Chapter 19: Yuanying Stage

                                   

His spirit state was unstable—he couldn't get out of the Heavenly Sword Sect.

More importantly, when he walked out of the courtyard, he seemed to have lost all his courage for a moment. In the end, he used Xie Wushuang's body to go down the mountain in the night rain to the courtyard where Hua Xiangwan was staying.

The courtyard was brightly lit and full of people. He walked to the door of Hua Xiangwan's room and saw her trying on a wedding dress.

Many girls surrounded her, praising her beauty. She turned around in the mirror a few times, seemingly very satisfied.

The group laughed and chatted for a long time before they noticed him.

Ling Nan exclaimed in surprise, "Xie Daojun?"

Hearing Lingnan's voice, everyone looked over together.

Seeing this Daoist lord standing in the rain, everyone felt an inexplicable oppression and fell silent.

Hua Xiangwan was also stunned when she saw "Xie Wushuang," then she exclaimed in surprise, "You...... Why are you here?"

With Xie Wushuang's temperament, there must be something important if he was here.

Could it be that he was aware of her erasing his memory?

But her cultivation was already a step higher than Xie Wushuang's, and she was a law cultivator. When she cast a spell on Xie Wushuang to erase his memory, nothing should have gone wrong in theory.

Then what was Xie Wushuang doing here?

Hua Xiangwan thought it through a few times and didn't dare to speak rashly.

And Xie Changji didn't speak. He just looked quietly at Hua Xiangwan in her wedding dress.

He remembered how she wore her wedding dress when she married him.

At that time, she didn't look like she did now—she wasn't so gorgeous, and she wasn't so beautiful. But she had a pair of clear and gentle eyes, and her eyes were full of the twenty-three-year-old Xie Changji.

They were married in the wilderness, and her wedding dress was sewn by herself. It was far from being as complex and exquisite as it was today, but the moment he lifted her veil, he still felt a suffocating beauty.

Xie Changji's silence made Hua Xiangwan feel a little embarrassed. She glanced around and whispered, "You all go back to your rooms first."

Everyone knew the situation was wrong. They made no sound and dispersed quietly.

When there were no more people around, Hua Xiangwan looked at "Xie Wushuang," observed him, confirmed his situation, and asked hesitantly, "You...... What's wrong? Do you want to come in first? It's raining outside."

"She's not dead."

Xie Changji suddenly spoke. Hua Xiangwan couldn't understand and asked in confusion, "Who is not dead?"

"The person I've been waiting for."

Xie Changji looked at her, his voice hoarse. "I waited for her for many years. I thought she was dead, but she was alive."

Hua Xiangwan listened and reacted—he should be talking about the woman who had enchanted him in his dream.

Although there was some inexplicable reason why he came to her with such a thing, thinking that Xie Wushuang's temperament probably didn't afford him many friends, and he looked quite pitiful now, she pointed to the room with great compassion. "No wonder you're sad. Why don't you come in first, and I'll talk with you?"

"She didn't come to me." He didn't care about Hua Xiangwan's words at all. He just stared at her, as if he was venting something. "Over the years, she has been having a bad time. I have been waiting for her, but she has not come to me."

Hua Xiangwan understood—wasn't this similar to her own situation?

"That," she said to the other party, "a relationship has a beginning and an end. Don't force it too much. And you may not like her very much—maybe you're just unwilling to let go. Now that you know she's alive, you should calm down first. Maybe in two days, you'll find you've let go of this matter?"

"Why didn't she come?"

Xie Changji stared at Hua Xiangwan.

Hua Xiangwan took a while to react, then realized he was asking her about the girl's mentality. She thought for him and pondered, "I can't really say this either...... Maybe she doesn't like you, so it's useless to look for her. Or maybe she moved on and has a new life? Anyway, I think, if she didn't come to you, even if she's let go, then you should let go too. It's good for everyone."

"But she said she would like me for the rest of her life."

Xie Changji spoke persistently.

Hua Xiangwan laughed. "Who hasn't said such foolish things when they were young? Don't take this kind of thing too seriously. Many people say it, and then forget it."

She watched the other party quietly clenching his trembling fists, hesitated for a while, and cautiously suggested, "That... why don't you go to your master for advice?"

"Ask him......" Xie Changji's voice was very soft and sounded a little distant. "What for?"

"He has lived for more than two hundred years, and there should always be a few people he liked in his life, but he can still cultivate the heart-questioning sword to perfection," Hua Xiangwan laughed. "He should know how to control himself and not like someone."

Hearing this, Xie Changji couldn't help but laugh.

This smile made Hua Xiangwan feel a little guilty. She coughed lightly. "In short, sometimes, it is also a good thing for everyone to let go and start their own futures."

"Let go......" he muttered softly, slowly raised his head, and stared straight at Hua Xiangwan.

