Chapter 46

The Desert Mirage

After a long and arduous journey, we arrived at the edge of the Flowing Sands region in the Western Territories, intending to visit the kingdom of Liuhuang Fengshi first for a look around. 

For gods and demons, crossing this desert was nothing more than a trivial task, but for others, it posed a significant challenge. We rested at a nearby camp for the night, replenished our energy, and set off early in the morning to traverse the desert. 

At dawn, the sun rose in a crimson glow, radiating like a massive amber, resplendent yet steady and subdued. On the golden horizon, the shadows of a caravan of camels moved slowly. Once I had adjusted my own attire, I placed a Tashkent-style floral hat on Xihe’s head to secure her long braids. 

Her face was mostly concealed by a veil, leaving only a pair of lively, deer-like eyes visible. She was irresistibly adorable. It didn’t take long for her to become utterly enchanted with her new outfit, twirling in her bright red silk dress and soft leather boots. 

Su Shu also donned desert attire—still in bright red, but now a knee-length, wide-sleeved robe. Paired with his fluffy, voluminous curls, he exuded an exotic charm. He looked so much like a native desert prince that even Xihe couldn’t help but burst into laughter. 

Not to be outdone, Xuan Yue grabbed a floral hat, tossed it into the air, and caught it on his head. 

Of course, the most awe-inspiring figure was Sha Hai. 

He approached us from a distance, riding a camel with several more in tow. The camel’s powerful, bamboo-like legs supported its massive body, while the man seated high on the hump wore a black cloak trimmed with gold. With leather boots, a waist sash, and long hair billowing in the wind, he exuded an imposing, majestic aura. 

Yet, he still wore that bronze mask. I had heard he was changing into desert attire earlier and had been somewhat hopeful, thinking that in such a sweltering place, he might remove the mask. I had clearly overthought it. 

When his gaze turned toward me, I felt a jolt of unease and quickly looked away, adjusting my turquoise desert dress before mounting my camel. For reasons I couldn’t understand, Xihe always found Sha Hai overwhelmingly authoritative. She excitedly clamored to ride the camel with him. 

I was about to intervene when Sha Hai nodded. She leapt onto the camel in front of him, brimming with joy. Seeing this, I could do nothing but watch and wait. After we set out, Sha Hai stayed true to his word and made no inappropriate moves toward Xihe. Aside from pressing down on her little hat when she got too mischievous, he hardly touched her at all. 

Still, I couldn’t relax. I rode alongside them, frequently glancing over. After several such encounters, Sha Hai whispered something to Xihe, who nodded obediently and jumped onto another camel. Then, he turned his mount and approached me. 

I tugged at the reins, attempting to steer away, but my lack of riding skill made me too slow. His camel had already sidled up to mine. 

Then, without warning, he reached over, grabbed me by the waist, and lifted me onto his camel as if I were a chick. 

“What are you doing…!” I struggled to get down, but he held me firmly against the camel’s back. 

“You’ve been watching us the whole time. Isn’t this what you wanted—riding with me?” 

“Who would want to ride with you? I was worried about Xihe. Let me down!” 

There was barely enough space for Xihe and Sha Hai to share a camel, let alone two adults. My back was pressed completely against his chest, and his arms encircled me as he held the reins. This position was so close, so intimate, that it felt unbearably awkward. 

But instead of letting me go, he leaned down even closer, his voice low and soft near my ear. “But I don’t want to.” 

As the sun climbed higher, the desert grew hotter. That must have been why I felt so flushed, my skin damp with sweat. Not wanting to argue further, I tried to express my resistance through my actions, only to have him hold me even tighter. 

“If I can stay by your side even for just one more day, I’ll never let go. Not even once,” he said, almost in a whisper, his voice heavy with suppressed emotion. 

His voice was entirely different from someone else’s. But strangely, at that moment, a name from a hundred years ago—long sealed in my heart—resurfaced. 

If, by some impossible chance—just hypothetically—this person were Yinzé, I think I might have been overcome with tears. I wouldn’t forgive him, but I would silently think to myself, Now, I have no regrets in this life. 

