Li Qingqian remembered only that the man had a pair of long almond-shaped eyes that tilted slightly upward, like a misty river veiled in rain.
The man’s gaze swept across the shabby house. After confirming that no one else had survived, his eyes settled on Li Qingqian and his younger brother.
Li Qingqian looked up blankly at the cultivator in green.
His little brother, soft and tiny, burned with fever as he lay in his arms, crying loudly. Though still so young, the child seemed to understand that disaster had befallen them—that his country and family were gone forever.
He would never again have the father who carved bamboo dragonflies for him.
Nor the mother who loved pinching his little nose.
The cultivator in green observed them quietly for a while before walking over.
His gaze lowered from behind the golden mask.
After a brief silence, he took out a medicine bottle and several pieces of silver from within his robes.
“This medicine can cure all ordinary illnesses. Keep it for your younger brother.”
After saying no more, he turned to leave.
Li Qingqian stood frozen for a long time before suddenly coming to his senses.
Grabbing the medicine and silver, he rushed outside.
The village was already littered with the corpses of the black-robed cultivators.
The man in green appeared to be searching each household for any surviving accomplices.
Li Qingqian dropped to his knees before him.
Crying, he pleaded,
“Big Brother!”
The man turned his eyes slightly.
From behind the golden mask, he looked at him once.
“Big Brother… p-please… please take us with you!”
The man remained silent.
Li Qingqian’s eyes were bloodshot.
Choking back sobs, he said,
“We’ve been running… always running… but Mother and Father still… still…”
His voice dissolved into tears.
“Big Brother… please…”
In the end…
The man in green did not take the brothers with him.
Instead, he gave Li Qingqian a sword manual.
“This sword art is too weak. It is of no further use to me.”
“But if you study it well, perhaps you can comprehend a sword path of your own.”
“That will be enough to protect yourself.”
Now…
Watching Hongshao kneel in the dirt, crying and begging him not to leave…
Li Qingqian’s eyes suddenly lost focus for a brief moment.
He remembered his own helpless despair from years ago.
At last, he sighed.
Walking back to her, he said,
“Get up.”
“…!”
Seeing him return, Hongshao sniffled several times and looked up at him through tear-filled eyes.
“But we agreed beforehand.”
“I’ll only take you with me for now.”
“If we pass somewhere suitable and can find you a good place to settle down…”
“I won’t keep you with me anymore.”
Hongshao didn’t care in the slightest.
She wiped away the tears still clinging to her little face and burst into laughter.
Having spent her entire life reading people’s expressions, she knew Li Qingqian was soft-hearted.
If he hadn’t abandoned her now…
He certainly wouldn’t be able to abandon her later.
She nodded furiously.
“I’ll listen to everything Big Brother says!”
Listen?
Not a chance.
The first day after following him, she behaved herself.
By the third…
She was already climbing trees, jumping around, and rolling all over the ground.
By the third year…
She had become utterly impossible to manage.
Whatever Li Qingqian did, she insisted on doing as well.
And unlike what they had agreed upon…
She had an enormous appetite.
She certainly didn’t eat any less.
Whenever Li Qingqian discovered the rice jar empty again, then looked over at Hongshao chasing dogs around the yard…
He could only sigh, half amused and half exasperated, while shaking his head.
Fortunately…
His younger brother had long ago been accepted as a disciple by a kind-hearted elderly scholar.
Otherwise…
With yet another mouth to feed…
Li Qingqian truly would have had reason to worry.
Hongshao had once asked him,
“Big Brother, you’re so powerful. When you exorcise demons, why don’t you charge people more money?”
Li Qingqian replied,
“Because… they don’t have any money either.”
“Then you should exorcise ghosts for rich people.”
At that time, Li Qingqian had not yet developed his own Duanshui Sword.
He merely copied the nameless sword manual left behind by the cultivator in green.
Smiling, he answered,
“First, my skills aren’t good enough.”
“Second…”
He stretched his arms absurdly wide for Little Hongshao to see.
“There are this many people eager to catch ghosts for the wealthy.”
“But hardly anyone is willing to travel to a small country like Lichun to help resolve its troubles.”
Hongshao nodded while chewing on a steamed bun.
“That’s true!”
“You’re a good person!”
“The one who saved me back then was also a good person.”
Li Qingqian smiled shyly.
“I don’t know who he was.”
“But I’ve always wanted to become a cultivator like him.”
“Though…”
“I’m definitely nowhere near as capable.”
“And…”
“I’ll probably remain this poor forever.”
Hongshao immediately objected.
With a steamed bun still in her mouth, she spread her arms into an enormous circle.
“No! Big Brother’s the strongest! Big Brother is…”
“So…”
“So…”
She stretched harder, trying to make the circle even bigger.
“…this amazing!”
Li Qingqian burst into laughter.
He reached over and rubbed her head.
“If you keep talking, you’re going to drop your bun.”
Hongshao mumbled something around the mouthful before happily continuing to eat.
Her feet swung cheerfully beneath her.
