Chapter 115: Enshrouded in Dense Mist

Pulled along by the spring breeze, we left the military camp. I asked him, "This isn’t a dream, is he really alive?"

“It’s no dream. Before I came, I heard the news and went to check the crystal coffin in the Thirty-Three Heavens. It was empty. He’s my brother for tens of thousands of years—it’s him. It must have been when you cried bitterly that time; your rebirth tears fell on Mount Sumeru and shook the Thirty-Three Heavens. That brat’s primordial spirit has reunited,” Spring Breeze said.

“He’s alive… truly alive…” I kept repeating the words.

“Little crow… are you alright?” Spring Breeze asked with concern.

“I’m fine…” I replied.

“You stubborn fool, can’t you see? He doesn’t regard you as his lover! In his eyes, Yu Fei is just a plaything! The one he loves is Lu Xue! Now the war is over, stop pretending not to care. When he sees Lu Xue, he sees no one else!” Spring Breeze said.

“I know he loves Lu Xue. As long as he’s alive, that’s enough! He doesn’t have to love me,” I said stubbornly.

“Your hair’s black again, and your appearance has changed. What happened?” Spring Breeze asked.

“The God of Illusions gave me a false face and played a trick on me again. Why did you have to say those harsh words just now to save face for me? Now, my face is fake inside and out. What am I supposed to do after causing such a big misunderstanding?” I said.

“I’m annoyed. From now on, I’ll just call you that. Let me have a good look… my lady, my Fei’er,” Spring Breeze teased.

“Stop looking. Once I find the God of Illusions, I’ll have this appearance returned to me,” I said.

“Whether you return it or not, you’re still little crow to me. I’ve seen you turn to ashes before,” Spring Breeze said with a grin.

“He doesn’t recognize me at all…” I said gloomily. In truth, I wished he would recognize me, yet feared if he did…

“He thinks you died accompanying him in burial. Didn’t expect it was you. His mind is clouded with jealousy. He’s too afraid his big jealous pot of a wife would be upset to even bring you up,” Spring Breeze said.

Dragged back to Hundred Flowers Island by Spring Breeze, Little White came running happily. Upon seeing me, he paused for a moment, then leapt onto me. “Mother! You changed your appearance again!”

“Good of you to still recognize your mother, you little rascal,” Spring Breeze said.

“Of course! I promised Father God in a dream to watch over Mother and never lose her. All the passing immortal birds and spirit beasts say Uncle Second is back! Triumphant! They all went to pay respects. Let’s go see him,” Little White said.

“Mother just got back and already saw him,” I said, holding Little White.

“Why didn’t you bring me along?”

“The front line is dangerous. Uncle Second is busy.”

“I’m not afraid of danger. Has Father God come back too?”

“He’s busy as well. Little White, listen to your father.”

Thinking of the scene in the illusion created by Lord Ming, holding Little Mingzhong, sorrow welled within me. How much grievance must he have hidden behind that mask? Mingzhong was gone from this world, and Little White’s “Father God” wouldn’t return either.

“Little White, I’m sorry. I’ll stay with you every day from now on,” I said, hugging him tightly.

“Mother… is Uncle Second Father God?” Little White suddenly asked.

“No! Don’t say that!” I hurriedly replied.

“Father is Father God. Stop thinking about your Father God and Uncle Second. Neither is trustworthy!” Spring Breeze said.

“Mother likes Uncle Second. Does that mean Uncle Second came back and doesn’t want Mother anymore?” Little White said sadly.

“No! Little White, if you say such things again, Mother will be angry!” I scolded him.

“A heartbroken woman is not to be trifled with… Little White, let’s hide for a while and let your mother calm down,” Spring Breeze took Little White away.

“Why doesn’t Uncle Second want Mother anymore? Has he fallen for someone else?” Little White asked Spring Breeze.

“Uncle Second has a lady. Father wants your mother, and that’s enough. Your mother is too pitiful… Little White, you must be good to your mother, understand?”

“Yes!”

I sat alone on the Sea-Watching Stone of Hundred Flowers Island, Spring Breeze’s words echoing in my mind: “Uncle Second has a lady…”

He’s alive. I’m happy—happier than I’ve ever been. I’ve told the heavens countless times, as long as he’s alive, as long as he returns, I’ll pay any price. He’s alive, and the woman he loves is alive. His lady is Lu Xue, whether she’s a beautiful immortal, a traitorous spy, a fiery demon lord remaking heaven and earth, or a scheming jealous wife—whether she lives or dies—he always loves her. That feather is nothing but a storyteller’s fiction. I married Mingzhong and bore Little White; haven’t I always felt unable to face him? Isn’t this just perfect? What else do I want? What more could I desire? Yunxiao has been reborn, Yu Fei is dead. Even if the God of Illusions gave me this stunning face, what good is it? I am nothing but Spring Breeze’s false lady—why humiliate myself?

With that thought, I flew straight to the Myriad Appearance Divine Palace in the Thirty-Three Heavens, only to return disappointed—God of Illusions was wandering the world. That cunning god must have known I would come looking and so avoided me. What does he want? Is tormenting a heartbroken person really so amusing?

“Heartbroken… where is heartbroken Keke?” Suddenly, I realized I hadn’t seen her after the battle. “Could she have gone looking for Mingmo again? We haven’t even seen Mingmo during this war!”

