Chapter 64

"Yes!" The Snow God suddenly grew excited. "Yes, that's the name! What else could it be but that he's done too many bad deeds? He's afraid of getting what he deserves!"

Lin Yu asked, "You hold quite a grudge against him?"

"Of course I do! He's the most prominent among the gods who look down on me!" He suddenly remembered something else. "You know, I heard recently that the Moon God is looking for this Lin Jiyue again."

Lin Yu hadn't heard the Moon God's name in a long time; she had almost forgotten about him. She grew interested. "What does he want with her?"

The Snow God glanced around to make sure no one was listening, then lowered his voice. "He wants to find Lin Jiyue to cooperate with her."

Lin Yu nearly lost control of her expression. Cooperate on what? Wasn't the Moon God trying to kill her? He had gone to great lengths, constructing several illusions to trap and kill her, and now suddenly he wanted to collude with her?

"But I think it's unlikely," the Snow God continued. "That Lin Jiyue died long ago. The Immortal Si Ming even brought the book of destinies to show the Immortal Lord He, and only after confirming she was truly dead did the Immortal Lord He relax. But my opinion doesn't count for much—the Moon God insists she's still alive."

Lin Yu had heard of the Immortal Lord He. He was the god in charge of mortal marriage and destiny. So the god who had dreamed of her back then was him.

Lin Yu asked, puzzled, "Since it's already confirmed she's truly dead, why is the Moon God still looking for her? What does he hope to gain from a dead person?"

"Because... a few months ago, the Immortal Lord He dreamed of that woman again. He was so frightened that he wanted to dig up her grave in the middle of the night, but several immortal attendants stopped him. It caused quite a stir, and he insisted she wasn't dead."

The Snow God went on, "My guess is that the Moon God wants to find Lin Jiyue to help him kill other gods. He's made enemies and can't act himself, but he can find someone else. Think about it—the Immortal Lord He was scared out of his wits just from a dream, which means this Lin Jiyue must be vicious and ruthless. According to the Immortal Lord He's dream, her head was cut off and hung on the city gate..."

As the Snow God spoke, the more he talked, the more he felt something was off. Why did this feel familiar? He looked Lin Yu up and down, and his voice gradually grew quieter. Lin Yu looked at him, puzzled. "And then?"

"Wait, I have a guess..." The Snow God's voice began to tremble inexplicably. "You don't happen to know this Lin Jiyue, do you..."

Or, he had an even worse guess. Memories of the night he killed the God of Glory surged back. How many people in the world could be this ruthless? Besides, they both had the surname Lin, both were young women in their twenties—could they be the same person?

The Snow God's back went cold. He wanted to slap himself. He had seen Lin Yu kill the God of Glory. He knew she would dare to kill even a god. But because she had killed the God of Glory, and his hatred had blinded him, he had chosen to help her cover it up. And later, he had completely forgotten what Lin Yu had done.

And yet, because her identity was convenient, and because he wanted to recast the Snow Mirror, he had come to her? Wasn't he afraid she would kill him too?

What had he been thinking? Had the God of Glory damaged his brain?

"You..." The Snow God swallowed nervously, his heartbeat quickening for no reason.

"I don't know her." Lin Yu answered curtly, denying it outright.

The Snow God let out a breath of relief. "Right, at first glance, you don't look like a bad person. I've heard the Immortal Lord He describe Lin Jiyue as looking fierce and menacing."

Of course, that Lin Yu didn't look like a bad person was only at first glance.

Lin Yu: ...

Lin Yu said, "But the Immortal Lord He is a god who manages marriage. What evil deeds could he have done to be this afraid?"

"Ah, you don't know the half of it. He loves making arbitrary matches. He enjoys pairing princesses with commoners, or ladies with bandits. He especially likes to pair young, kind-hearted girls with the sons of their enemies. The bigger the grudge, the better. Today you slaughter my family, tomorrow I marry you. Isn't that madness? He's also done his fair share of breaking up lovers and then arranging terrible matches for them..."

The Snow God went on and on. Lin Yu's mouth twitched. "And those girls just went along with it without noticing anything wrong? It'd be a wonder they didn't get up in the middle of the night to sharpen a knife and kill someone."

The Snow God waved his hand. "That's where you're wrong. Those who get 'matched' by the Immortal Lord He are like they're possessed—they fall desperately in love and will marry no matter what. Only after a few years or a decade do they wake up, but by then, what's the use? Their families are all dead, they've married their enemy, and they probably have children. Even if they hate it, what can they do? They have to swallow their pride and make the best of it."

The Snow God had said a lot in one breath, but finally he sighed. "Some, after waking up, kill their husbands and children, but those are rare—one in ten thousand. The vast majority either stay silent or kill themselves because they can't bear it. Those who stay silent become twisted. They can't take revenge on the villains, so they take it out on their children, raising yet another generation of misery. The Immortal Lord He is truly wicked."

For some reason, Lin Yu thought of Zhou Yuan. Zhou Yuan had been like that. She originally had someone she loved, but Fu Zheng suddenly fell in love with her at first sight and forced her to marry him with a blank imperial decree. Later, she killed Fu Zheng on the Yellow Spring Road.

Lin Yu listened to the Snow God's long lament, but in the end, she said nothing.

According to what he said, her current situation was that both the Immortal Lord He and the Moon God were looking for her. But the Moon God had seen her—if he had seen the Immortal Lord He's painting, he would surely recognize her and come after her. Yet the Moon God had not.

That meant the person in the Immortal Lord He's painting did not resemble her, which was why she had remained safe until now.

