The flying boats sailed through the clouds, and everyone’s face was filled with the relief and joy of surviving a disaster.
Jiu Hui leaned against the railing, surrounded by her senior brothers and sisters who were bombarding her with questions.
“Little Junior Sister, what was that divine light? Why did you avoid it?”
“And that dragon, does it know you?”
“Little Junior Sister, what was that red feather you took out? Why is fate afraid when you mention it?”
“Perhaps the Heavenly Dao thought I was righting the wrongs and exposing the injustice of fate, so it was allowing me to ascend to immortality.” Jiu Hui drifted left and right. “But if I had really taken the opportunity to ascend, then the things that were destroyed by fate would never be restored.”
The farmland, flowers, trees, and beautiful cities…
The Immortal Cauldrons had shattered, so she no longer needed to mention giving up her identity as the spiritual tree.
Upon hearing Jiu Hui’s response, her fellow disciples fell into a long silence. Finally, Luo Yan reached out and gently caressed Jiu Hui’s pale face, which had grown wan from overusing her spiritual energy. “Oh, you…”
“So, fate and the Heavenly Dao are different.” Chang He thought about the thrilling scenes from the previous night. “Fortunately, you were there, Junior Sister.”
They always subconsciously regarded gods as supreme beings, but they forgot the saying, “Heaven has its heavenly rules.”
“It wasn’t my doing.” Jiu Hui shook her head. “I alone couldn’t have awakened the Heavenly Dao.”
It was everyone’s wish that awakened the Heavenly Dao, making it realize the injustice of fate. However, the person fate hated the most was her.
“Why are you all crowding around Jiu Hui?” Yu Jing walked over with two bowls of medicine that had been boiled: “She has overused her spiritual power and needs to rest.”
“Alright, Sect Uncle!“carpreads.pages.dev
“We’ll leave right away, Sect Uncle!”
The senior brothers and sisters left with laughter, and their laughter was mixed with a few teasing remarks like, “The sect uncle is really fair and impartial, even the medicine is made in two portions.”
Jiu Hui and Zhi You obediently finished the medicine that Yu Jing had personally brewed. Zhi You took out some candied fruit from his sleeve and fed it to Jiu Hui, whose tightly furrowed brows gradually relaxed.
“Now that this matter is settled, what are your plans for the future?” Yu Jing asked after a moment of silence.
“In the future, we must of course cultivate diligently, and together with Zhi You and our senior brothers and sisters, carry forward the unyielding spirit of our Wangshu Pavilion!” Jiu Hui nudged Zhi You’s waist with her elbow: “Right, Zhi You?”
“Yes!” Zhi You nodded with a blush on his face.
His little Senior Sister mentioned him separately, and didn’t put him together with the Senior Brothers and Sisters. He was so happy!
“Are you guys still staying?”
“Master wants to kick us out?!” Jiu Hui’s eyes widened!
“No,” Yu Jing smiled, “As long as you’re willing, Wangshu Pavilion will always be your home.”
“Mm-hmm.” Jiu Hui hugged Yu Jing’s arm and said coquettishly, “Master is the best master in the world.”
“Don’t act spoiled.” Yu Jing pressed her fingertip against Jiu Hui’s forehead and pushed her head back a little. “If you break the bowl, I’ll deduct your pocket money.”
“Oh.” Jiu Hui obediently retracted her hand. Yu Jing said with a faint smile, “I know you have other things to attend to. Go and come back soon. I’ll wait for you in Wangshu Pavilion.”
“Master, don’t worry, we’ll definitely come back as soon as possible!” Jiu Hui held Zhi You’s hand tightly and jumped off the flying boat, flying away into the distance.
Watching the two figures depart, Yu Jing revealed a gentle smile.
She had overthought it. These two children were fated to be with their Wangshu Pavilion.
“Does it still hurt?” Jiu Hui let go of Zhi You’s hand when they reached a secluded spot and used her spiritual power to examine him. “Are there any areas of discomfort after fusing your heart back into your body?”