In the cold abyss of the Sea Eye, on the vast Tiangai Island, Jiang Wu and the Western Sea immortals lay quietly asleep on ice crystal beds. Mingmo and Keke sat chatting inside an ice mountain crystal cavern…

“How long until we can leave?” Keke asked Mingmo.

“If I’m right, the day after tomorrow I can take you out. I’ll go check then,” Mingmo said.

“You actually disguised yourself as Ming Su, a servant of the Sea Duke’s mansion! How many lies have you told me? Why did you deceive me at Leixia Marsh?” Keke scolded.

“Sorry, I didn’t want to lie. But you wouldn’t tell me. I needed to know the true identity of the Great Sound God. I’m searching for an old friend,” Mingmo said helplessly.

“An old friend?” Keke asked.

“My junior sister,” Mingmo said.

“Yu Fei is dead. I told Mingzhong not to look for her anymore. How many times do I have to say it? If it weren’t for Mingmo forcibly marrying her! If it weren’t for you, this bastard… this mother, capturing me—would she have ended up like that?” Keke cursed Jiang Wu countless times while on Jade Bamboo Mountain, accusing her of dragging others into misfortune to feel better, trampling on others to find her own sense of security.

“He didn’t force her. You don’t understand his heart,” Mingmo said.

“I don’t understand a heart that kills! Or a heart that’s cowardly!” Keke rolled her eyes at Mingmo.

“A cowardly heart? Are you talking about me?” Mingmo asked.

“Your mother and you!” Keke said firmly.

Mingmo sighed. “She only wanted to protect herself and me too much.”

“You’re still defending her. What she did isn’t different from Tiande, the King of the Underworld, or Mingzhong. She wasn’t a hostage; she just liked being that kind of woman,” Keke said, clearly disliking Jiang Wu.

“Don’t speak ill of her. She met the wrong people. No man could truly protect her or treat her sincerely,” Mingmo said softly.

“Your mother is clearly greedy, marrying the king and the King of the Underworld. Your two fathers treat her that way, yet she enjoys it!”

Mingmo was silent.

“You did so many bad things for her sake in the Netherworld! You caused your master’s death! Even if you saved your mother from the Netherworld, how can you face the Heavenly Realm? There’s no place for a traitor in this vast heaven and earth. How do you and your mother live like this?” Keke’s complaints were laced with concern.

“I’ve wronged my master and Fei’er. My master treated me like a mountain of kindness; Fei’er regarded me as a brother. Back then, to create chaos in Jade Pure Realm and fish in troubled waters, I set fire to Wanjuan Pavilion, framing her, and deliberately let Lu Xue discover the bird message she sent, causing her to be killed by Mingzhong and forcing master to use soul control magic to save her, causing her daily torment,” Mingmo confessed.

“You did such a thing! You’re despicable!” Keke scolded.

“At that time, I only wanted to save my mother and escape the King of the Underworld’s grasp. I never expected my mother to…”

“Your mother willingly stayed with the King of the Underworld, right? She took that murderous, arsonist, and merciless king as her backing. Since you know how cruel the King is, you should have warned her sooner!” Keke said angrily.

“She couldn’t be warned. As long as Lord Ming is around, no one dares to speak or act. His ghostly eyes and ears are everywhere in the Netherworld. He can hear even a needle drop. One glance or movement, he can see how many grains of rice you’ve eaten. Living under his watch means being cautious beyond caution, careful beyond careful, with no room for error. We’ve suffered too much,” Mingmo complained.

“You’ve had such a hard life?” Keke softened.

“Yes. The happiest days were those carefree times in Jade Pure Realm, free and unrestrained. Master bore everything for us, letting us play without worries.”

“Then why did you betray him?”

“When I saw Fei’er dead at Pursuit Immortal Cliff, master was heartbroken. That’s when I realized my mistakes.”

“Just realizing your mistakes isn’t enough!”

“I repent and try to make amends—for my mother, for myself. I don’t know if Fei’er can forgive me…”

“Do you like her?”

“She sees me as a brother.”

“And you?”

“Before, I was her junior brother; later her junior sister; now…”

“Now what?”

“Now… family.”

“So you saved me and talked to me because of my good relationship with Fei’er?”

“No.”

“Then why?”

“I like you.”

“Ah?”

“I like you!”

Keke’s cheeks flushed.

“In these five hundred years, I’ve learned one thing: love must be spoken. Otherwise, when you want to say it, it’s too late—it’s torture!”

“Oh…” Keke blushed, lowered her head, and nervously fiddled with her sleeve, considering whether to confess her feelings.

Mingmo hugged Keke.

“What are you doing!” Keke exclaimed.

“You like me too, right?” Mingmo asked.

Keke’s face blazed with color.

Thunder and fire… two passionate, reckless hearts came together…

At the time, I knew nothing of this. When I came to, Keke was gone from the island. Spring Breeze told me she had gone looking for me. I guessed she must have gone after Mingmo.

“Keke must have gone to find Mingmo. Mingmo is like a stray dog, despised by heaven and earth. If he kidnaps Keke to use her as a hostage, making demands, that’s trouble.”

“We have to find this silly girl quickly!” Spring Breeze urgently issued the Spring Birth Order, notifying all of Jiuzhou to search for Keke.

After waiting a day on the island with Spring Breeze, fruitless, I had no choice but to head to the Western Sea to search for Mingmo’s whereabouts for Keke’s safety.