"You lied to me."

Such a Xie Changji made Hua Xiangwan a little scared. She denied it with a guilty conscience. "How did I deceive......"

"You have been to Yunlai."

Hua Xiangwan raised her head suddenly. Xie Changji stared into her eyes. "In the Spirit Illusion Realm—that was your memory. That was Yunlai Fengxia Town."

"You......"

Hua Xiangwan was a little speechless. She hadn't expected "Xie Wushuang" to remember.

He didn't forget—so why did he come to ask her these things?!

"The soul lock lamp is the treasure of the Hehuan Sect. It belongs only to you. And back then, Wanwan used it to seal the spirit."

Hearing the name "Wanwan," Hua Xiangwan's heart jumped.

And the other party ignored it, spoke extremely quickly, and continued. "The dream butterfly is the secret technique of Hehuan Palace. Only you know it. Xie Changji learned from you and used it to indulge in the illusion for two hundred years."

"You used to use a sword, and so did Wanwan."

"You said you liked someone—liked him so much that you could lose your life for him. The person you like, isn't it......"

Xie Changji's tone paused. After a long time, he spoke. "Xie Changji?"

Hua Xiangwan didn't speak. She looked at the other party in shock. After thoroughly digesting what the other party said, she calmed down, and her expression slowly settled.

The sound of rain dripped steadily. Hua Xiangwan thought about it and helplessly said, "Is that how you address your master and elders?"

Xie Changji stared at her. "Isn't it?"

Hua Xiangwan knew that Xie Wushuang must have come to her with ironclad evidence. There was no denying it, so she admitted calmly, "Yes."

She looked up at the night rain falling from the sky. "I liked that person back then—it was indeed your master, Xie Changji. Two hundred years ago, I came to Yunlai under the pseudonym Wanwan and became entangled with him. Your master didn't like me, so I was discouraged and left on my own. Now that two hundred years have passed, I have a grudge with him. You don't have to make more disputes."

Since it was him, not Xie Changji, he should not inform Xie Changji of this.

Hua Xiangwan thought, desperately thinking about how to salvage the situation.

Xie Changji listened to this. He restrained himself and didn't dare to make a sound.

He slowly moved his gaze to Hua Xiangwan's hand, and his voice trembled slightly. "You used to use a sword, and your swordsmanship was very good."

"I gave up."

"You were once extremely talented, and at the age of eighteen, you were ranked among the gods."

"It's all in the past." Hua Xiangwan chuckled. "If you talk too much, it's a joke."

"Hua Xiangwan," Xie Changji raised his eyes to look at her. "He is already the first person in the world. You are his wife, and he owes you a life."

You could have asked him for everything.

When Hua Xiangwan heard this, she couldn't help but chuckle.

"He owes me? No, he doesn't owe me anything."

Hua Xiangwan looked at the young man and explained the rights and wrongs of that year. "Sealing the spirit was the requirement of my master. It has nothing to do with him. When I intersected with him, he saved me, I returned the favor, and we never owed each other."

"Wanwan died for him."

"She wasn't, and even if she was, let her die in the past."

Hua Xiangwan quietly stared at "Xie Wushuang," so calm that it was chilling.

Looking at the young man's stubborn eyes, she emphasized, "Don't disturb your master, and don't disturb me. Tomorrow I will set a husband, the day after tomorrow I will marry Xiuwen, and in two days I will stay away from Yunlai. He will have nothing to do with me. You tell him—what are you going to accomplish?"

"He is the sword master who asks the heart. He is the first person in Yunlai. He can't go back to the West with me. But if you tell him that he got married back then and wants to sleep with others again, how embarrassing would that be? It's better that she died that night. In a few years, he will ascend to the Dao, and I will have a good relationship again. Wouldn't that be the best of both worlds?"

Xie Changji didn't speak. He just looked at her.

"Wushuang," Hua Xiangwan sighed. "Since I faked my death, my fate with him has been broken. Marriage cannot be forced. I have started over, and if he appears again, it will just be troublesome."

"Troublesome?"

Xie Changji muttered. He couldn't understand and looked at the person in front of him blankly. "But it's obvious...... You said you liked him first."

"I'm sorry."

Hua Xiangwan bowed her head. When these words were spoken, she inexplicably had an illusion of displacement, as if she and Xie Changji had switched positions from back then.

At that time, he was always saying sorry, but in fact, only saying sorry to that person really hurt.

Fortunately, the person in front of her was not Xie Changji, and she could speak more freely.

She looked at "Xie Wushuang" helplessly and persuaded softly, "I did say I liked him, but now, I really don't like him anymore."

Xie Changji looked up in a daze, looking at Hua Xiangwan in disbelief. Hua Xiangwan felt a little embarrassed under his gaze, thought about it, and turned to go inside.

