drizzle
Its mission was complete... Xu Yi's last glimmer of hope was shattered. She silently looked at the rusty spirit sword in her arms, large tears falling incessantly onto the sword... splashing up tiny white droplets...
Seeing Xu Yi silently shedding tears, Wu Zi didn't know how to comfort her, so he tried to distract her by saying, "Xu Yi... I... I'm dying too..." Xu Yi looked up at him with shocked, tearful eyes, as if she were about to shatter. He quickly added, "If you don't take me to get treatment soon..." and then fainted...
Xu Yi's heart immediately plunged from the abyss of sorrow and despair into an even more terrifying hell... She put the spirit sword into Wu Zi's storage bag, picked up the unconscious Wu Zi and walked out. Looking back at the emerald green inner core, she thought for a moment and put it away as well.
Wu Zi was really too heavy, and the cave was dark and narrow... Xu Yi supported Wu Zi's entire weight, having to watch the way and keep Wu Zi steady so he wouldn't fall, which was quite strenuous... It took quite a bit of time to finally get out of the cave.
Fortunately, not long after they left the cave, they encountered a woodcutter. Seeing that Wu Zi was badly injured and that Xu Yi was just a little girl, the woodcutter was filled with compassion and carefully carried Wu Zi on his back, taking Xu Yi with him back to his village.
There was only one doctor in the village, but fortunately he was experienced and quickly treated most of Wu Zi's external injuries. After giving the unconscious Wu Zi a bowl of medicine, he left with the words "Don't worry, wait patiently" and then departed.
The woodcutter was very hospitable. He and his wife helped Xu Yi take care of Wu Zi and made sure Xu Yi could stay there comfortably. Xu Yi, being very perceptive, gave the woodcutter's wife a small coin. This made the couple even more hospitable, and they took excellent care of Xu Yi's three meals a day.
Ten days later, Wu Zi finally woke up. Xu Yi helped Wu Zi sit up, fed him some medicine, and asked him, "How are you?"
"Thank goodness...cough cough...I won't die." Wu Zi was a little breathless: "You, you need to be more careful."
Xu Yi knew that Wu Zi meant she should be careful not to let anyone discover her identity, so she nodded: "Yes, I know."
Only after hearing Xu Yi's answer did Wu Zi feel relieved enough to lie down and continue resting.
About ten days later, Wu Zi finally regained some strength and began to meditate and heal his injuries on his own. By the time Wu Zi had fully recovered, almost a month had passed…
Since Wu Zi woke up, Xu Yi's attention has been focused on the rusty spirit sword. She had tried to clean it, but the rust spots couldn't be removed. That day, she held the spirit sword and planned to let it soak in the stream by the village to see if it could recover a little.
Instead of improving, the spirit sword developed even more rust spots. Xu Yi quickly picked it up, dried it, and prepared to go back.
Clutching the spirit sword, she walked along, sighing all the while, attracting stares from passersby. Children, always eager to please, couldn't resist, so the village kids surrounded Xu Yi. One asked, "Why don't you throw away the rusty sword?" Another asked, "Why are you carrying a rusty sword?" Even a little toddler asked Xu Yi, "Is this sword your friend?" and so on…
Xu Yi answered as she continued walking. When she reached the woodcutter's house, the woodcutter's wife saw that Xu Yi was surrounded and went up to the group of children, calling out, "Go, go, go home! Your sister has things to do!"
The children chattered and ran off in a swarm. The woodcutter looked at the rusty sword in Xu Yi's arms and asked curiously, "Little sister, why are you holding this sword all this time? It's all rusted."
“This is a spirit sword…” Xu Yin said hesitantly, “It went into slumber because it used its own spiritual power to suppress the demon.”
"Hahaha, a demon? A spirit sword?" The woodcutter laughed heartily, "Little sister, you really believe in demons?"
"It's true! Wu Zi was injured while catching a demon!"
"Hahaha, there are no demons in broad daylight! Summon them out so I can see! Little sister, don't believe those superstitious nonsense. They're all liars who cheat people out of their money."
"No..." Xu Yi wanted to argue a few more words, but Wu Zi, who came out, stopped her by pulling on her sleeve. Wu Zi smiled and said to the woodcutter, "Sister-in-law, don't be offended. My younger sister has loved those supernatural tales since she was a child. She always felt that there were demons and ghosts in this world. She just picked up this sword on the road and couldn't bear to throw it away."
"Oh, it's nothing. I used to love reading storybooks when I was young, but I only realized when I grew up that they were all made-up stories," he said, then waved his hand at Xu Yi, "Little sister, don't believe them! Be careful not to get scammed!"
"I wasn't deceived..." Xu Yi had only said a few words when Wu Zi stopped her by squeezing his hand. Wu Zi looked at the woodcutter and nodded in agreement: "Yes, yes, sister-in-law is right. I will teach her slowly in the future."
The woodcutter waved her hand, "It's nothing, it's no big deal. Brother has been awake for a few days now. I'll go kill a chicken and stew it for you to nourish yourself." After saying that, she turned around and grabbed a chicken to go to the kitchen to prepare it.
Xu Yi was extremely indignant: "Wu Zi, why didn't you tell them the truth? If it weren't for the little spirit sword constantly suppressing the wolf demon with its spiritual energy, trapping it in the cave, none of the villagers here would have survived, and they wouldn't have been able to wait for us to come and rescue them..."
