Chapter 15

An Wuxue was momentarily stunned.

In an instant, the tension in his body completely melted away.

Yet, within moments, a fog of confusion clouded his mind, and countless thoughts surged forth.

Could the venom really be dispelled so easily?

What about Xie Zhefeng’s ruthless Path of Detachment?

Both the Four Seas and the Two Realms awaited the moment his junior apprentice brother ascended to immortality to purge the world; if everything were to fail at the last step…

And more.

Did his junior truly understand what they were doing at this very moment?

And more still…

What followed in his thoughts, An Wuxue could no longer recall.

That day, his mind was overwhelmed with so many chaotic thoughts, tangled like the gnarled seaweed and coral in the abyssal sea—impossible to trace the origin.

After their dual cultivation, An Wuxue was the first to awaken.

Before his arrival, Xie Zhefeng had endured the venom within the barrier for seven days straight. Once the venom was dispelled, Xie Zhefeng’s spirit fell into a deep slumber, unable to awaken for a while.

His junior lay on his side facing him, eyes tightly shut.

He glanced over but, for some unknown reason, felt an overwhelming guilt and quickly withdrew his gaze, turning his head away.

It seemed he had caused trouble.

He thought.

Ah.

What would his junior say upon waking?

Should he confess his joy and confusion honestly?

What of Xie Zhefeng’s Path of Detachment?

No matter what, he resolved to face everything together with his junior.

Oh, and the merman’s corpse still lay at the other end of the barrier.

An Wuxue forced himself to calm his mind, regulated his breath, cleared away the nearby corpses, and reinforced the barrier enclosing Xie Zhefeng, allowing him to continue his slumber and recuperation.

Shangguan Liaoliao was still waiting for him to return and oversee the sword formation, so he hurriedly left the heartland of the Merman Clan.

In his haste, before he even reached the seawater outside the territory, he tripped over a stone.

Looking down, he saw—it was a gestation stone.

Had the Gestation Spirit Clan already been wiped out?

This clan was neither human, nor demon, nor monster—innately a blank slate. If it awakened intelligence in a place rich with pure energy, it would become a gifted cultivator; if born amid turbulent energy, it would become a demonic cultivator.

During the Immortal Calamity, because of these traits, the clan could not unite in war, plagued by internal strife, eventually leaving no legacy.

How could a gestation stone yet to cultivate be hidden in the deep sea’s merman territory?

An Wuxue bent down and picked up the snow-white stone.

A faint mark of karmic fire glowed on one spot—each gestation stone bears such a mark once it awakens intelligence.

This one had just recently awakened.

However…

The stone was tainted by turbid energy; if cultivation continued, it would become a demonic cultivator.

Should he crush the stone to prevent future calamity?

This might well be the last legacy of the Gestation Spirit Clan.

Moreover, the turbid energy on the stone was faint—there was still a chance for remedy.

—

An Wuxue then drew pure energy from the undersea abyss, using the deep sea currents to create a purification formation, sealing the gestation stone within.

When the turbid energy was cleansed, the seal would naturally break.

After Xie Zhefeng awakened, they would likely discuss the events of the previous day…

Then, he would bring Xie Zhefeng back to the sealed location to help the stone break free sooner.

—but he never returned.

Since that day, Xie Zhefeng had never uttered a word.

His junior no longer needed his worries—without hesitation, he chose the Path of Detachment over him.

Until Xie Zhefeng perfected the Path of Detachment and ascended to immortality, neither of them ever mentioned that absurd episode.

—

What transpired in the depths of the abyssal sea remained a secret unknown to the world. Since Xie Zhefeng refused to speak of it, An Wuxue simply acted as if it had never happened.

Seeing Jiang Qing awakened a long-buried memory, stirring a corner of his mind he had forgotten.

Fortunately, Jiang Qing had just awakened intelligence, and even the one who sealed her had no memory of it.

If a third person had remembered those memories, a thousand years later, the world might have learned that this once ruthless and wayward former chief of the Falling Moon Peak had shamelessly shared that ridiculous affair with his junior.

Fortunately.

Xie Zhefeng showed no reaction to Jiang Qing’s appearance.

At that time, he was still asleep and naturally unaware of Jiang Qing’s existence.

After directly explaining his purpose to the Lord of Zhaoshui City, Xie Zhefeng said, “This matter concerns the extermination of the Yun Sword Sect. Please find the cultivators who have visited the Yun Sword Sect in the past three months.”

The Lord of Zhaoshui was greatly shocked: “The Yun Sword Sect is right next to my city, Zhaoshui. How could it be wiped out for months without a single rumor?”

Seeing that Xie Zhefeng’s incarnation was at the Great Success stage, while Yun Zhou and Yun Yao were only at the Lesser Success stage, and An Wuxue seemed like a mere liability, he worriedly asked, “Such a feat must have been accomplished by a high-level demonic cultivator. Would it not be too dangerous for you three to go alone? Shall I send some experts to accompany you?”

Xie Zhefeng shook his head: “No need. Once the city lord finds the visitors, just have them notify us at the inn.”

Without another word, Xie Zhefeng turned and left.

An Wuxue, absentmindedly standing aside, was about to follow.

But as his foot stepped over the threshold, he suddenly paused and turned back.

“City Lord, I have a question, if I may?”

The Lord of Zhaoshui seemed approachable and nodded, “Of course, young friend, ask away!”

