Chapter 44

A Journey to Find a Solution

After that, we continued our usual routine, spending our leisure time drinking, playing music, and admiring the flowers and moon in the garden. And so, another sixteen years passed by in a leisurely manner.

This year, Xi He turned forty, and I had just turned a hundred. On what should have been a day of celebration, there was widespread discontent and many deaths in Suzhao. The drought had continued, and even the Cang Sea had dried up by a third. The Nine Heavens and Six Realms were in turmoil, with famine spreading everywhere. To make matters worse, at such a critical juncture, the divine realm and the demonic realm once again launched a war, and the gods were too preoccupied to deal with the drought, exacerbating the water shortage. Now, wherever you went, you could see creatures eating grass roots and tree bark, and there were even cases of cannibalism. The Six Realms were in chaos, with demons running rampant. I saw demons that I had never seen before. I gradually realized that if we continued to sit idly by, Suzhao would sooner or later face a great disaster, so I decided to leave my homeland temporarily and go out to find a way to solve the problem.

“This journey is dangerous, Weiwei. You must be very careful and do what you can,” my second sister said.

Wearing the black robe of the ruler of Suzhao, with long hair as green as a lake, my second sister still looked as young and beautiful as ever, despite being nearly one hundred and twenty years old. On the other hand, my hair had turned completely white and reached my knees, making me look more like the older sister.

I knew my second sister was conflicted. She was worried about my safety, but she also hoped that I could go out and find a way to cure her husband. Since the drought had worsened, strange diseases had emerged, and Kong Su had contracted one of them. For four years, he had been bedridden without any improvement or effective treatment.

Seeing my second sister’s worried expression, I smiled and said, “Don’t worry, I’ll be careful. As for Xi He, I’ll trouble you to take care of her.”

“There are several children, she won’t be bored.”

A few years after Xi He was born, my second sister and Kong Su had three children. However, none of them could match Xi He. Hearing my second sister say this, I was more worried about my nephews... Thinking about this, a clear voice came from the crowd, “Mother! Mother!”

Turning my head in the direction of the voice, I saw a girl in an apricot-yellow dress flying towards me, landing in front of us with a swoosh. “You’re not young anymore, why are you so reckless?” I said.

She looked up at me and smiled, “I learned it from you, Mother.”

“Nonsense, when did I ever teach you that?”

“I heard Uncle Su say that Mother was like this when she was young.”

“As if he had seen me when I was young.” I snorted, patted her head, and said, “Go back now, Mother is leaving.”

“Okay! Mother, have a safe journey and come back soon!” Xi He was still too young to understand the pain of separation, and she smiled as brightly as a summer rose.

I had always been stricter with her than anyone else, but I couldn’t bear to express my affection. From the time she started teething, I gave her the best food and clothes, perhaps a bit too much. As a result, Xi He was a little chubby when she was young. Despite this, her personality was never affected. No matter how fat she was, she always had a confident look, and she even used her size to bully other children.

However, in recent years, she had grown taller very quickly, and her round face had become thinner, her features becoming increasingly beautiful. Even the most corrupt old officials in the palace had marveled at her beauty. Except for her body and facial contours, her features didn’t resemble mine very much. She was also incredibly powerful, unlike her brother or Su Su, and so over the years, there had been several questions raised in the court about her biological father.

One night, a few years after Xi He had lost weight, my second sister came to talk to me. Xi He was fast asleep at that time. Seeing me constantly stroking her hair, she came over to look at Xi He as well. But after only two glances at Xi He, she turned her gaze to my face. After a long time, I noticed that she was looking at me. She said, “Weiwei, Xi He has changed a lot recently. Every time I come here, I see you looking at her, but... do you still care about the Divine Lord?”

I looked up abruptly and smiled bitterly, “How could that be? Which mother wouldn’t love her own daughter like that?” My second sister sighed, “That’s good. I’m relieved.”

