Chapter 35

The Peach Blossom’s Fruit

A murmur ran through the crowd. Kai Xuanjun’s eyes were bloodshot, and his fists clenched and unclenched. The Marshal stepped forward and declared, “The outcome is clear. The young princess has won. Now, please hand over the Seal of Su Zhao, Kai Xuanjun.”

“Heh, it’s not over yet.” Kai Xuanjun patted his chest and grinned wickedly. Suddenly, he drew out a purple-gold sword. “Luo Wei, since you’re going to ruin my plans, don’t blame me for total destruction!”

Starlight descended from the heavens, enveloping the sword and emitting a dazzling golden light. The High Priest exclaimed, “That’s the Primordial Spirit Treasure, the Extermination Sword! How could it end up in his hands?”

The sword slipped from his grasp and created a towering vortex on the ground. In the blink of an eye, the light dissipated, and a purple-gold demonic dragon emerged from it. Pointing at me, Kai Xuanjun said maniacally, “It’s her, feed her to it! And then eat everyone here! The Demon Lord has already given the order to massacre this city anyway! Eat them all! Don’t leave a single one!”

The dragon roared, spewing out a deep blue poison mist. It twisted its body like a serpent and lunged towards me. It stared at me with fiery red eyes, its mouth wide open, and it moved with astonishing speed. I flew back a distance, dodging its attacks several times, but it pursued relentlessly. In this short time, its scales had shattered countless palaces and towers. All the people were screaming and fleeing, and the spells cast by the Spiritual Master were as good as tickling it. It only had its eyes on me, and I couldn’t outrun it. Finally, I was cornered at the center of a mountainside. I made a desperate attempt, using the last of my ice wall technique to protect myself. It crashed into the ice wall, causing the mountain to shake twice. After several heavy blows, the thick ice wall was shattered. In the end, it opened its long, bloody maw and spewed a thick cloud of poison at me.

At this point, my spiritual energy was exhausted. If I flew any higher, I would probably fall to my death, but if I stayed here, I would be killed. I could barely withstand ordinary attacks, but this poison mist... I had already prepared to rot in the poison gas, but then I heard a loud tiger roar from the valley!

In an instant, a flood of water erupted from below, washing away the poison mist and knocking the poisonous dragon several meters away.

Then, a red shadow flew in from a hundred miles away. I saw a ball of flame rushing down, burning the valley of Su Zhao in the darkness.

Standing in front of me was a giant crimson tiger, with wings that covered the sky and eyes made of pure crystal from a furnace. It crouched, alert, and stared at the poisonous dragon with murderous intent. After a brief confrontation, they clashed like a gust of wind against a ball of fire, battling in the air. Poisonous gas and ice water splashed everywhere, and the roar of the mighty beast echoed through the mountains. Apart from that, there was no other sound.

Finally, the battle ended with the red tiger biting through the dragon’s neck. The dragon let out a long, mournful cry that shook the night sky, and then it fell heavily, transforming back into the original sword.

Everyone stood there in shock, their eyes fixed on the towering red tiger. Then, the Chancellor and I spoke at the same time.

He said, “Qiongqi?”

I said, “Xuan Yue?”

The red tiger turned its head and looked at us calmly, approaching step by step. Everyone retreated in fear, but it grew smaller and smaller until it became a white tiger cub, lying at my feet.

I picked it up and hugged it tightly. “Xuan Yue, how did you become so powerful? You even killed a poisonous dragon! You’re really a good child!”

Xuan Yue lazily squinted its eyes and rubbed its head against me, licking my face. Suddenly, I remembered that Lord Qinglong had touched Xuan Yue’s head before. It turned out that he had unsealed its power but had given it the ability to change freely. Lord Qinglong was truly thoughtful.

“Where is Kai Xuanjun?” Han Mo looked around. “Where did Kai Xuanjun go?!”

It turned out that everyone had been so focused on the fight that they hadn’t noticed where Kai Xuanjun had gone. When we started searching the city for him, we discovered from various clues that he had already escaped. I told everyone about what I had seen in Kai Xuanjun’s palace and in the other world, and I drew a picture of the banner.

After some speculation, the ministers determined that the banner was also a Primordial Spirit Treasure called the Mixed Yuan Banner. As long as you cast a spell on it, you could enter an independent space.