The pair of goose-yellow embroidered shoes on her feet remained remarkably clean.
Li Qingqian had bought them for her with the pitiful few shell coins he possessed.
She treasured them carefully.
After all these years…
They had grown old.
Yet were rarely dirty.
And so…
Li Qingqian and Hongshao continued traveling together.
Doing the good deeds they wished to do.
Practicing swordsmanship side by side.
Within the dream…
Hongshao perched atop a tree, shaking fruit loose with all her might.
Li Qingqian stood below, looking at her with equal parts headache and indulgent affection.
Yet…
Such peaceful days could never last forever.
Mo Xi already knew how their story would end.
Looking back now…
Every radiant smile resembled nothing more than an illusion reflected upon water.
This girl…
Would leave Li Qingqian.
Li Qingqian would become famous.
Then die.
And finally become a resentful sword spirit.
But…
What exactly had caused everything to change?
As the dream continued shifting…
Layer after layer of mystery gradually blew away like drifting sand…
Revealing the pale, naked truth buried beneath.
The turning point came one day in late spring.
Hongshao fell ill.
At the time, they happened to be passing through a village near the Kingdom of Liao.
The region surrounding Liao was saturated with demonic energy.
During the transition from spring to summer, demonic miasma became especially dense.
Hongshao accidentally contracted the evil miasma.
Grievously ill, she became bedridden.
Her body rapidly wasted away.
Li Qingqian sought doctors everywhere.
But medicine capable of curing this miasma sickness was extraordinarily expensive.
Even ordinary families struggled to afford it.
Someone as poor as Li Qingqian had no hope at all.
Again and again…
He was turned away.
The physician-cultivators shouted impatiently,
“If you want treatment, bring money first!”
“Do you know how many people get this disease every day?”
“If everyone expected us to make exceptions like you…”
“Where would enough herbs come from?”
Mo Xi knew their attitude was unpleasant.
Yet…
Their words were true.
Medicine for this plague really was desperately scarce.
Every nation had its own restrictions.
In Chonghua…
Only nobles were permitted to purchase it.
Back then, Gu Mang had impersonated Murong Lian in order to buy medicine for the impoverished villagers.
Liao’s rules were slightly more lenient.
They didn’t care about bloodline.
They cared about money.
Li Qingqian had none.
He sat beside Hongshao’s sickbed.
She resembled a frost-stricken flower, withered and fading.
She no longer possessed the strength to chatter and leap about as before.
Her swollen eyes narrowed as she looked at him.
Her lips moved faintly.
Li Qingqian asked softly,
“What are you trying to say?”
She moved her lips again.
He leaned closer.
After a moment…
He finally heard her.
With a smile, she whispered,
“Hehe…”
“Now I eat less…”
“I can save Big Brother some money…”
That day…
After she finally fell asleep…
Li Qingqian walked outside the little hut.
He sat upon the steps in silence.
Then…
Unable to bear it any longer…
He curled into himself and quietly broke down in tears.
He dared not cry loudly.
First…
Because a grown man crying openly was disgraceful.
Second…
Because he feared waking Hongshao, who had finally managed to fall asleep.
He thought…
What should I do?
What am I supposed to do?
He wasn’t nearly as remarkable as Hongshao believed.
He had never become the cultivator in green.
He couldn’t even protect the little girl beside him.
After so many years…
Other than lofty ideals…
He still possessed nothing.
Mo Xi watched with an aching heart.
Yet he also knew…
Reality could not be changed.
The dream continued shifting.
Young Li Qingqian wandered helplessly through the bustling marketplace of Liao.
He had already pawned everything he owned.
In exchange…
He had bought seven doses of medicine for Hongshao.
Merely delaying the inevitable.
Only one dose remained.
After today…
What then?
“Come, come!”
“Take a good look!”
“The requirements are strict! Don’t even think about trying to fool us!”
At one corner of the bustling market, drums suddenly thundered.
Hongshao had always loved lively spectacles like this.
Wherever they went, she would drag him over to watch.
Lost in thought, Li Qingqian unconsciously walked toward the crowd.
It almost felt as though Hongshao were still tugging excitedly on his sleeve beside him…
Jumping up and down.
“I can’t see!”
“They’re blocking everything!”
Li Qingqian stood dazed for a while.
Recovering himself, he turned to leave.
Then he heard someone in the crowd shout,
“They’re really offering that much money?!”
“The Imperial Preceptor is so generous!”
“I’m so jealous!”
Money.
Before…
That word had meant nothing to Li Qingqian.
Now…
Hearing it was like being stabbed by a needle.
He spun around.
His eyes lit up.
Upon the raised platform stood a high-ranking cultivator from Liao.
He paced back and forth, beating a gong to attract attention.
Behind him hung an enormous silk portrait nearly three men tall.
It depicted a beautiful young woman.
At the corner of one eye was a tiny beauty mark.
Looking closely…
She resembled Hongshao by nearly seventy percent.
Li Qingqian started in surprise.
