Master, Don't Leave Me Alone

Zhu Lianqing stood inside the bamboo cottage, listening to Xie Lingchuan speak to that person.

The boy seemed to have endless things to say, from the swordsmanship principles he had recently grasped to the cricket that had hopped onto his windowsill while he slept last night. He recounted every detail, great and small.

The person he called Master listened patiently to his chatter.

Zhu Lianqing went over too and sat to the right of the desk, propping herself on one elbow as she watched Xie Lingchuan speak with animated delight.

It really did have to be an illusion. Where else could she see such a lively Xie Lingchuan?

He was practically a different person from her steady little disciple on Evergreen Peak.

As Zhu Lianqing listened to Xie Lingchuan, she did not forget to stay on guard.

An inner demon illusion could change in an instant. One moment, everything could be beautiful; the next, one might find oneself somewhere utterly twisted and dark.

Sure enough, before long, a cloud of bloody mist burst before Zhu Lianqing's eyes.

Evergreen Peak, radiant with spring, vanished in an instant.

She was pulled into an entirely unfamiliar place that looked like a town.

But the illusion now seemed shrouded in a layer of mist, hazy beyond measure. The farther she walked, the thicker the mist grew, until it gradually turned black.

Zhu Lianqing knew she might be nearing the center of the illusion.

She looked around, moving forward warily.

The mist grew thicker and thicker, and the range of visibility shrank.

Just as Zhu Lianqing rounded a street corner, a huge black shadow suddenly shot out of the mist, hurtling straight toward her face.

Zhu Lianqing's pupils contracted. She retreated several steps and leaped onto the eaves, only just managing to dodge it.

Within an illusion, having something from the illusion pass through one's body would not be fatal, but it would certainly damage one's spiritual consciousness.

The black shadow that had burst from the mist roared past Zhu Lianqing, whipping the hem of her robes wildly into the air.

Zhu Lianqing turned to look. That black shadow was a flood dragon that had fallen to demonic corruption.

This appeared to be a coastal town, and the demonic flood dragon had emerged from the seabed.

Demonic creatures ran rampant, seawater surged inland, and houses were destroyed.

Zhu Lianqing frowned.

This was an illusion. Even if she intervened, she could not change anything.

But why would this scene appear in Xie Lingchuan's illusion?

Light as a feather, Zhu Lianqing flew over and followed behind the demonic flood dragon.

Suddenly, sword light flashed through the black mist. A powerful sword force, its sharpness undisguised, cleaved through the fog and stabbed straight toward the demonic flood dragon.

Although the demonic flood dragon avoided the blade itself, it was still wounded by the unstoppable sword force.

Zhu Lianqing looked over in surprise.

This was the sword force of the Autumn Water Sword.

This was her sword move.

The next second, a figure abruptly appeared within the black mist, clad entirely in blue, standing beneath the dark heavens with a cold expression.

This time, Zhu Lianqing saw clearly.

That person was her.

It could only be her.

Ever since the divine weapon Autumn Water had emerged from Non-Delusion Heaven, she alone had been able to wield its supreme sword qi.

But although she had slain demons great and small throughout the Five Realms, she had never visited this little coastal town.

The expression of the person hovering beneath the heavens seemed to soften for an instant. She looked down and said, "Disciple, watch carefully. This move is called Ten Thousand Swords Return to the Origin!"

Zhu Lianqing froze. She strained to focus, directing her gaze through the black mist toward the ground below.

Xie Lingchuan stood beneath "her," watching his master's movements without blinking, his eyes brimming with reverence and anticipation.

The woman gave a cold shout. The Autumn Water Sword moved swiftly in her hand, dividing into ten before her, then from ten into a hundred.

In the blink of an eye, sword shadows filled the sky and enveloped her.

Then she gently pushed her palm forward, and the skyful of sword shadows shot toward the demonic flood dragon in unison.

Ten thousand swords pierced the demonic flood dragon's heart, and it writhed in unbearable agony.

After passing through the demonic flood dragon's body, the ten thousand sword shadows converged once more.

But this time, the sword that had pierced the demonic flood dragon's heart had also been tainted with demonic qi.

After emerging from the demonic flood dragon's body, it reversed course with the speed of thunder that left no time to cover one's ears, stabbing straight toward the person who had sent it forth.

