Love & Redemption
Chapter 195: Volume 5 Phoenix Flower Blooms, - 2 Descend to Huangquan Together (2)

Chapter 195: Volume 5 Phoenix Flower Blooms, Chapter 2 Descend to Huangquan Together (2)

The first update.

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On the road, Zi Hu noticed that Xuanji was silent, clutching her lips tightly, seemingly unhappy, so she comforted, "Xuanji, your sister and senior brother are all right now. With Ting Nu there, they certainly won’t die. Don’t worry."

Xuanji responded with a "hmm" but said nothing else. Zi Hu continued, "Also, don’t be too angry... Villains are villains, they will definitely not have a good end! I’ll help you beat them up this time too!"

She still responded with a "hmm," without uttering another word. Zi Hu didn’t know what she was thinking and didn’t feel it was right to press, so she just watched her with concern.

What she didn’t know was that Xuanji’s mind wasn’t on Wu Tong or on Linglong and the others’ injuries. What she was thinking about was the time from her childhood, by the Spiritual Spring on Little Yang Peak. The day when the eldest senior brother was grilling fish by the pool, the misty smoke slightly tinged with the scent of char, was still as fresh in her memory as if it were today.

Linglong and Yu Sifeng were arguing nonstop in the little woods about how to shoot a Mountain Chicken with a slingshot, chattering away. The sky that day was so blue, with only a few gauzy, thin clouds slowly drifting by. The sunlight scattered on the clear pool water, glinting like little scattered golden flecks. There was a boy hiding inside the water in a huff, and she waited outside anxiously, not knowing what to do.

She wasn’t Linglong, she didn’t know how to express her care, what she was best at was daydreaming, awkwardly guarding everything she cherished. So she wouldn’t jump in, all she could do was stand there foolishly, waiting there for him to come out, waiting for him to see her.

Finally, he emerged, his eyes saw only her. He grinned and tossed over a lively, flapping fat fish, water droplets mischievously sliding down his handsome features, his wet eyelashes making his eyes shine exceptionally bright. He showed her a gentle expression for the first time, but that gentleness also carried a hint of slyness and nonchalance, "Catch! Little girl! A fish your senior brother caught for you."

She thought what she caught was not just a delicious fish but possibly something else. Something she had been waiting for dim-wittedly, something she never got. She thought she had finally caught some of it.

However, she was wrong. She really hadn’t caught anything at all.

When he was dying, his face covered in fresh blood, his eyes shone like the sun. He only looked at one person, not giving her a single glance. Truly, he didn’t even see her, his entire being, his whole soul, burned passionately for one person only.

"Xuanji?" called Zi Hu timidly. She seemed not to hear, with silent tears continuously falling from her eyes.

Strangely enough, she didn’t feel sad at all, she even felt genuinely happy for them both from the bottom of her heart. They both were alive, destined to be together for a lifetime, lovers finally united, it really was wonderful. Yet she was crying, crying incessantly. Not for him, but for the clumsy girl she once was.

Nobody knew, that lazy, idle young girl, had harbored a secret deep in her heart, waiting in the quietest of silences.

The tiny flower that had grown in her youth silently withered away. Some memories had to be buried, and some experiences were certainly going to pass. She wanted to grow, to learn to truly love someone, to share life and death, and to walk hand in hand into old age.

She suddenly stopped in mid-air, and both Zi Hu and Tengshe also stopped, looking at her curiously. Xuanji smiled and said, "Let’s go down first, I have something to take care of."

Tengshe exclaimed anxiously, "Oh, Heavens! Why do you always create trouble out of nothing! You’re never straightforward when it comes to killing someone! What kind of troublesome matter do you need to handle now?"

Xuanji spoke indifferently, "You don’t have to go if you don’t want to. Wait here, I’ll be right back."

How could Tengshe agree to that? What if she sneaked away! He insisted, "I’ll go, I’ll go! Let’s hurry!" He descended from the clouds first. Zi Hu asked, "Is it an urgent matter?" Xuanji thought for a moment and smiled, nodding, "It should be quite important, relating to a memory."

What does it mean to be related to a memory? Zi Hu didn’t understand.

