CH 6

It seemed that there was only the sound of the wind and the snow here, rustling and falling, but no sounds of living creatures, making it eerie and frightening.

Black snowflakes fell from the gloomy gray sky. The boundary between heaven and earth was blurred, but with each snowflake hitting the ground, there was a piercing scream of black resentful spirits, and the violent sound echoed layer upon layer. The resentful spirits erupted from the snowflakes and tore at each other like black mist as if enjoying a rich feast. When they became stronger than their peers, the black mist continuously climbed towards the sky, and then it was another cycle of black snow falling again and again.

This was the realm of Xuanming.

The only one the grudges dared not the approach was the young girl kneeling in the center of the lotus platform. She was covered in snow, her face snow-white, and the only lively color in this desolate world were two small red moles on her eyebrow peaks.

In fact, she had been dead for a long time, but there were still several sword lights that she had once wielded lingering around her. These sword lights, in the wind and snow, were immortal and still upheld their master’s intentions, cutting through all evil.

Amidst the incessant falling snow that had remained unchanged for a hundred years, a sudden breathing sound came.

She opened her eyes.

It took many days for Zhou Yue to be in Xiaochun City, but she finally established a passage between the realm of her divine soul and the Xuanming realm. At this moment, she looked inward with her spiritual power, and there was no intact organ in her body, with only the surface of her body barely intact.

She stood up, leaving deep and shallow footprints behind her, and the sound of clanging iron chains echoed. These chains were forged from Kunlun Xuan iron and nailed her body, nailing her body and also the evil spirits inside her.

The young girl walked barefoot on the black snow, with snow falling from her shoulders, revealing a blood-stained white veil dress. Her shoulder blades and legs were ruthlessly pierced by the iron chains, and there were holes that could no longer bleed, but there was still purple-black mist biting and gnawing at the edges of the holes, rampaging and struggling, trying to escape. If one listened closely, one could even hear the hoarse and sneering curses.

The resentful spirits all kept their distance and formed a small vacuum space beside her.

Although people cannot be resurrected after death, immortals must immediately be reincarnated. But who knows what kind of background this little fairy has? Two hundred years ago, she single-handedly entered the Xuanming realm with a sword and sealed the evil spirits that had ravaged her for over ten thousand years.

The resentful spirits had mixed feelings towards her, neither liking nor hating her. After all, the sword light she left behind had tortured them for a long time, but without her, they would still have been used as bait for the evil spirits.

The white-dressed girl slowly stopped her steps and in front of her was a humanoid figure molded from black snow and a “girl” with the exact same face as hers.

The “girl” wore a black dress and was the embodiment of an evil spirit.

Suddenly, the black snow no longer fell, and the resentful spirits fled in panic.

The evil spirit seemed to affectionately press Zhou Yue’s shoulder and asked with a fake smile, “What benefit do you get from doing this?”

The “girl” smiled coquettishly and tempted her, “Why not let me go and also let yourself go?”

Zhou Yue looked at the evil spirit using her face calmly and said indifferently, “Sealing you is the best thing for me and for the Six Realms.”

Two hundred years had passed, but she still wouldn’t give in no matter what!

Seeing the stubbornness of the young girl, the evil spirit immediately changed its expression, gnashing its teeth and saying, “You’re already dead, without even the chance for reincarnation, and yet you still think you’re benefiting from this?”

“Those people in the immortal realm are the most hypocritical, sending a young fairy like you to die!”

In fact, no one from the immortal realm had ever forced her, and even her master had repeatedly tried to stop her when he found out that she wanted to go to the Xuangming realm. When he realized that she was determined to go, he gave up on the sword path and focused on the path of reincarnation, hoping to give Zhou Yue a chance at rebirth.

Zhou Yue shook her head, not angered by the words of the evil spirit. “I came here on my own accord,’ she said. Her eyes were bright, and her pale face seemed to glow with life. ‘Since I was born, I knew that it was my mission to seal you away. Someone has to make sacrifices, and if sacrificing myself can save many others, then I am happy to do it.”

This was her Tao (1), with compassion as her heart and the salvation of others as her purpose. Her determination was as unyielding as a rock.

The young girl spoke softly, but with great satisfaction, ‘Even if I die and never see this world again, I am still happy.'”

The evil spirit wanted nothing more than to tear apart the girl in front of it, but it was trapped by her golden body and unable to move. It sneered, “You know that your golden body can’t hold me for long. You’re just throwing your life away, and everything you’ve done is in vain!'”

Unexpectedly, the girl laughed lightly, her laughter clean and clear, with a hint of anticipation. “I admit I’m not skilled enough to hold you for long, but I believe that someone more powerful than me will come to seal you after I’m gone. If I can hold out until that person comes, even if I can’t enter the cycle of reincarnation after death, I won’t regret it.”

The evil spirit also burst into laughter, and the black snow danced in the wind, transforming back into the form of a young man.

It was “Shuo Feng.”

The evil spirit pointed at its “face” and said playfully, “Can you really hide anything from me when our souls are bound together?”

