On the cold, spacious ice surface, though everyone had vaguely guessed the truth, when A Mu personally spoke of her identity as the Form Person Master, each person was still shocked beyond measure. Mita looked despondently at the familiar yet strange young maiden. Was she still the A Mu who had tightly embraced her in times of danger? The fat Daoist’s whiskers tilted slightly upward, his expression subtle, not knowing what he was contemplating. Wu Yan’s eyes were turbid, killing intent appearing and disappearing. Yun Yan, Ban Xi, You Huai, and the others were all still shaken. Li Si looked at A Mu, capturing the maiden’s drifting gaze.

A Mu revealed her white teeth slightly. “The story isn’t finished yet. There’s still the part about him.”

“After the great collapse, following Shi Ze into the secluded realm was another person. His name was Su Shenghua, a wandering young master who loved to trek through mountains and ford rivers.” A Mu narrated the story about “him” in detail.

Su Shenghua happened to pass by Ten Directions Mountain and was captivated by the majestic mountain peaks shrouded in clouds and mist. Thus he willfully entered the mountains. Who knew he would encounter the rare miracle of the great collapse through the ages? So Su Shenghua followed the trail in thrilling pursuit. Along the way, Su Shenghua met Shi Ze. The two traveled together into the secluded realm and jointly witnessed A Mu, graceful and ethereal as a fairy beyond worldly dust. Su Shenghua was amazed, thinking a celestial maiden had descended. Unlike the aged Shi Ze who respected her in his heart, Su Shenghua fell in love with the maiden at first sight.

“You, hello. My name is Su Shenghua—Su of the ancient surname, Shenghua meaning flowers blooming everywhere. Because when my mother gave birth to me, she always thought I’d be a girl, so she gave me this name.” Su Shenghua touched the back of his head and smiled like a child.

The maiden smiled sweetly. “My name is Mu Sanxing. Master said on the night I existed, three stars of the Zhen constellation shone brilliantly in the sky, so he named me Sanxing.” A Mu’s real name was actually Mu Sanxing.

The innocent, pure young man and maiden gradually developed feelings through their conversations. The young man quietly told the maiden his goal was to be like the wandering scholar Xu Piaolin, roaming every luminous, captivating mountain range beneath the stars. The young man asked the maiden. The maiden said she only wanted to wait for the person she must wait for. Hearing this, the young man immediately became dejected, stammering to ask whom the maiden was waiting for. The maiden covered her mouth and laughed lightly, saying it was the person Master wanted her to wait for. The young man smiled foolishly.

Young man Su Shenghua, young maiden Mu Sanxing—the two unknowingly spent half a year in the secluded realm. Their feelings for each other gradually deepened. During the day, Su Shenghua brought Mu Sanxing to chase mountain birds and clear winds. At night, the two lay atop the ice palace gazing at the scattered stars of the Ink Star Rock. Su Shenghua turned his head and said, “Legend has it that at heaven’s edge, beside the starry river, there’s a mysterious ancient country where every maiden is transparent and clear as crystal. Are you from beside the stars?”

“Beside the stars.” Mu Sanxing shook her head gracefully. “That must be very beautiful, but unfortunately I’m not from beside the stars. My home is… in another distant place. My master is there.”

“Can you take me there?” Su Shenghua asked straightforwardly.

Mu Sanxing said shyly, “I don’t know how long until I can return. If you still want to go when the time comes, I’m willing to take you.”

Su Shenghua nodded happily. He gazed at his beloved maiden’s eyes and brows, murmuring, “When I was young, I studied feng shui and fate reading. A Mu, you belong to the ominous Water-Fire dual fate—only one person in a hundred thousand has such a fate. Women with Water-Fire fate hide both coldness and passion in their hearts—sometimes cold as ice, sometimes passionate as surging waves. But most importantly, she has a sincere, kind heart. All my life I’ve yearned for a sincere and kind heart. Sanxing, remember what I say—I love you!”

Mu Sanxing’s pretty face flushed. Her voice was like willow catkins. “Me too. I like you.”

“If an instant could become eternity, then we could be together forever.” Su Shenghua gently drew Mu Sanxing into his embrace. Even the twinkling stars on the ice palace seemed to shyly close their eyes. That night, that moment, Mu Sanxing thought she and Su Shenghua would transform the instant into eternity and never part again. But what she didn’t expect was that three days later, Su Shenghua said he must leave.

