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“Senior, I....” Xu Qing steeled himself and prepared to offer a full explanation.

“If you didn’t write the letter, then that means someone’s toying with you. You should look into that. Find out who in the Eight Sect Coalition would dare to deceive me. After you find out who it was, I’ll bury them here. Not even that person’s Master would speak up for someone so outrageously disrespectful.”

Her smile was as beautiful as a flower, but from the look in her eyes, she was very serious. Xu Qing got the feeling she wasn’t joking at all.

He glanced down at the Captain.

The Captain had heard Arch-Immortal Plumdark’s words, and it caused him to shiver. Looking very embarrassed, he glanced up at Xu Qing. He had also been able to tell how serious she was, and wanted to offer a warning to Xu Qing. Unfortunately, his mouth was still sealed, as was his divine sense. All he could do to communicate was blink.

Xu Qing looked down at him and sighed inwardly. He was absolutely unconvinced that Arch-Immortal Plumdark didn’t know what was going on. And there was no way she didn’t know who really wrote that letter. After all, she was a Void Returning expert, on the same level as the patriarch. People like that, with all they had experienced in life, were skilled schemers. In fact, if Xu Qing was right, she probably knew from the moment she laid eyes on the letter that it wasn’t from him.

All he could do was turn and look calmly at her.

Her smile was so beautiful it would entrance most people. “Anyway, in your letter you promised that, after you got back from traveling, you would tell me about your past.”

From the look in her eyes, she seemed very serious.

Down below, the Captain was blinking like mad as he tried to pass a message to Xu Qing. He was worried that the blunt and forthright Xu Qing would reveal the truth of the matter. After all, if Arch-Immortal Plumdark knew the truth, but was pretending she didn’t, then Xu Qing could ruin everything.

Xu Qing didn’t say anything.

As the Captain waited anxiously, seven or eight breaths of time passed.

Meanwhile, Xu Qing noted how serious Arch-Immortal Plumdark looked.

“My past? I was just an ordinary mortal, born in a little place in the continent of South Phoenix. It was called Peerless City. My family ran a postal station. Most of the time we sent messages with birds. Because of that, we raised lots and lots of them. We had a crow. A sparrow. Also a pigeon. They were nice-looking birds, and they were nice to me. One day the crow attracted the attention of an eagle. When the eagle came, the birds scattered. Having no idea where they went, I left Peerless City to look for them.”

“Did you find them?” she asked softly.

“I found out where the sparrow and the pigeon are. Later on, I’ll go get them and take them home.”

“I hope that works out for you. What else happened after you left the city?”

“Not much,” Xu Qing said calmly. “I saw some vultures. They were very fierce. I also saw some turtledoves, which were equally fierce and nearly impossible to communicate with. Oh, right. I saw some cuckoo birds, which were very crafty, but they ended up being eaten by the vultures.”

Arch-Immortal Plumdark looked at him without saying a word.

Down below, the Captain was standing there quietly.

Xu Qing kept talking, his voice calm.

“I kept going until I saw a tree with a woodpecker in it. I rested there for a bit. That was when the storm started. Lightning hit the tree and killed the woodpecker. That was also where I saw a white egret for the first time in my life.”

Arch-Immortal Plumdark nodded. “They’re beautiful. Pure and holy.”

“Except it also died. Its partner had been eaten by a falcon some years back. It lingered for a long time there until it grew old. I buried it there. Next I ended up in a forest the color of blood, the kind of place where the weak are the prey of the strong. It was a very dangerous place. That was where I saw the third white egret, plus a skylark, a parrot, and a yellow oriole. Lots and lots of birds. Oh, there was also a wild dog in that forest. And that’s my story.” Smiling, he looked at Arch-Immortal Plumdark.

“What about the second white egret?” she asked.

A flash of reminiscence appeared in his eyes.

“The second white egret,” he said softly, “also died. It was killed by a bat. After that happened, I put the bat to death.”

The pocket realm went completely silent. The Captain looked down, making it impossible to see his facial expression. Wu Jianwu looked confused. Clearly, he didn’t understand the story. As far as he was concerned, it sounded like Xu Qing came from a very interesting family that raised a lot of birds.

Arch-Immortal Plumdark looked at him, her eyes were full of concern and pity. “What about your future?”

“I really wanted to find that crow,” Xu Qing said. He smiled. “And kill it. After I kill it, I want to find a way to kill that eagle too.” As he told his story, his previous nervousness at being in the presence of Arch-Immortal Plumdark faded away. He even looked relaxed, and smiled through most of the story. “Senior, what’s your story?”

“Mine?” Her long legs were crossed, and she had her hands on her knees, making her curves even more prominent. She glanced at Xu Qing, and her eyes flickered with memories.

“I have a simple past. I don’t remember much about my father and mother. The person I remember the most is my Master. He raised me. He taught me my magical techniques. Back then, our Dark Serenity Sect wasn’t part of the coalition, and it wasn’t very big.

“A lot of things happened. Eventually, the sect grew to the size it is today. It joined the coalition. Much of that was thanks to the work done by me and my Elder Brother, who... I hate. But let’s not get into all that. Your question actually made me think of something that I wanted to tell you.”