Five years ago, one night, Xi He came to me and asked if her father was a celestial being. When I asked her where she heard that, she first lied and said she had a strange dream, then said there were rumors in Suzhao, and finally, under my silent gaze, she stammered for a long time and admitted the truth: it turned out that her friend’s grandfather had seen Yinze and told her that there was once a celestial being and her uncle who had come to Suzhao, and that she looked exactly like a miniature version of that celestial being. I scolded her severely, and I wanted to yell at her, but suddenly remembering the question my second sister had asked, I felt a bitter taste in my mouth and turned my head to cover my face. Xi He was very understanding, and from then on, she didn’t ask about Yinze anymore. At most, she would occasionally use the fact that she didn’t have a father to blackmail me to satisfy her unreasonable demands.

Actually, I couldn’t blame my daughter for this, it was just that she looked too much like Yinze. Anyone who had seen Yinze and then looked at her could easily guess their father-daughter relationship.

However, after so many years, I no longer resented Yinze. As I grew older and experienced more, I became more understanding. Considering Yinze’s personality, he would directly confront the Heavenly Emperor, he would give people the cold shoulder if he was in a bad mood, which meant that he was not someone who would avoid reality or was good at lying. If a woman was pregnant with his child, he would not deny it.

Therefore, his attitude when I revealed my pregnancy at Cangying Mansion was actually very unusual. Those two visitors from the divine realm must have had malicious intentions, and Yinze must have had his reasons for acting that way. However, regardless of his reasons, he never came back to me and had reconciled with Shang Yan. While he might not have wanted to abandon Xi He, his ruthlessness towards me was a fact.

So, although he had hurt me, he had given me Xi He. I considered our old debts settled. I no longer hated him, nor did I love him. He was just a passing traveler in my life, who had taken me on a beautiful journey in my youth, but was someone I would eventually forget.

Now that I was no longer young and could no longer love, I no longer craved immortality, nor did I desire power, and I no longer had so many unrealistic dreams. It was fine to live as a child’s mother and my sister’s advisor, to live until it was time to die, and then return my soul to the Luo River and my body to the earth.

In the dead of winter, withered grass was scattered everywhere. All the water in Suzhao had dried up, except for the life-giving Luo River. I whistled under the moon, and a huge tiger with giant wings flew down from the sky and landed in front of me. Its eyes were blood-red, shining like blood-red beads in the pale surroundings. I climbed onto its back, and it spread its wings and flew. The wind in my face ruffled my black and white hair.

“Xuanyue, since Xi He was born, you’ve almost become her exclusive playmate. How long has it been since we’ve gone out for a stroll alone?”

Xuanyue shook its wings, indicating that it was in a good mood as well. I smiled slightly, “I remember when I first brought you home, you were smaller than Xi He when she was just born. You were so soft and cuddly, like a little girl.” Hearing its low growl of dissatisfaction, I quickly smoothed its fur, “Of course, now you’ve become a mighty man.”

Satisfied, it carried me and flew out of Luo River. We traveled for three days and stayed in a small town near a mountain. If it were in the past, appearing so openly with Xuanyue would have frightened ordinary people. But the situation was different now. There were wars between the three kingdoms in the world, and demons were wreaking havoc overseas. When we stayed at the inn, people only gave us a few extra glances.

We chose the largest room in the inn, but it was still a bit small for Xuanyue. While I was trying to figure out how to make him comfortable, I heard a voice from outside the window: “Your Highness is so cruel to leave Su alone in an empty pavilion.”

I was startled and looked up at the window. Su Su had actually poked his head in. He was riding a black bird, his body bobbing up and down, and his curly hair rippled like waves in the wind. “How did you follow me here?”

He smiled, “Of course I couldn’t bear to be alone, so I followed my beloved.”

“But if you come with me, what about my daughter?”

As I said this, I felt a chill on my back and had a bad feeling. I stepped to the window, pushed him aside, and almost fainted from anger—sure enough, Xi He was hiding behind him, holding a small bird in her arms. She looked up at me with her eyes wide, and said sweetly, “Mother.”

Half an hour later, in the same room, Su Su sat timidly on the side, not daring to say a word. Xi He knelt on the ground, looking sad, with her lower lip protruding, and she hugged the bird with one hand while pressing her other hand on her red and swollen bottom, “Can’t I make a mistake?”

