Chapter 156

In the profound darkness, the shadows of trees turned hazy, their branches twisted and gnarled, like claws reaching out. Flickering lights, like ghost fires, wavered among the grass.

The grass stirred, the light spilled open, and revealed two figures supporting each other.

The journey had been one of stops and starts, leaving their ankles sore. Pushing through layer upon layer of dense undergrowth, crossing stream after stream, the closer Qing Zhouxue drew to that place, the more clearly she could sense a strange familiarity.

But these mountains, these waters.

Dark as pitch, impossible to see a hand before one's face—surely such a place would leave a deep impression. She couldn't have forgotten it... but how had she come here?

When the last strip of jerky was eaten, master and disciple happened to arrive before a massive boulder mountain.

"This is the Sword Tomb."

Yun Shuchen traced the mottled, carved marks. The crude, hasty strokes were not the work of a hand, but looked more like two great characters slashed out by sword wind.

Each character was enormous; even the light of the blazing torch couldn't illuminate a single stroke in full. Each one seemed to weigh a thousand jin.

Qing Zhouxue took in the whole sight. Her pupils contracted slightly, she took a half step back, her brows furrowed tightly.

Suddenly, a soul-calling whisper sounded by her ear, and in the next instant, it dissipated into nothing.

"Come..."

Qing Zhouxue startled slightly and said coldly, "Who's there?"

Only Yun Shuchen looked back in surprise: "Hm?"

Qing Zhouxue was taken aback, puzzled. "Master... did you hear a sound?"

"Apart from the wind, nothing else."

Perhaps in all the world, only she could hear it—just like the sword spirit that spoke only to her.

Qing Zhouxue closed her eyes and focused for a moment. When she opened them again, there was unexpected joy in her gaze. "There's a spiritual vein in here."

Yun Shuchen was about to speak when her hand was suddenly clasped tight, and she was pulled into the stone cave. The instant they entered the opening, it was as if withered trees met spring—a gentle east wind greeted them, and from body to heart, they felt nothing but joy and ease.

But the cave floor was uneven. Yun Shuchen accidentally bumped into Qing Zhouxue. The stones underfoot were damp and slick with moss. The two of them tumbled down the slope. Qing Zhouxue felt a puff of hot air on her face, and a loud splash of water rang in her ears.

Yun Shuchen instinctively clutched at Qing Zhouxue's clothes, but there was a sound of tearing fabric, and her hand closed on nothing.

Her vision was hazy through the mist. She blinked and looked toward the pool. That tattered garment of Qing'er's was ripped clean off by her tug, falling away in one piece.

The spring surface was dotted with wisps of spiritual light spilling over, like stars clustering together.

A mass of ink-black hair moved in the water. In a moment, Qing Zhouxue surfaced, dripping wet, beads of water clinging to her brows and lashes, rolling off her like transparent jade.

She rubbed her eyes and remarked, "This spring water has abundant spiritual energy."

But Yun Shuchen pressed her down firmly and frowned. "How did we come in?"

Qing Zhouxue said, "We walked in with our feet."

Facing her master's speechless expression, Qing Zhouxue said in surprise, "...Should we not have come in with our feet?"

Yun Shuchen remembered the barrier at the entrance that had cost her so much effort back then; no matter what, she couldn't break it or enter.

And now Qing Zhouxue had simply walked in with one easy step, even pulling her in as well.

She was baffled, and only managed a vague "Hmm," finally attributing it to the special nature of the Sword Soul's physique.

Two dusty figures fell into the spiritual spring, yet they remained spotless, thanks to the purifying power of innate spiritual energy.

After circulating their energy in the spring for a time, the surface wounds that had plagued Yun Shuchen for days soon healed.

As her dantian filled, the hunger in her belly eased, and gradually faded altogether.

Cultivators cannot go without spiritual energy, just as fish cannot leap out of water. Had the deficiency lasted too long—decades, for instance—their flesh and bone would age just like mortals.

Yun Shuchen had never felt so light. The fatigue of these past days of travel was swept away. When she opened her eyes again, within arm's reach, she met another pair of dark, bright eyes.

"What are you doing?"

Yun Shuchen smiled.

Qing Zhouxue leaned in to peer at her. "These days have been so dark, I haven't had a good look at you in a long time."

This time, Yun Shuchen paused only for a moment, then suddenly cupped Qing'er's face, pulled her closer, and rested her forehead against hers. "...Then look carefully, remember clearly. No matter what, don't forget."

Qing Zhouxue was slightly taken aback. Yun Shuchen's expression remained gentle, but her eyes grew inexplicably moist and bright.

She asked, puzzled, "What does that mean?"

Yun Shuchen quickly withdrew her gaze, as if nothing had happened. She blinked softly, then rested her chin on Qing Zhouxue's shoulder and whispered in her ear, "Do you know, there is a treasure in the Sword Tomb called Starfire."

'Starfire shifts' means the passage of time. Ancient texts record that it can reverse time at the cost of one's life.

But it was only a legend; no one had ever used it.

Though some sword cultivators had stumbled into the Sword Tomb, since ancient times, no one had ever been able to lift the 'Starfire.'

