The moment the black threads touched the petals,their silver light vanished and they fell as black ash.The peaceful bells hanging throughout the village rang once before their cords snapped.The sound disappeared into the darkness.Qing Li stared at the destruction in disbelief."The village..."Hei Long grabbed his shoulder."Don't look at it."Qing Li looked at him."But..."Hei Long's expression tightened."Ling Yuan wouldn't want you to die here."
Qing Li nodded.Wang Xio stepped forward first and placed himself between them and the collapsing entrance."Stay close."His voice was firm."Whatever happens,don't separate."Hei Long nodded."Don't let go of each other."Qing Li looked toward the place where Ling Yuan had disappeared.The last silver light was already gone,but somehow he could still remember that smile.He closed his eyes for one brief moment."I'll find you." His voice was barely audible."No matter where they took you..."He opened his eyes again."...I'll find you."
Wang Xio looked back at him."Then keep moving."Qing Li nodded.The three rushed toward the inner gate.The Keeper remained behind them,raising both hands.Moon-white light erupted from his palms and struck the advancing threads.A massive barrier formed across the shrine entrance.For one brief moment,the black ocean stopped.The Keeper shouted,"Go!"Wang Xio reached the gate first and placed his palm against its surface.The entire doorway immediately lit up with silver symbols."It's opening!"
Hei Long grabbed Qing Li's wrist."Then move!"Qing Li glanced over his shoulder one final time.The Keeper stood alone behind them,his white figure surrounded by an ocean of darkness.He looked impossibly small,yet he did not move back.Qing Li wanted to say something,but the words refused to come.The Keeper simply looked at him and nodded.As though he understood everything.Qing Li turned away.The three crossed the threshold.
The moment their feet touched the other side,everything changed.There was no shrine.There was no village.There was no sky.Instead,an endless bridge of flowing light stretched forward into an immeasurable darkness.The bridge seemed to be made from liquid moonlight,its surface moving gently beneath their feet.Beneath it was not water,but countless memories.They drifted below like a living river.
Some showed children laughing beneath an old tree.Others showed armies clashing under burning skies.Some showed unfamiliar faces,people the three had never met.Qing Li stopped walking.His eyes widened as another memory passed beneath them.A woman stood beneath a moon tree,smiling at someone he could not see.Then the image disappeared.A second memory replaced it.A group of cultivators kneeling before an ancient shrine.A third showed Yue Ning.Qing Li's breath caught. "Yue Ning..."He instinctively stepped toward the edge of the bridge,but Wang Xio immediately caught his arm."Don't."
Qing Li stared down."That's her."Wang Xio's grip tightened."I know."Qing Li looked at him."Then how can you stand there?"Wang Xio's expression remained tense."Because I don't know whether that is a memory..."He looked toward the flowing lights beneath them."...or something pretending to be one."Hei Long crouched slightly and watched the memories drift beneath his feet. "They're not just showing us the past."Qing Li turned toward him."What do you mean?"
Hei Long pointed toward the river of memories."Look carefully."
Qing Li followed his gaze.Several memories were moving backward.One showed a broken cup becoming whole again.Another showed a dead tree blooming before returning to its ruined state.Wang Xio's expression changed."They're not just memories."He looked ahead."They're fragments of time."A distant sound suddenly echoed across the endless bridge and its sounded like thousands of voices whispering at once.
Qing Li slowly looked around."Where are we?"For several moments,no one answered.Then the Keeper's voice came from behind them.It sounded strangely distant,as though it were traveling across countless years."Between the past..."The three slowly turned.The Keeper stood at the entrance of the bridge,his figure surrounded by fading moon-white light.The threads were no longer visible behind him."...and the present."
Meanwhile at mountain village Xu Yang was still blaming himself for everything happened."ChenYu put his hand on Xu Yang's shoulder,"XuYang."Xu Yang shook his head."Don't tell me we didn't."He looked down at the blood covering his hands."I saw him hold back.I saw every chance he had to kill us,and he didn't take any of them."His throat tightened."He kept telling us to stay away."YanLuo lowered his eyes."Because he knew what would happen."Lin Chen looked at ZhaoMing."He knew he was going to die."
Chen Yu closed his eyes."And he still chose to walk forward."Xu Yang's voice became bitter."For his brother."No one answered but the enormous mass of black threads surrounding the shrine suddenly trembled. Every strand froze in midair and countless black lines that had been falling around Zhao Ming stopped as though time itself had been seized.
