Chai Shuxin did not react as strongly this time. He simply said, "One should not joke about such things."
Mu Gesheng continued to smile. He set down his teacup, his eyes suddenly filled with a rare earnestness. "And what if I’m not joking?"
Chai Shuxin looked up at him and asked plainly, "Are you certain?"
As Mu Gesheng met his gaze, it suddenly occurred to him that he couldn't remember when he had stopped being able to capture the emotions in Chai Shuxin’s eyes.
When they had first met in their youth, though Chai Shuxin was cold and aloof, he would often break his composure under Mu Gesheng’s teasing. In their occasional moments of quiet companionship, the other man would even offer a small smile, his eyes vivid and alive—like rustling fine snow, or a plum tree blooming brilliantly in a winter field.
But at some point, the emotions Chai Shuxin allowed to surface grew fewer and fewer. He became like a deep well or a still lake, hiding countless soul-stirring depths beneath an unruffled surface. Even the words in his letters had become plain and steady, like those of an old friend of many years, devoid of vanity or flourish.
At that time, Mu Gesheng hadn't truly understood that plainness. He had assumed it was simply Chai Shuxin’s way of treating an old friend—a silent understanding, a deep stream flowing slowly and steadily.
But now that they were sitting together again, Mu Gesheng held the "spoiler" to the plot. From the other man’s gaze, he could unearth so much that had never been spoken aloud.
In that tumultuous, clamorous era a century ago, Mu Gesheng had been preoccupied with donning his armor and striding forward. Chai Shuxin understood him, and so he had kept his passion restrained by propriety. He had said nothing, standing silent and still within his own cage, allowing the roar of cannons to drown out the voice of his heart, all to fulfill the vision of the vast mountains and rivers in Mu Gesheng’s eyes.
*How the hell was I so stupid back then?* Mu Gesheng thought. *I should have realized it long ago.*
At the same time, he couldn't help but wonder: if he had exposed Sanjiutian’s feelings back then, what would the man have done?
And so, he nodded and replied, "I’m certain. I’m serious."
Chai Shuxin answered him with action.
The man seemed to stand up abruptly, his robes catching the corner of the table. The chair clattered to the floor with a sound like thunder before a storm. Like a gambler who had planned for a long time and finally made a monumental decision, he reached out toward Mu Gesheng with calm, unwavering determination. His palm was burning hot.
Mu Gesheng didn't dodge. He was like a dealer who had rigged the game—clandestine yet dignified. Then, he was hauled up from his chair by Chai Shuxin and pressed against a wall or some other surface. The moment of the final reveal had arrived.
The thunder passed, and the floodgates opened. Mu Gesheng was hit so hard he could barely stand; the kiss was like a violent gale.
In a game where the dealer cheats, the gambler shouldn't stand a chance. Yet Chai Shuxin had done it. Mu Gesheng was kissed until his legs went weak. He finally managed to catch a breath and gasped, "You win."
Then, he winked mischievously. "But I didn't lose, either."
The dealer and the gambler both won; only the audience was played for fools.
Chai Shuxin didn't quite understand his meaning. He frowned with a hint of confusion, then lowered his head to kiss him again.
"That’s enough for now." Mu Gesheng pushed him away gently, grabbed the teacup from the table, and took a large gulp to steady his breathing. "That’s as much as I wished for—to see the Ginkgo Study of the past one more time, and to let you meet the old man."
He looked at the youthful version of Chai Shuxin and licked his lips. "Though I’d love to keep this going for a while, if I do, I won't be able to stop myself. Sanjiutian is out there risking his life against Hua Bucheng, and here I am fooling around... no matter how I look at it, it’s a bit unprincipled. Even if he isn't the one losing out."
He shook his head with a laugh, then sighed. He walked toward the illusion he had longed for and tenderly kissed the other’s lips.
It was a kiss devoid of passion, a kiss meant for a farewell.
"It’s time for you to go," Mu Gesheng whispered. "My wish is fulfilled."
He closed his eyes, then opened them again.
Everything vanished like smoke.
Before him was a small ice chamber. Three of its walls were crystal clear, and a water curtain hung over the entrance.
This was the true secret hidden within the pool. When Song Wentong said, "Behind the water curtain lies a hidden paradise," the "water curtain" likely referred to the illusion just now, while this ice chamber was the "paradise."
Given Song Wentong’s personality, Mu Gesheng guessed the man probably hadn't experienced any illusion at all; he likely saw the ice chamber the moment he entered. Mu Gesheng basically understood the principle of the illusion: it showed the intruder their heart's deepest desire. This anti-theft mechanism was cruel but effective. Only two types of people could emerge unscathed: those without desires, or those whose desires were already fulfilled.
