Look back

Yu Wei subconsciously touched his eyes.

He once thought he would live his entire life in darkness. For countless years while blind, he relied on divine perception to navigate. Later, he found his way by the sound of Yunxiu's silver bells and sought herbs by the scent of banyan leaves on Yingtang's robe.

Until Yan Xiu found him and said, "Perhaps I can help you see again." What kind of power was that... familiar yet strange? As it slowly flowed along his eye veins, he thought it was an illusion until the first ray of sunlight fell into his eyes.

He could clearly see the silver bells in Yunxiu's hair, the patch on Wuyi's green shirt, and the pattern on the banyan leaf in Yingtang's hand.

At that moment, he felt that even if his perception of divine power became much weaker from then on, it was worth it.

"Jing Er?" Yu Wei's voice trembled. The bloodstain on the ground spread out in a fan-shaped pattern, its edges still tinged with a half-dried dark red. Jing Er's usual longsword lay beside the stain. The tassel, a turquoise paulownia pattern Yun Xiu had woven just last month, had now been soaked in blood and turned a dark brown.

He squatted down and lightly touched the sword blade with his fingertips. There was still a trace of warmth, obviously the accident had just happened.

But aside from the blood and the sword, there were no other traces. No scratches from a fight, no lingering traces of immortal energy, only a faint, mist-like aura lingering in the air.

It was so faint that he could hardly grasp it. If he had not survived for so long by relying on the power of perception, he would probably have thought it was just frost outside the temple.

Yu Wei tucked the sword tassel and banyan leaf talisman into his arms and slowly closed his eyes. After regaining his sight, he rarely relied on his senses anymore. That power seemed buried deep within his spiritual veins, requiring immense effort to mobilize. A faint golden glow shone through his fingertips as he tried to draw the aura closer, discerning it bit by bit.

There is a familiar fluctuation hidden in this divine power, but it is wrapped in a thick layer of "divinity" and cannot be seen clearly.

Just as his perception was about to reach the core of that wave, it was fiercely blocked. Yu Wei suddenly opened his eyes, his heart instantly sinking to the bottom of the valley.

Yan Xiu was standing not far away.

The black remnant soul roared crazily in Yan Xiu's consciousness: "He's about to sense it! Kill him! Destroy his senses! Keeping him here will only expose you!"

Yan Xiu clenched his hands tightly at his sides.

When Yu Wei saw Yunxiu clearly for the first time, he smiled and said, "Xiao You's eyes are so bright."

After he regained his sight, he would stay in the bamboo forest for a while every day, saying that he wanted to see back the scenery that he had not seen before.

"Can you turn back?" the remnant soul asked him.

Yan Xiu's eyes turned completely cold. The roar of the black remnant soul overwhelmed all guilt. He suddenly raised his hand, and his divine power transformed into a thin blade, piercing Yu Wei's eyes, trying to shatter the veins responsible for sensing divine power.

"ah--!"

Instantly, excruciating pain washed over Yu Wei. He felt as if his eyes had been burned by a scalding iron. The light before his eyes was instantly extinguished, like sand washed away by the tide, even the last glimmer of light at his fingertips was extinguished.

He fell to the ground and fumbled around with his hands, but only felt a cold bloodstain. Jing Er's sword was not far away, but he could no longer see the paulownia pattern on the sword tassel.

Just as the thin blade was about to penetrate into the core of the spiritual vein and completely crush that strand of perception, Yu Wei suddenly felt a warm sensation in his chest - was it the banyan leaf talisman he had just put in his arms?

At this moment, the Banyan Leaf Talisman suddenly erupted into a pale green light shield, like a flexible banyan vine, tightly wrapping around his spiritual veins. The cold white blade sizzled as it collided with the shield, negating most of its power. Only a remnant of the blade penetrated the veins, failing to completely shatter the foundation of his perception. Like a blunt knife, it only made a shallow scratch, weakening the power to a candle flame.

Yu Wei groaned, cold sweat running down his jawline, but he could clearly feel it.

The perception deep within the spiritual veins was still there. Although it was as weak as a candle in the wind, it could only vaguely capture the trajectory of the divine power flow and could no longer distinguish the details, but at least it was not completely destroyed.

He could even vaguely "see" the cold white figure walking out of the temple. The divine power was like mist with a tail, leaving a faint trace on the ground, extending along the back door of the dilapidated temple into the mountains and forests.

"A person with supernatural powers..." Yu Wei lay on the ground, his voice hoarse as if it had been rubbed by sandpaper, and he coughed up blood with every word he spoke, "Kill Jing Er..."

He repeated this sentence over and over again, his fingertips tightly grasping a streak of blood on the ground.

That was Jing Er's blood, and it was also the last trace he could grasp to prove that she had existed.

The wind from outside the dilapidated temple blew in, bringing with it the chill of late autumn, making his thin robe rustle.

Someone is coming.

That day, for the first time, the bamboo forest of Yaoxi Mountain was silent. Yingtang sat on the bluestone for a long time, holding the half jade pendant left by Jing Er. Wu Yi clutched his sword and tried to leave the mountain, but his master stopped him. Only Yan Xiu stood outside the bamboo forest.

Could he ever turn back?

Yan Xiu grew stronger and stronger, unstoppable. He soon gathered 30% of the divine power, and with the 60% in Yun Xiu's body, he only needed the last bit to complete the total. He knew that the final divine power was hidden in the body of his master in Yao Xishan.

The immortals who have practiced with their master for thousands of years have the purest and most intense divine power in their bodies.

