True Immortal Ruyi rested both hands on the strings and fell silent for a moment.
Pipa lay on the bed watching him. When he still did not move, she urged him with a smile, "What is it? Has it been so many years since I last heard you play that you've forgotten how?"
Ruyi turned to look at her. She was still there.
"Play!"
The next moment, his fingertips brushed gently across the strings.
Twang-
The clear, ringing notes of the zither filled the room.
Pipa's expression gradually grew peaceful.
She recognized this melody. It had not changed; it was still her favorite. Only today, the music was a little slower than before.
Pipa leaned there listening, her eyes fixed on him all the while.
Ruyi began to sing: "Cold strings in empty mountains, a chill spring by a lonely hermitage, sitting alone sleepless deep into the night."
Pipa started slightly. This melody had never had lyrics before.
Ruyi kept his head lowered. The melody moved slowly beneath his fingers as he sang softly:
"I remember when we were together, not yet knowing love's binding threads."
Pipa watched him, a faint smile still lingering on her lips.
The music shifted gently.
"Who could have known my beloved would depart? So many things, entrusted to these icy strings."
Pipa's gaze flickered slightly.
She lowered her head to look at her hand. Her fingertips, already transparent before, had now vanished completely.
Tiny flecks of shimmering light crept slowly up her fingers, spreading across her palm toward her wrist.
Ruyi saw it too.
His fingertips faltered involuntarily, and the music stumbled out of rhythm.
But Pipa quickly raised her head again. She stopped looking at her hand and gazed only at him, saying softly, "Keep playing. Don't stop. It sounds lovely!"
Ruyi's lips