Before Dawn 2

Stone tablet.

Huaiwen was somewhat stunned.

The stone tablet at the bottom of the clear water pool on Fengqin Mountain seemed like it came from yesterday, awakening her memories. She wondered, could this stone tablet have some connection with that one on Fengqin Mountain?

“I’ve been to this stone forest before, but how come I’ve never seen this stone that looks like a tombstone?” Mo Heng asked.

Pei Suqin sneered, "Of course you won't see it, because it only appeared in the last few days."

"These past few days?" Mo Heng frowned.

If it happened in the last few days, then it makes sense. Pei Suqin only recently arrived on the island, as did her master Fulin. Even Canglun and the others learned from the Heavenly Lord that Fulin had been here recently.

As Huaiwen pondered, Xuanye made a hand seal with two fingers, opening the entrance to the stone tablet. He gestured for Mo Heng to go in first, then toss Pei Suqin inside. Huaiwen followed closely behind, stepping forward, but Xuanye pulled him back.

He placed a cherry blossom foxfire in the center of his palm: "A-Jun, keep this safe."

“This is…” Huaiwen hesitated. She knew what it was, but she didn’t accept it.

Xuan Ye did not allow Huai Wen to refuse. He took Huai Wen's right hand and said, "At Shiling Mountain, you tried to chant a spell to form a contract with me. But Ah Jun, although that contract was formed, your cultivation was not profound at that time, and I did not let you have complete control. Now, I am unwilling to let anything happen to you again. Accept it and let us form a complete contract."

This cherry blossom foxfire is different from any of the previous ones; it shines brightly in full bloom.

In an instant, Huaiwen was swept away by a warm feeling, as if a cherry blossom tree had grown in her heart, deeply rooted in the soil of her heart, no matter how much it was beaten or blown by the wind, it could never be moved or uprooted.

“Okay.” Huaiwen took the unique cherry blossom foxfire and said calmly, “Let’s go in.”

As soon as they entered, the ferocious demons and ghosts began to attack! Mo Heng, who was being toyed with by them, stopped teasing them when Huai Wen arrived and instead pounced on and tore at him.

If it weren't for Xuan Ye's foxfire, which could wipe out dozens of them in one go, they would probably have continued to fall one after another.

Pei Suqin was mocking; she was communicating with the ghosts, wishing she could tear the three of them apart right then and there. Huaiwen, on the other hand, seemed to attract the attention of these ghosts; the black energy and cursed shackles within her body were indirectly connected to them.

Huaiwen took two more steps forward, and the black energy within her body began to surge uncontrollably. She tried to control it, but in an instant, the black energy within her body resonated with these malevolent ghosts.

Among them, one wisp of ghostly spirit was different from the others. It was not ferocious at all; in fact, it was quite gentle. Unlike the other ghostly spirits that were pressuring Huaiwen, trying to possess and devour him, it was soothing him, attempting to forgive.

Xuan Ye helped Huai Wen up. Looking up at the group of dark, ghostly figures before him, Xuan Ye felt a surge of rage, wanting to tear them to pieces. He used magic to help Huai Wen control the black energy within his body and asked, "A-Jun, are they controlling you? Try using my foxfire to burn them inside your body."

Huaiwen shook his head: "It is my master's spirit that is here!"

"The soul of the true god of Fulin is here?" Mo Heng exclaimed in surprise.

“Hmm…I sensed it.” Huaiwen withdrew Xuan Ye’s hand, which had been igniting foxfire. “No.”

Xuan Ye then stopped, suppressing his anger: "What exactly do you want to do to me?"

Huaiwen straightened up: "Master won't do anything to me."

“Junior sister, since you’ve come to find Master, stop dawdling. See how you can find that wisp of Master’s soul,” Pei Suqin said, raising her voice.

Mo Heng asked, "Won't there be any danger?"

Xuan Ye's brows furrowed again. He said, "I will not let you take any risks."

