Chapter 268

Chapter 268

After emerging from Xie Yin Xue's mouth, the cicada lightly flapped its wings twice upon the youth's lips, vibrating its abdomen and producing a shrill cry.

An ancient poem described it: The mournful song of the cicada, a sorrowful sound, marking the passing seasons as it lingers by the river.

It depicts the cicada's haunting call, touching those who hear it to their very core.

To Bi Yan Chen, the sound was piercing and jarring, causing him to step back from its source. His eyes never left Xie Yin Xue's form, and he then witnessed countless cicadas emerging from the young man's mouth. Like a horde during their breeding season, they overlapped and crowded over the youth, flapping their wings and crying out.

The chilling screams echoed everywhere until Bi Yan Chen could no longer discern Xie Yin Xue's form— the cicadas enveloped him completely.

All he saw were moving legs of cicadas, their large segmented abdomens, and their compound eyes reflecting his own face.

The sight was eerie and nauseating. Someone with a fear of bugs might have vomited at the sight.

Thus, when a slender arm emerged from the swarm, the stark contrast immediately captured all of Bi Yan Chen's attention— on the young man's fingertip was a glint of glistening white.

Upon closer inspection, Bi Yan Chen was taken aback to recognize it as a jade-white cicada. It clung tightly to Xie Yin Xue's index finger, soon flapping its wings.

With its first flutter, the cacophony of the cicada swarm ceased.

With the second, they turned into a fine powder, dissipating like fog.

On the third, the jade cicada lifted off, but after a brief whirl, it fell, only to be caught by the now awakened young man.

He sat up slowly, unharmed, glancing at Bi Yan Chen with a mocking look.

Bi Yan Chen met his gaze, swallowed hard, and said, "So, you truly are not dead."

Xie Yin Xue tossed the jade cicada up and caught it, scoffing, "Why would I rest in peace before laying the unfilial descendant like you to rest?"

Bian Yuchen fixed his gaze on the jade cicada in Xie Yinxue's hand: "Is that your heart?"

Upon hearing this, Xie Yinxue momentarily stopped playing with the jade cicada, bursting into unrestrained laughter.

If one were to compare Zhan Meng's blunt and vulgar way of berating others, Xie Yinxue's was more circuitous and peculiar—it might be better to be straightforward.

"You genuinely believe I removed my own heart?"

First, he replied with a rhetorical question, mocking Bian Yuchen, then sharply retorted, "I was just toying with you."

"Without a heart, a person would die. If I truly didn’t have one and could still live, why would I come here to save myself?"

"But just moments ago, your heartbeat ceased," Bian Yuchen remarked with a furrowed brow, "Moreover, you can't use any of your mystical techniques anymore."

Xie Yinxue's laughter subsided slightly, casting a sidelong glance at Bian Yuchen, "It seems you’re not entirely foolish."

Bian Yuchen, expressionless, replied coldly, "I have eyes; I can see."

He had never fully trusted Xie Yinxue's words.

Setting aside the technique of "living without a heart", the most puzzling aspect of Xie Yinxue was his willingness to be a stepping stone for himself.

Was the height of just over four meters worth such self-debasement for Xie Yinxue?

Anyone would deem it unworthy.

Yet Xie Yinxue did just that.

There was only one possibility: he couldn’t jump up by himself.

Why couldn't he? The answer was simple: he could no longer use any mystical techniques. Without any point of leverage, it's impossible for a regular person to leap four meters into the air.

Just as Bian Yuchen found divining future events increasingly challenging, he surmised Xie Yinxue too must be finding it progressively harder to use his mystical techniques.

Enabling himself to tirelessly chisel stone without rest might have been the last spell Xie Yinxue could cast. Hence, he couldn’t bestow the same endurance to others, nor could he leap onto the steps that were just over four meters high.

So, when Ming Sheng pushed Xie Yinxue down the stone steps, there was a moment when Bian Yuchen truly believed Xie Yinxue was dead. Even if he weren't, with his hands and lower limbs twisted and broken, how could he continue living?

