After Death, I Became My Shijie’s Palm-Sized Birdie – Chapter 21

Events of the Past, Part 20

The Fall of Wenshen Sect

“If that’s the case, then we should take you away even more! If the Medical Immortal is at her wits’ end, we’ll go further afield to find a cure. Maybe the secret realms from ancient times have records of a treatment. If all else fails… there’s always the Demon Realm—the Medical Immortal has certainly never set foot there!” Zuo Lan paced back and forth, looking like a cat on a hot tin roof.

            

Wei Xiheng tried to contact her family elders to ask about treatments for this illness, but no messages could get out from the Cliff of Reflection. She was so anxious that tears kept welling in her eyes.

“Don’t worry, and don’t cry.” Wen Qiwu produced a handkerchief and wiped the face of Wei Xiheng, whose tears had streaked her cheeks like a little cat’s. “I’m still perfectly fine, aren’t I?”

Zuo Lan bit her lower lip. How was Wen Qiwu “perfectly fine” in her current state?

            

“Is the Medical Immortal still at Wenshen Sect?” Zuo Lan asked.

“She should be at the medicine hall on Wanyao Mountain.” The words had barely left Wen Qiwu’s mouth before Zuo Lan hurried out.

Wei Xiheng gave a tearful hiccup. “I’ll go back and consult our family’s grand ancestor—surely we can find a cure.”

            

“The Immortal Venerable just said you couldn’t receive visitors. I thought she simply didn’t want us to see you, but I never expected…” She never expected Ah Que to be this seriously ill!

When Wen Qiwu heard Wei Xiheng mention her shijie¹, the hand wiping Wei Xiheng’s tears paused slightly.

“Did shijie give you a hard time?”

            

Wei Xiheng instinctively shook her head, but remembering the Immortal Venerable’s terrifying gaze, she shuddered.

“The Immortal Venerable is… really fierce,” Wei Xiheng said in a small voice.

Wen Qiwu gave a soft laugh. Her shijie’s usual unsmiling demeanor did indeed make her look somewhat fierce.

            

“She even scolded us.” Wei Xiheng hung her head, looking deeply wronged.

…Scolded them?

Wen Qiwu found it rather incredible. By nature, her shijie was not someone easily angered—getting her riled up enough to scold people was a skill in its own right.

            

“Did you say or do something?”

“Mm… the Immortal Venerable thought we were leading you astray, so she got very angry.” Wei Xiheng looked thoroughly aggrieved—she didn’t even know what she had done wrong. “Then Zuo Lan got into an argument with her, saying that if she isn’t willing to accept your feelings, she should let you go.”

Wen Qiwu fell silent. After a long moment, a touch of bitterness crept onto her lips. Though she hadn’t witnessed what had happened between them, she could roughly piece together the sequence from Wei Xiheng’s words.

            

In the end, it was simply that even after so many years, her shijie still couldn’t let go of what had happened back then.

“I’m sorry. I’ve dragged you into this.” Wen Qiwu thought that perhaps she truly had been wrong back then. Her pale, sickly face carried a faint, fragile air of dejection.

Wei Xiheng quickly waved her hands. “No, no, not at all!”

            

“By the way, Qiwu—did the Immortal Venerable really lock you up here?”

Wen Qiwu said nothing, only a flicker of sorrow passing through her eyes.

“…Th-then, would you like to come to Starfall City with me? This place really isn’t suitable for recovering from an illness. I discussed it with Zuo Lan—when the time comes, I’ll ask my parents and Zuo Lan will ask her shizun to persuade the Immortal Venerable. If that doesn’t work, we’ll figure out another way to sneak you out!” Wei Xiheng was still terrified of Yun Heng, but for a friend, she was willing to risk it.

            

Wen Qiwu shook her head gently. “Thank you for your kindness, but I’m doing well here. It’s quiet and peaceful—suitable for recovering.”

“I see…” Since Wen Qiwu insisted on staying, Wei Xiheng didn’t press the matter. “If you need anything, just have Elder Lu send me a message!”

“Thank you.” Wen Qiwu’s eyes curved slightly in a gentle smile. Then she retrieved some notes on her insights, written during her confinement, from her storage bag and handed them to Wei Xiheng. “These are what I promised you before. I had intended to give them to you three years ago, but alas…”

            

Wei Xiheng’s expression brightened, but she immediately launched into a stream of nagging, urging Wen Qiwu to rest more and put aside mentally taxing tasks for the time being. For an array fanatic to say such things was truly rare.

