Chapter 64

In Lin Yibai's eyes, the last bit of light in the eyes of the blood-stained figure above the sky suddenly disappeared like a burnt-out star.

Yan Bujian finally closed his eyelashes slowly.

At that moment, grief surged silently like an invisible tide, drowning her mouth and nose and strangling her breath. She opened her mouth, but her throat felt like it was clogged with gravel, unable to utter a single word. Only her broken sobs, mixed with the biting mountain wind, drifted away into the vast, swirling sea of ​​clouds beneath her feet.

"don't want--!"

Almost at the moment her voice fell, another figure suddenly rushed out from the depths of the thick clouds!

Lin Wuya's body was ablaze with ash and fire, the flames swirling and rising like a burning mourning garment. His eyes were bloodshot, fixed on her, and his hoarse voice was like the strains of a worn bellows: "Dao Fire... That's my Dao Fire!"

Before she finished her words, the grey flame of annihilation came straight towards her face like a poisonous python spitting out its tongue!

Lin Yibai's pupils suddenly shrank - but the next moment, the expected burning pain did not come upon her.

“Swish——”

A streak of dark golden light suddenly shot up from the depths of the Yunshan Mountains below, so fast that it left only a shadow in sight. Then, like a living thing, it coiled and gathered, instantly condensing into an incredibly solid rattan ball, tightly enveloping her. The flames of annihilation slammed fiercely into the surface of the rattan ball, making a dull "bang." The intricate dark golden patterns on the rattan surface illuminated, radiating light, and actually blocked the murderous demonic fire from entering!

It was the same Wusheng Root from earlier. Seeing it couldn't stop Lin Yibai from ascending the mountain, it had remained hidden within the mountain, secretly accumulating earth vein energy and keeping a close eye on the battle unfolding above. Upon seeing her fall, it immediately mobilized all the spiritual energy stored within the Yunshan earth veins, transforming it into this protective shield.

Unfortunately, Lin Wuya's gray fire was too strange and ferocious. Blackened spots began to appear on the surface of the vine ball, and even tiny cracks were spreading.

Obviously it can't hold out for long.

Inside the sepak takraw.

Lin Yibai only felt that the cluster of Dao fire belonging to Yan Bujian was burning between her eyebrows, and the scorching heat rushed down from her spiritual platform, rushing to her limbs and bones, almost boiling her blood.

Her consciousness gradually blurred in the intense heat, and just as she was about to fall into a coma, a cold, silent mechanical sound suddenly exploded in the depths of her consciousness.

[“Ding”—Final report of the “Plot Guardian” system]

[The vital signs of key figure Yan Bujian have been detected and confirmed to have terminated. Congratulations to the host, Lin Yibai, for achieving the necessary conditions for "Daytime Ascension."]

[The original plotline of "The Immortal Falls from the Mountain" has completely collapsed at this point, and the system rules have been lifted. The subsequent development of the world line will be decided by the host independently.]

The moment the mechanical sound faded, Lin Yibai suddenly opened his eyes and looked at the system that had no form or substance in the void. Tears burst out and his voice collapsed incoherently: "This immortal path is not mine! I don't want it!"

After she finished speaking, she fiercely scratched at her brow, as if trying to dig out the Dao Fire. "System, can you send this fire back to Yan Bujian? You can do it, right? Please... I beg you, as long as he can come back to life, I am willing to do anything, anything!"

But all that responded to her in her sea of ​​consciousness was dead silence. It was as if the system had never existed. After that last report, it was completely annihilated from her perception.

At this moment, Lin Wuya, who was outside the vine ball, had recovered from the sudden change. He stared at the dark golden vine ball, the gray flames around him dancing wildly with extreme anger.

After two lifetimes of planning and a hundred years of hard work, he was destined to embark on the path to immortality. But who would have thought—in the end, he would end up making wedding clothes for his own daughter?!

"You ignorant fool, what right do you have to interfere!" Lin Wuya roared, and a ball of gray fire, thicker and more violent than before, gathered in his palm and smashed it hard at the sepak takraw. "Don't even think about it! I haven't lost yet!"

