In his youth, Gu Qingfeng had a love affair that left an indelible mark on his heart.
Back when he was cultivating at the Yunxia Sect, he had fallen for a senior sister. To win her affection, Gu Qingfeng had gone to great lengths—sending small gifts every three days, love poems every five days, composing little songs every ten days, and so much more. Thinking back on those antics now felt rather childish, yet they were also exceptionally pure and innocent, something Gu Qingfeng could never forget to this day.
Although he ultimately succeeded in winning Senior Sister Hongxiu's heart, the gap between them—in terms of status, background, and cultivation strength—was simply too vast. Back then, Gu Qingfeng was merely a lowly laborer at the Yunxia Sect, while Senior Sister Hongxiu was a genius disciple.
When their relationship came to light, it was met with opposition from almost everyone in the sect, including even the then Sect Head Tude. For this, Gu Qingfeng nearly lost his life, and he was eventually expelled from the Yunxia Sect because of the incident.
As he was leaving, Gu Qingfeng had vowed that he would return.
He would return draped in boundless radiance, treading upon clouds of seven-colored auspiciousness, and he asked Hongxiu to wait for him.
Later, he truly did return.
Though he did not come draped in boundless radiance nor tread upon seven-colored auspicious clouds, his name had long since shaken the entire Northwest Territory, known to all, recognized by everyone.
Unfortunately, when he finally returned, Huode informed him that Hongxiu had already married.
From that day on, Gu Qingfeng never inquired about Hongxiu's whereabouts again.
Now, five hundred years had passed. Recalling it still stirred complex emotions in his heart.
The Yanyang Heart was the root of the first major turning point in his life, the first branch to sprout on his invisible Karma Tree.
Anyone connected to the Yanyang Heart should share Karma with him.
If Hongxiu had also been tempered by the Yanyang Heart back then, he wondered just what kind of Karma that would be.
"Well...
Kid Gu, there's something I've been meaning to tell you for a long time, but I never found the right opportunity."
Huode stood up from the ground, scratching his head, rubbing his hands, and grinning awkwardly as if he wanted to say something but found it difficult to speak.
Gu Qingfeng raised an eyebrow and glanced at him, took a swig of wine, and asked, "What is it?"
"How should I put this... I actually wanted to tell you long ago...
But I was afraid you'd get angry, so I never brought it up."
Huode picked up the wine jar and poured Gu Qingfeng a cup. After hesitating for a moment, he looked at Gu Qingfeng, gritted his teeth, stomped his foot, and said, "I'll just say it. This matter has been weighing on my mind for centuries. The truth is... Hongxiu never actually married..."
"What!"
Gu Qingfeng shot to his feet. His sudden movement startled Huode, who quickly tried to placate him, "Kid Gu, it's been so long. You can't lose your temper now. The reason I never dared to tell you back then was because I was afraid you'd fly into a rage and go on a killing spree."
Lose his temper?
Gu Qingfeng did not. Although his relationship with Hongxiu had been deeply etched into his heart, after all this time and everything he had experienced since, he was no longer the impulsive youth of those days. How could he lose his temper over something like this? He slowly sat back down and asked calmly, "Then why did you lie and tell me Hongxiu had married?"
"Well...
It's like this. Don't be angry, kid. Let me explain in detail."
Huode hurriedly poured another cup of wine and handed it over, speaking cautiously, "After you left back then, Hongxiu seemed like a completely different person. Especially after being tempered by the Yanyang Heart, it was as if she'd been possessed by a demon. She nearly killed her own master, Shui De, at one point, and even my Senior Brother Tude almost died by her hand..." He stole a glance at Gu Qingfeng, and seeing no trace of anger in his expression, dared to continue, "Later, Hongxiu just... disappeared.
No one knew where she went. I searched for her for years but never found her..." He paused, then added, "By the time you returned, you were already a figure renowned throughout the Northwest. If you'd learned that Hongxiu had vanished after being possessed, you'd have surely thought we drove her mad... and then you'd definitely have gone on a killing spree...
I had no choice. I was afraid you'd wipe out our entire Yunxia Sect...
So I could only lie and say she'd married..."
"Afterward, I always wanted to tell you the truth...
But your fame kept growing, the people you killed kept increasing... and I grew more and more afraid to speak up..."
Gu Qingfeng remained silent, not uttering a word. He simply drank by himself, his expression revealing neither joy nor anger. He asked, "Was Hongxiu truly possessed back then?"
"I don't know...
After you were expelled from the sect, Hongxiu was probably heartbroken, her spirit on the verge of collapse. Then, somehow, one day she came to me and demanded the Yanyang Heart...
And after that, she just... became deranged...
I searched for her for many years but never found her..."