"Don't worry, I told you there's no danger," Huaiwen reassured Xuan Ye. "Besides, I still have the foxfire you gave me, how could there be any danger?"

Xuan Ye was reluctant, but Huai Wen's eyes were so resolute that he finally relented: "But remember, if anything unexpected happens, be sure to call me. I'll be right beside you."

Huaiwen nodded in agreement and gestured for the others to step back.

The black mist mingled with the spirit butterflies, surging forth from Huaiwen's body. The surrounding ghosts seemed frightened, daring not to approach, only letting out low growls. Even Pei Suqin was somewhat affected, his expression grim.

The disciples of Fengqin Mountain possess a secret communication technique passed down within their sect, but when used between people, Fulan is merely a wisp of soul, rendering this secret technique and incantation ineffective.

Pei Suqin had been waiting for Huaiwen to make a mistake, but it never happened.

A bright white light began to emanate from Huaiwen's body. She formed a spell with her hands and chanted, "The Dao is in my heart, take the soul and bring it to my use."

In an instant, the white light converged from in front of Huaiwen into a powerful net, which stretched forward, causing the surrounding ghosts to retreat. The net passed through Xuan Ye and Mo Heng, firmly sealing Pei Suqin, who had been watching the show.

Before Pei Suqin could struggle or resist, Huaiwen's fingertips shifted, and two datura flowers emerged from Pei Suqin's and Huaiwen's bodies respectively. Pei Suqin then understood that Huaiwen intended to use her as an intermediary to communicate with the ghost of the spirit offering the prayer flag!

"Break Soul Movement, advance!" Huaiwen suddenly intensified the incantation.

A wisp of blue soul gradually appeared within the stone tablet, and Huaiwen closed his eyes to watch.

After a long while, Huaiwen opened her eyes. She was in a certain space. This space stretched infinitely, and she couldn't reach the end. But soon, a door appeared before her, and Huaiwen pushed it open without hesitation.

This was a pure white space, where she had transformed into a wisp of soul. No human figure, no soul, only echoing sounds reverberated within.

"Master? Are you there?" Huaiwen asked.

“I’m here, Huaiwen,” Fulin replied. “Why did you come in?”

"Master, I have many questions I want to ask you."

Fu Lin sighed, "Huaiwen, sometimes you just have to stop asking questions to get by."

Huaiwen said, "But Master... I can't live without knowing why. It's like... Master, why am I alive?"

After a long pause, Fu Lin replied, "I always felt like I was protecting you, but in the end, I didn't do anything right. Huaiwen, your teacher has also made many mistakes."

"Master..."

"Now that things have come to this, I will no longer hide anything from you. But Huaiwen, if you find out these things, I can no longer call you your master," Fulin said sadly. "Then, for this last time, I will help you move forward."

The sound of the rubbing disappeared, the white space vanished abruptly, and Huaiwen was escorted outside.

But instead of returning to the inside of the stone, she arrived in the illusory realm three hundred years ago. She watched as Fu Lin retracted the large net that had been set up long ago. And she was inside it.

She soon arrived in the Gobi Desert, where the lotus flower was withering. Fu Lin felt a pang of heartache and, in the Gobi, activated a time-travel technique. Much later, Fu Lin fell to the ground, weightless, losing a wisp of his soul.

But the withered lotus flower grew back, only now its petals were covered with black spots and incantations.

The past has been changed. Both those who changed it and those who were changed will be punished.

Then Fulin returned to Fengqin Mountain, where she hid the withered lotus flower in the Clear Water Pool, using the spiritual energy of a human immortal as a screen and Fengqin Mountain as an offering, and quietly nurtured it for three hundred years.

Over the past three hundred years, countless streams of black energy have drifted out of the Clear Water Pool. The sealed-off Fengqin Mountain could not stop their escape. At first, the black energy merely merged with ghosts, but unexpectedly, it grew stronger and stronger, eventually beginning to wreak havoc on the human realm.