Then the cultivator shouted again,
“Our Imperial Preceptor has observed the stars!”
“Any young woman bearing facial features like these shall bring prosperity to the nation this year!”
“Those who meet the requirements may enter the palace!”
He struck the gong twice more.
“If selected…”
“The girl will become the palace’s Holy Maiden.”
“Her family will receive one thousand shell coins.”
“This is entirely voluntary.”
“Anyone interested may proceed to the rear for inspection.”
Li Qingqian stood beneath the platform in stunned silence.
Then…
As if suddenly realizing something…
He hurried toward the cultivators conducting the examinations.
His voice trembled.
“So long as a girl looks like this…”
“The Imperial Preceptor will accept her?”
“If she’s similar enough—we’ll take her.”
“Take her… for what?”
“Are you deaf?”
The cultivator snapped impatiently.
“To become a Holy Maiden!”
“She’ll study astrology, divination, and sacred rites under the Imperial Preceptor.”
“It’s a tremendous blessing!”
“Didn’t we explain it clearly enough? Can’t you understand plain language?”
Li Qingqian’s palms were soaked with sweat.
His throat bobbed.
Eyes wide with equal parts hope and agony, he ignored the man’s terrible attitude and asked,
“T-then…”
“If the girl has demonic miasma sickness…”
“Would you… would you still…”
“Didn’t I already say we’ll take her if she looks similar enough?!”
“What’s miasma sickness?”
“A few doses of medicine and she’ll be perfectly healthy again!”
“What kind of stupid question is that?”
“If you’ve got someone who looks the part, bring her!”
“If she doesn’t, get lost!”
“Our Holy Maiden selection has strict standards!”
The cultivator cursed.
“You penniless bum! Stop wasting my time!”
Li Qingqian stood frozen.
Yes…
What kind of question had that been?
Miasma sickness had never been incurable.
Just as the cultivator had said…
All it required…
Were a few doses of Qingling Medicine.
Yet…
Those few doses, insignificant to the Imperial Preceptor…
Were something Li Qingqian could never obtain, no matter how desperately he sacrificed himself.
They were right.
He was…
A useless man who couldn’t even save the girl he loved.
A penniless nobody.
Hongshao…
Should never have followed him in the first place.
He was the one who had made her suffer.
Li Qingqian slowly walked back toward the shabby hut where they lived.
Along the way…
It seemed he thought about many things.
And perhaps…
Nothing at all.
Beside the street, a vendor enthusiastically shouted,
“Jade hairpins! Gold ornaments! Rouge and powder! Everything a young lady could want! Come have a look!”
Li Qingqian stopped before the stall.
He wanted to take a closer look.
But…
His empty purse kept him from stepping forward.
The vendor noticed him and smiled.
“Young man, buying something for your sweetheart?”
Sweetheart.
Those three words pierced his heart like needles.
Still dazed, Li Qingqian allowed the vendor to pull him closer.
“Look here! Finest jade hairpin! Material from Suiye City—crystal clear…”
“I…”
“I don’t have that much money…”
“No money?”
The vendor paused.
Then forced another smile.
“That’s alright.”
“Let’s look at something cheaper.”
“This rouge has a wonderfully delicate fragrance.”
“It’s my great-grandmother’s family recipe.”
“Only twenty white shell coins.”
Li Qingqian had…
Three.
The vendor looked him over.
Noticing the patches sewn onto his clothes…
The smile gradually disappeared.
At last he lazily picked up an old cloth flower.
Its workmanship was crude.
Its fabric was cheap.
He tossed it in front of Li Qingqian.
“How about this?”
“Five white shell coins.”
Lifting his swollen eyelids, he added,
“If you’re trying to please a young lady…”
“Surely you can spare at least that much?”
Li Qingqian burned with humiliation.
Head lowered…
He silently turned to leave.
The vendor was stunned.
After wasting so much breath…
This man wouldn’t even pay five white shell coins?
Instantly enraged, he shouted after Li Qingqian’s thin retreating back without caring who heard,
“Damn it!”
“You’ve got to be kidding!”
“You think you can court women without spending a single coin?”
“Who do you think you are?!”
“If you’re broke, stop wandering around!”
“You’re ruining my business!”
“Pah!”
Li Qingqian’s face burned.
Beneath the astonished gazes of countless strangers…
He lowered his head and hurried away.
Only after leaving the city did the stares finally disappear.
Yet…
His head seemed permanently bent.
He no longer possessed the strength to lift it again.
He staggered forward.
Reaching the farewell pavilion outside the city…
He collapsed onto a bench.
Burying his face deep within his hands.
He remained there…
For several hours.
By the time he returned to the tiny hut…
The sun had already set.
Hongshao lay curled upon the sickbed.
Her face turned toward the doorway.
Her sleep was restless.
Fever had flushed her cheeks crimson.
The moment she heard Li Qingqian return…
Her eyes flew open.
Like a kitten’s, they were round and bright as she looked at him.
Summoning all her strength, she called softly,
“Big Brother…”