Chapter 51

Within the sword array, chaos persisted endlessly.

The array, missing a corner, clashed under the protection of all the immortal cultivation masters against the unbound turbid qi, sending forth wave after wave of spiritual power fluctuations.

Across the vast Northern Nether, turbid qi filled the sky, and the howling wind sounded like cranes shrieking in terror.

Xie Zhefeng stood beneath the giant sword of the twenty-seventh city.

The immortal's divine sense swept outward, embracing all living beings and hearing the heaven and earth. The myriad noises of the mortal world entered his ears, yet they could not fill the void in his heart that had remained empty for a thousand years.

That soft chime was too unfamiliar, yet far too long-overdue.

So overdue that, for a single instant, he actually thought it might merely be the accidental sound of the twenty-seventh city's inhabitants, or perhaps his inner demons disturbing his state of mind once more, making him fall into an illusion.

Yet that sound was far too distinct.

When he first entered the Frost Sea and established his immortal dwelling, the floating island was perpetually swept by drifting catkins and bitter ice. If disciples of the sect came here on urgent business and waited outside the gates, those whose cultivation was not yet profound would inevitably shiver against the biting cold.

There was only one person whom he could not bear to keep waiting for long. He had hung a soul bell and placed upon it a restriction that only that person could ring. From then on, whenever his soul heard that soft chime, it meant that person had arrived.

Just like now.

Eldest Senior Brother...

For his soul bell to ring in the Northern Nether, the only possibility was that the person holding it had deliberately summoned him.

Regardless of why the soul bell appeared in the Northern Nether...

Aside from "Suxue," who was trapped in the territory of the demonic cultivators, who else could have obtained the soul bell he hung within the Falling Moon Frost Sea, and summoned him with it at this very moment?

The soul bell could not be rung by anyone other than his Senior Brother.

Suxue.

Senior Brother.

It was truly so.

It was... truly so.

He had not guessed wrong.

Suxue was indeed his Senior Brother!

The very moment this thought arose, his inner demon seized the opportune moment and suddenly wreaked havoc within his sea of consciousness.

"...You heard wrong!!"

"That is merely a delusion of your own making!"

"It is a sound conjured by your own imagination!"

"You wish for Suxue to be your Senior Brother, but you have no proof, so you hallucinated this sound! You are quite familiar with this, aren't you? Coexisting with me for a thousand years, you often do this..."

"It is all fake!!!"

No.

I did not hear wrong.

Amidst the boundless red dust of the mortal world, only that single strand remained as the ever-unshakable boulder in his heart.

Plunged deeply into his inner demons for eight hundred years, he had heard the ringing of the soul bell amidst countless falsehoods, yet he had never once fallen into the trap.

His Senior Brother had returned.

His Senior Brother had been back for so long.

The shaking of his sea of consciousness stirred up the chaotic spiritual power within his avatar.

The oppressive might of the peak Tribulation Transcending stage emanated outward, causing the expressions of all the immortals on the four sides of the sword array to turn pale.

Spiritual powers collided wildly, and the sword array roared in resonance!!

"Friend Xie! Friend Xie, what is wrong with you again?"

Pei Qian braved the oppressive pressure and returned to his side, having to expend all his strength just to utter those words.

The moment he finished speaking, he was once again repelled by the surging spiritual pressure of Xie Zhefeng, stumbling backward several steps.

The miasma beast, by contrast, remained entirely at ease facing the pressure. Kunkun clutched Chunhua tightly, striving to pacify Xie Zhefeng's soul as it anxiously hovered and circled around him, letting out soft, whimpering cries: "Wuwu..."

-

Within the pine forest of the Burial Frost Sea.

Qi Xun had originally thought that Xie Zhefeng had calmed down.

Having stood by the side for a while without managing to recall Xie Zhefeng's wandering soul, he simply turned back to inquire about the true situation regarding the Northern Nether.

At this moment, his heart was swept by a chaotic mixture of joy, sourness, and bitterness.

What brought him joy was that A-xue was still in the mortal world, and had even returned with an intact soul.

Months ago, he had wandered day after day along the Thorny River, employing countless tracking and searching arrays, yet he could not detect even a shred of remnant soul aura.

He had nearly believed that A-xue truly held no lingering attachment to this world and had departed in absolute purity.

