The stars and moon are hidden behind the tall trees; the night grows deeper and darker.
Xun Ling had finished resting. He looked up at the black jellyfish, which was still floating in the air and was now much larger than before, and spat:
"I don't know where you heard of that wicked method, but you actually sealed off all your cultivation to go and experience some lousy mortal world. You turned your Mystic Qi into your own but didn't use it, what's the difference between that and wasting it? Now you've become nourishment for the Black Sea Moon, I think you've made a laughing stock of yourself!"
Suddenly, the crimson python coiled around his body began to move, sending a snail from its side to Xun Ling's neck.
This snail, about the size of a palm, was covered in disgusting moss and algae, and its mouth was covered with fine tentacles; it was clearly an evil spirit.
Xun Ling's expression changed, and he quickly brought the snail to his ear, as if speaking to it, and respectfully said:
"Senior sister, what are your orders?"
The tentacles on the snail all spiraled clockwise, and a seductive sound emanated from within the snail:
How's the situation on your end?
"Everything went smoothly. As Master said, this Lotus Sword Venerable has indeed sealed her cultivation. She is now trapped in the Black Sea Moon that Master gave me and cannot move."
Xun Ling was somewhat smug. He had managed to trap the renowned Lotus Sword Venerable of the Five Continents with his Feather Transformation Realm cultivation, which was something to be proud of.
"Master even gave you the Black Sea Moon?"
"Hehe, Master said that the Black Sea Moon is specifically for dealing with these outwardly strong but inwardly weak righteous people. If she has a firm will, she might be able to get out in half a day; if she doesn't, then she'll sink into depravity and lose all her cultivation." Xun Ling licked his lips and asked expectantly:
"Senior sister, if I were to kill the Lotus Sword Venerable, whom even Master couldn't manage, how would Master reward me?"
The sound from the conch shell is rarely clearer or more pure.
"Don't underestimate her. If you alone could kill her, why would Master only have you hold her off? If you're greedy for credit, then be prepared to die."
"Xun Ling understands. How about your end, Senior Sister? Is everything going smoothly?"
"Lord Buwu has appeared, Dream-Eating Ghost has not yet shown up, but everything is as expected."
"As expected of Senior Sister! Then... when will Master arrive?"
"Don't ask questions you shouldn't ask. Just focus on stalling Lotus Sword Venerable."
As soon as the words were spoken, the tentacles inside the snail all turned counterclockwise again, and then there was no more sound.
Xun Ling sullenly tucked the sound transmission conch back into his waistband, muttering under his breath, "What are you pretending for, you bitch? Aren't you just afraid that Grandpa's achievements are greater than yours?"
He gazed at the now larger Black Sea Moon, his eyes filled with delight.
This indicates that at this moment, the Mystic Qi within the Lotus Sword Venerable is rapidly dissipating, being greedily absorbed by the Black Sea Moon.
Half a day has passed, and the Lotus Sword Venerable has still not broken free of the illusion, indicating that she may have become completely lost within it.
He refused to believe that this woman, after being tormented by Black Sea Moon for so long, could still be his match!
He Shutong didn't know where she had fallen into; the vast darkness made her panic.
She wanted to break free from this amniotic fluid-like confinement, but ultimately she was powerless; she could only keep falling... kept falling.
Suddenly, as if a glimmer of light appeared, she struggled to swim towards it.
In the play of light and shadow, there are four beautiful women. Three of them look envious, one is beaming with joy, and beside her is a pretty little girl with delicate features and a smug look on her face.
The joyful, beautiful woman placed her hand on the little girl's head and gently patted it, her expression full of affection.
"Our little Tong reached the Channel Opening Realm at the age of three. A few days ago, during her first birthday celebration, guess what she picked up?"
"What?"
"She's caught a book! How rare it is to attain enlightenment through books! In the future, she'll definitely be a celestial being!"
The crowd laughed and echoed her sentiments, showering the little girl with praise.
The light and shadow swept by, and immediately transformed into another scene:
The beautiful woman who had praised her daughter had aged somewhat, and beside her stood a burly middle-aged man in fine clothes, while the little girl had grown into a stunningly beautiful and graceful young woman.
The beautiful woman looked reproachful, the man looked serious, and the young girl looked defiant.
"Go study! Why do you insist on learning swordsmanship? There are countless female cultivators, but how many swordsmen have attained true immortality? Get rid of all these broken swords of yours right now!"
