Chapter 80 The Night Without Light "When did he arrive?"

In the dark pit, a section of gnarled roots, as translucent as jade yet dazzling as gold, emerges from the soil, radiating a faint spiritual light that brings tranquility to the mind, yet also stirs a subtle sadness.

Lin Feiran subconsciously raised her hand to touch it; it was slightly hot to the touch, yet very soothing.

"What is this?" Hanshan asked in surprise.

Murong Qiudi jumped into the cave with him and examined it carefully, but still had no clue. Her expression hardened slightly, and she said, "I will inform the Sage about this matter, and how to handle it will be up to them."

Li Changfeng sat casually to the side, unconcerned, drinking wine and gazing at the moon with a detached expression.

Xie Kanhua pondered, "Logically speaking, these secret realms were all created by sages, so they should know everything within them. Why have we only seen them wandering around the city so far, without taking any action?"

Murong Qiudi sighed softly, leaped out of the cave with Lin Feiran, and said slowly, "As we all know, the path of cultivation can lead to longevity, but not immortality."

The so-called Holy Spirits are all saints who should have passed away, yet forcibly left a trace of their divine consciousness between heaven and earth. This is against the laws of nature, but the reason they were able to remain is because of the special terrain of the Pilgrimage Valley, which is now Spring City…”

At this point, Murong Qiudi suddenly paused. She immediately walked to the cave and examined it carefully. Her brows gradually furrowed. Then, she formed a hand seal and pushed all the loosened soil back in, restoring the pit to its original state. Still not satisfied, she added another layer of seal to the pit.

"Li Changfeng, you stay here and guard the place. Do not let anyone approach. If those three return, you only need to seal the young man before he speaks. With your swordsmanship, this is not difficult."

Li Changfeng twirled the longsword in his hand, lay flat on it, and agreed, "Lord Murong has a discerning eye. No one but me, Li Changfeng, is capable of lying still."

As soon as Li Changfeng fell, he met the eyes of Lin Feiran, who was looking him over. Lin Feiran's gaze was quite peculiar, carrying a mixture of admiration and respect, yet also a hint of doubt.

I feel like I recognize him, but I don't.

He didn't speak, but looked back with the same gaze. As he looked, his eyes suddenly changed, and he said, "So it was you."

Lin Feiran was startled, but didn't show it. She just blinked a couple of times, then a hint of joy quietly rose within her: "Senior recognizes me?"

Li Changfeng chuckled, turned around, and said lazily, "I recognize you, I won't forget you. I've lived for many years, and you're the only child I've ever seen with such excellent spiritual potential."

As he spoke, his voice softened, his eyes became hazy, as if he were reminiscing or looking back, or as if he were in a dream.

The reason why it is difficult to cultivate sword bones is because it needs to be nourished by sword heart. Sword heart is the heart of a child. A child's heart is hard to maintain, and sword heart is easy to dissipate.

Many people in the world, after being tempered by life's trials and tribulations and facing setbacks everywhere, will lose their original intentions, just like him now. If he draws his sword again, he will no longer be Li Changfeng.

He sighed and said, "Your bones are in very good condition, even better than before."

Lin Feiran was still a young girl, and when she was suddenly praised by someone she admired, she couldn't hide the slight upturn of her lips no matter how hard she tried to conceal it. She said, "Senior is too kind."

Li Changfeng had no intention of reminiscing. Upon seeing his old friend, he was not pleased. He merely looked at her with reminiscence, then turned back and drank his wine, sipping it again and again, without saying another word.

Lin Feiran's heart skipped a beat, and she wanted to say something more, but seeing the slight regret in his eyes, she simply rubbed her fingertips a few times and swallowed her words.

After Murong Qiudi settled everyone in, she turned to Lin Feiran and asked, "Are you coming back to the city with me, or with your friends?"

"friend?"

Seeing that she was unaware, Murong Qiudi raised her chin and pointed behind her. Lin Feiran turned around and saw a person sitting quietly on the steps of a house in the distance. The shadow of the eaves covered most of the figure.

