Chapter 36 General's Wind and Snow, Divine Dragon Land, Past Past
After the snow cleared, golden light spilled across the crystal-clear world. Sparrows stirred up snow dust, and Xiao Qingyi flicked her sleeve, causing Mingying to land lightly. Her cheeks and nose were slightly red from the cold. She handed the white bone in her hand to Xiao Jingze: "This is what Doctor Shen asked me to give you."
Xiao Jingze had already sheathed his longsword. He selected a silver-white hammer from his storage ring and began to smash the bones, quickly repairing the broken parts of the Mountain and River Bell. Xiao Qingyi watched his actions expressionlessly and said, "Give me the remaining bone powder."
Xiao Jingze raised an eyebrow, but didn't ask her what she was going to do with it. He found a jar and put it in. Mingying stood quietly to the side; wasn't this the jar of candy she had finished eating?
However, the three people present were obviously not too concerned about this matter. Xiao Qingyi stared at the jar in her hand, put it into her sleeve, waved her hand and cast a spell to retrieve the Mountain and River Bell. When she left, she looked at Mingying as if she had something to ask.
Mingying waited obediently for a while, then Xiao Qingyi sighed and disappeared into the wind, ultimately saying nothing. Perhaps some things simply had to be done, and whether they were said or not wouldn't make any difference.
Mingying gazed in the direction she left: "I thought she would ask about what happened afterward."
Xiao Jingze led her to the entrance of the spiritual vein. Heavenly fire burned a large hole in the ground. As he selected tools, he replied, "You'll find out what happens later."
Mingying crouched down and looked into the pit. The bottom was covered with snow. Nine hundred years of change had passed, and the spiritual vein wasn't that deep yet. She jumped in with a hop. She looked up at Xiao Jingze, who had chosen his tools and was beginning to dissect the dragon with a short sword.
Mingying stood inside the dragon's belly, but couldn't see its internal organs; it was empty. She thought of the Mountain and River Bell again. Could it be that its internal organs had been removed from the beginning?
Xiao Jingze glanced at her expression: "What, do you feel sorry for it?"
Mingying paused for a moment: "It has been dead for so long, yet it is still radiating light and heat. So its death was also meaningful. When a dragon falls, all things are reborn."
Xiao Jingze smiled noncommittally, focusing intently on extracting the dragon's veins. Mingying continued deeper into the area; if there were other entrances, she would likely have to enter through the mouth. However, the dragon's head must be quite far away, and she had no idea where it was; she decided to treat it as a visit to a historical site.
It seemed not much different from nine hundred years later... Mingying walked forward curiously, and after a few steps she found a few bones in the corner, which looked a bit like human bones.
Practice makes perfect, and she had gotten used to this scene. She calmly picked them up and put them back together. Could they be people eaten by dragons? It seems that dragons don't have very good digestive systems either.
The bones were scattered in various places, not far apart. She picked them up one by one and quickly pieced together a complete skeleton. The skeleton looked quite tall, about the same height as Xiao Jingze.
The ground was covered in heavy snow, and it looked strangely cold underground. Mingying looked around and saw a dark red battle robe buried in the soil. It had faded a bit over time and looked dusty. She grabbed a small corner, pulled it out, shook it, went back and draped it over the skeleton, then tied it around his neck to prevent it from falling off.
Mingying took two steps back, looked him over for a moment, and waved at him: "You should get some sleep."
Nothing special happened. She was about to go back when, just as she turned to leave, the skeleton behind her suddenly moved.
——
With golden threads wrapped around his fingertips, Xiao Jingze completely disassembled the dragon's meridians. He took out a dull gold ring and reforged the two into one.
The Thousand Machines Guiding Light shines anew. He holds his breath and concentrates, the two combine, the golden ring transforms into a ring, and the familiar feeling returns. He puts it back on his hand and probes downwards. Mingying has probably unintentionally run far away again.
He rubbed his brow bone, his pupils turned golden, and the Thousand Machines Screw burst forth with golden threads, beginning his search for the person.
——
The depths of the spiritual vein grew darker and darker. Mingying looked at the skeleton leading her away, with the cloak she had tied on her back still draped over it. She pondered for a while, wondering why the dead could move.
She asked, "General, where are you taking me?"
The bones could move, but they couldn't speak. They would only creak and turn their heads when she wasn't moving, staring at her with empty eye sockets. As soon as she showed any inclination to turn around, the bone would quickly flash in front of her, blocking her way and striking a strange pose.
Mingying glanced at the bow tie around his neck, hesitated for a moment between tying it or not, and finally decided to follow him.
