ATAVID CH59

Yellow Spring City.

In the long-vacant residence, Wei Xun slowly opened his eyes on the pear-wood bed frame.

What met his sight was a gray, gloomy ceiling and unfamiliar, dilapidated rafters. The room was simple and chilly; the window was half-open, letting in a thin, almost non-existent scent of grass and trees. There were no apricot blossoms, no ancient locust trees, and not a single trace of the warmth that belonged to Jiang Qunyu.

He sat up expressionlessly, his eyes empty and devoid of ripples, as if the heart-splitting, bone-shattering pain from just moments ago had been nothing more than a vivid nightmare.

Yet, the lingering, dull ache in his chest reminded him with absolute clarity—it had all actually happened.

He stepped onto the wooden floor barefooted. The boards were cold, offering no warmth to his soles.

The room was small; he could see every corner at a glance.

Empty.

The bed was empty, the space by the table was empty, and beneath the window was empty.

Wei Xun stood in the center of the room, motionless.

The white silk bandage that had covered his eyes had vanished without a trace, and his eyes, blind for so long, finally saw the light again.

He slowly raised his hand, looking at his clean fingertips, which didn’t have a single drop of blood on them.

Everything was exactly as it had been before he had completely lost consciousness.

The only difference was that Jiang Qunyu had disappeared from his world once more.

And those voices that had been coiled in the depths of his heart, chattering and enticing him for thousands of days and nights over the past few years, had suddenly fallen silent at this moment.

Absolute silence.

So quiet, there was nothing left but the sound of his own heartbeat.

Wei Xun lowered his gaze, his long lashes drooping like butterfly wings, masking all emotion in his eyes as he stood still as an ice sculpture that had lost its soul.

A long while later, he lightly probed his divine sense, feeling the endless surging of demonic energy within his body, and finally, a faint, subtle arc traced the corner of his lips.

Profound Void Realm, Third Stage.

His cultivation had deepened once more.

Then this time, he thought, how long must I wait before I can reunite with Jiang Qunyu?

“Mmm, your brother carried you through the desert for three days and three nights, you know. It’s fortunate you woke up, otherwise, it would’ve been a real shame for him.”

“Sigh… Mo Wudu and I tried to advise him back then. Rushing into someone else’s illusion is fraught with peril; it would’ve been better not to enter. But for the sake of saving you, he was headstrong and went anyway. You brothers truly have a deep bond.”

In a hazy state, Jiang Qunyu heard a cold, clear voice.

The youth seemed to chuckle softly: “My brother? Did he say he was my brother?”

“Isn’t he?” Liang Yun was stunned.

The youth said gloomily: “Naturally, he is.”

Liang Yun sighed again, softening his tone: “The departed is gone; please grieve in moderation.”

Wei Xun remained silent for a long time.

Only after a long while did he raise his eyelids, looking at Liang Yun with empty eyes, speaking word for word with a calmness that bordered on the obsessive: “He is not dead.”

Mo Wudu’s brows furrowed slightly. He kicked Liang Yun and shook his head lightly at him.

Liang Yun wanted to say more, wishing to persuade Wei Xun to let go, but ultimately decided not to provoke him further.

“Regardless, being able to meet after the ‘Yizhen Huangquan’ (One Pillow Yellow Spring) has dissipated is a stroke of fate.” Liang Yun looked at Wei Xun’s face—which was identical to Jiang Qunyu’s—and remembered Jiang Qunyu’s formerly vibrant, radiant smile, feeling a pang of regret in his heart.

Without realizing it, he felt a bit more pity and wanted to look after him more. “Mo Wudu and I are about to return to the Demon Realm. If Brother Xun doesn’t mind, why not travel with us? It’ll be easier to look out for one another on the road.”

The sky was as dark as ink, and the campfire crackled and jumped, casting flickering, warm yellow light onto Wei Xun’s pale side profile.

He did not refuse. Lowering his long lashes and turning his head away, he asked in a flat tone: “Have you two ever heard of Chaos Stone?”

“Chaos Stone?” Liang Yun shook his head. “Never heard of it.”

However, Mo Wudu, standing to the side, had a subtle change in expression: “Why are you asking about this object?”