The clear water pool grew increasingly dark, leaving Fu Lin no choice but to awaken the slumbering Huai Wen. However, to avoid detection, he separated Huai Wen's spirit from his body. Huai Wen, originally asleep within the lotus, was forced to bloom, thus sealing his fate and the turmoil that lay ahead.

Huaiwen has no physical body, and it is not feasible to have a physical body at will in this world. The only ones who can bear the body are the people of Huaiwen's bloodline.

This is how Fu Lin found Liu Xi. He was young, but terminally ill. He was willing to use his remaining strength to save Huai Wen. Thus, Huai Wen's spirit entered Liu Xi's body and came back to life.

Feeling guilty, Fu Lin took Huai Wen back to the place of transvestites.

One master and one apprentice, now using new aliases, are Liu Xi and Huai Wen.

Who could have imagined that the black energy far exceeded Fu Lin's expectations? For the sake of the world, Fu Lin sealed the black energy together and suppressed it with a tombstone. But Pei Suqin unexpectedly disrupted the plan, and the tombstone fell from the sky, landing in Yong'an City.

The art of rewinding time alters the past, but Heaven will punish those who transgress it. Huaiwen is bound by a curse, the Yong'an Stone Tablet descends, the curse takes effect, and Huaiwen is controlled by black energy. He arrives in Yong'an City, preparing to slaughter the entire city.

Fu Lin was unwilling to see this happen. He wanted to use his divine power to change the curse, but because he lost his true self, his divine power was lost, and he killed half of the people in Yong'an.

The stench of blood temporarily revived Fulin, who had lost his senses. Looking at the person he had killed, remorse and pain overwhelmed him. What had he done? He was a god.

But then he saw that Huaiwen's cursed shackles had quieted down because he had killed everyone in the city.

He stroked the bamboo wick, looked up, tears welling in his eyes; it was all his fault.

If the source of this suffering is him, then let him bear it. Fu Lin has carried Xuan Ye in hiding for three hundred years, and now, there is no other way but to send Huai Wen down the mountain to find Xuan Ye. In this vast world, the only one left who can protect Huai Wen is him.

However, if we want to completely rescue Huaiwen, simply sending her to find Xuan Ye is not enough.

Someone needs to bear Huaiwen's pain, so these curses need to be removed.

That's why Fu Lin wanted to wear the "golden armor and jade suit" so he could help Huai Wen absorb the dark energy. Since the golden armor and jade suit were originally objects of the dead, Fu Lin would become a new substitute once again.

That's why Fu Lin came to this Pengxi land. After becoming a substitute, he used his last bit of divine power to seal himself in this desert stone forest and purify the black energy.

When all this is over, Fulin will return to nature, and Huaiwen will no longer be controlled and tormented by the black energy, and the world will no longer suffer as a result.

These events flashed through Huaiwen's mind like a dream. Just as she was about to scream "No!", the scenes before her eyes vanished. Huaiwen reached out to grab something, but could only fall, and was then pushed out by the door behind her.

"Bang—" The door slammed shut.

Huaiwen opened his eyes, the datura flowers began to wither, and Pei Suqin collapsed weakly to the ground.

Why do eyes produce tears?

Huaiwen cried bitterly.

Xuan Ye stepped forward and pulled Huai Wen into his arms: "A-Jun, what's wrong? What did your master say to you? Don't be afraid, I'm here. No one can hurt you, including your master."

Huaiwen covered his face, unable to answer amidst his sobs.

The ghosts within the stone began to stir again, screaming, causing the entire stone to shake. The black energy surrounding Huaiwen erupted uncontrollably. This black energy repelled Xuan Ye, scratched Mo Heng, and nearly swallowed Pei Suqin whole.

"A-Jun!" Xuan Ye shouted!

Blood began to seep through Huaiwen's white clothes, gradually staining them red.

Xuan Ye's pupils dilated as he faced Huai Wen's black energy attack head-on: "A-Jun, don't!"

Huaiwen moved her hands away, tears streaming down her face. She said, "A-Ling, it's me. I am the source of all this calamity. It was me, I caused all of this!"