Chapter 102#
An Wuxue was momentarily stunned.
He had completely unexpected such a reaction from the other.
He remembered their youth, when they were ordered to leave the mountain to eliminate demons and hid together in a small cave. The entire mountain forest was covered in turbid energy, and at night, the cries of Great Demons, whose origin could not be discerned, pierced their ears repeatedly.
Even though An Wuxue had already gained some experience traveling outside, and knew he should be steadier as the elder brother, he had found it difficult to sleep all night listening to those screeches.
Yet Xie Zhefeng, who was younger than him, had remained impassive from beginning to end.
He was clearly the elder brother, yet whether it was during their youth when their masters were still alive, or toward the end of the Immortal Calamity when they jointly governed the two realms, the person who could face heaven and earth collapsing with a cold, expressionless face remained Xie Zhefeng.
He hadn’t thought his junior brother was capable of fear.
Yet back in the Guan Ye Array, when he had tried to cast the Heartless Curse on Xie Zhefeng, his junior brother’s terror had left a deep impression on him.
Nor did he think Immortal Venerable Chu Han would ever be so wary and alert after a fright, but now…
He said with some discomfort, “I said I wouldn’t cast the curse again, so I won’t.”
Xie Zhefeng’s eyes flashed, and he actually asked, “Truly?”
An Wuxue said crossly, “Even if my cultivation has returned to its peak, isn’t the puppet seal still there? And just now, couldn’t the Immortal Venerable still easily subdue me with a wave of his hand? Why are you afraid now? Between us, it has always been me being cautious and you doing as you please. Your spiritual energy is fine; what could I possibly do that you don’t want?”
He only needed to explain his intentions.
But after speaking, he realized his words sounded like a complaint.
He hurriedly stopped talking.
Xie Zhefeng, however, asked him, “Is there anything else Senior Brother wants to scold me for?”
An Wuxue: “…”
Xie Zhefeng waited a moment, and once certain that An Wuxue had nothing more to say, he stepped forward again. Just as An Wuxue had requested, he withdrew his protective spiritual energy, opened his mind, and waited for An Wuxue to examine his sea of consciousness.
“I only wanted to see the state of your inner demons, and…” and the Heartless Curse.
An Wuxue spread his divine sense, touching Xie Zhefeng’s sea of consciousness.
The sea of consciousness is the most private place for a cultivator. What distinguished the dual cultivation of cultivators from that of mortals is the merging of their consciousness.
An Wuxue hadn’t thought much of it at first, but the moment his divine sense entered Xie Zhefeng’s, he suddenly remembered their dual cultivation at the Black Water Abyss.
His whole body tensed, and his divine sense paused for an instant.
The presence of the man beside him also seemed to falter.
Both sat in absolute silence. An Wuxue had his eyes closed, yet he could feel his junior brother’s gaze fixed solely upon him.
He could hear the man’s breathing grow heavier, and he could feel his sea of consciousness quietly stirring.
They hadn’t closed the door when they entered, and the late-night snow drifted in with the wind, falling amidst the shadows cast by the moonlight.
Fine snowflakes occasionally brushed against An Wuxue’s cheek, bringing a faint, cold sensation.
It felt as if something was assisting Xie Zhefeng’s gaze, scratching at his heart.
He snapped his eyes open.
Caught red-handed, the man hurriedly looked away.
“You… didn’t you forget?” he gritted out.
The question had no context, yet Xie Zhefeng understood immediately that An Wuxue was asking about the dual cultivation.
It was precisely because he had forgotten that he couldn’t help but wonder just now: what would his Senior Brother be like during dual cultivation, with his divine sense enveloped by his own?
How could he have forgotten?
Xie Zhefeng naturally didn’t dare say this. He recited the Heart-Cleansing Mantra in his mind and said in a low voice, “Don’t be angry, Senior Brother…”
Angry about what?
Xie Zhefeng didn’t say, and An Wuxue didn’t want to know.
He only knew that Xie Zhefeng’s sea of consciousness had quieted down somewhat, so he didn’t delay and began to investigate thoroughly.
The man’s divine soul was already covered in blackness. If his will wavered even slightly, Xie Zhefeng might himself become a source of turbid energy.