Judging from the scene inside the banner, it was either the Demon Realm or the Ghost Realm, or possibly the Demon Realm. Combined with Kai Xuanjun’s previous mention of the Demon Lord, it was likely a space in the Demon Realm. The fact that Kai Xuanjun was connected to the demons reminded me of my brother’s eyes when he went mad... No, Master had already said that he was possessed, so it shouldn’t be related.

In fact, during the ten years of Kai Xuanjun’s tyranny, the people had long been resentful, so when they learned that he had left, it seemed to be the will of the people for the power to return to my sisters. However, after this battle, my second sister was forced to see Kai Xuanjun’s true face. Originally, my return could have eased her condition, but the fact that her husband had abandoned her and her constant waiting had caused her illness to worsen.

Eight years passed.

In the early summer of the eighth year, the plums were yellow, the wind blew through the city, and rain fell on the roses, which was a rare sight. This was because a severe drought had broken out in the world, unprecedented in history, and had affected the Six Realms. Su Zhao was also affected, but slightly less than other places.

Over the past eight years, I had assisted my second sister in governing the country and pacifying the world, finally allowing the people of Su Zhao to emerge from their impoverished past. At the same time, I brought back the knowledge, immortal books, and documents I had learned in the Immortal Realm for ten years, and the people of Su Zhao began to learn water-based immortal arts other than the water-controlling technique.

This year, I turned sixty and was about to complete my coming-of-age ceremony.

On my birthday, my second sister dressed me up in front of the mirror. She was wearing a light gauze robe, her shoulders were thin, and she coughed occasionally. However, she was in a particularly good mood. After pinning the hairpin in my hair, she lowered her head and smiled at me slightly in the mirror, “Look, my little sister has finally grown up. Your hair color is really beautiful.”

Gazing at my reflection with my new shoulder-length hair, I realized with a start that my hair had turned a celestial moon-white, even lighter than my second sister’s. In Su Zhao, such a hair color was typically associated with venerable elders. However, during the ten years of cultivation with my master, my spiritual power had greatly increased, and coupled with my diligent practice upon returning to Su Zhao, I had unknowingly transformed in this way.

While this was a good thing, the unusual lightness of my hair, combined with my elevated status, made many men hesitant to approach me. Even the sons of noble families would rather pursue my married second sister than me.

I wasn’t particularly eager to settle down and had never had a heart for anyone, until that day when I saw him.

My second sister finished styling my hair and summoned a servant to help me with my makeup.

At that moment, a melodious tune drifted in from outside, filling the air. It was as if hundreds of orioles were singing, or a gentle breeze was caressing my face, then a fierce storm, and finally, a mournful lament. The birds in the city seemed to be singing along. Mesmerized, I murmured, “Who is playing such heavenly music in Su Zhao?”

The servant replied, “Your Highness, it’s the new palace musician, Kong Shu.”

I nodded but said nothing. After listening for a while, I couldn’t resist. I pulled back the curtain and pushed open the window, leaning out. In the courtyard, a figure in a deep blue robe was playing the qin in front of a rose bush. His robe billowed out like the sea, and he wore a jade ring on his finger. As he gazed at the qin with such concentration, my heart skipped a beat.

My second sister sighed, “I’ve heard that Kong Shu is extremely talented. I didn’t expect him to be so young.”

“Is he from the Su Zhao clan?” I asked.

“Yes,” she replied.

I was surprised by how quickly my heart had raced. In the past, no matter what kind of man I met, I had never been able to figure out my own feelings. But at this very moment, I knew clearly that I had fallen for him.

Over the past eight years, my brother had written to me frequently, and I felt as if he were always nearby, even though we were far apart. As he progressed from a spiritual being to a true immortal, and then to a spiritual immortal, he would visit me and show me his new robes and immortal seals. I often teased him in my letters, saying that even the ghosts in the underworld reincarnated more quickly than he did. Becoming a spiritual immortal at such a young age, how would he spend the rest of his life?

He replied that there were still higher realms above spiritual immortals, such as Celestial Emperors, Supreme Emperors, and Immortal Emperors, and that he would find a way to let Weiwei live for thousands of years if he could become a god. Although I knew this was impossible, his words warmed my heart. In comparison, my master had never sent a single letter. I could only learn about his recent situation from my brother’s letters.

Despite this, I still remembered our conversation eight years ago vividly:

“Master, you must believe me. I admire and respect you, but I have absolutely no ulterior motives towards you.”

“Well said, continue.”

