Undercurrents

The night in the Star Dou Great Forest is very quiet.

The Lake of Life shimmered with a faint silver light under the moonlight; its surface was calm, without wind or ripples.

On the grassy shore by the lake, Zi JI stood there with her hands hanging at her sides, her gaze fixed on the lake's surface, or perhaps on the depths of its waters.

She had been standing there for a long time, from dusk till nightfall, from sunrise to the moon reaching its highest point.

Her hair had a faint purple hue in the moonlight, and her eyes were a deep purple, like two bottomless pools of water.

The wind blew, the leaves rustled, and her hair was blown up and then fell back down.

She didn't move, she just looked at the lake.

Her face was reflected in the lake, as was the moon in the sky.

Di Tian's expression hasn't been normal lately, she asked.

However, she was unable to answer Di Tian's question.

Silence was the only option.

"Zi JI? Di Tian said you were looking for me?"

When Zi JI turned around, she saw the stunningly beautiful Gu Yuena.

The moonlight fell on her, turning her silver hair into a flowing silver-white, and her purple eyes gleamed with a Youyou light under the moonlight.

Putting aside the school uniform, she's absolutely gorgeous.

Zi JI lowered her head and knelt on one knee.

"My Lord."

Gu Yuena walked to the lakeside and stood next to Zi JI.

"Get up. What do you want?"

Zi JI slowly stood up, looking at Gu Yuena with hesitant eyes.

"My Lord, so far... Di Tian has searched every place with Soul Beast, but found no suitable ones."

Gu Yuena raised her head and gazed at the sky beyond the barrier.

"If you can't find it... then don't bother looking for it."

"But..."

Gu Yuena gently shook her head. "Yun Ming is his father; he has more of a headache than I do."

Her gaze fell on Zi JI. "Just say what you have to say. Don't hold it in."

Zi JI took a deep breath, "My Lord, what happened to Yun Jingheng...?"

"I don't know, but I can sense the aura of another dimension emanating from him; it's very strong."

Zi JI looked up at the sky. "The moon belongs to Yin and cold."

"My Lord, my attributes are compatible."

Gu Yuena's pupils suddenly contracted.

Do you know what you're saying?

Her voice wasn't loud, but it carried a barely perceptible hint of panic.

Zi JI did not back down.

She looked up, her purple eyes shining brilliantly in the moonlight, like two jewels washed clean.

"I know, my Lord. I know every single word."

"Di Tian has been searching for so long," Zi JI continued, her voice gradually becoming steady.

"He searched from the Far North to the south, from the plateau to the swamp, scouring every place where Soul Beast roam, but there were none suitable, my Lord, not a single one."

Zi JI's voice was steady, "But I am right here, with my attributes, my bloodline, my tens of thousands of years of cultivation—"

That's not a reason.

Gu Yuena interrupted her, her voice as cold as the wind of the Extreme North, "Tens of thousands of years, just to go and die?"

Zi JI's eyelashes trembled.

She was silent for a moment, then smiled softly.

The smile was faint, so faint that it was almost imperceptible.

It was a kind of almost transparent tranquility.

"My Lord, I am not going to my death."

"So what do you think you're doing?"

"For... the Soul Beast."

Gu Yuena frowned.

"My Lord."

Zi JI said softly, her voice softening as if a piece of ice was slowly melting in the palm of her hand, "You and I both know how many miles Di Tian has traveled for the future of Soul Beast."

"I want to do something."

So you're going to sacrifice yourself?

Gu Yuena's voice lowered, so low it sounded like it was being squeezed out from deep within her throat.

Zi JI looked into her eyes and said, word by word:

"If my sacrifice could bring about a crucial victory for the Lord, then it wouldn't be a sacrifice."

"I don't need your sacrifice..."

Gu Yuena's voice choked.

Her lips trembled slightly as she uttered the last word.

She immediately bit her lower lip, forcefully suppressing the tremor, as if suppressing a volcano about to erupt.

Zi JI stood there, watching her.

Gu Yuena didn't say anything more.

She turned around, her long, silvery-white hair drawing an arc in the night wind, like moonlight shattered into threads.

Her movements were swift, unlike her usual composure, as if something was chasing her from behind, or as if something would shatter if she didn't leave soon.

Zi JI opened her mouth, as if to say something.

But Gu Yuena is already gone.

Zi JI stood there, gazing in that direction for a very long time.

The wind blew, stirring her hair, her skirt, and the thin layer of silver light on the lake's surface.

She lowered her head and looked at her hands, which were trembling slightly.

"My Lord..."

She called out softly, but the sound was carried away by the wind.

Night returned to silence in the Star Dou Great Forest.

Gu Yue pushed open the dormitory door, but did not turn on the lights.

Moonlight streamed in through the window, dividing the room into two halves of light and shadow.

She stood where light and shadow met, her hair gleaming coldly in the moonlight, her eyes hidden in the shadows, her expression unreadable.

She walked to the bedside and sat down.

The bed was soft, the blankets were neatly folded, and the pillows still smelled of yesterday's shampoo.

Everything was familiar, everything was normal, but her heart was not normal.

Why?

Why was I separated from the Silver Dragon King? Why wasn't I the one left in the Divine Realm?!

Why did the Star Dou Great Forest look like this when I finally awoke?!

Her fingers gripped the sheets tightly, her knuckles turning white.

Her breathing became rapid, and her chest heaved violently.

Her eyes glowed in the darkness, a bright, purple light, like two burning flames.

She recalled what Zi JI had said by the lake, "If my sacrifice can bring about the key for the Lord, then it is not a sacrifice."

If it's not called a sacrifice, then what is it?

That's called stupid!

That's not worth it!

That's called—she closed her eyes and buried her face in her hands.

Her fingers were icy cold, pressed against her tear-soaked cheeks, as cold as ice.

She didn't know she was crying; she only knew she was furious.

Enraged to the point of wanting to tear everything apart, enraged to the point of wanting to rush into the Star Dou Great Forest and smash all the blockade lines, enraged to the point of wanting to kill all the people in the Spirit Pagoda that surrounded the Star Dou Great Forest.

But she can't; now she is Gu Yue, not Gu Yuena.

She cannot.

She looked up at the moonlight outside the window and remained there for a long time.

Then she stood up, walked to the window, and opened it.

Moonlight streamed in, falling upon her, bright and clear. She gazed at Sea God Island Sea God Island in the distance, its lights blazing, the outline of the Sea God Pavilion clearly visible in the moonlight.

A breeze blew by, rustling the leaves.

It's very quiet.

She turned around, walked back to the bedside, and sat down.

She looked down at her hands.

Those hands were small, with slender knuckles, like the hands of any teenage girl.

These hands can control the elements, tear through space, and—kill.

Her fingers curled slightly, then relaxed.

She closed her eyes, and Tang Wulin's face appeared in her mind.

That face was clean, sunny, and warm.

When he smiles, his eyes curve into crescent moons.

She opened her eyes and looked at the moonlight outside the window. The moon was bright and round.

She looked at it, and it looked at her. Suddenly, an idea struck her.

A crazy, irrational, and inappropriate thought.

She wanted to kill Tang Wulin.

It wasn't because I hated him, but because he carried the aura of the Golden Dragon King.

The Golden Dragon King, half of the Dragon God.

Tang Wulin is the successor of the Golden Dragon King.

He inherited the bloodline of the Golden Dragon King, and he also inherited the sins of the Golden Dragon King.

Kill him... devour his bloodline, recreate the Dragon God —would I still be myself then?