It's too early to repair the Mountain and River Bell. Otherwise, she would still have Doctor Shen's bone in her hand, which would give her a better chance of winning against him.
The further they went, the thinner the air became. Mingying wrinkled her nose uncomfortably. When Bone saw that she wasn't moving, he creaked over and walked over. Mingying was surprised to see a "frowning" expression on his empty face.
She must be confused by this place. She squatted down, raised her head and seriously discussed with him: "I think you should be a good person. How about we have a chat? Is there any wish of yours that hasn't been fulfilled? You can write it on the ground with your bone."
Mingying waited expectantly, but the bone remained unresponsive. She squatted there, and the two faced each other in a stalemate for a while, the bone pacing around her impatiently. Mingying got tired of squatting and, seeing that the two couldn't communicate, stood up to find a place to sit down. She looked back and wondered why Xiao Jingze was so slow.
Suddenly, the bone approached her and poked her stomach.
Mingying didn't react for a moment. She felt her stomach churning, as if something was jumping around inside. She leaned against the rock wall, bent over, and vomited.
She spat out a... Thousand-Search Pearl?
Mingying wiped her mouth. The Thousand-Purpose Pearl had rolled on the ground and still hadn't been digested. She looked warily at the bones in front of her. What was she doing now?
The bone picked up the Thousand-Search Pearl, which emitted a pale blue light in his hand, projecting a scene onto the rock wall.
Is this how the Thousand-Search Pearl is used? Mingying glanced at the expressionless skeleton, then looked at the patterns on the rock wall, which looked a bit like murals, and studied them carefully for a while.
The story begins with a general clad in battle robes, his red attire the only splash of color in a snow-white world. Heavy snow has blocked the mountain passes, and he, mortally wounded, enters a dilapidated temple amidst the swirling snowflakes, where he meets the gaze of a woman with a surprised expression.
What should have been a romantic encounter turned into a nightmare. The woman was squatting on the ground with a blackened bird egg in front of her and her face was also covered in soot, making it seem like she was in a very difficult situation.
The general stood outside the door and talked to her for a while, then switched places with her, threw the dark bird eggs out the window, boiled the two surviving bird eggs on the ground with snow water, and peeled the shells for her.
The general lay half-reclined in a corner, tending to his wounds. The woman, her eyes crinkling, sat there, taking bites of food from the left and right, as if it were the first time she'd tasted normal food. After she finished eating, she curiously leaned over and said something. The general smiled.
Mingying turned her head: "Are you that general?"
The skeleton ignored her, staring blankly at the mural. Mingying shifted slightly, and he quickly turned his head away. Mingying stopped moving and winked at him: "I was just tired of standing and moved around a bit. I didn't mean to run away."
The two figures in the mural spent a very warm time together. The general was repairing a dilapidated temple, while the woman solemnly tended the fire, her braid hanging neatly over her shoulders. As the heavy snow gradually stopped, the general looked out the door, turned back and said something, his expression still showing a hint of unease.
The woman's eyes crinkled into a smile. She nodded, picked up the battle robe that was lying on the floor, and draped it over him.
The general returned, accompanied by a strange woman. Large red palace lanterns hung in the mansion, their red even brighter than his battle robes. Many people came to the general's mansion. The woman sat beside the general, her expression calm, smiling at everyone who showed curiosity towards her.
On their wedding night, Mingying's eyes widened, Qianxunzhu blinked, and they skipped over this part.
Mingying looked at the skeleton: "Can't this be broadcast?"
Although the two faces looked familiar, she was very curious and thought it wouldn't hurt to take a look.
The skeletal man didn't speak; she turned her head away regretfully. The general was about to go to war. The woman, dressed in bright yellow, stood very close to him and naturally exchanged a kiss. She draped his battle robe over him. The dragon on the mountaintop was the lord of calamity, and their expedition was to—slay the dragon.
The dragon's body was as large as a mountain. With a sweep of its tail, soldiers fell one by one off the cliff. The general was extremely agile. He leaped from the dragon's tail to its head and plunged his sword into the dragon's right eye. The dragon let out a sharp cry and shook its head, trying to shake him off. Its red battle robe fluttered in the air, and soldiers piled on top of it. Thousands of sword lights fixed half of the dragon's body to the mountain. Bright red blood flowed from the wound, redder than the battle robe and redder than the palace lanterns.
The general drew his longsword, dragon blood spraying onto his battle robe. He laughed loudly, and the dragon's form flickered. A familiar silhouette appeared in his vision. His laughter stopped abruptly. He gripped the hilt of his sword tightly and stared intently into the dragon's eyes, trying to discern something from them.
