Hidden glints in the shadows of the jade steps
The soft sound of the palace door closing echoed in the silent side hall, like a heavy hammer blow to Mo Xiaoyu's heart. She remained curled up until she was sure the footsteps had completely disappeared before slowly rising from the shadows.
Her legs, slightly numb from being curled up for so long, made her way to the door, supporting herself against the cold stone wall. Through the crack in the door, she saw two figures walking side by side on the bluestone path outside the alchemy room. Su Qingqing turned her head slightly, moonlight illuminating her delicate profile. As she spoke to Xie Yunzhi, a perfectly timed faint smile played on her lips. Their posture was natural and intimate; anyone who saw them would think they were a match made in heaven.
Mo Xiaoyu unconsciously clenched her sleeves, the rough fabric rubbing against her palms. She leaned against the cold stone door, feeling the biting chill seep into her skin through the thin servant's clothes. Xie Yunzhi's pale face, the cold sweat on his forehead, and the lingering horror in his eyes when he looked at her were all clearly imprinted in her mind.
What exactly did he see? Was that raging flood, that mournful cry of "Yunxi," related to the River of Heaven? Was it related to their past lives? And was Su Qingqing's appearance really just a coincidence? Why did she always appear at crucial moments, perfectly interrupting those moments that could trigger changes?
Countless questions churned in her mind, like a fish trapped in a net, struggling to find a way out. Mo Xiaoyu closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and the air still held Xie Yunzhi's crisp scent and Su Qingqing's faint lotus fragrance. The two scents intertwined, making her feel a tightness in her chest.
She couldn't wait passively any longer. She opened her eyes, a resolute glint in them. Since fate had brought her back to his side, she had to actively seek the answers, instead of remaining a shadowy figure, silently watching from the sidelines.
In the following days, the Qingyun Sect remained outwardly calm as always.
After Xie Yunzhi took the Mind-Clearing and Spirit-Purifying Pill given to him by Su Qingqing, the stinging sensation in his sea of consciousness did indeed lessen considerably, and his spiritual energy flowed much more smoothly during cultivation. However, the doubts in his heart not only did not dissipate, but instead grew larger and larger like a snowball.
The figure of the handyman disciple named "Little Fish," his tearful and panicked eyes, and the mournful cry of "Yunxi" in the illusion all became mysteries he could not let go of. Whenever the night was deep and quiet, he would unconsciously touch the jade pendant on his chest, and the warm touch seemed to resonate in a strange way with a corner of his mind.
He tried to secretly inquire about the servant, but the information he received was so ordinary it was almost stereotypical: a newly recruited servant assigned to the logistics department, usually taciturn, and unremarkable. This sharply contradicted his strong, inexplicable intuition, making him even more convinced that something was amiss.
At the same time, Su Qingqing grew increasingly close to him. Not only did she frequently discuss Taoist practices with him and guide him through the key points of cultivation, but she also subtly displayed a degree of dependence and appreciation in public. She always found a suitable reason to approach him, whether it was to give him elixirs or invite him to enjoy the scenery; her behavior was impeccable, leaving no room for criticism.
Rumors about the two of them began to circulate within the sect. Disciples whispered among themselves that they were a match made in heaven, and even the elders looked at them with a hint of approval. All of this seemed perfectly natural, yet Xie Yunzhi always felt something was amiss. Su Qingqing's care was meticulous, but it was like looking through a thin veil, never quite reaching the deepest part of his heart.
Early that morning, with the sect's minor competition imminent, many disciples had already gathered at the training ground. Swords flashed, spells flew, and a tense yet exciting atmosphere filled the air.
Xie Yunzhi had just finished a sparring match and stood there with his sword sheathed. His opponent today was a senior disciple who had joined the sect earlier, and the two fought for dozens of rounds before a winner was decided. Although he won, he had also expended a lot of energy, and fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.
