Farewell
By the end of spring, everything was back on track.
The Dragon Guards were burdened with a heavy workload, and the three brothers and sisters were already exhausted from simply handling official business, leaving them with no time to focus on anything else. Liuyun still hadn't returned, and the three of them knew full well that he was in grave danger.
One day, Xiao Wan'er was working in the government office when she suddenly heard footsteps approaching from afar. When the noise stopped, she caught a glimpse of a figure wearing a veil. Before she could say anything, the figure removed the veil.
"Is Consort Zhaorong actually able to leave the palace?" Xiao Wan'er was overjoyed to see Shangguan Wan'er, who hadn't been able to leave the palace since becoming Consort Zhaorong, appear before her. "My place is simple. I'll treat you to a drink after I'm done with my shift..."
As she was speaking, she stopped talking when she saw Shangguan Wan'er's sad expression.
"Sister, what happened?"
"We've found the whereabouts of your master," Shangguan Wan'er said with difficulty. "He's on his deathbed and wants to see you one last time."
Xiao Wan'er felt that all the sounds around her had disappeared, and she could only see Shangguan Wan'er's lips opening and closing silently.
It seemed like an eternity passed before she regained her voice: "Sister, please take me to see Master for the last time."
Xiao Wan'er, led by Shangguan Wan'er, entered Taichu Palace. The Liuyun, whom the three of them had been searching for so long, was actually there. Shangguan Wan'er led her through twists and turns, further and further away, until they finally stopped at the door of a secluded palace.
This place was obviously rarely visited. From time to time, scattered petals lay untouched on the palace paths, and no palace servants were to be seen. However, the palace was very clean, as if someone was cleaning it regularly. Once the door was opened, the interior was also spotless and tidy, and the utensils displayed within were all of the highest quality.
It seems that Liuyun was not abused in Taichu Palace.
"I have sent you to the destination. What follows is a matter between you as master and disciple. I will not keep you here." After completing the task, Shangguan Wan'er immediately said goodbye. Xiao Wan'er walked into the hall alone, walked through the gorgeous and smooth main hall, and stopped in front of the bedroom door.
An old man was lying on the bed in the bedroom. He felt someone coming and opened his eyes.
"Master?"
Xiao Wan'er simply couldn't bring herself to recognize the old man. His hair was completely white, his face was covered in wrinkles, and his hands, exposed outside the quilt, were covered in age spots. If it weren't for the way he smiled, which still evoked the image of Liu Yun from the past, and if Shangguan Wan'er hadn't brought her here, Xiao Wan'er would never have equated her master with the old man before her.
"Master, how did you become like this?"
Liuyun didn't answer, but raised one hand and beckoned her forward: "Wan'er, come here."
Xiao Wan'er walked up to him hesitantly. He suddenly burst out with the pressure of the transcendental realm, which stunned Xiao Wan'er, and then pointed his finger at Xiao Wan'er's forehead.
A spell instantly entered Xiao Wan'er's mind. A vast torrent of knowledge washed over her, blurring her consciousness. She staggered, fell to the ground, clutching her head, struggling to absorb the infusion of knowledge. It took a full moment for her to regain normalcy.
The technique Liuyun had passed down to her became a book, lying quietly in her mind. She looked closely and saw three large characters written on the cover: "Tian Yan Shu." Just as she was about to open the book and read carefully, an old voice called out to her.
"Alright, I'll learn the magic when I get back. Now listen to me and I'll explain everything I need to say."
"Master, why did you become like this?" Xiao Wan'er asked Liuyun again.
Liuyun was about to answer when he was suddenly choked by the air and coughed violently a few times. He only recovered after Xiao Wan'er patted him on the back.
"Do you still remember Huai Ming?"
"I remember," Xiao Wan'er replied, "Master, the leader of the Fengming Guard before you. Is it because of him that you became like this, Master?"
"Before he died, he gave the Queen Mother a secret method. Anyone who used this secret method to swear allegiance to the Queen Mother would pay the price with their life if they betrayed her in the future."
Xiao Wan'er's eyes widened in shock as she muttered, "How could this happen..."
Liuyun smiled calmly, "How else could I, a cultivator who twice snatched people from the Empress Dowager, have earned her trust and become the leader of the Fengming Guard? I was only promoted to the position of leader after I swore this oath. Later, as you know, I did betray the Empress on the day of the coup. From that day on, my death was certain. Instead, the new Emperor used other secret techniques and rare treasures to extend my life for a while."
"Does the new emperor have anything to ask of the master?" Xiao Wan'er, who had been struggling in the Divine Capital for nearly ten years, was no longer the young girl she used to be. In her opinion, the new emperor must have some ulterior motive for spending such a huge price to extend the life of a dying man.
"Yes," Liu Yun confirmed Xiao Wan'er's guess, "He asked me to predict the fate of his country."
After he finished speaking, he paused, a look of regret on his face: "I should have left you and Ying Guan on the mountain. Now you are in trouble because of me."
"What does this mean?" Xiao Wan'er was curious.
"I foresaw in divination that the Prince of Linzi would ascend the throne in the future. During his reign, the Tang Dynasty was plunged into chaos, its prosperity declined, and countless lives were lost. I have since used the art of celestial evolution to seek a solution, but all my deductions point to the same outcome. Now the secret technique has expired, and so has my fate."
Having said this, he gasped again and it took him a long time to recover.
