Chapter 27

Qin Wei was choked by An Wuxue’s retort, the flash of shock on his face softening slightly.

It seemed that after a momentary surprise, he immediately realized—"An Wuxue" had been dead for a thousand years. He had known all along that it was impossible to see An Wuxue again.

It was just... the resemblance was too great.

The young man before him wore a pale green robe, his hair tied with a simple ribbon, lacking any hairpin; his appearance was even simpler than that of the newly initiated disciples of Luoyue Peak. Yet, standing amidst the chaotic ruins, surrounded by tangled branches and mud, his sleeves and hem stained with filth, none of it seemed to touch his very marrow.

At first glance, he appeared meek and submissive, but a second look revealed it to be nothing more than a detachment devoid of thorns. Features were merely skin-deep; it was the bones beneath that were impossible to peel away.

However, this person named Su Xue was only at the Inedia stage, his aura still reeking of the mortal world—a mere mortal who had just stepped onto the path of immortality. How could he possibly be someone who had long since passed away?

That "An Wuxue" which had slipped out of his mouth was not because he truly mistook this person for An Wuxue. It was a form of anticipation he hadn't even realized he harbored.

He, who had been the one to think Xie Zhefeng and Qi Xun were engaging in futile efforts, had for a thousand years firmly believed that the past was beyond reproach—deplorable, pitiable, and detestable. Only now, seeing this person unexpectedly, did he suddenly realize that perhaps he was not as resolute as he thought.

He also wanted... he also wanted to see Ah Xue again.

Xie Zhefeng remained silent. Su Xue was not looking at him, yet Qin Wei felt as though a pair of eyes from a thousand years ago were looking through him, guided by An Wuxue.

He should not be like this.

He paused for a moment, then lowered his gaze and sheathed his sword, letting out a mocking laugh: "Xie Chuhan, what is this performance?" He was, naturally, referring to Su Xue.

Xie Zhefeng was shrouded in gloom, his spiritual power surging uncontrollably, stirring fierce winds through the mountain peaks. He was still looking at Yun Zhou’s corpse, appearing somewhat dazed. Although the case of the Cloud Sword Sect’s annihilation was not a trivial matter, if Luoyue Peak wanted to handle it, they could have sent a Tribulation-stage elder or a Peak Master. He had come in person for two reasons: the matter of Yun Yao’s puppet, and the source of the talisman paper in Su Xue’s hand.

Yet, the clues for both had ended here. Even the hope of finding a remnant soul to bring someone back to life had, at the moment Yun Yao’s soul dissipated, become a proven delusion.

Ignoring Qin Wei’s remark, he asked distractedly, "Where is Jiang Qing?"

"You mean that Tribulation-stage cultivator surnamed Jiang?" Qin Wei raised an eyebrow. "He was worried about you, but I knew you were here and that nothing major could happen, so I left him in Zhaoshui City."

"Did you come alone?"

Qin Wei shook his head: "Naturally not."

No sooner had he finished speaking than another person arrived on a flying sword from among the mountains. This man was dressed impeccably in the uniform of a Luoyue Peak disciple, even the spiritual pouch hanging at his waist being the standard issue provided by the sect; from head to toe, there was not a trace of sloppiness.

He rode his natal spiritual sword, his every movement radiating spiritual power—he was a Great Completion stage cultivator with excellent innate talent.

The young man did not recognize Xie Zhefeng’s avatar, nor did he know Su Xue. He walked a few steps forward and stopped before Qin Wei: "Master, the disciples I brought will be here momentarily."

An Wuxue had never seen this disciple before, but upon looking closely, he felt a certain familiarity with the young man’s features. Judging by what this disciple said... was he the disciple of Qin Wei who was expected to claim the position of First Seat?

In these few brief moments, Xie Zhefeng had already cast aside all stray thoughts. With a stern face, he said, "The cultivators of the Cloud Sword Sect have almost all perished. If the lingering resentment is not dispersed, it will turn into turbid energy. Since this place has been occupied by a Mirror Demon for over two months, it must be thick with such miasma. The barrier has been broken; since you are here, work with Buwang to clear the turbid energy from the Cloud Sword Sect and its surroundings as soon as possible."

