Before the first scarlet star appeared in the night sky, Dong Yeshou was at Tian Xuan Academy watching the night examination of disciples alongside Qu Zhuyue and several other academy heads.
This year’s Star Pointing Assembly had already progressed to the second round of competition. The night examination took place in Tian Xuan Academy, within a dense forest encircled by formation arrays. Disciples from the seven academies were attempting to overcome numerous challenges.
These were yet another batch of children with boundless potential.
Dou Lanmin used his materializing technique to trick disciples from the other six academies. He circled around a ring of campfires to the front, stealing a sweet potato that a Yao Guang Academy disciple had been diligently roasting for a long time. As that disciple stared blankly at his suddenly empty hands, Dou Lanmin flashed up into a tree and made a face at him.
The young men, finally realizing what had happened, gnashed their teeth while shouting Dou Lanmin’s name. They all rushed toward him, determined to reclaim the last roasted sweet potato.
On the observation platform, Qu Zhuyue watched and gently shook her head.
Light snow fell during the night as the disciples each sought their own ways to endure the cold evening during the examination.
A Tian Shu Academy disciple used tree branches to draw on the ground while a Tian Xuan disciple listened to his earnest explanations and nodded.
A passing Tian Ji Academy disciple saw them and asked in puzzlement, “Aren’t we competitors? Why are you teaching her?”
The two discussing the formation array looked at each other after hearing this, suddenly realizing their situation.
A Tian Quan Academy disciple glanced at them with a somber expression. Watching the young man and woman harmoniously discussing formation arrays made the sweet potato in his mouth taste unbearably sour. He coldly sneered, “Two idiots.”
The Yao Guang Academy disciple looked up at Dou Lanmin in the tree and gritted his teeth. “Come down!”
Dou Lanmin peeled his sweet potato with an infuriatingly smug expression. “Why don’t you come up?”
The disciples from Yao Guang and Kai Yang Academies, having depleted their star power and unwilling to waste more by flashing, bent down to fiddle with the ground. They rolled snowballs and threw them at Dou Lanmin in the tree. “That was MY roasted sweet potato!”
Dou Lanmin just giggled.
Due to Dou Lanmin’s excessive arrogance below, the disciples from the other six academies howled in frustration. On the observation platform, Black Fox Mask gazed skyward without speaking. Beside him, Yin Luo and Fu Yuan both turned to look at him.
“Don’t look at me, I didn’t teach him that,” Black Fox Mask wiped his face and stated calmly. “That insufferable attitude—one look and you can tell my senior brother taught him.”
“This kid shouldn’t be in Yu Heng; he should be in your Tian Quan,” Fu Yuan turned to look at Yin Luo.
Yin Luo glared back: “My Tian Quan doesn’t accept swindlers.”
Black Fox Mask also looked at him: “Aren’t you one yourself? I’ll never forget how you tricked me during that mountain challenge back then.”
Yin Luo replied: “That wasn’t trickery, that was cooperation.”
Black Fox Mask gazed at him with a cold smile.
Yin Luo, with an expression that suggested he couldn’t be bothered to explain, snorted quietly and hid behind Fu Yuan.
Fu Yuan diligently observed the Tian Ji Academy disciples’ performance, picking up his brush to write notes in his record book, saying casually: “Speaking of mountain challenges, I recall that during one Star Pointing Assembly, someone stole the sweet potatoes I was roasting, just like Dou Lanmin did now?”
Black Fox Mask raised his hand: “First, exclude me.”
Yin Luo also raised his hand: “Second, exclude me too.”
Fu Yuan: “If not you two, then who?”
From not far away, Tian Ji Academy Head Wu Yan turned back and reminded his disciple: “It was these two, plus Chen Zhou and Qing Ying. I saw it all clearly.”
Tian Shu Academy Head Dan Xun gently tapped his fingers on the table, saying lazily: “Why steal someone else’s sweet potatoes for no good reason?”
Kai Yang Academy Head Shi Wenqian, while writing in his record book, also said: “Now that you mention it, I remember too. Chen Zhou started it.”
Qu Zhuyue added: “Fu Yuan roasted quite a few, but only got to eat one. Qing Ying took the most.”
Dong Yeshou, holding a teacup: “…”
Why do you all remember this kind of thing so clearly?