She turned away for a moment, and Xie Changji suddenly stepped forward to grab her.

His hands were cold, with the dampness of the night rain.

He trembled and stared at her and asked, "What did he do wrong?"

What did you do wrong?

She said to let go, said she didn't love him.

She said she would like him all her life. She was glad that he was still there before she died. Fortunately, he didn't like her, so he didn't have to suffer for her death.

She was thinking about him until her death. How could it be that in two hundred years......

Only two hundred years ago......

When they meet again, they don't even recognize each other?

When Hua Xiangwan heard this, she was also a little dazed for a while.

She thought for a long time and smiled bitterly. "He is not wrong about anything. If you must say that there is something wrong between me and him, probably only," Hua Xiangwan paused, then said slowly, "when I liked him back then, he didn't like me."

Xie Changji was stunned.

"But in fact, this is not wrong," Hua Xiangwan quickly adjusted her tone, quite relaxed. "The heart-questioning sword sees the way of heaven with a human body, and there is no attachment in the heart. He was a descendant of the heart-questioning sword, and the world of life and death was in jeopardy. He could not abandon the path and recultivate for me, so he could not love me deeply. I didn't figure it out myself—I thought he was just an ordinary disciple of the Heavenly Sword Sect, so I struggled with him."

"But fortunately, he didn't like me," Hua Xiangwan laughed. "Now that he has completed his heart-questioning sword, I think he must only feel guilty. As a disciple, you should understand."

"Didn't like...... How do you know that he didn't like you?"

Xie Changji murmured.

Hua Xiangwan raised her eyes and looked at him firmly. "If you don't believe it, you can go back and ask him."

"From the past, to the present—does he dare to say a word of liking to me?"

Xie Changji was speechless.

He stared blankly at the woman in front of him. Countless times flashed through his mind, even the last time she was asking him—

"Xie Changji, do you like me?"

When Hua Xiangwan saw that he had calmed down, she took his hand away and persuaded him, "Go back. This is not what your juniors should think. Just don't know anything."

As she spoke, she turned inside.

Xie Changji watched the woman in the wedding dress disappear in front of him.

After a long time, the pain caused by the instability of his soul made him wake up slightly. He used the remaining reason to control himself to turn around, and after settling Xie Wushuang's body, he slowly returned to the realm of life and death.

Kun Xuzi had long been waiting anxiously in the realm of life and death.

Seeing Xie Changji come back safely, he hurriedly greeted him, quite excited.

"You kid scared people to death, but fortunately you came back." Saying that, Kun Xuzi raised his hand and held his pulse. "The aura is stable. Fortunately, it's okay."

Saying that, Kun Xuzi remembered, looked up at him, and hesitated. "Did you get the result you wanted?"

Xie Changji didn't speak. He withdrew his hand from Kun Xuzi's grasp and slowly walked towards the body sitting on the edge of the cliff.

Kun Xuzi looked at him blankly. He walked to the edge of the cliff and sat down on his body. His spirit and flesh blended into one, and then he looked at the heavy snow in Cangshan without saying a word.

Kun Xuzi scratched his head, not very clear. "What are you young people doing......"

"The heart-questioning sword sees the way of heaven with a human body, and there is no attachment in the heart."

Xie Changji turned his back to Kun Xuzi and murmured, "She said that Xie Changji's heart-questioning sword achieved great perfection of the tribulation, close to the way of heaven, with no love or hatred."

"Who?"

Kun Xuzi subconsciously asked in return, then reacted—it should be Hua Xiangwan.

He didn't dare to say more for a while, so he looked at Xie Changji sitting not far away.

He looked at the deep cave in front of the cliff, which had been completely dried up, with a calm expression, saying his own words to himself.

"I've always pursued this state."

"Changji......"

Kun Xuzi walked behind Xie Changji apprehensively, wanting to say something, but he didn't know what to say.

"In the other world, I killed demons and dug out their internal organs, and while trying to find her traces, I didn't dare to find them."

"This...... I haven't heard you say this."

Kun Xuzi laughed awkwardly. "It's all over......"

"A heartless pill every day, and then move forward. I don't know the way forward, I don't know the way back."

When these words were said, Kun Xuzi was stunned.

He never thought that Xie Changji had been taking the Heartless Pill.

One pill was enough for ordinary people to forget a person, but he took one pill a day......

He couldn't speak, so he could only listen quietly, accompanying Xie Changji to watch the snow fall.

He said a lot, talking about the girl back then. He spoke endlessly.

Meeting at Fengxia Town, and since then traveling together.

He was ambushed by the western border and became husband and wife in a cave.

Until the end, his voice was a little distant.

"I have dreamed countless times that she asked me if I liked her. She asked this question from the beginning to the end, and I only said sorry."

