Chapter 64 Yongfo Temple

It's even colder on Mount Linjun.

After leaving the noodle shop, Bian Yi did not use her lightness skill, and even withdrew her internal energy. She walked on her feet, step by step, up the stone steps. The cold wind had long since dried her eyes, wiping away the traces of tears.

The higher she climbed, the slower Bian Yi's pace involuntarily slowed. She hunched her shoulders, hugged her arms tightly, and shivered in the cold wind.

In truth, she was afraid. She was afraid to see the grave she had built with her own hands, and afraid that she would have nothing to say when she saw her master and senior sister.

Bian Yi gritted her teeth and continued upwards, until dusk was almost over. She finally reached the lifeless mountaintop, her shoes and socks soaked through with snow water, her calves completely numb with cold.

To the left are the inscriptions of the entrance oath of Qingluan Medicine Valley, where every disciple who joins Qingluan Medicine Valley must swear an oath to the heavens.

If the deepest memories can accompany a person into reincarnation, then what went with her could only be these few sentences, almost etched into her soul.

"Saving the world comes first, gold and silver are secondary."

A beggar shared a bed with a king or nobleman.

I bear the blame for the people's weeping, and I am happy for their laughter.

The herbal medicine bag in my hand is only for treating injuries and illnesses.

The path of the martial world is treacherous; life and death are in the hands of fate.

"If I betray my master, may heaven and earth punish me."

In the distance, there were dilapidated houses with charred walls, showing signs of fire damage. The crumbling bricks and tiles seemed unable to withstand the falling snow. Bian Yi dared not approach, fearing that a single breath would topple them.

None of the others were intact; they were all broken beyond recognition. Bian Yi would occasionally step on some protruding pebbles or shards of porcelain. She would bend down, pick them up from the snow, and then hold them in her palms until they were as warm as her body temperature before carefully placing them back in the snow.

But in fact, she looks almost exactly the same as when she came back back then.

In the late autumn of the forty-ninth year of Zhenping, she was only seventeen years old. Not long ago, she had defeated Qin Ruoliu and become the true number one in the world. After only two weeks of rest, she couldn't wait to write a letter to her master and senior sister, writing a bunch of nonsense, describing how wonderful and arduous the competition was, and not forgetting to praise herself in every spare moment.

"You..."

However, she had no intention of going back yet; the martial world was far too interesting. Bian Yi, resting her chin on her hand, eagerly released the carrier hawk, watching it whistle and fly into the clouds, wishing she could receive a reply from her master and senior sister the very next moment.

She wants to spend a few more years with Fang Yanzhou and Guan Yuenan. As for that untrustworthy Ah Sui who suddenly disappeared, she doesn't care.

But Bian Yi never received that letter.

Before the letter arrived, the devastating news was that the Azure Phoenix Medicine Valley had been wiped out.

When Bian Yi heard the news, the entire martial arts world already knew. She was like an outsider caught in the crossfire, only finding out when the waves finally reached her feet.

"Do you know... the Azure Phoenix Medicine Valley changed overnight..."

"You bastard! Who is it?! If I find out who it is... I'll fight her to the death, I'll tear her flesh off and eat it with my wine!"

"Chu Wuding, the abbot of Qingluan Xianzhi Temple, was furious and vowed to hunt that person down to the ends of the earth."

"Not only that, Litangfang, Shenshu Tianjimen, Fengquan Villa, Tianminglou... even the Masked River has issued a life-or-death kill order."

"Who wouldn't be furious? That's the Azure Phoenix Medicine Valley..."

Bian Yi rushed back to Qingyun County for seven days and seven nights without sleep, but these rumors followed her like ghosts and snakes, clinging to her. She wanted to deny them, to tell those people to stop talking nonsense, to say that her master was ranked in the top ten on the Yunya Yitian Register, how could that be... how could that be...

But it wasn't until she actually stood before the ruins of Qingluan Medicine Valley, watching it lie silently like a corpse in the torrential rain, with layers of blood being washed away from the charred earth, flowing at Bian Yi's feet.

It's too late, she came back too late.

Only then did Bian Yi finally have to accept that the rumors were the truth. She frantically tried to find someone, but her throat was hoarse from shouting, tears of blood streamed from her eyes, and her ears were ringing. Exhausted, she collapsed in the rain, and no one answered her, no one held her in their arms.

When she woke up, she was still lying in the same spot. Bian Yi silently used the Dust Sword to cut off two stones from the mountaintop, erected empty graves for his master and senior sister, and then fled from this place as if escaping. He never returned after that, and twenty years passed in the blink of an eye.

Even after so long, she could still clearly and distinctly remember what Qingluan Medicine Valley should have looked like back then, and she could still recall the grandeur of Qingluan Medicine Valley as the number one sect in the martial arts world, where even the nights were illuminated by candlelight as bright as day, without a moment's rest.

Finally, the moon hung high in the sky. Despite a thousand thoughts of trepidation at returning home, Bian Yi dragged herself to the edge of the cliff. The silvery moonlight fell gently upon the two graves she had built with her own hands.

She stopped three steps away from the grave, knelt down, and kowtowed three times in the snow. As she bent down, she almost blended into the snow, which continued to fall, covering her head and body.

"Your unfilial disciple has not visited you in a long time."

She reached out and wiped the snow off the two tombstones, looking at the inscriptions she had hastily carved back then.