“This seems familiar,” Tian Ji’s Wu Yan stroked his chin, recalling, “I think something similar happened when I participated in the Star Pointing Assembly. On a similarly snowy day, I was the first to discover a sweet potato patch. I dug a hole, built a fire, and roasted sweet potatoes by myself. I had buried quite a few, but when I returned, only one remained.”
No one responded. Silence spread.
Wu Yan smiled thinly and said: “You’re all quiet, which means you all took some, right?”
Shi Wenqian was the first to point fingers: “I saw Dan Xun take them first.”
Dan Xun pointed at Qu Zhuyue: “I only discovered them after following Zhuyue.”
Qu Zhuyue, without a hint of guilt, pointed at Dong Yeshou: “Senior Brother took them first.”
Wu Yan turned to look at Dong Yeshou, his gaze accusatory: “So this is how you taught Chen Zhou and Qing Ying!”
Dong Yeshou: “…”
He wanted to defend himself, to say that Yu Heng and Tian Quan took them first, but thinking of these two departed friends, he silently closed his mouth.
Dong Yeshou sighed: “I’ll treat you all to roasted sweet potatoes tonight.”
Wu Yan casually took Dong Yeshou’s record book to help him write. “Hurry up, and don’t miss a single one.”
Dong Yeshou only rose after finishing the hot tea in his cup.
Qu Zhuyue watched his departing figure. Shi Wenqian said, “In this cold winter, he’s been holding that teacup without changing it. I never noticed him being so sensitive to cold before.”
“Isn’t Shi Fei working?” Dan Xun turned to ask Qu Zhuyue.
Qu Zhuyue took back her gaze and gently murmured an affirmative.
As her answer caused the atmosphere to grow somewhat tense, a celestial phenomenon occurred. Fu Yuan and the other two, who had been scuffling behind the Bei Dou Academy Heads, simultaneously looked up. The originally pitch-black night sky was illuminated by a bewitching scarlet star.
The disciples of the seven academies in the examination grounds were all drawn to the celestial anomaly. They stopped their pursuit of Dou Lanmin and looked up at the scarlet star with shocked expressions.
Dou Lanmin’s eyes shone brightly: “This direction… hey!”
Snow fell in the night. Text Su, who had been practicing calligraphy at a table, rubbed her eyes. She got up to close the window when the red star in the night sky caught her attention. She asked Gu San, who was still practicing archery in the courtyard: “What’s that?”
Gu San, drawing his bowstring with one eye open and one closed, only looked up when he heard her question.
It was the symbol of someone on the Ancient Continent breaking through to become a Pilgrim.
The stars shone brilliantly above the distant central lands of the continent.
Dong Yeshou had just left Tian Xuan Academy and stood on a small path covered with snow. On both sides were persimmon trees laden with fruit. The path was long, and many bright red persimmons had fallen onto the snowy ground.
His gaze passed through the snow-covered branches and the crimson persimmon fruits to see the scarlet star in the sky. Besides Ming Li, he couldn’t think of anyone else it could be.
Dong Yeshou walked forward with a calm expression. In the silent path, one could occasionally hear the sound of persimmons falling onto the snow. His peripheral vision glanced at them, inevitably recalling the past.
*
Ming Li would come to this path in Tian Xuan Academy every year to pick persimmons. Because the path was so long and more than half of it lay within Tian Xuan Academy, these persimmon trees were considered part of the academy. Qu Zhuyue didn’t care, allowing disciples to eat them or not as they pleased.
Tian Xuan disciples didn’t eat them, but disciples from the other six academies coveted these persimmons.
When Ming Li was young, she would sneak out at night after everyone was asleep to pick persimmons.
One day, she happened to be caught by Dong Yeshou, who was leaving Tian Xuan Academy after finishing a discussion. Looking at his little daughter who had climbed the tree with an armful of persimmons, Dong Yeshou stood below with an umbrella, lost in thought.
Ming Li was also stunned. After a moment, she made a hushing gesture toward Dong Yeshou.
Dong Yeshou found it both amusing and exasperating. He reached out his hand and said, “Come down. It’s snowing so heavily; aren’t you cold?”
