“The one who saved you back then, extended your life, and let you live—it wasn’t me, it was him. He is the true master of this Jiwu Mountain. I only bore this false name because of a promise. Your fates, because of a Soul Collector, were connected from the very beginning. I watched as you, step by step, forced him to a dead end. I wanted to stop it, but didn’t know how to intervene. I could only watch you hurt each other until one lived and one died before it could end.”

“Bai Zhi…” Yusang turned her head to look at him, wanting to speak, but was stopped by Bai Zhi’s shake of the head. He looked up at the snowy sky, then stepped down the stairs to leave.

“I’ve kept his secret for two thousand years. Now I finally don’t have to. Jiwu Mountain was built by him for you. Stay here.”

Bai Zhi left. Yusang stood under the corridor, watching his figure disappear into the heavy snow until she felt someone beside her and came back to her senses, turning her head to discover Huayi had somehow already appeared beside her.

“Sister Huayi, how did you come here?”

“I came to see you.” Huayi smiled as she spoke.

Yusang smiled and lowered her head slightly, taking Huayi’s hand and holding it as usual.

“Yusang, do you remember you once asked me why I left Taiye Island? Do you still want to know?” Huayi asked with a smile.

The smile on Yusang’s face became somewhat stiff, then she covered it with another smile and said, “I just asked casually. You don’t have to tell me.”

“I can tell you now. It was because that day I knew you had stolen the Azure Dragon Sword and Soul Collector, and knew you had cast Yan Qige’s soul into the mortal realm. I told Bai Zhi, and when he learned of it, to protect his sworn friend Yan Qige, he wanted to kill you to eliminate future troubles. When Zi Feng found out, she was extremely angry with me, so I had to leave.”

…

“This isn’t your fault. You probably just felt uneasy about me. It was Zi Feng taking her anger out on you…”

“It wasn’t misplaced anger.” Huayi interrupted Yusang’s words, looking at the heavy snow outside. After a long while, as if steeling her resolve, she said, “Actually, I once wanted you to die.”

The smile on Yusang’s face froze.

“You noticed it all, didn’t you? Otherwise, you wouldn’t have asked me that day why I had to leave. You were just testing me.”

“Huayi, I didn’t press you that day, and I won’t in the future. You don’t have to say anything.”

“No, I must speak.” Huayi shook her head in denial, slightly closing her eyes and saying, “I’ve had enough of two thousand years of self-blame and guilt.”

Yusang’s expression became increasingly indifferent. The hand holding Huayi’s gradually loosened and withdrew. She realized that when the truth was revealed, the person she had regarded as a sister was slowly distancing herself from her.

“What did you do?” Yusang asked.

“Two thousand years ago, when enemy forces surrounded Dajing City, I quietly opened the city gates.” Huayi said with her face slightly raised and eyes closed.

Yusang turned her head to look at Huayi’s closed-eyed profile. Her face seemed calm, but her body trembled uncontrollably. After a long while, she asked in a trembling voice, “Why? I treated you like my own sister.”

Tears overflowed from the corners of Huayi’s eyes, but she still didn’t open them, saying, “You’re right. I liked Zi Feng from the very beginning, but he was destined to marry you, the princess. At that time, I truly hated you, hated you completely.”

“Just for this, you became a spy and sent out the lives of everyone in Dajing City. Huayi, you were foolish, so very foolish.” Yusang raised her hand and delivered a hard slap to Huayi’s face. Huayi didn’t move at all, but Yusang herself was in tears.

“Zi Feng always wanted to stop you from seeking soul artifacts—he was protecting you and also protecting me. He was afraid you would learn the truth and discover that everyone played unspeakable roles in that genocide, even including yourself. Reaching the end, for anyone, it’s not victory, there’s nothing worth celebrating, and it even brings greater pain and failure.”

Listening to Huayi’s gradual narration, Yusang slowly raised her hand, condensing spiritual power between her fingers and pointing it at her forehead. Huayi slowly opened her eyes to meet hers, showing a smile without any fear or evasion. Yusang fiercely raised her hand to strike, but it didn’t land on Huayi. Instead, she saw a wooden corridor eave weighed down with thick snow at waist level, and tiles and snow collapsed with a tremendous crash.

“I always regarded Yan Qige as the murderer who killed my clan members, Bai Zhi as someone who deceived me, and even resented Zi Feng for concealing and deceiving me. But you, the person I always regarded as a sister, you were the source that drove everything from the beginning. Huayi, I truly hate myself—hate that I can’t bring myself to kill you now!”

“I regretted it, I truly regretted it. The day I saw the army enter the city, I immediately regretted it. I didn’t mean to—I was just confused for a moment… Forgive your sister, please, I beg you. You never asked me, never thought about it—actually, you just didn’t want to lose me as a sister, isn’t that right?” Huayi reached out to pull Yusang, her voice earnest and helpless.

Yusang blocked Huayi’s reaching hand and laughed coldly: “What use is regret? Can your regret bring back the lives of the Fengjian Clan members? Can you make Yan Qige not die? Can you make me forget the suffering I’ve endured and the torment I’ve suffered these two thousand years? You’re right—I deliberately didn’t think about it, deliberately pretended not to know because I didn’t want to lose you as a sister. But now you’ve spoken it out, and I’m no longer afraid.”

Yusang flicked her sleeves and turned to leave. Huayi stood under the corridor eave watching her retreating figure, tears rolling down, her eyes filled with reluctance and sadness, but she made no more pleas.

Suddenly, Yusang heard something fall to the ground behind her, followed by the heavy sound of a door closing. Yusang abruptly turned around to discover a barrier had appeared before her, blocking her in place.

While Yusang was still unclear about the situation, Huayi’s voice came from inside the room: “Now that you have revived the divine tree and the Netherworld Gate will open again, your long-cherished wish will be fulfilled. I hope… I hope all the departed souls of the Fengjian Clan can rest in peace.”

“What do you want to do?” An ominous premonition rose in Yusang’s heart.

“Yusang, you have already borne too much for the Fengjian Clan. Now you must also watch your beloved die at your hands. All of this was instigated by me, the disasters I brought, yet you must endure such cruel punishment. It’s too unfair to you. I don’t want to live in guilt anymore. What I owe you, what I owe the Fengjian Clan—perhaps I can never repay it. What I can do is only this.” Huayi’s voice came from inside the room, followed by powerful spiritual energy emanating from within.

Yusang condensed power in her palm and struck fiercely, breaking Huayi’s spell. She quickly ran back, knocked down the door bolt, and pushed open the door, only to discover there was no trace of Huayi inside. The silk fan Huayi had never left her hand had fallen beside Yan Qige’s feet.

Yusang’s eyes widened slightly as she moved forward step by step, bent down to pick up the silk fan, and saw two crimson cherry blossoms fly out from the painted fan. Like butterflies, they circled once before her—one flower landed on Yusang’s hand, and one fell into Yan Qige’s palm. Upon touching skin, both flowers melted like ink, leaving identical flower-shaped marks on their skin.

As the tattoo-like marks appeared on their skin, the person sleeping by the brazier moved a finger, then awakened, slowly lowering the hand that had been supporting his forehead. He slowly raised his head, and seeing it was Yusang, he smiled and said, “So you’ve come.”