“It’s fine to follow me, but don’t randomly pick up animals. Let that bird go.”

Xi He carefully held the bird and hid it in her arms, “Mother is so mean! This bird is injured, I want to take care of it.”

“Su Su, she’s so willful, and you let her do whatever she wants. Take her back to Suzhao immediately. The outside world is full of demons and dangers, it’s too dangerous to stay here for even a moment longer.”

“If that’s the case, isn’t your situation also very dangerous? I can’t leave! You know, our teacher said that my spiritual power is dozens of times stronger than yours. Maybe I can protect you at a critical moment.”

The daughter of the Cangying God, how could her spiritual power be weak? I scoffed inwardly, but said, “Your teacher is just encouraging you. Even if what he said is true, you have no ability, what’s the use of having spiritual power?”

“But...”

“Stay here tonight, and you go back tomorrow.”

As planned, we stayed for one night, but this naughty girl didn’t let me have a moment of peace. In the middle of the night, I heard Xi He scream. I jumped out of bed and rushed to her room. I saw a giant bird demon with a rat’s head and a mouth that spewed sticky liquid, spraying Xi He. Xi He was running around the room, screaming for her mother.

I waved my sleeve, and arrows of ice flew out, killing the bird demon. Xi He immediately ran over and hugged me, crying loudly when she saw the blood and mucus gushing from the bird demon’s mouth.

“It’s okay, don’t cry. I’m here.” I patted her back, “It looked so cute during the day, but it turned out to be a demon that cultivated into a bird.

Xi He was sobbing, “Mother, this demon is so scary. I can’t let you stay outside anymore, I want to be with you.”

“No, it’s too dangerous for you to follow me. Don’t try to be clever, I’ll personally send you back tomorrow...” Before I could finish, a black shadow flashed past the window, grabbing my attention. I shook my head, trying to see clearly, but I could only see a patch of darkness.

The next morning, I took Su Su and started our journey back to Suzhao. At noon, we stopped at a farmhouse for lunch. Xi He, forgetting her previous fright, slipped out again and came back with a small wooden bucket. She always liked small animals, so I assumed she had gone to the river to catch some fish and shrimp, and I didn’t ask any questions. After lunch, we continued our journey for half a day. Since we were taking a shortcut, there was no place to rest, so we set up a tent in the forest and ate some wild game. However, Xi He seemed unusually happy. Whenever she did something I didn’t allow her to do, she always had this expression of wanting to laugh but trying to hold it back. Finally, I asked directly, “What are you hiding?”

“I didn’t hide anything,” Xi He giggled, waving her hand. “Mother, you’re thinking too much. I haven’t hidden anything.”

As a mother, I knew my daughter better than anyone. I could tell she was up to something. I didn’t expose her immediately but softened my expression and silently handed her some grilled meat. After dinner, I pretended to go back to the tent to sleep but found Xi He’s shadow stretched long as she tiptoed towards the back of the tent.

I quietly followed her and heard a splashing sound behind the tent. Xi He was squatting beside the campfire, talking to something. I floated softly beside her. At her feet was the small wooden bucket from earlier. Inside was a goldfish with large fins that flapped like a fox’s tail. A small red lantern was attached to a tentacle on its head.

“Are you enjoying having this fish?” I asked.

“It’s okay, I’m just afraid it will die without water, but it seems to have tough skin...” Xi He scooped up some water and carefully poured it over the fish. Halfway through, her hand shook, and she knelt on the ground, “Waaaaah, Mother!”

Before I could speak, she had already knelt down and started to apologize. She looked like her father, but unlike Yinze’s arrogant and noble demeanor, she had inherited his shameless side.

I was annoyed and simply frowned, “I’ve told you countless times not to randomly pick up animals. No matter how cute they are, they could be transformed demons. Why can’t you listen?”

“Because this fish is really different,” she hugged the bucket and looked at me with teary eyes. “I found it being boiled in hot water, but it was still alive... I think it must be a divine fish.”