“Father, catch these first.” Ming Li threw the persimmons down from the tree. Dong Yeshou caught them all for her, watching anxiously as she climbed down. “Be careful.”
The seven-year-old Ming Li still appeared tiny in Dong Yeshou’s eyes.
Dong Yeshou bent down to remove leaves and snow from Ming Li’s head. Seeing her happily hugging back her persimmons, he couldn’t help but smile along.
Dong Yeshou said, “If you want to eat them, just say so. Ask your senior brother to pick them for you.”
Ming Li frowned: “Senior brother would lecture me.”
Dong Yeshou: “Then tell me.”
Ming Li looked up at him. That gaze silently seemed to say, “You would lecture me, too.”
Dong Yeshou pretended not to see it and took her hand as they walked back.
The next day, Dong Yeshou discovered that the little girl hadn’t just been picking persimmons in the dead of night; she had also set up a formation array, marking the persimmon trees she wanted. Anyone else who tried to pick them would be pelted with snowballs.
After being hit several times, Dong Yeyun finally couldn’t take it anymore and went to find Chen Zhou. After examining the situation, Chen Zhou recognized the formation technique and confidently told him, “It was your sister who did this.”
Thus, the two siblings started fighting again.
Dong Yeshou returned to separate the two who were scuffling. Outside, snow fell continuously. The two children sat on cushions, glaring at each other resentfully.
“You know you can’t beat her, so why do you insist on fighting?” Dong Yeshou wrung out a wet cloth and wiped his young son’s face, which was covered with ink marks thrown by Ming Li.
Dong Yeshou couldn’t help but laugh at his dirty face.
Dong Yeyun complained pitifully: “Father, you’re laughing!”
Ming Li grabbed her hair, speaking sinisterly: “And you messed up my braid!”
Dong Yeyun glared back: “I just can’t understand why you would think that thing you made is a braid.”
Dong Yeshou listened to them bickering back and forth, with laughter constantly in his eyes. After finishing wiping Dong Yeyun’s face, he stood up and said, “Read through today’s Eight Meridians Formation Array fragment and recite it once. Chen Zhou and I will go make roasted sweet potatoes and persimmon cakes for you. Eat after you finish.”
The two children answered in unison: “Oh.”
Dong Yeshou went to the next room where Chen Zhou was teaching the bewildered Qing Ying how to select sweet potatoes. Qing Ying probably found it too difficult to understand, so she volunteered to take the persimmons to wash them clean.
Chen Zhou nodded at his approaching master: “Look, I’ve selected all the sweet potatoes—guaranteed large and sweet.”
Dong Yeshou came over, silently set aside the sweet potatoes he had chosen, and selected new ones.
Days passed one by one. Those children who once barely reached Dong Yeshou’s waist had all grown up. The boys were almost as tall as him, no longer constantly quarreling and fighting with their sister, now proclaiming, “My sister is the best sister in the world.”
The once cold little girl toward her brother had also grown up, no longer launching indiscriminate verbal attacks on those around her, becoming gentler and more reserved. Yet she still liked to pick persimmons alone in the dead of night, though she no longer set up formation arrays.
In response to Dong Yeshou’s inquiry, Ming Li said: “When I’m alone, I feel like all the persimmons are mine.”
Dong Yeshou realized his youngest daughter had a possessive streak as strong as her mother’s, though after growing up, it wasn’t as blatant as when she was young; she knew how to conceal it.
Later, on a certain day, Dong Yeshou discovered his daughter no longer went to pick persimmons.
Ming Li sat languidly under the eaves, with a small table set with hot tea. She seemed to be counting something. When she counted to a certain point, she looked toward the courtyard gate. A young man carrying a bag of persimmons entered right on time. On a winter day, his smile was bright as he called out “Senior Sister” while approaching her, taking fresh persimmons out of his bag and placing them on the table.
*
Winter had come again this year, and the persimmon trees that had lived for countless years were still laden with fruit.
Dong Yeshou picked some fresh persimmons, thinking that when the children returned, they would be able to enjoy dried persimmon slices. He also went to the kitchen to select many sweet potatoes to take back.
He lit the wall stove, his eyes reflecting the burning flames, but the cold within his body still couldn’t be dispelled. Shi Fei was in the room, its power covering the entire Bei Dou, able to supply endless star power to the people of Bei Dou, yet unable to heal his severely injured body.