It was already this severe!?
In the Guan Ye Array, he hadn’t noticed anything unusual about Xie Zhefeng. He had assumed that after the man used the soul-splitting method to suppress his inner demons when killing Zhao Duan, they hadn’t flared up again.
How could it be…
He continued his investigation.
The Heartless Curse was still there. He didn’t know if it was because Xie Zhefeng had reached the Immortal Realm and could resist Nan He’s power, or if it was as Pei Qian said… that his feelings were so strong the curse became naturally ineffective…
But the Heartless Curse remained quiet, while Xie Zhefeng’s inner demons were like raging waves behind an iceberg; there seemed to be no connection between the two.
Could it be that Xie Zhefeng’s inner demons weren’t caused by the Heartless Curse?
“Senior Brother,” the man said suddenly, “I spent eight hundred years in seclusion to root out my inner demons. I know the state of my soul; it won’t lead to a major disaster, you can rest assured. Please… stop frowning.”
An Wuxue slowly opened his eyes.
—Had he been frowning?
His worry was not just about the inner demons, but the origin of this Heartless Curse.
His junior brother’s talent was so high; why did Master insist on forcibly changing his path, making the Heartless Curse and the Way of Floating Life foundation coexist? The reason was still unknown.
Moreover, he had originally thought the inner demons were born from the conflict between the Heartless Curse and Xie Zhefeng’s foundation, combined with his… his own affairs. But now that he finally had the chance to investigate in detail, he found that didn’t seem to be the case.
He asked Xie Zhefeng, “Can I interrogate Qu Wenxin?”
The Heartless Curse had been sealed by the previous head of the Qu family; he still had to seek the cause from the Qu family.
“Of course,” Xie Zhefeng said in a soft voice. “Senior Brother’s name is still on the first page of the Falling Moon disciple records. Falling Moon hasn’t chosen a new First Seat in a millennium. Since Senior Brother has returned from the dead in the eyes of all the cultivators in the world, you are still the First Seat of Falling Moon Peak.”
The title of First Seat of Falling Moon Peak might sound like only the top-ranked disciple of Falling Moon, but Falling Moon was the premier sect that had produced Immortal Venerables for generations. The First Seat of the sect was essentially the First Seat of all immortal paths.
“Whatever you want to investigate regarding the North Abyss crisis, you are free to do so.”
An Wuxue withdrew his divine sense and said casually, “No need. I have no sect or faction, and I am no First Seat. It’s just that the one behind this likely has a deep connection with me, so I will do my best to resolve it this time. But afterward… I will not involve myself in the affairs of the two realms.”
Xie Zhefeng looked dejected at his refusal to return. “No matter where Senior Brother wishes to go, in the eyes of the Falling Moon Peak disciples, you will always be the First Seat.”
An Wuxue remained silent.
Xie Zhefeng added, “Today is your birthday, and you’ve spent too much effort on North Abyss. Why don’t you rest for a few days? Although Shangguan Liaoliao’s cultivation has dropped, I am here in North Abyss. In just a few days, nothing can go wrong.”
“The City Lord’s manor and Falling Moon Peak have to handle the puppets, and the First City is currently under lockdown and search. There won’t be much progress in just a few days. You can interrogate Qu Wenxin after you’ve rested.”
“…Alright.”
He paused and asked, “How did you explain my return from death to the cultivation world?”
“There was no explanation.”
No explanation?
An Wuxue gave a light laugh—that made sense.
He couldn’t even explain it himself. If the truth of his puppet body were to be revealed, it would likely cause even more chaos.
Better to give no explanation and let others guess as they pleased.
Having asked everything he wanted, he fell silent once more.
Kun Kun had been hiding under the covers for a long time. Now, unable to hold back, it poked out a fluffy head, its large round eyes blinking as it looked back and forth between the two of them.
Xie Zhefeng knew it was time to leave.
He stood up, leaving his spiritual pouch behind once more.
“Sweet dreams, Senior Brother.”
“Immortal Venerable, I don’t—”
I don’t need these things.
Before he could finish the sentence, the man, knowing his temperament, had already left.
Spiritual energy whipped up a light breeze, blowing the falling snow and causing a rain of plum blossoms.
