She blinked, took a few steps closer, instinctively afraid to approach the sword that seemed to have drunk its fill of blood, and said only, "Sir, this must be Chu Shi, right?"
Fu Jiuxin swiped the sword back into its sheath, and the intimidating aura emanating from it gradually dissipated. Only then did Dou Akou dare to approach and get close to Fu Jiuxin to examine the sword more closely.
Aside from the patterns, there were no other obvious markings on the scabbard. Dou Akou glanced at it a few times and noticed several ancient seal characters painted in black lacquer and gold on the hilt. She said, "Sir, look at that."
Fu Jiuxin took it closer and examined it carefully before saying with certainty, "It is Chu Shi."
The two fell silent, each filled with emotion. They had gone to find Chu Shi, narrowly escaping death in the underground palace, only to be reborn from the brink of death, yet they could not find him anywhere. And now, in the twilight of summer, amidst the croaking of frogs, they had unexpectedly found him.
It can only be said that fate plays tricks on people. This sword was not buried underground in Hao Hui City with the quicksand, but was brought out by Fu Jiuxin's mother and hidden in a stone tablet before her death.
If it weren't for Fu Jiuxin's sharp eyes, Chu Shi would probably have remained silently buried in the stone for thousands of years.
Dou Akou approached Fu Jiuxin and whispered, "Sir, what Mother really meant was that she hoped you would stop being that young master and live a normal life, which is why she hid this sword, right?"
This admirable woman was the Queen Mother of Siyou Kingdom in the first half of her life, but in the second half, she suffered a sudden calamity: her country was destroyed, her family perished, and she was forced to wander with her young son. She endured this immense hardship with an even greater and more profound maternal love, creating a peaceful, albeit impoverished, world for her son, sparing him the burden of such an unbearable responsibility at such a young age. However, perhaps fate had its own design, and the course of destiny, subtly foreshadowed, led to Fu Jiuxin being drawn into this unfinished war ten years later.
But now, it's all over. Dou Akou silently thought to herself, the dust has settled, and they have finally returned to where they started, where simplicity is true happiness.
Fu Jiuxin seemed to be moved as well, quietly stroking the simple scabbard, his face showing a faint tenderness and sorrow as he reminisced.
Dou Akou stood obediently beside him. The evening breeze was cool, and a line of rosy clouds rolled across the sky with the last golden edge. The setting sun cast a golden glow on the mountain valley where they were, and the entire majestic and magnificent land was bathed in the afterglow and slumbered, which was very spectacular.
Dou Akou knew that silence was the best form of companionship at this moment, so she remained silent, gazing blankly at the scenery before her. The surroundings were utterly tranquil, save for the rustling of the wind through the grass and the soft chirping of insects. The peace and tranquility made Fu Jiuxin's sudden words all the more chilling: "Come out."
Who? Who should come out? Dou Akou suddenly shivered. Without her noticing, someone had silently approached them.
Dou Akou looked around anxiously. All she could hear was the rustling of the wind through the leaves, but she was worried. Every swaying shadow looked like someone hiding in the forest.
A rustling sound came from the woods, and a figure emerged from the dense branches. He wore a silver mask, revealing only his eyes. Dou Akou felt that this person's eyes and figure were very familiar, as if he were someone she knew, but when she tried to recall, she couldn't remember him at all.
The man seemed to know Dou Akou very well, his eyes behind the mask curving into two crescent moons: "Hey, Tangtuanzi."
Dou Akou was startled, as if struck by a sudden realization, and exclaimed, "Su Luoyang?"
Su Luoyang smiled and nodded, then turned to Fu Jiuxin: "Young Master—" He had only uttered two words when he realized that the title was inappropriate, so he stopped in distress, pondered for a while, then laughed heartily and called out: "Mr. Fu."
Fu Jiuxin stared at his mask for a long time, a flash of regret crossing her eyes before she regained her composure and nodded in acknowledgment.
"It's like this, Chan Tui has a favor to ask. If you agree, that would be wonderful; if you don't, that would be perfectly reasonable." Su Luoyang's tone was as relaxed as ever, but Dou Akou felt that she had overlooked something.
Fu Jiuxin said, "Speak."
"I hope you can see Uncle Chen one last time."
Dou Akou shuddered; she remembered something amiss! She and Fu Jiuxin had been at the entrance to the underground labyrinth when Su Luoyang emerged first. Just as they were about to leave, Uncle Chen set the fire. In her last glance, Dou Akou only saw Su Luoyang and Uncle Chen engulfed in flames. So, the mask on Su Luoyang's face now… it must be because he escaped the fire, but his face was burned. Dou Akou's heart trembled; she felt sorry for Su Luoyang, and hearing his request only added to her complicated emotions.
Her feelings towards Uncle Chen were conflicted. She both hated and feared him, yet she also felt sorry for him, an old man who insisted on restoring his country, only to destroy everything in a fire in the end.
But now, according to what Su Luoyang said, this old man seems to have reached the end of his life. No matter how many wrong things he did in the past, he is still an elder, and as a junior, one should not be so heartless.