One must understand that while the other participants had left, they still had to continue chiseling seven stones; without completing seven, they wouldn't survive the next morning.

Now, not only was Xie Yinxue alive, but he was also entirely unscathed, rendering such concerns moot.

He responded to Biàn Yǔchén, "Indeed, I can no longer wield any Qímén spells. But the art I use is not deployed within the instance."

To illustrate just how out of his depth Biàn Yǔchén was, Xiè Yìnxuě, in a gesture of humility, brought the jade cicada from his palm up to his face and asked, "Do you recognize this object?"

Biàn Yǔchén replied, "A jade cicada."

Xiè Yìnxuě smirked, "It is a jade cicada, but also a jade 'Yun'."

'Yun' refers to the burial jade placed in the mouth of the deceased.

Just as ancient Egyptians often wore beetle-shaped jewelry or amulets over their hearts, hoping that they, or their deceased, could transition smoothly to the afterlife, reborn anew, the ancient people of Huáxià, after witnessing the emergence of cicadas from the ground, entrusted a similar wish to the cicada. Hence, they began crafting jade in the shape of cicadas and placed them in the mouths of the departed, hoping the deceased could be reborn like the emerging cicadas.

"Cicadas remain buried, emerging after several years, only to perish a few weeks after surfacing."

Xiè Yìnxuě tilted his face upwards, positioning the jade cicada in the light beaming from the temple's dome. He said slowly, "I instructed my clan to prepare my funeral, placing me in a coffin with this jade cicada. Upon the coffin's reopening, I could move again. In this state, I am neither living nor dead—feeling no hunger, fatigue, thirst, or sleepiness, much like a cicada emerging from the ground, destined to 'die' a few weeks after wandering among the living. However—"

At this, the young man closed his fingers and when he reopened them, the jade cicada disintegrated into a fine white powder, vanishing into the sand.

The young man then slightly raised his chin, looking down on Biàn Yǔchén, "If I suffer a mortal injury during this period, I will 'die'. But no matter what, I can always be reborn."

Biàn Yǔchén exhaled deeply, "I suspected you might not be able to use any Qímén arts anymore, but I never anticipated that you had prepared yourself before entering the instance."

Xiè Yìnxuě casually remarked, "Forewarned is forearmed."

This method, at best, granted him an extra life. Initially, upon entering the instance, Xiè Yìnxuě was unfamiliar with the nature of the participants and wasn't sure of the deceptive nature of the seemingly upright Biàn Yǔchén, or if he had his "Thirteen" accomplices among them. So, he maintained a humble and gentle demeanor. Once he had a grasp of everyone's characters and the unstable Tú Wéncai was out of the picture, why would he let Biàn Yǔchén act so haughtily?

It was about time to put Biàn Yǔchén in his place.

"Ironically, you admitted to having accomplices. I wasn't entirely sure until you inadvertently confessed."

Every time he pondered this, Xiè Yìnxuě wanted to scoff at the sheer absurdity.

After all, Míngshēng's initial disguise was rather decent. Gentle and scholarly, he didn't resemble the trained "Thirteen" guards Biàn Yǔchén usually had. Mentioning his son and wanting to reunite with his child made him appear sympathetic. Even after Biàn Yǔchén's slip about having allies among the participants, Xiè Yìnxuě couldn't be entirely certain who the accomplice was.

But Biàn Yǔchén seemed to have overthought—

"When did I—"

Now, with no other participants around, only him and Xiè Yìnxuě, Biàn Yǔchén dropped the act. However, he was cut off mid-question by the younger man's raised eyebrow, "Haven't you realized yet?"

Xiè Yìnxuě showed no intention of enlightening him, "Then take your time figuring it out."

Observing his demeanor, Bian Yuchen fell into deep thought. He meticulously replayed every conversation he'd had with the man. After a brief pause, he raised an eyebrow and remarked, "It's about the divination, isn't it?"

Xie Yin Xue remained noncommittal.

However, he indeed deduced from the divination Bian Yuchen mentioned that Bian had an accomplice.