If it weren't for the shimmering sword lying askew beside her, and if it weren't for the half-sliver of pale blue peeking out from beneath the ink-black background, she really wouldn't have been able to tell who that dark figure was.

Lin Feiran paused for a moment, then asked, "When did he arrive?"

Murong Qiudi glanced at him and said, "Just as you jumped into the pit, he rushed over from the city, but did not go up to you. When he saw you, he just stood there. At first glance, he looked like a ghost."

Lin Feiran: "..."

Murong Qiudi coughed lightly: "Two people just delivered a message to you. Who was it?"

Lin Feiran turned her head and looked at him with a look of doubt in her eyes. She did not expect that Murong Qiudi would ask such a question: "He is the one who was the messenger bird later."

Murong Qiudi suddenly realized that the two had a good relationship, so she felt relieved and patted her shoulder, saying, "The situation is urgent, so we'll go ahead first. You should focus on getting the flowers. If you can enter the valley and seize the sword, it will be a great opportunity for you."

Lin Feiran nodded: "Okay, thank you, senior."

Murong Qiudi drew her sword from her waist, mounted it, and flew into the inner city like a streak of light. Hanshan Jun glanced at Lin Feiran and followed closely behind. Xie Kanhua, however, did not mount her sword but instead slowly walked back to the inner city.

After everyone left, only Li Changfeng remained, gazing at the moon, oblivious to worldly affairs.

Lin Feiran turned around to say goodbye to him, glanced at Wei Changzai, pursed her lips, and stepped forward.

...

Murong Qiudi rose up on her sword and fell into the central pagoda like a shooting star. There were many resentful cultivators imprisoned on the pagoda. They were cursing something, but when they saw Murong Qiudi through the window, they immediately fell silent, like mice seeing a cat.

Murong Qiudi did not go up the tower. She raised her hand and waved it, and the stone windows on the tower immediately became covered with a layer of gray-white, making it difficult for people to see out.

After checking her surroundings and confirming that no one could see her, she formed a hand seal, and the magic array beneath the tower opened. She then leaped into it.

Beneath the tower lies another secret realm, where three holy spirits are currently seated, seemingly discussing something.

Upon hearing the sound, the three turned to look. If Lin Feiran were there, he would surely recognize one of them as their long-lost grandmaster.

The Grandmaster did not speak, but the Holy Spirit in the middle looked at her and asked, "Murong, has something happened?"

Murong Qiudi did not look up directly. She performed a Taoist salute and recounted in detail what she had seen that night before finally looking up.

The sage in the middle sighed slowly, his face solemn: "They actually found the Goddess Sect. Indeed, if we want to trace the lineage, who can compare to the people of the Goddess Sect?"

As a descendant of the Murong clan, Murong Qiudi was quite familiar with the secrets of the Pilgrimage Valley. She cupped her hands slightly and said, "Esteemed Sages, the important thing right now is not the Goddess Sect, but that they have discovered the spiritual vein of the Pilgrimage Valley!"

The reason why Pilgrimage Valley can accommodate so many holy spirits is because of its special terrain. The crisscrossing mountains and rivers form a natural and nurturing spirit-gathering array, and the so-called spiritual veins are the places that connect to the array.

If the spiritual veins are severed and the terrain of the pilgrimage valley is breached, the Holy Spirit will find it difficult to survive.

Thinking of this, Murong Qiudi's slightly cold face showed a hint of anger: "They have the ambition of wolves, and they actually want the sage to perish!"

The sage shook his head slightly, a hint of a smile in his voice: "Murong, we have already vanished into the world, so what difference does it make whether we exist or not? It's just that we can't let go..."

He paused slightly at this point, then changed the subject, saying, "Don't panic. The spiritual veins don't stay in one place. They often wander through the valleys, and even we don't know their whereabouts. If they want to find them again, it will probably take a lot of effort. Besides, even if they find them, it will be difficult to sever them."

Murong Qiudi frowned deeply: "Who exactly are they? Why have I never heard a word about them all these years?"