Qing Zhouxue suddenly understood. "Master came here before? For this treasure?"

"Mm." Yun Shuchen's hand found her bare waist, the feel pleasing, and she couldn't resist rubbing it a few more times. "But back then, I couldn't get in, so I gave up."

Qing Zhouxue felt a tickle at her waist and instinctively pressed closer. "What use is it?"

"A heaven-defying thing that can turn the wheel of years."

Yun Shuchen's hand moved around to her belly and lay still. "Back then, I wanted to return to the past and save my shiniang."

Hearing this, Qing Zhouxue was stunned. "Can fate be changed?"

The next moment, a soft, warm peck landed on her lips, and the woman said gently, "Qingqing, I don't know."

Qing Zhouxue felt the soft flesh of her cheek pinch—her master couldn't resist giving it a little bite. She didn't understand why Yun Shuchen had suddenly... then she remembered that her clothes had long been torn off by her master.

Yun Shuchen nuzzled her disciple for a long while before finally feeling a bit better inside. She still pinned her against the edge of the spring, burying her nose and mouth in her hair, rubbing slowly, messing up those strands until they were in disarray.

Qing Zhouxue's breathing was slightly uneven, but clearly this still hadn't diverted her attention. "Then... does Master still want the Starfire?"

"Mm."

Yun Shuchen paused, lifted her hand, and brushed the furrowed brow of Qing Zhouxue. "What's wrong?"

If Master returned to the past and fate got tangled, would she ever see her again?

Qing Zhouxue felt a vague unease. For some reason, her heart felt obstructed and uncomfortable. But such a thought of Yun Shuchen's was entirely reasonable, and she didn't know how to articulate this feeling.

"By the way, that day... did they ever say what they wanted your Sword Soul for?"

Watching Qing Zhouxue's expression stiffen, her breath catch.

Yun Shuchen had only asked tentatively, but seeing her like this, she immediately regretted it. She pulled her close and rubbed her back. "Alright, let's not talk about that."

Qing Zhouxue's body was tense. She knew that clarifying this matter was vital for both her master and herself. "I..."

Qing Zhouxue bit her lower lip until it turned white. "They wanted my physical body to die, and then... the Sword Soul could change masters. The rest I couldn't understand."

"And then..." Qing Zhouxue said, "It seems the weaker my consciousness, the slower my healing."

"Change masters?" Yun Shuchen murmured the phrase.

This was different from the news Li Chaoyin had sent—Taishang Wangqing clearly wanted to find Qing Zhouxue herself, their intent unknown.

But Guan Weiqing, the Sect Leader of the Liuyun Sect, secretly wanted to kill her to take the Sword Soul.

Looking at it this way, that old ancestor, did he really not know what his underlings were doing?

Just as she was thinking this, sounds came from outside the Sword Tomb—as if a large group of people were approaching.

Qing Zhouxue immediately grew alert. She threw on her clothes and came out of the water, water splashing once, then dried in an instant by her spiritual power.

"Master, our entrance just now probably broke the barrier of the Sword Tomb, and it hasn't closed yet. I don't know who it is, but they're following in."

Yun Shuchen followed close behind. "Let's head deeper first."

The two of them supported each other, retreating toward the depths of the Sword Tomb.

The cave was very deep, full of twists and turns. The stones were all damp, and a single misstep could easily cause a fall.

But their dantians were now full, so they had no fear, and their movements were much lighter.

Yun Shuchen and Qing Zhouxue headed toward the light deep in the cave. The stone walls narrowed, almost trapping them. They squeezed through a crevice—

And suddenly the space opened up before them.

Qing Zhouxue's eyes stung. The first thing she noticed was that dazzling light.

A huge, blazing lamp burned in the middle of a vast open stone heap, slowly bobbing up and down.

Around it were countless broken swords and discarded metal, each embedded in the stone piles. They looked like jagged spikes jutting from a mountain of waste, with a wild and desolate beauty.

The stone chamber was immense, stretching upward. The lamp light was bright enough, but there were places the light couldn't reach, shrouded in darkness.

Like an unfathomable sky.

"That is the Starfire."

Yun Shuchen squinted at the lamp. She flew up, hovered before it, and slowly extended a hand.

The moment she touched it, a ray of barrier light burst out, and the back of her hand was viciously struck away.

Yun Shuchen was startled, retreated several steps, and landed. Qing Zhouxue hurried to catch her.

Qing Zhouxue glanced back at the crevice; the voices were growing closer. She whispered, "By the sound, they're about twenty or thirty zhang away. They'll find us soon. I don't know if they're from the Taichu Sect or the Liuyun Sect."

"No matter." Yun Shuchen rubbed the back of her hand, laughing coldly. "Our dantians are full now. If Guan Weiqing dares to come, we'll settle our accounts with him."

Qing Zhouxue nodded. She surveyed the surroundings, pulled Yun Shuchen to hide behind a giant stone sword, and suppressed their auras, making it hard to pinpoint their location.

The footsteps boomed like a thousand troops and horses, shaking the entire chamber's ceiling with a thunderous roar.

Listening, the master and disciple's expressions grew more and more grave.

This time, there were many coming.