Chapter 99#
That cautious call of “First Seat” came through the crack of the door, accompanied by the wind through the window, drifting amidst the dust and making him feel as if he hadn’t yet truly awakened.
He rubbed his eyes and looked at the exceptionally familiar furnishings of the room.
Chun Hua lay by his side.
Am I in North Abyss?
Is this not the City Lord’s manor of North Abyss?
By habit, he performed a cleaning spell and sat up, walking to the window and pushing open the paper pane to let in the light.
The cool breeze immediately blew into his robes.
His cultivation had returned to the half-step to ascension stage, and with his spiritual energy abundant and circulating automatically, he didn’t feel cold at all.
The courtyard was full of blooming plum blossoms, and the winter wind brought fine snow that clung to the branches.
Plum petals fell with the wind, covering the small courtyard and filling his sight with the fragrance of deep winter.
It felt as if those thousand years had never passed, as if he were still in the City Lord’s manor at the time the sword array was first established.
But he remembered what had happened.
The Guan Ye Array, the ascension lightning tribulation, the North Abyss sword array…
His mind flickered for a moment as a white ball of fur rounded the corner from the door to the window and crashed into his arms.
“…Kun Kun?”
“Whine!”
The person knocking had seemed afraid of disturbing him earlier, but now that they were certain he was awake, they knocked again: “First Seat?”
He frowned: “Xuan Fang?”
Why was Xuan Fang here? And why was he calling him First Seat?
He let go, and Kun Kun understood his meaning, taking flight from his arms and rushing to pull open the door with its claws.
It really was Xuan Fang.
Upon seeing An Wuxue, Xuan Fang looked even more dazed than An Wuxue himself.
His eyes flickered, and he seemed to have much he wanted to say yet couldn’t.
He was carrying an exquisite tray, upon which lay expensive and meticulously crafted robes, several pill bottles, and a spiritual pouch.
An Wuxue rolled up his left sleeve and saw the puppet seal.
He was still Su Xue.
He hadn’t misremembered, and it wasn’t a dream.
…Had Xie Zhefeng brought him to the City Lord’s manor?
“This is where I used to stay,” he said. “I didn’t expect the old place to remain even after a thousand years. Come in and sit.”
Xuan Fang placed the tray on the tea table and closed the door before entering.
But he didn’t sit.
Though he was now a Peak Master of Falling Moon, at this moment he seemed to have returned to a thousand years ago, standing beside An Wuxue as a junior disciple.
“First Seat, earlier by the Frost Sea, I… my words were out of line. I truly deserve to be punished…”
An Wuxue thought back and eventually remembered that when he first arrived at the Frost Sea, Xuan Fang had encountered him when Kun Kun rushed into his arms, and had been quite harsh to him.
He had forgotten about it.
“Is Peak Master Xuan referring to the day Kun Kun rushed into my arms and you reminded me not to overstep my bounds? Peak Master Xuan occupies an elevated position on Falling Moon Peak; at the time, you were merely reminding a cultivation furnace not to lose their sense of propriety.”
Although treating people based on their status was indeed wrong, he was no longer the First Seat or an elder brother to the man; there was nothing to say.
With these few words, he both acknowledged Xuan Fang’s status as a Peak Master and distanced himself from Falling Moon. Even though Xuan Fang called him “First Seat,” he remained the “Su Xue” who only cared if Xuan Fang had been mean to Kun Kun.
Xuan Fang looked miserable, yet he didn’t utter a word of complaint.
“The Immortal Venerable had to leave North Abyss for a few days on business and asked me to look after the First Seat. I noticed you’ve always been wearing ordinary Falling Moon disciple robes, so I found a set of new clothes used by Peak Masters. Once we return to Falling Moon, I’ll have more prepared for you.”
“By the way, these pills are for replenishing spiritual energy. They have been refined many times and contain no impurities.”
“And in the spiritual pouch are things I thought the First Seat might find useful…”
An Wuxue listened quietly, appearing not to have any particular reaction to Xuan Fang’s words.
But he waited until the man finished before asking: “How is the situation in North Abyss now?”
