Finishing her cultivation state, Xiniang was extremely satisfied with the condition of her meridians. The flow of chi on her meridians are as stable as a current of a calm brook. Her agility and strength improved alot too eversince she fully absorbed the heart of the goddess. For the cultivation base, hers was outstanding. She looked on a nearby mirror and saw strands of her hair turning white. A flower mark suddenly appeared on her forehead too with a fine pinkish line underneath her eyebrows.
"Is this the effect of the aromatic heart arrowroot?" she sighed internally.
As she was examining herself, a streak of light trailed across the sky and struck on the ground creating a little tremor upon it's impact. Xiniang's eyes grew wide. She knew that it isn't ordinary and sensed a hostile aura against it so she wanted to follow the streak of light.
"It's time to test my strength." she sighed.
In the calmness of the night, Guan Yu's spear crossed against Miansu's sword creating a fine tingling sound that echoed throught the bamboo grove.
At the peak of their battle, a sudden visitor stopped their fighting. A woman wearing a white robe with streaks of white hair on her head and a flowermark on her forehead appeared before their eyes.
"Ji...Mei???"
Guan Yu withdraw his weapon as he looked terrified seeing the stranger's face.
"I am sorry. I am not Ji Mei. I am Gu Xiniang, grandmaster of the shifting flower sect." she explained. "Before you both continue to kill yourselves, could you please explain, are you a threat or not?"
Xiniang put one hand behind her back as she withdraws her divine weapon. Guan Yu was about to be overcome with rage when Miansu broke down in tears.
"Xiniang... This immortal came attacking me all of the sudden saying that I was the one who murdered Ji Mei when it was Elder Fang who really murdered her... Please trust me... I am telling the truth..."
Miansu sobbed as her tears rolled out like silver-colored pearls.
"Heh... You want to deceive me with your lies, Miansu? If it was Elder Fang who murdered Ji Mei, you don't have a proof to prove it to me! I don't buy half-truths!" Guan Yu angrily threw a tantrum.
Xiniang wanted to resolve this matter once and for all so she took out a sachet of pills from her sleeve and take one pill from the inside.
"This are truth pills forged from Jian Pei screaming mandrakes and eyes of gigantic frozen lizards from the north that is especially crafted by shifting flower disciples in my palace. If you ever doubt her, you can be rest assured. She will spill all of the truth you want for whole 6 hours." —Xiniang
"What will happen if she won't say the truth?"—Guan Yu
"Then may she be immortal or not, her blood vessels will rupture and all of her chi will be exhausted from her body and it will take her another 100 years to cultivate and gain the exact amount of chi once again." —Xiniang
"100 years? That's a good idea then."—Guan Yu
"If she lies, she will suffer. Only liars deserve such kind of punishment, but if she tells the truth, then, bless her for still being alive and well."—Xiniang
Xiniang threw the pill on Guan Yu and he hastily caught it with his right hand and gave it to Miansu.
Miansu did not hesitate and drank the pill at once.
"Are you hostile or not?" Xiniang asked the question first.
"To you, I am not but to other else, I don't know." Miansu said. Her veins didn't rupture so she's telling the truth.
"What exactly happened with my sister?" Guan Yu asked her with rage painted all over his face.
"That night when Ji Mei wanted to meet with her mortal lover, Elder Fang wanted me to carry out the task of murdering Ji Mei because of her malicious actions that she was meeting up with a mortal saying that it was prohibited by the other elder immortals. I declined his offer and he went away without another word then the next thing he did was he kept the aromatic heart arrow root...."
—Miansu
Because of Miansu's words, Guan Yu became dumbfounded. The person whom he admired the most and looked up to was the one who murdered his sister.
"All those years.... I looked up to him..."
The perfect image of Elder Fang that shone in his imagination suddenly shattered into pieces. The betrayal didn't just wound him, it scarred the heart inside him.
"One last question, what are you doing in the Jade Phoenix's kingdom?" —Xiniang
"I am here to kill the twins of Jiutian Xuanwu. Do not try to stop me!"
Miansu crumbled the power by her hand and puffed the thick smoke all over the place which made Guan Yu and Xiniang lost focus.
Trying to chase Wan Miansu, Xiniang rushed to dissipate the smoke but Guan Yu stopped her. As the smoke cleared, Guan Yu asked her what happened.
"Why did you have my sister's heart?" —Guan Yu
"I absorbed it to save Old Jianghu if not, the frenzy and manic of the evil tree would kill many mortals." —Xiniang
"You're a mortal but you did not die when you fully absorbed the heart. Any mortal or demi god who tries to absorb it dies. What are you then?"—Guan Yu
"If I didn't die, then it means I am still destined to do more things in the future."—Xiniang
"If you are really capable to wield my sister's heart and divine weapon, can I test your resilience?"—Guan Yu
"I've been wanting to test my resilience too." —Xiniang
Without another word, Xiniang brandished her divine weapon as Guan Yu summoned his.
