Until that day.
Jingyue and Shui Hua were six years old.
Outside Luoxia Village, strange omens suddenly began to appear.
First came the sea fog.
From early morning, the mist crept over the surface of the sea. At first, it was only a thin veil, like white gauze draped beside the reefs.
The villagers paid it no mind.
Fog along the coast was nothing unusual.
But by noon, the fog had not lifted.
By dusk, it had grown thicker.
And when night descended, the entire village of Luoxia seemed submerged in a damp, boundless whiteness. Three steps beyond one’s door, even a person’s outline could no longer be seen.
The village elders said a great storm was coming.
On the second night, the tide began to flow backward.
The seawater that should have ebbed silently spread across the beach in the dead of night, surging inland and pouring into the streams outside the village.
Even the old well in the village began to churn.
Its water rose in ripples, one circle after another. There was no wind, yet it seemed as though something deep below was stirring it.
Only then did the villagers begin to panic.
Some said the Sea Mother was angry.
Some said a great demon from the outer seas was coming.
Others urged everyone to pack their belongings and seek shelter in the mountains.
But Jiang Huaichao knew this was no great demon, nor an ordinary storm.
The strangest omen was the whale song.
The sound came from the distant, unfathomably deep sea.
Dull.
Ancient.
Long and mournful.
Jiang Huaichao had once been the Deputy Envoy of the Sea Hall.
He understood better than anyone in the village that the song of an ancient whale was never a trivial matter.
And when he thought of the two girls’ nearly impossible affinity with water, a terrifying suspicion had already begun to take shape in his heart.
He simply did not dare confirm it.
Nor did he wish to.
.........
Several days later, at dusk.
Jiang Huaichao was carrying several freshly caught fish home.
The setting sun sank toward the far end of the sea, while the afterglow spread across the water.
The sea breeze carried the sharp tang of salt and fish.
But in the next instant, he suddenly heard the sound of the tide fall silent.
It did not merely grow quieter.
It was as though the entire sea had stopped breathing in a single moment.
Jiang Huaichao slowly turned around.
Far out across the sea, a woman was walking toward him, stepping lightly over the water.
She had no boat and wielded no magical artifact.
She simply walked, one step at a time, across the surface of the sea.
The afterglow dyed her robes a faint gold, yet she herself remained as cold and aloof as a goddess from the depths.
Jiang Huaichao’s body reacted before his mind could.
His bloodline, spiritual sense, soul, and even the divine oath-seal he had once sworn before the Sea Hall’s shrine all trembled with near-worshipful awe.
He understood at once.
The woman before him was Hairuo, the Sea Ruo of Cangzhou.
Though he had once served as the Deputy Envoy of the Sea Hall, he had never personally seen Hairuo’s true appearance.
The fish basket slipped from Jiang Huaichao’s hand.
Several fish fell onto the damp sand, flapping their tails.
He paid them no attention.
He immediately fell to his knees, pressing his forehead against the wet grit.
“Greetings, Lord Hai Ruo.”
Hairuo walked up to Jiang Huaichao and simply looked at him.
She did not appear old.
She remained as cold and noble as a divine being from the sea.
When Hairuo spoke, her voice seemed to come from the distant depths of the water.
“I do not have much time left.”
Jiang Huaichao’s heart sank.
He did not raise his head. He only heard Hairuo continue:
“The Sea Eye has grown increasingly unstable over the years.”
“I can no longer sustain it for much longer.”
“Not long ago, I sensed the presence of the next Hairuo.”
“That presence came from this place.”
Jiang Huaichao remained kneeling, his back slowly stiffening.
He thought of Jingyue and Shui Hua almost immediately.
But he did not know how to respond.
He remained silent for a long time.
In the end, he closed his eyes and said quietly:
“Lord Hai Ruo.”
“Please come with me.”
With that, he rose to his feet.
The fish basket still lay overturned on the ground.
The fish had already flopped into the shallows.
He did not spare them a glance. He led Hairuo toward the village.
Along the way, Luoxia Village was unnaturally quiet.
Smoke still rose from the chimneys of various homes, but every sound seemed to have been swallowed by the fog.
Jiang Huaichao walked ahead, his footsteps growing heavier and heavier.
He had promised them.
He had told them that their grandfather would take care of them.
But now Hairuo had come.
The sea of Cangzhou had come.
What could he, an old grandfather, possibly protect them from?
Jiang Huaichao brought Hairuo to the entrance of his own courtyard.
Inside, two little girls were playing.