“The Guan Ye Array is broken, and the tribulation cloud has dispersed. Nothing major happened. However, some immortal cultivators encountered Death Gates in the array and have… the Falling Moon disciples are working with the North Abyss cultivators to handle the casualties. The Fifteenth City’s array was repaired yesterday. The young Immortal Master of the Qu family captured many demon cultivators lurking within the main branch, and every city is now being purged of demonic presence.”
“And Qu Wenxin?”
“She has been interrogated several times, but has not spoken a word. The Immortal Venerable says she cannot possibly know where the mastermind is. Fearing she might be useful later, we haven’t used soul-searching yet.”
“Have you caught the person behind Qu Wenxin?”
“No. After the tribulation, the Immortal Venerable used his divine sense to search the First City repeatedly but found nothing unusual. That person is either hiding among the immortal cultivators or left the First City right after starting the crisis.”
“That’s a good thing,” An Wuxue said. “If the person didn’t dare face the Immortal Venerable directly, they cannot be in the Immortal Realm. That’s why they can only resort to dark schemes.”
Having asked these questions, his mind was finally at ease, but then he thought of his current situation.
His heart suddenly felt heavy.
“You know my identity. Does… everyone know now?”
Xuan Fang’s expression paused.
“Yes—”
“Thank you for the things.” Having received confirmation, An Wuxue hurried to interrupt him.
He rarely sought to escape things.
But at this moment, he didn’t want to hear it.
The situation with the sword array had been critical and the lightning imminent; he knew he would expose his identity, yet he had no choice.
Now that the crisis was over, he for once indulged himself and didn’t want to hear about what had happened after his identity was revealed.
He already had so many things he was forced to do or give up. Regarding this small matter, it wasn’t that he was afraid, but merely that he didn’t want to know.
But fate always made a habit of working against him.
Xuan Fang told him: “How has the First Seat’s rest been? There are many immortal cultivators from the North Abyss families and sects waiting outside. After the sword array blocked the lightning, they all knew the First Seat had returned. They are waiting for you to wake up, wanting to see you…”
An Wuxue’s hand, which had been stroking Kun Kun’s back, paused.
“…Wanting to see me?”
“Yes. They have been waiting for a long time.”
“Do they want to see me, or see An Wuxue?”
Xuan Fang was dazed for a moment, as if he didn’t understand the question.
Was the person before him not An Wuxue?
An Wuxue didn’t care about his reaction and added: “Forget it. Since they want to see me, hiding isn’t the solution. Are they just outside?”
“Yes…”
“Then I’ll trouble Peak Master Xuan to let them know I’ll be out immediately.”
“First Seat,” Xuan Fang gave a bitter smile. “I was only a child back then when I saw the First Seat slaying villains and protecting the gates of Falling Moon. At that time, I hoped that one day the First Seat could stand at the peak of the two realms, looking down at the wind and snow above the souls of all living beings. I failed to keep my promise then, but since the heavens have given me another chance, I am naturally willing to do anything for the First Seat.”
“The word ’trouble’ really doesn’t apply.”
An Wuxue gave a light laugh, speaking as if they were just chatting: “But hasn’t Peak Master Xuan ultimately become an expert who protects the common people?”
Xuan Fang froze.
“Whine…” Kun Kun rolled over in An Wuxue’s arms.
An Wuxue patted its head to quiet it before continuing: “The First Seat you speak of lived his life only for the common people of the two realms. If he had a final wish, it would surely have been for the two realms to be at peace.”
“Now that there is peace and Peak Master Xuan is protecting his domain, for the First Seat you speak of, your promise has not been broken.”
“As for me—the only connection between Peak Master Xuan and me was our meeting on Falling Moon six months ago. I truly don’t have the face to let someone like Peak Master Xuan do anything for me.”
“No matter who I am, Peak Master Xuan is Peak Master Xuan and I am me. Trouble is trouble.”
An Wuxue neither accepted Xuan Fang’s regret nor showed any resentment, acting as if they truly were just acquaintances who had met by chance.
Xuan Fang opened his mouth to retort.
But his gaze fell upon An Wuxue, seeing the young man sitting upright by the tea table, looking down at the white ball of fur in his arms with a gentle expression, his usually warm eyes filled with light.
