Chapter 323 The Last Day

The day before the ladder descended, the bishop handed over the sword that had finally been forged to Fang Ke.

Only then can one take the sword and feel the power of the Golden Crow Wood within it.

Xiu's dark eyes were fixed on her. Fang Ke had only returned from the frigid north three months ago, but during those three months she had stayed in her own palace to study and had not had much interaction with him.

Fang Ke was avoiding him, or rather, Fang Ke didn't want to see him.

Xiu, realizing this was their last night, couldn't help but gaze at her fair and radiant face, and pondered, "Did you encounter anything when you were retrieving the ebony?"

Fang Ke's face was expressionless, the sharp silver sword casting a cold light on her face. Fang Ke said, "I've encountered a little trouble."

Xiu's face darkened. "What is it? You've never said, and..."

Xiu couldn't help but grasp her wrist; the small snake with the bright red mark was still there, which meant that Fang Ke had never used the Substitute Curse.

"Nothing, sir. Is there anything else?"

“Philomena…”

Xiu's gaze deepened, "...Can I really trust you tomorrow?"

Fang Ke looked up, her eyes clear and bright, and looked at him coldly. "You can rest assured about this. My goal is the same as yours."

Xiu didn't speak. After a long silence, he let out a deep sigh, "Is that so..."

He could tell that Philomena was completely different from the person she was before she set off to retrieve the ebony. He still remembered the hug from behind that day and the words she said.

She said she felt sorry for him and was willing to be the sword in his hand.

But now, is he the only one who remembers?

Throughout the year, Xiu recalled more than once that night when he was embraced for the first time, that unfamiliar feeling, like an electric current rushing into his heart.

No one knows how shocked he was, how he spent the year, or how he repeatedly restrained himself from recalling that soul-stirring embrace.

Xiu's anxious and apprehensive heart calmed down the moment he saw her step down from the carriage.

Philomena simply and politely bowed to him, handed him the ebony, and then said that she would go and rest first.

Faced with the crowd, even the bishop Xiu couldn't stop her, only watching her slender, graceful figure recede into the distance.

Three months have passed, and he has always restrained himself, not overstepping the bounds or acting recklessly.

But on this day, the feeling was different. Tomorrow the ladder would descend, and no one knew whether they would live or die.

Xiu looked at her at that moment, and instead of turning around and leaving, he said something that surprised even himself.

"Prove it?"

"?"

Fang Ke's expression changed slightly. "How will you prove it?"

"That's something you should consider."

"?"

Fang Ke then turned and went into the hall, dismissing those around him, and said to him, "Then come in."

build:"……"

Xiu didn't think much of it; he had casually entered and exited Fang Ke's bedroom before.

But at this moment, looking at Fang Ke, who was only wearing a simple white gauze dress and a coat, he found himself hesitant to take a step.

What could you possibly do inside so late?

But only for a moment, Xiu still followed her inside.

After being promoted to saintess, the palace she was assigned was in a relatively good location within the temple, with a garden and natural hot springs outside, the water of which came from the top of the snow-capped mountain.

He was allowed to sit in the garden pavilion for a while, and then the waiters who had returned set out a table of vegetarian food and red wine.

Xiu never expected that Fang would want to have a few drinks with him.

"..."

"Please sit down, sir. Let's have a proper chat?"

Xiu then took his seat.

After a few rounds of drinks, Fang Ke's face turned slightly flushed. Xiu wanted to remind her to stop drinking, but Fang Ke suddenly put down her glass and said...

"This world suffocates me."

Xiu Wei paused, then continued, "If we succeed tomorrow, have you thought about how to build a new kingdom, sir?"

Xiu frowned, shook his head, but said, "I only want to make one thing clear: this world does not need a god who is high above us."

Fang Ke chuckled lightly and asked Xiu what she was laughing at.

Fang Ke said, "So you mean we only need to keep the down-to-earth gods?"

“Is there anything wrong with that? Only by immersing oneself among people and witnessing the suffering of humanity can one know how to better bestow blessings upon all beings and reduce disasters, plagues, and poverty in this world.”

Fang Ke remained silent with a smile, so Xiu asked, "Then what are your thoughts?"

"Well... my thoughts..."

Fang Ke suddenly stood up, swaying slightly. Xiu unconsciously reached out a hand, wanting to catch her in time to prevent her from falling.

Fang Ke smiled and spread his five fingers, casually tracing them across the sky in front of him, and a pale blue phantom image appeared in the void.

Xiu Qichu simply sat there, assuming she was drunk and misusing magic.

The more she looked at those images, the more horrified she became. Finally, she stood up and walked over to him.

He couldn't help but ask, "What is this?"

Fang Ke said, "Don't you know that I come from another world? This is my world. What do you think?"

Xiu's eyes flashed with images that seemed to fly by, so many things he had never seen before. He looked at the towering skyscrapers, the grand and imposing overpasses, and the carriages that looked a bit like horse-drawn carriages speeding by.

He looked at everyone on the street, their faces beaming with smiles and hope for life. He saw that everyone was dressed in strange clothes, yet they were all happily gathered with their friends and family.

Watching them under the spotlight, dressed in elegant attire, clinking glasses and exchanging toasts, each woman stood equally and dazzlingly in the middle of the crowd.

Xiu was so shocked that he couldn't speak for a moment.

“Philomena…”

"My lord, I actually have another name."

Xiu turned to look at her, and Fang Ke also looked at the sky in front of her with a sense of nostalgia. She smiled and said, "I've been a Philomena for so many years that I've almost forgotten how."

"Actually, my name is Fang Ke."

"Fang Ke..."

Fang Ke suddenly stumbled, and Xiu quickly reached out to catch her, causing Fang Ke to fall headfirst into his arms.

She pressed her head against his chest and said in a muffled voice, "This is the world I want to build: autonomy, equality, civil rights, the rule of law..."

After she finished speaking, she seemed to fall into a deep sleep, leaving Xiu stunned and speechless.

Autonomy, equality, civil rights, rule of law...

He seemed to have never heard these words before.

He wanted to wake Fang Ke and ask her what these words meant, but looking at her sleeping face, he couldn't bear to.

Xiu gently ran his fingers across Fang Ke's cheek, and he felt as if he understood the person in his arms even less.

But he thought they still had time, and he could discuss the future with her properly after the War of the Gods ended tomorrow.

Their lives were long enough to sustain them until the moment they saw it.

Xiu's eyes cleared of cloudiness and filled with longing.

“Philomena… no, Fang Ke, you really are a treasure.”

That night, Xiu felt that Fang Ke had given him the answer he wanted. She really wanted to overthrow the current dictatorship of God and establish a new world. She was truly on his side.

Thinking of this, Xiu's heart swelled with excitement, and Fang Ke brought him all sorts of unprecedented experiences.

Xiu didn't take her back to the house, but instead they slept together in the garden under the open sky.

The starry sky surrounded them and did not dissipate; everything was incredibly dreamlike.

Xiu never imagined that just 12 hours later, the Golden Crow Divine Sword he had given to Fang Ke today would be piercing his chest, draining his blood, and all his expectations and hopes would be dashed.

He will never see the ideal country and future that Fang Ke showed him that night.