Chapter 78: Old friends should not look back.
The ground collapsed faster and faster, revealing a bottomless abyss in an instant.
Although she was protected by spiritual energy, Shen Lixia no longer wanted to fall. She drew her sword and slashed out a bright flame, hoping to signal Simmons to notice.
Simmons!
The firelight cleaved through the waves, and she raised her voice to shout. Another stone pillar collapsed, and then something even worse happened: a huge whirlpool formed where the broken sword had been, constantly drawing in the debris, as if determined to erase all traces of the place immediately.
The suction wasn't strong at this moment, and they were still able to steady their swords and move forward quickly. Shen Lixia glanced down, noticing several slightly higher places that obscured her view. She desperately hoped that Simmons was hiding behind those places, ready to emerge at any moment and perform a magic trick.
Whether it was Heaven hearing her thoughts or not, the next moment, a woman dressed in dark blue robes ran out from behind a boulder and responded to her call: "Fellow Daoist!"
Qiao Yanshen also heard the shout and immediately drew his sword towards the person. When he reached her, Shen Lixia summoned Liu Huo, stepped onto the sword, and extended her hand to her. Xi Mengsi firmly grasped her hand, and their palms touched, producing a clear sound.
"Cool!" Shen Lixia chuckled. "Let's save the thanks for when we get back safely. Stay calm!"
Simmons, still shaken, kept touching the snake coiled around her hand and let out a long sigh. The collapse of the secret realm grew more and more violent, turning the world upside down. The once shimmering blue light dimmed, and the water became turbulent. The whirlpool was as powerful as the storm they had encountered on the ship. The three dared not relax for a moment, trying to escape on their swords before the sea completely submerged the area.
They passed through ruins and crossed white sand, finally arriving at the entrance where Shen Lixia had opened her eyes. Unexpectedly, the storm grew fiercer, with waves crashing up from below, sharp as blades.
Even with her abundant spiritual power, Shen Lixia couldn't withstand such a dense barrage of attacks. After dodging several times, she lost her balance and was nearly knocked off her longsword by a water blade. She narrowly escaped, but before she could regain her footing, she heard a cry of alarm from behind.
Without a second thought, she spun around and grabbed Simmons's wrist. But that moment of hesitation allowed the whirlpool to draw closer. The churning waves seemed to be the hatred that had been accumulating here for a thousand years, and even though the person had vanished, it did not stop, until it destroyed everything and transformed into a roaring sea dragon, ready to devour the tiny figure before her.
What's going on today? People keep falling in. Shen Lixia struggled to push forward with her sword, wrestling with the whirlpool. Qiao Yanshen turned around and pulled her up. Together, their tightly clasped hands trembled slightly from the effort they put in, yet remained so steady that nothing could make them let go. A chilling cracking sound slowly approached. Shen Lixia looked at the massive torrent of water, with no doubt that anyone who went in would be crushed.
Simmons felt the massive, dangerous object approaching from behind, and his expression turned more serious than ever before. He shouted, "Let go!"
"What are you going to do?" Shen Lixia was amused by her. The tear stains on his face were still wet, and his hair was flying around in a mess. The boy was extremely embarrassed at the moment, and his laughter was also filled with a sense of helplessness.
She gritted her teeth and said, word by word, "Do you all think I'm a fool? Not a single one of you can be missing today!"
She never believed in the idea that sacrificing a teammate would grant boundless power. Living is the most important thing; who will mourn you when you're gone? She despised those plots that required someone's death to inspire others, as if that were some kind of noble act of sacrifice, turning a child into an adult overnight, or forcing a hopeless situation onto a wall—where were they before?
A bad person will always be a bad person; if you're going to cherish someone, you'll cherish them from the start.
Simmons sighed, "Anyway, I don't think you're a fool, Fellow Daoist Li Xia. You're smarter than anyone I've ever met. So many people in the world are bound by their own limitations, but you always know how to seize the moment."
She took a deep breath and continued quickly, "I don't have many friends, so I cherish them all the more. I believe I can escape this calamity; if I can't, then my luck has run out! At worst, I won't drink that soup, and we'll meet again in the next life!"
Golden light shimmered within the dark blue robes, like threads connecting them. Knowing that Shen Lixia was beyond persuasion, Xi Mengsi bit off the prayer beads in her hand, grabbed them along with the snake, and threw them with all her might towards Qiao Yanshen.
"Fellow Daoist Yan Shen, take her with you! You all must be safe, otherwise I, Xi, will never be able to let go of this obsession and will become a ghost after death!"
After saying that, Simmons gritted her teeth and pried open Shen Lixia's fingers one by one, releasing her hand. Behind her, a giant wave, like an abyss, reached out and pulled her into a dark vortex, disappearing in an instant, never to be reborn.
Shen Lixia watched that familiar face recede further and further away, like a kite with a broken string, only this time it wasn't heading towards the vast sky, but rather sinking into the unknown depths of the sea. She hadn't known Simmons for long, but she always saw various tricks in this seemingly muddled woman. She was like a kaleidoscope, reflecting all aspects of human life, constantly changing.
I thought I was free of all ties, but we still opened our hearts to each other and became friends. Friendship is not like wine; a moment of resonance is enough to make a journey through life. We confide in each other, without regret or resentment.
She couldn't quite describe her emotions at that moment. Her hand instinctively clenched at the empty space, but before tears could even fall, Qiao Yanshen pulled her away. Golden light shimmered, threads flickered in and out of the flowing water, and the whirlpool briefly stopped expanding.
This was the sliver of hope that the man had secured for them by sacrificing himself.
Qiao Yanshen didn't let the opportunity slip by. He held Shen Lixia tightly and rushed out at the last moment before the secret realm completely collapsed.
