"Huo Zhanbai, I hope you can be happy."
The snow stopped the next day, and everything in Medicine Master Valley seemed to return to peace after Tong left.
Everything returned to normal, as if the intruder had left no trace. The maids no longer worried about any disturbances in the middle of the night, Huo Zhanbai no longer had to anxiously watch over Xue Ziye's safety, and even the snow hawk no longer had to fly out to patrol every day, but instead hung upside down on the shelf, shivering drunk.
"Oh, good morning!" Huo Zhanbai was pleased to leave in such an atmosphere. So when Xue Ziye walked out of the pharmacy and handed him a brocade pouch, a smile involuntarily appeared on his lips.
After just one night's sleep, the conversation from last night felt like a dream.
"You should go." Xue Ziye saw the genuine smile on his face and suddenly felt a little lonely. "Lü'er, where's the horse?"
"Miss, everything is ready!" Greenie smiled and led a horse out from the flower bushes.
She pulled on the reins and handed them to Huo Zhanbai: "Go."
It's truly laughable that, in a fleeting moment last night, as he stood silently beside her, holding an umbrella to shield her from the wind and snow, she actually had the illusion that this was someone she could rely on—yet, he was already someone else's support.
For years, he had only come here repeatedly to endure his volatile temper for this very reason.
Now that everything is over, those who are meant to leave will eventually leave.
"The medicine is in the brocade pouch, keep it with you at all times," she instructed again, almost tapping his forehead. "Remember, you must return to Lin'an via Yangzhou—once you arrive in Yangzhou, remember to open the brocade pouch. Only after opening it can you go to Lin'an!"
"I understand," Huo Zhanbai replied, knowing that this woman had always been eccentric.
"If you open it too early or too late, it won't work!" She smiled eerily, sending a chill down his spine. He nodded hastily, "Yes, yes! I'll definitely open it as soon as we get to Yangzhou!"
Huo Zhanbai mounted his horse, put the brocade pouch back into his bosom, and felt that a heavy burden on his heart had finally been lifted after many years. Looking out, he suddenly felt that the sky had never been so high and the wind so gentle, and he couldn't help but let out a long howl, his heart yearning to return home—truly, "overjoyed to the point of ecstasy!"
Singing and drinking freely in the daytime, youth accompanies me on my return home.
From the Ba Gorge through the Wu Gorge, we will descend to Xiangyang and head towards Luoyang!
"Greenie, see the guest out." Xue Ziye said no more and turned to instruct the maid.
"Yes!" Greenie happily came up to take the horse, quite pleased to see this troublemaker gone. Frost Red, however, sighed inwardly, knowing that with this fellow gone, it would be even less likely that the Valley Master would show a happy face.
The snow hawk circled Xue Ziye once, cried out reluctantly a few times, and landed on its master's shoulder. Huo Zhanbai spurred his horse a few steps, then suddenly reined in his horse and gestured to her as if to drink heartily: "Hey, remember to bury a jar of 'Laughing at the Mortal World' under the plum tree!"
Xue Ziye was slightly taken aback.
"Let's drink together when we get back!" He waved and laughed loudly, "I'll definitely beat you!"
She simply waved her hand, neither confirming nor denying. She had done her utmost, but could only prescribe a medicine to prolong life by three months—would he still be so happy if he knew? If the child ultimately died, would he come back for revenge?
As she watched his figure disappear into the verdant valley, she suddenly felt a chill in her chest and coughed softly.
"Miss, is this alright?" Granny Ning, standing beside her, looked at Huo Zhanbai's cheerful figure and asked in a low voice with some concern.
"That's all we can do," Xue Ziye murmured, looking up at the sky and letting out a long sigh. "May God protect us, Master Qingran is still in Yangzhou right now."
I've done my best... Huo Zhanbai, please don't blame me.
While some were riding south, others were galloping westward.
To avoid suspicion, after leaving the Valley of Medicine Masters, he parted ways with Miao Huo and headed west, changing horses along the way to return to the Great Bright Palace. He held the Dragon Blood Pearl in his palm; the treasure, which was said to be able to kill gods, ghosts, and demons, exuded a cold chill. The Blood-Dripping Sword beside him hummed in its sheath, as if it thirsted for blood.
The wind and snow came like swords cutting into his face, washing away the last bit of weakness that remained in his heart.
He rode westward through the heavy snow, gradually moving away from the valley that had once briefly stirred his heart. Reining in his horse on the snow-covered plain, he looked around, his heart gradually becoming clear and calm. His clear, black-and-white eyes also gradually disappeared into the swirling snow.
Ten days after leaving the Valley of Medicine, we entered the Kizil Wasteland.
On the 13th, they arrived in Uliastai.
On the 15th, we arrived at the foot of the West Kunlun Mountains.
The Kunlun Mountains are covered in snow, and the Great Bright Palace at the summit is shrouded in cold air year-round.
The horse, exhausted, collapsed to the ground, foaming at the mouth. He dismounted and ended its suffering with a backhand stroke of his sword. Standing at the foot of the mountain, gazing at the layered palaces, he silently took a breath and clenched his fist—the dark red dragon blood bead silently turned to dust in his palm.
He turned the sword upside down and carefully applied the powder to the Bloodstained Sword.
Then, he took out two gold needles from his pocket, and without hesitation, turned his hand back and pressed them into the vital points at the back of the head with two sharp "snap" sounds!
He strode up the stone steps. When the palace disciples guarding the mountain gate saw him, they stood up abruptly, bowed, and showed respect. After he passed, they whispered among themselves.
"See that? That's Hitomi!"
"That god of death who controls the battlefield of carnage? What a pity, I didn't get a good look at him earlier..."
"Get out! By the time you see clearly, you won't even know how you died—his eyes are simply unusable for looking!"
"Yes, yes, I've heard that if you make eye contact with him, he'll take your soul. He can make you die or live!"
"That...that's the Demon Eye..."
Those whispers, filled with both reverence and awe, permeated every day of his life.
No one ever dared to look him in the eye, and most of those who did were already dead—he had been used to such evasive gazes and monster-like looks since he could remember, so there was nothing to be surprised about.
He headed straight for the west wing hall, hoping to find out about the latest situation from Miaoshui, but he found no one there—strange, where was she? Hadn't they already agreed to meet and discuss their strategy after he returned with the Dragon Blood Pearl? How could she be absent at such a crucial moment?
“Envoy Miaoshui has been accompanying the King in the Great Bright Hall these past few days.” Miaoshui’s personal attendant saw Tong, who had rushed back covered in dust, and looked somewhat fearful, bowing his head and saying, “It has been a long time since I’ve come back to rest.”
"How is the Pope doing?" he asked coldly.
The personal attendant shook his head: "This subordinate does not know—the King has been residing in the Great Bright Hall since leaving seclusion and has never shown his face."