“Of course a henggong fish can’t be killed by boiling water, you can’t even kill it with a knife.”

Xi He blinked, curiously asking, “Henggong fish? Is that its name?”

“You don’t study hard and you don’t even know what a henggong fish is, yet you dare to bring it home! Throw it away!”

“No! It’s not a bad demon, I’m going to keep it!” Xi He immediately changed her expression and hugged the bucket fiercely, “If you make me throw it away, I’ll die too!”

She was right, her personality was just like Yinze’s. She had inherited Yinze’s stubbornness and unreasonable behavior. Sometimes she was as soft as me, and sometimes she was as stubborn as her father. She was as fearless as a thunder god. I really didn’t know what kind of man could handle her in the future.

In fact, although henggong fish could transform into humans, they were mostly harmless and wouldn’t be as dangerous as the flying bird demon. However, as a mother, I couldn’t be too indulgent with my child, otherwise she would become lawless and would be even harder to manage in the future. I said, “If you want to keep it, you can, but you have to bring it back to Suzhao and don’t follow me.”

“Even if you threaten me, it’s useless. Uncle Su promised me he would take me with him.”

“If he spoils you, he can go back with you too.”

Xi He’s big watery eyes widened. She let go of the bucket and suddenly knelt on the ground, shaking my leg vigorously, “Mother! Don’t treat your daughter like this, I’m your biological child! Although I don’t know who my father is, I’m definitely your biological child, right? Mother, please let me keep this fish, as a child without a father, I can only find direction in life by looking at the lantern on this fish’s head...”

I was so angry I almost kicked her out. Just then, a red light spread from the bucket, and the henggong fish jumped into the air and transformed into a young man with red clothes. He said, “Xi He, I can’t repay your kindness, but I have to go now. My enemy is nearby, and we have to leave quickly.”

Seeing her pet turn into a human, Xi He was stunned. She asked, “Who is your enemy?”

“It’s a very scary snake spirit...” As he said this, a deafening sound echoed through the mountains, and the ground trembled. The henggong fish’s face turned as white as paper. He looked around and said, “Oh no, it’s caught up with me. Goodbye!”

He bowed and turned into a fish again, flapping his tail and flying into the sky. But as soon as he flew a few meters, a huge black shadow appeared on the mountain opposite, and four wings spread out, shaking the branches and leaves.

Then, from under the thick clouds, a huge snake head emerged from behind the mountain, and it hissed loudly. Su Su also came over, looking cautious. “Its sound is like a chime, it has four wings, and it brings drought wherever it goes... is it a croaking snakes (míng shé, a mythical snake that brings drought)?”

“Ordinary croaking snakes are no match for Xuanyue, but with the current drought, the situation is not in our favor... Run!”

I grabbed Xi He, who was scared, and mounted Xuanyue. Su Su also transformed into a lotus flower, and I put him in my arms. Xuanyue spread its wings and flew away. At the same time, the croaking snakes charged out of the mountain and slid down, knocking down rocks and trees. One of the rocks hit Xi He on the head, causing a small bump. She cried out, and I protected her head with my hand as we fled through the dust and stones.

We had been running for dozens of miles when we finally managed to lose the croaking snakes. Just as we were about to breathe a sigh of relief, we saw a huge pillar-like object lying across our path, blocking our way. On closer inspection, we realized that it was the croaking snakes’s tail!

We quickly stopped and tried to turn back, but the croaking snakes’s head appeared from behind the mountain, blocking our path. It seemed that a battle was inevitable. However, if we fought the croaking snakes on Xuanyue’s back, Xi He would be in danger.

“Xuanyue, take Xi He to a safe place.” I jumped off Xuanyue’s back and stood beside the croaking snakes’s belly.

Xuanyue understood and flew away with Xi He. The croaking snakes roared and chased after them. I raised my palms and fired a five-meter-long ice spike. The ice spike struck the croaking snakes’s vital spot, but it managed to dodge and was only slightly injured. Then, it stopped chasing Xuanyue and turned around, hissing at me. Its black eyes, with orange pupils that looked like flowing blood, were filled with anger. It was clear that it had been provoked.

