Love & Redemption
Chapter 256: Final Volume: I Am Liuli - 15: Descent of the Gods (Part 2)

Chapter 256: Final Volume: I Am Liuli Chapter 15: Descent of the Gods (Part 2)

"How come you are here?" Yuan Lang asked after a long pause.

Yu Sifeng briefly explained why everyone had come to Kunlun Mountain. Before he could finish, Yuan Lang burst into loud laughter, "To offend the Heavenly Court, such audacity! You deserve to be sent here!"

Yu Sifeng replied indifferently, "If you didn’t say some sour words, I’m afraid you wouldn’t feel pleased."

Yuan Lang slammed his head against the iron railing, seething, "Fate is not with me! Otherwise, what I’d do to you would be more than just speaking! I would have already killed all you riffraff!"

Yu Sifeng looked at him quietly, not knowing if it was pity or loathing in his gaze. Suddenly he remembered, in his house, how the walls were hung with Wuzhiqi’s masks. Since ancient times, the foremost person known for saying one thing but meaning another was none other than Yuan Lang.

He said softly, "If you hate Wuzhiqi so much, why hang his masks in your room?"

Yuan Lang’s face changed repeatedly before he finally said sinisterly, "The face of my enemy must be seen daily, constantly on my mind, to ensure I never forget such humiliation!"

Yu Sifeng disregarded his jumbled excuses and simply stated, "Wuzhiqi has also seen them."

Yuan Lang suddenly fell silent. Yu Sifeng continued, "Whether you harbor resentment or defiance, it has nothing to do with me. Just for your own sake, you caused harm to so many of my Golden Winged Bird kin, and I am not going to settle that score with you. In summary, today you have got your just deserts, and all of us are pleased to see it."

Yuan Lang still said nothing as if he hadn’t heard. His face, pale, muscles twitching slowly, one could not tell what he was thinking.

The days of youth, recklessness, resplendent clothes, furious steeds, and toasting in camaraderie, no one could have anticipated the turn of events to today’s situation. Whether right or wrong, to discuss it now is meaningless. The Great Palace Master once said, everyone has their own sense of right and wrong in their hearts, and he himself had used this principle to admonish Xuanji. However, it was easy to preach but incredibly hard to practice.

Who in the world can truly consider others first? Once personal boundaries are crossed, they immediately retaliate, hearts break, tormenting each other, and thus so many misunderstandings and conflicts arise.

Yuan Lang was lost in thought for a long time before he asked, "Did he... say anything?"

Yu Sifeng smiled slightly and said, "He didn’t say anything, just smashed all those masks, and then drank a jar of wine over the fragments, that’s all."

Yuan Lang gave a forced, dry laugh.

That jar of wine, let it be the final farewell between brothers. No one else in this world understood him like Wuzhiqi did, and never had he hated someone so deeply etched into his bones. But until the very end, it was unclear whether he hated the man himself or something else, even he couldn’t say for sure.

But, all that is in the past now.

It’s over, all over.

Yuan Lang’s hand slowly withdrew from the railing, the chains on his wrist clinking noisily as he sank back into that suffocating darkness. Yu Sifeng suddenly remembered something and blurted out, "Wait! There’s something I need to ask you!"

Yuan Lang said coldly, "You’ve spoken so much to me, aren’t you afraid the Yin Cha outside will discover you?"

Yu Sifeng shook his head, "They should have found out by now, but they haven’t come to capture me, there must be another reason, but let’s discuss that later... I’m asking you, what’s the deal with Ruo Yu?"

Yuan Lang seemed a bit unfamiliar with the name, thinking blankly for a moment before he suddenly said, "Oh! Him! That boy... I’d actually forgotten about him. What, has he switched sides to you now?"

Yu Sifeng said, "He’s gone. Before leaving, he went to Li Ze Palace for one last time, to retrieve his sister’s... remains. From then on, he will never appear in Central Earth again."

Yuan Lang showed a mocking and malicious smile, asking softly, "How so... didn’t he go mad? Didn’t he draw his sword and start slashing wildly?"

"It was your doing! What did you do to his sister?" Yu Sifeng straightened and asked sternly.

Yuan Lang said lightly, "That child was born a madman... Not even clear if his own sister is dead or alive, yet he allows himself to be manipulated just the same. Isn’t he born to be a dog?"

Yu Sifeng frowned, looking at him with disgust.

Yuan Lang’s expression was leisurely, as if he remembered something amusing, slowly he said, "His sister has been dead for over three years now. Although Golden Winged Birds can transform into human form quite early, that girl was naturally frail. She transformed once when she turned ten and never managed to do so again. Until her death, she remained a bird, dirty and always crying for her father, mother, and brother; quite annoying indeed."

"What have you turned your own kin into?" If it weren’t for the iron gate in the way, Yu Sifeng would have really liked to press this man’s head to the ground and beat it violently.

Yuan Lang said unhurriedly, "What does the life or death of others have to do with me? Hmm, over three years ago, that was precisely when I ordered him to injure you, but he failed. That child follows orders better than a dog, delivering a fierce stab, thinking he had succeeded. When he returned, he begged me to go see his sister. By then, I had already moved his sister into a secret chamber beneath Silver Spring. Before moving in, the girl was already down to her last breath. I was thinking, Ruo Yu was quite capable, and it would be a pity if he knew his sister was dead and would no longer work for me. I was quite worried when he went down there..."

