With the Blade

Drunkenness itself is not the most terrifying; the most terrifying things often occur after being drunk.

As sunshine spilled across his face, Du Chengfeng’s first sensation upon regaining consciousness was a headache—a piercing pain across his entire brain, the aftermath of drinking too much cheap liquor. Excessive drinking damages the brain, manifesting as a feeling akin to having one’s head split by an axe.

And it seemed this time was not merely akin.

When he raised his hand to clutch his head, Du Chengfeng felt blood.

"Whoa!"

Startled, Du Chengfeng hurriedly continued to examine, and indeed, he found two wounds.

One wound was right in the center of his forehead, as if an eye had been carved there, and another more perilous one was on top of his head, reminiscent of a skylight—no wonder he felt a chill when sleeping, mistakenly thinking wisdom was emanating from his head.

But now it seemed that perhaps something else was emerging.

"Did I actually communicate with spirits?"

Du Chengfeng’s blood ran cold; this was entirely different from what he had wanted.

Yet even recalling the events, he couldn’t remember anything clearly. The intense headache shredded what few memories remained into pieces—he only recalled drinking a lot, relieving himself, flipping over the earth, then covering himself with a quilt...

"Huh?"

Thinking this, Du Chengfeng couldn’t help but look down at the grave he was underneath.

He distinctly remembered covering himself with a quilt, so why was he suddenly buried?

"No worries, things haven’t reached the worst stage yet..."

While comforting himself with these words, Du Chengfeng climbed out of the grave.

Too dangerous, incredibly dangerous; he managed to nearly pass away in his sleep—it reaffirmed that too much alcohol is truly lethal.

But once Du Chengfeng tidied up his clothes and headed back, he realized that perhaps passing away would have been a better option.

"What? Are you saying I wasn’t drinking your liquor?"

Upon meeting with Yu Lao’er, Du Chengfeng initially thought he misheard.

"Then whose liquor was I drinking?"

"With that much liquor, how could I possibly afford it?"

Yu Lao’er sighed.

And gradually, Du Chengfeng began to understand what had happened the previous day.

It began well; he consumed the only six bottles Yu Lao’er had at home, but afterward, without more to drink, he ran to Li Taigong’s house, kicked over the obstructive Li Laotou, and brought back dozens of bottles of cheap liquor. Subsequently, intoxicated, he didn’t even bother to go to the hut; he relieved himself directly in the bedroom.

Upon hearing the sound of water, Yu Lao’er, out of respect, chose not to continue watching.

And after Yu Lao’er left, the Gray-Black Fire Phoenix pinned to the ground began its tirade. According to the Gray-Black Fire Phoenix, a warrior can be killed but not humiliated; if there were grievances, Du Chengfeng could slay it with a sword, but the act of urinating on its head was utterly intolerable.

"Let’s fight; today only one of us will live."

Never had Du Chengfeng seen such a frustrated expression on the Gray-Black Fire Phoenix’s bird face.

"Either I kill you, or you kill me; there is no other option."

"Well, good luck."

Du Chengfeng ignored the Gray-Black Fire Phoenix pinned to the ground and began packing his belongings.

This made the pinned Gray-Black Fire Phoenix increasingly anxious.

"What is this! Where are you going! Are you fleeing! Are you going to retreat? Didn’t you chase me all this time! Come on! Keep fighting!"

"..."

Du Chengfeng said nothing, merely glanced at the Gray-Black Fire Phoenix.

That gaze even held some pity.

This infuriated the Gray-Black Fire Phoenix further, detecting the meaning in that gaze. It wasn’t a gaze directed at an adversary; it resembled how humans might pity a monkey—a gaze it had once possessed while observing the Chu warriors who knew nothing but battle. Yet it never imagined that this gaze would one day be directed at itself.

The ultimate insult, far worse than previous drunken escapades.

This was denying its intelligence, denying everything about it!

"..."

Du Chengfeng remained silent, even shaking his head.

This pushed the Gray-Black Fire Phoenix to its limit.

"Why aren’t you killing me! Why!"

The Gray-Black Fire Phoenix cried hoarsely; it couldn’t grasp the reason behind all this. It had been pursued relentlessly with nowhere to turn, yet upon capture, it wasn’t killed, but insulted in the most brutal manner.

It couldn’t comprehend why; wasn’t he afraid it might exact revenge should it ever gain power?

Apparently, he wasn’t afraid.

For ordinary people, having numerous enemies is highly troublesome; every meal, drink, sleep, and even toilet break risks assassination. But at their level, having a willing, persistent adversary is a blessing—it ensures they don’t face a breakthrough bottleneck due to a lack of equal matches, but instead continuously gain experience from battles, growing stronger.

However, this presupposes the absence of any insulting behavior.

It may have appreciated having an opponent like Du Chengfeng, believing it a remarkable thing; but now, it only wished to tear Du Chengfeng to pieces.

All because Du Chengfeng insulted it again.

"The reason I’m not killing you is simple—your intelligence is questionable."

Saying this, Du Chengfeng packed the saddlebag, slung it over his back, and turned to leave.

Leaving only the Gray-Black Fire Phoenix pinned by the Illusionary Sword, struggling madly.

No matter how desperately it tried, the Illusionary Sword remained firmly pinned to the ground, immovable, rendering even its body unable to shift a fraction—it could only struggle desperately, clawing the ground, yet even as its claws penetrated the soil, it couldn’t move from its spot.

"Am I destined to be pinned to this ground forever?"

At that moment, a profound despair arose within it for the first time in ages.

"Am I destined to spend my life... wait."

Suddenly, it realized something wasn’t right.

"Hmm..."

It vaguely recalled something.

So, within less than a quarter hour, all that was left on the bedroom floor was a large hole.

And the once pinned Gray-Black Fire Phoenix, carrying a massive chunk of sturdy packed earth, took to the skies once more.

In that moment, it had to acknowledge that it truly had behaved like a monkey earlier.

"Is this what you’ve comprehended..."

Peeling away the tough packed earth beneath it, it glanced towards Du Chengfeng’s departing direction.

This time, it finally sensed it.

That night’s intoxication seemed to have indeed catalyzed some remarkable change in the man named Du Chengfeng.