Wei Xun looked back calmly and said casually: “Just curious, that’s all.”

Mo Wudu frowned, clearly not believing him.

Liang Yun, already itching with curiosity, immediately leaned in and glared at Mo Wudu through gritted teeth: “Stop keeping people in suspense! If you know, just say it!”

“…” Mo Wudu said: “The Chaos Stone is rumored to be a substance of chaos left over from the creation of the world. It can change its form at will. With just a small piece, it can grow into a body that perfectly fits a soul.”

“That truly is a miracle,” Liang Yun marveled. “If one had this, couldn’t they reshape their own body? If they ever met an enemy and were forced into a desperate situation, they could fake their death and escape. Mo Wudu, where can this thing be found? Once I return the object requested by Lady Suzaku to Cloud Palace City, you and I shall go together.”

Mo Wudu looked at him with an expression reserved for fools: “If you want it, others want it too. The Chaos Stone is in Cloud Palace City, and only the successive generations of Demon Lords can inherit it. If you want it, go fight for the position of Demon Lord first.”

Liang Yun’s face went wooden as he turned back: “…Then forget it. Do you have any idea what the situation is like in the city right now? The Four Great Guardians have been fighting for that position for years. Never mind the Demon Lord; even Lady Suzaku could take my life in ten moves. Am I tired of living? Why would I go fight for that wretched position?”

He paused, leaning toward Mo Wudu and clicking his tongue: “What a waste of such a good thing.”

Mo Wudu pushed him away and curled his lip: “Calling you stupid is truly no injustice. If you think this Chaos Stone is so useful, why didn’t the previous Demon Lords reshape their own bodies? If they had, that position wouldn’t have changed hands for thousands of years.”

Liang Yun heard this and marveled: “Mo Wudu, I told you that you should have fought for the position of the Four Great Guardians. You’re so clever.”

Mo Wudu really didn’t want to talk to him.

Wei Xun’s tone was calm as he said, seemingly inadvertently: “As far as I know, if one wants the reshaped body to be no different from an ordinary person, other things are also required.”

Mo Wudu felt Wei Xun was getting even stranger. He stared at Wei Xun for a while before saying: “Yes. And the required items are all rare in this world, dangerous and hard to find. For millions of years, no one has ever succeeded. Because of this, the so-called Chaos Stone has gradually become a useless trinket.”

He paused, his tone becoming more scrutinizing: “But these secrets are only known to high-level demons of the Four Great Guardians level and above. How did you know about them?”

Liang Yun added on the side: “Oh, forgot to mention, over a dozen years ago, Mo Wudu was originally the White Tiger among the Four Great Guardians.”

The two looked over.

Wei Xun smiled with a look that was neither quite a smile nor a frown, his green robes fluttering in the night wind. He curled his lips: “I simply saw it in the ‘Yizhen Huangquan’.”

Liang Yun suddenly realized: “That secret realm is truly strange; it has everything.”

Mo Wudu couldn’t tell if he believed it or not.

But ‘Yizhen Huangquan’ was an illusion born of fixation; catching glimpses of demonic secrets within it wasn’t entirely impossible.

Moreover, the ‘Yizhen Huangquan’ had already dissipated without a trace. Even if it still existed, it would be impossible to verify whether Wei Xun’s words were true or false.

“So that’s how it is.”

Although Mo Wudu couldn’t guess why Wei Xun was obsessed with asking about this, he hadn’t detected a shred of malice from him, so he revealed everything he knew.

After a moment of contemplation, he still couldn’t help but advise: “Wanting to reshape a body with the Chaos Stone isn’t something you can accomplish with that item alone. You would also need the Heart of the Divine Tree, the Nine Heavens Immortal Lotus, the heart blood of a Spirit Deer, and the Kunlun Soul-Leaving Jade.”

“Taking the Heart of the Divine Tree alone—one would have to wait for the beast tide that occurs every fifty years and venture deep into perilous territory; even then, there’s only a sliver of hope. Entering means a nine-in-ten chance of death. For millions of years, no one has ever collected them all, let alone succeeded.”

“So,” Mo Wudu raised his eyes, his gaze sweeping over Wei Xun cautiously, “a word of advice: don’t do it.”