“It doesn’t hurt anymore.” Zhi You didn’t want to let go of Jiu Hui’s hand, so he took her hand again. “I’m very happy now.”
“Of course you’re happy.”
A formless, dense fog appeared behind them, enveloping them in a mist.
Jiu Hui’s face was devoid of surprise as she gazed at the blinding whiteness around her, as if she had anticipated that this wisp of divine consciousness, which had once possessed Crooked-Mouth Liu while hiding in the mortal realm, would come looking for her.
If hatred could be counted, she would have had the highest count.
She held Zhi You’s hand and asked, “You were able to avoid the Heavenly Dao and preserve this wisp of remnant consciousness. Are you that divine… god?”
The two words “divine” and “god” were filled with thick sarcasm.
“Shut up!”
“You’ve been hiding from the Heavenly Dao and now you come to me to silence me?” Jiu Hui sneered. “Unfortunately, I was born a rebel and I’m afraid I can’t grant your wish.”
“You little yao, how dare you be so disrespectful!”
“If you’re so powerful, Divine Lord, why do you need to hide behind this thick fog? Are you afraid we’ll destroy your last shred of divine consciousness?” Jiu Hui held Zhi You’s hand in one hand and gripped the Nushen Whip tightly in the other. “I’ve never seen such a useless and cowardly god.”
“If not for you, how could I have been punished by the Heavenly Dao?” From within the blinding white mist came a voice filled with resentment and unwillingness. “You ruined my plan and hid the fire feather, causing me to lose my divine body. How can I allow you to live in this world?”
Upon hearing this, Zhi You’s eyes turned icy as he gazed towards a certain spot in the mist.
Hearing such an accusation, Jiu Hui was somewhat disappointed. It turned out that after losing the status of a god, this thing that had harmed countless living beings was nothing more than this.
“You’re right, I did it on purpose.” Jiu Hui chuckled. “If I hadn’t made a big show of having the yaos destroy the evil yao’s tombs, how could I have provoked you, the high and mighty one, to punish us without hesitation? If I hadn’t hidden that piece of fire feather well, how would the Heavenly Dao have known that you had descended to the mortal realm without permission?”
“You made a mistake, and the Heavenly Dao punished you. We are the most innocent victims.” Jiu Hui retorted, “You came to the mortal realm to transcend your tribulation. That is your destiny. But because of a moment of anger, you killed so many people. You are not the god in our hearts, but a hideous devil.”
“Who says that gods must show mercy to the world?” The thick fog sneered with disdain. “That’s nothing more than the wishful thinking of useless humans.”
“Who says that mortal beings must let the gods decide their life and death?” Jiu Hui retorted sarcastically. “That’s just the wishful thinking of useless gods.”
“If you hadn’t changed fate, the mortal realm would have been destroyed by the curse of the gods long ago. You should have been the Immortal Tree, and you should have been mortal enemies with the Ten Great Sects…”
“I said it long ago, there is nothing that is supposed to happen in this world! It is not me who changes fate, but the countless living beings themselves.” Seeing that this divine consciousness was so unreasonable, Jiu Hui felt that it might only have the arrogance of being high and mighty, and it did not even have the most basic rationality.
“When I was most vulnerable to death, Fuguang painstakingly nurtured my sapling. When I was young and ignorant, the people of Nushen City taught me the meaning of acceptance and kindness. As I grew, my elders taught me to distinguish right from wrong. When I became an adult, my master and my fellow disciples showed me the true meaning of camaraderie.”
“They made me who I am today, and saved themselves.”
“Are these worthless things worth you giving up your Gan tree body, giving up your path to ascension, and even turning the Gan tree spirit into the vitality of the world, just to revive those flowers, plants, and trees?”
This wisp of divine consciousness didn’t understand what use these ant-like things could possibly have.
“But it was these things that you claim are worthless that awakened the Heavenly Dao, causing your divine body to perish and your soul to dissipate, leaving only this wisp of divine consciousness that has descended to the mortal realm to survive.” Jiu Hui gave Zhi You a meaningful look. “Even the Heavenly Dao acknowledges their existence. Who are you to question it?”