After descending, they found themselves in a deep, primitive forest, thousands of miles from any human trace — in Tengshe’s words: a place where not even birds would poop! Xuanji walked to a tree and pulled out the Bengyu to start digging a hole in the ground. Probably only she would think of using a Divine Artifact to dig dirt. Zi Hu and Tengshe had no idea what she was up to and could only silently watch from behind.

She dug a small hole, then took out an exquisite dagger from her bosom. The dagger looked very new, obviously well-preserved by her and never used. Tengshe and the others didn’t know that this was the gift Zhong Minyan had given to her when the brothers visited her after she was wounded by Wu Tong.

Over the years, she had always kept the dagger with her, but never used it. Perhaps in her heart, it was not a weapon, but a treasured gift. Now, the time had come to bury it. Xuanji gently placed the dagger in the hole, looked at it for a while, and then filled the hole, burying it forever.

"Okay, let’s go!" She seemed to have resolved something and suddenly lightened up, turning around with a playful smile.

"What the devil..." Tengshe muttered. He didn’t understand the complex thoughts of a young girl, finding her very strange. However, Zi Hu saw some clues and gently patted Xuanji’s shoulder, saying, "It’s alright, whatever needed to pass has passed. From now on, look forward to the future."

Xuanji chuckled. Suddenly, the image of another person appeared in her mind. The pale-faced young man with a little silver snake twined around his wrist, his eyes dark as he smiled faintly at her. He had always made her feel like warm water, without threat, without danger, quietly holding her hand as they walked together.

But perhaps she was wrong again. Si Feng was never going to be warm spring water. Beneath his gentle appearance was a fervor, terrifying. If he gave, he gave his all; so he also demanded her all, no more and no less. He was like a raging fire, something she only came to understand now. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have left her so decisively, leaving not a single shred of hope.

In their relationship, it was always him who took the initiative. She complacently enjoyed being cherished, and now that she had lost that adoration, she suddenly realized how important he was to her. With every look back, every wave, even with every turn, she couldn’t help but want to call his name, as if he were still by her side.

So, she had come to rely on him that much.

She had been lonely for many years, always alone. Growing up alone, facing hordes of enemies alone, silently watching the chaos of the world. Eventually, someone quietly entered her isolated world, but she, naive, never noticed, still chasing after a brilliance that wasn’t hers. Only after losing him, when she was in so much pain she nearly went mad, did she suddenly realize what this all was for.

What one gets too easily, one always fails to cherish. Now, she knew she had to exert all her energy to chase him back into her arms.

Once again. She would pursue him, find him, and never let him slip away again.

****

For Wu Tong, being alive meant one thing—revenge.

He had escaped the clutches of the Ghost Gate countless times, barely holding on to that last breath, all for the sake of vengeance. But when he took advantage of the absence of the two Hall Masters and secretly sent the demons that had been hiding and preparing in Buzhou Mountain to attack the Shaoyang Sect, his heart felt only a momentary supreme pleasure and satisfaction.

That feeling quickly turned into emptiness and numbness.

What reason did he have to keep living after his revenge? Had he ever experienced even a day of joy that he could recall for the rest of his life? Did he still possess the courage and boldness, after everything ended, to pursue the so-called happiness of mortals?

The Vice Palace Master once described him behind his back as an Evil Ghost that had escaped from hell. It was to describe his malicious heart and ruthless methods. He had actually taken pride in it, believing it wasn’t a bad thing. It proved that he hadn’t forgotten the deep hatred for even a moment. His heart was still filled with hatred.

But what then, after the hatred? What else could he hate when those he loathed were dead? If his life’s strength was hatred, what was left for him once it was gone?

All of a sudden, he remembered Linglong’s exquisitely beautiful appearance, a warmth surged in his heart, bringing a very special taste to mind.

Actually, he should have some happiness. The brief time that he kept her imprisoned at Gao Mountain was the only light in his gloomy life. Although she despised him to the bone and never showed him a hint of kindness, her liveliness and vibrancy, possessing life colors that were utterly alien to him, both infuriated and enchanted him. He wanted to destroy her ruthlessly yet couldn’t help but to embrace and worship her.

