One Leaf

Yunxiu had never used so much divine power before - she was like a madman, with murderous intent bursting out, forcing Zhi Huan back several meters and crashing directly into the mountain.

Yunxiu, however, had no intention of paying attention. She watched Yingtang slowly lower her head, watching the tip of the sword pierce through her chest, the blade still stained with fine, light green immortal energy.

That was Yingtang's original immortal power, which was now dissipating bit by bit along the sword body.

There was still a look of surprise on Yingtang's face. She opened her mouth, as if she wanted to continue what she had not finished saying, but a large amount of dark red blood flowed out from the corner of her mouth, flowed down along her jawline, and dripped onto her robe in front of her chest.

"Xiao...Yu..."

Her voice was as soft as a candle in the wind. She raised her hand slightly, as if wanting to touch the corner of Yunxiu's clothes, but just when she raised it halfway, she dropped it weakly.

Zhi Huan also coughed up blood. He suddenly retracted his sword, his black cloak stained with Yingtang's blood, and his eyes were filled with a violent smile:

"I told you, you can't hide away."

The divine power spread along the sword blade and began to forcibly absorb the remaining immortal power in Yingtang's body.

Yunxiu's fingertips had just touched Yingtang's hanging hand when Yingtang suddenly grabbed her wrist.

A calmness bordering on compassion replaced Yingtang's expression. Dark red blood still hung from the corners of her mouth, but she supported herself with Yunxiu's hand and slowly sat up.

The light green original immortal power flowed out from the wound, but this time it was no longer dissipated in disorder. Instead, it began to flow into Yunxiu's body as if being pulled by an invisible silk thread.

"Don't be afraid."

Yingtang's voice was still soft, but the power came from nowhere.

Yunxiu instinctively realized what it was, and she stubbornly asked Yingtang to lie down and not exert herself. Yingtang gently refused her.

Yingtang raised his hand and gently placed it on the back of Yunxiu's hand, which was clenched white. The light green immortal power flowed along the lines on the palm of his hand and seeped into Yunxiu's pulse point bit by bit.

The power was not as gentle as the one used to heal the wound before. Instead, it carried a burning urgency, as if it wanted to carve something precious firmly into Yunxiu's spiritual veins.

Zhi Huan's grip on the hilt of the sword suddenly tightened, and another mouthful of blood flowed out of his throat.

It’s Yan Xiu.

Yan Xiu and Zhi Huan started fighting, which gave this side a chance to catch their breath.

Yingtang looked at Yunxiu intently, her eyes reflecting Yunxiu's red eyes.

The immortal power in her fingertips flowed faster, and even the banyan leaf pattern embroidered on her moon-white robe began to glow, as if it was about to emerge from the fabric and turn into real branches and leaves.

"In the last life... I'm sorry." Yingtang's voice was slightly choked, but he quickly suppressed it.

"It's my fault, Xiaoyou."

She paused, as if afraid of causing Yunxiu pain, and gently rubbed her fingertips across the thin calluses on the palm of Yunxiu's hand.

Even someone like Lian Yunxiu, who knew nothing about medicine, could feel that Yingtang's life was slipping away quickly.

She wanted to cry, to ask for help, but Yingtang stopped her. Yunxiu couldn't even utter a sound, and she was overcome with nausea.

Yunxiu's tears finally burst forth, splashing onto the backs of their clasped hands, mingling with Yingtang's blood, leaving a faint blush. She tried to say "no," but her throat felt blocked, and she could only utter faint sobs. Yingtang's immortal energy held her body steady, and even her trembling became minimal.

"Don't be sad, Xiaoyou."

Yingtang's thumb gently wiped away the tears on the back of Yunxiu's hand, his movements as gentle as brushing away the morning dew on the banyan leaves.

"The banyan saplings we planted in front of our bamboo house last year, even if blown down by the wind, would stand up again the next day. Even the villagers down the mountain, even if they only had half a bag of seeds left, would still think of planting them and wait for them to sprout next year."

"Senior sister is not leaving. She will always be with you. Be good, don't cry."

Her immortal power was still flowing into Yunxiu's body, but her body began to become transparent. Light green light overflowed from her fingertips and shoulders, like catkins blown by the wind, slowly circling around the two of them.

“The world today is not a scorched earth, but a sleeping seed.”

Yingtang's voice grew softer and softer, yet clearer and clearer, like the rustling of wind through a bamboo forest, so light and ethereal that it seemed to float.

"I know—in the crack of the wall behind the medicine shop in Luoxia Town, a small grass sprouted through the black mud; under the old locust tree in Qingxi Village, a small insect hid from the black fog by clinging to half a leaf. They were all waiting, waiting for a wind to blow away the filth."

Zhi Huan finally reacted. He roared, mobilizing his divine power. A cold white blade of light surged along the blade, attempting to sever the connection between Ying Tang and Yun Xiu's immortal energy. However, the pale green energy was like a flexible banyan vine, tightly wrapped around Yun Xiu's meridians. No matter how hard he chopped, only tiny fragments of light splattered, not even a crack remained.

Yan Xiu stood up again and attacked Zhi Huan with his blows. Zhi Huan dodged, but he still didn't let him go.

"You've gone crazy too... one, two, all of you... once your immortal power dissipates, you'll completely disappear!"

Zhihuan's eyes were full of blood. He looked at Yingtang's increasingly transparent body, and at the pale green spots of light that began to float away into the distance. He suddenly realized what she was going to do.

"You want to purify the black fog? Do you think you can save this rotten world with your limited power?"

