Lights filled the busy streets of Wenxi city as the night devoured the brightness of the day. Even at evening, trade and business is teeming. Peddlers and businessmen flooded the streets along with people who wanted to buy things. Wan Miansu wanted to roam around the streets so she went out the inn disguising as an old woman. The capital of jade phoenix's kingdom is booming of business and trade. She never had thought about this after she had witnessed the strife that the kingdom went through many years ago.
She slowly walked in the streets roaming from shop to shop when Miansu heard a man shouting nearby.
"Come one and come all... We have a new story to tell! Phoenix Tree Pavillion is open for business! Come and buy theater tickets before it runs out!"
No more than a second later, many people flooded to buy the tickets. Wan Miansu became intrigued and decided to buy one ticket for herself.
"Let's see how can mere mortals entertain an immortal like me."
She scoffs as she went inside Phoenix tree pavilion. Nearing at the main entrance, she was stopped by a man instead.
"Sorry ma'am, but only fair and beautiful people are allowed inside."
Because of this, Wan Miansu became agitated and conversed with the man.
"Fair and beautiful eh? You humans are attached to beauty and completely ignores what's within. You're no different from immortals who had driven me away."
The man shook his head. Believing that Miansu was crazy, the man dragged her away outside and kicked her out.
"Stupid mortal!" She murmured to herself and went on a nearby alley.
"Let's see when I get back there again."
Vowing revenge, Miansu changed her appearance from a cranky old crone into her usual self. Her pale skin gleamed with the reflection of the lights and soft red lips caught the attention of passersby as she ascended from the alley.
Her soft long black hair hung down matched with her long black robe embroidered with golden cranes.
Witnessing her beauty, the passersby thought that a goddess had descended from heaven visiting the kingdom.
She went back inside the pavillion and met the same man who drove her away. She handed him the ticket and he immediately let her in.
"But before I'll get in, I must give this judgemental piece of scrap a lesson he'll never forget."
Wan Miansu stared at the man lovingly and the man began experiencing something strange. His whole body became itchy and he started having blisters on his body.
"Ah! Ouch! Why am I itching too much? Xianggong help me!"
Miansu laughed softly as she entered the main entrance and sat on a chair at the far corner at the right side of the viewing venue.
The show had started as two masked performers emerged from the silhouette.
The other performer held a pipa in her hand and the other one held a fan.
The fan performer then started to narrate the story...
"Once upon a time, a goddess was born. The goddess belonged to a prestigious family of immortals who are descendants of the Golden Crane God. The immortal child was born with strong powers that can surpass the current crane god but, given her appearance, she was thrown into the river of souls and left to die. Her mother, particularly, hated the way she looks because of the starlight scar on her face. It is considered bad luck to them since starlight scar is a sign of chaos and demise..."
Wan Miansu's heart became heavy as the pipa began to play along with the story of the woman. She remembered the same thing happened to her. Her birth, the things she had seen... All surmount to what she is now.
"Many days pass by, the lower immortals from the lower depth of heavens heard a cry of a child from the river of souls... They picked up the abandoned immortal and raised her until the little goddess grew and became a fine woman... They never regarded her as bad luck. With the starlight scar on her face, it is rather a blessing for them to raise up the child."
"The goddess had long silky black hair with a fine body but her scar extended from the side of her forehead up to her eye."
"By the time, she had became a hundred years old, she ascended to the second level of heaven and met the general of the gods, the God of war himself... The offspring of war and fire..."
"Guan Yu..." Miansu whispered softly as she had recalled that fateful day when she and Guan Yu met. A tear fell down from the side of her eye.
"Afraid that the God might reject her because of her appearance, she wore a marble mask when she meets up with him. They have been meeting for many years until... The general wanted her to take off the mask."
Recalling the memories, Miansu also remembered that time when Guan Yu asked her to take off the mask.
"If you love me, you will trust me."
These words echoed back and forth on her mind.
And the story continued with an intense banging of drums. The pipa sounded sorrowful in response to the drums indicating the climax.
"As the goddess took off her mask, the general looked suprised and fled away in disgust."
"No... It's not what happened." Miansu whispered as she recalled what truly happened...
(Flashback)
Guan Yu: You have the starlight scar...
Wan Miansu: And so what of it? Are you gonna turn and walk away? Like my real parents who cast me off?
Guan Yu: No! I—I am just suprised!
Wan Miansu: Just tell me you are disgusted!
Guan Yu touched her arms gently and faced her at him...
Guan Yu: In the next full moon, I will meet you again and we can be together... Forever...
He locked her in his arms. The promise had been made... Two lovers promised to meet each other once again... But...
It did not happen.
(Flashback ends)
The story continued once again with the soft sound of pipa slowly lowering it's pace.
"As the general never came back, the goddess became heart broken and took away her life. Till then, the general realized his love for the goddess and took the love forgetting pill. The end..."
The story ended but Wan Miansu's heart did not feel any lighter. She went outside the pavillion feeling helpless.
"I must face Guan Yu once again..."
--------------------------
By the stillness of the night along with the fleeting cherryblossoms falling from the cascading millenium cherryblossom tree, Guan Yu and Elder Fang still fought. They are both covered in light wounds but still fought roughly with each other.
"I demand to know the whole truth! Why do you want to revive the shuras? We sealed them together!"—Guan Yu
"You thought you sealed them all? You're wrong! I am one of the shuras all along!"
—Elder Fang
Slowly unsealing his one closed meridian, the dark flames engulfed Elder Fang slowly burning away his visage revealing his true form.
From being an old-looking man, he transformed into a young fellow with long white hair with a shura's mark in his forehead.
"I am the fourth shura. The shura of north and ice, Fang Xuezhi."
The image of respect burned away in Guan Yu's mind. Fang Xuezhi was a shura all along....
With incredible speed and strength, Guan Yu is almost overtaken by him as his sword lands by the tip of his spear.
"What more did you hide from me?! Our brotherhood, friendship, was that all a lie?!"—Guan Yu
"I just used you as a tool to complete my task. Friendship? What is that? Friendship is only for weaklings!" —Fang Xuezhi
"Then tell me, before, was that all a lie when you said my lover was already dead, and I took the love forgetting pill?" —Guan Yu
"What do you think? When I saw your face that day, I felt satisfied seeing you suffer. It makes me overjoyed!" —Fang Xuezhi
"Fang Xuezhi!!!!"—Guan Yu
Their blades crossed each other for the last time until Guan Yu became too exhausted to fight.
"Unfortunately, I have other matters to attend to, I can't keep fighting a weakling like you." —Fang Xuezhi
"Come back here you traitor! I will make you pay Fang Xuezhi!"
Guan Yu was about to pounce his spear at him but he steps aside as a black smoke fell from above which landed in between him and Fang Xuezhi.
"We will talk some other time."
Fang Xuezhi made the smoke his grand escape as he faded into nothingness.
Emerging from the smoke, Wan Miansu attacked Guan Yu with her sharp dual fan of blades. It made a gentle sound as it landed on Guan Yu's spear but the impact of the blow sent a slash on Guan Yu's left face wounding him a little bit.
"Wan Miansu, what's the meaning of this? I let you go earlier in the bamboo grove, are you Fang Xuezhi's conspirators?"—Guan Yu
Miansu snapped in anger and looked him in the eye.
"Despite when I am still alive, you took the love forgetting pill?! You are really one heartless man!"
This statement sent chills in Guan Yu's spine. Standing before him is the woman that she once loved.
Miansu retracted her fans and turned it into a dagger charging at Guan Yu.
Because of the revelation, Guan Yu was caught off guard.
The blade pierced his heart.