The true regret, however, was that Sha Hai was almost a stranger. Demons were even further removed from us than gods. Whether he was sincere or not, the fact that he could confess his feelings so boldly to me meant that even if he truly cared, many obstacles could still be overcome. As for the one I had once shared countless days and nights with—my master—no matter how many lifetimes passed, he would remain as distant from me as the heavens above. 

The vast desert stretched endlessly, and the winds roared in all directions. I sifted through the flowing sands layer by layer with my hands, the shifting dunes surging like angry waves of the sea. Xihe and Xuan Yue, both being attuned to water, feared the arid environment. Su Shu was even worse; long before we entered the desert, his breathing had already become labored. 

Within two hours, he was parched, dizzy, and visibly pale, his flushed face rapidly turning white. Seeing this, I immediately leapt off my camel and used my water magic to help him. Only then did he recover. After benefiting from my assistance several times, Su Shu joked, “A princess of the Suozhao clan is worth more than a whole caravan of camels. My thanks to you, little princess.” 

I replied, “This is no place to linger. We must move as quickly as possible.” 

Using this as an excuse, I avoided returning to Sha Hai’s side. He said nothing, though he did cast a cold glance at Su Shu. 

Strangely, that night, Su Shu suffered from stomach pains that lasted until morning. 

After several days of relentless travel, we had covered about half the distance according to the map. Under the starry night sky, we noticed flickering lights on the horizon. 

Curious, we approached, only to encounter a bizarre sight that left us all bewildered: in the middle of the desolate desert stood a thriving, solitary city. 

Surrounded on three sides by water, the city sprawled over three hundred miles. Sand and water flowed together, with a towering mountain at its center. It looked exactly like the Liuhuang Fengshi kingdom depicted on the map. 

Yet by our calculations, we should still be several days away from reaching Liuhuang Fengshi. Had we miscalculated, or was this a mirage? 

Filled with questions, we drew closer to the solitary city. 

Xihe had been clutching my sleeve, but as she raised her head and saw the shimmering water around the city and the swirling lights dancing in the air, she seemed entranced. “Mother, this place feels like Suozhao,” she murmured. Before I could respond, she had already been captivated by the lights and darted away. 

“Wait... hold on—”

Before I could finish my sentence, Xihe had already dashed under the shimmering waterlights, stepping on nothing but air and sinking as if into a swamp. Chahai quickly rushed forward, grabbed her by the wrist, and pulled her out.

The ever-changing flow of water created countless sandbanks, forming numerous sandy rivers all around. At a glance, it looked no different from an ordinary desert, but in truth, it was full of pits and quicksand that would swallow anyone who stepped into them.

Su Shu remarked, “It seems this is a mirage. To avoid losing our minds, we should leave as soon as possible.”

I tried using magic on the water in the air, and it really responded to my spell. After a moment of thought, I said, “Wait. Whether this city is an illusion or not, this water is real. Besides, how could there be so much water in the middle of a desert? There’s only one explanation: someone must have created it deliberately. Could it be that the Rain-Prayer Pearl is nearby?”

Chahai said, “This is indeed the Kingdom of the Liu Huangfeng Clan. The Rain-Prayer Pearl is here.”

“Really? How do you know?”

“I can feel it.”

“Then why is this kingdom here, so much closer than we expected?”

“That, I do not know. Let’s go inside and find out.”

With that, Chahai went ahead to clear the way for us. We manipulated the water to fly into the city, while Xuanyue carried Su Shu on his back. From the strange spectacle we saw outside, we anticipated danger within the city—perhaps guarded by monsters, or at least requiring a fierce battle to proceed. But to our surprise, the city was peaceful and prosperous, with its citizens living in harmony. There wasn’t even a trace of demons or monsters anywhere.

Before long, the ruler of the Liu Huangfeng Clan himself came to greet us, setting up a banquet in our honor. His hospitality was so overwhelming that it made me slightly suspicious. However, I couldn’t sense any celestial or demonic energy from him or his people, so I set aside my doubts and chatted with him. I avoided mentioning the drought in Suzhao and gave a brief account of where we were from.

After hearing my story, the Liu Huangfeng ruler was deeply impressed. “You are truly extraordinary people. Allow me to offer you another toast!”

