past

Ao Ming ate and drank with them for a while and gradually relaxed.

Looking at Elder Shen's kind yet undeniably lonely eyes, he finally asked the question that had been lingering in his mind for so long: "Elder Shen, your cultivation and foundation far surpass those of ordinary earth immortals. It would be no difficult for you to serve in the Heavenly Court and be ranked among the immortals. At the very least, you could receive offerings from a region and become a local deity. Why... do you insist on guarding this desolate valley alone, even going so far as to set up a barrier to prevent contact with the outside world?"

The old man's hand, which was about to pick up a piece of dried braised mushroom, froze in mid-air.

He slowly put down his jade chopsticks, picked up his wine cup but didn't drink it. He just stared at the amber liquid swirling in the cup, his gaze seemingly piercing through time and landing on a very distant place.

After a long silence, he sighed deeply, a sigh that seemed to carry the weight of countless years: "Your question... has made me realize how many years have passed in this world. Time passes unnoticed in the mountains, and the passing of winter is unknowable..."

Qian Jin tacitly refilled Elder Shen's cup, her voice softening, carrying a gentleness completely different from her usual lively self: "Senior has been waiting alone for so long, is there... something you haven't let go of? Or... someone you haven't let go of?"

Elder Shen glanced at Qian Jin, a flicker of surprise crossing his cloudy yet deep eyes, which quickly turned into a wry smile of relief, a smile tinged with longing and vicissitude: "Little girl, your mind is indeed sharp. So be it, so be it..."

He tilted his head back and downed the wine in his glass in one gulp. The rich wine seemed unable to dispel the bitterness that had accumulated over millennia. "Since you little kids are willing to keep this old man company with drinks and conversation, if you don't find it long-winded, I'll tell you a story from long ago."

His voice grew increasingly deep and hoarse, drawing the three of them into that long-forgotten past.

"I can't remember exactly how many years ago. I only remember that at that time, I was just a tiny ginseng seedling in this valley that had just developed sentience, and I was very ignorant." The old ginseng unconsciously stroked the warm wine cup with his fingertips, as if he could draw a trace of warmth from it. "At that time, a great god chose this valley to cultivate in seclusion."

“That great deity…” A gentle, almost pious glow appeared on the old man’s face. “She is very beautiful, the most beautiful and gentlest deity I have ever seen. Unlike other high and mighty gods, she takes great care of us little creatures in the valley. Like a spring breeze and rain, she brings withered trees back to life. The aura flowing around her can nourish all things.”

"This valley was changed because of her. Back then, it wasn't called Burial Valley of Souls; it had a beautiful name: Hidden Flower Valley." The old man's tone was full of nostalgia. "The great goddess was kind-hearted and took in many homeless or injured little fairies and spirits. This place was once the warmest and most vibrant place in the North, the home of all our creatures."

"Later, for some reason, the humans outside the valley learned that there was a powerful deity here, so they traveled over mountains and rivers to pray for good weather, for health and peace, for marriage and children... The great deity... always grants their requests." The old man's tone gradually lowered, carrying a trace of barely perceptible resentment and pain.

"She has spent far too much energy on this. I once advised her that everything has its own laws, and one must bear the consequences of one's actions. Excessive compassion can sometimes breed trouble. I have always been wary of humanity. Because I have seen with my own eyes that those whose wishes are fulfilled leave with profuse thanks, but very few truly return with a grateful heart. Those who do return are mostly after the next, even more greedy wish."

"Then..." Elder Shen's voice choked, and clear tears welled up in his eyes, which had seen through the world. He took a deep breath before continuing, "This world was struck by a great calamity. It was neither a natural disaster nor a man-made one, but rather as if the spiritual veins themselves had reached their end. The spiritual energy in the world suddenly dried up, all things withered, ice and snow froze all life, and even this valley began to decay and die rapidly."

"We were all in despair. It was the Great God... who chose to sacrifice herself." Elder Shen's voice trembled violently, each word seemingly uttered with all her might. "She said, 'Heaven and earth nourish my body with their spiritual energy, and I repay heaven and earth with this divine form. This is the cycle of reincarnation, and it is only right.' She exhausted her cultivation and divine soul accumulated over billions of years, transforming herself into the source that nourished this land, forcefully pulling this world, which was on the verge of complete annihilation, back from the brink of destruction..."

The air seemed to freeze, even the sound of the wind seemed to stand still. Qian Jin and Ao Ming held their breath, feeling a huge, tragic, selfless feeling choking them, and their noses stinging with unbearable tears.

As the old man closed his eyes, two streams of turbid tears finally slid down his deep wrinkles, dripping into the soil and being instantly absorbed, as if this land still yearned for the tears of its creator.

"But...but!" The old ginseng suddenly opened his eyes, which were no longer filled with sorrow, but with burning anger and utter desolation. "After the Great Goddess is gone! What did those mortals who once received her favors and praised her to the skies do?!"

His voice suddenly rose, sharp as if grinding metal: "They've turned their backs on us! They say there are no gods here at all, and all the miracles we've experienced in the past were just sorcery to trick people into offering sacrifices! Those who used to worship the great gods even... even gathered together, carrying torches, and rushed into the valley! They say this is a place of evil spirits and needs to be completely purified!"

