Chapter 54: Clashing Grief at Jin Ji Pavilion Part 2

When recounting these matters, Lu Mingyi’s bright, sharp eyes would soften with warmth, holding Qi Yinxue’s gaze captive for long moments.

She even sometimes wondered if, after spending more time with Lu Mingyi, she could become part of those cherished memories herself.

Afraid not, she thought. After all, I’ve deceived and spied on her like this. It’s already fortunate if she doesn’t hate me.

Yet these people who filled most of Lu Mingyi’s memories all harbored their own ulterior motives.

Shen Mingzheng froze at Qi Yuxie’s words. The normally overbearing woman stood speechless before a mere Qi-Induction newbie.

In the end, the uneasy Heavenly Talisman True Person, who had followed to check on things, arrived to find Shen Mingzheng stunned and Qi Yinxue sobbing hysterically. She nearly had a massive headache.

How did I never notice how much they cared about Lu Mingyi before? she thought. Now that she’s dead, they’re all wailing desperately?

Seeing Xiao Yuxie remain so composed, the Heavenly Talisman True Person dragged Shen Mingzheng and Qi Yinxue away, leaving her behind and instructing her to keep an eye on their fellow disciples’ mental states.

Xiao Yuxie stood at the entrance of Jin Ji Pavilion for a long while before slowly coming back to herself. She was the only one left here now.

Turning sideways to gaze at the tightly shut door, Qi Yinxue’s tear-choked voice echoed in her mind—claiming Lu Mingyi cared for her, that she didn’t deserve to stand at Jin Ji Pavilion’s doorstep again.

Of course, Lu Mingyi was an exceptional person.

She shared a similar appearance with Xie Shiji, but her eyes held a unique brightness all their own.

Xie Shiji had a frail body, a gentle temperament, and a taste for bland flavors. She loved sticking by Xiao Yuxie’s side every day, calling “Cousin this” and “Cousin that.”

But Lu Mingyi…

Lu Mingyi’s personality differed greatly from Xie Shiji’s. She was free-spirited and capricious yet despised evil with a passion; carefree and playful yet clever and quick-witted.

She valued Xiao Yuxie deeply. Even raised in the Shen Family from childhood and groomed by Jiang Liuzhao as Sword Peak’s next master, whenever Xiao Yuxie needed her, she would follow to Peach Blossom Source, standing up for her and devising strategies.

But Xiao Yuxie wasn’t her everything.

She would nuzzle into Xiao Yuxie’s arms acting spoiled, but she’d also nuzzle Jiang Liuzhao, nuzzle Shen Mingzheng, and hug Ji Xuyun.

As Xiao Yuxie pushed open the doors of Jin Ji Pavilion, a sudden thought flashed through her mind: Aside from that similar face, where else did Lu Mingyi resemble Xie Shiji in the slightest?

All these years, have I been treating Lu Mingyi as a stand-in for Xie Shiji… or…

Using her resemblance to Xie Shiji to deceive myself into thinking I needed her constantly by my side?

The once cozy Jin Ji Pavilion, uninhabited for months, had a thin layer of dust coating the furniture.

Xiao Yuxie knew the place intimately; she’d visited countless times over the past century.

From the hazy dawn light to the setting sun, she cleaned the entire pavilion top to bottom, restoring it to pristine condition. Yet she found no trace of Lu Mingyi.

Sitting on Lu Mingyi’s bed, Xiao Yuxie felt her heart and mind utterly hollow.

Lu Mingyi was truly gone.

Perfectly fine yesterday, her Soul Lamp extinguished today, her sword spirit on the verge of dissipation.

Xiao Yuxie thought she should go find Jiang Liuzhao—it was Jiang Liuzhao who had taken Lu Mingyi away yesterday.

But even if I find her, can I reverse Lu Mingyi’s death?

The thought of death left a gaping void in Xiao Yuxie’s chest.

She regretted not speaking more to Lu Mingyi during their last meeting half a month ago. Or why hadn’t she taken her away sooner?

How could I have said those words to her at our final parting?

The swirling chaos of emotions distilled into a single, burning wish—

She wanted to see her one more time.

By common sense, death came like a lamp extinguishing.

But in the Cultivation World, people had souls beyond their flesh.

Xiao Yuxie, well-read in myriad texts, knew of a rarely proclaimed spell: the Soul Summoning Technique.

As the name implied, it called forth the soul of the deceased.

Yet the technique brimmed with yin qi, draining the caster’s mind and spirit immensely. The summoned soul could only linger briefly before entering reincarnation.

Family honor and personal reputation? Xiao Yuxie cast them aside.

She sliced her wrist, letting blood trickle out like a fine stream, slowly forming an array.

Releasing her blood and shaping the array alone depleted over half her spiritual power. Biting her lip, she rallied her remaining strength and poured it into the formation.

Instantly, crimson light blazed through the room, overwhelming yin qi surging in and sending a shiver through Xiao Yuxie.

With her spiritual power exhausted and massive blood loss, barely five breaths into the technique, her vision began to blacken.

An incense stick passed, then two. A bright moon rose to the night sky’s center. Later, fine rain began falling from the clear night.

She didn’t know how much time elapsed before Xiao Yuxie could no longer hold on, collapsing into the array.

A stinging pain flared on her forehead—likely from the impact, drawing blood. Overexertion left her vision blurry.

But what bewildered her most was that, even after sustaining the Soul Summoning Technique half the night, Lu Mingyi’s soul hadn’t appeared.

If not even in Jin Ji Pavilion, her former home, then where could she summon it from?