[Stick to one's role and beware of conflicts; when two come together, it brings good fortune.]

This was the divination drawn by Bian Yuchen.

The last two lines were clear, but the first two were the crux, especially "beware of conflicts". The warning was clear as day. Given Bian Yuchen's confidence in his divination skills, he wouldn't have engaged in a dispute with Xie Yin Xue after receiving such a warning.

Unless initially, he believed the "two people" in the divination didn't refer to him and Xie Yin Xue, but to him and someone else. That would make sense.

Bian Yuchen might have thought that if he and this other person didn't quarrel and united in purpose, they could eliminate Xie Yin Xue and successfully clear the challenge.

But when he found himself arguing with Xie Yin Xue, coupled with the progress not being favorable, he suddenly realized the "two people" in the divination were him and Xie Yin Xue, not his accomplice.

That's why he changed his tune so dramatically afterward, not even rebutting a word even when Xie Yin Xue forced him to admit his mistake.

Hearing Xie Yin Xue openly acknowledging his early slip, Bian Yuchen asked, "So, you purposely let Ming Sheng push you off?"

Xie Yin Xue, not wanting to reiterate the obvious, pointed towards the now unseen Ming Sheng above the stone steps, "Whether or not I did it on purpose, you should worry about your 'Thirteen'. If you don't act, he'll die."

"I can't do anything," sighed Bian Yuchen. "I can't jump up there alone, and he can't come down by himself. Can you jump up?"

Xie Yin Xue chuckled, "He pushed me down, and now I should save him?"

"Then let him perish."

With a look of resignation, Bian Yuchen quipped, "Even if we save him, he won't be able to complete the stone carving. Dying tomorrow or today makes no difference. Also, I need to clarify one thing—"

"He's not Thirteen; he's just Ming Sheng."

Bian Yuchen's words took Xie Yin Xue by surprise.

Not just because of the cold, cutting demeanor of Bian Yuchen while he spoke, emphasizing the last point as if mistaking Ming Sheng for Thirteen was a grievous error that needed immediate correction. The life or death of Ming Sheng seemed trivial; Bian Yuchen was indifferent and uncaring.

Moreover, Bian Yuchen seemed eager to vent, unreservedly sharing with Xie Yin Xue the old tales of the Bian family, "Indeed, Ming Sheng's family deals with funeral services, offering a range of them, and they have a long-standing collaboration with the Bian family."

With that said, no more words were needed. After all, no amount of gold retrieved by Ming Sheng could persuade a mummy to carve stone for him. The situation spoke for itself.

"He has someone he loves named 'Ming Shen', the 'Shen' as in 'Sheng Ge' (reed pipe song)." Bian Yuchen glanced down at his palm, "She's my cousin and used to visit his family's shop often to purchase coffins for the other Thirteens. Ming Sheng didn't want the Ming Shen he adores to one day lie inside a coffin made by his family, and so, he promised me a favor."

What that favor was, Bian Yuchen didn't explicitly say, but they both knew the answer.

And why would Ming Shen, a proper young lady from the Bian family, end up in a coffin? Connect it with Bian Yuchen's "doomed" fate, and it's not hard to guess—it was probably to serve as a medicinal catalyst to extend his life.

After all, using one's blood relative for such a purpose is believed to be the most effective.

Yet, it's rare for someone to go to such extremes with their own kin.

But even when discussing his own blood-relative cousin, Bian Yuchen's tone remained cold and emotionless. His refined face, under the bright light, radiated a chilling intensity.

He lifted his gaze to Xie Yin Xue, and in that moment, he seemed to transform into a self-righteous advocate, "Such a despicable man, if he dies, he dies. If his worthless life could be exchanged for Ming Shen's survival, it's a blessing for him. It's the only good deed he's done in his life, don't you think, Xie Yin Xue?"

With such a dismissive and disdainful attitude towards Ming Sheng, it's no wonder Bian Yuchen initially thought the omen about "beware of conflicts" pertained to his relationship with Ming Sheng.