If she didn't kill the Immortal Lord He, then one day, when he found her, even if she posed no threat to him, he would kill her without mercy—because he had dreamed of his own gruesome death. Lin Yu wouldn't give him that chance, so she had to kill him first.

Lin Yu calculated in her heart: the Immortal Lord He, the Ghost King, the Moon God, the Crimson God—all of them had to die, or she would face endless trouble.

From the very beginning, Lin Yu's goal had been to ascend and become a god. She wanted to know why the gods relied on the absurd practice of live human sacrifices to increase their power. Now, as she had journeyed on, her goal had changed. She still wanted to uncover the truth behind the human sacrifices, but she had realized that these gods who committed atrocities were the root cause. Even without human sacrifices, they would find other ways to harm the common people.

Only when they were all dead could the chaos of the past hundred years finally come to an end.

And then no one would plague the mortal world anymore. The human sacrifices, the reversal of fortune, the extension of lifespan, the forced marriages—all the chaos they caused would eventually come to an end.

...

In the evening, several menial disciple apprentices came and went in the courtyard at the foot of the mountain, carrying in six or seven large boxes. When the boxes were opened, they were filled to the brim with various ancient texts. Lin Yu felt a headache just looking at them.

After the apprentices carried the books inside, Lin Yu thanked them and instructed Chen Lu to escort them out.

The full boxes of books nearly filled an empty room. Some were so new they looked like they had never been opened, while others had yellowed pages so thin they might tear at the slightest touch. Some were even bamboo scrolls, likely artifacts from a hundred years ago.

The Xianzun had certainly spared no expense. Lin Yu estimated that the old books were likely unique copies. She didn't touch the old ones but casually picked up a few that looked new. When she opened one, her headache worsened—as she had expected, it was abstruse and difficult to understand.

Lin Yu had at least studied for a few years and was well-versed in medical classics. But on this book, every page she turned contained characters she didn't even recognize.

These cultivators loved to appear profound and unfathomable. Even the most basic books were deliberately written in such a complex manner, using obscure words, so that children of ordinary families couldn't possibly learn on their own. They would have to pay a fortune to attend the Cultivation Academy to learn the rudiments. This completely barred ordinary people from cultivating and pursuing immortality.

Lin Yu flipped through a few more pages and then tossed the book back into the box. She glanced at the mountainous pile of books and estimated that she would never finish learning all of them in her lifetime. As she was lost in thought, Chen Lu returned from escorting the apprentices out.

Lin Yu asked, "Has Ting He woken up?"

Chen Lu looked puzzled for a moment, then quickly realized she meant the person in the back courtyard. She pouted. "She ran away. Oh, she left you a note."

Lin Yu had already guessed that Ting He, upon waking, would not want to negotiate with her. Their positions were opposed—Ting He's family had been killed by the Heaven's Mandate Tower, and Lin Yu was the Divine Maiden of the Tower she hated most. Even if Ting He suspected Lin Yu was different from the others, she wouldn't let down her guard and speak frankly.

Lin Yu held out her hand to Chen Lu. Chen Lu took out the note Ting He had left from her pocket. When Lin Yu saw it, she was surprised for a moment, because what Ting He had left was a strip of cloth, apparently torn from her ragged clothes.

On the cloth, Ting He had written six characters in blood: "Thank you. Until we meet again." She must have been too embarrassed to trouble Chen Lu, not even asking for paper and a brush. Lin Yu laughed softly and put the cloth away.

Just as they were about to leave, Chen Lu suddenly remembered something and stopped, turning around. "By the way, the senior brother said you'll be participating in the trial a month from now, which counts as the Tower's disciple examination. Starting tomorrow, you'll go to Elder Wen's place to study, from the hour of Chen to the hour of Xu every day."

"Besides book learning, he'll also teach you some spells and techniques. After this, your leisurely days are probably over," Chen Lu added regretfully.

Lin Yu: ?

Chen Lu counted on her fingers. "The trial has two parts: a written exam and a martial test." She pointed at the pile of books behind Lin Yu. "You'll be tested on the contents of the books, so you at least need to go through all of them. As for the martial test, I'm very optimistic about you. The disciples of the Tower are a bunch of good-for-nothings. I doubt any of them can beat you! This trial, you absolutely must stand out from the rest!"

Lin Yu twitched the corner of her mouth and asked, not giving up, "They didn't say what score I need to get, did they?"

Seeing Lin Yu's unambitious expression, Chen Lu said, "As our Divine Maiden, you at least have to pass more than most of the disciples. Otherwise, they won't be convinced and will talk behind your back, saying you're unworthy of your position!"

Lin Yu: ...

Lin Yu turned to look back at the pile behind her and forced a smile at Chen Lu. "I'll do my best..."

...

Inside the Hall of Manifest Harmony, Fu Ming was reviewing newly submitted documents from officials. As New Year's Eve approached, government affairs were unusually busy. There was much for Fu Ming to handle, including planning the layout of several surrounding cities for the coming year.

Winter nights were always exceptionally cold. The branches of the trees outside were crowded with roosting birds, but when a gust of wind blew, they scattered and flew away, leaving only bare branches.

Fu Ming looked out at the silent night for no particular reason. The stars in the sky had risen again to return to their original positions.

Fortunately, since Hu Sheng's heavenly punishment a decade ago, cultivators in the world had stopped paying much attention to astrology. So the fall of the twin stars had gone unnoticed by most, which had saved a lot of trouble.

It was at this moment that Lin Yu appeared outside. Her voice came from beyond the hall: "Your Majesty, care for a chat?"