“I come from the mortal world near Zhaoshui,” An Wuxue said, “and have heard much of Lord Lou Shuiming’s deeds during the Immortal Calamity. But judging by your age, you do not seem to be Lord Lou…”

The Lord of Zhaoshui showed a hint of melancholy: “The one you mentioned was my grandmaster. He passed away a thousand years ago, never seeing the end of the calamity. Afterward, his disciple—my master—succeeded him as city lord, but sadly, my master failed to transcend and died over a hundred years ago.”

“I am truly ashamed; the Zhaoshui lineage was once broken, far less prosperous than Beiming. To this day, there is no cultivator who has transcended the tribulation stage.”

“Zhaoshui City has been in my family’s hands for three generations.”

“I see,” An Wuxue smiled faintly, “I haven’t returned to Zhaoshui for a long time, but these days the city is brightly decorated, with mortals leaving their doors open at night, and cultivators drinking and celebrating.”

“If Lord Lou were to see this, he would surely be comforted.”

The Lord of Zhaoshui was somewhat taken aback to hear such words from a young man like An Wuxue.

But An Wuxue had already left.

As he stepped out of the city lord’s mansion, he found Xie Zhefeng alone at the gate.

The man was even holding Chunhua.

Without the Cold Blade, was he using Chunhua as his paired sword?

An Wuxue averted his gaze—out of sight, out of mind.

“Where are Yun Zhou and Yun Yao?”

“They returned to the inn first.”

“Then you…”

Why aren’t you leaving? If you don’t go, I will.

The sounds of drums and suona horns grew louder from afar.

The flower carriage that had lingered by the city gate since last night was approaching.

It was the Tianshui Festival.

Xie Zhefeng watched the carriage.

Was he waiting for it?

A cultivator guarding the gate voiced An Wuxue’s thoughts: “This is the Tianshui Festival’s flower carriage. It carries flowers placed by every household in Zhaoshui City. The city lord sealed them with a spell, so they stay fresh for months until the festival ends.”

What was the Tianshui Festival?

It had never existed a thousand years ago.

By its name, it seemed a memorial, yet judging by the city’s revelry, it resembled a celebration.

Seeing that Xie Zhefeng merely watched in silence, An Wuxue took the initiative and asked the guard, “I was once a mortal near Zhaoshui, but my friend here is from Falling Moon and has never seen the Tianshui Festival. Could you explain it to him?”

The guard readily agreed, “Of course! Even if your friend doesn’t know the Tianshui Festival, he surely knows Lord Lou Shuiming and the Four Seas Ten Thousand Sword Formation, right?”

Xie Zhefeng’s ears twitched slightly but he did not interrupt.

“That Ten Thousand Sword Formation was established by your Falling Moon Peak’s chief… don’t take offense, but the chief set it up. Look anywhere in Zhaoshui City, and you’ll see that giant sword—that’s one corner of the formation, the Zhaoshui Sword.”

“Legend has it that on the day the formation was laid, something went wrong: it lacked massive spiritual energy and could not form its base. The chief had Lord Lou sacrifice himself to fill the energy gap… Lord Lou cut his own throat before the Zhaoshui Sword, thus laying the foundation for the Ten Thousand Sword Formation.”

The flower carriage drew nearer.

At its center, a dancing maiden moved gracefully to the music. The scent of flowers wafted through the air, petals drifting down like colorful snowflakes.

Xie Zhefeng gripped Chunhua’s scabbard, his fingertips seeming to tighten their hold.

“The ancestors thought the sword formation unlucky. The Tianshui Festival began as a memorial for Lord Lou. People would place flowers or offerings near the giant sword.”

“Two hundred years ago, a cultivator who had transcended the tribulation stage suddenly appeared in Zhaoshui—a demonic cultivator! He went mad and summoned overwhelming turbid energy right outside the city lord’s mansion! After the Immortal Calamity, Zhaoshui was vulnerable, no one could match a tribulation-level demonic cultivator.”

“Then, after six or seven hundred years of silence, the Zhaoshui Sword suddenly burst forth with piercing sword energy, pinning that demon to the ground without a drop of blood and saving Zhaoshui City.”

Near the carriage, mortal children chased each other with flowers, laughing and singing.

Their song echoed exactly what the guard had said.

Because of that accident two hundred years ago, the people of Zhaoshui realized that the Zhaoshui Sword had silently been protecting their city all along.

The Ten Thousand Sword Formation pins down the four corners of heaven and earth, cleansing untold turbulent energy invisibly.

Since then, every ten years, Zhaoshui City holds the Tianshui Festival, lasting a full three months.

It is both a memorial for the deceased and a gratitude for the protection of the Zhaoshui Sword.

The flower carriage passed the city lord’s mansion and slowly moved away.

Xie Zhefeng finally withdrew his gaze and asked, “You said the demonic cultivator was pinned to the ground by the Zhaoshui Sword, but not killed outright. What happened to him afterward?”

“The people from Falling Moon Peak came after that,” the guard said, “that demon was taken back to Falling Moon Peak and sealed in the Ancient Azure Tower. Two hundred years have passed; his spirit should be completely extinguished by now.”

Xie Zhefeng did not press further.

“Return to the inn and wait for news.” He said this to An Wuxue.

“Xie Daoist seems to really like watching this flower carriage. He watched it once last night, but that’s not enough—he’s watching it again today.”

“I already said last night, I have a dear friend who has never seen this. I want to see it more for him.”

An Wuxue scoffed, “Xie Daoist sure has a lot of old friends.”

“Not many.”

An Wuxue’s smile faltered.