-
The weather was strange today. It was sunny and clear at first, but around noon, a sudden downpour started for some unknown reason. The sea was churning, with huge waves crashing. Fortunately, the people who went out to sea hadn't gone too far and returned in time.
A massive storm, just like those of previous years, churned fish from the deep waters, sending them soaring into the sky before they finally fell to the shore. Some were lucky enough to be swept back by the sea; others struggled for a long time before finally dying on the mudflats. The small fishing village worshipped a goddess who lived in the South China Sea, and they all said that the goddess had become angry, so the merfolk in the sea couldn't sit still either, causing the sea to become restless.
The waves only crashed within a certain area, no longer encroaching upwards. Once the wind and waves subsided slightly, some people led their young daughters ashore, either reverently returning the fish to the sea or keeping some as part of their day's catch. They were content, returning most of the fish back to the sea, feeling the water wash over their wrists as they thought, "May we have a good reincarnation, to become mermaids, and never again be a small fish."
The children picked up the glittering objects on the beach, excitedly shouting, "Are these mermaid tears?"
The large, round stones could not answer their questions; they simply witnessed this funeral held deep within, unknown to anyone.
Beneath the shattered sky, two people helped each other ashore from the sea. Their clothes were soaked, and the cold rain and gale-force winds tore their long hair, making it almost impossible to breathe.
Shen Lixia staggered, her hand resting on Qiao Yanshen's shoulder, her fingers digging deep into her clothes. Then, remembering a possible old injury, she subconsciously loosened her grip, her hand hanging limply.
So cold. This was the first time she had felt cold since the divine fire enveloped her. Was the rain too heavy? But with her spiritual energy protecting her, she shouldn't be affected by the cold.
"Senior Sister..." she called softly, "I feel like I keep losing things."
Qiao Yanshen noticed the person beside him trembling, so he pulled her closer and whispered, "They will come back. There is one thing: as long as you don't lose it, you can always keep those things."
It is that passionate heart, always brimming with emotion, that will never forget anyone.
They walked on the sand. The sand was much coarser now, unlike the fine white sand of Shenyuan. Everything had happened too fast. Shen Lixia initially thought it was a dream, but when she came to her senses, her increased cultivation level and the impenetrable rear told her that Shenyuan had collapsed. She had nowhere to retreat. Then, Luo Yang's words echoed in her ears again:
"Little bird, keep going forward, don't look back."
Her words proved prophetic. Whether she wanted to or not, there was no going back.
Shen Lixia suddenly stopped and looked towards the fishing village.
Qiao Yanshen stopped with her. The rain was thick in front of her, and she felt utterly weary. Everything was so noisy that it was unbearable.
The boy broke free from her support, instead taking her hand and calmly saying, "We're not going back there."
Qiao Yanshen asked gently, "Then shall we go home?"
“Okay.” The boy nodded, and they took hands and walked in a direction away from the fishing village. Neither of them looked back.
The journey has ended. The merfolk sleep at the bottom of the sea, their hatred lingering for millennia. The absurd mistake has finally borne fruit. After reincarnation, nothing will be remembered. Luo Yang is not recorded in history books. The merfolk race has been wiped out. Now, perhaps only Shen Lixia and Qiao Yanshen remember her.
Was it Heaven's hatred that erased all traces of her, or did she feel she had wronged too many people and choose to disappear into the long years—these are questions they will likely never answer.
After escaping the storm, the viper hesitated for a long time, then coiled around Qiao Yanshen's wrist, remaining quietly. Strange, it looked so much like Luo Yang, yet the familiar aura was nowhere to be found.
"I want to stay here." It got off Qiao Yanshen's hand, its body returned to its original size, and its childish voice sounded sad for some reason.
"You won't be able to wait for her anymore," Qiao Yanshen said softly, gazing at it.
The viper shook its head and stubbornly said, "Wait a little longer."
Even if it takes a thousand years, ten thousand years. Qiao Yan knew he couldn't persuade it, so he stopped trying to stop it and left with Shen Lixia.
Only a fragment of the sword manual remained imprinted in Qiao Yanshen's mind, becoming a trace of her existence.
Including this year, they have been missing from Shen Yuanzhong for four years. Passing through the southern lands, the women in the marketplace were vibrant and energetic, a far cry from their previous decline. At sunset, the city shone with golden light, as if blessed by the gods, a testament to Qin Shiying's excellent governance. It was also rumored that some of the disciples of the Wuji Sword Sect remained after the sworn brotherhood ceremony, working with Qin Shiying to correct history, discuss secrets, and impart secret techniques.
Over time, the men became fewer and fewer, until they were completely gone by the time the women arrived.
Then, back in Kuizhou, the temple to the demon had been built, and people flocked to worship and make offerings. Golden incense smoke drifted in the air, sometimes appearing, sometimes disappearing, merging into the statue in the center of the altar. Shen Lixia knew that it must contain the pebble. She saw the old man again; though very old, he still possessed considerable strength, directing everyone to manage the ancestral hall. Just as they were about to leave, they heard someone ask her:
Who are these people?
The old woman looked closely at the part of the scroll she was pointing to and replied with a smile, "These are the immortal masters who liberated Lord Ba. Once they become immortals, the temple will need to add more memorial tablets to them."
Upon returning to the sect, they found themselves in the exact same sweltering summer heat. Thick fog blanketed the area, and from the foot of the mountain, only scattered peaks could be seen, not a soul in sight. They used the teleportation array to reach a familiar spot. When they arrived at the courtyard, the sunlight streamed down as usual, bright and intense, so dazzling it stung their eyes.
It was as if nothing had ever happened, restored to its original state. The sun rose and set, and the moonlight, like frost, scattered across the ground.
It's just that there's no one to share a drink with under the moon.
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