The sage shook his head, his gaze distant: "We cannot leave the Pilgrimage Valley, and we know nothing about the affairs of the outside world. Ten years ago, the Heavenly Evolution Sage could not hold on and completely disappeared into the valley. Since then, no one has been able to divine... We do not know who they are now."

Murong Qiudi lowered her eyes and sighed slightly, then said, "Since they have followers, there must be some clues that they haven't erased. Rest assured, everyone, I will thoroughly investigate this matter after the Flying Flower Society incident is over."

The sage's gaze was gentle, yet tinged with apology: "We call ourselves sages, but we can do nothing. In the end, we still have to trouble you juniors."

Before Murong Qiudi could speak, another sage said, "Sage Yunzong is overthinking things. This world belongs to us, but it also belongs to them. We are just doing our part. There is no trouble involved."

Sage Yunzong turned his head and looked at him, then smiled with relief, saying, "That's right, our master's thinking is still the most insightful. We're just doing our best."

The Grandmaster then looked at Murong Qiudi and suddenly asked, "When you were wandering around the city, I heard others call you 'Lord Murong.' Are you working for the human race or a member of the Star Domain?"

Murong Qiudi nodded: "Now I am the commander of the Feather Guard Army, and also serve as an imperial attendant and a female official in charge of military affairs. I have nothing to do with the Star Domain."

The Grandmaster nodded and said, "If an investigation is to be conducted, I would like to ask Lord Murong to investigate secretly. This matter must not be known to anyone else, including the Human Emperor."

"Holy one, please rest assured. On the first day we entered the city, we swore an oath that we would never reveal what we knew or saw in the city."

The four sacrificial officials selected this time were chosen by divination before the Heavenly Evolutionary Saint disappeared. They are all kind-hearted, courageous and insightful people. Therefore, the Grandmaster only gave them some pointers and did not say much.

Murong Qiudi bowed slightly to her grandmaster, then stood up and said, "However, there is still one thing I don't understand. The young man we met earlier was very peculiar. When he used his magic, he didn't need to form hand seals or runes, but his movement was extremely poor, unlike that of a cultivator. Moreover, the way his words flowed with his magic was more like... the legendary wanderer."

She was not familiar with this; she had only heard her grandfather mention it briefly when she was young. If it weren't for the boy's truly strange nature, she probably wouldn't have remembered this so-called wanderer.

The Sage of Clouds' expression slightly hardened, and he said in a deep voice, "Skywalker."

Skywalker's words are law; his speech becomes incantations that cannot be broken. The source of all magic, formations, and runes in the world is Skywalker's incantations.

Murong Qiudi understood upon hearing this, and then slowly exhaled: "If one hadn't experienced it firsthand, who would believe that the Skywalker was so powerful? No matter what level one's cultivation is, one is utterly powerless against him."

"May I ask, Sage, how can this curse be broken? If one encounters it, is there truly no choice but to surrender?"

The sage shook his head: "There is no way to break it, but Yin and Yang are in balance. They cannot cultivate, their bodies are weak, and the incantations they utter will backfire on them. They cannot withstand speaking continuously. Just as you said, his hoarse voice is one of the backlashes. When he loses his voice, that will be the day he dies. It's a pity..."

If we were to face them head-on, there would be no other option but to wear them down in turn.

Another sage opened his eyes and said in a light voice, "Murong, you don't need to worry about this. The spiritual vein was just attacked and has already escaped and disappeared. You only need to take care of the cultivators in the city. Leave the rest to us, and we will drive them out of the city."

Murong Qiudi knew she was no match for him, so she could only bow and sigh, "Yes."

Having reported all the unusual circumstances, she had no further reason to stay and bowed to take her leave.

After she left, the female saint looked at her grandmaster and said softly, "The reason we opened the Pilgrimage Valley is to choose a sword master for it. Will that little girl you mentioned be chosen?"