Dong Yeshou knew very clearly that when he had fought with multiple Life-Death Realm cultivators years ago, battling against their miraculous abilities, his star meridians had been severely damaged. Apart from the repair that comes with breaking through and transforming the star meridians, there was no other way to fix them.
This was also why he couldn’t leave Bei Dou.
In Bei Dou, he could still make others who didn’t know the truth fear him. But if he left Bei Dou to search for someone and inevitably had to fight, his condition would certainly be noticed by others, such as Shu Sheng and Cui Yaocen.
If these people lost their fear, Bei Dou would be in danger.
Dong Yeshou placed the washed sweet potatoes into the fire. He vaguely saw a scene from his youth with Yu Heng and Tian Quan in the snowy ground through the burning flames.
They were the first to discover Wu Yan roasting sweet potatoes. As they discussed whether to rush up and grab the food, Yu Heng said, “Why grab them now? Of course, we should wait until they’re fully cooked before grabbing them.”
So they waited and waited. When the sweet potatoes were almost done, they divided the tasks: Tian Quan would first lure Wu Yan away, while Dong Yeshou and Yu Heng would quickly retrieve the roasted sweet potatoes. They repeated this process.
Unexpectedly, as Wu Yan was being lured away, more and more people passed by, and more and more people took sweet potatoes. When Wu Yan finally sensed something was wrong and returned, he discovered that of the sweet potatoes he had guarded diligently through the cold wind, only a tiny one remained.
Yu Heng had deliberately taken two extra hours to find Qu Zhuyue. The young man wanted to show off to her, but discovered Qu Zhuyue was already eating. He swallowed his words and gave her the roasted sweet potatoes with a sigh, saying, “Eat more, don’t waste them.”
After that, Wu Yan would never leave his food unattended until he had finished eating.
Thinking back now, it was somewhat amusing.
Dong Yeshou couldn’t help but shake his head.
Now, Bei Dou had returned to its original state, and everything was getting back on track.
*
Looking at the scarlet star that appeared in the central lands of the continent, people all believed it was Ming Li who had broken through.
Yin Luo excitedly pounded the table: “In such a short time!”
Fu Yuan said irritably, “She was already at that level. Why are you so excited?”
“As if you’re not excited,” Yin Luo pointed at the record book on the table. “Help me watch the Tian Quan disciples. I need to go to Duan Xing River to tell my master.”
Black Fox Mask said, “Is that necessary?”
Yin Luo had already turned and left: “Today is my master’s birthday. I promised to visit him every year on this day to tell him about worldly affairs.”
Fu Yuan and Black Fox Mask’s expressions changed slightly, but they didn’t stop him. Fu Yuan handed the record book to Black Fox Mask.
Black Fox Mask looked up at him.
Fu Yuan said, “Help Yin Luo write first. I’ll send a sound transmission to ask Chen Zhou.”
Black Fox Mask resignedly took the brush.
Fu Yuan added, “Your wife hasn’t returned yet?”
Black Fox Mask said, “No.”
Fu Yuan, looking at the sound transmission talisman, asked: “I have a question: do you know where your wife’s home is?”
“In the south?” Black Fox Mask answered with some hesitation. “Although she never said, it should be correct. She doesn’t have many people at home; her parents passed away, leaving only her elderly grandmother, who needs care.”
Fu Yuan glanced at Black Fox Mask: “Why did she go back?”
“To care for her grandmother.” Black Fox Mask said, “The old lady’s health is deteriorating. She wants to accompany her on this final journey. We communicate by sound transmission every day.”
Fu Yuan raised an eyebrow: “If your wife is having difficulties, you should go to her first.”
Black Fox Mask said, “Once Senior Brother and the others return, if they find dog Yun, I’ll go check on Liang Niang first.”
Fu Yuan added, “Just let Yin Luo help you watch things here. Go see your wife first. I’m afraid that you’re always hiding your battles from her, wearing away at her affection for you.”
Black Fox Mask twirled the brush thoughtfully. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to go; it was that Liang Niang’s sound transmissions gave him the feeling she didn’t want him to come find her. Coincidentally, there were indeed matters in Bei Dou that prevented him from immediately going to find her.