"I didn't dare to say anything before she was alive, because I knew that I needed to inherit the heart-questioning sword to guard the boundary of life and death. It was not easy for the sect to cultivate me. If I abandoned the sword, who would guard it?"

"I didn't dare to say anything after she died, because if I fell in love, and the person was gone, how could I bear it? I could only cultivate the way of heaven to cut off mortal feelings."

"Why is the heart-questioning sword perfect?" Xie Changji lowered his head, hunched his body slightly, and laughed as if crying. "Just because if you don't cultivate a sword, what is the way?"

When she was alive, he didn't dare to say that he liked her.

Because when she came, the barrier of the realm of life and death would be broken, and he was the only disciple who could inherit the heart-questioning sword at that time.

If he only liked her a little bit, it would not affect the pursuit of the way of heaven and the fair judgment of all things—then maybe he would dare to admit this love.

But when he first realized that he wanted to take her back to the realm of life and death;

He wanted to wait for the boundary between life and death to settle and go down the mountain after the next heir arrived;

He wanted to be like an ordinary disciple, take her to the Heavenly Sword Sect, meet the elders, and follow her back to her hometown.

At that time, he vaguely understood that he couldn't recognize this love.

The Dao heart was broken, and the Heart Sword had no inheritance. Neither he nor the Heavenly Sword Sect could afford this result.

Later, he finally had the ability, but she was already dead. So day and night, he didn't even dare to admit that he "liked" her.

The Great Perfection of the Heart-Questioning Sword was not because it was almost unattached, but because it was so obsessed that it didn't even dare to admit it.

Because the person who should be the object of paranoia was no longer there.

"Long...... Changji, I still have the Heartless Pill here. You can take it first."

This was the first time Xie Changji had said so much. Kun Xuzi listened, feeling sour in his heart. He couldn't help it, so he could only take out the elixir in embarrassment and hand it to the young man in front of him.

Xie Changji had taken this pill for two hundred years, but this time, he didn't take it.

Seeing that he was not moving, Kun Xuzi raised his eyes to look at him.

He saw Xie Changji raising his head slightly, looking at the golden sword above his head.

"But she's still alive, and she's asking me again."

Xie Changji closed his eyes gently.

"Uncle," Xie Changji's voice was very soft, as if he was a traveler who had walked thousands of miles, murmuring his last words before falling. "The heart-questioning sword—I have nowhere to go."

As he spoke, light particles spread out from Xie Changji.

Kun Xuzi was stunned, then realized what Xie Changji was doing and exclaimed, "Changji! No!"

However, Xie Changji calmly closed his eyes. His Dao heart still shattered, and his cultivation turned into spiritual energy all over the sky, scattering all the way.

The black hair instantly turned gray, and the flesh and blood turned into dry bones in an instant.

The two hundred years of delay seemed to have suddenly returned to this person in a vengeful manner, as if his life was over and he was at a dead end.

Kun Xuzi hurriedly raised his hand to lay down a barrier to isolate the movement from the surroundings and raised his hand to point at the acupoint behind Xie Changji to guide him to keep his meridians running normally.

"Changji! Don't be foolish! You've made it this far! You can ascend in one step. What can't you see through?!"

Kun Xuzi spoke excitedly.

However, Xie Changji closed his eyes and felt a sense of ease that he had never felt in his life.

He felt like he was back in the year he was eighteen, walking on a country road, and a girl in white clothes with a red rope tying her hair came from behind and gently shook his hand.

The girl had a sword callus in her hand, which was a little cold but extremely soft.

He was shocked and heard the other party acting coquettishly, "Xie Daojun, I can't see the way. You pull me."

He kept the rules and pulled her away, then handed his sword to her.

And this time, he turned his hand back and held hers gently.

They walked on the country trail for a long time, for a long time.

Then back to that night, they were besieged by masters together, and someone wanted to kill her. He blocked a sword for her and was seriously injured.

She fled all the way with him on her back and finally reached a cave, where she guarded him, watching him bleed profusely, panicking.

He was injured in the golden elixir, and his spiritual power could not function. After her battle, she was also at the end of her strength.

It was on that rainy night that she leaned against his chest and her voice was very soft. "Xie Changji, let's get married."

Countless times he recalled it, he would avoid this affair.

He pretended not to know at the time.

But in fact, deep down, he clearly knew that when she kissed his lips, his heart throbbed and longed.

He took the initiative to hug her slender waist and entangle himself with her.

It was the most indulgent beauty he had ever had in his life.

Because it was too intoxicating to look back on. He woke up the next day and left in a hurry.

That night, she asked over and over again, Xie Changji, do you like me?

He never gave an answer.

And this time, he finally reached out.

Hugged her, possessed her, kissed her, and told her the answer he never dared to admit—

I like you.

Eternal beyond the great desolation.

Longer than the ages.