An Wuxue stood up and went to the door, finding the courtyard still filled with Han Sang flowers.
Xie Zhefeng hadn’t taken them away.
The man had come with all the Han Sang flowers in North Abyss and the most pure snow lotus of the Sea of Guxu, yet he left with only a heart full of wind and snow.
An Wuxue let out a sigh and set up a barrier covering the entire plum courtyard to prevent any prying eyes or disturbances. He also used spiritual energy to hang a soul bell at the courtyard gate, so that anyone with urgent business could ring it.
Having done all this, he turned back, intending to close the door and sleep a bit longer.
But before he could move his feet, he looked back once more at the courtyard full of Han Sang flowers.
He actually knew which one was the coldest.
His sensitivity to the cold from his previous life had never been cured, and even in a new body, he remained sharp and accustomed to it.
An Wuxue walked slowly to that specific flower and gently used his spiritual energy to pick it up.
He lowered his head and took a light sniff.
It was like the fragrance of a serene orchid wrapped in a cold scent.
So that was what a Han Sang flower smelled like?
He had spent so much time in North Abyss in his previous life and received so many Han Sang flowers, yet why had he never smelled them properly?
An Wuxue stood there for a long time.
He stood until the moon had moved from one branch to another, and the hands holding the flower were covered in snow. Kun Kun flew out from the house and tugged at his sleeve.
Only then did he put the flower back.
The door finally closed completely, blocking out the frost and snow.
Outside the barrier, Xie Zhefeng stood beneath a tree with his sword, reluctant to leave, watching from the snow.
The barrier covered everything in the courtyard; he could see nothing.
With his power, no barrier in this world could stop him.
Yet this was the only one he could break but dared not, for fear of disturbing the person in the dream.
An Wuxue slept until the sun was high in the sky.
When he woke, sunlight was hitting the snow. He pushed open the window. Just as he realized Kun Kun was missing, he saw something wiggling in the snow.
“Whine…”
“…”
The colors matched so perfectly that it had blended in.
He didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. He stepped out through the door, walked across the snow, and picked Kun Kun up.
Ting-a-ling—
The soul bell rang.
Xuan Fang? Shangguan Liaoliao? Qi Xun? Xie Zhefeng…?
He spread out his divine sense.
An Wuxue raised an eyebrow. He felt no dislike, so he dismissed the barrier and sent a sound transmission to let the person in.
As soon as Pei Qian entered, he produced over a dozen spiritual pouches.
An Wuxue: “?”
He took a step back, scanned the area to confirm no one else was around, and said, “How many immortal families did you rob?”
Pei Qian: “…”
He hung all the spiritual pouches on Kun Kun’s claws, making them so heavy that the little creature almost couldn’t fly.
He said leisurely, “These are from all the North Abyss immortal families yesterday and today, plus some sects that have a connection with the First Seat, oh, and a few Tribulation-Transcending rogue cultivators. They are offerings to the First Seat—”
“Send them back.” An Wuxue refused firmly before Pei Qian could even finish.
He didn’t want any connection with those people at all. What did it matter how precious the spiritual treasures and dharma tools were?
But Pei Qian looked troubled. “Do you know why I was the one to bring them in? Because that Peak Master named Xuan spent all day yesterday refusing them, and it was useless. Those people don’t fear death; even threatening to kill them was useless. Peak Master Xuan had no choice, and he knew the First Seat wouldn’t want to accept them…”
“So they thought I might be more agreeable with you and gave you this task?”
Pei Qian gave a sheepish laugh. “That’s about it.”
“And you just agreed?” An Wuxue asked in frustration.
“I didn’t want to!” Pei Qian said helplessly. “I also knew you probably wouldn’t want them and refused firmly at first. But there’s always a ‘but’—didn’t you give me an illusion technique that can satisfy an obsession? I only just tricked Qu Jizhi into it two days ago, and then Peak Master Xuan told me that if I didn’t help, he would break the illusion!”
“I used dual cultivation to lower Qu Jizhi’s guard and finally managed to get him into that illusion. If Peak Master Xuan breaks it, I’ll have lost everything!”
“Those people from Falling Moon Peak are far too shameless!”
An Wuxue: “…”
“Oh, except you.”
“…………”