Song Buwang was stunned: "This senior knows me?"

"Buwang," Qin Wei only said, "Go and lead the disciples to seal off the four directions first, so that mortals and cultivators do not wander into this place before the miasma is cleared."

Song Buwang looked perplexed. He glanced at Xie Zhefeng and An Wuxue, seemingly wanting to speak but holding back. In the end, he cupped his hands around his sword and bowed: "Understood."

The more An Wuxue looked, the more he felt he had seen Song Buwang’s features before. But memories from a thousand years ago were scattered and chaotic, impossible to grasp. Moreover, given Song Buwang’s age, he had not even been born a millennium ago; it was impossible that they had ever crossed paths. For a moment, he could not fathom why there was a sense of familiarity.

Watching Song Buwang depart on his sword once more, he withdrew his gaze and stuffed the Soul-Nourishing Tree Essence back into his spiritual pouch. It was nothing but an item useless to both him and Yun Yao; why had Xie Zhefeng and Yun Zhou been fighting over it?

He handed it to Xie Zhefeng: "This item is too precious. Please, Immortal Venerable, take it back."

This time, Xie Zhefeng said nothing. With a wave of his sleeve, the object in An Wuxue’s palm vanished.

A breeze infused with Xie Zhefeng’s spiritual power brushed past An Wuxue. He shivered, but he did not feel cold—only hot. After the earlier struggle, he had suffered external injuries and exhausted his spiritual power; the furnace mark was showing signs of acting up again, even within a single day.

Xie Zhefeng frowned, bringing two fingers together to press against the mark on An Wuxue’s arm through his sleeve. As the agitation subsided, An Wuxue hurriedly stepped back.

Qin Wei watched silently from the side, then suddenly sneered: "I heard these past few days that you were keeping a furnace in the Frost-Burial Sea. I thought the disciples were just gossiping, but it turns out to be true."

As he spoke, his gaze fell once more on An Wuxue’s face. Encountering An Wuxue’s expressionless face, his voice faltered, and the sharp words he was about to unleash were cut short.

Qin Wei let out a cold snort, looked away, and continued to Xie Zhefeng: "Can you and Qi Xun stop being so obsessed?"

Xie Zhefeng said coldly, "Last time you wanted to strike the Senior Brother’s name from the records, I already made my stance clear—are you complaining that you didn't spend enough time recovering from your wounds?"

"If you find my words harsh, just kill me." Qin Wei laughed twice. "Xie Chuhan, since you uphold justice and have been the Immortal Venerable for a thousand years, don’t you know better than I? The world’s public opinion is the same as mine. Without proof to the contrary, what An Wuxue did back then is set in stone.

"You are obsessed, you can't let go—fine. Qi Xun can't let go of the past—that’s also fine. Sometimes, standing before the sword-grinding stone at Luoyue Peak, looking at the sword marks he left behind, I also recall the past and think: 'How did things change in the blink of an eye?'

"Yes, you and Qi Xun used the Soul-Nourishing Tree Essence to examine the ruins of the Lihuo Sect and probed the spiritual swords left by the dead, finding no trace of resentment—that only proves that not a single soul in the Lihuo Sect resented An Wuxue! The spiritual vein guarded by the Lihuo Sect was indeed destroyed, and the entire sect did indeed sacrifice themselves in the tribulation. An Wuxue was the only one who visited the Lihuo Sect at the time. If it wasn't him, can you name a second person?"

Xie Zhefeng’s eyes narrowed, his voice laced with killing intent: "Do you truly think I dare not kill you?"

"Countless people in the two realms think as I do; even I cannot be persuaded. If you kill me, what will that change? You feel there must be hidden motives regarding the Lihuo Sect, that his fall into demonic cultivation must have been suspicious, but when he killed Shangguan Ran, he personally confessed to the crime of harming his peers.