“There’s something outside the mountains I must do. I’ll go and come right back. You, obediently wait for me here. Did you hear?” Su Shenghua pinched Mu Sanxing’s tender cheek as he spoke.

Mu Sanxing couldn’t hide her sorrow at parting. Tears glistened, but her tone was firm and unwavering. “I’ll wait for you to come back.”

This life, this lifetime, I’ll guard this place until you return. This was Mu Sanxing’s promise to Su Shenghua, kept only in Mu Sanxing’s heart, not letting Su Shenghua hear.

“I’m leaving.” Su Shenghua waved goodbye, just like waving and calling out when waking each morning as always.

Mu Sanxing watched him turn around, turn his face, his figure becoming a silhouette until it disappeared. The smile she wore when they first met always remained on her face. If he must leave, she hoped to leave him her best side. And that morning, Su Shenghua’s last memory was of the girl on the pure, bright ice palace—waving, smiling, her robes fluttering like a fairy. He turned back. A trace of cold clarity slid down his eye socket, but the girl could no longer see it.

Su Shenghua left and never returned. The girl kept her promise, waiting for him. One year, two years… ten years… a hundred years. In the blink of an eye, over five hundred years passed. The maiden still stood at the place where they’d parted, gazing at the corner where his silhouette disappeared, face bearing a smile, yet tears often uncontrollably sliding down.

“I was always afraid he’d forget me, and more afraid I’d forget him.” A Mu’s eyes moistened and glistened. “So when Su Shenghua’s features began to blur in my mind, I decided to find him.”

Li Si, the fat Daoist, and Mita couldn’t help but be moved by A Mu’s devoted love. A Mu closed her eyes slightly and continued telling the story.

“However, I couldn’t betray my promise to Teacher Mozi. So within the five-hundred-year limit, I couldn’t leave Ten Directions Mountain. But I yearned to know news of Su Shenghua, even if just catching wind and shadows. I recalled Su Shenghua’s appreciation for girls with Water-Fire fate. So I borrowed the Gu Yao Sect established by Shi Ze to search for suitable candidates under the name ‘sacred maiden.’ However, the chosen girls didn’t have their souls devoured. They only needed to answer one question for me.” A Mu spoke slowly. Mita couldn’t help but ask, “What question?”

A Mu’s gaze was deep. “Have you heard anyone speak of ‘At heaven’s edge, beside the starry river, there’s a mysterious ancient country where every maiden is transparent and clear as crystal.'”

Mita’s soft heart was touched. Tears blurred her vision.

“I waited for fourteen sacred maidens. None had heard this phrase, much less seen Su Shenghua.” A Mu lowered her fair, slender neck. “Time passed swiftly. The five hundred years with Shi Cong’s descendants expired. I never waited for the people I should wait for—neither Shi Cong’s descendants nor Su Shenghua. In the five hundred and first year, I stepped out of Ten Directions Mountain into the bustling, noisy mortal world. The mortal world’s song, dance, music, and decadent sounds were too different from simple Ten Directions Mountain. The colorful people and things made my spirit tense, my head dizzy and eyes blurred. I forcibly endured my inner discomfort, shuttling between cities searching for traces of Su Shenghua. But in the end, I still found nothing. I fled back to Ten Directions Mountain. Only after returning to the familiar, cold ice palace did I feel I could breathe smoothly. In the following forty-five years, every five or six years I would step into the world outside the mountains once, then flee back in disarray. In those forty-five years, I still had no leads about Su Shenghua.”

A Mu turned toward Mita. “The last time, I was targeted by you as a sacred maiden. At that time, I felt lost and disappointed. Suddenly hearing you say ‘The person I’m waiting for is in Xingtian City,’ I suddenly felt time flowing backward, as if my past self had played a joke on me—a joke called fate. Since it’s my own joke, I must face it myself. So I returned to Ten Directions Mountain with you.”

Mita suddenly understood most of it, her expression solemn. “Then where did the previous sixteen sacred maidens go? The priest said the fire vent only extinguishes once every fifteen to twenty years, and the specific time must be determined through stellar divination. Could it be each sacred maiden had to wait fifteen years before leaving?”

