Chapter 46: The Only Relic

The black clouds gradually dispersed.

The snow stopped, and the world returned to silence.

A crescent moon cast a faint light, reflecting off the devastated earth.

Shen Dingyi was dead, reduced to ashes by Di Que, and the Demonic Cultivator’s blood flowed silently.

At the most heavily damaged spot on the ground, a young girl was scorched red all over, curled into a ball as if she were being held by something.

Before her, there was now nothing.

Above the firmament, the starlight of the Great Dao flickered like summer fireflies, gathering toward Jiang Yueliu’s body.

The injuries on her body healed at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The scorched skin on the surface gradually mended, replaced by new skin as white as fine snow.

The Sword Embryo inside her Dantian vanished, slowly merging with her heart.

Jiang Yueliu’s eyelashes fluttered. The moment her eyes opened, her appearance and temperament shifted, becoming otherworldly and cold, her white clothes as pure as snow.

She climbed to her feet blankly, looking down at her hands and subconsciously moving her fingers.

But she could no longer find that familiar touch.

The person who had held her in his arms had disappeared.

A dull bell and a rough wooden token, charred black by fire, were all that Jiang Tong had left behind.

“Gu Xianyu!”

Someone supported Yao Ping as he arrived. Seeing her, he beamed with joy. “You did well! You did a great job!”

Reinforcements had arrived. Shen Dingyi was dead, and the remaining Demonic Cultivators had fled in defeat.

Furthermore, Gu Xianyu had developed a Sword Heart, which was an incredible blessing for the Shangyuan Sect.

Yao Ping was overjoyed. Yao Xining stood to the side, looking at the girl with a complex gaze.

“I am not Gu Xianyu.”

To their surprise, the girl only uttered those words blankly.

She picked up the broken sword from the ground and slowly walked through the crowd.

The crowd parted to make a path, watching her step by step as she walked toward the direction of the Shangyuan Sect.

“My name is Jiang Yueliu,” she said, looking down. Her unfocused gaze fell on the dull bell and the ugly wooden token.

“My name is Jiang Yueliu…”

Jiang Yueliu murmured the name repeatedly, the moonlight reflecting off a long trail of footprints in the snow.

The crowd watched her silently, their eyes full of confusion, until that small figure disappeared into the snowy field.

“Sect Leader…”

After a long while, someone finally spoke. “What should we do next?”

Yao Ping froze for a moment before waving his hand. “Inform the world. Gu Xianyu of the Shangyuan Sect has passed her Sword Tribulation. Her Sword Heart is clear, and with a Jin Dan cultivation, she has slain the Integration Stage Demonic Cultivator, Shen Dingyi.”

“This battle in Qingyang Prefecture is a great victory for the righteous sects!”

“Should we notify Fairy Gu?” the person asked.

“…No.”

Yao Ping clutched the wound on his chest, looking thoughtfully in the direction the girl had left. “Do not disturb her. Let her be alone.”

“Also, from now on… call her Fairy Jiang.”

—

Jiang Yueliu walked back to Guanye Lake.

The moonlight was like water. She slowly walked a full circle around the lakeshore before finally stopping in front of the courtyard gate.

The courtyard fence was made of stakes driven in one by one, forming a circular shape. Festive couplets were pasted on both sides of the gate.

Jiang Yueliu remained silent for a long time before gently pushing the door open.

*Creak—*

She stood at the entrance for several minutes, frozen.

The air was filled with the pungent aroma of fried chilies, the cooked peppers in the iron wok a piercing red.

There was still half a piece of uncut meat on the cutting board.

In the woman’s eyes, a blurry soul appeared by the stone table. He was holding a kitchen knife, rhythmically thumping as he sliced meat, preparing for the New Year’s Eve dinner.

On the other side of the stone table, a girl in white rested her chin on her hands, tilting her head slightly to watch him with a smile.

Big red lanterns hung over their heads, swaying gently in the wind.

A night breeze blew.

In a trance, everything vanished.