Yingtang finally looked up at Zhihuan. There was no hatred in his eyes, only a calm pity.

"How will you know if you don't try?"

She turned her head to look at Yunxiu again, and with one last push of her fingertips, she pushed the only remaining and most core strand of original immortal power in her body fiercely into Yunxiu's heart.

Carrying the thousand-year vitality of the banyan tree, it flowed down along the spiritual vein of Yunxiu. Wherever it passed, the soreness left by the overdraft of divine power instantly subsided. Even the white jade statue on the heart began to emit a light green light, gently echoing the remaining strength of Wu Yi.

"Xiao You," Yingtang's voice almost melted into the wind, "Don't be sad about the world, it will definitely get better."

"I will turn into wind and blow across every inch of land. You carry my strength and Wu Yi's thoughts and keep going. See for me if the ears of rice next year can bend under the weight. And..."

Yingtang looked at Yunxiu quietly, with tears in her eyes.

"Xiaoyou, I will always love you."

The moment the words fell, Yingtang's body completely turned into light green spots all over the sky.

Those spots of light did not dissipate, but instead surged in all directions along with the wind like an awakened spring tide.

It first circled around Yunxiu and Yanxiu, as if saying goodbye, and then spread like crazy towards the ruins at the foot of the mountain, the distant villages, and the muddy river.

Yunxiu stretched out her hand, trying to grasp something, but she only caught a wisp of wind, carrying the fragrance of grass and trees. The wind passed through her fingers, carrying the last of Yingtang's warmth, and drifted towards Luoxia Town.

Zhi Huan's expression changed completely. He watched the pale green dots of light drifting towards the ruins and subconsciously tried to mobilize his divine power to stop them. However, as soon as he raised his hand, Yun Xiu struck him hard and sent him flying.

Like a heavy hammer, with the power of Yingtang and irresistible vitality, it drilled into his meridians, burning his cold white divine power to the point of disorder.

A pale green speck of light first drifted over the ruins of Luoxia Town. The black mist lingering around the shattered walls, like ice and snow encountering a raging fire, dissipated in wisps of white smoke upon encountering the speck of light. Beside the charred earthen houses, tender green grass sprouts pushed through the rubble, timidly poking out leaves. Vines unexpectedly climbed the cracks in the broken stone archway at the town's entrance, soon becoming covered in tiny flower buds.

Then came the muddy riverbank. Pale green specks of light fell on the water, like a handful of crushed jade. The murky water cleared visibly, the black mud settling to reveal the smooth pebbles beneath. The cloth shoes embroidered with fish patterns were blown to the shore by the wind. The black mud on the toes gradually faded, revealing the original white silk thread. Though worn, they were as clean as if newly made.

Farther away, in Qingxi Village, a pale green light drifted into a cave choked by black fog. The villagers huddled inside, frozen as if frozen, had already stopped breathing. But as the light fell upon them, a faint breath of air emanated from their noses. The dark blue stain on the arm of the woman holding the baby gradually faded. She opened her eyes dazedly, looked down at the child in her arms, and suddenly tears fell.

The child's face was no longer purple, and a faint smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

The whole world is changing.

The black fog dissipated, new growth sprouted from the scorched earth, the murky river water cleared, and the dead began to breathe again. The stench of decay in the wind was replaced by the fresh fragrance of grass and trees, and even the twilight sky gradually took on a pale golden warmth, as if the morning light was about to rise.

Yunxiu stood there, clearly feeling the gentle pulsation of pale green immortal energy within her body, forming a strange resonance with her own divine power, Wu Yi's strength, and even the white jade statue on her heart. She raised her hand, and pale green light overflowed from her fingertips, gently touching the light floating in from afar, as if Yingtang was responding to her.

“Senior Sister…”

Yunxiu would rather she died.

The fingertips still retained the warmth of Yingtang's last handshake, but the light green spot in front of her eyes was drifting farther and farther away, like a banyan flower blown away by the wind, which could not be caught or kept.

She suddenly thought of the old banyan tree on the hillside of Yaoxi Mountain... The villagers always liked to bring bamboo stools to the shade of the tree, fanning themselves with palm-leaf fans and chatting about how many ears of wheat had emerged in the fields and how many eggs the chickens had laid.

The children would tie a hemp rope to the thickest branch to make a simple swing. When they swung, their skirts would sweep across the grass on the ground, and their laughter would float to the middle of the mountain.

Yingtang sat by the tree roots, a coarse cloth spread before her, on which she had gathered herbs to dry. The sunlight filtered through the gaps between the branches and leaves, falling on her like a shower of gold. Occasionally, she would look up, smile at the children swinging on the swings, then pluck a dew-soaked banyan leaf and beckon Yunxiu, who had come running over, to squat. Her fingertips flew, and she quickly wove a small banyan leaf bracelet. The leaf tip was still slightly damp, and it felt cool on her wrist.

"Senior sister will perform some magic for you so that mosquitoes won't dare to bite you." Yingtang said with a smile at that time.

Banyan tree...it only cares about providing shade for others, but forgets that it will also be destroyed by wind and rain.

Yunxiu's chest felt like it was blocked by boiling magma, and the pain made her almost bend over.

She could only watch helplessly as those around her left one by one. Zhi Huan was still there, as was the remnant of the ancient god. She held the power of Ying Tang and Wu Yi in her hands, yet she felt like an empty shell, barely able to lift her sword.

Yunxiu took a deep breath and forced back the tears in her eyes. She slowly turned around and looked at Zhihuan.

"I want you to pay."