The grandmaster smiled and said in a casual tone, “The flowers you put in the secret realm were not enough to begin with. It’s almost impossible for eighty-one people to return with a full load of flowers. In addition, there were only ten old plum branches in the twelve flower tokens. In the end, you only want to choose the ten people who will take the sword. Whether she can get it or not, who knows? Let’s wait and see.”

...

The clouds obscure the view, leaving only the bright moon shining.

The moonlight shone down on the deserted streets, casting a slanted shadow on a figure.

When Lin Feiran returned from the outer city, he did not walk towards Wei Changzai, but instead walked into the city without looking to the side, as if he had not noticed the figure under the eaves.

Surprisingly, Wei Changzai did not call out to her; he simply followed slowly behind without saying a word.

He moves quickly when she moves fast, and slowly when she moves slow, as if following in her footsteps, or as if strolling alone under the moon, his footsteps occasionally faltering.

Lin Feiran suddenly stopped and turned around. Wei Changzai was not expected to do so. He opened his eyes slightly, then stopped in the shadows and silently looked at her, pursing his lips without saying a word.

Lin Feiran stepped forward, calmed his emotions, and said, "I had been sensing someone following me, but I didn't know who it was. It turns out to be Fellow Daoist Wei. Why didn't you call me?"

The two stood facing each other, one under the moonlight and the other in the shadows, one in light and the other in darkness, their light and shadows intertwined.

Wei Changzai's gaze fell on her face. He was about to explain when he suddenly paused. His slightly long eyes curved into a smile, and his originally cold expression suddenly melted away, as if the condensed light was breaking through the ice and flowing gently, becoming vivid in an instant.

He pointed to her face.

"Wenran, there's something on your face."

Lin Feiran frowned in confusion, raised her hand to touch it, and found that it was indeed a bit rough. Upon seeing this, Wei Changzai drew his Lianyan sword, used the blade as a mirror, and leaned slightly to reflect her face.

On the cold blade, his once fair face was covered in dust, with several obvious mud marks. His whole body looked like a pearl covered in dust, except for his eyes, which were still clear and bright.

Lin Feiran stared at it intently for a moment, then raised her hand to wipe it, but the more she wiped, the grayer it became, leaving her speechless.

"Never mind, let's wash after we find water. What were you trying to say by sending me those two messages earlier?"

"Since you've received my two letters, why haven't you replied? Have I done something to offend you, Fellow Daoist?"

He was very eloquent; with just one sentence, he left Lin Feiran speechless, only able to reply, "No, I simply don't have time."

Wei Changzai didn't mind, and a smile still lingered on his face. He carefully looked her over, then handed Lianyan to her. He then took out a piece of silk cloth and a pot of jade spring water from his mustard seed bag. The silk cloth gradually darkened in color after being moistened by the spring water.

A plum blossom is embroidered in the corner of the silk fabric, with slanted branches and vibrant flowers, lifelike and reminiscent of the gentle and graceful style of Jiangnan embroiderers, but this was embroidered by Wei Changzai.

The year they first got together, the two celebrated the Qixi Festival in Luoyang. A skilled embroiderer told them that if lovers could exchange fragrant handkerchiefs according to her embroidery techniques, they would grow old together.

Lin Feiran knew they just wanted to sell the embroidered handkerchiefs in the manor, so she bought two without telling them, as a way of bringing good luck. But Wei Changzai didn't understand. He went straight into the cloth shop and spent the whole day learning embroidery.

The boy, with his moon-like beauty and eagerness to learn, won the favor of many embroiderers without much effort. After he paid a small tuition fee, they were willing to teach him everything they knew.

That day, he studied all day, and Lin Feiran waited all day.

A month after the Qixi Festival, the two were meditating and cultivating as usual when he suddenly took out a brocade handkerchief and gave it to her. He didn't say anything, and his silent eyes only reflected her image.

On the brocade handkerchief was a sprig of winter plum blossom, its color extremely vibrant red, seemingly exuding vitality even on a snowy day.

As his thoughts drifted, the brocade cloth became soaked. He leaned slightly closer, his dark eyes reflecting her silently, just as always.