As she thought this, she glanced at Fu Jiuxin. Fu Jiuxin clearly shared the same thought and immediately nodded, "Lead the way."
Su Luoyang didn't hesitate and immediately left. He led Dou Akou and Fu Jiuxin down to the other side of the mountain, recounting the events of that day as they walked.
Chen Bo's fire was so ruthless, it seemed he was determined to die with him. Even though Su Luoyang, nicknamed "Cicada Shedding," was extremely skilled in escape and ambush, he was still forced to act under those circumstances. Moreover, he couldn't bear to see Chen Bo burned alive in the fire, so he helped him up, which slowed his movements considerably. In the end, although he survived, he suffered multiple burns all over his body.
Dou Akou was startled. She thought she and Fu Jiuxin had already faced a life-or-death situation, but she didn't expect Su Luoyang to be in even more danger. She hesitated and wanted to see Su Luoyang's face under the mask, but Su Luoyang refused with a smile, saying that he was afraid of scaring her.
Dou Akou felt a pang of regret. Su Luoyang's former appearance was still vivid in her mind. He was a very handsome and clean-cut young man, but now his face had been destroyed by the fire. It was as if she had watched something beautiful being destroyed alive, which was truly heartbreaking.
Su Luoyang didn't seem to care much and continued talking about what had just been interrupted. He was young after all, and although he was burned, he would recover after a period of rest; but Uncle Chen was old, and after surviving the fire, his wounds failed to heal for a long time. Not long after, he developed a high fever, which dragged on for several days. Doctors were called to see him, but they all shook their heads, saying that medicine was useless and that he should prepare for his death.
“He is on his last breath, but he is still thinking about the restoration of the Siyou Kingdom. You should do good deeds and promise him in front of him, so that he can leave in peace.”
Dou Akou and Fu Jiuxin remained silent. This kind of obsession with family and country was beyond their comprehension. However, too much of a good thing is bad, and being too rigid can easily lead to breaking. Being too attached to anything can easily become a demon in one's heart.
They hadn't walked far when Dou Akou looked around and saw that they were heading towards the ruins of Haohui City. All three of them had practiced martial arts. Although Dou Akou was forbidden from using her internal energy and lightness skills by Fu Jiuxin because she was pregnant, she was still much faster than the average person.
The sun had already set behind the mountains, leaving only a faint, dim yellow glow in the sky, and they had once again arrived at Haohui City.
The ruins of Haohui City, bathed in twilight, seemed to have survived a calamity. A large portion of the tower had collapsed, and the broken walls and ruins stood in the pale light, casting rugged shadows. The various martial arts sects had long since departed, yet their carelessly discarded supplies remained on the ruins. If the unexplored Haohui City before had only evoked a sense of profound desolation and antiquity in Dou Akou, then the Haohui City now presented itself as a truly abandoned ruin.
Su Luoyang led them around a bend and disappeared into a pile of broken bricks and stones. Dou Akou followed him around a bend and finally saw a dilapidated house standing in front of her.
"He...is here?" Dou Akou exclaimed in surprise.
"Yes. He said he would rather die in his homeland, so I had no choice but to bring him back." Su Luoyang said as he walked around the desolate courtyard of the house and into the inner room.
Dou Akou smelled the herbs from afar, and as she passed the kitchen, she saw a pot of medicine simmering on the stove. She stared at the stove for a while, and when she turned around, Uncle Chen suddenly came into her view.
Dou Akou took a deep breath and unconsciously took a step back. The Chen Bo standing before her was emaciated, his withered and bluish arms hanging limply at his sides, as if drained of blood. He was so thin that he was unrecognizable, his cheeks were deeply sunken, and his two high cheekbones were prominent. His once hawk-like eyes were gone, leaving only a listless and dying look on the bed.
The once vigorous old man, once he fell ill, could no longer get up.
He seemed to sense someone entering, and with difficulty opened his cloudy eyes, numbly scanning Dou Akou and Su Luoyang one by one. When his gaze fell on Fu Jiuxin, his pupils suddenly contracted, his eyes flashed with a sharp light, and he stared intently at Fu Jiuxin.
Fu Jiuxin took two steps forward, bent down in front of his bed, grasped his skinny hand, and said in a deep voice, "Uncle Chen."
The old man's face was pale, and two lines of turbid tears streamed down his face. He reached into his robes with trembling hands, pulled out something, and carefully placed it into Fu Jiuxin's palm.
That was a jade tablet. The jade tablet that opened the bronze door of the underground palace of Haohui City.
Fu Jiuxin looked down at the jade tablet for a long time, then met Chen Bo's expectant gaze. In front of him, he put the jade tablet into his bosom and nodded: "Don't worry, Uncle Chen."
Chen Bo was like a bow stretched to its limit, its fragile string taut, waiting for the final moment. Fu Jiuxin's words were like the last arrow shot from that string. As soon as he finished speaking, the bow trembled violently and finally snapped.
Uncle Chen's body jerked violently on the bed before falling back down. He could no longer make a sound, only emitting strange hoarse noises from deep within his throat. Even in his final moments, he clung to his lifelong obsession.