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墨書 Inktalez
I rescued my master from the Cult of Spirits and brought him back to the Xuanzong. I stood dazed at the entrance for a while.
I never expected that the leader would turn out to be my senior brother. After all those years by his side, I had never discovered this secret. If it weren't for my master secretly sending a message to me while my senior brother was at Qin Wang's Tomb, I would have never known.
It's strange how fate plays tricks on people. I don't blame my senior brother; perhaps he, like me, is also trapped in circumstances beyond his control.
Looking at the entrance, still shabby yet familiar, memories suddenly flooded back.
The past is like an old photograph framed in time. I remember the chaos of those early days, the moment when she smiled at me as flowers bloomed beautifully.
Since being taken in by Master Lingyunzi in my childhood, I had lived in the Xuanzong temple.
I remember every flower and tree within the temple grounds, recalling my master sitting on a mat with closed eyes, nurturing his health. I remember my senior brother's gentle teachings and Ancestor's tender strokes on my head.
I recall how the high walls of the temple were insurmountable. My junior brothers would form a human wall, allowing me to lie on top and watch as my seniors practiced their basic skills—kicking and punching, flowing like clouds and water.
I had grown accustomed to life in Xuanzong. My master treated me well; he would patiently guide me through my studies when he was gentle, but he could also be stern and scold me. I practiced the same techniques as the other Senior Brothers, but my master was stricter with me and sometimes sent my senior brother to remind me.
I thought life was merely about martial arts and learning until that day when I once again escaped from Xuanzong to play, only to encounter her on the mountain path.
She stood there vacantly by the roadside, gazing down at the babbling brook below. The distant blue sky was bright and dazzling; her hair fluttered in the gentle breeze like an ink-wash painting.
At that moment, she seemed to sense someone nearby and turned around. Her gaze was piercing and radiant, casting an ambiguous halo around her eyes.
I instinctively shrank back, feeling that I should keep my distance from this woman. It was as if fate had revealed its terrifying claws for the first time. She moved slightly; I recoiled further and greeted her awkwardly, intending to sidestep and flee.
"Master," she suddenly called out to stop me. Before I could run away, she firmly grabbed hold of me. "Is this place the Xuanzong temple?"
"Yes," I replied with an awkward smile.
"Is there a child named Chuchen up there?" Her gaze was sharp as a dagger, piercing straight into my depths. I opened my mouth in shock, retreating clumsily as countless thoughts raced through my mind. My master had once warned me not to speak carelessly with strangers at the foot of the mountain. One wrong word or action could lead to irreparable consequences.
Even though this woman had specifically called out my name, there was no other Chuchen in Xuanzong. Why was she looking for me? As all these thoughts settled into silence, I forced a somewhat unfamiliar smile and said, "I'm sorry. It seems our sect doesn't have anyone by that name. May I ask what you need him for?"
The woman remained silent, her sharp and beautiful Cold Eyes scanning me from head to toe. Finally, she let out a faint laugh and pressed down on my shoulders, her expression twisted. "You're lying. You are Chuchen, aren't you? Don't think you can deceive me; your appearance can't fool me."
This was the first moment I encountered her, and even now, I cannot forget the way she looked at me with that half-smile. Her distorted cheeks and dark pupils held an undeniable, deep-seated relief and joy that could not be ignored.
This is my sister, Dapper. Later, when I saw her again in the Frozen Coffin, I never imagined that our first meeting could have been forever. She was the only family I had left in this world, using every method I couldn't comprehend to come to my side and tell me the truth.
"Xuanzong is the true enemy of our Chu Family," she shook my shoulders at that time. "Wake up! They are just using you."
"Who are you?" I suppressed my impatience. "Please don't do this; my Ancestor would not approve."
"I am your sister! Do you think you ended up living under someone else's roof for no reason? That bastard Golden Cicada destroyed our Chu Family. You didn't see the desperate look in our mother's eyes before she died; you didn't see!" Tears streamed down her face as she tried to pull me away.
I stood there in a daze, frozen in place, merely raising my Cold Eyes to stare at her. "I won't go with you."
"You will come with me," she said with a bitter smile. "The cruelest thing in the world is not learning the truth but realizing that even after knowing it, you cannot discern it. Look at me." She gestured to herself. "Look at my features—your brows, your eyes, your nose—how can you deny we are so similar?"