A Mu looked back at the ice palace that had drilled through the rock wall. “The fire vent isn’t the only way to reach here. Over five hundred years ago, the ice palace pierced through the mountain belly, leaving a secret passage leading to the North Sea. The sixteen sacred maidens escaped Ten Directions Mountain through the secret passage. As for me, I also stepped into the world outside the mountains through the secret passage.”

“So that’s how it is. I knew my divination calculations couldn’t be wrong.” Priest Yun Yan, who’d been silent for a long time, suddenly spoke.

“But Su Shenghua only has a hundred years of life. It’s already been over five hundred years—he died long ago. Why must you still bitterly search for him?” Mita said with compassion. A Mu smiled sweetly. “Mita, you don’t understand. Some people, even when you know they’re already dead, you still go search for them, because between people, besides life and death, there are promises. What I want isn’t an answer, but my promise to him.”

A Mu’s gaze was resolute and dazzling. An expression deeply concealed flashed across Li Si’s face.

“The mysterious ancient tribe person who led me into the ancestral temple in Xingtian City was you, wasn’t it, A Mu? Though you hid well, the unique fragrance on your body exposed you. At the sacred ceremony when you walked past me, I suddenly understood.” Li Si said steadily. “Following this reasoning, you should have known long ago about the Seven-Person Curse’s existence. Leading me into the ancestral temple was also to reveal the truth behind Chang Bo and Bian Kui’s deaths.”

A Mu nodded lightly. “In the past, Shi Ze mentioned the three great forbidden techniques to me, but I didn’t pay attention at the time. In Fuwa Village, Chang Bo and Bian Kui’s deaths left me baffled. Later, after reaching Xingtian City, I suddenly remembered the Seven-Person Curse’s content. I knew the Seven-Person Curse was hidden in the ancient tribe’s ancestral temple, so I disguised myself to lead you there. But I never imagined you’d ultimately discover the truth anyway.”

“If I could have remembered the Seven-Person Curse earlier, perhaps Chang Bo and Bian Kui wouldn’t have had to die. However, so much time has passed. In time’s passage, many things are always lost. What remains in the end is often only the most profound parts.” A Mu murmured, not knowing to whom she spoke. She suddenly looked at Li Si again. “You began suspecting me even before the ancient tribe ancestral temple matter, didn’t you? I could sense your gaze was different from before.”

Li Si raised the corners of his mouth. “It seems my every move can’t escape your eyes either. That’s right. Before the ancestral temple matter, I already had some doubts about you, but I didn’t think Chang Bo and Bian Kui’s deaths were related to you. I just felt your background was hard to fathom. Specifically, it was because at the Black Stone Bridge, the three-handed outcast suddenly retreated when it pounced toward Mita. At that time, Gongyang Yan holding the sword first flashed through my mind, but I immediately ruled it out. Gongyang Yan had encountered the three-handed outcast before. Even when its fingers were severed, the outcast didn’t fear the blade, so what it feared wasn’t Gongyang Yan’s sword. Mita—not her either. Her panic at the time was real, not false. What remained was only you, facing the outcast fearlessly. The three-handed outcast made contact with your sharp gaze containing killing intent, so it chose to retreat in disarray.”

“You’re not an ordinary maiden. Who exactly are you? This was my doubt about you at the Black Stone Bridge.” Li Si spread his hands. “But even if Zhuge Liang were resurrected, he probably couldn’t calculate that you’re actually the Saintess of the Gu Yao Sect, Master Mozi’s disciple.”

A Mu smiled. “You’re not ordinary either. You already know who I am. Can you tell me who you are?”

“My name is Li Si. I’m just an unlikeable constable.” Li Si had once answered a similar question from the fat Daoist.

A Mu smiled sweetly. “I’ll remember. Your name is Li Si. You’re an unlikeable constable.”

“Have you said enough! The treasure that the Gu Yao Sect’s Saintess has guarded through generations is this Form Person Master technique?” Wu Yan could no longer restrain himself. He coldly interjected, “Regardless of any agreement with anyone, hand over the Form Person Master technique to me and I’ll let you go. Otherwise, I don’t mind killing you one more time!”

A Mu’s beautiful eyes grew cold. “Ancient tribe’s Shi Ze helped me. The Gu Yao Sect has also worked tirelessly for me for five hundred years. I owe Shi Ze and the Gu Yao Sect, so whether it’s your or Wu Ying’s sinister conspiracy, I can let bygones be bygones. Leave now, but never step foot in the holy land again.”