He was an Evil Ghost that crawled out of hell, wilful and venomous. Yet, once he left hell, he had nothing. There were things he wanted to hold on to tightly, but he understood they would never be his.

If she will never be his, then he might as well be the one to destroy her! A sinister smile crossed his face. An Evil Ghost doesn’t let others have what it can’t have. By now, the Shaoyang Sect must have been wiped clean. Thinking of Linglong’s vivid and spirited appearance lying in a pool of blood, ending her bright life, a frantic excitement surged within him.

It felt like despair, yet also like ecstatic joy, as if it was the pleasure of desire reaching its peak.

This feeling caused his hands to tremble slightly, and the knife he was using to file his nails accidentally cut a slit in his hand. The sudden pain made him frown, and he stared at the thin line of blood for a moment before slowly wiping it away.

What to do next? Many like to ask themselves this question after wrapping up one matter. But he never asked what to do next; he lived for the present moment, awaiting the joyous fruit of his revenge.

A roaring sound came from outside, like chanting or thunder. Wu Tong set down the nail file and slowly stood up from his chair. Immediately, a subordinate reported from outside, "Shen Tu and Yu Lei have appeared, and the gates of the Netherworld in Buzhou Mountain are about to open." He laughed, "What, is it not yet February? Can’t even wait to release the Evil Ghosts?"

The subordinate said, "It is said that the Heavenly Emperor has issued a pardon. All the Evil Ghosts and criminals imprisoned in places such as the Netherworld and the prisons of Heaven are granted three days of freedom. This is... an amnesty that comes once in a thousand years."

"What crap..." Wu Tong scoffed a few times, it wasn’t clear whether he was mocking the Heavenly Emperor or the amnesty itself.

He suddenly felt a bit irritable and didn’t want to continue staying in the gloomy main hall. He said, "Ever since I came to Buzhou Mountain, I never really watched how Shen Tu and Yu Lei open the gates of the Netherworld. I should take a look this time."

Seeing his smile that didn’t reach his eyes, the man knew that Wu Tong was in a bad mood today and he mustn’t carelessly provoke him. This Right Deputy Hall Master, though he had only been there for a few years, was notorious for his insidious means. Previously, some subordinates who didn’t respect his rule as a mortal had attempted a rebellion. He had detected it early and effortlessly had them caught and tortured to death in front of everyone, a blood-curdling method that chilled people to the bone even upon recollecting it today.

It is said that demons are brutal, yet to control these demons, one must be even more brutal. Clearly, Wu Tong understood this principle very well.

All the demons of Buzhou Mountain had been sent by him to attack the Shaoyang Sect, and following the Great Palace Master’s orders, he let those scumbags of the Xuanyuan Sect head to Fuyu Island. Now, few were left here, only some personal guards. Seeing Wu Tong leaving, they all followed suit.

From a distance, two dazzling giants were seen pulling at the towering Buzhou Mountain, forcibly tearing the mountain body in half, and a mournful gust of wind whistled as a dark mass of Evil Ghosts burst out from within, the nauseating stench catching even at this distance. Wu Tong covered his nose, sneering, "They’re so stinking... Do these things even deserve to be called Evil Ghosts?"

No sooner had he spoken than a panicked guard from a distance ran over, crying out in a shrill voice, "Right Deputy Hall Master! We’re under attack!"

"Oh? What enemy?" Wu Tong asked indifferently, thinking it might be errant Evil Ghosts rushing over without looking.

The guard urgently replied, "It’s... it’s the young lady who came last time! She’s killed all the brothers on the outer perimeter!"

The young lady? Wu Tong didn’t react at first, but then he suddenly remembered Linglong. Could it be her? Ha ha... He couldn’t help but want to laugh, overwhelmed with joy. She hadn’t died; that was truly marvelous. Hmm, so she brazenly stormed into Buzhou Mountain; could it be to avenge her parents and lover?

The more he thought about it, the more exhilarated he felt. He tossed the cape from his shoulders, laughing, "What great lady or young lady, let me meet her."

This time, he would seize her and imprison her, never to let go again! (To be continued... For more, please visit www.qidian.com. More Chapters are available and support the author by reading the authorized version!)