“Its neck swayed from side to side, and then it opened its mouth wide and bit down!”

I stepped back, and its teeth tore a long crack in the ground. It attacked me several times after that, its movements as swift as lightning, as agile as the wind, much faster than such a massive creature should have been. I dodged and weaved under its attacks, unable to find an opening to strike back. I could only watch and wait.

Xi He clutched Xuanyue’s fur tightly and cried out, “Mother, Mother! It’s too dangerous, you have to escape!”

“Be quiet, and run as far as you can!”

Without looking at them, I finally found an opportunity and used my magic to counterattack the snake. But these spells could only inflict superficial wounds. It was very cautious and would never let me hit its vital spot. According to the principle of the five elements, the snake was pure earth, while I was pure water. I was completely at its mercy, just like Xuanyue’s parents had been trapped in the Xuanwu Heaven.

To conserve my energy, I didn’t fly, but I quickly ran out of stamina. Seeing that Xi He and Xuanyue had already flown far away, I summoned a water mist and used the “玄冰风暴” (Xuán bīng fēngbào, or Xuan Ice Storm). For a moment, thousands of ice swords spun upwards from below, forming a storm that rushed towards the snake’s face.

Sure enough, this move was very effective. The snake’s body was riddled with holes, and blood splattered everywhere. The sound of its hissing echoed through the forest. However, this was the limit of what I could do as a member of the Suzhao clan. Any more powerful attacks were beyond my control. I didn’t manage to kill it in one blow, and I knew what would happen next.

The snake went completely mad. It moved several times faster than before, circling me and trapping me in a circle. With each breath, it exhaled a hot, dry wind that drained the moisture from my body. After a few rounds, I could barely stand and was about to collapse to the ground. In an instant, it opened its mouth and lunged at me. I saw the terrifying barbs in its throat and tried to retreat, but there was nowhere to go.

Just then, a dark figure descended from the sky. With a “puff” sound, the snake’s head stopped moving.

A burst of sword energy rang out, and the snake instantly turned into a heavy stone, crashing to the ground. The earth trembled, and crows flew up in the misty sky. I didn’t see what happened, but the snake was already dead. And in front of the snake’s body, a figure emerged from the mist.

When he sheathed his sword, the ends of his clothes and hair fluttered.

In that moment, my heart raced, and I felt a sense of time distortion. His height, his figure, and his movements reminded me of Yinze, who had saved me in the Refining Demon Valley.

At that time, Yinze’s magic was sealed, so he could only use swordsmanship. That was the only time I had seen him fight.

But it was clear that these two people were not related. He turned his head slightly, revealing a face covered by a bronze mask. His jaw was sharp and angular, and his eyes were blood-red through the mask.

At that moment, I didn’t know whether to thank him or run away. What I did know was that I couldn’t foolishly ask him who he was. Because in the entire Six Realms, there was only one race that could teleport and whose pupils turned red when they were filled with killing intent.

He had two long, sword-like horns on his mask, which was clearly a symbol of his race. While I could fight the snake, I knew I was no match for this man. I calmed myself and said, “Demonic Lord, you can do whatever you want to me, just please let my daughter go.”

He was silent for a long time, then walked towards me and looked down at me.

His killing intent and demonic energy were overwhelming. Even though I had never fought a demon before, I could feel the chills running down my spine.

With my sleeves covering my fists, I appeared calm, “You must be here for the water. I am the spirit of the Luo River, and my spiritual power is much stronger than my daughter’s. If you kill her, you will only be left with my lifeless body.”

As his killing intent gradually subsided, his eyes returned to their original color. “The water spirit in your daughter is probably stronger than yours.”

Seeing him walk towards Xi He, I used my magic to attack him, but he disappeared into the mist, dodging my attack and reappearing in front of me.

I cried out, “Please, let her go.”

He looked me up and down coldly and said with a sneer, “Since you’re so persistent, then I’ll eat you.”