The moon wanes but its essence soon fills again, a sword broken can be reforged into a fine blade (End of Volume)
Once again, a full bright moon hung high in the sky.
The night wind blustered, and Xie Fangnian leaned into the gale, falling toward the dark, vast expanse of the earth. The clear, lucid moonlight draped over his entire body, gilding every strand of his ebony-dark hair with a silver edge, and his pale, porcelain-like face seemed to glow softly.
He thought back to his teenage years, on the remote, isolated Wutong Mountain, where there had once been a moon just as pure and bright as this one.
Generation after generation of people walk the earth endlessly, yet the river moon year after year remains much the same.
No matter how the world shifts, no matter how affections and loyalties change, the moonlight pouring down from above never alters, always cool yet merciful, wrapping the mortal realm in its embrace.
Yet Feng Yuandu's dearest wish had always been, "May I be as the star and you as the moon, so that our light may shine upon each other, bright and clear, night after night."
Back in those carefree young days, raised under the open, noble, unassailably upright teachings of the Phoenix clan, Feng Yuandu had truly believed that such peaceful, unchanging days would be the story of his entire life.
He had believed he would never change.
His friends would never change either — well, no, it would actually be better if they changed a little, the way they acted now was really far too unruly.
But for the Feng Yuandu of that time, there was no trouble heavier than "unruly friends", no malice deeper than that in the whole world.
Even if such malice existed, it would surely be defeated by good, justice would prevail, and the natural order would reward virtue.
The Phoenix clan had lived all their lives with integrity, never doing wrong, abiding by goodness and virtue — how could they not receive their just rewards?
For a long stretch of years, Feng Yuandu kept turning that question over in his mind.
Why did the Phoenix clan not get their just rewards?
As the head of the Phoenix clan, when he threw himself into the great seal alongside Lord Yinglong, he had not hesitated for a moment, nor had he believed he would ever regret it.
But a thousand years later, when he regained his lost memories, recalling Wutong Mountain reduced to scorched earth, he truly, sincerely regretted it.
He thought, so I can regret after all.
So I am not as noble as I once imagined myself to be.
Feng Yuandu had once been an upright gentleman, as clear and unadulterated as a cup of fresh water. As the years wore on and the world wore him down, what dripped into that water was not ink, but soy sauce, vinegar, coptis root juice, chili sauce... and a whole string of unidentifiable things. The flavors of sour, sweet, bitter, spicy and salty all mixed together, so that from the outside, it looked like a murky, indistinct mass of black.
Only when you drank it down your throat would you know: for all its bitterness, strangeness, and difficulty to swallow, it had never turned into a poison that would harm others.
— By the way, Jiang Xuesheng was born "black", his flavor is like a slurry of mud and rocks, any normal person would spit it out after one sip, so he does not count in this discussion.
The reason Feng Yuandu changed was actually very simple.
When you walk the mortal world, and witness all the dark, unspoken things that happen in the shadows, yin and yang energy will naturally seep into your body, turning you into a wry, sharp-tongued old soul who never says things straight.
He knew of Tong Yao's death, of the Yao Wei disaster, he had seen the mansions of the wealthy reeking of wine and meat, while frozen bodies of the starved lay discarded on the roads outside.
He had watched the two young masters of the Ling family, raised to be arrogant and overbearing, witness them destroy precious things for no reason, grind fine jade into gravel, trample cold winter plum blossoms into the mud.
And there was nothing he could do to stop it.
When young, he did not know the taste of sorrow, the sounds of wind and rain never reached his ears, only the sound of reading aloud, reciting the lines of "benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom and trustworthiness". Now, affairs of the family, of the nation, of the whole world, every single one of them is like a sharp arrow piercing his heart, every sound, every word, telling him over and over that "the mortal world is not worth it".
Dragons and phoenixes have long vanished, the blue luan birds have retreated into seclusion, the great swans are few and far between, and as for the yuezhuo mythical birds... damn it, who knows where those yuezhuo birds ran off to?
In this vast stretch of heaven and earth, only the Lingxiao City remains, pulling strings from behind the scenes, as powerful as the midday sun. Because it is shameless enough, and does not even spare its ancestors any face, it has marched forward unopposed.
— You tell me, what kind of sense does that make?
A fine bird chooses the right tree to nest in. Feng Yuandu had thought about striking out on a different path to make a living, but he never ended up leaving.
Apart from Ling Shanhai, known as "the number one person under heaven", no one could have forced his soul to remain in the mortal realm.
The Guan Guan bird that had once been his physical vessel had long since died, so he could be said to be dwelling in a walking corpse, feeling his body decay and crumble a little more with every passing moment.