As for Ming Sheng's character, Xie Yin Xue had no opinion and was indifferent to his life story.

A person who has done good deeds their entire life shouldn't be deemed evil for one bad act, and vice versa.

Xie Yin Xue only commented on what he'd overheard, "He sent Yao Xiao Guo away. Perhaps Yao Xiao Guo might think he's a good man."

"And you?"

Xie Yin Xue shot back at Bian Yuchen, "On the day you die, will anyone consider you a good person?"

Bian Yuchen smiled lightly, "Everyone in the Bian family will think of me as a good person."

At times, Xie Yin Xue felt that Bian Yuchen's sanity was questionable, perhaps from staying too long in the 'Longevity Lock' mission, or for some other reason. He looked at Bian Yuchen with a mix of pity and skepticism, "You can deceive me since I won't believe you anyway, but don't deceive yourself."

The smile on Bian Yuchen's lips slightly stiffened, and he twitched at the corner of his eyes, barely maintaining his faux grin, "What about you?"

"Will the Shen family remember everything you've done for them, be grateful to you, and consider you a good person?"

"I don't care."

Xie Yin Xue retorted, "Do I look like I belong to the Shen family? What the Shen family thinks has nothing to do with me, a Xie."

He stared intently at Xie Yin Xue, trying to detect a hint of insincerity or resentment in the young man's face, but found none.

Bian Yuchen always felt he shared many similarities with Xie Yin Xue—background, capabilities, and even the trajectory of fate placed upon them. The only difference was that they were destined adversaries.

But to say Biyan Yuchen harbored an intense hatred for Xie Yinxue, desiring his death every second, would be an exaggeration.

For instance, in this moment, Biyan Yuchen would much rather have a conversation with him than harm him.

There's so much Biyan Yuchen wishes to share.

Those who haven't entered the Lock of Longevity will never retain memories associated with it.

No matter how many times he mentions it to others, they might forget everything the moment he turns away.

The Biyan family members can't see, remember, or understand the torment Biyan Yuchen endured inside the Lock. They feel he demands too much, consuming the family's top resources, giving too little in return. They even start doubting if their family's prosperity truly hinges on someone who’s so clueless about the stock market and business.

Whenever he meets their doubtful and mistrustful eyes, Biyan Yuchen feels resentment and pain.

As he had said before, he believes that perhaps only Xie Yinxue, who shares a similar fate, might understand this pain and resentment after all the "Thirteen" who could remember the Lock fade away.

Ever since meeting Xie Yinxue, Biyan Yuchen often wondered: If this is how it is for him in the Biyan family, what's it like for Xie Yinxue in the Shen family?

Biyan Yuchen is dying to know.

Now, with only the two of them present and ample time at hand—there couldn’t be a better moment.

As Biyan Yuchen was about to initiate a heart-to-heart discussion with Xie Yinxue, the latter walked past him, went to the stone steps, and started retying the ropes. Seeing this, Biyan Yuchen kept silent and helped.

By the time they finished, the earlier ambiance had nearly dissipated. Just as Biyan Yuchen was about to speak again, Xie Yinxue sighed, "So tiring..."

Biyan Yuchen looked up immediately.

Indeed, Xie Yinxue, now without the effects of the Cicada Reburial Technique, seemed less effortless than before. Breaking a sweat without even finishing half the stone work, he grumbled, "This is the hardest thing I've done in my life."

All of Biyan Yuchen's prepared words got stuck.

After holding back for so long, he finally couldn’t resist, and in response to Xie Yinxue's lamentation about his pampered upbringing, he blurted out, "I've been this tired for seven days, and you just one. What are you complaining about?"

Xie Yinxue retorted, "How else will you know you've taken seven lifetimes of comfort from me?"

He added, "And not everyone is as lucky as you. Look at those who left; they only got six lifetimes of ease. You, on the other hand, have enjoyed seven. Enjoying the hardship?"

“……”

Hearing this, Biyan Yuchen took a deep breath.