Speaking of sound transmissions, Liang Niang hadn’t replied at all today.
Fu Yuan bringing this up reminded Black Fox Mask, making him somewhat uneasy. Just as he activated a sound transmission talisman, he sensed something amiss.
Black Fox Mask wasn’t the only one who noticed something was wrong. The Bei Dou Academy Heads, beside him, all frowned. Below the observation platform, Dou Lanmin and the other disciples had made peace, huddling together for warmth as they prepared to endure the winter night. Suddenly, star power fluctuated, and star lines of the Eight Meridians Formation Array opened in the void, bringing forceful pressure and attacks.
Qu Zhuyue and the others reacted with lightning speed, flashing into the void to block the attacks and protect the seven academies’ disciples below.
Dou Lanmin opened his eyes in surprise, seeing several floating figures suspended in the air. He stood up alertly.
The white-robed priest leading the Youyou Tribe warriors and the Mingtu looked calmly at the Bei Dou Academy Heads and raised his hand, saying: “Kill.”
Star lines filled the sky, even blocking the falling snow. Disciples with insufficient cultivation felt difficulty breathing under the white-robed priest’s pressure, fear weighing on their shoulders.
Why would the Youyou Tribe suddenly appear inside Bei Dou?
Fu Yuan and Black Fox Mask were shocked and confused by the sudden appearance of the white-robed priest. Though they hadn’t figured it out yet, their bodies were already moving, withdrawing from the night examination ground’s formation array restriction and taking the seven academies’ disciples away.
Killing intent struck from behind. Black Fox Mask didn’t hesitate to draw his sword and slash backward, coming face to face with Mingtu, who had flashed over.
“We meet again,” Mingtu taunted.
Fu Yuan’s eyes flashed with murderous intent: “You’re seeking death.”
Dou Lanmin looked back at them: “Senior Brother!”
“Go,” Black Fox Mask said before flashing to block the Youyou Tribe warriors who were pursuing the seven academies’ disciples.
Everything happened in an instant. Bei Dou, forced to fight, had no time to think further. The enemies, who had come prepared, moved swiftly and ruthlessly, spreading killing intent. As the Youyou Tribe warriors engaged Black Fox Mask and the others, they targeted the ordinary disciples.
The white-robed priest’s opponents were Qu Zhuyue and the others. Killing the Bei Dou Academy Heads would leave no one to stand against them in taking Shi Fei.
Tian Ji Academy Head Wu Yan went to protect the seven academies’ disciples. Tian Shu and Kai Yang rushed toward the white-robed priest. No words were exchanged, but their killing intent was resolute. They attacked with full force immediately, giving the opponent no chance.
Qu Zhuyue’s Spirit Brilliance Illusion targeted only the white-robed priest. Green leaves tumbled in the night, quietly appearing behind the white-robed priest.
Just as the leaves slashed across the white-robed priest’s throat, his figure wavered. What had been struck was merely an afterimage. Dan Xun and Kai Yang fully opened their Body Technique meridians, boosting their abilities to the extreme, yet they felt their speed was still slower than the white-robed priest’s.
The two sides clashed, with star power collisions sweeping across the sky. The forest’s massive trees initially rustled their branches and leaves, but later seemed bent by hurricane-force winds, nearly breaking their trunks.
While fighting Fu Yuan, Mingtu declared, “Just hand over Shi Fei quickly, and perhaps you can live a few more days.”
“You’re better off dreaming,” Fu Yuan laughed coldly. “You want to snatch Shi Fei? With just a few of you?”
Mingtu sneered and raised his eyebrows: “I never said we were the only ones teleported to Bei Dou.”
Fu Yuan’s brow furrowed. Teleportation? Eight Meridians Formation Array? How was this possible?
*
Dong Yeshou was in the courtyard watching over the roasting sweet potatoes. Meanwhile, he had washed the picked persimmons clean and arranged them on a plate. Thinking that several people liked dried fruit, he took another plate to prepare some for making persimmon cakes.
Crisis descended suddenly, without any warning.
He flashed away without any hesitation. The persimmon slipped from his fingertips and rolled onto the ground, left behind.