When people in the world mention "Elder Huayue Xie Fangnian", they only know that he is a master of esoteric arts, who can learn of everything that happens under heaven without ever stepping out of his door — well of course he can, who else but Lord Yinglong knows this world better than him?
This is the world they traded the rest of their lives to protect.
Yet not a single person knows that "Xie Fangnian" once held a three-foot icy blade in his hand, riding a silver saddle white horse, galloping as swift as a shooting star.
Even so, he had to stay in the world.
Ling Shanhai had not been wrong. If he was not here, who else would plan wholeheartedly for the remaining Phoenix clansmen?
Even if he wanted to let go, he should do it only after he confirmed whether the descendants of the Phoenix clan were alive or dead.
— So he thought, maybe now is the time to let go.
No matter what kind of hidden hardships or reasons lay behind it, the days he spent "running with the tide" alongside Lingxiao City was something he could not pretend never happened.
He owed a reckoning.
To himself, and to all those who had died beneath Lingxiao City's ambitions.
He did not dare say he had held fast to his principles, nor did he dare hope to "leave his loyal heart shining through the pages of history".
He did not even need a stele, whether carved with words or blank. Whether later generations judged him or not meant nothing to him.
The only thing he truly cared about was —
【The Phoenix clan has lived with no shame before heaven and earth, choosing to die with a cry rather than live in silence.】
【I will not stay at Foundation Establishment forever, and Ling Shanhai will not always stay at Mahayana. Isn't that just how things are supposed to be?】
The wind's sound faded away, and in his ears the clear, bright voice of a young girl echoed.
...That was enough.
Feng Yuandu could perish, Xie Fangnian could cease to exist.
But the phoenix, would never die.
When the moon wanes, it does not lose its light. When a sword breaks, it does not lose its sharpness.
The moon wanes but its essence soon fills again, a sword broken can be reforged into a fine blade.
Power and fame may press down like a mountain, but they can never bend the will of a righteous man...
— Was the person he was now still considered a "righteous man"?
"..."
Xie Fangnian let out a faint, self-deprecating chuckle, unconsciously stretching his hand out toward the moon.
...Come to think of it.
Suddenly, a soft, untimely thought flashed through his mind.
If he vanished right here, those two young girls would probably be very sad, wouldn't they?
(Though I wanted to entrust my last affairs to them... my intention was never to make them grieve.)
Then, his primordial spirit power burst into towering karmic fire, the roaring flames swallowing him whole, painting the fine, peaceful night bright crimson.
...
...
"Elder Xie —! Feng Yuandu! Brother Feng! Little cousin!!!"
At the very same time, Shu Fu hovered on her flying sword above the sea of fire, calling out every single name Xie Fangnian had — the normal ones, the weird ones, the ones he liked to hear, the ones he hated — stretching her voice high and thin, almost blowing a hole through the top of her own head.
【Fuer, calm down.】
Jiang Xuesheng was far more composed, sending his voice to her unhurriedly through spiritual transmission, 【When it comes to the toughness of their souls, the Phoenix clan stands even above my own. The Great Dao leaves fifty paths, and heaven's workings leave forty-nine hidden. Since he dared to leave Lingxiao City alone, he must have reserved a sliver of life for himself.】
"Really? I don't believe you!" Shu Fu yelled back at the top of her lungs, "Sir, did you see the look on his face just now? I've seen that look before! In all the stories I've read, every single person who is about to go to their death has that exact same expression!"
Jiang Xuesheng sighed. "I know. The moment I recognized him, I knew it — for the him right now, being alive is an incredibly tough thing."
Shu Fu began, "But —"
"But being alive isn't all bad."
Jiang Xuesheng glanced at her sidelong, a faint, almost unnoticeable tinge of sourness in his tone. "At the very least, it seems he's quite fond of you."
Shu Fu exclaimed loudly, "Duh! I'm this adorable, which old spooky weirdo wouldn't like me? You're no different either!!"
Jiang Xuesheng: "…………"
"…………"
Demon Lord Six Poisons watched this scene, dying to roar "Do you two think I don't exist?!" but unfortunately, he was far too busy dealing with his own predicament to care about such trivialities right now.
The Phoenix Fire, drawn from the Phoenix Clan's primordial spirit, is the natural bane of every unholy thing in the world.
Back in the day, Zhao Jiuge personally led an army to assault Mount Qiwu, with numbers ten times that of the entire Phoenix Clan. That time, the raging fire burned for three days and three nights, countless low-rank soldiers perished in the flames, and the Heavenly Demons only eked out a pyrrhic victory after wading through mountains of corpses and seas of blood.
Now, this spirit fire that strikes fear into the hearts of all evil spirits is spreading across the mountain at an uncontrollable pace. Flames curl and leap, sparing no wisp of demonic energy, ferociously devouring the venomous insects that Demon Lord Six Poisons treasures so dearly, without harming a single plant or blade of grass on the mountain.