“Shuo Feng” deliberately made a regretful expression and sneered, “Your golden body can only hold out for seven days in the Xuanming realm. Even if it can last for seven years in the mortal world, can an ordinary mortal who has never practiced cultivation ascend in seven years? Moreover, the Heavenly ladder is cut off, so he probably doesn’t even have a chance to ascend.”

The look in Zhou Yue’s eyes gradually grew colder, as if covered in frost. She drew several sword qi (2) with her right hand, which turned into a huge sword in the air and mercilessly slashed towards the evil spirit. The black snow on the ground was affected by the boundless sword light, collapsing into a long trench, and the resentful souls inside emitted a miserable howl.

These sharp sounds could shatter every fragment of the soul into pieces.

But Zhou Yue’s face only turned pale for a moment, and her tone was cold, “I know you still have remnants in the mortal world. But if you dare to harm him, even if I have to drag this remnant body and kill you. Even if I can’t succeed, I will make sure that you suffer the torment of shattered souls day and night in this Xuanming realm.”

The evil spirit couldn’t escape from Zhou Yue and could only dodge this sword light. “His” figure began to dissipate, and Zhou Yue also suddenly had a new bloody hole in her body.

The seal was established, and killing “him” would also mean killing herself.

The evil spirit looked at the girl’s indifferent expression and exclaimed, “Madwoman, you really are a madwoman!”

Suddenly, “he” rearranged his ferocious face, leaned close to Zhou Yue’s ear, and said with a strange smile, “Since your soul can return to the Xuanming realm, our divine souls can merge, and I can use your channel to find him.”

Zhou Yue’s expression turned cold, and she immediately cut off the connection. She closed her eyes and held her breath, separating her soul from her body and returning to the mortal world.

The evil spirit finally saw another expression on the girl’s face and laughed wildly before quickly disappearing like dust, completely hidden in the vast snow.

In the mortal world, it was the rainy season, and in Xiaochun City, the spring rain fell gently. The sky was hazy with fog. The sun had completely disappeared into the distant green mountains from behind thick clouds, and in the dark night, lights were lit in thousands of households.

The shadows of the lamps flickered on the window screens, as if the wind and rain had blown away the colorful flowers of spring. The tiles on the roof trembled slightly, and a black-clad figure of a black-clothed youth ran quickly in the night. The ancient and simple iron sword in his hand was stained with tiny drops of blood.

The youth was skilled in lightness technique and landed almost silently. He disappeared into the night rain and quietly returned to a small courtyard.

Shuo Feng stepped into the doorway and carefully washed the blood off his hands in the courtyard water tank. The drops of blood slowly dissipated in the clear water, like a little red residue falling from a white lotus.

Naturally, it was not his blood. The blood on the assassin’s body had always belonged to others. When he struck with his sword, blood was bound to splash onto his clothes.

Shuo Feng furrowed his brow, feeling frustrated about how to wash away the smell of blood from his body. Eventually, he shook his head and glanced at the girl who had been sleeping on the bed for several days and changed into a new robe behind the screen.

The soapberry scent was fragrant and refreshing like pine.

Satisfied, Shuo Feng nodded to himself. He didn’t want Zhuoyue to know that he had gone out to kill again.

That night, he saw that the Ji Hua sword could only maintain Zhuo Yue’s physical form by absorbing the blood of his victims. A few days ago, Zhuo Yue’s body had started to become translucent and she had fallen into a deep sleep for no apparent reason.

So, after taking care of the girl and locking the courtyard gate, he took the Ji Hua sword and went to kill again. He wanted Zhuoyue to stay with him for a long time, perhaps until the end of time, even if he had to kill every day.

Shuo Feng lowered his gaze. He had been alone for a long time, so he wanted to hold onto his sword and never let go.

The young man sat gently on the low stool by the bed, tilted his head, and reached out to touch the girl’s eyelashes. Zhou Yue’s long and curly eyelashes scratched his palm like feathers.

His heart felt like it was also being tickled by a feather, itchy, but wanting more.

Shuo Feng’s ears turned red. When he tried to remain calm, the girl’s eyelashes trembled slightly.

Shuofeng was pleasantly surprised and leaned in closer.

In the next instant, the girl, whose eyes were slightly red, reached out her soft and warm hand from the brocade quilt.

But she didn’t touch his face as she used to.

Instead, she grabbed his throat.

Shuofeng’s killer instincts made him sense the danger in advance, and the soft sword at his wrist pressed against the girl’s neck in an instant.

“Zhou Yue” was not panicked. On the contrary, she looked at the expressionless young man with interest and said slowly, “So, you are Shuo Feng.”

It wasn’t her.

Shuofeng spoke coldly, his words like a knife, hacking at the person in front of him. “Who are you? Get out of her body right now!”

Footnote:

1. Tao is a concept in Chinese philosophy and religion that refers to the “way” or “path” which is the fundamental and all-pervading principle underlying the universe and everything in it. The concept of Tao emphasizes the naturalness, simplicity, and spontaneity of life, and encourages individuals to live in harmony with the rhythms and patterns of nature.

2. Qi is a concept from traditional Chinese culture that refers to the vital energy or life force that permeates all things in the universe. It is believed to be the fundamental energy that gives life to everything and is related to the breath and blood flow in the body. In martial arts, qi is often associated with the cultivation of internal strength and power.