Seeing Gu Qingfeng reclining in the rocking chair, eyes closed, looking deeply troubled, Huode opened his mouth but didn't dare say anything more.
"What kind of mess did you get yourself into? For the sake of the Yunxia Sect, how many times have you screwed me over, you old codger?"
Huode looked on the verge of tears. Ever since Gu Qingfeng was expelled from the Yunxia Sect, his cultivation had soared higher by the day, his strength growing more terrifying with each passing moment. Huode had always worried that Gu Qingfeng would combine old grudges with new and wipe the Yunxia Sect off the face of the earth. For that reason, he could only coax and deceive him.
"Forget it...
What's done is done..." Gu Qingfeng sighed but didn't say anything more.
"Kid Gu, why are you suddenly asking about the Yanyang Heart out of the blue? It's got me puzzled. Ever since the Cataclysm, so many people have suddenly taken an interest in our Yunxia Sect's Yanyang Heart."
"What do you mean?"
Gu Qingfeng opened his eyes and asked, "Who else has come looking for the Yanyang Heart?"
"Well, Old Master Rong from the Nine-Hua Alliance is one. The Ice-Profound Sect also came looking. Of course, the Ice-Profound Sect has ties to our Yunxia Sect, so it makes sense they'd come..."
"Wait, what ties do that Ice-Profound Sect have with you?"
Gu Qingfeng searched his memories carefully but had no recollection of the Ice-Profound Sect.
"It's like this. This goes back to our Yunxia Sect's founding ancestor. Back then, our founding ancestor and the Ice-Profound Sect's founding ancestor were senior brother and junior sister, and also Dual Cultivation partners. The two of them once ventured into an ancient cave dwelling where they discovered the Ice-Profound Heart and the Yanyang Heart. That's why they later founded the Ice-Profound Sect and the Yunxia Sect, respectively."
Huode sat back down on the ground, picked up a bowl of wine, and gulped it down before continuing.
"The two ancestors discovered that fusing the Ice-Profound Heart and the Yanyang Heart had unique effects when used in Dual Cultivation, so they decided to pass them down through their respective lineages. They agreed that the next generation's sect heads from each sect could become Dual Cultivation partners. This tradition continued for several generations of sect heads. At first, it really worked that way—after fusing the respective hearts, the sect heads' cultivation advanced by leaps and bounds.
"Both our sects grew stronger day by day. But when it reached our master's generation, for some unknown reason, the Yanyang Heart suddenly and inexplicably lost its vitality...
It could no longer be fused with...
And from that point on, our Yunxia Sect began to decline...
The gap between us and the Ice-Profound Sect grew wider and wider.
"Later, the so-called agreement fell apart. The Ice-Profound Sect looked down on our Yunxia Sect. At first, they still offered some support, but later, because my master's cultivation progressed too slowly, forming a Dual Cultivation partnership with him ended up holding back the Ice-Profound Sect's sect head. After that, the two sects completely fell out..."
"There's such a history?"
Gu Qingfeng truly hadn't expected the Yunxia Sect to have such a past.
"That's not even the worst of it. Before my master passed away, he passed the position of sect head to my Senior Brother Tude and told him to seek out the Ice-Profound Sect to see if Dual Cultivation could restore the Yanyang Heart's vitality. And so...
A few of us junior brothers accompanied Tude to the Ice-Profound Sect...
Guess what happened?"
Recalling the past, Huode's face filled with melancholy as he kept drinking. "I'll never forget that day for the rest of my life. We went to the Ice-Profound Sect, and damn, the humiliation those old hags heaped on us...
It was downright shameful...
They said our Yunxia Sect was a toad lusting after swan meat...
They beat up a few of us junior brothers and threw us out..."
"That should have been the end of it. Our Yunxia Sect isn't the type to be shameless, so we never went back to the Ice-Profound Sect. The two sects completely severed ties.
"However...
A few years ago, the Ice-Profound Sect produced a remarkably talented young girl. She's now the sect's heir apparent. She came to our door a few years ago demanding the Yanyang Heart."
"What does the Ice-Profound Sect want with the Yanyang Heart?"
"What else could it be?"
Huode curled his lip in disdain. "Probably afraid our Yunxia Sect's next sect head will bring up the Dual Cultivation thing again."
Gu Qingfeng thought for a moment and asked, "You said many people came asking for the Yanyang Heart after the Cataclysm. Besides the Ice-Profound Sect, which has ties to your Yunxia Sect, who else?"
"There was also a renowned prodigy, a peerless woman famed throughout the Northwest Territory, who came asking about the Yanyang Heart."
"A peerless woman?"
Gu Qingfeng looked at him and asked, "Who?"
"The Heaven's Pride, Su Hua."
First chapter for today. Recommendation votes are running low!
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