Setting a whole mountain on fire doesn't necessarily land you in jail for life.
As the blaze grows fiercer, even the flying insects high up in the air are swallowed by the surging heat that scorches their internal organs. They fall one after another weakly, letting off a sweet, burnt scent as they land in the flames.
"Dammit, ruining all my plans...!!"
Before long, Demon Lord Six Poisons' form begins to dissolve. He can no longer maintain a basic human shape, let alone launch an attack on Shu Fu.
He knows the situation is dire, so just like Ninglu and He Xiuwen did, he decides to cut his losses to survive, bracing himself to abandon all his venomous insects and start a whole new life of building his business from scratch.
... That sounds just like a middle-aged worker getting laid off and re-entering the workforce, damn it!
But the cold, unforgiving world has no intention of giving him a "second career" chance.
Right as Demon Lord Six Poisons admits defeat and cowers, planning to make a run for it, Jiang Xuesheng follows the scent of the gu insects and pinpoints his hiding spot.
It has to be said, this Demon Lord Six Poisons is quite the biology talent. Even from a distance of two whole mountain peaks, he can still manipulate swarms of venomous insects with perfect ease.
... Even though he himself is just an unassuming Fat Otaku Demon Lord.
The Fat Otaku Demon Lord is hiding in a remote, safe spot, terrified of being spotted, practically wrapping himself up like an iron rice dumpling to stay hidden. But that very precaution makes him easy pickings for Jiang Xuesheng, who catches him red-handed. A note from his guqin shoots through the air like a sharp arrow, blowing his soft, squishy, thick-skinned big bun-like form to smithereens.
At the critical moment, Demon Lord Six Poisons pulls off a cicada-shedding-its-shell trick — a bit like a ninja's "substitution jutsu" — leaving a clump of venomous insects behind as a decoy.
As for himself, he seizes the gap to dash right up to Jiang Xuesheng's side, flinging a cloud of poison mist into the air, trying to catch him off guard and gain the upper hand...
Clang!
— But he never expected this.
Jiang Xuesheng, who carries nothing but a simple, ancient guqin, who looks refined, gentle, and mild-mannered, dispels the poison mist with a single note from his qin. Then he teleports forward in one smooth step, lifts the qin up like "Jia Baoyu uproots the weeping willow", and slams the qin's body hard right into the demon lord's face!!
Demon Lord Six Poisons: "...???!!!"
"This 'qin dance' move, Fuer probably won't find it convenient to use from now on," Jiang Xuesheng says without turning back, a smile in his voice as he talks to himself. "We've taught each other, learning from each other's strengths to make up for our weaknesses, so I might as well carry this move on. Demon Lord, what do you say, huh?"
...
It didn't take Jiang Xuesheng long to finish their fight.
But Demon Lord Six Poisons is the ultimate scum among scumbags, the kind who would harm others even if it does him no good. Right up until the very end, he orders all his venomous insects to attack everyone present, vowing to never stop, determined to drag Xie Fangnian down with him.
As for himself, seeing that his physical form can no longer be preserved, he transfers his consciousness into a small pink butterfly, trying to slip away unnoticed by Jiang Xuesheng, escape alive, and plot his comeback later.
But before he can even fly half a mile, two sharp sword streaks come chasing after him from behind, slicing horizontally and vertically in a crisscross. They cut him perfectly into four neat pieces, which flutter down onto the dirt and land in the shape of a four-leaf clover.
"You think turning into a little butterfly means I'll let you go like Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai?" Shu Fu flicks her sword, sneering. "Nice try. You reek of demonic energy so bad, it's been stinking up the whole place for me."
"And besides, what kind of chubby, plump butterfly is that? Trying to pass yourself off as a common cabbage white? Look at how sad you are — you're fat enough to press a whole pound of vegetable oil out of."
...
The Phoenix Spirit Fire that swept across the whole of Mount Qiwu burned tirelessly for a full night.
It wasn't until dawn that the great fire finally began to die down, burning itself out completely.
Shu Fu, Jiang Xuesheng, Feng Jinyu, Xie Anzhi and the rest of their group land the very moment the fire dies down, launching a full, carpet-style search across the mountain.
Xie Fangnian's breath is faint, his primordial spirit is weakening, and even cultivators with exceptionally sharp senses take a very long time to catch the last traces of his presence in the woods.
In the end, after rushing around dusty and tired for ages, Shu Fu finally finds him by a cool, quiet mountain stream.
It's almost like a coincidence, or like fate had it arranged — she remembers this is the exact spot where Xie Fangnian had taken human form to bathe, right before they visited the Phoenix Ritual Sect.