It was quite a while before Zuo Lan returned from outside. Her expression was even worse than before—she had probably heard certain things from the Medical Immortal and learned there was no way to get Wen Qiwu out of Wenshen Sect, so she wore a dark scowl.

On the bright side, she had confirmed one thing: at least the Immortal Venerable wasn’t so deranged as to abandon someone here without caring whether she lived or died. The Medical Immortal said that Yun Heng had already developed the only method that currently had a chance of saving Wen Qiwu, but the method still needed time.

            

Zuo Lan spoke from experience. Whether considering the environment or its effect on a patient’s mood, this place was not suitable for recovery. If Wen Qiwu didn’t have to stay here, Zuo Lan would have taken her outside for a change of scenery—it would be better for her condition.

She sat by Wen Qiwu’s bed and sighed. “Once your condition improves, come away with me. This time I misjudged her—I never expected the Immortal Venerable to be such a hopeless stick-in-the-mud. And don’t pin yourself to one person. Once we’re out of here, I’ll introduce you to eight or ten others. They might not be as beautiful as the Immortal Venerable, but they’ll definitely be gentler and more considerate!”

Staring at the Immortal Venerable every day was just asking for misery. One way to forget pain was to redirect one’s attention. Zuo Lan had made many friends during her travels, and plenty of female cultivators would love a gentle, delicate beauty like Wen Qiwu! Hmph, when the time came, the Immortal Venerable had better not come ruin Qiwu’s prospects!

            

Although Immortal Venerable Yun Heng kept insisting she only treated Qiwu as her shimei², Zuo Lan couldn’t quite read her true feelings. If she truly had no feelings at all, then Yun Heng’s reaction had been rather extreme.

But she had already confined Qiwu to the Cliff of Reflection, so the matter of feelings was beside the point. Staying here would only hurt Qiwu more. Better to escape this sea of suffering early than wait for a block of ice to come to its senses.

Wen Qiwu lowered her gaze and said softly, “If there’s a chance…”

            

If there was a chance, leaving for a while wouldn’t be bad. Once time wore away the impact of what had happened, perhaps she could still meet her shijie normally.

Unfortunately, Wen Qiwu could feel her body deteriorating. She probably wouldn’t have this chance after all.

“There will definitely be a chance!” Zuo Lan encouraged her. “I heard you’ve never had much opportunity to leave Wenshen Sect since you were young. Focus on recovering, and once you’re better, I’ll take you to see other parts of the Cangwang Realm.”

            

Zuo Lan described the local customs and sights she had encountered during her travels, painting such vivid pictures that even Wen Qiwu perked up slightly.

“Once I’m a little better, I’ll go see them with you. Just don’t complain that my frail body slows you down,” Wen Qiwu said teasingly.

“Don’t worry, don’t worry! If she complains, I’ll go with you!” Wei Xiheng raised her small hand.

            

Zuo Lan shot her a mock-scolding glare. “She won’t complain. Don’t worry about it.”

The future she described was beautiful, and for once, Wen Qiwu felt a spark of interest in a future beyond her shijie.

Cough, cough… She had been listening attentively to her friends, when suddenly a suffocating, oppressive pain gripped her chest. She hunched over the edge of the bed, struggling to stabilize her soul. The other two were frightened and scrambled to find the Medical Immortal.

            

The Medical Immortal had left a monitoring artifact on Wen Qiwu so she could detect episodes in time, so before Zuo Lan and Wei Xiheng could go find her, the Medical Immortal had already arrived.

This wasn’t an episode—just some secondary symptoms caused by Spirit-Dispersing Syndrome entering its later stages.

Under the Medical Immortal’s treatment, Wen Qiwu gradually recovered. While half-conscious, she heard Zuo Lan’s voice tinged with anger.

            

“She won’t come? She’s busy? She had time to block us just now, and now she’s busy? This is her shimei! She won’t even come to see her for a moment?! When exactly did Immortal Venerable Yun Heng take up the Way of Heartlessness?!” Zuo Lan seemed to be arguing with someone, but her words weren’t directed at the other party—they were aimed at Wen Qiwu’s shijie.

Zuo Lan had apparently contacted her shijie, but her shijie refused to come. Even after so much time had passed, a sour ache still spread through Wen Qiwu’s heart—her shijie really didn’t want to see her that badly…

The next second, the noise outside ceased—the Medical Immortal had apparently thrown her out.

            

Wen Qiwu slept drowsily through the afternoon. By evening, Zuo Lan and Wei Xiheng still hadn’t left. Zuo Lan wandered far and wide year-round, and to avoid sleeping rough in the wilderness, she had specially crafted a house-type artifact that could serve as both a defensive fortification and a dwelling.