“How dare you humiliate me… ah!”
Suddenly, the thick fog let out a miserable cry. It looked at its feeble divine consciousness that had been cleaved into two strands by a sword, as well as the whip tied around its body. “Were you deliberately provoking me just now?”
“Finally reacted.” Jiu Hui looked at this gray mass with eyes full of disdain. “Gray and dull, it’s so ordinary that it’s hard to notice.”
Once accustomed to arrogance, one could no longer bear to be humble and submissive.
His lofty status gave him the audacity to act recklessly, but it could not give him the precious heart of compassion.
“I am a god… a god from the heavens!” The gray mist struggled in anger.
“Here you go.” Jiu Hui handed the gray mist to Zhi You. Zhi You reached out and lightly touched it. The gray mist only had time to let out half a scream before its last shred of regret completely vanished into the world.
It had caused a great commotion in the mortal world, but when it dissipated, it was without a sound.
Jiu Hui: “…”
She had forgotten that the true form of Zhi You, with his complete body, had an almost terrifying amount of merit.
Zhi You looked innocent. “I said I didn’t do it on purpose. Do you believe me?”
“I believe you. I don’t blame you. The resentful spirit that lost its divine body and was despised and hated by the world, in your hands, an Immortal Lord with boundless merit, is no different from a wisp of evil energy. Does this count as avenging your loved ones with your own hands?” Jiu Hui thought of Zhi You’s mother, who had also died in the plague five hundred years ago.
Zhi You reached out and tightly clasped Jiu Hui’s fingers. “Thank you, little Senior Sister.”
“What are you thanking me for?” Jiu Hui looked down at their intertwined fingers and asked with a smile, “Are you thanking me for showing you the way back then, or for teaching you how to avoid getting taken advantage of?”
“Thank you for appearing in my life.” As the thick fog dispersed, several magpies chattered and frolicked on the branches. The joy in his heart was even more lively than the magpies on the branches.
Jiu Hui shook the hands they held together: “No need to thank me.”
“It’s needed.”
“What is the gift of thanks then?”
“Myself.” Zhi You blushed, even the tips of his ears seemed to be smoking. “I’ll be your zhuixu, your lackey, for the rest of my life.”
Jiu Hui sighed as she looked at Zhi You, whose face was flushed red. “Next time, don’t follow Eldest Senior Brother to learn such love words.”
Also, lackey was really not a good thing to say.
“Not love words, but heartfelt words.” Zhi You looked at her with longing eyes.
“Let’s go.”
“Where are you going?”
“Taking this future zhuixu home, back home to Shanghuang Village.”
-—–
Shanghuang Village.
Grandpa Long grimaced as he healed his wounds while the other elders pointed fingers at him.
“How impressive, returning with a body full of lightning!”
“I’ve told you countless times that we’ve lived for tens of thousands of years, and our destinies are rather special. If we go out and get involved in cause and effect, it’ll easily bring trouble to the yao clan!”
“You went there, but didn’t show up earlier. You made Little Garlic Chive use up too much spiritual power. What’s the use of having you?”
“Enough with the chatter!” Uncle Wu walked out of the courtyard and flipped the fluffy, soft quilt over. “The Immortal Cauldrons have been destroyed, and Little Jiu is still in her garlic chive form, but the trees and flowers that were crushed to death or injured have come back to life overnight. I want to go to Wangshu Pavilion and take a look.”
“It’s great to be an ordinary garlic chive.” Grandpa Long poured half a bottle of healing elixir on his arm. “Even if she’s a chive, our little Jiu Hui is the most formidable chive.”
“Grandpas, Grandmas, Uncles, Aunts, Zhi You and I are back!”
Grandpa Long quickly put on his outer robe to cover his injury and followed the other elders out of the courtyard in a hurry, looking towards the village entrance.
Under the golden sunlight, Jiu Hui held Zhi You’s hand and ran towards them.
“We’re back!”
“It’s good to be back.”
carp: extras tomorrow! Remember to go support the original work 在下平平无奇 on JJWXC (here’s how ).