Jingyue wore a clean little outfit and stood upright, still holding the small wooden twig Jiang Huaichao used to teach her to write.
Shui Hua, on the other hand, was entirely different.
Somehow, she had managed to tangle her hair into a mess. Mud smeared her face as she clung to Jingyue’s waist and loudly insisted that she had won.
“You lost!”
“Tantai Jingyue, you lost!”
Jingyue remained calm, allowing Shui Hua to hang from her.
Though she was still very young, there was already a hint of aloofness in her features.
“I wasn’t competing with you.”
“You’re lying! Standing there without moving means you admit you lost!”
Shui Hua refused to yield and hugged her even tighter.
Entangled by the girl, Jingyue let out a soft sigh and patted her on the head.
“You’re dirty.”
“Then wipe it off for me!”
The corner of Jiang Huaichao’s eye twitched. He was just about to scold Shui Hua for turning herself into a muddy little monkey again when he noticed Hairuo stop behind him.
The deity who ruled over Cangzhou actually showed a moment of shock when she saw the two children.
She gazed at the two little girls in the courtyard.
For a long while, she said nothing.
Then she murmured softly:
“No wonder.”
“No wonder...”
“So that’s how it is.”
Jiang Huaichao’s heart sank.
He said quietly:
“Lord Hai Ruo.”
“They are twin sisters.”
“And they are my granddaughters.”
After a moment, he finally asked with difficulty:
“What... should be done in a situation like this?”
Hairuo did not answer immediately.
She simply watched the two children in silence.
Jingyue seemed to sense something. She stopped what she was doing and looked toward the courtyard entrance.
Shui Hua, meanwhile, was still hanging off her, loudly complaining that her sister was cheating.
After a moment, Hairuo finally spoke.
“They bear different portions of the divine nature of Hairuo.”
Jiang Huaichao’s breath caught.
Hairuo continued:
“One bears thirty percent.”
“The other bears seventy percent.”
Jiang Huaichao instinctively looked at Jingyue.
In his eyes, if one of the two resembled Hairuo more, it had to be Jingyue.
Jingyue had been precocious, quiet, intelligent, and astonishingly perceptive from childhood.
She was unlike ordinary children.
At times, she would even say things that left Jiang Huaichao deeply unsettled.
And Shui Hua?
Shui Hua could eat and make a scene.
She rolled around on the ground.
She chased fish and hounded dogs.
Jiang Huaichao asked with difficulty:
“The seventy percent of the divine nature...”
“Is it Jingyue?”
Hairuo shook her head.
Then she raised a hand and pointed toward the little girl who was clinging stubbornly to her sister’s waist, her face still smeared with mud.
“It is her.”
Jiang Huaichao’s mouth fell open.
He stood there in a daze for a long while.
Looking at Shui Hua’s tangled hair and muddy face, he suddenly let out a laugh.
There was shock in it, along with an indescribable fondness.
“Her?”
“That girl?”
The corner of Jiang Huaichao’s mouth twitched.
For a moment, he did not know whether to laugh or cry.
Jiang Huaichao quickly composed himself.
He assumed that since Hairuo had found the next successor and confirmed that both children bore part of the divine nature, she would take them back to the divine palace together.
His heart ached at the thought.
He was terribly reluctant to part with them.
But he also knew that he could not stop her.
Besides, if this was the children’s destiny, what right did he have to refuse on their behalf?
Thus, Jiang Huaichao smiled bitterly and said:
“If Lord Hai Ruo intends to take them both back to the divine palace...”
“Then this old man will go with you as well.”
“I did work at the Sea Hall, after all. I can at least do odd jobs for them and stand guard.”
He tried to make his tone sound more casual.
But Hairuo did not answer at once.
She looked at the two children in the courtyard. After a long while, she said only:
“Neither divine core is complete. They cannot suppress the sea.”
The smile on Jiang Huaichao’s face froze.
Only then did he realize that things were far more complicated than he had imagined.
One had thirty percent.
The other had seventy percent.
But whether thirty or seventy, neither was complete.
And the position of Sea Mother required a complete divine core.
The force that kept the tides of Cangzhou’s thousands of miles of coastline in check also had to come from a complete divine core.
Then what were they supposed to do?
Jiang Huaichao opened his mouth, but could not bring himself to ask.
Just as his thoughts were thrown into turmoil, Jingyue suddenly walked over from the courtyard.
She came before Hairuo.
Then, under Jiang Huaichao’s astonished gaze, she bowed solemnly.
“Greetings, Lord Hai Ruo.”