Just as he raised his hand to wipe the sweat from his brow, his gaze inadvertently swept over the group of laborers sweeping fallen leaves at the edge of the field. There, he saw that familiar figure. She was wearing oversized laborer's clothes, which made her appear even smaller. She was bowing her head, intently wielding a broom taller than herself, her movements somewhat slow, as if she were quite exhausted.
Just then, a sword aura, due to improper control, veered off course and headed straight for the edge of the arena. An outer disciple, trying to dodge the sword aura, hurriedly retreated and accidentally bumped into Mo Xiaoyu, who was sweeping.
"Hey! Don't you have eyes?" The outer disciple steadied himself and shouted angrily.
Mo Xiaoyu stumbled from the impact, and the broom in her hand fell to the ground with a "thud." She hurriedly lowered her head, her voice barely audible: "I'm...I'm sorry, Senior Brother..."
"Hmph, a menial disciple dares to get in the way here! Get lost!" The outer disciple's tone was rude, attracting the attention of several other disciples around him.
Xie Yunzhi frowned slightly. He saw the thin figure tremble slightly under the reprimand, her lips tightly pursed, bending down to pick up the broom. That image of her suppressing her grievances eerily overlapped for a moment with the image of the dying figure in his illusion, whose eyes still held a look of trust.
"Junior Brother Zhang," Xie Yunzhi spoke, his voice not loud, but carrying an undeniable authority, "In martial arts competitions, sword energy is indiscriminate; that's commonplace. Why be so harsh on a mere servant?"
The outer disciple surnamed Zhang was taken aback. Seeing that it was Xie Yunzhi who spoke, the anger on his face instantly turned into embarrassment: "Senior Brother Xie is right. I acted rashly in a moment of panic."
Xie Yunzhi said no more, his gaze sweeping lightly over the area, lingering on Mo Xiaoyu for less than a moment before turning to Su Qingqing, who had appeared beside him unnoticed: "Senior Sister, let's go."
Su Qingqing took in everything that had just happened, her smile unchanged, and said softly, "Okay." She walked naturally alongside Xie Yunzhi, but as she turned to leave, her eyes glanced almost imperceptibly at the handyman disciple who was silently picking up a broom, and a faint hint of coldness flashed deep in her eyes.
Mo Xiaoyu picked up the broom, the rough wooden handle digging into the calluses on her palm. She didn't look up at the departing figure, but instead swept the fallen leaves more vigorously, stroke by stroke. The withered yellow leaves made a soft "shush-shush" sound under the broom, as if telling unheard stories.
He spoke up to defuse the situation. Just like that night in the bamboo forest, just like before in the alchemy room. Each time, he would act because of that inexplicable sense of familiarity, but each time, after reason returned, he would choose to turn around and leave.
This elusive "kindness" is more heartbreaking than outright indifference. It's like offering a ray of light only to extinguish it with your own hands, a cycle that repeats endlessly, leaving her lingering at the boundary between light and darkness.
She had to find the answers as soon as possible. About the jade pendant, about the illusion, about Su Qingqing, about... their forgotten past.
The night was as dark as ink, and the rhythmic footsteps of the patrolling disciples echoed in the distance. Under the cover of darkness, a slender figure silently made its way to the depths of the alchemy room. This room contained the sect's scriptures and elixir formulas, and was rarely visited except by the deacon disciples during the monthly inventory.
Mo Xiaoyu remembered that a few days ago, while tidying up the side hall, she had overheard the disciple on duty mentioning that the hall seemed to house some fragments of ancient secrets and strange jade. Perhaps, the clues she was looking for would be there.
She lit a short candle she had secretly kept; the weak flame flickered in the darkness, illuminating the dust that had accumulated between the bookshelves. The air was filled with the distinctive scent of old paper and medicinal herbs. She moved cautiously among the bookshelves, her fingertips brushing against scrolls of ancient texts. *The Azure Cloud Pharmacopoeia*, *Basic Essentials of Alchemy*, *The Theory of the Five Elements*... none of these were what she was looking for.