As dusk drifted into the bamboo forest, Yan Xiu was still standing under the old sycamore tree, listening to the subtle sounds coming from not far away.

Yunxiu was squatting beside the bluestone, with green vines wrapped around his fingertips, weaving a cane cover for Yuwei.

After Yuwei became blind, he always bumped his cane into holes and dents all over it. Yunxiu said, "Weave a cover. It will be soft and you can feel the texture to tell the direction."

The vines were old vines from the back mountain that she had specially chosen. They were soaked in morning dew and had a faint scent of grass. When she woven them to the edge, she also specially decorated them with a small silver bell, saying, "If you ring it when you walk, we can still find you."

Yan Xiu hesitated to move, as he remembered what the black ghost said last night.

"What are you waiting for? Yu Wei can still sense divine power. You haven't completely destroyed his spiritual veins. If you delay any longer, they will find you sooner or later!"

But looking at Yunxiu's serious look at this moment, he remembered when she practiced sword last year.

Even after making several mistakes, he still insisted on making it himself, saying, "It's a gift for my senior brother, so it must be made by myself to look good."

At that time, she only had eyes for him, and she refused to give it to him even when Wu Yi came over to ask for it.

But now it's different.

Perhaps it was because he had been down the mountain too often, Yunxiu hadn't spoken to him much recently.

After Yunxiu finished weaving the cane cover, he handed it to Yuwei first, then took out a banyan fruit from his arms and stuffed it into Wuyi who was squatting next to him.

Wu Yi immediately smiled and took a big bite. When she turned around, she saw Yan Xiu standing under the sycamore tree. Her eyes lit up, and she walked over quickly and took something out of her pocket.

"Brother Yan Xiu, why are you standing here? I just baked this, would you like to try it?"

The chicken was still warm, Yunxiu’s specialty. It was brushed with wild honey from the mountains, giving the skin a golden hue.

Yan Xiu took it and his fingertips touched her palm.

He clearly saw that Yunxiu was holding a piece of green paulownia pattern rope in her other hand. That was Jing'er's favorite style. Last time, Yunxiu had braided two ropes, one for Jing'er and one for herself.

Yunxiu tilted her head and looked at him: "Is it not tasty? Can I put less honey next time? I forgot that you don't like sweet food."

Yan Xiu's throat felt raw. He reluctantly took a bite, but the cloyingly sweet taste pricked his tongue like a needle. He looked at Yun Xiu, but couldn't say a word.

Yunxiu followed his gaze, and the smile on her face faded. She lowered her head and touched the Wutong rope in her hand, her voice becoming softer:

"My senior sister taught me swordplay and helped me tie the tassel on my sword. She said that once I've mastered the swordplay, she'll take me down the mountain to see the market."

Her eyes were slightly red: "But Senior Sister is now... she will never come back."

Yan Xiu's heart sank suddenly.

He suddenly realized that Yunxiu's kindness was never given to just one person.

She was good to him, to Wu Yi, to Ying Tang, and to Yu Wei, and she would always remember Senior Sister Jing Er who taught her how to practice sword.

This was like a net, wrapping up all the people in the sect, and he was just one of them.

"Who do you think killed Jing Er?"

Yan Xiu's voice tightened.

Yunxiu suddenly looked up, clenched the Wutong rope in his hand, and looked towards an unknown corner:

"I have no idea."

She continued, "But no matter who it is, I will kill him."

Yan Xiu repeated these words in his heart, feeling as if his chest was hit by a heavy object.

He looked at the determination in Yunxiu's eyes and suddenly understood - no matter how hard he tried, no matter how much warmth he gave Yunxiu, as long as Yunxiu knew the truth, knew that he was the one who killed Jing Er, she would never forgive him.

She would point her sword at him like Jing Er did, her eyes full of disappointment and anger.

Yan Xiu suddenly smiled. He didn't know what he was expecting. Could Yun Xiu possibly say something to show sympathy for the murderer?

Could he ever turn back?

Yu Wei could still faintly sense divine power. Although he couldn't discern the details, he could still detect the trajectory of his divine power. Since he returned to the mountain, Yan Xiu had rarely appeared before him.

The people in the mountains didn't want to upset Yu Wei, so they didn't mention Jing Er's affairs. But Yan Xiu always knew that no one would give up on tracking down the murderer.

"What are you afraid of?"

The voice of the black remnant soul sounded in my consciousness again, with a mocking tone.

"Are you afraid she won't forgive you? Don't be silly! As long as you gather all your divine power and awaken the complete Ancient God, you can accomplish anything you want. She will worship you and rely on you again. Those so-called 'disciples' are just stepping stones on the road!"

The remnant soul's words were like venom, flowing down his spiritual veins and penetrating into every bone joint.

"You can't keep her." The remnant soul continued to bewitch her, "She cares about everyone, not just you. As long as the sect is still there, she will never belong to you alone. Only by killing them and taking their immortal power can you keep her by your side forever and never let her know the truth."

Blood flowed down through the fingers.

He raised his hand, and the cold white divine power condensed into a tiny blade of light in his palm. The blade of light reflected the twilight of the bamboo forest and also reflected the disappearance of the last trace of hesitation in his eyes.

The black remnant soul cheered in its consciousness: "That's right! Kill them and you will be able to gather all your divine power and then..."

Yan Xiu turned and walked towards the forbidden area. There was the sacrificial formation he had long ago chosen. He only needed one last step - to lure the person there.

His footsteps no longer hesitated, and his ink-black tights swept across the fallen leaves on the ground, making a rustling sound.