Elder Shen's body trembled slightly with excitement. He pointed at the surrounding flowers, plants, and trees, his voice hoarse and tearful: "They set a fire! A raging fire! They wanted to burn everything here! To burn away all traces of the Great God's existence! They even gave this burned ruin a name full of curses and slander! Burial! Soul! Valley!"

"I...don't like this name!" The last sentence was almost a roar from the old ginseng, the grievances and anger that had been suppressed for thousands of years erupting like a volcano, shaking the surrounding flowers and plants, and even the fragrance of medicine in the air was tinged with sorrow.

He took a few deep breaths, trying to calm his turbulent emotions. His gaze swept over the three people who were listening intently, and his voice gradually lowered, carrying a hint of cold mockery: "So... I set up a maze at the valley entrance, using magic and illusion arrays to barely restore a small part of the valley's former appearance. I will not allow outsiders to defile this place again."

"Some time ago, those three fools who were blinded by money barged in..." A dangerous glint flashed in the old man's eyes. It was no longer the gaze of a kind old man, but the coldness and killing intent of a ten-thousand-year-old demon.

"I sensed their greed and fear, so I transformed into the form of an old hunter and led them deeper... At that time, the valley was filled not with the comforting spiritual energy we have now, but with a despairing miasma that could drive them to the brink of madness and make them see their most terrifying things."

The old man's fingertips unconsciously traced a faint white mark across the stone table. His tone was calm yet chilling: "I originally intended... to wipe them away silently in this valley, like eliminating a few eyesores of ants, turning them into fertilizer, which would be their last use."

He paused, the ruthlessness in his eyes slowly fading, replaced by a deep, almost overwhelming weariness and sorrow: "But... at that moment, watching them tremble with fear, making a complete fool of themselves, I suddenly remembered... remembered the Great Goddess... even towards the humblest, most greedy beings, she always held a shred of compassion... if she were still here, she would never have allowed me to do this..."

The old man sighed heavily, a sigh that seemed to carry the weight of ten thousand years: "So be it...so be it...I just couldn't bring myself to be so cruel. I took the few worldly possessions they had, changed their fate, and sent them away. Out of sight, out of mind."

Ao Ming felt a jolt in his heart, and an indescribable bitterness welled up in his throat. He wanted to say a few words of comfort, but found that any words would seem pale and powerless at this moment. He could only clench his fists tightly.

A deathly, oppressive silence prevailed.

"Oh."

A very soft laugh suddenly rang out.

Qian Jin suddenly tilted her head back and downed the remaining wine in her glass in one gulp. When she put down the glass, her face showed no trace of the sorrow that everyone had expected. Instead, she raised an almost arrogant smile, a smile that was three parts drunk and seven parts sober. She even laughed out loud twice.

Amidst the astonished gaze of Elder Shen and the bewildered look of Ao Ming, she stood up, walked to Elder Shen, and fearlessly met those eyes that held the weight of millennia of hardship and sorrow. Her voice was clear as a jade chime, yet each word struck like a hammer in the silent valley:

"Venerable Master, you have trapped yourself in this old dream, unable to break free for millennia. This kind of obsession is just like that of those humans who trap themselves in material possessions, in greed, anger, ignorance, and resentment..."

She paused, then asked, word by word, with absolute clarity:

"And what difference does it make?"

After he finished speaking, the valley fell silent.

As if struck by an invisible bolt of lightning, Elder Can froze on the spot, his pupils suddenly contracting, and all the sadness, anger, age, and loneliness on his face solidified in an instant, like a stone statue that had suddenly been enlightened.

Ao Ming was also completely stunned, his eyes filled with unprecedented shock and... an indescribable feeling as he looked at Qian Jin.

At that moment, she stood there with a slightly flushed face, but her eyes shone with an astonishing brightness, as if she were not a greedy little girl with a mind full of spiritual stones and golden scales, but a visionary who had glimpsed some kind of ultimate truth of heaven and earth.

The deathly silence lasted for a full three breaths.

Sudden!

"Hahaha...hahaha...hahahaha!"

The old man burst into a loud, yet complex and unpredictable laugh! The laugh was no longer desolate or sorrowful, but rather seemed to have parted the fog of millennia, revealing a sense of exhilaration after extreme pain!

He laughed so hard he was doubled over, his long, white eyebrows and beard trembling violently, and the little red fruit on his head shaking wildly. He laughed until tears streamed down his face!

"Good! Good one, what difference does it make! Hahahaha! Little girl...you...you really are..." He pointed at Qian Jin, laughing so hard he couldn't finish his sentence. His long-standing inner conflict was revealed by this seemingly ordinary little girl in one sentence. Her light and casual words were more powerful than his long-standing cultivation.

Looking at the old ginseng who was laughing uncontrollably, and then at Qian Jin beside him who had a "I was just telling the truth" look on his face, Ao Ming felt a surge of emotions. His gaze towards Qian Jin softened involuntarily, and even carried a hint of admiration and warmth that he himself was unaware of.

The sun still shines warmly, the aroma of herbs still lingers, and the valley remains vibrant with life.

But some things are different now.