Amidst this frantic roar, Lin Wuya gathered several balls of ash fire in his palms, thicker and more violent than before, and fiercely blasted them towards the vine ball. "If I can force this fire out once, I can force it out a second time! The Youshan Insect King only resurrects once every sixty years. At worst, I can just wait for it to reincarnate... As long as I capture you, I'll find a way to reclaim the immortal path that belongs to me!"

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The flames of annihilation continuously hit the rattan ball. The dark golden rattan body made a "hissing" sound under the burning. The charred marks expanded rapidly and the cracks spread like a spider web.

Wu Shenggen's voice, filled with painful gasps, rang out: "The power of the earth's veins is almost exhausted, girl... I can't hold on any longer, wake up quickly!"

Lin Yibai sat slumped in the center of the vines, desperately trying to call out to the system that had suddenly spoken, but received no response. Just as her eyes were filled with utter despair, she heard a crackling sound—and a powerful beam of light pierced the darkness, illuminating her face!

A hole was broken in the sepak takraw.

In the gray flying ashes, Lin Wuya's face, twisted by madness, appeared. He stretched out his hand with a sinister grin, and the aura of destruction condensed in his fingertips, and pointed fiercely at her brow!

——At the critical moment, a strange yet familiar cold voice sounded in her ears without any warning.

No longer like a mechanical system, the sound carried a hollow echo, as if it had traveled through endless time and space, washing away the dust of the ages.

"This is the best outcome for you. Why don't you accept it?"

There was a barely perceptible sigh hidden in the last syllable.

When Lin Yibai heard this, his whole body trembled violently, as if he was struck by lightning!

She suddenly raised her head, a faint fire burning in her eyes, and asked in disbelief with a hoarse sob: "...Yan Bu Jian, is that you?"

——She would never make a mistake. Although it sounded a bit more experienced and empty than before, it was clearly Yan Bujian's voice!

"You're not dead, are you?" Lin Yibai struggled to stand up. "Where are you? I'm going to return the Dao Fire to you right now. Come out quickly!"

Before she finished her words, she ignored everything and raised her hand to scratch at her own brow! Her nails instantly pierced the flesh, oozing tiny drops of blood, but the next moment, a soft white halo appeared out of thin air, gently enveloping her self-harming hand, preventing her from moving forward.

At the same time, the white light spread rapidly as if it had life, covering Lin Wuya who was about to get into the vine ball.

As soon as he was covered by the white light, the sinister smile on Lin Wuya's face suddenly froze, and his forward momentum suddenly froze, unable to move at all. The flame of annihilation that was originally surging like the sea outside the vine ball was also frozen in mid-air.

Time seemed to freeze at this moment.

The voice that resembled Xiao Yan's disappearance sounded again, bringing with it a long sigh that seemed to span the ages: "You are a spirit from another world. Do you still remember when you first arrived here, you were in a state of panic, hoping for only a glimmer of hope? Now that the chaos has settled, all obstacles have vanished into thin air. The supreme immortal fate is within your reach, and the peak of the blue sky that all living beings admire is yours to climb... Are you really willing to give up?"

Previous life?

Lin Yibai was bewildered. She didn't remember any past lives, but the image described by the voice made her heart ache. She nodded vigorously, her eyes filled with determination to give up everything: "I am willing. As long as he can survive, I am willing to give up everything!"

Then, a trace of indescribable vicissitudes of life appeared in his voice: "It was my fault for dragging you into this for no reason. Now, I should give you another chance."

As soon as he finished speaking, the white light suddenly became brighter!

Lin Yibai felt his spirit lighten, as if his soul was being gently and irresistibly snatched away by an invisible hand, gently being torn away from his body. The next moment, he was swept into the depths of that brilliant white light!

It was like being plunged into a relentless river of time. Countless blurry lights and fragmented sounds whistled past her ears, and she couldn't tell whether they were the stirrings of wind and thunder or the echoes of time. After an unknown amount of time, the intense turbulence finally subsided, and her heavy eyelids trembled before slowly opening.

——However, what came into view was the blood-stained altar of the Bo Deng Sect!