“I’m very well-behaved. I’ve always hoped to return to my hometown and marry a man from Su Zhao, and live a peaceful life.”

As I looked at the musician below, the budding feelings in my chest did not subside. After a while, my second sister went to the altar to prepare for the coming-of-age ceremony, and I jumped out of the window and landed lightly on the ground.

Kong Shu was very quick to notice my presence and looked up at me, bowing respectfully. “Greetings, Your Highness.”

I smiled at him. “The music is beautiful. What is it called?”

He kept his head down. “Your Highness, this piece is called ‘Water Moon Debt’.”

“Water Moon, is that like the water moon in a mirror?”

“Yes, Your Highness, it is.”

“Water Moon Debt, what a beautiful name. I wonder if it refers to a debt of love.”

“Your Highness, yes.”

He always answered my questions with a “Your Highness” and kept his head down, which was rather boring. However, when I looked at him from this angle, with his head bowed, he was unexpectedly pleasing to the eye. I decided to forgive his lack of social skills.

I circled around him and asked him a few more questions, then laughed lightly. “Master Kong is so cautious. Are you afraid to face other girls because of your ‘water moon debt’?”

Kong Shu blushed and said softly, “Your Highness, Kong Shu would never dare.”

I finally believed that people could fall in love at first sight. His personality wasn’t particularly attractive, but he had a face that I found incredibly appealing. Every time I saw him bow his head, I felt an urge to marry him immediately. Wasn’t this exactly what I had always wanted—to return to my hometown, marry a man from Su Zhao, and live a peaceful life?

I thought to myself that I was not too young to get married. Why not invite this young man into the palace and have him play music for me every day?

Thinking of this, I felt that my idea was brilliant. I reached out and gently stroked his pointed chin. “You’re right about that. You should know that this princess is different from other girls. You’ll find out soon enough.”

“Your, Your Highness...” Kong Shu’s face turned as red as a tomato, and he almost buried his face in his collar.

I couldn’t help but laugh and said, “Don’t be so shy. Go on, you may leave. I want to see you perform at the coming-of-age ceremony later.” After he had taken a few steps, I called out to him again, “Tomorrow, at the same time, would Master Kong be willing to join me for wine, flowers, poetry, and music?”

Kong Shu stopped and hesitated. Then, his entire neck turned red.

I couldn’t help but smile and returned to my room, prepared everything, and then joined the procession to the altar.

Earlier, my brother had written to me saying that he had important matters to attend to but would definitely attend my coming-of-age ceremony. As I walked up to the altar, I scanned the crowd but didn’t see him. Just as I was about to complain about his unreliability, I noticed a floating figure standing beside the High Priest.

I turned my head subconsciously and saw Fu Chenzhi, dressed in a flowing immortal robe. For a moment, the world seemed to slow down. He had long hair, a tall purple crown, and the aura of an immortal about him.

He was talking to someone else and seemed not to notice me. Only after being reminded by the person he was speaking with did he turn his head. At the same time, my second sister walked over and began to undo my hair. A gust of wind carrying the fragrance of flowers blew through, and my long, moon-white hair cascaded down like a waterfall, while the robe I was wearing fluttered in the breeze. Our eyes met, and we both froze.

The High Priest said, “Little Princess, look, Heavenly Emperor Tianheng has personally come to perform your coming-of-age ceremony. Our Su Zhao is truly honored.”

My brother walked over, took the crown of adulthood, and placed it on my head, smiling faintly. “With your hair down, you look different.”

I was stunned. “Brother... you didn’t tell me about something so big?”

“What could be bigger than Weiwei’s coming-of-age ceremony?”

I admit, I was so moved I almost cried, but I still retorted stubbornly, “That robe doesn’t suit you, you’re too young.”

“I’ll change it later.”

“No, no, I was just joking. You look good in anything. You look very scholarly and heroic in this robe.”

After the ceremony, we returned to the palace for a banquet and happened to see Kong Shu playing the qin in the hall. As I watched him play, lost in thought, I couldn’t help but be reminded of my brother.

My second sister came over and whispered in my ear, “Weiwei, I have a secret to tell you... I’ve fallen in love with someone.”

I exclaimed, “Congratulations, Second Sister. You’ve finally come out of the shadow of Kai Xuanjun. Who is it? Tell me quickly.”

My second sister quickly pointed at the man playing the qin. I was stunned. “It’s that little musician? Second Sister, a man like him is fine to look at, but to actually like him, I’m afraid it’s beneath your station.”

