Chapter 64: Burning Heart with Fire (Part 2)

  Memories flooded his mind. The green stone and red skirt flashed before his eyes, then quickly disappeared into the distance. Xuan Zhen closed his eyes tightly, and in his mind's eye, images swirled and changed, a kaleidoscope of colors flashing by, ultimately coalescing into a dark, somber hue. And once again, the long-absent sharp pain pierced through his skull.

  Drip, drip... The continuous sound of water faintly passed through the nineteen years, and once again echoed in his ears. Nineteen years later, this now tall and mature young man knelt on the ground, as if he had returned to that moment of panic and confusion, like a boy who had just woken up from a dream but forgotten everything, fearful and bewildered, standing in an unfamiliar cave, facing... an unfamiliar beast... Those beastly eyes, that purple-red crystal, that burning flame...

  "Cough... Dream Shadow Fog Flower, all is empty..."

  Who is it? Whose voice is echoing in the gurgling water? Why does that voice seem so familiar, yet so strange?

  "Mother... Mother, what are you saying?!"

  Who is it again, and why does he have to be so mournful in his own mind, and why does the self that hears this voice have to feel so sympathetic, as if an icy hand is pinching at the throat... unbearable pain?

  "Cough... due to a mind full of distractions... cough, all sorts of things follow dust... it's better not..."

  Don't! Don't say another word!

  "Nothing compares to forgetting all!"

  "Ahhhhhhhhh!!!!!!"

  Suddenly, in this strange and unfamiliar palace in the realm of fantasy, a mournful cry rang out. The sound was so sorrowful that it seemed to contain immense pain, like the dying wail of a wild beast, or even more like the howl of an evil spirit from the depths of the abyss, making one's whole body shudder upon hearing it.

  Yan Yu stood before the figure that was shaking violently, bowing her head to gaze at him coldly. In her eyes, which were as pale as autumn water, a faint red glow began to emanate, growing brighter and brighter until they became two burning flames. The tongues of fire seemed about to shoot out from her eyes, licking the deathly pale face that was pressed against the green stone floor.

  "The seal has moved... You really fell for the Dreamweaver clan's illusion." Yan Yu slowly crouched down, her crimson skirt unfolding behind her like a severe ripple, and on that beautiful face, a smile seemed to emerge, yet not quite, a mixture of emotions so complex it was hard to decipher. "I should have thought of this earlier... This sealing technique is the Dreamweaver clan's ultimate secret art, only I and she can..." Her words trailed off abruptly as she stared blankly at the young man struggling with his past and pain in front of her.

  The uncertain gaze finally fell on the young man's tattered and dirty collar, where a small pouch had appeared at some unknown time, connected by a thin cord, with the end hidden behind a piece of cloth. The pouch was not eye-catching, looking rather crude and old, but just as the woman's gaze settled on it, the small pouch suddenly burst forth with a purple-red crystal light!

  That dazzling crystal light and the flames in Yu Rou's eyes reflected each other, making it even more breathtaking. Yu Rou hesitated for only a moment before reaching out to pull it down and hold it in her hand, untying the knot at the opening and turning it upside down. A crisp sound was heard, and a small purple light fell onto the bluestone slab, rolling several times before coming to a stop.

  She took only one glance, and recognized the object, involuntarily taking a deep breath, whispering: "Dreamstone!" As she spoke, her fingers had already extended to pinch the small crystal in the palm of her hand, examining it carefully.

  "No wonder... it's actually like this!" Yu Rou lightly exhaled, as if she had figured out the cause and effect, muttering to herself in a low voice, "I've been suspicious all along, how could the Seal of Memories be cast with her own power, let alone maintain it for over ten years without being broken... it turns out it was because of this..."

  When she finished examining the stone, her eyes turned back to Xuanyin's face. She saw that the young man's eyes were tightly closed, his complexion had long since turned deathly pale, and his entire body was trembling like a sieve. With a soft sigh, she finally made up her mind. Her tone also softened slightly as she said: "Alright, although I don't know why she put you in such a state, the longer this seal remains, the more harm it will cause you. For that person's sake, I'll help you remove it."

  Speaking slowly, she rolled up her sleeves, revealing a section of white wrist, and her slender fingers lightly plucked the air several times, forming the Orchid Finger Seal. She whispered: "Dream shadows, misty flowers, all are empty space. Because of thoughts and desires, the spirit is sealed and wisdom is destroyed. Rather... ten thousand, all, are broken!" As she chanted louder, the hand that formed the seal also thrust out fiercely, pressing against the pale young man's forehead.