She placed the house-type artifact next to Wen Qiwu’s dwelling, planning to stay there with Wei Xiheng temporarily.

Fortunately, her three years of hard-won gains in the Inheritance Tower had paid off—she had broken through to the Earth Immortal Realm, so the Cliff of Reflection’s effect on her was somewhat reduced. She could freely use a small portion of immortal power; otherwise, things would have been troublesome.

            

Yun Heng hadn’t done anything or tried to drive them away, but Zuo Lan could feel a gaze landing on her from time to time. The other party’s strength far exceeded her own, and it was unconcealed—as if deliberately serving as a warning. The only one who fit the bill was that True Immortal Realm Immortal Venerable.

Zuo Lan suddenly felt a bit proud. The Immortal Venerable surely wanted to chase her away, but how many people in this world could provoke Immortal Venerable Yun Heng’s anger yet couldn’t be driven away? And she was now one of them. She had truly made something of herself!

But as Zuo Lan frequently wandered around outside the Cliff of Reflection, she gradually noticed the atmosphere was somewhat off. The more powerful elders and disciples in particular would occasionally have tense expressions, then look clouded with worry—as if something bad had happened.

            

She made a point of inquiring and learned it concerned the Demon Realm.

If the Earth Immortal and Golden Immortal cultivators were treating it like facing a great enemy, this matter must be quite serious. If there were unusual movements from the Demon Realm, Yuxi Sect couldn’t remain uninvolved either.

Zuo Lan was just about to send a message back to inquire when she received a transmission from her shizun, telling her to return immediately—there were important matters to discuss.

            

At the same time, Wei Xiheng was recalled by her family. The Demon Realm had suddenly launched an offensive, expanding outward, and the regions bordering the demon lands were instantly plunged into devastation. All sects immediately dispatched forces to reinforce the border regions.

Outside, the situation was turbulent and tense, but those who visited the Cliff of Reflection tacitly agreed not to mention it to the patient, to avoid worrying Wen Qiwu. So by the time someone secluded at the Cliff of Reflection heard the news, the three Demon Lords had already simultaneously left the Demon Realm, and the Cangwang Realm was in complete chaos.

This was the first time in tens of thousands of years that the Demon Lords had stepped out of the Demon Realm. One True Immortal Realm and two Golden Immortal Great Perfection cultivators sent the various sects reeling in defeat. The great sects guarding the border regions were wiped out without a sound. Tianyu Sect had only one disciple escape to send a distress signal, but he was soon captured by a Demon Lord and tortured to death.

            

By all rights, even if they had encountered the Demon Lords, they shouldn’t have been unable to send even a single distress signal. The annihilation of those sects was suspicious in every detail—there were likely more unknown dangers ahead.

With things having reached this point, Wenshen Sect naturally couldn’t sit idle. All other elders rushed to the front lines, leaving only one Golden Immortal Realm elder and Lu Qiaoyi, who was responsible for maintaining the Protective Sect Array, to hold down the fort.

The battle at the front was dire—every moment delayed meant more land and lives lost. That True Immortal Realm Ten Thousand Souls Demon Lord was especially cunning in his methods. Upon receiving the news, Yun Heng departed without a moment’s delay.

            

Before her departure, Lu Qiaoyi came to find her. The elder who had watched them grow up was silent for a long time.

Years ago, when Lu Qiaoyi had gone out to find medicine that could treat Spirit-Dispersing Syndrome, she had encountered danger. Their master had immediately rushed to rescue her. Lu Qiaoyi returned, but their master was left behind there forever.

Ever since, Lu Qiaoyi had carried guilt in her heart, and she had poured all of it onto this pair of martial sisters, especially Wen Qiwu. From childhood to adulthood, Lu Qiaoyi had never hidden her doting on this child. That was why Yun Heng could entrust her shimei to Elder Lu with peace of mind and go to the front lines herself.

            

At least no one in this sect would suspect her.

“Xiao Que’er said she wants to eat chestnut cake. Make some when you come back, won’t you? My cooking isn’t as good as yours—Xiao Que’er isn’t used to mine.” Lu Qiaoyi seemed to have a thousand words hidden in her heart, but in the end, she only lowered her gaze and said this softly.

Yun Heng immediately rummaged through her mustard-seed space, but the chestnut cake she had prepared earlier was already gone. A flicker of frustration crossed her eyes.

            

Wen Qiwu swallowed the bitter, astringent medicine, tears nearly spilling from her eyes.