The flames from the burning houses bent toward the shrine.The white petals floating through the battlefield stopped in place. Then...one black thread slowly descended and it touched the ground beside Zhao Ming's body.Another followed then another. Like this thousands of Threads began falling from the sky in silence,not like rain,but like an endless black veil being lowered over the world.Their surfaces shimmered with faint silver reflections,each strand carrying tiny points of light like stars trapped inside darkness.
Lin Chen slowly raised his head."They're moving again."Yan Luo tightened his grip on his sword."They're not attacking."Chen Yu stared at the Threads."No..."His expression slowly changed."They're mourning." The Threads began twisting together above Zhao Ming.A vast circular pattern formed in the sky,like big black flower blooming upside down.
A center opened slowly and voice came from within it. "...Ming Ming."Everyone froze.Xu Yang's pupils contracted."Shou Heng."Yan Luo's face changed immediately. "He's calling him."Lin Chen swallowed hard."His voice...sounds broken."Another whisper passed through the village."Ming Ming..."This time the voice was clearer.The Threads shivered as though the sound itself carried centuries of grief."You promised me."
Xu Yang stared at Zhao Ming's body."He waited for him."Chen Yu nodded slowly."For all these years."The voice trembled again. "You said you would return before the flowers withered."A single white petal drifted downward and it landed on Zhao Ming's chest."You were always late...But I still waited."Lin Chen's eyes got teary "Shou Heng..."And massive amount of threads suddenly contracted.The black strands gathered toward the shrine,then exploded outward in a breathtaking wave.
Every thread transformed into a thin ribbon of silver-black light.The sky filled with thousands of them,spiraling around one another like a gigantic celestial river.Some curled around Zhao Ming's body.Others rose into the heavens and formed the outline of a human figure behind him.The figure was incomplete and it's face remained hidden under layers of moving threads.
But everyone recognized the presence immediately."Brother..."The word came from the shadow above Zhao Ming."You really came back."Xu Yang's breath caught. Chen Yu whispered,"He's not angry."Yan Luo looked at him."No."His eyes remained fixed on the enormous figure."He's heartbroken." A thread slowly wrapped around Zhao Ming 's wrist and moved gently,almost like a hand holding another hand."Why didn't you tell me?"
Shou Heng's voice trembled."Why did you carry everything alone again?"The Threads around Zhao Ming began glowing faintly. "You always did that..."The voice softened. "You always smiled when you were hurting." Xu Yang's eyes lowered."That's exactly what he did at the end."Chen Yu looked toward him."He smiled."Xu Yang nodded."Even while dying."The enormous Thread-formed figure slowly lowered its head toward Zhao Ming."You shouldn't have come alone."The voice cracked."I waited for you."The threads around the village began falling faster.Dark strands descended like rain,but when they touched the ground,they dissolved into tiny silver sparks.
The entire village seemed to disappear beneath a storm of black and silver light.The sky was no longer visible.The battlefield had become a sea of darkness scattered with thousands of glowing points.LinChen stared upward in awe."It looks like stars."Yan Luo quietly replied,"No."He looked toward Zhao Ming."They're memories."
The Threads suddenly flashed.One after another,images appeared inside them:two young figures standing beneath an ancient tree,two silhouettes walking through falling flowers,a pair of hands clasping beneath moonlight,a younger Zhao Ming laughing while someone beside him shook his head.The visions vanished instantly,but they were enough to silence everyone.
Tian Xuan's face had become pale.He stared at the memories."So this is what remained."Xiao Ren looked at him."Grand Elder..."His voice trembled."You knew this would happen?"Tian Xuan shook his head. "No."He looked toward Zhao Ming."I only knew that if Zhao Ming died..."His expression became grim."...his brother would eventually hear him."Mu Chen tightened his sword."And now?"Tian Xuan looked at the massive figure formed from Threads."Now he has."
The white-haired man stepped forward.The masked man beside him also watched the Threads without moving."He came for his brother,"the masked man said quietly."And found only a corpse."The white-haired man's eyes narrowed."Not only a corpse." He looked toward the glowing threads."He found the person who finally understood why he was gone."The masked man was silent for a moment."Will he lose control?"
The white-haired man glanced toward the black figure."If grief becomes anger..."His fingers slowly tightened."...this entire village may disappear."Yan Luo heard him and immediately raised his sword again."Then we can't let that happen."Chen Yu looked toward him."Wait."Yan Luo turned."For what?"Chen Yu pointed toward Zhao Ming. "Look."The Threads were not becoming violent they were gathering around Zhao Ming with astonishing gentleness.