"I've seen Ying Guan become the confidant of Prince Linzi, his hands stained with blood. I've also seen Prince Linzi commit all sorts of absurd acts after years on the throne, a foolish and tyrannical ruler both in public and private. I've accepted the new emperor's mission and want to change this future, but ultimately I'm powerless. I can only entrust this mission to you. You must prevent Prince Linzi from ascending the throne at all costs. Mingyin is not involved in this mess. After I die, please get him out of this troubled place as soon as possible."
"Okay," Xiao Wan'er agreed, "Then can Master see me in the future?"
"No," Liuyun shook his head. "I couldn't predict your future through divination, so I'm entrusting this matter to you. Tianyanshu is a technique that only the second-generation abbot of Biyun Temple has been qualified to learn since I became the second-generation abbot. After my death, you will be the new abbot of Biyun Temple. I've caused you so much trouble, I'm not a qualified master. From now on, Biyun Temple will rely on you."
"Master, don't worry. I will do it well."
Seeing Xiao Wan'er agreed, Liuyun had exhausted his energy and drove her away.
Xiao Wan'er had been in a daze since she left Liuyun's palace. She unconsciously walked to her home, as usual. When she stopped in front of her house, the door opened, revealing Liu Mingyin's face.
"Senior Sister, you came back a little late today." He saw that Xiao Wan'er was not in a good state, so he took her sleeve and led her into the main room. "What trouble did you encounter? No matter what the trouble is, have dinner first."
In the main room, dinner was already prepared, and Pei Yingguan was already seated at the table. Seeing that everyone had finally arrived, the three of them quietly began to eat dinner.
"Someone might come tonight," Xiao Wan'er said after dinner, "People in the palace, get ready."
Her voice was so weak that Pei Yingguan and Liu Mingyin were worried.
"Senior Sister, are you okay?" Liu Mingyin walked up to her, grabbed her wrist, and placed his fingers on her pulse. "You're not injured or sick."
Pei Yingguan thought of the key point: "But have you found the whereabouts of the master?"
Xiao Wan'er nodded with difficulty, feeling four burning gazes.
Seeing Xiao Wan'er's miserable state, even the dumbest person could guess something. Pei Yingguan then asked, "How is Master now?"
Xiao Wan'er recalled what her master had told her in Taichu Palace, and looked at Pei Yingguan with an extremely complicated look. After a long while, she said with difficulty: "Wait until someone from the palace comes, and Senior Brother will know."
That night, Liuyun, a transcendental master and the world's most powerful cultivator, perished in Taichu Palace. His three disciples were not by his side when he died. Instead, the Emperor, Empress, and Shangguan Zhaorong stood guard by his side.
After confirming his death, the emperor summoned his trusted eunuch and handed him the imperial edict that had been prepared long ago: "Pass this imperial edict to the three most senior disciples of Immortal Liuyun."
When the eunuch delivering the imperial edict arrived at Anyefang, the three men were already prepared and welcomed him into the courtyard. The eunuch unfolded the bright yellow imperial edict and read out a long passage praising Liuyun. He then recited his achievements during the Li Tang dynasty: assisting the then-crown emperor in eliminating corrupt officials and divined the fate of the Tang dynasty. Finally, the eunuch relayed the emperor's posthumous honors: posthumously appointing Liuyun, the former commander of the Fengming Guard, as commander of the Shenlong Guard and posthumously conferring the title of Founding Earl.
After the eunuch finished reading the imperial edict, he stepped aside and a palace servant carried a coffin into the courtyard. The coffin was made of top-grade nanmu wood, and lying inside was Liuyun.
"The three immortals must be deeply saddened by the passing of their master. Your Majesty has compassionately granted them a month's leave to arrange the funeral and burial of Immortal Liuyun. Furthermore, Immortal Liuyun left behind a letter addressed to the three immortals before his passing. I, under Your Majesty's orders, am delivering this letter to them."
Pei Yingguan stepped forward to take the letter and said, "Thank you, sir."
Mission accomplished, the eunuch bowed and took his leave. Xiao Wan'er and the other two ignored Liu Yun's letter and placed the coffin in the main room before setting up the mourning hall.
After the arrangements were completed, the three of them finally had time to unfold the letter left by Liuyun. The letter first clearly instructed Xiao Wan'er to succeed as the abbot of Biyun Temple, then pointed out the shortcomings of the three in their cultivation, and finally asked the three disciples to support each other and resonate with Biyun Temple.
Xiao Wan'er held the letter as a rune suddenly appeared on it. It danced up and down, then broke free from its restraints and transformed into a stream of light, entering Xiao Wan'er's mind. Uncontrollably, Xiao Wan'er stood up and rushed into the library with a speed unmatched by even a Daoist cultivator. She headed for the far corner, fumbling around in a haphazard manner before opening a secret compartment. Inside was a wooden box. Upon opening it, the abbot's order for Biyun Temple lay quietly within.
Xiao Wan'er took out the token, cut her finger, and dripped blood onto it. The token suddenly lit up, floated out of the wooden box, and hovered in front of Xiao Wan'er. A stream of light emanated from the token and penetrated Xiao Wan'er's mind. The Tian Yan Shu, once a closed book, suddenly opened, and Xiao Wan'er instantly mastered it. However, this memory was trapped in the cage condensed by the light from the token. Xiao Wan'er had a premonition that if the cage disappeared, all memories related to the Tian Yan Shu would be gone.
It seemed like a long story, but it happened in a flash. Only after learning that the abbot's order had fallen into Xiao Wan'er's hands did Pei Yingguan and Liu Mingyin run to the door of the library.
Seeing Xiao Wan'er walking out of the library with the Abbot's Order, they both said, "Greetings, Abbot."
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