"During the crisis of the Zhaoshui Sword Array back then, I watched with my own eyes as Lou Shuiming slit his own throat before him, and he stood by and did nothing!"

Qin Wei choked. These words seemed to strike at the very knot he himself could not untie. A moment ago he was aggressive, but finally, he stiffened, turned his head away, and said nothing more.

Xie Zhefeng remained expressionless for a while, then suddenly commanded his sword, Chunhua, with his spiritual power. Without unsheathing, the sword, still in its scabbard, flew straight at Qin Wei. Qin Wei immediately raised his hands to block.

The strike came with a gale, fierce and ruthless, sending Qin Wei flying backward!

Chunhua flew back into Xie Zhefeng’s hand. Qin Wei flipped in the air, rolling in the dust before finally steadying himself. The collision of their Tribulation-stage spiritual powers caused the surrounding air to churn, kicking up dust in all directions.

An Wuxue stood nearby, numbly listening to the two of them going back and forth. His heart felt hollow, yet he was suddenly shaken to his core by the turbulence. He coughed a few times and said in a low voice, "You two, I am still here."

*I am still here; why are you arguing about my past life in front of me?*

He no longer even wanted to argue. He had already paid with his life—why couldn't they just let him go?

His words seemed to have an effect. Whether the two were mindful of the outsider or simply did not wish to continue, Xie Zhefeng retracted his power and slowly closed his eyes, as if suppressing something. Qin Wei steadied himself with his sword and gave him—or rather, his face—a complicated look.

A moment later, Xie Zhefeng slowly opened his eyes, staring at the Chunhua in his arms, his tone grave: "Jingji River holds no trace of his remnant soul, and the Soul-Nourishing Tree Essence is not a tool for resurrection. But the two realms are vast; heaven does not cut off all paths. There will be other ways."

"Qin Wei," he said, "you firmly believe in the story of Lou Shuiming’s suicide, but seeing... is not necessarily believing."

Having said this, he prepared to leave.

Qin Wei’s expression flickered, and he stopped him again: "Your heart—" *Why has your inner demon been so unstable lately?* He wanted to ask, but realizing the furnace who looked like An Wuxue was still nearby, he swallowed the word "heart" and changed his question: "How are your wounds?"

An Wuxue was stunned—wounds?

Xie Zhefeng had been traveling as an avatar; he hadn't used his full strength when fighting the Mirror Demon and Yun Zhou. Was it all because of these so-called wounds?

Thinking back, ever since that night he had snuck to the Frost Sea and accidentally touched Chunhua, Xie Zhefeng had been acting strangely. Who could possibly wound Xie Zhefeng, who was already the foremost expert in the world? The peace of the two realms relied entirely on this sole immortal...

He could not help but worry about the state of the two realms. As the thought arose, he gave a start—why was he falling into the same habit again? How the two realms and four seas fared was no longer his concern.

He hurriedly shook his head.

Xie Zhefeng said, "I need to return to Zhaoshui City to meditate for a while."

Qin Wei nodded slightly, remaining silent.

Just as Xie Zhefeng was about to vanish, An Wuxue called out to him: "Immortal Venerable, I am useless here and cannot help. It would be a burden for Elder Qin to look after me. Since you are returning to Zhaoshui City, why not let me return with you to rest?"

He knew Xie Zhefeng would not easily cast aside his suspicions. If he remained alone with him, he would have to find a way to deal with it—but this was inevitable, and there was no point in hiding. It was better to have his story ready.

He simply did not want to stay behind. If he stayed, he would have to be with Qin Wei; compared to the mostly silent Xie Zhefeng, he preferred not to face Qin Wei, who might ask endless questions.

Everything Qin Wei had just said was spot on. A thousand years ago, just after Xie Zhefeng had succeeded to the position of Immortal Venerable and was busy traveling to seal demons, he had been the one to construct the Four Seas Ten Thousand Sword Array, traversing every city across the four seas.