"Tong'er, your mother is right. You have a natural talent for calligraphy. Writing books for the world and guiding the literary tradition would be a great merit for both immortals and mortals. The Xuanxiao Sect's Book Immortal Peak is willing to accept you as its chief disciple. You must not act willfully and recklessly again..."
"You! You dare to steal the clan's forbidden technique! This Ice Heart Technique is an evil technique that sacrifices all emotions and desires! Are you trying to become an ungrateful wretch and not recognize me as your mother anymore?!"
"What? Tong'er, are you confused?! Going against your mother doesn't stop there!"
The girl glared angrily, tears welling in her eyes, tore the book in her hand to shreds, and stormed out of the city.
What she didn't say was that she secretly learned the Ice Heart Technique so that she could match the rapid progress her mother made when she boasted to others.
As the light and shadow shift, a clearer image appears in the next scene:
Two elderly people, a man and a woman, lay on the bed, the air thick with the sorrow of parting from loved ones.
Two stunningly beautiful women leaned against the bedside, one in a black robe and the other in a white dress, each holding the trembling hand of an old man. The woman in the white dress was none other than the girl who had run away from home years ago.
"Lord Chu, Xiao Tong, do not grieve. Everyone must die eventually, even the Immortal Ancestor could not avoid it, so why weep? It's just that this Mandarin Sword will be broken in my hands..."
The old man sighed shakily, which made the woman in the black robe sob even more, while the woman in the white dress looked even more pained, but she couldn't squeeze out any tears.
"Father, don't say that! It was clearly my doing that it broke, what does it have to do with you?" The woman in black robes was full of self-reproach, and she gripped the old man's hand even tighter.
"How dare you say that! You're just a little girl who prefers to fight bare-handed, and you haven't even learned the basics of the Mandarin Sword Technique. What kind of Mandarin Sword Technique successor are you! Cough cough!"
The old man coughed violently in anger, and the woman in black quickly patted his back. The old man then calmed down and said:
"Your mother was the best; she can rest in peace with a smile on her face. Taking such a gifted young Tong as her disciple is a fitting tribute to the ancestors of the Yang Sword clan."
The old woman nudged her husband with her elbow with difficulty, then grasped the white-skirted woman's hand and said:
"Xiao Tong, don't listen to that old man. I took you as my disciple because I like you, it has nothing to do with the inheritance of the Yang Sword. You don't need to take this as a burden in the future."
The woman in the white dress nodded blankly.
The old woman smiled kindly again, "More than the inheritance, I hope you and Chu Jun can find your ideal dao companion. The path to immortality is bitter and cold; without someone to hold your heart and keep you warm, it will be very cold..."
The woman in the white dress gritted her teeth and confessed:
"Mistress, I... I can attain true immortality on my own; I don't need a dao companion."
The old woman was taken aback for a moment, then smiled even more kindly, though a hint of melancholy lingered in the corner of her eye.
"In this life, just follow your heart..."
The next moment, the smile froze on the old woman's face forever. The old man seemed to sense something, shed two tears, and then closed his eyes.
The woman in black robes cried out in anguish, wiping away her tears, and glared angrily at the woman in white, saying:
"He Shutong! My mother is dying and you won't even lie to her?! Do you really want her to die with regrets? If you hadn't been desperate, why would my mother have taken you in!"
"This is the Mandarin Sword Sect! It's you, Ice Heart Girl, who shamelessly insisted on becoming a disciple and learning swordsmanship. Why are you learning the Mandarin Duck Sword without finding dao companion!"
The woman in the white dress lowered her head in silence, unable to answer a single question.
He Shutong understood; these were all her past memories. The following scenes flashed before her eyes like a series of images:
In the picture, she is still wearing a white dress that makes her look like an ethereal fairy. She stands outside the gate of the He family in Henggao City, looking somewhat hesitant.
The He family home was brightly decorated and filled with joy, and beneath the grand gate plaque, a steady stream of guests offered their congratulations with enthusiastic chants:
"Congratulations, Head of the He family, on the birth of your son!"
She stood indifferently amidst the joyful crowd, like a lost stranger.
She pursed her lips, then turned and left.
This departure lasted for sixty years, during which time she traveled throughout the Central Continent, always alone.
She felt her sword growing colder and colder, and so did her heart.
Later, in order to break through her current realm, she meditated for twenty-five years in the Jade Ring Pool, one of the Spiritual Life Blessed Land, surrounded by ten thousand lotus flowers. She finally broke through to the realm of the Void Glimpse Venerable and even created a Lotus Birth Sword Technique that shook the ages.