Xiniang's weapon specialized in long range and Guan Yu is at a disadvantage. Guan Yu got annoyed so he used his secret technique which he last used during the war of the Shuras.
"Mirage Rain of Spears!"
Guan Yu clenched a fist and as he opened it, the replicated spears rained down where Xiniang is.
Guan Yu was confident enough that he had at least wounded Xiniang as he saw the puff of smoke from the impact of his spears.
"If she survives, I'll call myself a donkey." Guan Yu was about to turn back when an arrow flew by the side of his face. Luckily, he dodged it in time and caused only a little scratch on his face.
His eyes grew wide as he saw Xiniang holding a bow and an arrow in front of him. He never expected that his late sister's divine weapon is capable of changing into other forms.
"Fine! I'll call myself donkey from now on!" He shouted internally with a heavy heart.
"Very talented as I see." Guan Yu withdraws his weapon and patted Xiniang's head.
"I never thought a mortal could best me in battle. It's the second time I had admitted defeat to a mortal!"—Guan Yu
"Mortal or not, the only thing that matters are the skills that can keep us alive." —Xiniang
"Keep living and surviving then and by the time you want to rise to godhood, call my name and find me... "—Guan Yu
"Who are you?"—Xiniang
"I am Guan Yu."
Guan Yu turned to flaming embers as he ascended back to ninth heaven leaving Xiniang alone in the bamboo grove.
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"I need to think of something to stop the crimson moon's prophecy..."
Wei Yue flipped every pages of every book inside the royal library but still, not a single answer came up. He was about to give up and sat on the chair with an aching heart.
"I am gonna die of tardiness but if it's for my friends, I am not gonna mind if I had slept, ate or not!"
He leaned on the chair but he fell down instead.
"OUCH!" He touched his aching head but as he looked up, he saw an unopened book underneath the bookshelf in front of him.
"How did this book get here?"
He scratched his head and pulled out the dusty book.
He undusted the book and flipped throughout the pages. It was all about the crimson blood moon.
"This is it!!! The answer I am looking for!"
His eyes lit up as he read the passage.
"The blood moon only takes people with hate, distrust and atrocity. Only true love can save the cursed lovers. If their love transcends beyond the curse, then they can break through it... But if not... The curse will take both of them, Yin and Yang will turn upside down and the shuras will be revived once again."
Wei Yue was assured by the book's passage but the last words make him shiver like a chicken.
Meanwhile, Feixian comforted Yingluo who is now abit calm after witnessing horrible visions days before. Restlessness are evident on Yingluo's face as she rested on Fei Xian's arm.
"Feixian... Do you think we still— have a future together?"—Yingluo
"Why do you ask these things? Worrying too much isn't good for the baby."—Feixian
"But the blood moon... All those bloodshed and the witch... She's coming for me..." —Yingluo
"No witch nor demon nor immortal can harm you as long as I am here. Dare they lay one finger on your hair, I will cut them."
Feixian held her close. He can feel her warmth and the movement of the child on her belly.
"Why don't you play a heart-calming song on your Gu qin before you sleep?"—Feixian
"Okay."—Yingluo
Taking up the Gu qin, Yingluo squatted and played the instrument. The calming song seeped inside her soul and up to the child's. It was indeed a wonderful idea to play the instrument. Meanwhile, looking at her from afar, Feixian still had worries inside his heart but remained resilient amidst the anxiousness.
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With an aching chest Xiniang went back to her room after her fight with Guan Yu.
She collapsed and afterwards a vision has revealed itself. The place was so bright that Xiniang needs to cover her eyes. As she looked around she saw lush tall trees and green grasses all around. The birds where lively chirping from tree to tree and all the flowers were in full bloom. She walks around further and saw Ji Mei.
"Gu Xiniang... I have been waiting for you. I suppose you have met my brother. Wasn't he a fine man?" —Ji Mei
"He is a fine man."— Xiniang
"You know what,I feel sorry for leaving my brother behind... Although he looks totally old than me, he is still in fact my twin brother."— Ji Mei
"But— fire and earth...." —Xiniang
"Because of our different elemental origins we are separated ever since birth. Guan Yu had to cultivate with high immortals because of his affinity for fire and as for I, I am left to cultivate with the other lower immortals. I am restricted to see him even for a bit because he was believed to become the next progenitor of the high immortal Bai Yuanqi. Even in death, I failed to reconcile with my brother." —Ji Mei
"This story of yours... No wonder my chest became heavy after encountering him. Okay... I promise... Whenever I see him, I will embrace him in your behalf." —Xiniang
"Thank you... Xiniang..."
Ji Mei said as she disappeared into the wind leaving only petals of cherry blossoms in her stead.
Xiniang woke up from a seemingly endless dream.