Now that the person was suddenly alive and well, what could possibly bring greater happiness?

Yet Qi Xun also felt a profound sourness and bitterness.

The sourness and bitterness stemmed from the fact that he had clearly crossed paths with A-xue back on the Frost Sea.

At that time, "Suxue" had been unwilling even to spare him a glance, lowering his gaze with a demeanor no different from that of a passing stranger.

Now catastrophe had struck the Northern Nether, and An Wuxue had followed Xie Zhefeng into the Northern Nether. What was the situation like? Was there any danger?

Qi Xun let out a bitter laugh.

The Falling Moon disciple who had just finished briefing him on the Northern Nether matters looked startled: "Why does Sect Master Qi react this way? Is the matter of the Northern Nether truly so thorny?"

Qi Xun shook his head: "It has nothing to do with the Northern Nether; I merely thought of my own karmic obstacle. You may go outside and keep watch."

"Understood."

After the disciple withdrew, he returned to the pine forest, intending to reinforce several layers of barriers—the barriers Xie Zhefeng had personally erected had already been shattered into pieces just moments earlier by the immortal energy.

Yet the instant he stood firm, before his spiritual power could rise, the surrounding flying snow suddenly slashed diagonally like sharp blades, and the Chuhan Sword resting beside the lotus platform violently trembled, actually unsheathing itself on its own accord!!!

Qi Xun had no time whatsoever to react; he instantly crossed his hands to project a dharma seal, using all of his spiritual power as a foundation to net this square inch of land!

However, as spiritual power surged turbulently, the uncontrolled immortal energy instantly smashed his barrier to pieces, violently blasting him dozens of yards away.

He hurriedly drew the folding fan from his waist, transforming it into a spiritual sword and driving it deep into the ground.

The Chuhan Sword hovered amidst the wind and snow, emitting peals of sword hums!

Sword qi surged outward, piercing through the light of the sky and severing the fine snow.

The floating island trembled!

"Xie Chuhan..." Qi Xun wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, grinding his voice, "What madness are you acting out again?"

This was the second time in succession.

What on earth had happened in the Northern Nether!?

-

Beside the sword array.

Xie Zhefeng stood frozen, his pupils unfocused and his eye sockets burning red.

A torrent of words fell like a torrential rain.

"Yes, that's right, you didn't mistake him—Suxue is your Senior Brother!"

"Then what did you do?"

"Hahahahaha!!! Do you dare to recall it?"

"Do you dare to recall all those things Suxue said to you over the past half year? Do you dare to recall the things you did to Suxue?"

"He fears you! He fears you so much that every time you draw near, he cannot help but shrink away!"

No...

"He said he was not your Senior Brother!"

No!

"He said he had no old acquaintances!"

Beneath the starry night of Zhaoshui City, amidst the fragrance of floating lanterns, the sounds of stringed instruments and dance, and the splendor of a flourishing age, that person's eyes reflected the lamplight as he told him—"I have no home, nor do I have any old acquaintances."

Standing completely alone, untethered and unattached.

It was as if he had truly never known him as a fellow disciple.

"He even hoped that you would forget him!!!"

Within the illusion of the Cloud Sword, "Suxue" had looked at him with an indifferent expression and said—"If I were indeed that Senior Brother of the Immortal Venerable, perhaps I would wish even more for the Immortal Venerable to simply treat me as a sinner who strayed from the righteous path and cultivated turbid qi into demonic arts..."

"Do not look back, do not regret."

Senior Brother...

It hurts so much.

Where is the pain coming from?

Is it the soul, or is it the heart?

The oppressive pressure grew heavier and heavier.

Spiritual power already showed signs of rampaging wildly.

"Xie Chunhua!! Has your soul slipped out of your body?" Pei Qian shouted loudly, raising his hand to shake him awake.

Before he could draw close, Xie Zhefeng cast a hazy glance at Pei Qian with a dazed gaze, his fingertips twitching slightly.

Pei Qian was abruptly blown flying away!

Qiao Yin hurriedly flew forward to catch him: "Friend Pei, what is Friend Xie doing?"

Pei Qian spat out a mouthful of blood: "What a foul temper!"

"What should we do now?"

"I don't know either!"

Xie Zhefeng remained utterly motionless.

His hands were clenched tightly into fists, the veins on the backs of his hands bulging as if he might lose his reason at any moment.