Hua Xiangwan.

The name appeared in an instant, and all memories became blurred.

A figure clearly appeared in front of his eyes.

The other party stood there. She was wearing a wedding dress, her posture extraordinary. Behind her was the Hehuan Palace covered with blood, broken flags and broken swords.

At that moment, he suddenly felt a great desire and stretched out his hand towards her.

He should be there.

Two hundred years ago, now, in the future.

He must be by her side.

He was wrong.

He shouldn't let her stay alone in front of Hehuan Palace and say goodbye to her relatives;

She should not be allowed to walk through these two hundred years alone, alone with the lamp;

He shouldn't have let her ruin her sword path;

She shouldn't be bullied.

A huge desire filled all his life, and the persistence that was always suppressed surged up.

The moment the obsession was determined, his body completely lost its life.

Kun Xuzi felt that the operation of spiritual power suddenly stopped. He froze and looked at the body in front of him that had become a withered old man, his eyes full of disbelief.

However, after only a moment of panic, he felt that the spiritual energy around him gathered. The thunderclouds in the sky assembled, and then he only heard a thunderous sound. The spiritual energy was like a dragon crashing down towards the person who was no longer alive!

Kun Xuzi suddenly opened his eyes wide. The majestic spiritual power sent him flying violently.

He rolled to the ground, vomited out a mouthful of blood, and suddenly someone behind him supported him and said anxiously, "What's wrong?"

Before Kun Xuzi could speak, Bai Yingmei, the sixth peak master next to him, exclaimed, "Changji, this is...... Breaking the heart and changing the path?!"

Everyone raised their eyes in shock and looked at the young man in the radiance not far away.

Breaking the heart and changing the path—this was only a matter of speculation in ancient books, and there had never been a real person recorded.

The so-called Dao heart was the purpose of cultivating the Dao. Below the Yuanying stage, the cultivation base, spiritual root, and spiritual consciousness determined the upper limit of a monk. But above the Yuanying stage, whether the Dao heart was firm or not was the key to whether they could ascend in the end.

For a top monk like Xie Changji, who had reached the tribulation period and was close to ascending, the Dao heart was the most important existence.

When the heart of the Dao was flawed, it was rare to ascend.

When the heart of the Dao was broken, the cultivation would be completely scattered, and the person would turn to ashes.

There was only one situation that allowed the monk to continue his life after the Dao heart was broken—and even his cultivation would not fall.

That was when there was more than one path in his way.

When one of the Dao hearts dissipated, the other belief was firm enough—firm enough to support all of his current cultivation.

But throughout the ages, it had been extremely rare for a Dao heart to cultivate the Dao, let alone two obsessions?

Everyone looked at the almost miraculous situation in front of them in a daze, full of shock.

Looking at the person in the light, it seemed that they were re-injected with life. Their withered hair reversed into youthful black, and their flesh and blood quickly filled up, returning to the most handsome face in their early twenties.

Seeing the thunder gathering at a high place, a golden light lit up on his body, and the surrounding coercion climbed up layer by layer.

Qi training, foundation building, golden elixir, Yuanying, transformation of gods, and crossing the tribulation!

The moment he reached the highest realm, the thunder crashed down with the light.

Su Luoming's face changed dramatically, and he roared, "Form a barrier! Formation! It's a thunder tribulation! The thunder tribulation of the tribulation period!"

---

When the first thunder shook the sky, the area within ten miles of the Heavenly Sword Sect was shaken.

Hua Xiangwan sat in front of the bronze mirror, and her whole person was shocked.

Then she heard Lingnan rush in and say a little uneasily, "Young Master, there seems to be something wrong with the Heavenly Sword Sect."

"What's wrong?"

Hua Xiangwan frowned. Lingnan raised her finger in the direction of the Heavenly Sword Sect and said excitedly, "What a big thunder!"

Hearing this, Hua Xiangwan hurriedly got up and walked to the window. She saw the direction of the realm of life and death—thunderclouds gathered, and the entire realm of life and death was shrouded in thunder and lightning.

Fortunately, after the first thunder, the Heavenly Sword Sect had already arranged the barrier. At this moment, one could only see lightning and thunder from a distance, but it was not as frightening as just now.

"Who is this tribulation for?"

The people of Hehuan Palace came over one after another, standing in the corridor and looking around. Lingnan thought for a while, turned her head to look at Hua Xiangwan. "It won't be Qingheng Shangjun, right?!"

Such a big thunder tribulation—in everyone's understanding, it seemed that there was only Qingheng Shangjun.

Hearing this name, Hua Xiangwan was a little stunned. She slowed down for a moment and suddenly reacted.

Xie Changji was surviving the tribulation?!

If he got through the tribulation, he would ascend after the tribulation and leave this small world, and they would never have to see each other again.