Lin Feiran's brows suddenly furrowed. She tilted her head slightly to avoid him, and Wei Changzai's hand stopped in place. His eyelashes trembled slightly, his smile vanished, and his gaze lingered on her face. His thin red lips parted slightly, and he breathed on her cheek.

"...Fellow Daoist Wen, what's wrong?"

Lin Fei then took a half step back, looked away, and reached out to take the brocade cloth: "It's improper, I can do it myself."

Wei Changzai looked at her: "Do cultivators also care about worldly etiquette?"

Lin Feiran wiped it a few times casually, without looking back: "Cultivators are also human beings."

Wei Changzai did not speak again. Of course he knew that if Lin Feiran hadn't been so polite, she would have rejected him as a "stranger" long ago.

But when they were still "together," the rules of propriety were blurred; he could be close to her and walk side by side with her. Once they parted, these privileges all disappeared.

Lin Feiran ignored his expression and asked, "Fellow Daoist Wei, you have not yet answered why you sent me a message?"

With his eyelashes lowered, Wei Chang could only sense her presence from this distance. He quietly sniffed her breath, a hint of longing that he himself was unaware of.

"Elder Xunfang was also present when the disciples gathered earlier. She obtained many flower tokens and is currently on her way to find you."

Lin Feiran paused, puzzled, and asked, "Why are you looking for me?"

Wei Changzai took the handkerchief from her hand, put it into his mustard seed bag, and looked up, saying, "Have you forgotten? She wanted to kill you."

Lin Feiran then recalled the past. She handed Lianyan back and turned to leave, saying, "Come if you want. I am not afraid of her. Did you come here to tell me about this?"

Wei Changzai followed: "No."

After saying this, he didn't speak again. Lin Feiran really didn't understand, but didn't want to ask any more questions. She walked quickly into the city, but no matter what, she couldn't get rid of the figure behind her.

Lin Feiran stopped in his tracks: "If Fellow Daoist Wei has nothing else to do, you may go and take the flower token."

"...I have something to do."

Wei Chang remained silent for a long time before uttering these three words, but he eventually stopped walking. Even as she walked away, he did not follow.

And so, only a lingering gaze remained fixed behind him, neither too close nor too far, impossible to shake off.

Lin Feiran simply put him out of her mind and headed towards the clock tower.

Just as the moment of killing the flower farmer was approaching, the once quiet city suddenly became restless, and more and more people appeared in the streets and alleys. Lin Feiran's pace also gradually quickened.

As she passed a pharmacy that was not lit, she suddenly heard a painful groan coming from inside. So she turned and stopped in front of the door.

She regulated her breathing and peered through the crack. Her gaze paused for a moment, and inside stood Chenghua and Qi Chen, who had been missing for a long time.

Orange Blossom seemed to be suffering from a cold attack, trembling in his arms. Qi Chen was torn between making medicine and holding her, so his movements became awkward and flustered. Not to mention that cultivators might break down the door at any moment...

Lin Feiran hesitated for a moment, then knocked on the wooden door. Qi Chen, as if he already knew who was outside, said without even looking up, "Please come in."

Lin Feiran pushed open the door and entered. Qi Chen took a moment from his busy schedule to glance at her and said, "Please help my wife up, I'll go get the medicine."

Lin Feiran looked slightly surprised, but still helped Chenghua up as instructed: "You recognized me?"

Qi Chen got up and walked to the counter, expertly picking out several medicines: "I don't recognize you, but I recognize the Demon Lord. He always has six envoys by his side, so I can guess who you are with a little guess."

When Orange Blossom wasn't by his side, his speech was filled with indifference and coldness, and even his beautiful face seemed to lose some of its charm.

He glanced at the door while dispensing medicine and said, "Who is that person? They've been following you."

Lin Feiran turned around and saw a blurry figure projected far away in front of the wooden door, completely exposed. She sighed, "Don't worry about him. If he's willing to stay outside, let him guard the door."