As she smiled, her cheeks were a bit flush, and her eyes were like crescent moons.

“There’s a dream I have occasionally. Years ago, I used to have it every night. Then it was every year. Nowadays, it’s every ten years....

“In the dream, the world is pitch dark. I can’t see anything except for a lamp, which is right in front of me. I think the lamp is violet, but honestly that’s just a guess. The lamp is extinguished. It has no light. That makes it almost impossible to see. Nor can I touch it. It’s as if it’s too far away, but at the same time, incredibly close to me.

“In my imagination, it looks like a blooming bauhinia flower. And living on it is a little violet phoenix with its wings spread. [1]

“That lamp has always appeared in my dreams, and it’s always extinguished. And there is never any light in that world. Perhaps that’s why I’ve always been looking for light.” Her voice got softer and softer as she spoke, until she was whispering. “I’m not sure why, but the dream is very realistic. So is the lamp.”

Xu Qing was taken aback, and didn’t know what to say.

Time passed in which neither Xu Qing nor Arch-Immortal Plumdark said anything. They just sat there quietly.

Finally, Arch-Immortal Plumdark smiled. “Xu Qing, do you mind lending me that piece of the Darkspirit Everwill Door you have?”

He took the black chunk of wood out of his bag of holding and put it down between them.

She picked it up and waved it through the air. Instantly, black light erupted from the wood, spreading out and turning into an ancient wooden door. It pulsed with a cold, sinister aura that filled the area. And it seemed to be filled with a sensation of ancient time.

As Xu Qing watched, she reached out with her delicate hand and touched the door.

It slowly opened in her direction. It contained nothing but darkness. Like that of a bottomless chasm. That was the world that existed in her heart. Perhaps it wasn’t that it contained nothing. Instead, it contained infinite black. There was no light inside, and no light could shine into it. It needed light. It needed something shining.

Xu Qing suddenly came to an understanding. After all, when he opened that door, it erupted with light.

The door faded away and turned back into a piece of wood, which dropped onto Arch-Immortal Plumdark’s palm. She rolled it between her fingers briefly, then handed it back to Xu Qing and stood up. Her hair cascaded down like a dazzling waterfall, and the elegant way she stood made Xu Qing think about the story she had just told. He sighed inwardly.

“Xu Qing, do you remember Parting with Sorrow?”

He nodded. Taking out the willow flute she’d given him, he put it to his mouth and started to play.

The flute music drifted about like the wind.

At some point, the music stopped. At some point, Arch-Immortal Plumdark vanished.

Apparently, she’d brought him here to listen to a story of his past, and also to hear Parting with Sorrow. Before leaving, she offered an assessment of the music.

“Not very good.”

Her words echoed in his ears.

After thinking a bit, he looked at the Captain and Wu Jianwu.

Both were shaking their heads. Apparently, the music really didn’t sound very good.

Face completely expressionless, Xu Qing stood and left the pocket realm.

It was early morning outside. Unbeknownst to him, he had spent an entire night with that snake skeleton. As light spread, Xu Qing headed to pay respects to Master Sixth.

Along the way, his transmission jade slip vibrated as he received a voice message from Huang Yan.

“Xu Qing, like I told you yesterday, Elder Sister and I are going back to South Phoenix. We’re leaving now, and we just wanted to say goodbye.”

Xu Qing responded, “You’re leaving now? Are you at the teleportation portal? Or the port?”

“No, we’re not teleporting. We want to take an ocean voyage, just the two of us. We’re about to board the ship.”

Xu Qing could hear the smile in Huang Yan’s voice. He was obviously very happy about going back to South Phoenix. Xu Qing hurried to the port, and before long, he caught sight of Second Elder Sister’s dharmaship. Huang Yan was there.

Upon seeing Xu Qing, Huang Yan’s face lit up with a smile. Rushing forward, he gave him a big hug.

Second Elder Sister walked out of the cabin and also smiled at Xu Qing. “Little Junior Brother, I just got back from a mission last night, that’s why I wasn’t at the banquet. Congratulations on becoming a swordsage!”

Xu Qing politely clasped his hands. He wasn’t very familiar with Second Elder Sister, but he would never forget what she’d done for him back in that Sixth Peak shop back in Seven Blood Eyes. Granted, she’d done it for Huang Yan, but even still, she’d saved him a lot of trouble. [2]

With another smile, Second Elder Sister started her dharmaship.

As they sailed toward the open sea, Huang Yan waved and shouted, “Xu Qing, I have a good friend in the county capital. I mentioned you to him and asked him to watch out for you. Remember, if you find things dull out there, you can always come back to South Phoenix! It doesn’t matter what trouble you get into, as long as you’re in South Phoenix, you’ll be safe!”

Huang Yan emphasized his words by thumping his chest proudly.

Xu Qing grinned and nodded. As the sea breeze drifted past, he clasped hands and bowed.

1. Real-life bauhinia flowers have the character ‘violet’ in them (and remember Arch-Immortal Plumdark’s name also contains that same character). The flowers are purple when they bloom. Here’s an image. ☜

2. The Sixth Peak shop incident was in chapters 72 and 73. ☜