Remould the Glory of Sword Art

"Envoy, why have you not yet left the Imperial City?"

The downpour was relentless. Yuan Jimo rode atop a black horse, traveling along the central axis of the Imperial City. Abruptly, he pulled on the reins, and the steed snorted loudly, stopping amidst the heavy rain.

The head of the Imperial City Division tilted his head slightly.

In the shadowy corner of a nearby alley, the Qing Sun envoy, clad in heavy armor, leaned against a stone wall with his arms crossed, appearing as if he were dozing off with closed eyes.

But in fact, this posture couldn't have been clearer: he was waiting for someone.

"Yuan, sir."

The Qing Sun envoy opened his eyes slowly, dispelling the oppressive darkness with the green blazing light in his pupils.

Qing Sun gradually emerged from the alley.

He said, looking up, "At the very least, we were colleagues in the Tan Yi Guard for many years, sharing life and death. After finally returning to the Imperial City, didn't you consider inviting me to gather?"

"The Tan Yi Guard envoys are busy with numerous tasks."

Yuan Jimo smiled and said, "Envoy, given that you've been ordered back to the capital, you must have important business; how could I dare to disturb you?"

"The head of the Division really has a way with words."

The Qing Sun envoy also laughed, "Since I'm leaving the capital through the south gate, if it's on your way, Yuan, sir, could you give me a lift, perchance?"

Yuan Jimo made a loop with the reins to change direction and faced the south gate.

The Qing Sun envoy, not standing on ceremony, mounted the horse. His heavy armor weighed hundreds of pounds, causing the noble steed's legs to tremble, nearly buckling... However, being the horse ridden by the head of the Imperial City Division, it had special talismans adhered to its belly. After the array patterns were activated, the noble steed barely managed to support both riders, "slowly" trotting towards the southern gate of the Imperial City, each step taken with extreme difficulty and sluggishness.

"It's hard to imagine that twenty years ago, you and I were both unknowns."

Once he had mounted the steed, the Qing Sun envoy surveyed the Imperial City. This horse of the Imperial City Division was exceedingly tall, and he himself was quite burly; once seated, his line of sight was almost level with the second-story eaves of the teahouses within the city alleyways. In comparison, Yuan Jimo seemed rather "short", akin to a lean scholar from the south. The Imperial City Division's lightweight black armor, which inherently exuded a sharp murderous intent, appeared rather "delicate and graceful" under the reflection of the Qing Sun envoy's heavy armor scales.

The envoy joked, "Who would have thought, Yuan, sir, that you would ascend to this coveted position at the top of ten thousand, the head of the Imperial City Division."

"..."

Yuan Jimo remained silent.

"I've walked around the Imperial City for a bit. People in the teahouse talk about Prince Jiangning, about the Da Sui Sword Palace, about the chaos in Qing State... yet no one speaks of you. The name Yuan Jimo doesn't come up at all. On the contrary, Jiang Qihu, the Deputy Director of Imperial City, he has quite a good reputation. Everyone seems to like Director Jiang; many people are looking forward to him taking charge of the Imperial City Division and restoring order."

Yuan Jimo calmly said, "I don't mind."

"Is that really true?"

Qing Sun, with a touch of sarcasm, said, "Oh, I misspoke. Someone did mention you, though they didn't call you by name. Still, it does count... They said that mentioning a certain unfortunate and ominous name could put an end to a baby's nightly crying."

Yuan Jimo laughed self-deprecatingly while still appearing unconcerned.

Atop the warhorse.

The tall armored man looked down at Yuan Jimo, who was facing away from him.

Those Green Fire Eyes.

It was as if they were about to ignite the soul of the man before him.

"Ten years ago, you climbed to the position of head of the Imperial City Division by framing your colleagues... Have you truly been at peace these past ten years?"

Qing Sun slowly asked.

Hiss, hiss, hiss!

The rain lashed against the armor, generating countless silvery threads, which were instantly scorched by the high temperature and turned into puffs of steam.

Ten years ago, Qing Sun and Yuan Jimo were colleagues in the Imperial City's Tan Yi Guard...

At that time.

They were close friends who shared life and death.

But not anymore.

"The death of Chi Lin was her own doing."

Yuan Jimo said with calm composure, "She was involved in the Xuanyi case and was deeply culpable. Had she stuck to her principles, Xie Xuanyi wouldn't have been able to escape the Imperial City, let alone flee to Qing State... I was merely carrying out orders to investigate the case and uncover the truth."

"Uncover the truth... that's all?"

"I don't know what exactly happened in the Imperial City that night."

"All I know is that I can't believe a word you say."

Qing Sun sneered, "Yuan Jimo, search your conscience and ask yourself—if Chi Lin had been in charge of the investigation instead of you, would she have you brought before the executioner's blade, would she blame all the guilt of the Xuanyi case on you?"

"I'm sorry."

Yuan Jimo lowered his eyelids and said softly, "Under the law of the state, there can be no personal favor."

Boom!

The horse let out a mournful neigh.

The armored man's body erupted with scorching heat, and a fierce blaze ignited in the rainy night, illuminating the long street. The talismans affixed to the horse's belly also shone brightly... Yuan Jimo, nearly engulfed by the intense flames, still maintained his extreme composure.

"This is the Imperial City."

Yuan Jimo raised his head, looking through countless drops of rain, and said softly, "Man acts, Heaven watches."

The Qing Sun envoy fell silent for a few moments.

The rainy night street returned to silence, and the raging fire receded at once.

The warhorse sped up, hastily heading toward the southern gate of the Imperial City. Along the way, the Black Scale Guards stepped aside and saluted, and without any further words, the two proceeded until they were outside the city, in the wilderness beyond the south gate.

Normally, stopping at the gate and parting ways would suffice.

But since the Qing Sun envoy did not speak, Yuan Jimo continued to escort him...

After leaving the Imperial City a few miles behind,

The Qing Sun envoy slowly regained his calm.

In a hoarse voice, he said, "Rest assured, I will personally uncover the truth of the Xuanyi case. If Chi Lin was innocent, then I will demand your life in compensation for hers."

"Solving the case is important, but you should still take care of yourself first."

Yuan Jimo turned to look back at the majestic city silhouette enveloped in the heavy rain, and said softly, "If I'm not mistaken, Her Majesty has tasked you with investigating the Sword Palace. Those mountain lords of Da Sui are not easy to provoke. If your identity is exposed, you may very well die in the Sword Palace."