And those two types of people rarely stole from others for no reason.
Song Wentong likely belonged to the former, and Mu Gesheng to the latter.
Mu Gesheng circled the ice chamber but found nothing unusual. He spat out the Shan-gui Flower Coin from his mouth and smeared a drop of blood onto it. "Fake monk, come out and see what’s going on here."
"Grand-disciple, you finally remembered me!" The young novice’s voice rang in his ear. "I was sweating for you just now. I was terrified you wouldn't be able to resist and would just go off to live a happy life with Young Master Chai."
"Shut the hell up," Mu Gesheng snapped. "I can tell the difference between my man being real or fake."
The novice chuckled, then changed his tone. "Take a walk around the room."
Mu Gesheng followed his instructions. The novice couldn't manifest a physical form without the Shan-gui Flower Coin, so he had to rely on Mu Gesheng’s vision to observe the surroundings.
The novice pondered for a moment. "Due south, the Li position. Dig down nine feet."
Mu Gesheng walked to the spot, pressed his fingers together, focused his energy, and struck downward with his palm.
The ice shattered layer by layer. Mu Gesheng cleared away the fragments, and a faint, clear light emanated from the depths. He reached down and, after a moment, pulled something out. It glowed with a soft luster and felt ice-cold to the touch.
It was a sword. As Mu Gesheng looked at it, he felt a strange sense of familiarity. After thinking for a moment, he suddenly realized why this sword was here.
This was Mo Qingbei’s personal sword from years ago.
***
At the mountain peak, lightning flashed and thunder roared.
Hua Bucheng looked at the fiery red figure in mid-air and said tonelessly, "You actually didn't die."
Wu Nie stood barefoot atop the head of the Azure Kun. She struck out with a series of palm strikes, nearly slamming the great fish into the bottom of the lake. Then, the girl leaped high, her waist arching like a crescent moon, forming a graceful curve in the air.
She performed a somersault in mid-air, her gaze meeting Hua Bucheng’s. She gave a mocking laugh. "Master Changsheng, you aren't dead yet either?"
Hua Bucheng leaned forward slightly. "Tai Sui, I trust you have been well."
"This half-human, half-ghost appearance of yours is truly an eye-opener," Wu Nie shouted. She smashed a fist into the lake, sending up a massive wave. The Kun was hammered into the silt by her blow, struggling violently.
"Don't just stand there! I’ll handle things here, you go take care of your business!" Wu Nie roared at Chai Shuxin.
Chai Shuxin snapped back to his senses. He noticed that Wu Nie’s figure was somewhat ethereal, not a physical body. Only the area where her heart should be glowed with a brilliant gold-red light, echoing the radiance outside the Penglai barrier.
Outside the barrier was the massive true form of the Vermilion Bird. Zhu Baizhi was battering the seal—and perhaps Zhu Yinxiao was with him.
Years ago, Chai Shuxin had given the Blood Droplet to Zhu Baizhi. After years of nurturing, it had finally managed to preserve a fragment of Wu Nie’s soul, allowing her to see the light of day once more.
Chai Shuxin hesitated no longer. He gripped the Shihong Blade and charged toward Hua Bucheng in the sky.
A brilliant crimson light erupted. Blade clashed against sword. Both moved with extreme speed, forming two massive blurs in the air like two ferocious beasts, biting and colliding with each other in a fight to the death.
The pressure from their battle was so immense that even Wu Nie had to retreat. She looked at the figures in the sky, her tone complex—it was hard to tell if it was admiration or lamentation. "Years have passed, and he’s no longer that little madman."
Chai Shuxin was certainly frenzied now, but it was no longer the suppressed, stifled madness of the past. The bloodlust and violence of the Rakshasa had found a proper outlet. Now, he drew his blade with the force of a surging river, unstoppable and overwhelming, yet he did not lose himself to the inner demons.
Throughout history, Chai Shuxin was perhaps the only Rakshasa who could restrain his murderous nature.
The sound of clashing weapons gradually drifted further away, vanishing into the clouds. Occasionally, a sharp glint would fall from the sky, cleaving into the lake bed.
Wu Nie shook her head and focused on pinning the Kun firmly in the lake, enduring the various impacts raining down from above.
***
Mu Gesheng was shocked. Various theories flashed through his mind as he forced himself to stay calm. "Who left this here?"
The novice had clearly recognized the sword as Mo Qingbei’s as well. He clicked his tongue. "This thing actually still exists. I thought Penglai would have melted it down long ago."
"Didn't you take Master out of Penglai back then? He didn't bring his sword?"