But right now, he's neither the delicate, sickly beauty leaning like a willow in the wind, nor the sweet, fluffy little snowball of a cat.
He's turned into a plump little bird that's starved down to skin and bones, a "Skinny Chirper", floating weakly on the surface of the water, barely breathing.
From far away, he looks like a slender wading bird like a heron, or a single white flower that's wilted and fallen.
"Elder Xie!" Shu Fu doesn't hesitate for a second, leaping right into the mountain stream, wading through the water, and reaching out to lift that white flower out of the current. "Elder Xie, wake up! Elder Xie!"
She calls his name a few times in a row, then thinks that Xie Fangnian — or Feng Yuandu — might not like that title, so she corrects herself.
"Phoenix Lord! Feng Yuandu! Don't fall asleep on me!"
"Phoenix Lord!" Feng Jinyu hurries right after her, not caring a bit about keeping her perfectly poised and elegant image, letting the stream soak her dress completely as she rushes over to Shu Fu's side. "Senior! Phoenix Lord! It's all this junior's fault for being so reckless, please wake up, don't scare us like this —"
Right as she finishes speaking.
That Skinny Chirper suddenly opens his eyes, and "plop" spits a wiggling, lively little fish right onto Shu Fu's face.
Shu Fu: "...?!!!"
"... So noisy." The Skinny Chirper is completely worn out, his breath thin and faint, but the familiar, sharp edge of disdain in his voice is as clear as ever.
"I'm so exhausted right now, I just wanted to pass out and get some decent rest. What did I ever do to you lot to deserve being tortured like this..."
"As an elder, scaring the girls half out of their wits, you've racked up quite a debt this time," Jiang Xuesheng's calm, unhurried voice comes from behind them. His tone is full of meaning, and there's a soft, moved look on his face. "Maybe I should say 'welcome back' to you."
"..."
Xie Fangnian forced his pair of bird eyes, black as little beans, to stay open. He remained motionless and silent for so long that Shu Fu was just about to think he had slipped into a coma with his eyes open, when he blurted out a completely out-of-the-blue line:
"Speaking of which, Shu Fu. Have you ever been this nervous over Lord Yinglong?"
"Huh?"
Shu Fu looked completely bewildered, but still answered honestly, "I don't think so. Even though Mister and I are... that kind of relationship, he's always such a slippery old dog, a born master of snarky passive-aggressive remarks. He's old, slippery, and steady as a rock, there's just no way to work up any worried feelings over him. Even when he occasionally gets a dramatic streak and fakes his death to scare me, I never take it to heart at all, because his act is just way too fake."
Xie Fangnian nodded, a hint of satisfaction seeping into his tone:
"Then this time, I still win."
Jiang Xuesheng: "..."
He pinched the neck of the Skinny Chirper with a blank face. "Can this bird be eaten? Does it taste good? How do you cook it?"
Shu Fu cut in immediately, "Mister, you can't eat wild animals, that idea is totally outdated. Why don't you just bring him home, raise him for a few hundred years, then he'll count as a domestic fowl. You can think about that..."
"..."
My wife is taking sides with her family, and it's not even her real family, Jiang Xuesheng sighed. "That does sound reasonable, but if I'm going to go through all that trouble, why wouldn't I just buy a chicken to eat instead? Fuer, Feng Yuandu just took you as his successor not long ago, and you're already taking his side. This teacher of yours is very hurt, you know."
"I'm not taking his side, but after all, he's an injured patient..."
"..."
Xie Fangnian said nothing as he listened to their conversation, feeling his senses gradually dull, until the voices sounded as if they were drifting in from somewhere far, far away.
It felt just like... being inside a dream.
A grand, lingering old dream from three thousand years ago.
In the dream, there was his dignified, upright father, his gentle, elegant mother, the flippant, sharp-tongued Lord Yinglong, Liu Jinghong who was obsessed with beauty above all else, the naive Shi Chunyu, and the chattery Zhong Bukui...
For these three thousand years, in the dark, lightless depths under the earth, and in the lonely, mundane world of mortals, it was only by clinging to this little bit of old dream that he could find comfort for half a lifetime of wind and dust.
Time may have worn away the old looks of the past, but fortunately, his loyal heart had not grown cold, and his warm blood still flowed hot.
Xie Fangnian raised his wings, brushing them gently over the glossy dark hair of Shu Fu and Feng Jinyu, feeling the vigorous, vivid warmth radiating from their bodies.
...Let me watch over them a little longer.
A parent bird's wings, besides being for flight, are meant to shield the fledglings from wind and rain.
That was what Xie Fangnian thought. For the first time in three thousand years, he closed his eyes peacefully, with a heart full of relief.
Together we ride forth, to slay the foe beyond the frontier.
