Chapter 1336: Reuniting As Planned (1/2)
Chapter 1336: Reuniting As Planned
The Fourth Mountain and Sea controlled the cycle of reincarnation in the Mountains and Seas. Everyone who died in the Mountain and Sea Realm would enter the Yellow Springs, which became the river of reincarnation that led to the Fourth Mountain and Sea. There, the newly arrived spirits would be guided into the cycle of reincarnation, where they would eventually find a new home.
There were many myths and legends regarding the Fourth Mountain and Sea. It was a mysterious place, one that most people could never fully comprehend. The only thing most people knew was that the Mountain and Sea Realm’s peak expert resided there.
His name was Ksitigarbha!
He was the Lord of the Fourth Mountain and Sea. He controlled the underworld, and he controlled reincarnation. Even among Mountain and Sea Lords, he held a preeminent position. And that was because essentially… he controlled the lives of everyone in the Mountain and Sea Realm!
The Fourth Mountain and Sea was an important node which allowed the Realm to form a complete cycle.
This was Meng Hao’s first time coming to the Fourth Mountain and Sea, and as soon as he entered, he could sense a very faint, and yet very pure, aura of death.
Or perhaps it would be better to say that it was not an aura of death, but an aura of Yin.
At first glance, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. The starry sky and the vast expanse seemed the same, and yet if you looked closely, you would see that the whole world appeared to be gray.
Meng Hao looked around silently, then sent his divine sense spreading out to cover the entire Fourth Mountain and Sea. However, there was one region in particular in which two powerful beings were fighting bitterly.
That was the location where Ksitigarbha was fighting the Outsider Imperial Lord. Meng Hao’s divine sense immediately provoked a reaction from both of them. As for the Outsider Imperial Lord, he reacted with rage, and he clearly wished to break free from the fight to try to slaughter Meng Hao.
However, Ksitigarbha prevented that. Furthermore, he spoke in a completely calm tone that brimmed with self-confidence.
“So, you're Meng Hao!” the Outsider said.
“Fellow Daoist Meng,” came the voice of Ksitigarbha, “I can handle this Outsider!”
Meng Hao smiled. When war descended, flowers would bloom on all parts of the tree, not just on one branch.
Furthermore, one person alone could not change the entire war. No, that required a group effort.
Meng Hao clasped hands and bowed toward Ksitigarbha, then focused his divine sense on where the cultivators of the Fourth Mountain and Sea were battling the Outsiders.
Millions of Outsiders could be seen, as well as millions of cultivators from the Fourth Mountain and Sea. What was being fought was a spectacular and unprecedented battle.
Meng Hao saw Xu Qing there, surrounded by rings of guards. She hadn’t been injured in the slightest, and in fact, was constantly sending orders out to all parts of the battlefield. Because of that, the cultivators of the Fourth Mountain and Sea occupied the clear advantage on this front.
Although he was a vast distance away from Xu Qing, when Meng Hao looked at her, she could sense it. She turned her head and looked off into the distance, and somehow, her gaze met his.
In that moment, Meng Hao’s heart trembled. As he looked at Xu Qing, numerous memories rose up within him. There was the time on Mount Daqing, when they had met for the first time. Then the time in the Reliance Sect when he had given her the Cosmetic Cultivation Pill. In the Black Sieve Sect’s ancient Blessed Land, he had found her, trembling and helpless.
Outside of the Black Lands, where Choumen Tai had descended from the sky, the two of them had killed the Ji Clan Quasi-Array cultivator, and when they parted, tears had welled up in her eyes.
Meng Hao would never forget any of those things.
In the Rebirth Cave, when he was dying, Xu Qing took care of him, even sacrificing her own life force for him, all to give him a chance at another life. Even if her own soul dispersed, she was willing to pay that price for him. She even allowed herself to be imprisoned in the Black Sieve Sect.
During their Red Wedding, Meng Hao held her in his arms, watching her fade away. He cradled her as she passed into death, and the entire time, she only cared about her dream of marrying him.
Meng Hao trembled as the memories flitted through his mind like wind and lightning, causing his whole world to shake.
He had come to keep his promise. He had come! [1. Here is a quick breakdown of all the Xu Qing references. Mount Daqing: chapter 1. First Cosmetic Cultivation Pill: chapter 12. Black Sieve Sect Blessed Land: chapters 151, 152. Killing Ji Clan cultivator: chapter 306. Xu Qing sacrifices her life force for Meng Hao: chapter 689. Meng Hao learns Xu Qing is being held by the Black Sieve sect: chapter 694. Red Wedding: chapter 772]
He had promised to find her, even if he had to travel to the furthest reaches of the Mountain and Sea Realm. No matter what dangers he faced, he would find her and would once again stand at her side.
She promised to wait for him. If a life or a lifetime was not enough, then she would wait for him through all lives and lifetimes.
Other than his parents and sister, there was no one in his life for whom he would do so much. There was no woman whom he would worry so much about, nor anyone that could occupy such an eternal place within his heart.
Although he didn't realize it at the time, back on Mount Daqing, when he saw her, the desire had already been planted within his heart... to be with her forever, through all lives and lifetimes.
Elder Sister Xu....
She was not spectacularly beautiful, but in Meng Hao’s eyes, in his world, she was the most beautiful thing in Heaven and Earth. She didn't have a complicated heart, and the source of that was not any lack of intelligence, but rather, the fact that she liked things to be simple. And so did he. When he was most tired, most exhausted, simplicity was a quiet harbor within which to rest his soul.
Her smile, her voice, her eyes, everything about her, were firmly rooted in his heart, and made him smile.
“I know in my heart that the person I fell in love with is not just a fond memory, but you,” he murmured. “The real you. I know... that I love you.” With that, he took a step forward.
Unbeknownst to him, someone had appeared behind him at some point, a shadowy figure clad in a long black robe. That figure was now watching him make his way off into the distance.