Chapter Eighty: The Boy Among Peach Blossoms

A stone gate, its material unknown, loomed before them with an overwhelming sense of enormity. Standing beneath it, one could look up and see its height stretch a full hundred zhang into the air, so tall that it seemed at any moment it might come crashing down with a thunderous force. The surface bore neither intricate patterns nor the moss so often bred by dampness; the entire gate was a somber grayish-black. No matter how closely one examined it, there was no way to discern how it had been lifted—this gate appeared to float, suspended in place by nothing.

Beyond the stone gate lay a passage whose depths seemed endless; only the faintest sliver of light glimmered from a distant exit. Otherwise, the corridor was engulfed in darkness, forcing those who traversed it to use their spiritual energy to sustain the flames in their hands. Unlike the vast expanse they had passed through before, this corridor was dry to the extreme.

The passage was simple, with no branching paths—just a single route leading towards what was claimed to be the exit. There was none of the labyrinthine complexity one might expect. It was as if this corridor had been designed solely for the group now treading its length.

“Have you noticed the passage is gradually narrowing?” Song Cheng whispered from the rear.

“You’re a bit late to realize that,” Yu Daoyi responded, his voice low as he glanced about. “The entrance was dozens of zhang wide, but now it’s down to barely over ten.”

“No matter what, caution is paramount,” Song Qiuling, leading the group, said, a ball of flame hovering in her palm to illuminate their way.

“Doesn’t it seem like the light at the end never gets any closer?” Yu Daoyi frowned after some time, addressing the others.

“We’ve been walking for two or three hours now. However distant the exit, after all this time, that little point of light should have grown larger,” he said, bounding a few steps ahead onto a large boulder to gaze forward, doubt in his tone.

“That light hasn’t changed at all, as if we’re marching in place,” came Yu Yunfan’s cool voice.

“Do you think that exit is even real? What if it’s just there to keep us walking endlessly?”

“If that speck of light truly is the exit, at this rate, we could walk for days and nights and never reach it.”

“And what about those who came before us—including Lin He and his lot? After all this time, we should have crossed paths with one or two of them by now.”

“This long passage is empty except for us—not a single soul, not a sound. It’s as if we’ve seen a ghost.”

“I thought following Lin He would save us some trouble, given his character, but it seems that was nothing more than wishful thinking.”

“Hey, why is everyone so quiet? Think of something—I'm exhausted! Song Cheng can’t become my mount again, I couldn’t possibly bear it!” Yu Daoyi called out, but was met with silence.

A sense of unease crept over him as he gazed into the distance. Suddenly, he whirled around.

A soft hiss, like the extinguishing of a flame—he found himself enveloped in utter darkness, unable to see even his own hand before his face.

“Qiuling! Song Cheng! Brother!” he shouted into the void behind him, but not the slightest response came.

“Damn it! No, I need to stay calm. Yes, calm… Calm my ass! I don’t even know any spells! In this darkness, I can’t see a thing! How am I supposed to keep calm?” Yu Daoyi ranted, frustration boiling over.

He squinted his eyes just as a blinding light burst into the corridor, casting his shadow into a long line. The radiance came from behind, wholly unexpected.

Shielding his eyes with his hand, Yu Daoyi slowly turned back toward the exit. Peeking through the cracks between his fingers, he was met with an even more intense light, suddenly flooding the entire passage.

Ah! This brightness is enough to blind my 24K high-strength copper-sulfate-hardened domain-wall-resonance, anti-vortex-loss and resonance-loss electron pulse band photodiode and photosensitive triode wafer pulse scattering light-spot-irradiated particle-luminescent semiconductor and photoelectric sensor’s light-source-hardened, anti-electromagnetic-wave, plus ferrous-sulfate-hardened and copper-nitrate-hardened kryptonite anti-riot dog eyes!

Covering his stinging eyes with both hands, Yu Daoyi stood frozen. As time passed, he began to hear new sounds—the babble of a stream, the gentle caress of a breeze, the chirping of birds. Occasionally, something soft, like flower petals, drifted down to tickle his face.

Slowly, he lowered his hands and allowed his eyes to adjust. When he finally opened them, he began to doubt his own reality. Before him was a scene utterly unlike the darkness from before—a world transformed.

Birdsong filled the air, flowers bloomed, green hills and clear waters stretched into the distance. Mountain ridges undulated, cattle and sheep grazed on the slopes, white clouds drifted across a cerulean sky, and warm sunlight bathed this idyllic land. Everything seemed so vivid, so real—it was as if he had wandered into a celestial paradise.

Expressionless, Yu Daoyi gazed at this strange vision, unsure whether he had lost his wits or his senses. He bit his own arm hard, yelping in pain.

A lazy voice called out from behind, “Hah, this is the first time I’ve seen someone foolish enough to bite himself.”

Still bewildered, Yu Daoyi turned around. A breeze swept past, scattering petals in the air like dancing butterflies. The blossoms brushed his face—soft, enchanting, dreamlike. The scent of flowers mingled with the whispering wind, intoxicating and gentle, as sunlight warmed his skin.

Steadying himself, Yu Daoyi looked ahead. There stood a colossal peach tree, its branches laden with dazzling pink blossoms. Petals carpeted the ground, and under the radiant yet gentle afternoon sun, the scene dazzled the eye and bewitched the soul.

On a bough of the peach tree reclined a boy who appeared no more than ten or eleven. He lay with his hands behind his head, one leg crossed over the other, a delicate wine jug in hand from which wafted a faint aroma of spirits. Eyes half-shut, he basked in the tranquil afternoon, his air utterly languid.

His lips were red, his teeth pearly white, his face as handsome as carved jade—a striking youth in the attire of a girl: a peach-colored robe and a pink ribbon loosely tying back his long black hair. What should have been a jarring ensemble seemed perfectly harmonious on him, set amidst the swirling petals of the peach blossoms, as if in a dream. He was, in every sense, a beautiful young man.

Spellbound by this vision, Yu Daoyi simply stood beneath the peach tree, motionless. The breeze drifted by now and then, sending petals swirling through the air. The fragrance of blossoms and wine turned the afternoon into a riot of color and sensation.

Drifting between wakefulness and dreams, the two remained silent beneath the tree, each immersed in the stillness, savoring the peace. Gradually, Yu Daoyi closed his eyes again, as though slipping into a strange state, leaving behind the world’s bustle and noise, forgetting all mundane worries, wholly at ease until he remembered nothing at all.

“In Peach Blossom Nook stands Peach Blossom Hermitage; beneath the hermitage dwells the Peach Blossom Immortal.
The immortal plants peach trees, plucking their flowers to sell for wine money.
Sober, he sits among the blossoms; drunk, he sleeps beneath them.
Half-awake, half-dreaming, day after day; as flowers fall and bloom, year after year.”

He seemed to have realized something, yet at the same time nothing at all. It was as if he had grasped some truth, only for it to slip through his fingers. Slowly, he opened his eyes and smiled gently, his heart at peace, his spirit subtly transformed.

For in the end, what is life but a fleeting dream? How many cycles of spring and autumn does one truly live?