"This sword came from the Sword Pavilion. Since he was leaving, it was only right to return it to its owner. But I thought Penglai would melt it to forge a new one." The novice mused, "Qingbei was exceptionally talented back then. This sword has a spirit; it only recognizes him as its master. After he left, the sword became essentially useless—no one else could use it. But according to Penglai’s rules, it should be stored in the Sword Pavilion. Why is it frozen in this godforsaken cold storage?"
Mu Gesheng narrowed his eyes. "Either it has a special purpose, or someone is afraid of it."
If it had a special purpose, perhaps Hua Bucheng wanted to refine it. But the Immortal Bridge had four pools, and only three were mass graves. Could this single sword alone create a balance with the countless lives in the other three pools?
His intuition told him no.
There might be something else in this ice chamber.
Mu Gesheng had only one Shan-gui Flower Coin left. After a moment’s thought, he slapped the coin onto the ground and quickly cast a divination to find a specific direction.
The novice: "Southwest, the Kun position."
Mu Gesheng strode to the spot indicated by the coin. He twirled the sword and stabbed it downward.
The ice cracked and shattered. Mu Gesheng jumped into the hole, digging through the waist-deep ice for a long time until he unearthed a dull jade casket.
Mu Gesheng already had a premonition of what was inside.
He opened it. Inside was a fragment of bone.
He took a deep breath, ignoring the novice’s gasp, as a plan quietly formed in his mind.
Mu Gesheng quickly surfaced and threw the last Shan-gui Flower Coin into the pool, using it along with three drops of Vermilion Bird blood to form a formation eye. Then, he mounted the sword and took to the air, racing toward the mountain peak.
He didn't actually know how to fly on a sword; he was borrowing a bit of power from the Shan-gui Flower Coin to forcibly trigger the sword intent and ride the wind. Otherwise, with a path as long as the Sword Pavilion Road, the battle would be over by the time he walked up.
Mu Gesheng barely managed to steady himself in mid-air. The mountain peak drew closer. He could already see the violent blade light and sword energy, mixed with thunder and lightning, and the roar of something massive.
He frantically recalled the swordsmanship the Ginkgo Master had taught him. That hadn't been an era of cold weapons, so he hadn't learned it well—only a few bits and pieces. But now, forced by circumstances, he had to cram at the last minute.
He had already used the tokens of the Five Families to lay the foundation of the great formation. Now, only two formation eyes remained: the Shihong Blade in Chai Shuxin’s hand, and the Rakshasa’s life.
Looking at the current state of the battle, once the Shihong Blade left his hand, Chai Shuxin would lose his greatest advantage. Mu Gesheng had to set the final formation eye at the critical moment.
Mu Gesheng exhaled deeply and reached the summit.
*I have to make it in time.*
The mountain top was a chaotic mess. Fierce winds howled, thunder crashed, and massive waves surged on the lake. Yet, a great fire still burned within the water, and a giant fish wailed at the bottom. Mu Gesheng glanced at it and figured it was likely a Kun.
He hadn't expected Hua Bucheng to use such a creature.
There seemed to be someone in the center of the lake, likely helping, but the fire was too intense for Mu Gesheng to see clearly. He could only make out faint gold-red light within the flames—likely the Samadhi True Fire of the Zhu family.
Back in the Mirage, Zhu Baizhi had said he would come to help; perhaps this was what he meant.
Mu Gesheng couldn't find Chai Shuxin at all. The man seemed to be fighting Hua Bucheng high in the air. Mu Gesheng couldn't see them with his eyes, so he closed them, focusing his mind to distinguish everything in the distance.
He heard the sound of muffled thunder-like impacts from the far reaches of the sky—something was battering the barrier. It was likely Zhu Baizhi, and perhaps that disobedient brat, the fifth, was involved too. The wind, the waves, the thunder, and the Kun’s cry... then he heard the clash of metal, mixed with a sound he knew intimately: the wind of the Shihong Blade.
He traced the source of the sound, rapidly sketching Chai Shuxin’s figure in his mind, judging every move and stance. It was a bright red, violent silhouette, filled with cold, sharp colors. The long blade in the man’s hand slashed down from beneath the moon—top to bottom, left to right—its edge exploding with brilliance.
*He’s bleeding,* Mu Gesheng thought. *He might be seriously injured.*
The fight with Hua Bucheng was extremely draining. He could hear the weight of the strikes; Chai Shuxin had at most half of his stamina left.
*Wait.* Mu Gesheng suppressed the anxiety in his heart. He had to stay calm and wait for the right moment.
Chai Shuxin spat out a mouthful of blood, a raspy cough escaping his throat.