One by one,they lifted his body from the ground.A black-and-silver current carried him upward.The bloodstained robes moved softly in the wind while countless white petals surrounded him.The petals began glowing,turning into tiny points of pale light that drifted upward around his body like a celestial funeral lantern procession.Xu Yang stared in silence."They're taking him." Lin Chen whispered,"Where?"
The threads formed a pathway leading toward the shrine.The figure of Shou Heng bent down behind Zhao Ming."Home."The voice echoed across the village. Xu Yang's eyes trembled."Home..."Shou Heng's voice became softer."You promised me you would come home."A black thread wrapped gently around Zhao Ming's hand.Then another wrapped around the other side.
The Threads held him as though carrying someone precious who had returned after an impossibly long journey.Zhao Ming's faint smile remained unchanged.Shou Heng's voice broke completely."Ming Ming..."A single silver tear of spiritual light fell from the enormous figure and touched Zhao Ming's forehead."Welcome home."The moment it touched him,the entire sky erupted into light.
And black threads burst outward while thousands of white petals spiraled upward, forming a gigantic lotus above the ruined village.The lotus opened slowly,petal by petal,each one made from intertwined memories and spiritual threads.The sight was so beautiful that even the Heavenly cultivators forgot to breathe.Lin Chen whispered,"I've never seen anything like this."Chen Yu's eyes remained fixed on the lotus."Neither have I."Yan Luo lowered his sword completely."So this..."He stared upward."...is what it means when the Threads mourn."
For several seconds,nobody moved.The gigantic lotus continued blooming above the ruined village,its petals slowly unfolding across the darkened sky.Each petal contained fragments of light memories of places long forgotten,faces that appeared for only an instant,and countless silver lines that moved like veins beneath translucent glass.The entire village seemed trapped under its glow.Even the flames consuming the village walls had become strangely quiet. Lin Chen slowly lowered his sword. "It's beautiful..."Chen Yu's eyes remained fixed on the lotus."Don't mistake beauty for peace."Lin Chen looked at him."What do you mean?"Chen Yu's expression became tense."Look at the center."
Everyone followed his gaze.The center of the lotus had begun turning black.The silver light disappeared from its heart,leaving behind a single dark point that pulsed once...twice...three times.The third pulse sent a deep vibration through the ground. Yan Luo immediately raised his flame sword again."Everyone,get ready."The Heavenly cultivators reacted at the same time. Xiao Ren drew his sword."What is that?"Mu Chen stepped backward,his face tense."The threads are changing."Shen Kai stared at the sky."They're gathering spiritual power."
Tian Xuan's eyes hardened."No."He raised his hand."They're gathering anger."A violent gust exploded across the village and lotus suddenly collapsed inward.All of its petals folded toward the center at once,creating a spiraling vortex of black and silver threads. The ground cracked under everyone's feet. "Hold your positions!" TianXuan shouted. The Heavenly cultivators formed ranks. Xiao Ren planted his sword into the ground and released a barrier of golden light."Heavenly Shield!"A golden wall rose across the ruined street.
Mu Chen and Shen Kai moved beside him, adding their spiritual power to reinforce it. "Don't let the threads reach the rear!" Mu Chen shouted."Protect the wounded!"Shen Kai turned toward the group."ChenYu!Get Lin Chen and Yan Luo behind the barrier!" Chen Yu's eyes narrowed."We're not leaving Xu Yang."Yan Luo stepped forward without looking back."Don't worry about me and Xu Yang " His flame sword ignited again."If those things come down here,I'll burn a path through them."
Chen Yu's eyes narrowed as he watched another group of threads slipping around the barrier."You are not only here to protect Xu Yang!"he shouted toward Yan Luo."We can't leave him alone,and we can't leave anyone else alone either!If we start choosing who is worth protecting,then we've already lost!" Yan Luo glanced back at him,the flames around his sword flickering across his face." You're giving me a lecture in the middle of a battlefield?"
Chen Yu pulled out three talismans."Yes, because apparently you need one."Yan Luo raised an eyebrow."I don't."Chen Yu threw the talismans straight at him."Then prove it!"The talismans stopped around Yan Luo and suddenly formed a glowing triangular seal and burst of golden light struck the threads behind him,blasting them apart.Yan Luo looked over his shoulder at the fading sparks."You could've warned me."Chen Yu snorted."You would've ignored me."