Where had Lu Mingyi’s soul gone?

Xiao Yuxie propped herself against the wall, staggering out of Jin Ji Pavilion. The cold rain pelted her body, but she seemed oblivious.

Swallowing a spiritual recovery pill, she mounted Flying Light. She nearly tumbled off the sword several times before finally crash-landing before Lingxiao Mansion.

Lingxiao Mansion, once a bait site and half-destroyed, had been rebuilt by Jiang Liuzhao’s earth-shaking prowess, indistinguishable from before.

Amid the oppressive darkness and torrential rain, the grand mansion loomed cold and merciless.

Xiao Yuxie knelt before Lingxiao Mansion. Rain, blood, and the Soul Summoning backlash blurred her sight.

Choking back sobs, she cried out, “Master—!”

She was truly at the end of her rope.

The failed summoning—did it mean Lu Mingyi was still alive? If so, where was she?

No matter what, Jiang Liuzhao surely knew.

Xiao Yuxie didn’t know where Jiang Liuzhao had gone. As the renowned head of a great clan and Sword Peak’s chief disciple, she could only kneel undignified in the rain, letting it chill her to the bone, waiting, waiting…

Until she lost consciousness, until her eyes ached from endless tears, until she blacked out completely.

Xiao Yuxie didn’t know how long she’d waited or lain unconscious. Awakening, her body still throbbed with pain from the technique’s backlash.

Gazing at the pristine ceiling and inhaling faint sandalwood, she momentarily forgot where she was.

Until a clear, hoarse voice sounded: “What were you doing kneeling before Lingxiao Mansion?”

Xiao Yuxie’s body trembled. Struggling upright, pain wracked her limbs and organs, beading cold sweat on her brow.

Gritting her teeth, she said, “M-Master… Where is Little Yi? Where is she?”

Long moments passed without reply.

Lifting her eyes, Xiao Yuxie stared wide-eyed.

Jiang Liuzhao, ever poised and elegant, impeccably groomed, now looked uncharacteristically pale. Xiao Yuxie even sensed chaotic spiritual fluctuations around her.

“Master!” Xiao Yuxie exclaimed in shock and concern. “You took Little Yi away, so… where is she now?”

Jiang Liuzhao’s gaze dropped, avoiding her. Her long lashes cast fine shadows. Amid the wind and rain outside, she seemed profoundly still and desolate.

After a long pause, she murmured, “She’s already dead.”

Hearing Lu Mingyi’s death confirmed again, Xiao Yuxie trembled, eyes stinging anew. But she persisted, “I know. The Heavenly Talisman True Person told me. But… where is Little Yi now? I used the Soul Summoning Technique in Jin Ji Pavilion, but her soul didn’t come…”

Her voice grew hopeful toward the end: “Does that mean… Little Yi is actually fine? We got it wrong?”

At mention of the Soul Summoning Technique, Jiang Liuzhao finally looked up. Her dark eyes churned with heavy emotion. Meeting Xiao Yuxie’s expectant gaze, she said lowly, “No mistake. She has truly fallen.”

The light in Xiao Yuxie’s eyes extinguished.

Silence fell. Jiang Liuzhao’s expression grew heavier. She rose to urge Xiao Yuxie to leave, but Xiao Yuxie clutched her sleeve, voice quivering yet steady: “Master, Little Yi’s… body is with you, right? How did she die? She was fine yesterday—how could she be gone today? Master, please let me see her. I beg you, I beg you…”

Tears splashed down as Xiao Yuxie begged humbly.

Jiang Liuzhao gazed down at her sobbing disciple, eyes darkening.

She knew this mild-seeming apprentice had deep schemes and immense pride—never begging anyone so abjectly in centuries at the sect.

Thus, she asked, “What do you want to see her for?”

“I just… just want to see her…” Xiao Yuxie sobbed. “She shouldn’t have died like this, so unclear and unjust. She shouldn’t have… She should be alive and well! I want her to live well…”

Jiang Liuzhao’s hand at her side clenched fiercely.

In that instant, the rain outside Lingxiao Mansion turned to ice crystals, blanketing Sword Peak in whirling snow.

If Xiao Yuxie had looked up then, she’d have seen the raw agony surging in that usually calm woman’s eyes.

“You can see her again.”

After an eternity, Jiang Liuzhao spoke. Amid Xiao Yuxie’s feverish, desperate gaze, her heart sank: “But you’ll pay a great price.”

“Anything!” Xiao Yuxie blurted.

Jiang Liuzhao’s expression calmed. Word by word, she said, “Hear me out first. You must offer your Heart’s Blood.”

“Why my Heart’s Blood?”

“Why your Heart’s Blood?”

Across one hundred eighty years, Lu Mingyi’s cold-glinting eyes fixed on the kneeling Xiao Yuxie, demanding harshly.

Xiao Yuxie bit her lip hard, eyes squeezed shut in agony, refusing to answer.

The shoved-aside Xie Wenxin stood stunned by the scene. She sensed she’d erred, but couldn’t grasp how.

Why did it turn out like this? Why must Xiao Yuxie apologize after sacrificing so much?

Even without an answer, Lu Mingyi’s mind raced amid shock and fury.

Finally, she frowned slightly at the trembling figure and spat, “Xiao Yuxie, what is our relationship?”

Shen Mingzheng’s eyes widened slightly. Jiang Liuzhao sighed softly, knowing the truth could no longer be hidden.

Xiao Yuxie knew it too—everything was irretrievable. Laughing through bitter tears, she whispered, “Your maternal clan… has ties to the Xie Family. Between us, we could even be called blood-related.”