Chapter 536 - HE: Heart Flower

Chapter 536: Chapter 533: HE: Heart FlowerFengchang’s voice stopped.

"Hmm." Su Ming’an gazed into his eyes.

"You’ve worked hard too... Fengchang Zeven."

Upon hearing this, Xiber blinked in confusion, feeling gradually returning to her body.

"...Su Ming’an?" she whispered, her voice barely audible.

"Hmm, are you awake?" Su Ming’an tilted his head, responding to her.

"...Su Ming’an?" As if afraid of disturbing something, she called out again.

"Hmm."

"...Do you still remember me? Have I... not started over?" Her voice began to tremble.

When he met her gaze, Su Ming’an’s eyes were very calm.

"Of course," he said, "I made a never-regretting pact with you, saying I’d win with you till the end."

He said, "If I broke our agreement, you were to break my limbs and lock me in the basement."

He said, "...I won’t break our agreement."

Tears streamed down Xiber’s cheeks.

Like a warm breeze over a desolate prairie, her cold soul felt a strong warmth for the first time.

A child who had never been loved showed her emotions all too clearly.

She had thought she could only harvest eternal loneliness, cruelty, and barrenness.

...But she finally found a piece of candy.

...At the bank of the river of time, among the riverbank pebbles... she found her candy.

She turned her head and saw Fengchang standing under a barrier.

He was covered by a barrier-like shield, isolated from the outside world, and in his somewhat diffused eyes, which flowed with filth, her reflection appeared.

Atop his head, he wore a sacrificial crown adorned with bright red ribbons.

Years ago, when there still was the old custom of magma sacrifices, the sacrifices who jumped into the magma wore such crowns during the ceremony.

And now, such a bright red crown sat atop his head.

The twisting, spreading black lines of the curse had already covered his entire body; he appeared like a contorted monster under the isolation barrier, watching her.

This was what Xiber had said to Su Ming’an on the first day.

...Yet death is never fair.

To her, to him, to everyone,

Never,

Absolutely,

Is it fair.

"Fengchang, what are you hiding in there for, come out." she said, "After all this time, now that we’ve finally opened up... just hold me."

Fengchang did not speak.

He extended his hand, his hand passing through the barrier in front, grabbing hers and pulling her a few steps forward.

He pulled her hand close, from his left shoulder to behind his neck.

He did not embrace her; his body was covered in filth and blood. How could he tarnish her?

Now, like being reborn, she was pristine. She had escaped the control of the tendrils, and he could no longer drag her back into the abyss.

They were blood relatives.

For the countless misunderstandings, the countless unspeakable truths, the countless merciless tragedies... he owed her a compensation.

...Even though it was too late.

A dark energy spread up from her arm, seeping into his riddled body.

Her body, still bearing some remnants of the curse aura, was utterly purified and empty, the black lines flowing into his neck.

"Let go, Feng Qiqi," she said, "I’ve forgiven you."

He gazed at her, his eyes filled with regret and struggle.

...It was already too late.

...The misunderstandings resolved at the end, the apologies made at the last minute.

Too late.

People had once day after day, repeated various ritualistic actions.

They performed blood sacrifices, slaughtered livestock, killed living people, and pushed children into magma, believing that in this way, their "devotion" would reach the heavens and bring about the daylight.

These cruel and meaningless acts became extremely "orthodox" here.

Fengchang Zeven initially did not approve of these acts because he was a direct victim.

But after he left that fiery forest and took over the position of the Young Tribe Leader, he gradually saw the full picture of this world.

...Faith stubbornly governed, and heretics were not tolerated.

...Curses and disasters were rife, and humanity struggled to survive amid malice.

...The Evil God was unkind, treating humans as pigs and dogs, toying with lives at his whim.

It was too difficult, too difficult for people to survive.

To make good use of this double-edged sword called "faith" that could help people survive, he had to integrate himself into cruel rituals, heed the absurd oracles, and maintain the current stability.

...What he had to do was to kill the source of the Evil God’s faith.

For the sake of saving his sister, he set a fire in the tribe, yet because of that fire, he had to kill the sister he had saved with his own hands.

Fate was always a disgusting ghost of a thing.

He considered himself an ignorant man.

...He had been confused between ignorance and awareness for a long time, but now he had finally found the answer.

Ignorance could not be despised, for it was a necessary element to sustain the world.

