Chapter 265: Longing Across Millennia |
Within the black box, left behind by the Primordial Witch ten thousand years ago, lay a single sheet of paper with only four characters written on it.
Besides that, a single, unwilted peach blossom was preserved within the box.
It was clear that this box wasn’t meant for the descendants of the World Sea, but a ‘gift’ for someone specific, a testament to the Primordial Witch’s longing.
The words in the letter were clearly a greeting to someone she missed dearly.
If Mu Zhi’an hadn’t been the one to open the box, he would have simply pondered who the Primordial Witch was addressing.
However…
He had effortlessly opened the box that no one had been able to open before, without even using his Spiritual Energy…
Mu Zhi’an’s mind was in turmoil as he stared at the letter and the four characters written on it.
With a sense of unease, he closed his eyes.
Then, he slowly opened his eyes, his gaze fixed on the paper crane in his hand, his expression unreadable.
The way this crane was folded was identical to the ones he had folded for the other girls.
A coincidence…?
Mu Zhi’an fell into deep thought.
Ye Lingxuan took the peach blossom from the box and examined it carefully, a hint of suspicion in her eyes. “Could it be that the Primordial Witch also visited the Pilgrimage Palace?” she murmured.
Special peach blossoms bloomed within the Two Polarities Sect’s Pilgrimage Palace. The one from the black box was identical to them in shape, scent, and even Spiritual Energy!
But if that was the case, it didn’t explain why Mu Zhi’an could open the box.
Unless… he was someone the Primordial Witch knew.
Thinking of this, Ye Lingxuan glanced at him, her hand instinctively tightening around the Desolate Time Lock within her sleeve.
Mu Zhi’an, unaware of her thoughts, looked at the letter and flipped it over, but there was nothing written on the back.
“The tone sounds like a greeting to someone familiar. Could she know me…?” Mu Zhi’an’s mind raced as he stared at the four characters.
As he looked at them, they started to blur, and he felt as if he were standing amidst a kaleidoscope of lights, pulled into the river of time, countless images flashing through his mind.
Many of these images were scenes he had never seen before, disappearing before he could even make sense of them.
A mysterious black mist silently filled the courtyard, enveloping Mu Zhi’an, his vision gradually turning into a deep darkness.
Then, a light, like a star piercing through the night sky, suddenly appeared within the black mist. Mu Zhi’an instinctively looked up, and a pair of cold hands emerged from the darkness, gently cupping his face.
It was a woman, but he couldn’t see her face.
I’ve met her before… This thought crossed his mind, even though he couldn’t remember.
“…Who are you?” Mu Zhi’an asked, realizing he could speak.
The woman lowered her head slightly, a faint smile on her lips. Her voice, as enchanting as a siren’s call, whispered in his ear, “I’ve been waiting for you.”
But I’ve never met you before, beautiful… Mu Zhi’an wanted to say, but at that moment, a wave of dizziness washed over him, and the world around him began to rewind rapidly. His mind went blank.
He fought against the dizziness, looking up at the faceless woman, his voice trembling. “Who are you?”
As soon as he spoke, his consciousness faded.
“Brother Mu?”
Ye Lingxuan’s gentle voice reached his ears, and he abruptly opened his eyes.
Ye Lingxuan looked at him with concern, her hands on his shoulders. “What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?”
Mu Zhi’an looked at the girl in the purple dress beside him, then at his surroundings, his eyes filled with confusion.
Tang Sufei’s lips were pursed tightly as she stared at him, and Gu Hua’s expression was also serious.
“Brother Mu, did you discover something from the paper crane?”
“Did I just faint?” Mu Zhi’an asked.
Ye Lingxuan nodded slightly. “You were unconscious for about fifteen minutes. I just confirmed with her that there’s no danger or lasting effects.”
The ‘her’ she was referring to was naturally the Reincarnated Empress.
“How are you feeling now?” Ye Lingxuan asked, her usually calm eyes filled with concern.
Mu Zhi’an snapped out of his daze, looking down at the paper crane in his hand. He shook his head, his expression dazed.
“I’m fine…”
“I’m fine…” he murmured.
While reading the message on the paper crane, he had felt the world around him shift, as if enveloped in a mist.