The tombstone on the right has three lines arranged from the top right to the bottom left, reading:

End of October, 49th year of Zhenping

Tomb of my revered teacher, Master Chen Shudong of Qingluan Medicine Valley

Unfilial disciple Bian Yi

It says on the left:

End of October, 49th year of Zhenping

Tomb of Wang Yizhi, the senior disciple of Qingluan Medicine Valley

Junior Sister Bian Yi

Then, Bian Yi embraced the two tombstones with her body, just like she had hugged her master and senior sister when she was a child. She pressed her cheek against the cool stone surface and whispered.

"Master, Senior Sister. After the New Year, it will be the twenty-second year."

Bian Yi suddenly didn't know what else to say. She sat down and first looked at her master Chen Shudong's tombstone. Then she drew her sword, Liaochen, from her waist and stood in the snow. She seemed a little guilty and spoke cautiously.

“You told me that this sword is steadfast because of the heart, and is wielded for the sake of all people. If I have not done well, I can no longer be considered a member of the Azure Phoenix Medicine Valley.”

Bian Yi's voice grew softer and softer as she spoke, and she lowered her head dejectedly, like a child who had made a mistake, secretly glancing at the adults' expressions.

But the grave remains forever the same, forever quiet, forever silent. Bian Yi paused, then said, "Never mind, let's not talk about these unhappy things. I finally managed to come see you, but I was in such a hurry that I didn't even have time to bring any wine."

"You still love listening to stories, so let me tell you what I've done over the years..."

She rambled on and on, but if you listened carefully, most of it wasn't actually her own story. She started by recounting how she founded the Jiangjin Alliance in the ninth year of Yongjing, but didn't mention a word about how she had spent the previous nine years alone. When she got to the most recent events, she talked the most about Lin Chengye.

Mentioning the child, Bian Yi's expression relaxed, even becoming cheerful. She was never stingy with praise, and with Lin Chengye not around, she wanted to praise him to the skies.

Feeling that it was about time, she turned her head to look at another grave, took out a cloth bag from her bosom, and poured out stones of various colors: bright red, patterned, semi-transparent black... as well as the warm jade she had taken from Mengshan City.

"Senior Sister, I wonder if you still enjoy collecting stones? All the places I've been over the years are here."

Suddenly, Bian Yi chuckled, as if he had thought of something interesting.

"Senior Sister, do you remember that our Qingluan Medicine Valley used to have a main gate? But there were so many people coming to see us that the threshold was almost worn down. You just waved your hand and tore the gate down, saying that a monument would do. Anyway, everyone knows Qingyun County, and everyone knows that there is a Qingluan Medicine Valley in Qingyun County."

"You should have kept it. Look, people don't know that anymore."

"I……"

Bian Yi's lips moved slightly. She wanted to ask them if they had received the letter. Now that she saw her, she wondered if they were disappointed, and if they resented her for coming back too late.

But ultimately, she felt it was meaningless. Her throat ached with a bitter taste, and she couldn't make a sound. Bian Yi rested her chin on her hand, her elbows on her knees, her eyes filled with tears as she stared motionless. If it weren't for the tears, she would have looked like the third grave under the moon.

She didn't know how much time had passed, but as the moon set and the sun rose, a thin layer of light appeared on the horizon. Only then did she move, her body already covered in a thick layer of snow. Bian Yi clasped her hands together, offered a devout prayer, and said finally.

“Master, I have now found Chen’er. She is now the Third Princess of Lai Kingdom. She lives a life of luxury and high status, so I have nothing to worry about. If you, Master and Senior Sister, are watching from heaven, please bless Cheng Ye and Chen’er so that they may have a safe and successful journey.”

...

"She's gone, and my messenger isn't dead. I can just write a letter if I need anything. But you, why are you playing chess so slowly? That's not like you at all."

To pass the time, Wei Jingchen pulled Lin Chengye into playing chess in the carriage. However, the man seemed uninterested; although his moves were still decisive and precise, he played very slowly for some reason.

"Your subject first thanks Prince Su for the carrier falcon, which will be of great use in the future."

Lin Chengye responded lazily, addressing himself as "your subject" without any respect, as if deliberately toying with Wei Jingchen. Jiang Heng, watching from the side, gripped the sword at his waist, furious.

This prince's ability to act on a whim has grown considerably. Early this morning, he suddenly told Lin Chengye that from now on, they should address each other as emperor and subject, lest he let something slip when they entered the palace. Lin Chengye thought to himself, she's not stupid; how could she make a mistake that would cost her her head?

She slowly placed a black piece, and as Wei Jingchen followed with a white piece, she suddenly raised an eyebrow, lifted her hand, and pressed his finger, which was about to be raised, onto the chessboard. She looked at Wei Jingchen's questioning eyes with a half-smile and asked.

“But this is not the road to Lin Su City, Third Prince. Even in heavy snow, the road to Lin Su City should not be so quiet and remote.”

"I'm wondering when you'll find out."

Wei Jingchen scoffed.

"You really think I split into two groups just for fun?"

"I'll go see someone first, since it was her summons that brought me back."

"You mean, Her Highness the Princess?"

Lin Chengye was startled. She knew she would see him sooner or later, but she didn't expect it to be so soon.

Her feelings towards the Eldest Princess were extremely complex. She didn't know how much this person was involved in the Lin family's affairs, or whether she was also an enemy. The name "Eldest Princess" was like a shadow looming over the land of Lai, seemingly indifferent, but actually permeating everything.

This situation, completely unknown to a person, made Lin Chengye feel uneasy, which was unusual for him.

"...You mean, we're going to Yongfo Temple right now?"

"Yes, you will meet your aunt, that..."

Wei Jingchen suppressed her smile, clearly not at ease herself either; perhaps her sudden invitation to play chess was a way to calm herself down.

"The most powerful person in the entire country of Lai."