Watching the beloved one perish before her eyes, Fairy Qinghua didn’t want to dwell on the feelings anymore. She only remembered the moment when the sword in her hand pierced through his heart, staining his vibrant robe with blood.
Gu Caiyu was a rare genius in the cultivation world, said to be on par with Fairy Qinghua in cultivation level but actually superior. In their duel, he pretended to dodge but at the last moment withdrew his magical weapon, allowing her sword to pierce his heart.
“Why?” For the first time, the woman who was always aloof and indifferent showed a bewildered expression. She murmured, “Why didn’t you dodge?”
“Tsk,” Gu Caiyu smiled at her, “The Demon King thinks he’s clever, merging his soul with mine, thinking he can control the cultivation world. Hmph, I won’t let him have his way! Is he surprised now?”
“How could you… treat me like this?” Fairy Qinghua choked with tears.
How could he be so cruel to her? Making her sword kill him, her significant other, leaving her alone in the world.
“Fairy Qinghua,” Gu Caiyu wiped the tears from her eyes gently, looking at her with warmth, “You once said that life is suffering for all, and the ultimate goal for cultivators should be achieving perfection and protecting the Three Realms. That’s your wish.”
“And I cultivate just for pleasure, with wine and poetry. As long as you’re happy… I’m happy.”
He vanished before Fairy Qinghua’s eyes, along with the Demon King Gui Diaotang’s soul, disappearing from the Three Realms.
“After that, the Golden Gate Ruins were resealed, and I returned to Gufeng Mountain. Not long after, I discovered I was pregnant,” Fairy Qinghua looked at Gu Baiying, “Perhaps it was heaven’s mercy upon me.”
The disciples of Taiyan Sect didn’t know who the child’s father was, as Fairy Qinghua didn’t invite anyone to witness her marriage to Gu Caiyu. Now that Gu Caiyu had died by her sword, Fairy Qinghua was heartbroken and didn’t know how to speak of it. Only Shaoyang Zhenren vaguely guessed part of the truth and forbade anyone in the sect to discuss the matter.
But not talking about it doesn’t mean it’s all in the past.
The days spent sparring with fellow swordsmen, the days supporting each other in the secret realm of Li’er Country, she deeply immersed herself in them, unwilling to wake up. Fairy Qinghua planted a pair of Biyi Blossom trees in Elysium Hall, but this tree never blossomed. She used illusions to create a tree full of crimson flowers, trying to find traces of the past within.
Gu Caiyu once said to her, “In one’s life, there will be many moments of discomfort when they don’t want to face reality. Even someone like you, living so clear-mindedly, might one day need such illusory tricks for comfort.”
At that time, she refused to believe it, thinking he was talking nonsense, but it turned out to be true. Life really was long, and she wasn’t much different from ordinary people after all.
Shaoyang Zhenren sighed, “Indulging blindly in the past is not a good thing. Treat it as an illusion, forget the past.”
“Forget?” She murmured softly, “I will never forget.”
She depicted all her memories with Gu Caiyu in the Qing’e Flower-Picking Staff Technique, and placed this technique in the martial arts hall. Perhaps one day in the future, it would be found by someone destined for it, or perhaps it would forever remain hidden in a corner of the hall, covered in dust, never to be known.
“Initially, in the Golden Gate Ruins, when I fought the Demon King, although I pierced his heart, my spiritual roots were damaged. After returning to the sect and trying my best to heal, my condition worsened day by day. Senior Brother concealed the truth for me, but after giving birth to Baiying, my health deteriorated further, and I sometimes fell into prolonged comas.”
Those who cultivate are well aware of their own physical condition. Fairy Qinghua knew that her time was running out. Yet she wasn’t sad, on the contrary, she felt peaceful, knowing she would soon join Gu Caiyu. The only thing she couldn’t let go of was her young child.
“Senior Brother and I observed the celestial phenomena and divined that a great calamity would befall the human realm in twenty years. Only someone destined could save the world, rescuing people from fire and water. The divination showed that I had a connection with this person and would meet them here. So I left Gufeng Mountain and returned here.”
Here was where she first met Gu Caiyu, full of memories of the past. If she were to die here, it would also be considered fulfilling this shallow fate.
The secret realm, untouched by anyone, preserved its original appearance. She saw Bai Qie Ji and the painting of the beauty hidden beneath a thick stack of poetry and prose in the inner room.
Memories were vivid, as if they just happened. Here, at the place where everything began, she passed away alone and silently. After her death, her body disintegrated, becoming a seal, and a remnant of her divine sense clung to the painting, quietly waiting for the destined person to come.
This was everything.
Fairy Qinghua looked at Gu Baiying: “When I left, I often wondered what you would look like in the future. Not seeing you grow up is my regret in this life. But I never expected to meet you here now,” she said, her eyes shimmering with tears, “Baiying, have you been well all these years? How has Senior Brother treated you? Has anyone at Taiyan Sect bullied you?” Only at this moment did she finally shed all her aloofness and coldness, like an ordinary mother, awkwardly trying to please the suddenly reunited family.
The youth took a step back, and Fairy Qinghua’s outstretched hand fell empty.
Perhaps she had countless hardships, perhaps even if she hadn’t left, she wouldn’t have lived long, but missing it was missing it. Love and duty were difficult to balance, back then and even now. They had been apart too long, and Gu Baiying was not good at expressing emotions, so they could only remain awkwardly silent.
Feelings close but shy, always.
Fairy Qinghua stared at him, her lips trembling as if wanting to speak, looking somewhat humble. The young man stubbornly stood there, his long eyelashes hiding his expression, only his fists clenched tightly behind his back revealing his current mood.
The atmosphere was tense and silent.
Zanxing couldn’t bear the suffocating silence any longer and gently said, “Before we entered the secret realm, Yin Ying had mentioned that someone lent him power to find a painting within the realm. At that time, we didn’t think much of it. Now, could it be this portrait of the fairy?”
Fairy Qinghua was startled, “You mean, someone is looking for this portrait?”
Zanxing nodded, “Unfortunately, before we could ask who was behind him, Yin Ying was silenced. If they are truly seeking this portrait, perhaps what they really want to find is the inheritance of the fairy within this painting?”
“Who would know that there is an inheritance hidden here?” Gu Baiying frowned, “Could it be the demon clan?”