After another cup of fine wine, I mulled over my thoughts and asked, “Your Majesty, there’s one thing I’ve been wondering about. The world is suffering from a great drought, and the lands we passed through were all endless deserts. Why is your kingdom blessed with such abundant water resources?”

“To tell you the truth, our good fortune is due to the divine treasure bestowed by an immortal,” he replied with a faint smile.

My heart began to race, but I kept my expression neutral. “A divine treasure from an immortal? How fascinating! What sort of treasure might that be?”

“This treasure is called the Tidal Pearl, created from the eyes of the great immortal Shezheng,” the ruler explained. “If you are interested, I can take you to see it.”

The moment I heard the legend, I knew it was the Rain-Prayer Pearl we were searching for.

With this pearl, Suzhao could be saved... My heart pounded wildly, but I maintained my composure and replied, “We’d be most grateful for the honor, Your Majesty.”

He led us to the palace’s treasury, where the Rain-Prayer Pearl was displayed prominently at the center. Its icy blue surface shimmered with liquid light, appearing almost as if it were about to flow.

The ruler said, “This is the Tidal Pearl. Seventeen years ago, our kingdom was on the brink of ruin, but my father found this treasure near the Western Sea. Without it, the Liu Huangfeng Clan would have long been buried under the sands. We are deeply grateful for the blessings of the great immortal Shezheng.” After speaking, he performed a gesture of worship.

Later, he arranged accommodations for us. Before retiring to my room, Su Shu sighed and said, “What a pity. It turns out the Rain-Prayer Pearl is the sacred treasure of the Liu Huangfeng Clan. After coming all this way, we’ll have to leave empty-handed.”

Xihe chimed in, “Mother and Aunt Ying will surely come up with a solution.”

Chahai gave me a glance but said nothing, offering no opinion as usual.

By midnight, my emotions were in turmoil. True, the Rain-Prayer Pearl was in the Liu Huangfeng Clan’s possession, and taking it would bring disaster upon their people.

However, the ruler himself mentioned that the pearl was found by his father near the Western Sea. In other words, it never originally belonged to the Liu Huangfeng Clan. On the contrary, we of the Suzhao Clan, imbued with divine power as a water-tribe, are far more deserving of possessing the Rain-Prayer Pearl than mortals.

Moreover, this entire kingdom is frail and vulnerable. Even if we don’t take the pearl, others will. If it falls into the hands of demons, the consequences would be unimaginable. Thinking this, I felt slightly more justified. I slipped into the palace under the cover of water and stole the pearl.

I roused everyone from their beds and urged them to flee with me under the cover of night.

Xihe, not understanding the situation, followed without question. Chahai, as usual, remained silent and indifferent. But as we reached the city gates, Su Shu and Xuanyue both stared at me with unfamiliar expressions.

“Let’s go,” I said. “Why aren’t you moving?”

Su Shu said, “The princess I know would never do something like this.”

“What do you mean?”

“After their warm hospitality, you repay them with betrayal? How is that right?” Su Shu said, visibly upset. “I understand this is for Suzhao, but building our salvation on the destruction of others is against the natural order. I’d rather die of thirst than resort to this. Princess, please return the pearl.”

“That’s easy for you to say,” I retorted sharply. “You’re not from Suzhao, so of course you don’t care whether it lives or dies.”

Caught off guard by my bluntness, Su Shu hesitated before saying, “That’s not what I meant. I only think there must be a better way to resolve Suzhao’s drought. Stealing isn’t the only answer, is it?”

If there were another way, would we have endured so many years of hunger and suffering? Naive people may be endearing, but they can also be crueler than anyone else. Su Shu, kind as he was, was still just a child at heart. I looked at him, seeing no difference from Xihe’s naive reactions. Xihe, too, looked at me uneasily. “Mother...”

Without responding, I walked straight into the darkness. But then a voice abruptly shattered the silence:

“The night is cold and the dew heavy. Might I ask, are you leaving the Kingdom of Liu Huangfeng because we failed to treat you well?”

I looked up and saw the speaker standing at the city gates—it was the Prime Minister. Mounted on a camel, he was flanked by two attendants. His tone suggested suspicion, though he didn’t yet seem aware that I had taken the pearl.