At the entrance to Bei Dou, the Youyou Tribe’s golden-robed priest was looking up at the night sky. Beside him, Mingshui said, “They have successfully teleported to Bei Dou’s Tian Xuan Academy.”
As the golden-robed priest lowered his gaze, he saw a person appear at Bei Dou’s entrance, separated from them by stone steps.
“Hmm?” The golden-robed priest was somewhat surprised. “I was just about to enter and find you, yet you came out yourself.”
Dong Yeshou looked at the Youyou Tribe people below with a slightly furrowed brow. When his gaze fell on the golden-robed priest, he could even feel power fluctuations similar to his late wife’s.
Mingshui and other Youyou Tribe warriors attempted to rush past Dong Yeshou into Bei Dou but were deterred by his star power pressure. Dong Yeshou waved his sleeve, slashing out sharp sword edges that forced the Youyou Tribe warriors back.
“With that severely injured body and damaged star meridians, how long can you hold out?” The golden-robed priest was unconcerned by Dong Yeshou’s counterattack. He said softly, “If Chang Yu Su hadn’t consistently refused to reveal any details about Bei Dou’s layout to us, and repeatedly killed the people we sent to Bei Dou, we wouldn’t have had to wait until now to enter.”
Dong Yeshou’s expression was cold: “This teleportation array doesn’t seem like something you could devise.”
“We must thank your well-taught disciple for that,” the golden-robed priest raised his eyebrows. “He truly is a genius in the art of Eight Meridians Formation Arrays.”
Gu San had given the Youyou Tribe Bei Dou’s layout, and combined with the transfer array obtained from Zhou Zixi, this surprise attack proceeded so smoothly.
Dong Yeshou said, “You mean Zixi is being held in your Youyou Tribe?”
“I can’t return him to you,” the golden-robed priest said with a half-smile. “But you can give me Shi Fei.”
Dong Yeshou said softly: “If you want Shi Fei, perhaps trading Zixi won’t be enough.”
“It seems we cannot reach an agreement, so we must resort to force,” the golden-robed priest raised his hand, pointing at Dong Yeshou. “You should be very clear about Chang Yu Su’s strength, and within the Youyou Tribe, there isn’t just one Chang Yu Su.”
As his words fell, countless shadows rose from various corners, transforming into strings of incantation symbols.
Looking at these immensely powerful Yin-Yang incantations, Dong Yeshou’s first reaction wasn’t fear, but nostalgia.
Chang Yu Su had been gone for over twenty years, yet Dong Yeshou never forgot her for a single day.
Dong Yeshou especially couldn’t forget the scene of Chang Yu Su dying in his arms. Sometimes he would wake from sleep because he dreamed of this scene, unable to fall back asleep.
Chang Yu Su was from the Youyou Tribe. This identity could have major or minor impacts. People from the Inner City of the Ancient Continent not only feared and detested Earth Ghosts but also resented the Northern Border tribes. The past killings by Northern Border tribes against the Inner City had created irreconcilable hatred.
Dong Yeshou had never told anyone about this.
No one knew Chang Yu Su’s identity.
Because he knew Chang Yu Su had never done anything harmful to Bei Dou, nor would she ever do so. Dong Yeshou had even considered leaving Bei Dou to reduce the danger to it. So for those few years, he traveled outside with Chang Yu Su, not staying in Bei Dou. It was during that time that he met Chen Zhou.
But Bei Dou needed him.
As the golden-robed priest’s Yin-Yang incantations attacked Dong Yeshou, scenes from the past flashed rapidly through his mind.
He was the last member of the East Wilderness Dong family from Yan Tower. At seventeen, during the brilliant spring when apricot blossoms covered everything, he took the trial examination at the Martial Academy. Standing on the high platform, he saw a unique young woman in the crowd below. Apricot blossom branches adorned her head, with falling petals spiraling down onto her hair.
The young man went to the Imperial Capital to challenge a Pilgrim, becoming famous in a single battle. At that time, the young woman was studying at the Imperial Capital’s Martial Academy with excellent results.
Later, the young man went to Bei Dou to cultivate and made many friends. During the Four Directions Trial, the Imperial Capital Martial Academy’s participants included the young woman. They met again in Bei Dou, attracted by each other’s power.