With a single sword strike, ten thousand lotuses bloom.
After breaking through her cultivation level, she returned to the gates of the He family. However, the He family was not a scene of joy and celebration today. Instead, it was filled with white cloths and solemnity, with everyone dressed in mourning and weeping bitterly.
The matriarch of the family, her mother, has passed away.
People who came to pay their respects walked past her, talking in hushed tones:
"I heard that Madam Liu kept calling out her daughter's name before she died; she was literally driven to her death by her daughter's anger!"
"Anyone whose daughter runs away from home and never comes back would be furious!"
It rained heavily that day, and the raindrops lashed her face. She didn't even dare to step inside to see her mother.
Whether out of guilt, indifference, or anger, she turned and went up Mount Henggao alone with her sword, and no one could stop her.
She stood beneath the majestic and ethereal Shuxian Book Immortal Peak, and with a single sword stroke, cleaved it in two.
The extra half is called Lotus Peak, the thirteenth peak that Xuanxiao Sect created out of thin air.
From then on, she became the thirteenth Grand Elder of the Xuanxiao Sect in the Central Yuan Continent, Lotus Sword Venerable, renowned throughout the world.
But her father and her brother, whom she had never met, never came to see her, and she never went to see them either.
Her surname was He, but it seems that her surname no longer matters; from then on, people only called her the Lotus Sword Venerable.
Although she was the leader of a peak, she did not accept disciples or give lectures. Her aloofness and solitude drew criticism from many people. Only the kind-hearted sect leader of the Xuanxiao Sect, who was like a master 'Mistress, stood against the opinions of the crowd and strongly supported her.
Ninety years ago, during the great battle in which the sacred mountain was determined to completely Evil Purge, the old sect leader, known as Jade Quiet Venerable, died right in front of her.
To save her.
The Jade Quiet Venerable was covered in algae that should have grown on her body, and endless tentacles stretched out from the old woman's seven orifices. Two round eyeballs rolled to her feet, and she was powerless to stop them.
Despite his own body rotting Jade Quiet Venerable comforted her, saying that he did not die to save her, but that he was destined to die anyway, and that he was only trying to die a worthy death.
The Jade Quiet Venerable smiled at her expressionless face and asked her to pierce his spiritual altar to send him on his final journey.
She still couldn't shed a tear, nodded, and raised her sword.
"It's better to save you. You're as cold as ice. I certainly won't be sad if I end it all myself... That way, I... won't feel guilty..."
She couldn't tell whether Jade Quiet Venerable's last whisper was a mockery or a frank remark, but it was forever etched into her heart.
Later, by fortuitous opportunity, she gained another disciple, but she had almost forgotten how to communicate with people, let alone had no experience as a teacher.
Fortunately, the disciple was exceptionally talented and became the top of the Divine Mountain's list of geniuses at a young age, known as Wangshu Fairy.
Unfortunately, she was as cold as ice, and her only disciple turned into an even colder iceberg than herself.
Later, she read in a book that those who practiced the Ice Heart Technique became detached from emotions and desires due to the Cultivation Method. If they wished to change, they could seal away their Mystic Qi, return to being ordinary people, and experience the full spectrum of human emotions, such as joy, sorrow, and happiness. After experiencing the world, they could restore their cultivation and perhaps change their Ice Heart.
Just then, Guan Chujun found her and asked her to take care of his only disciple, a ten-year-old blind boy, while Chujun himself needed to investigate a hidden truth.
She agreed, on the condition that she was allowed to move back to the Sword Sect's courtyard.
She also sealed away all her cultivation, becoming the master's Mistress that the blind child spoke of as having no cultivation.
Having returned to the mortal realm, she felt no change; her heart remained just as cold. She sat in her room, habitually meditating, playing the piano, listening to the rain, and watching the snow.
The blind boy, holding a string of candied hawthorns, asked her, "Mistress, would you like some?"
She refused and did not open the door.
The blind boy, clutching a stack of cotton quilts, asked her, "Is my Mistress sleeping warm?"
She refused and didn't open the door...
Countless similar scenes have been repeated, and these rejections are her most natural and subconscious behaviors over the past two hundred years.
She felt she needed to make some changes, but she didn't know how to deal with it, let alone how to talk to anyone other than Guan Chujun.
Offering guidance on the young man's swordsmanship, and teaching him when he cautiously asked questions, was the best she could do. She often thought:
He's probably terrified of himself... If it were his Mistress instead, perhaps he'd be happier...
