Zhongli, who had been silent the whole time, suddenly asked, "What's that song?"
"This is a song the mountain folk sing in praise of the mountain god. They believe in the eternal mountain god, and legend has it that if the god is moved by the singer's melodious voice, he will bless that person and grant them the same eternal life as himself."
After saying that, Xiao Nanhui noticed that the man's unchanging face actually showed some emotions. His narrow eyes narrowed slightly, and his eyelashes cast a shadow on his dark pupils.
"People's pursuit of eternity is truly foolish. They don't understand the terrifying thing about having only a beginning but no end. Years and years are no different from a single moment in eternity. It's like falling into nothingness, and that nothingness has no end."
From the time they first met until now, Xiao Nanhui rarely saw any expression on Zhongli Jing's face. However, the look on his face when he just said those words was unprecedented and undisguised disgust. It was an emotion that surged from the bottom of his heart, which frightened people who had not experienced it.
Xiao Nanhui was a little stunned. She had always thought that the person in front of her was a thousand-year-old mountain or a ten-thousand-year-old lake, difficult to shake and without ripples. But now she had a vague feeling: his emotions were just hidden deep in the mountains and lakes, most of the time no one could see or understand them, but one day they would flood and shake the earth.
She pondered for a moment before slowly speaking, "People pursue eternity, perhaps because eternity doesn't exist."
Zhongli actually smiled. "You're right, so death isn't always a bad thing. Happiness in this world is always short-lived. If we can't stay in the moment of joy, we will always have to face the arrival of sorrow. After sorrow comes joy again, and the cycle repeats itself. Only death can put an end to it all."
"But without pain, how can happiness be truly appreciated?" Xiao Nanhui said sincerely, "Master Yikong of Yongye Temple once said that as a human being, we must endure suffering. Since it's unavoidable, we might as well face it calmly."
After she finished speaking, she realized that Zhongli was actually looking at her without saying a word, which made her feel a little creepy.
"What are you staring at me for?"
Zhongli was silent for a moment before he said expressionlessly, "Yikong never said that."
Xiao Nanhui's face was embarrassed, and then he argued with a guilty conscience: "Master Yikong loves to talk. He says so many words every day. How do you know he hasn't said anything?"
Zhongli tilted his head slightly, his sitting posture becoming somewhat lazy, and his tone was also joking: "Yikong and I have been friends for many years. He hardly speaks except for chanting scriptures every day. He is a person from the Western Sea and hasn't even learned the Chizhou dialect well. How can he have so much to say?"
Xiao Nanhui was speechless and furious. She blamed the boring night and the boring place. She must have been crazy to want to sit here and chat with this guy.
She stood up quickly, flexed her wrists and kicked her legs as she walked towards the cave entrance: "The fire is not strong enough, I'll go get some dry wood."
Zhongli looked at the angry figure and suddenly smiled at the fire.
******************
After an unknown amount of time, Xiao Nanhui felt a little warmth on his face.
When she opened her eyes, she saw the golden morning sun rising slowly over the swamp. The scorching light rolled out on the horizon, piercing through the fog that lingered on the swamp all year round, reflecting bright light, as if someone had smashed a huge mirror in this desolate place, and the fragments of the mirror now reflected a dazzling white light under the sunlight, which was both real and illusory.
It turns out that this is the reason why Baiyao Pass is named Baiyao.
Fireflies, also known as "Yao Ye", emerge in large numbers from the entrance to Baiyao Pass at night to forage in the swampy water. Avoiding areas with fireflies will help you avoid getting stuck in the swamp. However, the firefly light is very weak and can only be seen clearly on moonlit nights, hence the saying "On a clear night, don't go past Baiyao Pass."
During the day, the fireflies all hibernate, and the path hidden in the swamp disappears again. During this time, one can only leave the pass for an hour before and after sunrise, and can only leave but not enter. Because the exit of Baiyao Pass faces due east, the rising sun illuminates the areas where the water shimmers in the swamp, revealing a path that can be walked through. As long as one avoids the reflective areas, one can successfully exit the swamp. Hence the saying "At dawn, walk in the dark, not in the daytime."
Xiao Nanhui stared blankly at this most ordinary yet magical moment in the world, and forgot his words for a moment.
She suddenly thought of the legendary princess who fought against an army alone and finally sank into the depths of the swamp. Could she have also seen a sunrise like this? Or had she walked into that abandoned pass and descended all the way to the depths of the earth?
"Let's go."
A sudden voice interrupted her thoughts.
Zhongli actually stood up and turned to look at Xiao Nanhui. The morning sun cast a fiery color on his face. His voice was as calm as usual, as if it was just an ordinary morning and they were about to go out to an ordinary, non-dangerous place.
Xiao Nanhui smiled towards the rising sun, and suddenly felt that having such a calm companion was not a bad thing.
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