Xu Yang suddenly stepped between them as another thread shot toward their position. "Stop arguing!"He raised his hand,and black spiritual energy burst outward,knocking the Thread aside."We're surrounded!"Chen Yu immediately moved beside him."Exactly!Which is why you shouldn't be standing in front alone."Xu Yang frowned."I can handle myself."Chen Yu looked directly into his eyes."I know you can."His voice softened for a moment."That's not the point."Xu Yang's expression changed slightly.Chen Yu continued while rapidly placing talismans around them."You always think surviving alone means you're strong,but strength isn't about standing by yourself."He slapped a talisman onto the ground."Sometimes it's knowing when to let someone stand beside you."
Xu Yang stared at him for a moment before quietly saying,"You talk too much."Chen Yu smiled."And you're still listening."Yan Luo laughed from behind them."He's got you there."Xu Yang shot him an annoyed look." You're enjoying this."Yan Luo raised his flaming sword."A little." A sudden sound interrupted them.A massive Thread crashed toward the group.Chen Yu threw both arms forward."Move!"Dozens of talismans flew from his sleeves and arranged themselves in midair.
The papers suddenly connected with thin golden lines,forming a giant circular formation.The Thread slammed into it and entire formation shook violently.Chen Yu gritted his teeth."I won't hold this forever!"Xu Yang stepped beside him."Then you don't have to."Black energy gathered around Xu Yang's hand."I'll break whatever gets through." Chen Yu glanced at him."That's better."Yan Luo moved to Xu Yang's other side,his flame sword burning brighter."And I'll burn whatever he misses."Lin Chen tightened his grip on his sword."And I'll cut anything that gets through."Xu Yang stared at them."You're all insane."Yan Luo glanced over his shoulder. "You noticed?"A faint smile appeared on Lin Chen's face,but it vanished when another tremor shook the ground.
The black center of the lotus suddenly split open and figure slowly Came from within the darkness.The Threads gathered around him like a cloak.His form was enormous,yet indistinct.His face remained hidden behind layers of black strands,but two pale eyes opened within the darkness.Every Heavenly cultivator froze.Tian Xuan's expression changed."Shou Heng..."The figure lifted one hand.The Threads across the village immediately rose."Heaven..."A deep voice echoed through the village."...still remembers my name."
Tian Xuan stepped forward."Shou Heng." The figure's gaze slowly moved toward him. "Tian Xuan."The single name made the Grand Elder's expression tighten."You survived."Shou Heng's voice contained no warmth."Unfortunately."Tian Xuan clenched his fists."We thought you were gone."A bitter silence followed."You thought wrong."The Threads suddenly twisted behind Shou Heng.The sky filled with countless black spears.
Xiao Ren's face turned pale."Grand Elder!"Tian Xuan immediately raised his hand."Defensive formation!"The Heavenly cultivators slammed their weapons into the ground and golden formations spread across the battlefield in overlapping circles. The black spears descended."Brace!"The impact came like a thunderstorm and thousands of Threads struck the golden barrier at once.The entire formation shook violently.Xiao Ren shout out as spiritual energy burst from his arms."I can't hold it!"Mu Chen stepped beside him."Then don't hold it alone!"He poured his power into the formation.She nKai joined them."Together!"
The golden barrier brightened,but cracks immediately began spreading across its surface.Tian Xuan stared at Shou Heng. "Enough!"Shou Heng lowered his hand. "Enough?"His voice became colder."You ask me for enough?"The Threads suddenly stopped striking.Shou Heng stepped forward,his eyes fixed on Tian Xuan."Then tell me,Tian Xuan..."His voice trembled despite the anger in it."Where was enough when me and my Yue Ning were standing before Heaven?"Tian Xuan's face tightened. "Shou Heng..."Shou Heng clenched his fists."Where was your mercy when they told me that loving her was a crime?"His eyes slowly reddened,but he refused to look away."I begged them."Then bitter smile appeared on his face."Do you know what they gave me?"Tian Xuan remained silent.
Shou Heng's voice broke slightly."A rule."He laughed once,but there was no happiness in it."They told me that Heaven could not bend its laws for one person."The Threads around him began trembling."They told me Yue Ning had to die because her fate had already been written."Tian Xuan's expression became heavy."You know why that law existed."Shou Heng looked at him."Don't... Don't speak to me about laws."He stepped closer."Your Heaven calls them laws because it makes cruelty sound sacred."
Shou Heng's breathing became heavier. "She was the person who stayed beside me when everyone else left.She was the person who believed in me when even I had stopped believing in myself."His hand slowly pressed against his chest."And Heaven took her from me."The Threads around him began glowing faintly."Not because she had done something wrong..."His voice cracked. "But because Heaven decided that our existence was inconvenient."Tian Xuan's face tightened."Shou Heng..."
