The sky above Shenzhou was painted in the shades of dusk for the first time in a long time, and amid this forlorn horizon, Kaolin drifted across the heavens with the weight of the world on the verge of collapse on his shoulders. This wasn't the Shenzhou he recalled, but a realm shrouded in darkness and ravaged by merciless Demons and Devils.
Even the high winds carried with them the wails of the innocent, the roar of infernal beasts, and the cries of divine blood spilt upon the earth. All of it was the price of his selfish actions. Yet, he didn't regret – not even for a second. He only felt a strong urge to correct his mistakes now that the heavens granted him a second chance – but on his terms, not theirs.
With war looming, Huan-Yue stood no chance against the Demon Army, even with the Moonshadow Guards at their side. The warriors of Yueluo Gu were exceptional martial artists and cultivators, wielders of the Gateway of Greatness, yet the Jinlian Sect, though many in number, were cultivators with little mastery of martial combat. Against such overwhelming odds, to delay the Demon Army for long was nothing more than a futile dream.
Even with his skills and knowledge, Kaolin knew it would not be enough to keep the Demon Army at bay for as long as possible. Not on his own, that is. He would have to seek out Wei Lan and convince him to set aside his grudge, if only this once, and join forces with the Jinlian Sect. Together, his experience and Wei Lan's mastery of battlefield tactics might be enough to hold back the Demon Army's advance…
But how to convince him? It was no easy feat to let go of the very grudge that kept one alive. Kaolin knew this all too well. Yet if Shenzhou was to be saved, sacrifices were required, and his own would be no exception. One way or another, he would reach Wei Lan. But not through force. He was not like the ancient Gods and never would be. He would not walk a path of tyranny, nor mirror their cruelty by not allowing Wei Lan to choose his own fate.
As these thoughts pressed heavily on his troubled mind, his path unknowingly drifted toward the edges of the Qhinshao Forest, where bleak reflections gave way to distant memories. There, amid a clearing veiled by emerald leaves and the scent of ancient pine, his narrowing eyes settled on a familiar figure. Without fully understanding why, he broke off.
Xiyan stood alone in the clearing, poised, her blade tracing graceful arcs through the air, each movement causing her dark robes to flutter and billow like waves crashing on the seashore. Even her qi flowed with an intensity that surged through the entire vicinity, pulsing and stirring the air with tremors, although it was nowhere near the level she should have broken through after all those years.
He should have moved on, pressed forwards, yet he remained rooted in place, drawn to her struggles as she kept failing to break through her cultivation level time and again. And before he knew it, he found himself smiling at her mistakes, until he suddenly became aware of the strange feeling that grew in the deepest chamber of his heart, and stopped smiling.
Surprised more than anything by these strange emotions that had somehow grown within him, even unsettled by them, Kaolin pressed towards Yueluo Gu, only to halt as Xiyan lost control and a surge of qi erupted around her with full force. On instinct, he plummeted from the skies with a speed that blurred the air around him, ready to catch her. Yet before he could reach her, she was already on her feet, slipping from the clearing, more frustrated with herself than in pain from the look of it.
His eyes narrowed with recognition as he descended and let his eyes settle over the dim clearing, which was eerily quiet and devoid of the evil spirits that once haunted it. It was here he had first become aware of Xiyan's bloodline and that inevitable fate that would only leave one of them standing. But before he could reminisce further, he felt it – a blade pressed to his throat.
"Who are you,"—came Xiyan's voice behind him—"and what are you doing here?"
Kaolin froze, every sense on high alert as the cold blade pressed harder against his throat. His body remained perfectly still, though his mind raced out of control with several questions. He had to get out of this situation without drawing attention, without revealing his identity – especially not now, when too many questions were still left unanswered. Most pressing of all: why had Xiyan failed to break through her cultivation level? Until he figured out the reason, he could not face her.
Xiyan crept closer, the blade biting into his skin. "I said, who are you and what are you—"
"I'm just a traveller from the city of Yunxu," he began, still not facing her. "I didn't mean to intrude."
"Traveller? And you happened to pass by a cursed forest overrun by evil spirits?" she said, adding. "You think I'd buy that?" She pressed the blade harder. "Tell me why you are here. Hurry!"
Kaolin turned his face instinctively, his eyes darting to the side as Xiyan inched closer, the tip of the blade pressing mercilessly against his skin, so that blood trickled down his neck. Every muscle tensed as he tried to keep her from seeing his face – even as the sharp edge of the blade grazed deeper. Then, without being able to hinder them, the following words slipped from his lips.
"To remember…"
"Remember?" She repeated, halting. "Remember what?"
"Just someone who no longer recalls my face or knows my name."
"But why does that person not—"
A sudden murmur rippled through the trees right then, and the wilted leaves shivered as if once again alive. As soon as Xiyan's gaze snapped towards the source strange sound that came out of nowhere, Kaolin melted into the air; golden qi wrapped him and blurred the edges of his form until he vanished from sight, leaving nothing but the forest as a witness as he became invisible to the naked eye.
From the shadowed thickets, Mo Ren stepped forwards. "Still going at it, huh? Don't you ever tire, Xiyan?" he teased.
"You think my brother will let me off the hook if I don't find a way to break through anytime soon?"
Mo Ren, seeing her pouting face, beamed widely, patting her head to comfort her, when he suddenly recalled something. "By the way, who were you talking to?"
Xiyan turned towards the spot where Kaolin had just stood. "I was talking to this… Huh?" Her voice trailed. "Where'd he go?" She then walked closer to Kaolin's invisible form, so close her breath stirred the air around him. "He was right here just a second ago…"
"He?"
Xiyan blinked, her brows knitting together, before finally turning away from Kaolin to face the black tiger devil. "Anyway, why are you here? Did my brother send you to keep an eye on me?"
"No, nothing like that. I was just passing by," he said. "Though now that you mention it, he did ask for you earlier… didn't say why, though."
"He did?" she murmured, her thoughts still focused on Kaolin's sudden disappearance before shaking them off. "Let's go before it gets any darker, then."
Before the two ascended into the sky, Xiyan cast one final glance behind her, still not quite convinced Kaolin had truly left the clearing. With a final sigh, she then faded into the deepening dusk alongside Mo Ren, leaving Kaolin alone.
As he watched her vanish beyond the fast-moving clouds, he flicked his fingers and dispelled the spell that kept him invisible from prying eyes, his brows deepening and his eyes wandering up to the heavens where the Gods and Goddesses watched. He had to find out what kept Xiyan from attaining her true form – the sooner the better. Whatever these deities schemed, he wasn't sure, but one thing was certain: this encounter had not been a coincidence.