He had initially thought everyone else was also experiencing it.
But now, it seemed it wasn’t the environment that had changed, but his own consciousness. He had fainted and had a dream.
And there was a woman in his dream… Although he couldn’t remember her appearance, if this letter was truly left behind by the Primordial Witch, then the woman in his dream must have been her.
“Can I see the letter, Young Master Mu?” Tang Sufei suddenly asked.
Mu Zhi’an suppressed his chaotic thoughts, nodded slightly, and handed the letter to the Holy Maiden from the World Sea.
“Brother Gu, do you know the Primordial Witch’s real name?” Mu Zhi’an suddenly asked.
Gu Hua, who was reading the letter with Tang Sufei, shook his head immediately, a hint of regret in his voice. “I don’t. Actually, the reason the cultivators in the World Sea called her the Primordial Witch was because no one knew her real name. Very few people have ever seen her.”
He picked up the black box and examined it carefully, his frustration growing.
A black box hidden in the depths of the World Sea, containing neither inheritance nor cultivation techniques, only the Primordial Witch’s longing for someone…
Thinking of this, and their long journey to the Two Polarities Sect, made Gu Hua even more depressed.
Suddenly, Ye Lingxuan asked, “When was this black box left in the World Sea?”
“About ten thousand years ago,” Tang Sufei replied.
Then, as if guessing what Ye Lingxuan was thinking, she immediately shook her head. “It’s impossible. Even the Primordial Witch couldn’t have foreseen the future from ten thousand years ago and planned for this box to end up in the hands of someone who could open it.”
She looked at Mu Zhi’an with a strange expression.
There was another matter that was even more puzzling.
No one had been able to open this black box, yet Mu Zhi’an had… And it had clearly resonated with him. Did this mean that Mu Zhi’an was the one recognized by the Primordial Witch, the one this box was meant for?
But a box that had been deliberately preserved for ten thousand years, containing only a single sentence and a peach blossom… It was too strange.
And how could a young cultivator who had only been in the Two Polarities Sect for less than six months be connected to the Primordial Witch, who had disappeared for nearly ten thousand years?
Mu Zhi’an looked at the black box in Gu Hua’s hand, then down at the peach blossom in his own, a shadow of confusion in his eyes.
Tang Sufei was right. Even a Dao Integration expert couldn’t predict the future ten thousand years in advance.
The Jade Empress and the other peak masters had said something similar. Divination could backfire, and the longer the timeframe, the greater the backlash.
No matter how brilliant the Primordial Witch was, she couldn’t have foreseen what would happen ten thousand years later.
Mu Zhi’an looked at the two of them. “Can I borrow this box for a few days?”
“There are still many unanswered questions about this black box. If I discover anything new, I’ll contact you,” he continued.
Gu Hua and Tang Sufei exchanged glances, seemingly communicating through voice transmission. Silence fell over the courtyard.
Mu Zhi’an patiently waited for them to finish their discussion.
Ye Lingxuan lowered her gaze, a flicker of worry in her eyes.
Suddenly, she felt a warm hand enveloping hers.
She instinctively turned her head and saw Mu Zhi’an smiling reassuringly at her. “Don’t worry, I’ll always be by your side,” he transmitted his voice softly.
So please put away your Desolate Time Lock… Mu Zhi’an glanced at the chain in her sleeve, a hint of apprehension in his eyes.
Seeing his smile, Ye Lingxuan’s worries faded, and she smiled back faintly.
It didn’t matter if the Primordial Witch knew Brother Mu or if the message was addressed to him… At least for now, he was by her side.
Even if the Primordial Witch wasn’t dead and truly knew him, she could still keep him by her side.
After all, the Desolate Time Lock had bound itself to him that day.
She could find him no matter where he was.
And in the future, she could even use the Desolate Time Lock to bring him back to her.
Thinking of this, a sweet smile appeared on Ye Lingxuan’s beautiful face, captivating Gu Hua, who was discussing the black box with Tang Sufei.
“Gu Hua, don’t forget what we’re here for,” Tang Sufei reminded him through voice transmission.
Gu Hua snapped out of his daze and couldn’t help but shake his head helplessly.