So what else was she worried about?

She hadn't slept all night before, just because she was worried that Xie Wushuang would go to Xie Changji to confess her identity.

Xie Wushuang, that child—she didn't know what he ate to grow up. She couldn't erase his memory, and he guessed her identity.

Listening to his tone, he knew that she and Xie Changji had so many things between them. This pair of master and apprentice probably still had some feelings. If Xie Wushuang decided to inform Xie Changji on the eve of the wedding, then this marriage would probably fall through immediately.

But now Xie Changji was going to survive the tribulation?

This was simply great news!

Hua Xiangwan raised a smile and suddenly came back to life. She hurriedly urged Lingnan, "Quick, ask Lingbei to see if the wedding is affected and whether it should be held as scheduled."

Lingnan looked at Hua Xiangwan, who was as happy as if she wanted to set off firecrackers, and was a little confused for a while. She was stunned for a moment before coming back to her senses and nodding. "Okay."

Saying that, Ling Nan hurriedly contacted Ling Bei. Ling Bei seemed to have just woken up. When Ling Nan asked, he quickly got up, checked the situation with the people on the side of the Heavenly Sword Sect, and then responded with confidence, "Don't worry. It is Qingheng Dao Jun who is ascending, and the head and the elders of the peaks rushed over. But Shen Daojun said that it would not affect us, and the wedding will proceed as scheduled."

These words made Ling Nan breathe a sigh of relief. "Okay, then you prepare well. We will be responsible for dressing up the young master beautifully and waiting for Shen Daojun."

"Got it."

Ling Bei sighed. "They left me alone in the mountains. When I woke up today, I was so busy I had a headache."

"Okay, I won't talk to you," Lingnan didn't bother to chat with him at this time. "I'll go report the news to the young master."

Saying that, Lingnan cut off contact and turned to look at Hua Xiangwan.

Hua Xiangwan had taken off her clothes at this time and was preparing to take a bath. She listened to the whole process next to her. When she saw Lingnan looking over, she didn't have to say anything more, so she nodded and said, "Okay, everything is as usual."

People are in good spirits when happy events occur. Confirming that Xie Changji was going to ascend, Hua Xiangwan finally felt the joy of marriage.

After she bathed and burned incense, she put on her wedding dress and painted her makeup. She was busy until early in the morning. The maid was still ironing her clothes with an incense burner with incense balls when she heard the noise of picking up the bride outside.

"Young master!" Lingnan ran in from outside and said happily, "Young Master, Shen Daojun is here! Quick," Lingnan grabbed the veil from the side, pulled it in front of Hua Xiangwan, and said happily, "Quickly cover the veil!"

Hua Xiangwan didn't speak. She took one last look at the thunder in the distance.

The thunder seemed to be even bigger today.

Ling Nan followed Hua Xiangwan's gaze and then noticed the silent heavenly thunder. She couldn't help but frown. "What does this tribulation cloud look like...... I don't know if Qingheng Shangjun can hold on."

"Don't worry about him."

Lingbei's voice came from outside. Everyone turned around together and saw a young man in a light pink robe waving a fan walking in. His face was full of festivity, and he smiled and saluted Hua Xiangwan. "Young Master."

"Lingbei?"

Hua Xiangwan raised her eyebrows, as if asking why he was here.

Lingbei didn't need her to speak. He knew her question and explained, "Young master, Shen Daojun has already arrived at the door. I'll come over and take a look at the situation. If the young master is ready, we will help the young master out. As for you—"

Ling Bei turned his head and patted Ling Nan's head. "He is Lord Qingheng, and he will definitely ascend to the Dao. Don't talk nonsense."

"Aren't I worried about this......"

"Broken mouth!"

Ling Bei reprimanded Ling Nan and didn't let her say anything more unlucky.

When Hua Xiangwan heard Ling Bei's words, she was also a little more relaxed.

That was Xie Changji......

He had created countless miracles, each time allowing the unexpectedly powerful Xie Changji to emerge.

He hadn't died so many times in the past—how could something happen in a tribulation?

She laughed, bowed her head to Lingnan, and ordered her, "Put the veil on."

"Okay!"

With Lingnan's words, she quickly raised the veil and covered Hua Xiangwan with it.

For a moment, red covered everything in front of her.

The cultivator's consciousness could investigate the surroundings, but this veil was specially made. Even for Hua Xiangwan, she couldn't check the surroundings. She could only be like an ordinary bride, supported by others, listening to the joy outside. Then the firecrackers sounded, the door "creaked" open, and in the blessing singing and shouting, Lingnan helped her walk forward on the red carpet.

Walking to the door, she was handed a piece of red silk. Someone led her in front. Petals fell down on both sides. She walked down the steps, led by the other end of the red silk to the sedan chair. Then someone lifted the curtain for her, and Ling Nan helped her step into the sedan chair.