Just as she was about to give up, a dusty sandalwood box in the corner caught her eye. The box was old-fashioned, unlabeled, and stood out from the neatly arranged books around it. She gently brushed the dust off the box and unlocked it.
Inside were several old notebooks with yellowed pages and torn edges. By the flickering candlelight, she opened the top one. The handwriting was messy, as if it had been jotted down casually:
"...On the day the Milky Way hangs upside down, spiritual energy collapses. A divine jade appears in the world, bearing the mandate of heaven and carrying the cause and effect, called 'Retracing the Dream'..."
Her heart suddenly raced. A dreamlike revelation! This was exactly the feeling Xie Yunzhi's jade pendant had given her! She suppressed her excitement and continued reading:
"Those who wield the jade can see the past, but every glimpse comes at a price. Memories surge like a tide, powerful enough to tear apart the sea of consciousness..."
"Even more so, under certain circumstances or driven by strong emotions, 'empathy' may be triggered, causing those involved to be trapped in the dream together..."
Empathy! Mo Xiaoyu's breath almost stopped. Could it be that the illusion Xie Yunzhi saw was because the jade pendant sensed her intense emotions? Then why did she occasionally dream of fragments by the Qingtian River? Was it because there was some special connection between them?
She turned to the next page with trembling hands, only to find the last few lines smudged with ink and barely legible:
"The Divine Jade chooses its master; it cannot be forced. Forcing it will inevitably backfire... the Su Clan's secret technique..."
The Su family!
Mo Xiaoyu slammed the notebook shut, the candlelight flickering violently with her movement, casting swaying shadows on the wall. Su Qingqing? The Su family's secret technique? Could her approach to Xie Yunzhi be related to this jade pendant? And what did the so-called "forced" mean?
She carefully tucked the journal into her bosom, keeping it close to her body, before blowing out the candle. Just as she was about to leave, she suddenly heard footsteps and voices outside!
"...Are you sure no one's here?"
"Don't worry, who would come to this dump at this hour except for those on duty..."
It's the voice of the disciples in charge of the alchemy room! Why would they come at this time?
Mo Xiaoyu held her breath, quickly looked around, and slipped behind a large basket piled with discarded medicinal residue. The strong, pungent smell of medicine instantly enveloped her, forcing her to cover her mouth and nose and endure the discomfort.
Two disciples, each carrying a list and a lantern, pushed open the door and entered.
"Take stock of this month's losses; Senior Sister Su will be coming to check them tomorrow."
"It's Senior Sister Su again? She's really been paying attention to the alchemy room lately..."
"Shh, stop talking. Let's finish the inventory and get out of here. This place is creepy."
Mo Xiaoyu huddled behind the basket, barely breathing. The notebook in her arms felt like a branding iron, burning her heart with anxiety. Su Qingqing's unusual attention to the alchemy room? This was no coincidence. What was she plotting?
The sound of counting was exceptionally clear in the quiet night; Mo Xiaoyu could hear her own heart pounding like a drum. Time seemed to stretch on endlessly, each moment an agony.
After an unknown amount of time, the counting finally stopped, the footsteps faded away, and the stone door closed again.
She waited a while longer, and only after confirming it was safe did she emerge from behind the basket. Her clothes were covered in medicinal dregs, emanating a bitter smell. Ignoring this, she silently blended into the night, like a true shadow.
The answer seemed to be one step closer, but it only led to more mysteries. The Su family's secret technique, forced...backlash...these words swirled in her mind, weaving an invisible net.
She looked up towards the inner disciples' quarters, where lights flickered sparsely in the night. Xie Yunzhi, are you alright now? Do you know that beneath the gentle smile of the person beside you, there might be ulterior motives? Do you know that jade pendant not only carries the past but also determines your future destiny?
A night breeze blew by, carrying the chill of the mountains. Mo Xiaoyu's slender body trembled slightly, yet she straightened her back. The road ahead was long and shrouded in mist, but she had found her direction. No matter what, she was determined to uncover the truth.
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