The scene before Zhu Lianqing abruptly darkened, and her range of vision shrank to almost nothing.

From the Ten Thousand Swords Return to the Origin that "she" had just used, Zhu Lianqing could tell that her self within the illusion was at least at the late Nascent Soul stage.

So it was merely the sword turning against her under the influence of demonic qi. She believed "she" could dodge it.

But just as Zhu Lianqing was about to search for Xie Lingchuan within the illusion, she heard his voice pierce through the clouds and mist.

"Master!!!"

It was a hysterical scream, as though it had exhausted all of Xie Lingchuan's strength.

At the same time, there came the sound of a blade plunging into flesh.

Zhu Lianqing froze.

She had been struck?

Had she failed to dodge it?

Enveloped in pitch-black mist, Zhu Lianqing could neither see her way nor make out what had happened. She could only fly toward Xie Lingchuan, following her memory of where he had been.

Those hysterical cries drew closer and closer.

A clang-the sound of a sword falling to the ground-mingled with Xie Lingchuan's screams.

Zhu Lianqing's heart shuddered violently at the sound.

"Master!! Why!? Why did this happen... why!!!"

The illusion had followed Xie Lingchuan's state of mind and become utterly black.

Throwing all caution to the winds, Zhu Lianqing charged straight down toward the ground.

When Zhu Lianqing finally felt her body pass through a human figure, she stopped.

Right before her, Zhu Lianqing saw her Autumn Water lying on the ground, her blue robes already stained blood-red.

Xie Lingchuan held her in his arms, tears streaming down his face in an unending chain.

"Master... no, Master, it can't be like this, can it! Master is the foremost sword cultivator. How could you fall here..."

Lying in a pool of blood, Zhu Lianqing slowly raised her hand and touched Xie Lingchuan's pale cheek, wiping away his tears.

Her voice was already as faint as a thread.

"Lingchuan, don't... cry..."

"I was... so happy to take you as my disciple... don't resent your master."

"Do you remember... what I told you before...? From now on, you'll be... the only one left on Evergreen Peak... you must... take good care of your..."

That hand no longer had the strength to wipe away Xie Lingchuan's tears. Like a puppet with its strings cut, it fell heavily.

"Master!"

"Master! Master!"

"Master!!!!!"

Zhu Lianqing watched this parting of life and death unfold before her, watched Xie Lingchuan hold her and cry out until his voice grew hoarse, watched his tears fall in an unbroken stream.

All of this felt utterly unfamiliar to her, yet grief still welled up within her.

She could not help reaching out, her hand hovering over Xie Lingchuan's head.

"Lingchuan, your master is here."

But this was an illusion. Xie Lingchuan could neither hear her nor see her.

He knew only that the figure he had followed for years, the person who had treated him better than anyone else in the world, was now slowly growing cold in his arms.

"Master... Evergreen Peak... let's go back to Evergreen Peak, all right?"

"Master... don't leave me alone..."

"Was I not good enough? Is that why Master doesn't want me anymore..."

"Master..."

Zhu Lianqing watched Xie Lingchuan hold her body, sobbing out his helplessness and despair.

For as long as he cried, Zhu Lianqing watched.

After a long while, Zhu Lianqing rose in a daze and turned her gaze toward the dark horizon.

Just what kind of illusion was this?

The Yesheng Flower's inner demon illusion summoned the most terrifying memories buried deep within a person's heart. The key should have been memories.

But this illusion wasn't a memory at all!

She had died within the inner demon illusion woven for her by the nine-headed serpent demon in the Eastern Realm, not from a demonic flood dragon's backlash.

After her death, Xie Lingchuan had never wept for her like this, either.

He had merely held her Autumn Water Sword and quietly seen her spirit off.

Rain began to patter down from the darkened sky.

Only after Zhu Lianqing held out her palm did she discover that what fell into it was not rain, but blood.

She turned in surprise. Kneeling on the ground, Xie Lingchuan had already cried himself voiceless with grief.

She approached and crouched down again.

The instant she clearly saw Xie Lingchuan's face, Zhu Lianqing felt her heart wrench violently, and a tear suddenly fell from her eye.

Her little disciple had already shed all his tears for her.

What now streamed from his eyes was blood.

No wonder blood rained from the sky.