“Such arrogant words! Di Bao, Di Shi, kill her! Kill her!” Wu Yan tore off the outer garment of his composed expression. His entire being became violent and furious.

The two withered elders pounced toward A Mu like violent wind and sudden rain. A Mu closed her eyes and flicked a finger again. The ice mechanism person likewise flicked a finger. Only hearing two “bang bang” sounds, two zhang-long ice spikes pierced the two elders’ chests. After the ice spikes entered their bodies, they instantly froze their blood. The two elders fearfully exhaled half a breath of icy air. Their four limbs and five features instantly covered with white frost—they were frozen alive.

Wu Yan’s eyes split with fury. He suddenly swung his palm. Ten sharp bone spurs abruptly drilled from between his palm’s gaps. His back protruded, his chest caved in, like a deformed outcast. Wu Yan roared wildly, “Rebirth! I want rebirth! No one can stop me!”

A Mu sighed regretfully. An ice pillar three chi wide separated from the ice pavilion and struck the fierce Wu Yan. The bone spurs were smashed and broke at the roots. Wu Yan was also sent flying to the giant ice’s edge. Blood gushed from Wu Yan’s mouth, nose, eyes, and ears. His pupils dilated. Still unwilling to give up, he gazed at A Mu. He could only see a blurred outline. His form swayed and he finally fell into the churning lava abyss.

“I want… rebirth!” Wu Yan issued his final obsessive roar, drifting away with the hot wind.

“Everything will eventually settle to dust.” A Mu said calmly.

Yun Yan trembled ceaselessly watching the bloody scene. Ban Xi moved toward the iron chain bridge in terror. Just as he stepped onto the chains, a black blade sliced through his throat. Ban Xi looked at the black blade with extreme astonishment. He slowly turned back. Standing behind him was Wu Ying, like a blood-soaked man.

“You… aren’t dead yet?” Ban Xi sprayed an arrow of blood and fell dead.

Wu Ying hadn’t died. Blood dripped from his eyes. He was like an evil ghost. “This is the price for betraying me.”

A Mu and the others also noticed Wu Ying. Wu Ying’s blood-filled eyes met the maiden’s deep gaze. After a long time, he burst out with a furious roar. “I’m unwilling! I’m unwilling!” After shouting, Wu Ying limped onto the iron chains and slowly disappeared.

“You’re just letting him go?” Mita asked hesitantly.

A Mu mumbled, “He’s already been punished. And too much fresh blood has already been spilled in the ice palace. I don’t want it further defiled.”

The giant ice fell into silence for a moment. A Mu slowly looked over the remaining people—Li Si, Mita, the fat Daoist, You Huai, Yun Yan—and said resolutely, “I want to complete…”

“Hey, I’m here!” Someone on the iron chains suddenly interrupted A Mu. Li Si looked carefully. A black dot suddenly appeared on the chains. When the dot came closer, they could see clearly it was precisely Gongyang Yan, who’d been left alone in Xingtian City.

Gongyang Yan jumped onto the giant ice, looked around in amazement, then came among Li Si and the others.

“How did you come?” The fat Daoist asked first.

Gongyang Yan mysteriously pulled from his bosom a golden, glittering object—a brilliant, captivating golden flower. Gongyang Yan said, “I came to deliver this to you.”

“What is this?” Li Si found it somewhat familiar.

“How would I know? But the quicksilver in the gray stone the fat Daoist was experimenting with all turned transparent. That gray-striped toad also changed back to its original appearance. There was also this golden flower added to the hollow stone. I thought it looked pretty important, so I delivered it to the fat Daoist.” Gongyang Yan said hastily.

“Heavens, I remember now! This is an immortal flower that only appears in legends—Ground Golden Immortal.” The fat Daoist’s eyes practically bulged out. He kept clicking his tongue in wonder. “That’s right, that’s right. It’s this.”

Li Si’s eyes focused. “Wait, this is clearly my lost Purple Dream Creeper!”

“So is it Ground Golden Immortal or Purple Dream Creeper?” Gongyang Yan was confused.

Li Si also looked at the fat Daoist in bewilderment. The fat Daoist slapped his own head hard. “So that’s it! Ground Golden Immortal is transformed from Purple Dream Creeper.”