"Shameless! Don’t say anymore!" Yu Sifeng turned his face, intending to leave.

Yuan Lang continued, "I was uneasy, so I accompanied him down to see, and we ended up seeing his sister’s rotting body, where the girl died without making a sound. I remember the events of that day very clearly. Ruo Yu was greatly traumatized, drew his sword and started slashing wildly. Naturally, he couldn’t touch me, but he came close to smashing his sister’s bones to pieces. After hacking for a while and starting to shout, this silly child, utterly heartbroken, curiously didn’t shed a single tear. I thought the situation was not looking good, fearing it would alarm the people in the palace, so I knocked him unconscious."

"Strangely enough, when he woke up after, it was as if nothing had happened, and he still requested to see his sister. I wanted to see what game he was playing, so I took him down again. This time, he showed no reaction to the corpse, simply talking to himself, and even took a jade ring off her arm. The body was so decayed, yet he still managed to hold it in his arms. The more I watched, the more peculiar I found it, and finally, I couldn’t help but ask him if he didn’t realize she was dead. He turned and told me to speak quietly, his sister was sleeping. From that moment, I knew the child had gone mad. After going up, I intentionally suggested he complete his mission, and just like before he agreed, without the slightest resistance. I praised him a few times, saying the jade ring choice was pretty, that little girls should be dressed up more, and that next time I would keep an eye out for new clothes and shoes for her. Ruo Yu cried with joy and cried all the way until I sent him away, never stopping his tears."

"You tell me, what exactly is playing in his mind? Every time I see him, I can’t help but speculate on his thoughts. Using a subordinate requires so much effort, it’s really not to my liking, so I sent him far away. Hmm, I should thank you for bringing this news, without you mentioning it, I would have almost forgotten about him. It turns out he was truly mad, not just pretending."

As he said this, Yu Sifeng had already reached the end of the corridor where a black door was ajar, as if opened especially for him.

"Everything you said today has confirmed to me, time and time again, that you fully deserved it!" Yu Sifeng grasped the doorknob, turned back, and said sternly, "Just wait for your descent into Abyss Hell!"

Yuan Lang burst into a loud laugh, chaotic and shrill like a night owl. Yu Sifeng pulled open the door, shutting out his desolate laughter inside, and faintly, he seemed to be singing, plaintively, "To this wise man, they say I toil hard. To that fool, they say I boast and strut!"

The only one who would never admit to being wrong, even unto death, was Yuan Lang.

As the gate was flung open, the scenery outside changed countless times in an instant, as if it were a dream. Yu Sifeng momentarily found himself hesitant to step out. Behind him, the iron gate closed with a "clack," startling him. He hurriedly turned around only to see empty space and mist where the iron gate once stood!

The surroundings were murky and shrouded in fog, a wide river cut through the mist, meandering forward through darkness. On the banks, red flowers as if congealed from blood were enchanting yet carried a hint of ferocity within them.

Many people walked silently along the riverbank, and Yin Cha in red robes carried signboards, binding these dead souls with ropes and leading them toward the distant gates of Yidu. Everything was so deathly still; there was no sound, no hope — this was the terminal of life — death.

Yu Sifeng didn’t know which way to go, actually, he was also unclear why he had emerged beside the Netherworld’s Forget River. The Yin Cha, acting as if they couldn’t see him, let him wander among the souls.

Suddenly, in the long procession, someone began to cry out softly. The new ghosts, still clinging to the hope of life, couldn’t believe they had died like this, crying so noisily. Finally, a Yin Cha couldn’t bear it anymore, scooped up a jar of water from the Forget River, pried open the few people’s mouths, and poured in the swirling water of the river.

The crying gradually subsided. While Yu Sifeng was still in a daze, he suddenly heard a cold voice from behind saying, "Let me see."

The voice was so familiar it sent a jolt through his heart. He turned around only to see a woman in white, with a beautiful countenance where a deadly energy flickered. She asked the Yin Cha for the Forget River Water, her face expressionless.

"Xuanji?!" He exclaimed, suddenly reaching out to grab her. If she was in the Netherworld, did that mean she was dead? He grasped at her wrist — only to catch nothing. He couldn’t touch anything here! The people beside him didn’t react at all to his distress either; they couldn’t see him.

Yu Sifeng took a moment to compose himself and scrutinized the woman in white. He felt she didn’t quite resemble Xuanji. Her features were nine parts similar, but her demeanor and temperament were wholly unlike. This woman’s aura was so chillingly cold, she definitely wasn’t Xuanji.

The Yin Cha had already bristled at her impertinence and were rolling up their sleeves to teach her a lesson when they were swiftly stopped by a Yin Cha beside her, holding chains, shouting, "Hold it! Do you know who she is? Don’t be reckless!"

Then someone whispered a warning to those Yin Cha, intimidating them into submission. They let the woman take the clay jar, eagerly scooping up the water of Forget River, sieving through it for fragments of broken memories.

Yu Sifeng vaguely felt that this matter must be connected to Xuanji in some way. He couldn’t help but follow her figure, drifting through the gates of Yidu. (To be continued, if you wish to know what happens next, please visit www.qidian.com. More Chapters are available; support the author, support genuine reading!)