From a green youth to a later powerful figure, their fates intertwined, inevitably meeting in various places throughout the world.
“Why do you only use Yin-Yang incantations?”
“I don’t know anything else.”
“You don’t know?”
“Why don’t you use Yin-Yang incantations?”
“…I don’t know how.”
Even these trivial conversations he remembered clearly.
In his youth, Dong Yeshou was spirited and unrestrained, pursuing star meridian power, advancing with the goal of becoming a Pilgrim with full Eight Meridians.
He and Chang Yu Su had been in different camps, gazing at each other from a distance when they were opposed, and had also fought side by side, traversing mountains of blades and seas of fire.
Dong Yeshou would always find a way to obtain what he wanted.
On a night before he and Chang Yu Su were to part again, Dong Yeshou realized that his desire to have Chang Yu Su had reached the point where he wouldn’t give up even in death.
So the next day, under that apricot blossom tree, Dong Yeshou said to Chang Yu Su: “In this life, I have two things I must accomplish. First is to marry you, second is to break through.”
“My love for you didn’t begin today.”
Chang Yu Su looked into the young man’s earnest eyes, loosening her hand on the reins. She said, “The day you learn Yin-Yang incantations.”
“Agreed,” Dong Yeshou followed her. “You’re the most proficient at Yin-Yang incantations among all the people I know. Why don’t you teach me first?”
Chang Yu Su walked slowly, leading her horse. After hearing this, she turned to look at him and laughed softly: “I’m afraid you won’t be able to learn.”
Dong Yeshou was grateful for his talent. He learned it, although it was only the lowest level.
On that spring day, Dong Yeshou, who always turned his back when saying goodbye, chose to walk with Chang Yu Su. From that point on, his direction never changed.
*
When the black incantation symbols attacked Dong Yeshou, they were all shattered by another overwhelmingly powerful Yin-Yang incantation. The erupting pressure made Mingshui and other Youyou Tribe warriors involuntarily raise their hands to resist.
The golden-robed priest’s hood was blown backward. He, too, had to slightly turn his head.
“So Chang Yu Su left you the Heart-Protecting Incantation—it’s your constraint to breaking through, yet also your lifesaving technique when encountering Yin-Yang incantations.” The golden-robed priest adjusted his hood, looking somewhat displeased. “This traitor probably didn’t anticipate that one day you would be so severely injured. Even if the Heart-Protecting Incantation can block attacks from Yin-Yang incantations, killing you doesn’t require Yin-Yang incantations alone.”
“And if you break through, it’s still a dead end.”
Dong Yeshou looked up at the night sky. That scarlet star remained bright, but Ming Li was too far away to return in time. She had died once at the hands of the Youyou Tribe, and Dong Yeshou wasn’t willing to settle this score so easily.
If he didn’t break through, he would lose even more.
The children who were lost and recovered, decades-old sworn friends, the sect treasure that Yu Heng and Tian Quan had died defending, the still-growing disciples of the seven academies, the Earth Ghosts who had finally begun new lives after enduring hardships—each one was someone Dong Yeshou wanted to protect.
As a father, he couldn’t let his children return to find their home in ruins, with countless dead.
Some regrets he didn’t want to experience a second time.
Dong Yeshou looked back at the golden-robed priest and raised his hand. Suddenly, a second scarlet star appeared in the sky. The fierce wind and snow picked up, mournful wails resounding between heaven and earth. The clear-eyed, cold-faced man softly said: “Flying Snow Dragon.”
A spirit technique combining Word Incantations for Circulating Qi and Yin Meridian’s Materialization, unleashed with a Pilgrim’s power at the moment of his breakthrough.
Dong Yeshou’s strongest star meridian was the Yin Meridian, and his simultaneously awakened miraculous ability greatly enhanced the Flying Snow Dragon spirit technique.
The snow particles in the air exploded one after another. Dragon roars shook heaven and earth as ice dragons flew out from the exploding snow particles. They roared as they rushed toward the enemy. Icicles falling from their bodies were like blades, and their dangling whiskers like whips sweeping toward the enemies. The Youyou Tribe warriors retreated rapidly in shock, but they couldn’t outpace the dragons’ speed. They were caught in the dragons’ jaws, lifted and swallowed, turning into ice shards, leaving only blood spattering down.