Even he, the well-educated Holy Son of the World Sea, couldn’t help but feel a pang of jealousy, seeing the Forbidden Zone’s Holy Maiden smile so sweetly at Mu Zhi’an.
He collected his thoughts and transmitted his voice, “What do you think, Holy Maiden?”
“The black box didn’t react to either of us. If we could have unlocked its secrets, we would have done so long ago.”
“It resonated with Mu Zhi’an. This means the Primordial Witch recognizes him. I think it’s worth letting him try,” Tang Sufei replied through voice transmission.
“It won’t hurt us.”
Gu Hua pondered for a moment, then nodded slightly.
“It seems you’ve made a decision,” Mu Zhi’an said, observing their interaction.
Tang Sufei looked at him. “Young Master Mu, if you can unravel the secrets of this black box, I can guarantee that the World Sea will always be your friend. We’ll assist you in any way we can.”
Who were the peach blossom and the letter meant for? Did they contain any secrets? These were questions that they, and even the entire World Sea, wanted answers to.
Since Mu Zhi’an was connected to the black box, perhaps he could solve this mystery.
Mu Zhi’an nodded seriously. “Don’t worry. I swear, if this box contains the Primordial Witch’s inheritance, I’ll return it untouched.”
With his promise and the Great Dao as his witness, they couldn’t help but feel a sense of goodwill towards his generosity.
After chatting with him for a while, Gu Hua finally couldn’t hold back his curiosity. “Brother Mu, what’s your relationship with Miss Ye? I heard you already have a Dao Companion…” he asked through voice transmission.
“Lingxuan is my beloved younger sister,” Mu Zhi’an replied.
Gu Hua’s eyes flickered. “Then if someone were to pursue her—”
Mu Zhi’an was stunned. “You actually believed my words?”
I just said it casually. You really want to be my brother-in-law?
Gu Hua: “…”
He quickly recovered and chuckled. “See you at the Ascension Ceremony.”
…
After seeing them off, Mu Zhi’an placed the peach blossom and the paper crane back into the black box.
He was no longer in the mood to ‘guide’ Ye Siyu after what had just transpired. After chatting with Ye Lingxuan for a while, he took the black box and prepared to leave.
“Brother Mu, I don’t know if the Desolate Time Lock will be able to track you in the Martial Realm. Be careful,” Ye Lingxuan suddenly said, reminding him.
The Martial Realm was restricted by formations, and the Two Polarities Sect’s elders would be monitoring them secretly. It wouldn’t be convenient for her to intervene.
After all, most people were unaware that she possessed an ancestral artifact. The Desolate Time Lock would be one of her trump cards in the Ascension Ceremony.
Mu Zhi’an paused and turned to look at her, smiling gently. “Don’t worry. I know what I’m doing.”
“Tell Siyu that I have something to attend to and can’t visit her today,” he added.
Seeing her nod obediently, Mu Zhi’an left Dexin Courtyard.
His smile faded as he took out the paper crane he had received earlier.
He couldn’t identify the Primordial Witch from her handwriting, but assuming the words ‘Long time no see’ were addressed to him, it meant she knew him.
This phrase sounded like a deliberate greeting.
Even a Dao Integration expert couldn’t predict the future ten thousand years in advance and know that this box would end up in his hands.
Then, what if it was a reincarnator?
If it was a reincarnator, everything would make sense.
The ‘Reincarnator’ title hadn’t appeared for no reason. There was indeed a reincarnator near him, and she had finally revealed herself today…
Perhaps the Primordial Witch was still alive!
As Mu Zhi’an’s mind raced, he suddenly felt the paper crane in his hand stir, as if trying to break free.
He instinctively released it and watched as it flew away, heading in a certain direction.
Did this paper crane have its own consciousness, or had it been programmed to seek out its master?
Or… was the Primordial Witch within the Two Polarities Sect?!
Mu Zhi’an’s heart skipped a beat. He immediately summoned his flying sword and followed the paper crane, his heart filled with a mixture of unease and curiosity.
Less than a minute later, he saw the paper crane fly into a Celestial Realm within the Jade Glass Palace.
He looked at the nameplate above the entrance.
Garden of Heavenly Harmony.