"What good would it do to tell her, Xu Yi?" Wu Zi turned and pulled Xu Yi aside, asking, "Just because they don't know you saved them, does that mean you won't save them anymore?"
"Of course I will save it. I'm not talking about myself, I'm talking about the spirit sword." Xu Yi was very anxious.
“I know, the same goes for the Spirit Sword. Does the world not know that the Spirit Sword saved them, so it won’t save them? These are two different things, Xu Yi.”
Xu Yi didn't know how to express the injustice in her heart at this moment, and she cried out anxiously, "I just, I just feel that the spirit sword that sacrificed itself for them is just dead like this, and they don't even know... Waaaaah..."
Wu Zi sighed, patted Xu Yi's head, and comforted her, "Don't cry. Right now, there is a thriving life force everywhere here, which is the greatest comfort for the spirit sword."
"But...but it didn't say a word, didn't say goodbye, it just...just vanished without a sound...Wu Zi..."
Looking at Xu Yi's tear-filled eyes, Wu Zi felt a surge of sorrow welling up inside him: "I know, Xu Yi, don't cry... You'll know later that there are many unsung heroes in this world... Whether the villagers know it or not, they are all heroes... Heaven and earth will judge..."
"Heaven and Earth? Where is Heaven and Earth?" Unexpectedly, Xu Yi cried even harder: "Where was Heaven and Earth when demons harmed people? Where was Heaven and Earth when the spirit sword died? There is so much injustice in this world, where is Heaven and Earth?" Xu Yi became more and more heartbroken as she spoke, and her extreme resentment made her voice rise higher and higher, finally turning into a roar: "Wu Zi, where is Heaven and Earth?"
As Xu Yi finished speaking, a sudden clap of thunder boomed across the sky, followed by a faint, lingering echo, as if echoing Xu Yi's question... or perhaps refuting it...
Wu Zi quickly stepped forward and covered Xu Yi's mouth, warning her, "Don't talk nonsense, don't spout nonsense."
Xu Yi couldn't speak, she could only look at Wu Zi, tears streaming down her face... Wu Zi looked at Xu Yi's silent tears and didn't know how to comfort her, so he simply pulled her into his arms. At that moment, a fine rain began to fall, as if to wash away the resentment and bitterness in Xu Yi's heart...
While patting Xu Yi's back, Wu Zi gently comforted her, "Heaven and earth have always been there, Xu Yi... The causes and effects of the world are complex and cannot be explained in a single sentence. I know you are sad, sad that the mangy dog was killed, sad that the Heart Sword dissipated, but they all knew the outcome and faced it calmly. This was their own decision, and we should respect it."
"But...but they're all dead, Wu Zi, all dead...no matter what they were like in life, they're all dead...nothing's left...what's the point of all this, Wu Zi?" Xu Yi cried out, questioning with resentment, as if trying to pour out all the bitterness in her heart...
Wu Zi cupped Xu Yi's cheeks and said gently, "Xu Yi, listen to me, listen to me... Although they are gone, their stories have long been engraved in the long river of history, transformed into an indomitable will... Supporting us, the successors, to stand and look upon them, this is already the greatest significance... We should be happy for them, not let their noble spirit become a thorn in your heart against the ignorance of the world... Xu Yi, this is what betrays them... is what is unjust... Do you want them to leave in unease?"
Xu Yi shook her head, crying, "I didn't... I didn't want to..."
"Then be a good girl, listen to me, and don't cry."
The rain continued to fall in a fine, dense drizzle, soaking their clothes, like those unseen emotions, wet and impossible to shake off or remove...
Wu Zi pulled Xu Yi under the roof, took a dry piece of clothing and draped it over her, poured her a cup of hot tea, and used a clean cloth to dry the water droplets from her hair before continuing, "Xu Yi, think of the mountain king, think of the big cat. This world is not all ignorant people."
“Besides…ignorance is ignorance, shouldn’t we respect that?” Xu Yi replied, sobbing.
"Yes, that's right, Xu Yi, you've got it!" Wu Zi patted Xu Yi's head and praised, "Great job!"
Just as Xu Yi's emotions had calmed down a bit, the woodcutter returned, complaining as he walked, "This damn weather! It just had to start raining. I'm soaked to the bone. What bad luck..." He nodded to Xu Yi and Wu Zi under the eaves before going to the kitchen to ask his wife, "Honey, what are we having for dinner today?"
"I'm making chicken soup today."
"Chicken soup? Chicken soup is great! It's damp like this, so something hot is just what we need..."
Once the soup was ready, the rain stopped, and the sky after the rain was unusually clear. The woodcutter couple simply moved the table into the yard and invited Xu Yi and his companion to eat.
Wu Zi pulled Xu Yi to the table and sat her down, saying politely, "Thank you so much for taking care of me and letting me stay during this time, sister-in-law. I am truly grateful."
"Hey, enough of that, just eat and drink well." The woodcutter waved her hand, added rice to Xu Yi and Wu Zi's bowls, and seeing that Xu Yi was still holding the rusty sword, she called out to Xu Yi, "Little sister, eat first, put the sword aside for now, haha!"
The woodcutter also advised Xu Yi: "Young lady, a sword is a murder weapon, you can't hold it! There was a family in our village who were killed by a sword before!"
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