  It was as if a deafening crash had exploded in my mind, like something bursting forth like a flood, like solid ice melting, silently yet majestically surging forward from the darkness, breaking through that profound gloom, rushing out of that boundless abyss, shattering layer upon layer of confusion on my heart, again and again!

  Xuan Zhen suddenly opened his eyes, but Yu You was startled and retreated nearly three feet. Those eyes that were originally warm and calm like ink now had a layer of crimson on them, thick and dark like uncoagulated blood, deep and mysterious like a night without light. The eerie aura emanating from them made one's heart tremble with fear at just one glance. This young man who was usually as elegant as a refined scholar now seemed to have transformed into a ferocious demon!

  "Ah Niang... I... I am..." But the young man didn't seem to notice the woman standing in front of him, his thin lips, already bruised and bloody from the pain earlier, moved slightly as he muttered to himself, his deep eyes seeming to pierce through the void, asking a phantom that was no longer in this world, "I... who am I?"

  He stared blankly, but the air was filled with silence. He trembled and looked around in confusion, his gaze gradually drawn to a small, tattered object on the bluestone floor in front of him - it turned out to be the pouch that Yanyu had casually discarded.

  Innumerable scenes flashed before my eyes like a lantern, the rippling lake water, the sparse forest, the green grassland, the white boulder, the pair of embroidered shoes swaying up and down, and that innocent and lovely smile... Who was it that let out a silvery laugh by my ear, and who was it that called out to me so intimately, calling me "Shen Gege"?

  "Father said that a daughter's name should not be casually told to others, but since you saved me, I'll quietly tell you... just call me ācí!"

  "Shen Gege, Ah Ci comes to this forest every day to play with you. Every day she brings delicious Fu Rong cake made by her mother for you. Is that okay?"

  "Shen Gege, if you're a monster, then Ah Ci wouldn't be afraid to come to the banks of Xiang Lake!"

  "You... you gave me such a beautiful pearl, I'm really grateful to you. I... I don't have anything else to give to Brother Shen, only a handkerchief I made myself the other day, please don't despise it!"

  "Shen Gege is not a monster! Don't catch him!"

  Those delicate, crisp voices echoed in his mind, surged in his chest, and when he came to himself, Xuan Zhen's trembling fingers had been searching the empty air in front of his chest for a long time. He hastily grabbed the pouch on the ground as if it were a treasure, tightly clutching it in his palm.

  Ah Ci... Ruan Ci... So she was the owner of those captivating green shoes that had haunted his dreams all these years... Xuan Zhen thought to himself, dazed, it's been so long since then, and he had forgotten so much over the years... What about that little girl from back then? Where is she now? Does she still laugh as much, and get excited to the point of being unable to move whenever she sees something fun or delicious? And does she know that her Shen Gege had long ago...

  A sharp pain shot through his chest and he gazed at the purse in his palm, but was no longer willing to think about it.

  The lotus pattern on the purse had faded, its petals broken and torn. The mandarin ducks looked dull, the needlework was fine but couldn't hide the scars of being brutally ripped apart. Xuan Zhen's eyes caught sight of those marks, his heart skipped a beat, and after the initial pain subsided, a complex mix of emotions slowly welled up inside him.

  "Now you can still brazenly tell me that you are human, not a monster?"

  Suddenly, a voice that seemed to be laughing but not quite laughing echoed through the empty palace. Xuan Zhen abruptly raised his head and saw Yu Rou standing not far away, her stunning face reflected in her eyes, and a fierce emotion surged up in his chest, as if his entire heart had been grasped tightly by an invisible hand.

  "Ah Niang..."

  He involuntarily shouted, but the next moment was a shock all over, and he came to his senses. No, that wasn't Mother, just a demoness who looked similar, and his own mother had...had...

  In an instant, a pair of dimly colored beast pupils flashed before his eyes. He suddenly froze, continuing to think blankly: Ah, right... Mother had long been... burned into ashes by a fire...

  In that instant, it seemed as if something flashed once, twice, and finally merged into a piece of flame. The flames that had been extinguished for nineteen years reignited in an instant, in the heart of this young man who was sinking deeper and deeper, gradually falling into that boundless darkness.

  P.S. And finally, in the last sentence, I wrote out the meaning of these three chapter titles...