Astonished gazes came from all around. The fat Daoist grunted twice and began explaining. “Ground Golden Immortal is one of the six most mysterious and magnificent immortal flowers in two thousand years. The people who’ve seen it total no more than ten. Legend says Ground Golden Immortal only blooms at midnight’s child hour. When it opens, golden light spreads like a seated golden immortal, hence this name. In my youth, I once searched for the six great immortal flowers but ultimately returned empty-handed. I never imagined that after thirty years, I’d finally see with my own eyes what I’ve long dreamed of. And thanks to Li Si, I understand the cause of Ground Golden Immortal’s formation. From this flower, the reason Ground Golden Immortal is hard to find and rare is because it doesn’t grow from fallen seeds taking root. Rather, it’s obtained through Purple Dream Creeper’s transformation and sublimation. Purple Dream Creeper absorbs the Ice Flame strange poison in the Milky Way water. The deadly poison causes Purple Dream Creeper to undergo complete transformation into Ground Golden Immortal. I can only blame myself for being restless these seven years. To neutralize the Ice Flame strange poison, I considered formulating an antidote, also considered mutual generation and restraint, even thought of fighting poison with poison. I just never thought of the method of absorbing toxins.”

The fat Daoist pondered slightly. “However, this instance of Purple Dream Creeper absorbing poison has never been mentioned in ancient or modern texts. From this, I judge Purple Dream Creeper doesn’t absorb arbitrary toxins, but only absorbs specific toxins. Then the rare-as-phoenix-feathers Ground Golden Immortals over the millennia were probably all evolved from Purple Dream Creeper absorbing Ice Flame strange poison or other Water-Fire toxins. Too marvelous! Too incredible! I’m probably the first person to solve the mystery of Ground Golden Immortal.”

Mita couldn’t hide her excited emotions. Her gaze bright, she looked at the fat Daoist. “Purple Dream Creeper can absorb the Milky Way toxins. Does this mean the outcasts can be saved?”

“Those already mutated probably can’t be helped. But with Purple Dream Creeper, from now on the ancient tribe won’t produce new outcasts.” The fat Daoist couldn’t help but sigh. “The gloom shrouding Xingtian City for hundreds of years can also dissipate like smoke.”

Mita took the Ground Golden Immortal from the fat Daoist’s hands. Tears streamed down. You Huai also walked over, unable to control himself. He looked to heaven and clenched his fist. “The ancient tribe is saved!”

A Mu said lightly with relief, “That’s wonderful.”

Mita smiled at A Mu, then became resolute. She asked You Huai, “Hall Protector You Huai, the ancient tribe is now leaderless, in imminent danger. I want to return to save the ancient tribe, save the ancient tribe’s innocent children. Are you willing to go with me?”

You Huai nodded heavily. “Mita, you’re right. From now on, whatever you say, I’ll do.”

Mita gazed at A Mu. “A Mu, I’m returning to Xingtian City. Will you still stay here in the future?”

A Mu’s eyes swept lightly over the Ink Star Rock. She said softly, “I don’t know either. Perhaps I’ll stay. Perhaps I’ll return to Flame Moon Island. Or perhaps I’ll go search for that legendary ancient country beside the starry river, to see the heaven and earth there.”

Mita’s heart was filled with sorrow. She bit her teeth to keep tears from rolling down. She had to learn to live strongly alone. Mita’s thousand words transformed into just two characters. “Take care.”

A Mu replied, “You take care too, Mita.”

Mita and You Huai left together with the still-trembling Yun Yan. Mita never looked back. A Mu smiled with relief. “She’s truly become strong.”

Again a familiar figure became a silhouette until it disappeared. Would she come back? A Mu didn’t continue thinking. She turned her face to look at Li Si, the fat Daoist, and Gongyang Yan. Her expression calm, she said, “I want to complete Teacher Mozi’s promise. Come with me.”

A Mu removed the deep blue mask from the ice mechanism person’s face and wore it on her own cheeks, then walked to the ice zither. The deep blue mask reflected flowing strange light illuminating the ice zither’s surface. The ice zither slowly sank, revealing a zhang-wide small ice platform. A Mu walked onto the ice platform.

The three looked at each other, then also stepped onto the ice platform, standing shoulder to shoulder with A Mu.

A grinding, grating sound—the ice platform descended…