Hua Bucheng stood not far away, his left arm hanging limply. That was a wound from the Shihong Blade—his shoulder blade had been pierced. But Chai Shuxin’s injuries were also severe; a massive gash ran from his left shoulder to his right abdomen, the bloodstains gruesome. If he weren't a Rakshasa, he likely wouldn't even be standing.
Hua Bucheng watched him from a distance. "You are at the end of your rope."
"Enough to kill you," Chai Shuxin said coldly.
Hua Bucheng gave a light laugh, clearly not taking the words to heart. He ran his hand over the blade of his sword, as if plucking a startling string.
Chai Shuxin held his breath, concentrating all his energy. He recognized this move, but he only had a sixty percent chance of dodging it.
He had to hold on. Mu Gesheng was waiting for him to buy time.
Just as Hua Bucheng drew his sword to strike, a massive boom suddenly echoed from the sky! A great cracking sound followed, and with a thunderous roar, gold-red firelight illuminated the entire night—the true form of the Vermilion Bird had broken through the Penglai barrier!
The crimson bird let out a long cry in mid-air, and rolling fireballs fell from the sky like meteors. Hua Bucheng’s expression changed. He moved to dodge, only to see a figure rise from the ground and kick him squarely in the chest—it was Wu Nie!
"Zhu! I’ll leave that fish to you!"
The Azure Kun, freed from Wu Nie’s suppression, immediately escaped the scalding lake and took to the air. The Vermilion Bird gave a short cry, its red feathers blotting out the sky as it forcibly intercepted the Kun. The two sides instantly fell into a fierce struggle!
Hua Bucheng hadn't expected Wu Nie’s sneak attack. He took the full force of the kick, his balance faltering as he fell from the air.
Seizing the moment, Mu Gesheng roared, "Sanjiutian!"
The Sword Pavilion was also a formation eye; he had already told the other man its exact location. Hearing the signal, Chai Shuxin moved. Gripping his blade with both hands, he stabbed down fiercely at the falling Hua Bucheng! Hua Bucheng’s eyes turned cold, and he threw his long sword, which pierced straight through Chai Shuxin’s chest!
He had abandoned his sword for this strike, putting ten-tenths of his power into it. Even for a Rakshasa, it was a fatal blow. Yet Chai Shuxin’s expression didn't change, and his blade didn't waver. The Shihong Blade impaled Hua Bucheng’s chest and abdomen. The two of them plummeted, crashing through the Sword Pavilion, falling through the floors until they were pinned firmly to the ground!
Hua Bucheng coughed up blood. He looked at Chai Shuxin before him and curled his lip. "You can no longer hold your blade."
His wound was in his torso, but Chai Shuxin’s was in his heart. By comparison, he still had a chance to live, while Chai Shuxin was at his wit's end.
Chai Shuxin weakly let go of his hand and slumped to the ground.
"You bear a heavenly curse and have at most seventy percent of your cultivation left, yet you still managed to push me to the brink. Truly worthy of the name Rakshasa," Hua Bucheng said tonelessly. "Unfortunately, you still lost."
"I know you are setting a formation, but at most, it will destroy Penglai Island. It cannot kill me." Hua Bucheng steadied his breathing. "The Heavenly Calculator underestimated my cultivation. I am only one step away from ascension; my 'vessel' is almost complete."
He looked at Chai Shuxin. "And you are about to die."
"Your life is linked to the Heavenly Calculator’s. Once you pass, he will not be long for this world. When both families are extinguished, their fortune will return to me, and I shall achieve the Great Dao."
Hua Bucheng smiled. "A result very similar to back then, isn't it? In the game between Master Changsheng and the Heavenly Calculator, he is still one move short."
Before he could finish, the doors of the pavilion were kicked open. A figure burst in—it was Mu Gesheng.
Chai Shuxin curled his body, not looking back.
Mu Gesheng strode up to Hua Bucheng. "Master Changsheng, the winner is not yet decided. Do not speak so boldly."
"I wonder what chips the Heavenly Calculator has left to play..." Hua Bucheng was about to laugh when he suddenly saw what was in the other’s hand. His voice cut off abruptly.
He saw Mo Qingbei’s sword.
"...Where did you find that?!"
"That’s not important," Mu Gesheng said. "Master once told me that a sword forged by the greatest master has a spirit, born from the heart-bone."
"As far as I know, this sword of Master’s was a gift from you."
"And it was also forged by you."
He drew the sword. Before Hua Bucheng could speak, he stabbed it directly into the man’s heart.
"An immortal can survive a heavy wound, I know. Even if your heart is damaged, as long as your soul remains, you will not perish."
"But this sword can take the place of the heart-bone you have lost."
***
**Glossary**
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