I remained silent because it was true; her appearance was nearly indistinguishable from mine, as if we were two people carved from the same mold, now standing face to face.
"Chuchen!"
"Even if you are my sister, I have no reason to go with you," I replied. "Xuanzong is my home. I will stay here."
"If you consider your enemies as family, how can you call yourself a child of the Chu Family?"
"Show me proof," I challenged. "You have no evidence."
She opened her mouth to speak again when a piercing scream cut through the air. A long arrow shot forth with thunderous force, piercing through the woman's left heart chamber. I looked up abruptly to see my Ancestor standing on a large tree in the distance, looking down at me.
All those gentle moments seemed to vanish in an instant. "Go back."
The words fell from his lips like they had plunged into an ice cellar.
“Ancestor!”
“Go back.” The words were devoid of any emotion.
At that moment, a pair of hands suddenly gripped me tightly. The woman raised her Cold Eyes, staring at me with the same eyes I possessed, “If you are a descendant of the Chu Family, you must… take revenge.”
The warmth of life dissipated in my eyes, turning cold. A sudden, inexplicable pain shot through my heart, and I wanted to reach out and grasp her hand. However, Ancestor leaped down from beneath the tree, forcefully dragging my body away as we ran up the mountain.
Why was this happening? I didn’t even have time to react. A faint growl escaped my throat, “Sister…” but it faded into the air.
I found myself crying. I watched as the body, slowly losing its life force, drifted away from me, little by little, transforming into a tiny black dot until it vanished from my sight.
Later, I sat alone in front of the main hall, kneeling on the mat. Ancestor had sentenced me to face the wall for three days. I gazed into the pitch-black room, dreaming countless times of that woman pulling at my sleeve and crying out to me, “Take revenge!”
“Child, what are you doubting?” My master spoke to me as he knelt beside me on the mat.
“Master…”
“If you have doubts about the truth, then seek it out. The sorrow of this world lies in standing before the truth yet lacking the courage to unveil it.” After saying this, my master stood up and pushed open the door to leave.
Only later did I understand that my master had known bits and pieces of the truth all along. He knew that Golden Cicada had caused the downfall of the Chu Family when I was young. By some twist of fate, he had taken me in. Although my sister was dead, my master preserved her body sealed within the Frozen Coffin, untouched for a thousand years.
I had long known that Golden Cicada viewed me as a thorn in his side. I never expected that while searching through the library, he would actually stab a long sword into my chest.
Blood splattered everywhere.
I transformed into a Vengeful Spirit, drifting silently at the pinnacle of this world.
I thought that was how it would end—my vengeance unfulfilled and my sister gone. I couldn’t forget her deep-seated resentment before she died or that hand which clutched my sleeve with all its strength, “Take revenge!” Whenever I recalled it, tears would stream down my cheeks.
Until one day, I heard that the Cult of Spirits possessed an Ice Crystal Heart. If I could steal it and place it on my sister’s chest, she would surely come back to life.
I did not hesitate for long before joining the Cult of Spirits.
The Cult of Spirits was as chilling as the rumors suggested, with an air that seemed to be filled with a terrifying presence. I remained silent within its confines for several months, until finally, I seized the opportunity to steal the Ice Crystal Heart. I thought I could use it to bring my sister back to life, but I was caught and dragged back.
I still cannot shake off the terror that has seeped into my blood since that year. Their methods of punishment were so cruel that they instilled fear in everyone. I was tortured into a half-dead shell of a person, stripped of the Ice Crystal Heart, and thrown out of the Cult of Spirits.
I still remember the words of the Spirit Cult Leader when we spoke, "You are weak, and there are those who will feast on your Heart. You are strong, and you will be invincible in battle." His face twisted in a way that sent chills down my spine, like a devil baring its fangs from the depths of hell.
Lying half-conscious on the ground, I once thought life was nothing but deceit and malice. Yet in my moment of despair, I encountered Gu Yanxi and Mu Xuanche.
I couldn't help but let out a long sigh.
If I had never met them, if I hadn't made up my mind to help Mu Xuanche, where would I be now? Where would I go?
(End of Chapter)
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