoke up, “Since young, you’re the only person who dares to say she likes me.”

Both young ladies were a little intoxicated by now, and they began to sway unsteadily.

Both Ye Que and Qian Shuxiao did not reach out to support them. Both ladies had strong cultivation bases and were heroines with great capacities for drinking. Even if they wanted to, they did not dare to support them. Even if they fell downstairs, they would be alright. A fall of 13 storeys would not be any problem for them, much less three storeys.

“Have you been stressed lately?” Ye Que asked Qian Shuxiao in a low voice. The youth had not dreamt of being a horse tender in the past, and if it had not been the fact there was something on his mind, he would not have such thoughts.

“Devils have already started to invade Northern You,” Qian Shuxiao said.

“I know, and I have already encountered them there. I personally saw devils starting to infiltrate Truth Cultivation sects,” Ye Que said.

“Then you must not know that there are devils in Luoyang as well, and that they have already infiltrated the royal palace,” Qian Shuxiao said, revealing an earth-shattering piece of information. “His Majesty was killed by one of them, and Imperial Concubine Dou has been certified to be devil spawn. She entered the palace at the age of 11 and remained in hiding for 21 years.”

“Where did you get these information from?” Ye Que asked.

“The Crown Prince will be coronated shortly, and he’ll become the next Emperor of the Tang Dynasty.”

Qian Shuxiao did not reply directly but instead revealed another piece of secret information. He laughed bitterly after speaking.

The Qian family had always been the greatest supporters of the Crown Prince, and naturally, it would be rewarded adequately. However, the rise of the Qian family was besides the question. It may not be the effect Qian Shuxiao wanted. After all, he was the only heir apparent from the third generation of Qians.

Most likely, he would be forced to do many things that he was unwilling to do, as well as give up plenty of things he wanted to do, for the future of his family.

For example, the Divine Sect Seminary.

To the Qian family elders, it did not matter what Qian Shuxiao did when the Crown Prince was merely the Crown Prince; the family gave him time to act as the son from a rich family. However, when the Crown Prince was about to crowned Emperor, Qian Shuxiao could not continue to have his own way. Even the time he spent on cultivation had to be restricted; he needed to spend more time to support the new Emperor’s ascension, and even Old Master Qian could not change this fact. This was because even he himself was engulfed by it.

“The Crown Prince has something to do with the old Emperor’s death?” Ye Que asked after thinking for a while.

Qian Shuxiao shook his head. “From what I know, he doesn’t have anything to do with it. However, the deaths of the 200 thousand Ye Army soldiers have something to do with the old Emperor and the Second Prince. If I’m not wrong, the incident was plotted by them. Only, I don’t know when the devils appeared.”

Qian Shuxiao paused for a while before continuing, “At the very least, they shouldn’t have allowed the citizens of You Prefecture to die such terrible deaths.”

“Do you not like the Crown Prince?”

“He killed all of his brother last night, leaving none of them alive. He already has a daughter who possesses the Battle Soul of their Sacred Ancestors, and the throne will be his no matter what happens. Why did so much blood have to be shed?”

“Perhaps he didn’t wish for any accident to happen. After all, it’s the throne to the Tang Dynasty, and the most authoritative post in the Divine Land.”

Ye Que suddenly asked a question. “A daughter who possesses the Sacred Ancestor’s Battle Soul? Who is she?”

Qian Shuxiao paused for a while before replying, “I heard that she’s known as Li Jianqi. She grew up in the Silent Monastery and loves eating swords and riding fish.”