The ice dragons ignored all star power and worldly qi circulation.
When the dragon roars sounded at Bei Dou’s, the snow particles above Tian Xuan Academy also exploded. As everyone was shocked by the second scarlet star in the sky, three to five massive ice dragons, large enough to blot out the sky, roared with killing intent as they lunged at the white-robed priest.
The dragons’ tails swept away the Youyou Tribe warriors in front of Black Fox Mask and the others. Falling icicles pierced their bodies. A dragon’s claw slammed down on one person, drawing a miserable scream that didn’t last long before the ice dragon bit him into pieces, turning him into ice shards.
The white-robed priest struggled to discern the true form of this materialization technique but couldn’t see through it at all. All the ice dragons seemed real—this was likely the highest realm of materialization.
The transfer formation array’s star lines flickered beneath his feet. Snow particles exploding on his face suddenly burst. Just before the white-robed priest was teleported away, an ice dragon bit off his head with an angry roar.
The ice dragons circled Bei Dou vigilantly, determined to kill all enemies who had invaded.
The usually calm Qu Zhuyue’s gaze trembled as she watched the second scarlet star in the sky. They all flashed toward Bei Dou’s entrance.
The ice dragons circled before Bei Dou’s entrance, their black vertical pupils coldly observing the still-resisting golden-robed priest.
Dong Yeshou’s entire body was covered in frost.
He had accomplished his second task—breaking through to become a Pilgrim.
Thus, he saw what had happened on this continent long ago: people awakening Life Meridians were expelled and hunted; the Pilgrims with full Eight Meridians left behind a divine oracle. That Word Incantation for Circulating Qi, carrying the power of the Heart Meridian, could influence future Pilgrims, injecting the obsession of the first Pilgrims into them.
Perhaps it would constantly whisper in your ear, or silently invade your mind, making you no longer yourself. Your ideals and pursuits would all become “kill the Earth Ghosts, create a world with only Eight Meridians.”
The blind old man in the Imperial Capital pursued the ultimate power of star meridians, not to be trapped in a world with only Eight Meridians. Yet he couldn’t resist the divine oracle, thus becoming erratic, alternating between good and evil.
“People who awaken Life Meridians will trigger the power of Life Meridians when resurrected. Therefore, the more times they are resurrected, the more likely they are to be discovered by the divine oracle, thus being stripped of their humanity and turning into what people call Earth Ghosts.”
“Breaking through to become a Pilgrim will inevitably bring you under the influence of the divine oracle, gradually losing yourself, becoming a slave to the divine oracle’s creation of an Eight Meridians world. I don’t want you to have your consciousness taken by those old fellows who died thousands or tens of thousands of years ago, becoming no longer yourself.”
“But telling you all this, you won’t remember anyway.”
Dong Yeshou finally recalled the words Chang Yu Su had once spoken to him, but it was too late.
When the divine oracle descended, transmitting to Dong Yeshou countless Pilgrims’ obsessions, hatred, and anger, the Heart-Protecting Incantation struck first, killing Dong Yeshou.
When Qu Zhuyue and the others reached Bei Dou’s entrance, they saw the frost-encased figure shatter into countless snow particles flying toward the sky, exploding again to release ice dragons that rushed toward the still-resisting golden-robed priest.
“Senior Brother…”
Qu Zhuyue’s faint voice was drowned out by the ice dragons’ roars.
*
Inside Duan Xing River, isolated from the outside world’s clamor, Yin Luo couldn’t detect the changes outside. He chatted with the black dragon stone statue beneath the starry river, because his master’s star of destiny had already fallen to become scales.
Halfway through his speech, ripples suddenly appeared on the mirror-like surface of the starry river. A star of destiny fell from the water’s surface, and the black dragon stone statue silently swam over to catch it.
Yin Luo stared in shock.
Then he ran frantically toward the outside.
Bei Dou was protected by the ice dragons, which released angry dragon roars as they moved. The falling icicles scattered into heavy snow, making this night increasingly cold. Even the freshly washed persimmons in the courtyard were covered with a layer of frost.
People in the Imperial Capital couldn’t see the frosted persimmons, couldn’t hear the dragons’ roars, but they noticed that the light of the second scarlet star had extinguished.