The Threads began trembling around him. "Where was enough when my brother stood before Heaven alone?"Another step."Where was enough when he believed his brother would come for him?" And where was enough when Heaven took his life?" Tian Xuan could not answer.Shou Heng's voice suddenly thundered across the battlefield. "You want me to stop?"
The entire sky darkened."Then give me back the years you stole from us!"A violent wave of Threads exploded outward and barrier shattered.Xiao Ren was thrown backward. "Xiao Ren!"Mu Chen grabbed him before he hit the ground.Shen Kai rolled across the broken stones and rose again."They're too powerful!"Tian Xuan drew his sword."Then we fight."He vanished forward.A golden blade cut through the darkness and struck directly toward Shou Heng.
Shou Heng raised two fingers and black Thread caught the sword."You still use that sword."Tian Xuan's expression hardened. "And you still remember it."Shou Heng twisted his wrist.The Thread flung Tian Xuan backward.He landed heavily,but pushed himself upright."Grand Elder!"Xiao Ren shouted.ShouHeng looked toward the younger cultivator."You called him Grand Elder."Xiao Ren froze."Yes." Shou Heng's voice softened strangely."Then listen to him."Xiao Ren hesitated."What?" Shou Heng lifted his hand."He is about to tell you to run."Tian Xuan's eyes widened. "Everyone,retreat!"But it was already too late.The threads erupted from beneath the ground.
Xiao Ren jumped aside as black strands tore through the stones.Mu Chen swung his sword downward,cutting them apart,but three more wrapped around his arm."Mu Chen!"Shen Kai rushed toward him. Lin Chen raised his sword and charged forward. The blade flashed repeatedly as he cut through Threads attacking the Heavenly formation."One!"He cut downward."Two!" He spun and struck another."Three!"A black strand slipped past his guard and wrapped around his ankle.Lin Chen's eyes widened. "Damn it!"
Yan Luo's flame sword instantly swept across the ground and thread burned away. "Watch your feet!"Yan Luo shouted.Lin Chen regained his balance."I had it handled." Yan Luo glared at him."Then handle it faster." Lin Chen nodded."Fair."Chen Yu threw six talismans into the air.They formed a golden ring around ShouHeng."Seal!"The talismans exploded simultaneously.Bright golden chains of spiritual script wrapped around the figure.Shou Heng looked down at them. "Talismans." ChenYu's eyes narrowed."You remember them."
Shou Heng slowly raised his gaze."I remember everything."His fingers moved. The black Threads pierced through the golden seals.The talismans shattered one after another.ChenYu stepped backward. "Impossible."Shou Heng looked at him."You are trying to seal something that was never alive in the way you understand."Chen Yu immediately threw another talisman."Then I'll change the method."The talisman transformed in midair, becoming a vast golden formation beneath Shou Heng.The ground beneath the threads began glowing.
ShouHeng's eyes narrowed for the first time."Clever."Chen Yu shouted,"Now!" Yan Luo surged forward.His flame sword erupted into a column of fire."Move!"Lin Chen attacked from the opposite side.The golden formation cracke and threads screamed without mouths,and the lotus above them flickered.ShouHeng remained standing. When the smoke cleared,he was still there.His Threads had formed a protective shell around him."You..."YanLuo tightened his grip." What are you doing?
Shou Heng's gaze shifted toward the place where Zhao Ming had disappeared."Trying to decide whether Heaven deserves to survive."Tian Xuan slowly raised his sword again."If you destroy Heaven,you will become no different from those who wronged you."Shou Heng turned toward him."Perhaps."His voice became calm."But I didn't return to become righteous."
The Threads behind him began rising again. "I returned because my brother finally came home."Xu Yang stared upward."Shou Heng" Shou Heng's eyes shifted toward him.The black Threads suddenly became still."You..." His voice softened."You were the one he protected."XuYang's heart tightened."He died protecting us."ShouHeng stared at him for several breaths."Then remember him." XuYang nodded slowly."I will."ShouHeng looked away."Good."
The Threads around him began dissolving into countless black sparks."Because if you forget him..."His eyes returned to the Heavenly cultivators."...then his death will truly have meant nothing."Tian Xuan's expression became solemn."And what will you do now?"ShouHeng looked toward the dark sky."What I should have done long ago."The remaining Threads rose behind him,forming Big wings of black and silver light."I will return to Heaven."The Heavenly cultivators tightened their grips on their weapons.ShouHeng's voice echoed across the ruined village."And this time..."The black wings opened completely,covering the moon."...Heaven will remember what it did."