Blade closed his eyes, silent.
After a moment, he shook his head.
"Enough. The past has nothing to do with her anymore."
"But anyone who dares to harm her…"
"There's no need to let them live."
"The image of old friends is already etched into my mind."
"Come. Let's go to the Scalegorge Waterscape."
"Elio's script begins there."
Blade lowered his gaze.
The shattered blade in his hand—Shatterspine Sword—still carried faint traces of blood.
If a Vidyadhara were present, they would immediately recognize whose blood it was.
In a forgotten corner of the Alchemy Commission, a Vidyadhara assassin lay headless among the flowerbeds.
No blood spilled.
It was as if the corpse had simply sunk into the soil.
"How dull… How boring."
"Let's go. Just like the script says."
The two figures vanished from the Alchemy Commission's domain.
Scalegorge Waterscape
Moonlit Ancient Sea · Vidyadhara Sanctum
Thousands of years ago, to suppress the growth of the Ambrosial Arbor, the Vidyadhara used this realm as a vessel—
Sealing the Arbor's roots beneath the ancient sea.
A Dragon Sovereign once guided the primal waters to drown the roots,
and from that day on, the Vidyadhara bore the duty of watching over the Arbor.
Now—
The Ambrosial Arbor was reviving once more.
And once again, the Vidyadhara sanctum stood at the heart of it.
Outsiders could not even approach this place.
Which made one truth painfully obvious:
The one who brought the Stellaron,
the one who incited chaos,
the one who awakened the Arbor—
Was not the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus.
It was the Vidyadhara themselves.
Blade had returned.
Dan Heng arrived on the Luofu—but Blade had come even earlier.
Add to that Jingliu, who returned alongside Luocha—
And Bailu, the reborn incarnation of Baiheng—
Seven hundred years later, the High-Cloud Quintet had reunited once more.
Yet they were no longer whole.
With Baiheng's death, the past was already irretrievable.
Xianzhou Luofu · Changlétian · Xuanye Avenue
Sleepless Earl Teahouse
The storyteller Xiyan snapped his folding fan shut and struck the clapper.
The audience instantly set down their teacups, eyes shining.
As the finest storyteller of the Sleepless Earl,
Xiyan could recount tales from the founding of the Xianzhou
to rumors among the outworlders—
Even the secrets of Aeons themselves.
Tonight's story, however, was special.
"Star Calendar 7300!"
"Abundance abominations invaded the Xianzhou!"
"The Emanator Shuhu, mara-blinded!"
"Dead stars gave birth to calamity—Cloud Knights rose as one!"
"This battle is known today as—
The War Against Shuhu!"
A foxian girl sat among the audience, idly tapping her fan.
This was the war of centuries past.
The key figures were not merely General Teng Xiao—
But the High-Cloud Quintet themselves:
Jing Yuan,
Jingliu,
Dan Feng,
the Nameless Baiheng,
and the master artisan Yingxing.
Shuhu descended with a vast host.
Dan Feng entered the battlefield personally.
Jingliu fought to protect him.
The battlefield drowned in Shuhu's flesh-blood hellscape.
Dan Feng lost control.
Baiheng detonated a black sun, charging in a suicidal assault—
Only then was Shuhu stopped.
Whether Shuhu truly died… remains uncertain.
"Tsk. Shuhu was foolish," the foxian girl scoffed softly.
"Chasing immortality, only to meet such an end."
"Defeated by a mere foxian?"
"And they call him an Emanator of Abundance?"
She popped a Luofu fruit into her mouth.
Sweet and tart.
Perfect when paired with Sleepless Earl tea.
Over the past few days, Phantylia had thoroughly mapped out the Luofu.
No wonder the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus expanded so quickly.
Who didn't crave immortality?
As for Shuhu—
Phantylia had long heard of him.
A monstrous tree with countless faces.
One branch could regrow flesh from bone.
One whisper could drain life from a Xianzhou body.
The girl who once witnessed Shuhu—
Now served as a Ten-Lords Judge.
Xueyi's original body had been devoured,
her soul bound to a puppet frame.
To the Xianzhou, Shuhu was a nightmare.
General Teng Xiao had plunged like a meteor, roaring as he charged.
Shuhu bloomed again like a flower—
golden branches binding the general as it mocked:
"Your flesh is as trivial as theirs."
"But perhaps your pain will amuse me."
Then every face on the tree spoke in unison—
"Teng Xiao. How do you plan to kill me this time?"
The general answered with his life.
Binding Shuhu in place,
allowing the Divine General's blade to pierce them both.
Even then—
Shuhu's death was never confirmed.
Fragments remained.
Sealed deep within the Shackling Prison,
never to be opened without the Marshal and the Ten Lords' consent.
"Abundance's fruit. Destruction's power."
"The Xianzhou… truly foolish."
Phantylia drained her tea, left behind a few 巡镝, and departed.
If she was to play Tingyun—
Then she would play her perfectly.
Changlétian Wharf
Leaving the Vidyadhara territory, Jingliu strode toward the Scalegorge Waterscape.
She knew.
If the past was to be settled—
Everyone would gather there.
The beginning.
And the end.
Yet—
At the Changlétian docks, a youth hovered midair atop a flying sword.
Waiting.
"Senior," the boy called out nervously.
"I am Yanqing."
"Disciple of General Jing Yuan."
"Student of the Nameless Evan."
"And… because Master Evan was bored—"
"—he asked me to come ask you for guidance."
"…Bored?"
"…Guidance?"
"Jing Yuan's disciple?"
Jingliu paused.
That boy who once couldn't even lift a sword—
had a disciple now?
As for Evan?
Didn't know him.
Didn't need to.
"Then show me your strength," Jingliu said calmly.
"Let me see what Jing Yuan has taught you."
She did not hold back.
Ice condensed in her hand—
A sword formed.
One casual slash toward Yanqing.
"Master Evan said—
the Tai-Xu Sword Heart must remain still like an ancient well!"
"If it shatters, then shatter it again and rebuild!"
"But—!"
"That's my grandmaster!"
"Master Evan, you're trying to kill me!"
The pressure descended like a mountain.
No weaker than Evan's.
Yanqing's grip on the Xuanyuan Sword nearly failed.
Sweat soaked his palms.
The hilt slipped.
So strong…
No wonder she was the Sword Champion.
Yanqing felt death itself pressing against him.
A single flash—
Before he could even raise his sword—
The blade rested at his brow.
"Gra—"
"Grand what?" Jingliu cut in coldly.
"You can't even hold your sword properly."
"This is what Jing Yuan taught you?"
Her sword intent exploded.
The sea behind the docks froze solid.
Yanqing: "..."
Divine Resonance—recited.
He vanished in a blur, barely blocking the strike.
Thank the heavens—
If not for weeks of training under Emanator-level pressure
and Evan's merciless refinement—
He would already be dead.
Yanqing wanted to kneel.
If Evan hadn't crushed him from day one—
He could never have survived this.
And he finally understood—
Evan had been training him.
Jingliu—
Was testing whether he deserved to live.
She had no intention of holding back.
Not even a little.
To read advanced Chapters, head over to p@treon:
patreon.com/nani_kaito