The scene before her was both familiar and unfamiliar: the altar was stained with blood, broken flags were scattered across the ground, and the air was thick with the inextricable smell of blood. And her body, a transparent shadow, stood there like a lonely soul, completely out of tune with everything around her.

Not far away, a familiar figure stood silently.

It was Yan Bujian, but he looked even colder than she remembered—his black robe was stained dark red, his scarlet-gold eyes were filled with cold frost, and he casually threw a head to the ground.

The head rolled several times, finally facing her, revealing a face filled with horror, frozen in the ultimate fear and unwillingness before death.

It was Lin Wuya!

"Yan is not seen!"

Lin Yibai's eyes instantly turned red. She wanted to rush forward and hug the blood-stained young man. However, she found that her body was blocked by an invisible barrier. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get close to him.

It was not until this moment that she suddenly realized: This is not the real world!

——This is clearly the scene in the original novel of "The Immortal Emerges from the Mountain" where Yan Bujian comes out of the mountain and massacres the Bo Deng Sect!

After the system disappeared, she was brought back to the original timeline by that voice!

Could it be that the original work is the "previous life" that the voice mentioned?

And what he said about "involving you in this for no reason"... Could it be that her time travel and the collapse of the plot were not accidental, but had a cause and effect in mind?

This thought made her heart surge, and she felt that she was getting closer and closer to a thrilling truth.

Just when she was feeling extremely confused, she saw Yan Bujian flying away without even looking back. Lin Yibai took a deep breath and subconsciously followed him.

Next, she was like a silent bystander, following Yan Bujian from her previous life, walking the path of blood and fire that he had once walked.

She saw him slay the Sand Scorpion King with his sword in the Black Wind Territory, the red-gold sword light dyeing the yellow sand black for thousands of miles like ink; she saw him cast the Wind and Thunder Order in the Wangjiang Tower in Kuizhou, flattening the powerful demon sect and rescuing the dying monk in the prison; she saw him cut off the head of the old demon Tengyan with one sword in the Tengyan Ghost Forest, purifying the century-old demonic miasma with his own immortal power, and letting the dead and silent wasteland sprout new green buds again.

He wiped out the demons that were wreaking havoc on the Three Thousand Continents one by one, allowing the frightened creatures to find a safe place to live again.

Finally, she saw him break through the Tongtian realm in the midst of a thousand-foot thunder tribulation, usher in the arrival of the fairyland, ignite the veins of the three thousand continents, and re-pave the Tongtian fairy road.

Ten thousand feet of immortal light poured down, gilding his dark figure with a brilliant golden edge. Beneath him, the monks of the Three Thousand Continents and the people of the world bowed in worship, their thunderous roars of admiration reaching the heavens. This scene should have been the pinnacle of legend, the footnote to the triumphant satisfaction of success after suffering.

However, no.

His expression remained stern, without any joy of having his long-cherished wish fulfilled, nor any trace of pride of having reached the summit.

Lin Yibai stared at the back of the figure that was about to disappear into the immortal gate, and felt a bone-chilling coldness silently spreading from him.

It was an absolute silence after all emotions were removed and all desires were extinguished, as if the cheers of the living beings under his feet and the hustle and bustle of the world behind him were nothing more than the sound of the distant wind that had nothing to do with him.

In this glorious moment built by grand praise and boundless magical power, what she read from him was actually a loneliness deeper than the underworld.

The loneliness was hidden so deeply, blending into his straight spine, melting into his drooping sleeves, and breathing with the fairy light flowing around him.

Until the last moment when his body was about to completely sink into the fairyland, he never looked back and took another look at the people in this mortal world.

Her heart suddenly clenched, and an indescribable feeling of sorrow and pity gripped her. Almost instinctively, she reached out, wanting to gently embrace him from behind—not to stop him, but simply to give him a little human, insignificant warmth in this moment when he seemed to have everything but actually had nothing.

However, what her fingertips and her arms ultimately embraced was only a bone-chilling wind from the void that blew out from the cracks in the immortal gate.

The sight suddenly changed.