The pain and confusion she felt as a mortal were so intense that she despaired. Perhaps her cold, unnoticed death was her just punishment.
Whether mortal or immortal, this icy heart can never be melted.
She should have listened to her mother from the beginning and believed in the so-called "first birthday celebration" to choose the book she disliked the most and discard the sword she loved the most.
She, who is honest and doesn't try to be a hero by secretly learning Ice Heart Technique, will be the celestial being her mother boasts about.
In this way, she wouldn't have angered her mother to death, wouldn't have caused her Mistress to have regrets, and wouldn't have caused the death of Jade Quiet Venerable.
As Jade Quiet Venerable said, she would not grieve for the deaths of others, and naturally no one would grieve for her death.
The only disciple will be found a better master by the sacred mountain, You Su, entrusted by Chu Jun, will be taken care of by Gu Yao.
Then die peacefully...
No one cared as this failed life ended...
He Shutong let herself drift and sink in the darkness, her whole body like ashes scattered by the wind after a fire has been extinguished, becoming increasingly transparent.
A sense of relief welled up inside her; she wanted to cry, but the tears just wouldn't fall...
"Mistress! Let's go together!"
He Shutong seemed to hear someone calling her; the voice was familiar and anxious.
"Don't be afraid, Mistress! They won't dare to move! Come out quickly, let's go!"
It's You Su... What happened to him?
"Mistress! Come on! Come out quickly, let's go together!"
How could that boy, who was always so calm and composed, suddenly have such a pleading, tearful voice?
He Shutong couldn't wait to find the source of the sound, so she swam forward as fast as she could.
She parted the fog and seemed to see dozens of fierce-looking men surrounding You Su, who were trying to kill him.
Covered in blood and grime, You Su resembled a trapped beast in a state of panic. His eyes were dark as he stood in front of her room, holding his junior sister in one hand and a young man hostage in the other, calling out to her repeatedly.
He Shutong understood what You Su was doing; he was stubbornly determined to take her with him on his escape.
"Don't worry about me! Just take your junior sister and escape!" she cried silently at Xu Jing. "Don't worry about me... just let me die..."
The old man told You Su that his master's Mistress was no longer in the room; she had left Sound Transmission Token deceive him.
You Su burst into a tirade of profanity; this was the first time she could recall this polite young man ever using such language.
He Shutong felt as if her heart was being torn apart, just like every time before.
"Please don't be angry, Mistress, I'll take you away!" You Su raised her foot, about to kick open the door.
Even at a time like this, he asked her to overlook his rudeness.
"No! No!"
He Shutong felt like she was suffocating, powerless to stop You Su.
She didn't want You Su to open that door; she didn't want You Su to feel that she had lied to him; and she especially didn't want You Su to find that she wasn't there when he needed her most.
She was afraid that the only person in the world who cared about her would be disappointed in her.
Just treat me the same way I treat everyone else!
I only saw you as a condition in a transaction, someone I could easily give away to someone else to protect! Why do you stubbornly insist on treating me as someone worth protecting with your life?
I'm not worthy at all!
You Su kicked the door open with a bang.
Click.
He Shutong also heard the sound of her own heart breaking.
When You Su discovered that she was not in the room, she was so sad that it almost overflowed from the light screen.
These people slashed at him with swords and blades, injured him with ice and fire, and looked at him with the eyes of someone looking at an alien, all wanting to kill him...
Just leave me alone, and if you leave me alone, I won't enter this room and won't fall into the trap!
"Mistress, Mistress, Mistress..."
I'll never hear that gentle, refined boy calling my name again, tirelessly and passionately...
How can anyone accept something like this!
At this moment, intense and complex emotions, like an inextinguishable heavenly fire, melted this heart that had been frozen for two hundred years.
Her icy heart melted, turning into two streams of clear tears that flowed down her cheeks.
Mother, Mistress, Sect Leader... You Su!
This time! I will not be powerless again!
As He Shutong's resolve hardened, the fragments of her dissipated body returned to their original places one by one, her transparent body gradually becoming solid again, and the Mystic Qi absorbed by the Black Sea Moon flowed back into her body like a torrent.
With a single sword strike, ten thousand lotuses bloom!
The Black Sea Moon exploded like fireworks, and Xun Ling was terrified when he saw the spotless lotus Fairy suspended in the air.
The bright moon hangs high in the sky, and even the tallest tree cannot block its clear and bright light.
That night, the Lotus Sword Venerable, the foremost female Sword Cultivator in the world, returned to the Void Glimpse Venerable realm.