Wei Xun lifted his eyes lightly, his expression as calm as if he had already anticipated such a result. He nodded faintly: “Many thanks.”

Seeing him like this, Mo Wudu knew he couldn’t be persuaded, so he simply shut his mouth and said no more.

Liang Yun, listening on the side, was still clicking his tongue in marvel, looking quite bothered: “So much trouble; I think I’ll pass. If it really comes to that point, I’ll just find any body and take it over; much easier.”

Mo Wudu’s face was wooden, and he shot him a cold glance, too lazy to comment on such heartless words.

A long while later, he looked at the youth, pale as a snow sculpture in the firelight, and a sliver of doubt rose in his heart for no reason.

The body he wants to reshape—is it for himself, or for someone else?

As the thought stirred, the name “Jiang Qunyu” floated up uncontrollably.

Only, if there is no soul, just piling up those dead things—what is the point of reshaping even the most perfect shell?

But the words reached his lips, and Mo Wudu swallowed them back.

He had already said everything that needed to be said.

As for what path to take, whether it was folly or delusion, life or death—it was ultimately Wei Xun’s own choice.

In the second half of the night, Liang Yun and Mo Wudu lay down to rest in their clothes.

Liang Yun watched Wei Xun, who remained sitting motionless by the campfire, and couldn’t help but lower his voice to mutter: “What a strange person. It’s been ten full days since ‘Yizhen Huangquan’ dissipated, and he hasn’t closed his eyes once. Isn’t he tired?”

Mo Wudu was silent for a moment. His gaze fell on Wei Xun’s lonely back as he said in a flat tone: “Perhaps the departed is gone, but the living are simply unwilling to let go easily.”

Hearing this, Liang Yun thought of Jiang Qunyu and sighed again. He said nothing more and gradually drifted into a dream.

…

…………

The sound, as if separated by a veil, gradually became clear. Jiang Qunyu’s head was still heavily muddled.

“Brother?” Before Jiang Qunyu had even woken up, a cold, clear voice sounded gloomily.

In the next instant, he was hoisted up. The familiar, cold, bloody scent rushed toward him, completely smeared onto his round ball of black mist.

Jiang Qunyu didn’t stand on ceremony, drinking the blood before his muddled brain felt a bit of relief.

He then twisted his body to turn his head and collided head-on with a pair of eyes as clear as glass, yet deep and bottomless.

Wei Xun was propping his head with one hand, while the other hand held him steadily in mid-air. A faint, inscrutable smile played on his lips as he said slowly: “Jiang Qunyu, you told them… you are my brother?”

Jiang Qunyu: “…”

He had just woken up and hadn’t figured out the situation, nor had he even asked how Wei Xun had gotten out of the illusion. He stared blankly in the direction of Wei Xun’s gaze, finally catching sight of Liang Yun and Mo Wudu.

His body stiffened imperceptibly for a second, but he quickly straightened his neck and huffed with righteous indignation: “I carried you through the desert for three days and three nights! What’s the harm in taking advantage of you a little?!”

Wei Xun remained gloomy and silent. After a long while, he let out a laugh of indeterminate meaning, his fingertips lightly stroking the soft body of the black mist ball.

He rolled his deep, black eyes, thinking to himself that it was fine; in any case, from here on out, he would always be able to get it back—with interest—bit by bit.

He placed the black mist ball in front of him. With a shift of his divine sense, he opened a bloody wound on his palm again and squeezed Jiang Qunyu toward it to feed him.

Jiang Qunyu had drunk his fill: “I don’t want any more!”

He refused repeatedly.

But before he could roll forward, he was snatched back by Wei Xun. With a sinister tone, the man curled his lips and smiled: “It is not for you to decide.”

Jiang Qunyu: “…”

Fuck!

The sixteen-year-old Wei Xun might be annoying, but he was a hell of a lot easier to talk to than the current one!

He cursed: “Bastard!”

“Mm.”

Wei Xun responded in a low voice, his hold not loosening in the slightest.

He pinched the black mist ball, forcing Jiang Qunyu to open his mouth, and expressionlessly pressed his bleeding fingertip into it.