Within the sea of consciousness, the inner demon finally found its soft spot, its laughter growing increasingly frantic.

"He doesn't want to acknowledge you, and couldn't you even recognize him?"

"The two of you simply have no affinity whatsoever!"

"What on earth have you been holding onto for these past thousand years?"

"See? You get nothing at all!!!"

Xie Zhefeng's eyes grew even redder.

Suddenly.

"Clang—"

Another crisp chime rang out.

Whether the person holding the soul bell feared that he might miss the previous crisp chime, they struck it once more.

With just that single strike.

The violently churning sea of consciousness instantly steadied.

Xie Zhefeng's gaze locked into focus.

He could not remain like this.

His Senior Brother was still waiting for him.

He had no qualification to delay.

Upon seeing this, the inner demon's voice grew flustered: "Are you not grieving? Your Senior Brother was by your side for so long, yet you failed to recognize him at all!"

"You are merely a self-deceiving, selfish hypocrite!"

"You don't love him at all!"

"No," he said to the inner demon within his sea of consciousness, "you are wrong."

The inner demon's voice abruptly ceased.

The chaos was swallowed as if by an unseen giant beast, and all directions suddenly fell into absolute stillness.

Within the sea of consciousness, Xie Zhefeng said heavily: "The moment I lifted Suxue's veil before the mountain gate, I recognized him."

Across the two realms and four seas, where else could there possibly be another person who could make him break his rules time and time again?

It was he who had failed to see the truth.

It was he who did not realize that he had already recognized his Senior Brother long ago.

Pei Qian and Qiao Yin seemed to still be saying something to him.

He did not catch a single word clearly.

The gaze within his eyes gathered once more, a sense of moisture in his eye sockets, while every inch of his body, down to his flesh and blood, ached with soreness.

The tip of his heart felt as though a dull blade was rolling across it; clearly beating with a long-lost, vivid vitality, yet it felt as though he were wading through a sea of blades.

Despite all this.

He abruptly smiled.

"Friend Xie, you..."

Xie Zhefeng had always worn a cold expression, his gaze wrapped in ruthless chill no matter where it fell, and he had never smiled in the presence of others.

At this moment, his pupils carried an irrepressible joy, yet his smile was fraught with bitterness and pain.

Both Pei Qian and Qiao Yin were startled as they watched him.

The next moment—

Xie Zhefeng's entire body trembled, his expression turning abruptly pale as he coughed up several mouthfuls of blood!

His posture was akin to that of someone grievously wounded and on the verge of death. Startled, Pei Qian cried out: "What is this...!?"

Kunkun flew before Xie Zhefeng's eyes, fluttering its wings gently: "Wuwu?"

Xie Zhefeng lowered his gaze, his expression softening slightly.

His pair of dark pupils seemed to encompass the starry sky, profound and bottomless.

He asked Kunkun in a low voice: "He is who he is, and you knew it all along."

Kunkun was startled, hurriedly drooping its head and guiltily crying out: "Wuwu..."

Xie Zhefeng raised his hand—not to stroke Kunkun, but to touch Chunhua, which Kunkun was clutching.

His fingertips brushed lightly over the scabbard.

He had brought Suxue and Chunhua out of Falling Moon, traveled to Zhaoshui, passed through Langfeng, and arrived at the Northern Nether.

Chunhua had never once manifested its master's spiritual power.

His Senior Brother knew he was searching for that strand of remnant soul, and knew how desperately he craved for his Senior Brother to return.

Yet his Senior Brother had never intended to acknowledge him from beginning to end.

If his Senior Brother had known that the soul bell could only be rung by a single person since a thousand years ago, perhaps he would never have heard this single chime.

He raised his hand, wiping away the blood from the corner of his mouth, formed a spiritual incantation with both hands, and closed his eyes slightly.

With a movement of his divine sense, he instantly sensed the location of the soul bell.

From hearing the chime of the soul bell to locating his Senior Brother's whereabouts at this moment, had taken merely dozens of breaths of time.

Pei Qian, Qiao Yin, and the others knew nothing of this, and could only watch as his spiritual power grew chaotic and then calmed within the span of a few short moments, his oppressive might releasing and then retracting, weeping yet smiling, and coughing up blood—a truly terrifying sight to behold.