As the most awakened, he must dance with foolishness, accompany ignorance, maintain divine rights with meaningless rituals, and deceive the masses with absurd oracles.

—To obtain the swords and blades made up of people’s faith.

"Xiber, when Su Ming’an becomes Bai Shen, after overthrowing the Black Wall... I hope you can let go of all this," Fengchang said, "No person or god... can force you anymore."

"Only the vile revel in tranquility," Xiber said.

"It’s not reveling," Fengchang said. "You were born to belong to tranquility."

He clutched her hand tightly, without letting go.

"We have never truly owned our lives, Xiber," he said. "Now, the power of Jiu Shen has been suppressed, the Zeven Family’s lineage must not be broken, I hope you—"

"Are you still going to preach to me? Feng Qiqi!" Xiber suddenly raised her voice, "—And now you apologize to me? If you want to apologize, stay alive! Apologize to me every day!"

"..." Fengchang: "...I’m sorry."

"Bang!"

Xiber punched the barrier.

There were many reasons to choose hate, she was supposed to hate him, intensely despise him who had killed her countless times.

...But there was only one reason needed to choose love. She couldn’t help but choose to love.

She couldn’t learn to face this situation with reason alone.

Even though death had passed before her eyes countless times, she was still unable to view it calmly.

She always thought, since the number of restarts was ’infinite’, she must achieve the best outcome. Redeem all lives that shouldn’t end, reclaim all that can be reclaimed. Deny accidents, deny mistakes, she wanted to use lives of countless restarts, with her frail body, to forge a path to a perfect ending.

...But this time, the ’perfect’ ending did not include him.

"Preaching has become your proficient weapon, I will be tormented by your words for a lifetime," Xiber said.

"Then I congratulate you on having this ’lifetime’," Fengchang said.

"You’re making me angry again," Xiber said.

She looked at Fengchang, looked at him as he removed the bright crown from his head.

"The Zeven legacy must not end, Jiu Shen is already in slumber, and you have also escaped the control of the tentacles," Fengchang said:

"Xiber Zeven, promise me..."

He placed the bright red Sacrificial Crown on her head.

His voice carried a reserved tenderness.

"...from now on, you are..."

He lowered his hand, staring intently at her:

"The ’Clan Leader’ of Qiongdi."

At that moment, the curse mud burst forth from his body.

Feeling weary, his palms dropped powerlessly, his body as light as if it had fallen into the clouds...

"...I’m sorry, Xiber," he said:

"...Our fates are pretty crappy.

But fortunately... this time, you survived.

It’s good."

"Bullshit," Xiber said.

He remained silent.

His eyelids, bit by bit, slowly closed.

Suddenly, the clawing curse burst forth from his body like a twisted demon, spreading wildly—

On Xiber’s hands, the warm, soft skin quickly turned into flowing water, slipping completely through her fingers, and then her solid, strong body, like a collapsing tower, shattered downward, dissipating into the air, leaving nothing behind.

She had never cried.

When her mother was burned to death, when her father died from the curse, she didn’t cry.

Even now, her face remained calm, not a single tear falling.

"Feng Qiqi, you’ve died again," she said.

"...You always die so horribly."

She maintained the position of clinging to the back of his neck, futilely clutching the clump of black mud, until Su Ming’an, who was reinforcing the barrier, pulled her away.

As the mud fell and crumbled,

She finally crossed the chasm made of faith, growth, and pain.

She stood stiffly.

—Until she let out a cry like a wounded beast, desperate, covered in blood.

"Ding Dong!"

[(Heart Flower):

"A person only shines when acting according to their own will."

"People dance with death, march with absurdity, to maintain stupidity for centuries of glory and wisdom, keeping ignorance."

"...And we’re just a bunch of short-sighted, self-proclaimed ’saviors,’ hoping to see people’s free souls soar away."

"For the so-called necessity of the gods,"

"...I am willing to indulge in this false ignorance with the tribespeople."

"...Cici, I’m sorry."]

Above the mud,

Xiber took out a rotten, colorful candy from her bosom, suddenly raised her hand, and forcefully threw it—

"Bang!"

The candy hit the protective rain barrier below, bounced a few times, and was swallowed by the toxic rain.

"It’s totally rotten," she said, "completely rotten!"

She had time and again fantasized about resolving misunderstandings and running together toward the sun and sea with him.

...Yet, she could only ever see this person’s soul soaring far away from her.

So many misunderstandings, so many deaths, this time, he had returned them all to her.