My words were so bitter that I almost bit my own tongue. At the same time, an unfamiliar sourness began to spread in my heart. I remembered when I first saw Divine Maiden Qingwu standing side by side with my master in the Floating Tu Sea. I had felt the same way then. And that sadness had been even worse. Every time I saw them together after that, it would torment me.

Perhaps because I was young and naive at the time, I had experienced great joy and great sorrow, and I had even felt a strange possessiveness towards my master.

It was a pity. The first person I had ever fallen for was also the person my second sister liked. As the queen, and in poor health, I couldn’t possibly compete with my second sister. Fortunately, Kong Shu and I hadn’t started anything, so there was no need to end anything.

The next night, I saw Kong Shu standing anxiously in front of the flowers, so I had someone send a message to my second sister. Before long, my second sister, dressed as a young girl, came to meet him.

Kong Shu looked up in surprise and saw me.

I looked at him carefully: he had a delicate and beautiful face, but it was also a completely unfamiliar face.

As soon as he looked up, that heart-fluttering feeling disappeared completely. But when he lowered his head again, the strange feeling came back.

Finally, I realized a sad truth.

What I liked was Kong Shu when he lowered his head, when he resembled my beloved, when he had that noble and outstanding aura. This blatant and unrestrained affection was not for this beautiful newcomer but for the person I longed for.

For a long time, I had kept these feelings deep inside, unwilling for anyone to discover them, not even myself. I had deceived myself into thinking that time would heal everything. But unexpectedly, eight years later, these feelings were as strong as ever. And now that I realized it, what was the point? He was so powerful, and if he had wanted to, he would have visited me long ago.

Soon, the news of my second sister and Kong Shu being together spread throughout the Zi Chao Palace. I tried to avoid seeing them. It wasn’t because I was jealous of their relationship, but because I didn’t want to see my beloved’s reflection in Kong Shu.

After the coming-of-age ceremony, my brother sent me a very valuable gift - a collection of immortal scriptures. I had people move these books to my chamber and spent my days immersed in them. Immortals were truly different. Many of the titles were unfamiliar to me.

One day, while idly flipping through a book called “Records of the Supreme Gods,” I found it quite interesting. It recorded the biographies of the high-ranking deities in the divine realm, including those who had passed away. On the first page was “Heavenly Emperor Haotian.” After flipping through a few pages, I came across “Water God Gonggong,” and then, after many more pages, “Water God Yinze.” The record of Yinze read:

“Water God Yinze, the supreme water god. Born in the celestial waters of the divine realm, he controlled the water of the heavens and earth, and had the body of a green dragon. Initially a divine lord, he took the position of Cangying God from Gonggong after Gonggong struck Mount Buzhou. He made great contributions to the world during the ancient war between gods and demons, and was admired by the Heavenly Emperor. By the time of the Yellow Emperor, he was nearly five thousand years old. He was cold and irritable, fond of drinking, and close to demons...”

I couldn’t read any further. My eyes were fixed on that line: “He had the body of a green dragon.”

I stared at the page for a long time, unable to move my fingers. So, to love someone deeply was not about thinking about them day and night, but about not daring to think about them. In the ten years I had spent with my master, I had suppressed and hidden my feelings, deceiving myself. Who would have thought that my master had similar worries? Or perhaps he had thought even further than I had.

Because he had asked me that final question:

“If I wanted to marry you, would you agree?”

I remembered that before leaving Tian Shi City, I felt guilty even looking at my master for too long, as if I had committed a great sin. At that time, when Lord Qinglong had asked me that question, I had cried for an entire hour. It was a mixture of regret for offending my master and a sense of loss that I hadn’t even realized I had.

In my heart, my master was an elder, someone who would even tease me about my failed attempts at love. Who would have thought that when he saw me like that, he had hesitated as well?

Speaking of peach blossoms, I happened to notice several peach trees outside the window. However, the trees had already borne fruit, their branches bare and withered, no longer adorned with flowers. Under the scorching sun, the roses were in full bloom. Eight years have passed, and we haven’t been in contact. I could still hear news of him from my brother, but he probably forgot about me. My master has always been cold and indifferent; I knew that already.

Our peach blossom must have withered eight years ago.

Thinking about it now, it’s pointless to feel hurt so late. Since we’ve already missed our chance, why bother to dwell on it?

The only regret I have is that our relationship ended at that particular point.