"The qin and se are in harmony, the phoenix and the phoenix are harmonious, lift the sedan chair—"

The elder sang and shouted next to her. Then Hua Xiangwan felt the sedan chair shake and begin to bump forward.

This was not the first time she had been married.

But this was indeed the first time she had sat in a sedan chair, listened to so many blessings, and married someone after so much red tape.

She used to hate these things. She didn't know why, but today she was blessed like this, listening to the joy. She suddenly felt that such a complicated marriage seemed to be very good.

---

When Hua Xiangwan's sedan chair went all the way to the Heavenly Sword Sect, in the realm of life and death, the thunder became more and more powerful.

The Seven Peak Masters of the Heavenly Sword Sect gathered together, nervously looking at the young man who was blown into flesh and blood in the thunder.

The thunder had already split the magic weapons that everyone sacrificed to resist the thunder tribulation. They hit the young man one by one, and none of the young man's body was intact, but he was always alive.

"There is only half a step left, and he can get a glimpse of the way of heaven." Su Luoming frowned. "Why did it...... suddenly?"

"It's not sudden......" Kun Xuzi shook his head painfully. "I was wrong. I should have noticed...... He hadn't really understood it in the past two hundred years, and he couldn't hold on for a long time. I should have known......"

"Then he......" Bai Meiying was full of puzzlement. "How did he cultivate the heart-questioning sword to overcome the tribulation?"

"A heartless pill every day," Kun Xuzi said hoarsely. "Two hundred years of self-deception. His cultivation was unhindered, his sword path was extraordinary. Only this Dao heart...... It all depended on the elixir. His master died, and the girl Wanwan also died. He didn't dare to face it for so many years, so he forcibly practiced the heart-questioning sword, just hoping that he would not be so painful. So as early as twenty years ago, he was already unstable and going crazy......"

"Didn't you say such a big thing earlier?!" Xiao Wenshan shouted angrily when he heard this.

Kun Xuzi raised his hand to cover his forehead. "Even if I said it, so what? He has no way. Do you have any other way but to lock him up?"

These words silenced everyone. Xie Changji was already the strongest person of the Heavenly Sword Sect. If he couldn't do it, what could others do?

Su Luoming thought for a while, sighed, and raised his eyes to look ahead. "The matter has come to this point. The most important thing is the present."

Saying that, he looked at Bai Meiying next to him. "How could there be such a big thunder tribulation with this heart-breaking turn?"

Hearing the question, Bai Meiying sighed, with a little pity in her eyes. "It is not easy to break your heart and change your path. How can the way of heaven allow you to give up when you say you want to give up? The second time crossing the tribulation, the difficulty is even more than before. Whether it is dead or alive depends on Changji himself."

These words made everyone's hearts extremely heavy. They only saw that the thunder was getting more and more ruthless, and the young man in the thunder was getting weaker and weaker.

Seeing that this person's soul was unstable, Bai Yingmei couldn't help but have red eyes, and her voice was slightly hoarse. "He may not be able to hold on."

"No, I'm going to help him......"

When Kun Xuzi heard this, he was about to move forward. Su Luoming grabbed him and said excitedly, "If you go over, the thunder tribulation will be more than this!"

The thunder tribulation could only be carried by oneself. If someone replaced it, the way of heaven would send double the thunder tribulation as punishment.

Kun Xuzi froze. He looked at the person in the thunder, and slowly his eyes turned red.

Everyone was speechless for a while. Xie Changji was brought up by Kun Xuzi with one hand. Their feelings were extraordinary. Now seeing this child come to this point, they couldn't stand it anymore, let alone Kun Xuzi?

Su Luoming pulled Kun Xuzi and couldn't help but sigh. He patted Kun Xuzi on the shoulder. "Senior brother, accept this loss."

Kun Xuzi didn't speak. He heard the thunder rumbling. He raised his head and saw the last thunder tribulation condensing in the clouds. Xie Changji on the ground had almost lost consciousness.

He also vaguely sensed that his life was over. He lay on the ground, looking at the black soil split by thunder and lightning.

There were few such colors in the realm of life and death. It was always white and cold.

However, he didn't like black either. He didn't know when it started, but he liked the vibrant color.

He liked bright red, he liked peach blossom pink. Those were her colors.

She said back then that the green pine of the Heavenly Sword Sect was too old-fashioned. If she planted a mountain full of peach blossoms, she would be willing to take a few more looks.

So he moved all the green pines and planted peach blossoms for her.

The peach blossoms should bloom now.

He thought, hearing joy and celebration coming from the distance. The other party was drumming and beating—so lively.

He lay on the ground, feeling that the blood seemed to run dry, and a peach blossom was swept away by the wind from nowhere and fell gently to the ground.