I replied, “We have pressing matters to attend to and did not wish to disturb His Majesty at this late hour. I’ve left a letter explaining everything. Please, convey my regards to the king.”

“This matter, this old minister dares not decide on his own. It would be better for all of you to stay another night and personally bid farewell to His Majesty in the morning before leaving. What do you all think?”

I originally intended to ignore him and force my way through, but before I could pass him, his eyes locked onto the cloth bag in my hands. Shocked, he exclaimed, “Isn’t that the light of the Tide Pearl?”

I looked at him quietly, saying nothing. Instead, I waved my sleeve, using a veil to cover Xihe’s eyes. The minister pointed at me angrily, “How dare you steal our nation’s sacred treasure! This is utterly unforgivable! Guards, arrest them immediately! Notify His Majes—”

He never got the chance to finish his words. For I had already summoned water to encircle his head, forming ice spikes that pierced through his skull. He didn’t even have time to make a sound before his breath ceased. His eyes rolled back as he collapsed lifelessly to the ground. Around me, everyone except Sha Hai gasped in shock, even Xuan Yue stared at me wide-eyed. I used my water magic again, sending flying ice spikes to eliminate the rest of the minister’s entourage. Seeing them fall silently one by one, just like the minister, I felt somewhat at ease. “Let’s go,” I said.

If Su Shu had been able to stop me earlier, he was now too terrified to utter a word. Only Sha Hai gave a faint, indifferent laugh. “Truly worthy of being the princess of Su Zhao—killing with such elegance, without even a stain of blood on your robes.”

In truth, this was the first time in my life I had intentionally killed someone. My hands trembled with cold within my sleeves, and my clenched jaw felt like it was coated in frost. I refused to let them see my fear, so I moved quickly, striding through the city gates.

But I hadn’t anticipated the worse that was yet to come: as I flew out of the city and left the sandbar behind, the water above the sandbar began to change direction and flow away from the Kingdom of Flowing Huang Feng. Realizing this might be connected to my actions, I walked even farther, and indeed, the water followed me.

“Princess, it’s not too late to turn back!” Su Shu caught up, anxiously urging, “You don’t have to go back and apologize; just quietly return the pearl. I’ve been observing the structure of this city—almost all of it relies on the power of the Tide Pearl. If they lose it, their entire kingdom will likely...”

I hesitated for a long time. Who would willingly play the villain? Who would willingly take innocent lives? Who would choose to live burdened by unforgivable crimes? But gods and demons can be reborn after death, and even spirits and ghosts have the chance of reincarnation. We, however, once detached from the Luo River, would be swept away by the currents of history, reduced to dust and never to rise again.

At present, all of Su Zhao’s water sources have dried up. Only the Luo River barely remains, but it too is withering day by day. The Su Zhao clan, having survived among the heavens and earth for so long, should not perish due to this endless calamity.

At this moment, memories of my parents surfaced. The hidden sorrow in their eyes before their deaths, and the words my father softly spoke beside my childhood bed: “Wei’er, none of us live for ourselves. You are the princess of Su Zhao; you are my daughter. This is your fate and your responsibility.”

I bit my lip and closed my eyes, resolutely charging several hundred meters ahead. With the aid of the Tide Pearl, my spiritual power surged as though divinely blessed. Even the long-cherished regret of being unable to fly without water was no longer an unattainable dream. I could almost envision what my people and Su Zhao would become with this pearl.

Yet during this flight, I heard Su Shu’s desperate pleas, Xihe’s cries of alarm, and the deafening crashes of one city after another collapsing into ruins. Soon, the cries of the city’s people filled the air, their wails of anguish drowned in the wind and sand. I kept my eyes closed, unwilling and afraid to turn back and face that hellish scene. I could only hear Xihe sobbing, “Mother, mother, please give the pearl back to them! When did we become heartless villains who commit such evil deeds?”

It’s not that I have no compassion for others. But as one among the multitudes, we have not received Heaven’s mercy.

I simply wanted to remember my parents’ teachings—to ensure that our descendants, our people, could survive.