Jiang Huaichao froze.
Hairuo lowered her eyes to look at her.
“It seems you inherited the memories.”
Jingyue did not deny it.
Only now did Jiang Huaichao understand why Jingyue had been so intelligent and mature from such a young age.
It was not because she was more sensible than ordinary children.
It was because the thirty percent of the divine core within her carried a portion of Hairuo’s memories.
From the time she was very young, she had vaguely known what she would have to face.
Jiang Huaichao’s face turned pale.
“Yueyue…”
Jingyue did not look at him.
She merely raised her head toward Hairuo and spoke softly.
“Lord Hai Ruo.”
“I’ll go with you.”
Jiang Huaichao’s expression changed.
“Yueyue!”
But Jingyue continued:
“My little sister is too foolish.”
“She can’t bear the responsibility.”
The corner of Hairuo’s mouth moved slightly.
It might have been a smile.
Or perhaps it was a sigh filled with profound sorrow.
“Since you inherited the memories, you already know.”
“You cannot change anything.”
“Fate was decided long ago.”
Jingyue walked before her and knelt down.
“Even if it only delays things for a moment, I beg you.”
Jiang Huaichao understood nothing.
He truly understood nothing.
Wasn’t she going to the divine palace to cultivate?
Wasn’t she going to become a goddess?
Wasn’t this the opportunity every cultivator in Cangzhou dreamed of?
Why did Jingyue look as though she were begging for a final farewell?
He wanted to pull Jingyue to her feet.
But Hairuo stood before him, and he did not dare move.
All he could do was watch his granddaughter kneel on the damp ground, watch her use that calm yet childish voice to beg for a little time—for herself, and for Shui Hua—as part of something he could not understand.
The commotion finally drew Shui Hua’s full attention.
She ran to the courtyard entrance and saw her sister kneeling before a strange woman. Furious, she hurried over and planted herself in front of Jingyue, hands on her hips.
“Hey!”
“You old hag!”
“How dare you bully my sister? I’ll beat you up, you hear me!”
Jiang Huaichao’s vision went black.
That was Hairuo—the supreme deity of Cangzhou.
He nearly dropped to his knees on the spot.
“Please forgive her, Lord Hai Ruo!”
“She doesn’t know any better!”
Shui Hua grew even angrier.
She turned back toward Jiang Huaichao, her little face flushed with rage.
“You old man! Why are you kneeling to her too?”
Hairuo was not angry.
She simply gazed at Shui Hua.
At this child who bore seventy percent of the divine core, yet whose face was smeared with mud and whose fury made her look like a bristling little beast.
No one knew how much time passed.
Then Hairuo suddenly looked toward Jingyue.
Something seemed to have occurred to her.
After a moment, she spoke softly:
“Very well.”
That day, Hairuo took Jingyue away.
She did not take Shui Hua.
Before leaving, she personally sealed away Shui Hua’s memories.
When the seal descended, Shui Hua cried bitterly.
She clung tightly to Jingyue’s sleeve and refused to let go.
“Sister!”
“You’re not allowed to leave!”
“You promised you’d go catch fish with me!”
Jingyue’s eyes reddened as well, but she did not change her mind.
She only bent down and embraced Shui Hua.
The little girl who had always been so quiet finally revealed the vulnerability of a child.
She held Shui Hua tightly.
Then she whispered something softly into Shui Hua’s ear.
Jiang Huaichao did not hear what she said.
He only saw Shui Hua begin to cry even harder.
He saw the fingers clutching Jingyue’s sleeve slowly loosen.
He saw her gradually close her eyes as her sobs slowly faded away.
The seal descended.
Jingyue was taken away by Hairuo.
Jiang Huaichao stood in the courtyard, holding the unconscious Shui Hua in his arms.
He wanted to chase after them.
But he knew he could not catch up.
Nor could he go after them.
When Shui Hua awoke again, she no longer remembered Jingyue.
She did not even recognize Jiang Huaichao.
She curled up against the wall like a frightened little animal, watching him warily.
“Who are you, old man?”
“Why am I here?”
Jiang Huaichao’s heart hurt so badly that he could hardly breathe.
He did not understand.
But he still slowly crouched down and forced a miserable smile onto his face.
Afraid of frightening her, he softened his voice as much as he could.
“My name is…”
He paused.
He swallowed every identity, every memory of the past, every name that threatened to spill forth with unbearable pain.
In the end, he said only:
“My name is Old Jiang.”
“From now on…”
“I’ll stay with you.”