It was at that moment that the last thunder blasted down!

The thunder smashed into the ground, making an earth-shattering noise.

The dust and commotion rose in an instant, and everyone was forced to retreat dozens of feet by the huge waves.

The severe pain fell on his body. Xie Changji used all his strength, but he just trembled and stretched out his hand, holding the peach blossom that shouldn't have appeared.

Hua Xiangwan.

He recited the name silently in his heart.

Holding the peach blossom tightly in the last thunder.

The thunder overwhelmed this person. His flesh and blood were scattered, and his bones were scorched black.

Between the bloody black bone fingers, only the peach blossom was always intact.

"Changji!"

Kun Xuzi couldn't see the situation inside. He knelt on the ground and howled.

The thunder came one after another. After an unknown amount of time, the thunder finally stopped.

A huge deep pit was struck by this thunder tribulation on the ground. The dust was everywhere, and everyone stared blankly at the location in the center of the thunder tribulation that was completely covered by dust.

After a while, a glow gently broke through the clouds and fell above the deep pit. Then the spiritual rain suddenly fell, sprinkling the entire realm of life and death.

Kun Xuzi was the first to react. He staggered up from the ground and hurriedly rushed towards the middle. "Changji! Changji!"

However, halfway through, he froze.

The dust slowly fell, and a young figure appeared in the middle.

He came out of the depths of the dust, gradually revealing his silhouette, his appearance.

The light blue robe on his body was tattered. His hair was only tied with a red rope that had faded and whitened a little. Behind him, the broken sideburns fell on both sides, and there was blue stubble on his face.

The dust gradually thinned. His figure became clearer and clearer. Finally, he stopped in front of Kun Xuzi, looking at each other quietly at a distance of one foot from Kun Xuzi.

Kun Xuzi looked at him blankly. The young man's eyes in front of him were black and white, clear.

It seemed like two hundred years ago, yet a little different.

In the distance, joy blew and beat, but the sound of rain remained in the realm of life and death.

After a while, Xie Changji took the lead in speaking. "Uncle, the heart-questioning sword stays here. I'm leaving."

"You...... Where are you going?"

Kun Xuzi looked at Xie Changji blankly. Xie Changji's eyes turned to the first peak with the happy event not far away. His tone was calm. "I'll pick her up."

Kun Xuzi still didn't understand.

He just saw Xie Changji turn around. Stepping on the ice and snow with grass breaking out of the ground, he walked out step by step.

Su Luoming was the first to react and shouted, "Changji! Don't......"

At this moment, the sword intent fell from the sky. Everyone felt that their bodies suddenly couldn't move. A huge force pressed them down, trapping them in place.

They opened their eyes and could only watch him go through the wind and snow, and his figure disappeared in front of everyone.

At this time, the sun had set.

As the sun set, the long queue of welcoming relatives carried the sedan chair and walked on the bluestone steps of the Heavenly Sword Sect, approaching the main hall of the Heavenly Sword Sect.

After going up the last step, ahead was the main hall of the Heavenly Sword Sect, where the marriage ceremony was prepared.

Hua Xiangwan covered her veil and leaned on the sedan chair, completely asleep.

She hadn't slept all night last night, and this afternoon she sat in the sedan chair, listening to the "squeak" of the sedan chair trembling and doing nothing. It was really too boring. Even though she was getting married, she still fell asleep unknowingly.

Fortunately, the bride falling asleep had no effect on everyone.

Shen Xiuwen and Ling Bei led the wedding procession to step on the bluestone steps together. When the sedan chair settled, they found that the door of the main hall where the ceremony was supposed to be held was closed.

Shen Xiuwen and Lingbei looked at each other. Lingbei hurriedly stepped forward and knocked on the door, jokingly saying, "Jiang Yiran, what are you doing? Open the door quickly."

After Ling Bei finished speaking, the door slowly opened.

The sunset fell into the hall, and everyone gradually saw the scene of the hall clearly.

A young man stood in front of the main gate. Without a sword in his hand, only wearing a tattered robe, he stood at the door quietly watching their wedding procession.

In the main hall behind him, Jiang Yiran knelt on the ground with his disciples, all bowing their heads and not daring to speak.

Shen Xiuwen was stunned and was about to say something when he felt the coercion overwhelming him. Everyone around him knelt down with a "plop," unable to make a sound at all.

Then the young man walked among the crowd, stepped on the red carpet, and slowly walked towards the sedan chair in front.

He walked very slowly and solemnly with every step.

At the end, he stopped in front of the sedan, bent down slightly, and rolled up half of the curtain of the sedan.

His eyes drooped slightly, and he stretched out his hand towards the sedan chair.

In a daze, Hua Xiangwan heard a familiar yet somewhat unfamiliar voice coming from not far away.

"Hua Xiangwan, give me your hand."

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