When she opened her eyes again, she was already in an elegant garden.

In the garden, an ancient, towering sycamore tree lay withered and dilapidated, its withered, yellow leaves falling like snow, adding to the endless, dead silence. Beneath the tree, a figure sat silently at a stone table.

It was Yan who was missing.

He was wearing a dark gold-woven Taoist robe, his long hair tied up with a jade hairpin, and he was sitting in meditation with his eyes closed. Lin Yibai walked lightly to him, and when he saw his face clearly, he almost cried out in surprise -

There was a touch of white frost between Yan Bujian's eyebrows, and his originally satin-black hair was also mixed with a few strands of dazzling silver.

Aren't immortals supposed to be immortal and eternally beautiful? Why... did he become like this?

Just when she was in doubt, Yan Bujian suddenly opened his eyes.

What kind of eyes are those?

Those eyes, once radiant as gold, were now devoid of radiance and ripples, like a completely dried-up Dead Sea, where not even the shadows of the drifting clouds could leave the slightest trace. The sharpness, the stubbornness, even the coldness, had vanished without a trace, leaving only a vast expanse of desolate silence.

It was as if the soul inside had long been annihilated, leaving only an empty shell of an immortal body.

A deep, cold desolation came from those eyes, almost suffocating Lin Yibai.

However, at this moment, only a crisp sound of "clang" was heard.

The three-foot-tall sword that was originally hanging on the ancient sycamore tree suddenly slipped out of its sheath for some unknown reason and fell onto the bluestone paved ground nearby.

Yan Bujian slowly raised his head and looked at the clouds rolling back and forth in the sky. His eyes were empty, as if he had penetrated the clouds and was looking at a more distant and empty place.

After a while, he leaned over slightly, stretched out his slender white hand to the ground, and picked up the cold sword.

Lin Yibai suddenly had a bad feeling in his heart.

She immediately rushed forward, trying to snatch the sword, but because she had no physical form, she could only watch Yan Bujian pick it up. Then he took out a silk handkerchief from his wide sleeve and wiped it across the cold sword blade very lightly and slowly.

After letting out an almost inaudible sigh, he suddenly turned his wrist, pointed the sharp sword blade at his pale wrist, and slashed across without hesitation!

"don't want!"

Lin Yibai screamed and rushed forward, trying to hold down his hand, but his fingertips still penetrated his arm without any hindrance. He couldn't grab anything and could only watch the sharp blade cut through his pale skin.

Blood gushed out instantly, dripping along the wrist line and falling to the ground.

Her lips trembled, but she suddenly remembered: He is now an immortal, immortal, and this kind of flesh wound... will heal in an instant! It's okay, it will be okay!

But the next moment, her pupils suddenly constricted——

The wound on Yan Bujian's wrist not only did not heal, but the blood gushing out became more and more violent, forming a shocking stream of blood on the bluestone slab!

Lin Yibai quickly focused his gaze on his wrist: he saw a faint, sinister red glow emanating from the wounded flesh. That red glow was like a living thing. Every time the immortal body's undying instincts tried to heal the flesh and blood, the newly formed flesh would be like ice and snow thrown into the blazing sun, instantly scorched, devoured, and completely melted away!

He actually cast a curse on himself!

With the supreme immortal power possessed by this body, he forcibly imprisoned and reversed his own recovery instinct. In this small space, he transformed this indestructible immortal fetus into a mortal body that would bleed, feel pain, and end!

Lin Yibai fell down on the bluestone slab beside him, tears rolling down his face, mixing into his winding pool of blood, creating a blurry watery glow.

She finally raised her head, trembling and weeping, and asked the heartbreaking question that was destined to receive no answer:

"Why? Yan Bu Jian..."

Why, after going through countless tribulations and sufferings, and finally embarking on the immortal path that all living beings admire, would he ultimately choose to end his life in such a ruthless way?

Yan Bujian naturally couldn't hear it.

He simply took the plain white silk cloth beside him, carefully wiped the bloodstains on the sword, and gently placed it and the silk cloth on the stone table.

Finally, he sat upright and closed his eyes quietly.