Outside the window, the plum blossoms were fragrant, and the cool breeze brought in the snow. It couldn’t freeze a cultivator of such a high realm, yet it seemed as if time had stopped.
He didn’t dare to interrupt.
He could only bow silently and withdraw to inform those waiting outside.
The door opened and closed. An Wuxue looked up again, gazing at the immortal plum blossoms that had grown for a millennium.
“Flowers bloom and fade. No matter how great the wind and snow, as long as the roots remain, the fragrance will return next year.”
The little creature in his arms didn’t understand. “Whine?”
“The snow that must fall will fall,” he said.
Fear and avoidance were always useless.
He put down Kun Kun, letting the little creature stay in the room. He didn’t use the things Xuan Fang had brought, still wearing his plain robes as he picked up Chun Hua and walked out.
Quite a few immortal cultivators were standing outside the courtyard.
With a quick glance at their familiar family crests and accessories, An Wuxue could recognize them—the Qi, Wang, and Xue clans of North Abyss…
And some other sects.
Most were at the Tribulation-Transcending stage. Some had even dealt with him quite often in the past, yet had also stood among the crowd questioning him during the siege.
Back then, he was the person everyone sought to condemn. Many didn’t know the truth and were just following the crowd. Resentment would only trap him in the past, so he had never intended to settle any scores.
Someone seemed to be asking Xuan Fang when he would come out. Seeing him emerge, the courtyard suddenly fell into a dead silence.
This was the first time since his return that An Wuxue had appeared before people as his past self.
And before old acquaintances, no less.
His grip on his sword tightened.
In truth, he still wanted to live quietly in this prosperous age he had never before experienced, being a useless person, a mortal. When his time came, he would just lie among the snow and plum blossoms in a courtyard like this.
Unfortunately, fate was unwilling to let him have his way.
Someone finally broke the silence: “First Seat An—”
“Everyone,” An Wuxue spoke first. “I exerted myself greatly a few days ago and have only just awakened. I may not be completely clear-headed, and my words may not be entirely appropriate. I ask for your forgiveness in advance.”
Xuan Fang’s nose twitched.
No one could always speak perfectly.
With anyone else, no one would care. Who would take a slip of the tongue seriously?
But An Wuxue seemed to have carved this caution into his very bones, fearing that a single wrong word would breed dissatisfaction and resentment.
There were ten thousand evils in this world that could be forgiven. Only his First Seat bore such immense scrutiny.
The cultivators in the courtyard also mostly showed complex expressions.
No one had expected that the first thing An Wuxue would say after saving countless lives in North Abyss and keeping the sword array from destruction was such a sentence.
Among the cultivators from the clans and sects, one person stepped forward.
An Wuxue’s gaze focused, his brow knitting together as he drew his sword in an instant.
Everyone present had seen the brilliance of Chun Hua a thousand years ago. Though this drawn blade carried no spiritual energy, it made everyone’s expression tighten.
The person who was about to step forward also hurriedly stopped.
But An Wuxue only stood there with his sword, saying at a steady pace: “If you want to discuss the events of a thousand years ago with me, I truly have made no progress in all these years. I can only say once more—it wasn’t my doing. Immortal Venerable Chu Han has already investigated some matters; I don’t know the details. If you wish to ask, ask Falling Moon Peak.”
“I have no desire for high positions in the two realms this time. My actions in North Abyss were out of necessity. In the future, unless necessary, I will not involve myself in the affairs of the ten thousand sects.”
“I’ve said my piece. If you still have something you wish to settle, I am not one to sit and wait for death. Back then, Chun Hua did not distinguish between immortal and demon once it tasted blood; it is not a sword of cowardice or retreat now, either.”
The person who had been about to step forward trembled, then knelt directly before him.
“First Seat An.”
An Wuxue was stunned.
From behind the crowd, a sigh was heard.
As the others sensed the aura and realm of the newcomer, they immediately made a path.
The man in red, holding a folding fan, walked slowly toward him.
“A-Xue,” Qi Xun’s voice was sorrowful. “They are here to apologize and seek your forgiveness.”