At that moment, she noticed a paper crane flying in through the window. A faint silver-white halo flickered on the paper crane—the insignia of the Wenshen Sect Master.

She hurried out of bed to open the window. Rising too quickly, Wen Qiwu swayed and nearly collided with the table.

            

After she opened the window, the small paper crane landed in her palm, and her shijie’s voice emanated from it. Her shijie told her to listen to the Medical Immortal and Elder Lu, to take her medicine properly, and that she would make chestnut cake for her when she returned.

Hearing her shijie’s voice, Wen Qiwu’s nose stung with the threat of tears. She didn’t know why her shijie had suddenly sent such a message—perhaps she thought Wen Qiwu had learned her lesson. But whatever the reason, at least her shijie was willing to speak to her again.

Life at the Cliff of Reflection was somewhat difficult to endure. If her shijie thought she had learned her lesson, then… she would admit to being wrong.

            

But did her shijie mean she was going on a long journey? Things were so chaotic outside right now—wait, the Demon Lords were leading the Demon Realm’s army to attack the other five domains. Was her shijie going to the front lines?

Wen Qiwu paced restlessly in her room. She waited until nightfall before Lu Qiaoyi finally arrived. She grabbed Lu Qiaoyi’s sleeve and asked urgently, and the answer she received was exactly what she had feared.

“Don’t worry. The Demon Realm is just a mob of rabble. Even that Ten Thousand Souls Demon Lord who barely cultivated to the True Immortal Realm did so by relying on external objects. His foundation is unstable—he’s no match for the Sect Master.” Lu Qiaoyi steadied her and comforted her.

            

Wen Qiwu could only comfort herself this way—her shijie was so powerful, those demon cultivators couldn’t possibly hurt her.

But the battlefield was treacherous, after all. After Yun Heng left, Wen Qiwu could barely sleep day or night and often had nightmares.

A patient’s condition shouldn’t be worsened by excessive worry, and the Medical Immortal could see it clearly. At this juncture, Lu Qiaoyi proposed adding a sedative to Wen Qiwu’s medicine. The Medical Immortal considered it and agreed.

            

From that day on, Wen Qiwu felt her medicine had turned sour again. She became drowsy and listless, spending most of each day in a heavy sleep.

Both the Medical Immortal and Elder Lu said this was normal, and that Wen Qiwu just needed to rest well.

Wen Qiwu obediently followed their instructions. The faint sourness made the entire bowl of medicine nauseating, but it was still within what she could tolerate.

            

But one day, Lu Qiaoyi personally brought the medicine and watched her drink it down. The sourness in the medicine that day was much stronger. Wen Qiwu fought down her nausea and swallowed it. After Lu Qiaoyi left, she tried and tried to hold it in, but the sickening feeling churned in her stomach, and in the end, she vomited most of it back up.

After vomiting that day, she slept for a long time. When she woke, her head still throbbed with a dull, pulsing ache.

Wen Qiwu sat by the bed for a while, collecting herself.

            

Then she opened the window for some fresh air, but the scene before her made her heart clench—the sky was suffused with a scarlet, blood-red hue and a faint demonic qi.

Wenshen Sect was the foremost righteous sect in Dongzhao Domain—how could demonic qi appear in the sky above it?!

Wen Qiwu immediately realized something had happened. She hurried out of her dwelling and headed toward the edge of the Cliff of Reflection. Just as she was about to leave, she suddenly heard a faint sound of crying.

            

Wen Qiwu followed the sound of the crying, and the scent of blood appeared in the air along with it.

She made her way to the base of the cliff and finally found a blood-covered child among a pile of scattered rocks.

“Ah Yue!” Wen Qiwu’s pupils contracted sharply when she recognized the child. She rushed over to check how badly Dong Shiyue was hurt, but before she could reach her, three black silhouettes landed beside the child.

            

At this point, they were still within the bounds of the Cliff of Reflection, and the Spirit-Null Zone’s effect persisted. But for three adults, killing a severely injured child would be all too easy.

The three figures bore the mark of the Ten Thousand Souls Demon Lord on their clothing and radiated overwhelming demonic qi—it was obvious at a glance that they were his subordinates.

People from the Demon Realm had actually broken directly into the sect and were killing people at will?!

            

“So this is the last kid, right? Heh, small thing, but quite a runner.”

“Did you really think you could get away? Look at you—took quite a tumble from the mountain, didn’t it? You’re going to die anyway. If you hadn’t run, you could’ve spared yourself this pain.”

“Alright, hurry up and kill her, then go check again. We absolutely can’t let anyone escape like what happened at Tianyu Sect, or the Demon Lord will flay us alive.”