Qi Chen responded and didn't speak again. He wasn't interested in anything other than orange blossoms. Since Lin Feiran knew him, he didn't need to eliminate the root of the problem and could just focus on preparing the medicine.

The pharmacy always had a unique, bitter smell that made people's mouths and tongues numb, but he didn't care at all. He ground the herbs that had been roasted for a long time into powder, then poured in nectar to mix them, turning them into a sour and smelly thick paste. Then he hurriedly walked to the side of the orange blossom.

Lin Feiran looked down and saw that Cheng Hua was smiling but her eyes were lifeless, just like a flower farmer. However, she was also shivering from the cold, her eyelashes were covered with a light frost, her lips were pale, and she was exhaling white breaths, occasionally letting out a few painful groans.

She paused slightly, her warm palm covering the back of Chenghua Ningshuang's hand, and suddenly said, "So, even as a flower farmer, you can feel pain."

Qi Chen didn't look up: "Of course they'll feel pain. They're human, not real puppets. Even if they can be resurrected, every death, every injury..."

"It's all true." Lin Feiran's eyes were calm. She looked at Chenghua and suddenly remembered the subtle flicker in her eyes when she fought Xuanzhen.

Qi Chen removed the orange blossom's outer garment, revealing his thin, bony back: "Yes, I discovered it by accident; they still retain consciousness."

He lowered his eyelashes, raised his hand to brush across Orange Blossom's eyes, and whispered almost softly, "My Orange Blossom, you're getting too cold."

Lin Feiran understood immediately; this was probably why he subconsciously stopped him when he was having a literary duel with Hanshan Jun.

Thus, the other flower growers are the same as those growing orange blossoms.

Lin Feiran pursed her lips and remained silent, wrapping the orange blossoms around herself. It was the first time she had ever seen someone treat a cold ailment.

He applied a thin layer of the previously prepared thick ointment to his back to seal in all the escaping cold air. Then, he took out a piece of withered twig from his mustard seed bag.

About two fingers long, as thin as a reed, with dry, hard bark clinging to the outside, clearly lifeless, only a grayish color remaining, yet a radiance shines through the cracks, as if a fire is burning, blazing brightly.

This is a small piece of hibiscus wood.

The two fingers holding the hibiscus wood couldn't withstand the intense heat and were burned red and swollen. After a while, even a faint sizzling sound reached the ears, like roasting meat, making one's hair stand on end.

However, Qi Chen seemed completely unaware, as if he wasn't the one being scorched. He held the Fusang wood, pointed it at the orange blossom's back, and slowly pierced the spine with its withered tip.

In an instant, the golden, fiery energy from the withered branches flowed into my spine. Centered on the point where it entered, the fiery energy flowed downstream, spreading through every vein in my body, one, two, three…

The veins on his back shone brightly like gold melting in the blazing sun, clinging to his back like a spider web, as if being scorched by a raging fire.

The person beneath the palm trembled uncontrollably, and a few broken, gurgling sounds escaped from their throat. In the midst of the pain, the frost that had formed gradually faded away, and the stiff blood vessels began to circulate.

Orange Blossom still wore a smile, but the tears welling up in her eyes were definitely not those of the puppet.

After a while, the fire within the Fusang tree dissipated, and it finally lost its only life force, turning into an ordinary withered branch, which in an instant turned into dust.

Qi Chen closed his eyes reluctantly, took the orange blossom from Lin Feiran's arms, and held it in his arms, whispering words of comfort.

Looking at the two people nestled together, Lin Feiran was moved and finally left silently, leaving them a place of their own.

After leaving the pharmacy, Lin Feiran did not look at Wei Changzai in the shadows across the street. Her mind was still in turmoil, and she quickly walked into the alley.

The time had come, and the cultivators who had been lying in wait in the shadows leaped out, each drawing their swords, and attacked the flower farmer who was smiling and waiting in the courtyard.

The sword flashed, and the man fell into a pool of blood without even a cry of fear.

Lin Feiran watched quietly, and suddenly wondered if they also had tears they hadn't shed.

Thinking this, he drew his sword.