The courtyard was empty.

Jiang Yueliu stepped forward and walked inside.

She tied back her hair efficiently, rolled up her sleeves, put on an apron as she usually did, and sat at the stone table with the knife.

*Thump, thump, thump…*

The girl finished slicing the meat, placed it on a dish, and stood up.

Next…

What should she do next?

Jiang Yueliu held the dish, staring at the sliced meat, but her vision gradually blurred.

Her hands trembled uncontrollably, and her face felt hot. She reached out to touch her cheek, only to find it wet.

*Crash!*

Her grip loosened, and the dish fell to the ground, shattering into pieces.

The girl slowly knelt down. She wanted to pick up the pieces and put them back together into a round plate.

But no matter how she tried to piece them together, the shards would fall apart again.

‘Isn’t a square courtyard better?’

‘A square shape has a bad omen.’

‘I want to be whole and reunited with Master…’

It seemed as though someone was speaking in her ear.

Jiang Yueliu stiffened, pulling her hand back as if she had been electrocuted, trying hard to cut off the chaotic thoughts.

She stood up silently and lit the lanterns. The courtyard was instantly filled with light.

The girl walked out and looked back. The small courtyard was bright, as if someone still lived there.

She sat by the lake clutching her knees, looking at the clear water. The lake breeze was comfortable, and she didn’t feel cold at all.

Jiang Yueliu tried to clear her mind, but she saw the crescent moon reflected on the lake.

It swayed with the ripples, rocking back and forth until it reached her.

‘I want Master to see the stars too. I’ll watch the ones in the sky, and you watch the ones in the water…’

‘I will wait for that day.’

‘It’s a promise!’

‘It’s a promise.’

Someone was speaking in her ear again. Their voices were happy and full of bliss.

Jiang Yueliu shook her head repeatedly, forcibly cutting off the voices in her mind, but her hands moved uncontrollably to wipe away her tears.

She desperately wanted to flee from this lake, but she didn’t know where to go.

She had nowhere to go. Aside from this place, she no longer had a home.

No more home…

None at all.

*Whoosh!*

*Whoosh!*

Streaks of light shot into the sky, bursting into magnificent fireworks in the night air.

In her moist eyes, circle after circle was reflected.

Multicolor lights filled the entire night sky.

Amidst the roar of the fireworks, the small girl held her knees and looked up blankly at the lake and sky, all alone.

A few seconds later, her body shook violently. Large teardrops overflowed as her heart felt like it was being ripped open. She couldn’t breathe from the pain, and her hands and feet went cold.

The dam of her memories burst like an endless tide, surging into her heart.

‘From now on, I will be your Master, all right?’

‘I seem to have a little phantom pain regarding you…’

‘The fireworks are round, symbolizing reunion.’

‘Thank you for being my disciple.’

‘What… is your name, exactly?’

‘My sword swings only for you…’

‘Master and I have already spent a lifetime together…’

‘From this day forward, your name shall be Jiang Yueliu.’

‘Live well. Survive.’

‘We each got to be a Master once… It’s only fair.’

The roar of the fireworks drowned out the girl’s crying.

The night sky was beautiful and vibrant, but the world had lost its color, leaving only circles of gray.

The new year had arrived.

The girl had once naively believed that by circling the land and the house, she could circle forever.

But a circle was just a shape.

It couldn’t enclose the passage of time, nor could it trap a predestined fate.

Her name was Jiang Yueliu.

“The apricot flower rain wets the clothes, but the willow breeze does not chill the face.” That was what Jiang Tong had said. A willow tree represented vibrant life and powerful vitality.

But Jiang Tong had never told her.

The willow also symbolized departure.

He had been afraid the silly girl would overthink it, afraid she would be uneasy.

Next year, the year after, for many years to come, the spring breeze would always brush against the lakeshore, and the willows would sway.

But the person of the past was long gone. When he left, he only took the wind and snow with him.

And the girl crying by the lake…

Was the only thing he had left behind in this world.