That’s why she could never hate him.

Never.

"Su Ming’an," she said, "I clearly know this is the ’best’ route, yet I still can’t help wanting to reincarnate, to meet that him who hates me but is still alive."

"You don’t have a chance," Su Ming’an said, "If Jiu Shen didn’t lie just now, after It falls into sleep, Qiongdi will not undergo reincarnation in fifteen days, you can’t go back now."

Xiber wiped her eyes.

"Just kidding," she looked at him, "This is already the best ending, already... it’s irreversible."

"He said he gave me the chance to see the sea," she said, "And I intend to take all the people of Qiongdi with me."

"Yeah," Su Ming’an said, "It’s already... the best ending."

He picked up the bracelet from the ground, covered in blood and mud.

On the bracelet,

A black python biting the harsh sun, sparkled at his fingertips.

Fengchang was the most complex person he had ever seen.

"Humans are like this too."

"Perfect Completion Progress: 85%"

Xiber stayed in the First Tribe to engage in post-disaster reconstruction.

Su Ming’an accompanied her, traversing the lands of the First Tribe.

Donning a sacrificial crown, like the Clan Leader, she chose to bury the truth about the twin deities.

Having signed a pact with Jiu Shen, she was unable to betray the faith in Jiu Shen, but her mind felt unprecedentedly free.

After Dian Si submitted to Su Ming’an, nobody dared to oppose Xiber, the only remaining member of the Zeven family and backed by Bai Shen.

While collecting bodies and passing through a corner of the square, Xiber saw two figures huddled closely together.

A large man, clutching a pebble, was nestled against his mother, who had partly turned into sludge.

The man leaned against the wall, still as a cocoon.

His head rested on the rotting shoulder of the woman, his hand on her neck, still in a child-like affectionate posture.

The thin coat still clung tightly to the elderly woman’s body, like a warm embrace. Beneath that garment was not intact skin but a pile of bones covered in black mud.

The sheets and mattress absorbed the decaying fluid, keeping her soft tissues dry.

Wrapped tightly in a cotton coat, his bone-structured face pressed against the white-fleeced brim of his cap, as if murmuring something softly.

The flies on the windowsill flew up, and a stench of decay followed shortly after,

Xiber, draped in a black cross-collar sacrificial robe, approached him.

"Shh..." Chang Sheng said softly, as if afraid to disturb his deceased mother, "The game is over, mom is sleeping now."

"Ah," Xiber voiced hoarsely, "Goodnight."

"She said she is becoming magic. Once I behave, come to my senses, and stop fooling around, she would wake up," Chang Sheng continued, "...I’ve always done as mom said before bed, keeping my hand on the back of her neck. I’m very obedient, very obedient indeed..."

Xiber did not respond.

The tears that hadn’t fallen suddenly slipped uncontrollably from her eyes.

"They just want to survive."

"—Why can’t we save even such a despicable and shortsighted bunch?"

"Obedient," she said, "Chang Sheng, you’re like me... both very obedient."

She turned around to hear Chang Sheng’s familiar, merry nursery rhyme.

That nursery rhyme, more prophetic than she.

"Black sheep, hop quickly~"

"Black crow, fly swiftly~"

"Black python, crawl fast~"

"A fairytale of a rotten corpse~"

"From its heart...

"... a deity’s flower blooms ~"

"Feng Qiqi," Xiber whispered, "... I have no relatives left."

She stood still, her shadow stretching very long.

She stood there for a long time, as if engaging in a lonely prayer, as if saying a soundless farewell.

The girl in a red robe approached the boy, "Feng Qiqi! Where did you run off to? Mommy’s been looking all over for you!"

"Don’t call me Feng Qiqi, call me the Dark Demon King—I’ll lead the kids out to sea!" the boy said excitedly.

"The sea? What’s that?"

"You wouldn’t understand, the sea is what’s outside. To reach the sea, I won’t be stuck being this lousy tribe leader; all that Oracle and shaman stuff makes me sick; you handle it later."

"Hmph, then I’ll definitely see the sea before you, just wait, I’ll definitely throw this lousy position of tribe leader to you, and you’ll never see the sea in your lifetime..."

"How mean! Cici, you’re so mean! I’m different, I’m generous; if I can see the sea one day, I’ll definitely give you the opportunity..."

"What if the gods call me for a sacrifice?"

"... Then I’ll just kill the gods for you."