The longsword borne by the phantom hung beside Ouye Longping's bleached bones, silent and wordless.
The warm radiance of the rising sun spilled over the blade, refracting a crystalline chill like the tears of one parted from a loved one.
A long while passed.
Chu Youwei could not bear it any longer and said, "Since fate brought us together, should we bury Senior Ouye?"
Lu Feng gently shook his head.
The phantom emerged from her grief, looked up at the clear sky, and wistfully declined Chu Youwei's kindness.
"Brother Longping yearned for freedom all his life. He should not be bound by a coffin."
"He chose this place for his final rest because it was where his heart wished to be."
"Proud bones as stele, heaven and earth as tomb."
"That is the bearing Brother Longping ought to have!"
Seeing the admiration and worship on the phantom's face, Chu Youwei could not help asking curiously, "You do not seem all that saddened?"
The phantom smiled serenely. "So many years have passed. I have suffered through this outcome in my heart thousands upon thousands of times. Now that I have truly seen it, I instead feel somewhat relieved."
It was clearly impossible not to grieve at the sight of her beloved's bones, but for the woman, this composure and release perhaps stemmed more from the Peach Blossom Hairpin Ouye Longping still held in his hand before he died.
Xue Zier could not help asking curiously, "If he did not forget her even at the end, why did he not bring the owner of that Peach Blossom Hairpin here to this hidden Domain Realm?"
The phantom fell silent for a moment. Perhaps the scene stirred sorrowful memories, or perhaps some string in her heart had been plucked; she unexpectedly answered Xue Zier