            

A flash of fear crossed all three demon cultivators’ eyes simultaneously. They lost their appetite for taunting and raised their blades to kill the child dying among the rocks.

The anger in Wen Qiwu’s heart overcame her shock. She drew the Nine Tribulations Bow and silently appeared behind the three of them.

In an instant, all three had their throats cut by the bowstring, and their souls were directly shredded by the divine artifact.

            

These three demon cultivators weren’t strong, but Wen Qiwu’s body was simply too frail. The slightest exertion left her dizzy and light-headed.

She didn’t even have time to catch her breath before she rushed to the rocks and gathered the blood-covered child into her arms. Wen Qiwu took out her finest healing medicine and fed it to Dong Shiyue. Fortunately, the child’s injuries were only flesh wounds—once the medicine took effect, she would be out of danger.

Gradually regaining some strength, the child burst into tears. She clung to Wen Qiwu’s neck, tearfully and incoherently describing the situation outside.

            

Powerful evildoers had appeared within the sect. The Protective Sect Array had not only lost its protective function but had now become a cage trapping everyone inside. The Golden Immortal Realm elder had been captured. Everyone in the sect had either been killed or imprisoned. Ah Yue’s shizun had risked her life to smuggle her out, but she had been discovered by patrolling demon cultivators.

“Elder, save my shizun…” Dong Shiyue sobbed, pleading.

The arms holding the child trembled uncontrollably. Wen Qiwu almost thought she had misheard—the Protective Sect Array had failed? Had something happened to Elder Lu?

            

She carried the child along paths she once knew better than any other. The sect’s former beautiful scenery was now stained with blood and murderous energy. The bodies of fellow disciples littered the path—some had died refusing to close their eyes, their corpses staring up at the blood-red sky with wide, unseeing eyes.

Wen Qiwu covered Dong Shiyue’s eyes. She forced back her tears and grief and pressed forward. She had arrived too late to save the dead, but there were still living people who needed rescuing.

Above Wendao Mountain, a dense swarm of black specks filled the sky—all the Demon Lord’s subordinates. They floated overhead with impunity, looking down at the “lambs” waiting to be slaughtered below. Any imprisoned Wenshen Sect disciple who showed the slightest sign of resistance was killed on the spot.

            

Above Wendao Mountain, the sky seemed to have been torn open. Countless evil spirits emerged from the rift, some so massive they rivaled half the mountain. Saliva dripped from their gaping maws, and several elders had already fallen into their jaws.

This was… the Ten Thousand Souls Demon Lord’s technique.

Though Wen Qiwu had never seen the Demon Lord in person, she had read of his appearance and techniques in books. She looked carefully at the two figures leading the swarm of black specks, and despair slowly crept into her heart.

            

That person was the Ten Thousand Souls Demon Lord—he wasn’t at the border front at all, but had circled around to sneak-attack the sect from behind.

No… that wasn’t right.

His power felt strange—there was a gap between it and a true True Immortal Realm!

            

Was this the Demon Lord himself? Or his dharma body³?

His true body should be at the border front dealing with her shijie. Yes, the one before her was most likely not the Ten Thousand Souls Demon Lord’s true form. Stay calm…

Wen Qiwu’s grip on the bow turned her knuckles white. She looked at her weapon—a divine artifact, and her sole hope for breaking through this. Its name was the Nine Tribulations World-Falling Bow.

            

There were only five known divine artifacts in the world. The sole publicly known divine artifact of Wenshen Sect was Sect Master Yun Heng’s sword; the second, unknown to outsiders, was this bow. It had been brought back from Wansen Domain by a Wenshen Sect ancestor and was once the weapon of the Demon Emperor. For tens of thousands of years, no one could make this bow acknowledge them as master—until Wen Qiwu.

This bow was born at the creation of the Cangwang Realm, corresponding to the nine tribulations the world underwent during its formation. Legend had it that if its power could be fully unleashed, it would possess the might to destroy the entire Cangwang Realm.

But powerful as the bow was, wielding it also required immense strength. Since Wen Qiwu fell ill, her body could only endure the strain of firing a single arrow.

            

Suddenly, a commotion erupted from the summit of Wendao Mountain. Dong Shiyue’s severely injured shizun was dragged out—the Ten Thousand Souls Demon Lord was about to extract her divine soul.

Wen Qiwu drew back the bowstring and simultaneously broke the first seal on the divine artifact. Those with keen perception glanced up at the sun—and the sun, shrouded in blood mist, seemed to have grown even dimmer.

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