The dragon opened its mouth at him, but the general remained motionless and was swallowed by the dragon.
The Thousand-Mile Pearl went out. Mingying pursed her lips: "Is it gone?"
The surroundings were completely silent. She turned to the skeleton draped in battle robes beside her, her expression indistinct in the darkness: "Why are you showing me this?"
The general's lingering resentment remained, seeking only an answer. He raised his hand and pointed to the person before him. Mingying pointed to herself, tilting her head and asking, "Me? But what does this story have to do with me?"
The corners of her mouth curved into the smile most familiar to the general. She said to the skeleton in front of her, "You want to ask if the dragon is that woman, but you already know. Why ask an outsider who knows nothing about this?"
The skeleton remained motionless. Mingying looked left and right, then turned and ran. The skeletal figure was faster than her and blocked her path in the blink of an eye. Mingying frowned: "You won't let me go?"
They can't possibly want to lock her up here and let her starve to death.
She thought for a moment, then said seriously, "You're already dead, how can you still move? You must have too much resentment. If you hate her, then hate her, but forgive yourself. Your dragon has been dead for a long time, and even if it's reincarnated, it won't be the same person as before."
The skeleton couldn't understand her words. The two faced off for a while. Mingying slowly walked forward, reached out and gently pushed him. The bones shattered and fell to the ground, and the dark red battle robe also fell off.
Mingying stood there for a while, glanced at him sideways, walked forward, then turned back, sighed, and muttered to herself, "Maybe I should take you to see Xiao Jingze."
She crouched down and picked up the bones. Instead of piecing them back together, she wrapped them in her battle robe, held them close to her chest, and slowly walked towards the exit. She was startled when she saw a pair of bright golden eyes on the way out, only to realize it was Xiao Jingze.
Xiao Jingze looked helpless: "Why have you been here for so long? What are you holding in your hands?"
"Well... your remains from your past life?"
Xiao Jingze glanced at her, and Mingying felt that he was disgusted, so she wasn't curious.
"Why are you holding onto it? Put it back where it came from."
Mingying looked down and suddenly had a thought: "Maybe he can also make magic tools."
Nine hundred years later, this hasn't been seen. Maybe it's been turned into a magic weapon by Xiao Jingze right now.
Xiao Jingze thought for a while and felt it made sense. He put the item back into his storage ring. Mingying reminded him, "It will move once it's pieced together."
Xiao Jingze raised an eyebrow, not thinking she'd lost her mind: "What did you do?"
"I just put them together on a whim."
Mingying briefly recounted the mural, omitting a few details. She lowered her eyes; had she become immune to such scenes after seeing so many bones…?
Xiao Jingze pondered, "What about the Thousand-Foot Pearl? Perhaps it's because of it."
Mingying tapped her forehead, then remembered that there was a Thousand-Seeking Pearl. She pulled Xiao Jingze back to look for it, but they couldn't find it anymore.
Looking at her expression, Xiao Jingze brushed a strand of hair from her forehead and said, "You can't take it back here."
Mingying nodded sullenly, then turned and asked, "Aren't you going to dig up anything else?"
Nine hundred years later, the dragon has been almost completely hollowed out. Since it was her past life, it wouldn't be bad to try bringing something else back as a souvenir.
Xiao Jingze felt that she was even more enthusiastic about making magical artifacts than he was. Seeing her expectant look, he plucked a dragon scale according to her preference and placed it with the pile of bones.
Mingying smiled and said, "Let's go back."
Xiao Jingze opened his palm, and the Thousand Machines emitted light. He reached out and covered her eyes: "Close your eyes."
Mingying obediently closed her eyes, and the golden thread probed into her heart. Xiao Jingze entered her heart and looked up at the Mountain and River Bell. The Mountain and River Bell silently watched him, and though thousands of years have passed and flowers have bloomed and faded, the dragon's heart will never wither.
Xiao Qingyi stood at the highest point of the observatory, the wind blowing through her white hair, and the Mountain and River Bell behind her resounded, its sound echoing in the white, misty world.
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Author's Note: *The author has been temporarily suspended from writing. I will save up the rest of the manuscript and release them together during the National Day holiday.
For my next book, I must first save up 100,000 words and update daily (choking up).
P.S.: Actually, I had another chapter title for this part of the story: "Wearing Battle Robes for the Ruler in the Ancient Tomb." I was debating between the two titles before choosing this one. It seems I still wrote it too short, otherwise I could have used both.
Another title for the previous chapter was: Bloodshed and Storm on the Road to Godhood. There are a few more chapter titles to choose from. I love coming up with chapter titles, even though they sound a bit cheesy.
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