Indeed, he almost forgot. Xie Yin Xue, with his feudal indulgence, lived a decadently luxurious life in the Shen family. What "pain" could he possibly know?

At this moment, Bian Yu Chen no longer wanted to discuss life's musings with Xie Yin Xue. He only wished Xie would remain silent. He sternly said, "Xie Yin Xue, remember this: a kind word can warm three winters, while a malicious one can chill for six months. It's wise for one to speak kindly..."

"I'm not kind?" The young man interrupted him with an incredulous pitch in his voice, "It's so hot in here, wasn't I just trying to cool you down? Not only are you ungrateful, but you also play the victim first. Can we have some logic here?"

Bian Yu Chen fell silent, realizing he couldn’t out-argue Xie Yin Xue. He avoided his gaze and continued to chip away at the stone, his every move infused with pent-up anger.

Xie Yin Xue, noting this, sneered.

Bian Yu Chen once said he had a discerning eye. Didn't Xie Yin Xue have one as well?

He clearly noticed that Bian Yu Chen wanted to talk, but he had no interest in chatting with him — he found the idea nauseating.

Though he wasn't exactly a saint, at least he had his principles. What about Bian Yu Chen?

Sure, all crows might be black, but he and Bian Yu Chen were never birds of a feather.

Good and evil deeds in life are always repaid.

Bian Yu Chen's fear of death, his reluctance to die — was it because of his deep love and concern for the Bian family? Was he worried that the family would crumble after his demise? Perhaps not. Instead, his eyes betrayed a fear of suffering eternal torment in hell after death.

As for Xie Yin Xue, his lack of fear of death wasn’t due to fear of retribution.

In fact, ever since Chen Yu Qing’s death, he hoped for swift retribution. If even someone as kind as Chen Yu Qing couldn’t have a peaceful end, then surely he, who was selfish, cold, and narrow-minded, deserved a painful death, lest the heavens be blind to his sins.

But how could he die?

After his death, suffering eternal damnation would serve no purpose for those still alive.

It was better to remain alive, ensuring all pain and misfortune was solely his to bear.

The Shen family could continue their blissful lives, and his disciple wouldn't be confined to a secluded corner of the world like Ming Yue Cliff.

— Once, this was what Xie Yin Xue believed.

Now, he has another reason to avoid death.

When dawn broke on the eighth day, Xie Yin Xue, amidst his exhaustion, looked up. Through his sweat-soaked lashes, he gazed at the entrance of the stone path and, once again, met those dark, deep eyes that warmed only when they were fixed on him.

Xie Yin Xue remembered their original hue — akin to the ashy remnants after a complete burn, revealing only desolation, decay, and utter silence.

Upon beholding it again this morning, Xie Yin Xue felt that it surpassed the beauty of the world's oldest gemstones, the treasured lapis lazuli cherished by Egyptian pharaohs and extolled in literature as having "hues of heaven, scattered with golden flecks, radiant as if stars adorned the sky."

He silently gazed into those eyes, never shifting his focus, allowing their owner to empty the organs left inside him. Eventually, the pulsating, blood-red heart was also placed on the scale's left pan.

The soft, cloud-like ostrich feather on the right couldn't bear the heart's weight, lifting high above.

Bian Yu Chen, witnessing this, was stunned and distraught, realizing that like Xie Yin Xue, their hearts were so saturated with sins that they weighed much more than the feather of truth.

This scene also entered the periphery of Xie Yin Xue's vision, yet he refused to divert even an inch of his gaze, ignoring what essentially amounted to a death sentence, as if he'd chosen to waste the last embers of his life in this meaningless stare.

Time and space seemed to blur at that moment. To Xie Yin Xue, it felt too short; to Bian Yu Chen, it felt too long. Yet Chen Yun, Lu Shuo, Zhan Meng, Li Chan Yi... all of them seemed to return to this sacred place.

But they had become minuscule, no larger than half a pinky's length. They could stand on the balance beam, quickly running from the pan holding the heart to the pan holding the feather of truth, as if someone had built a stairway across the beam.

In a daze, Bian Yu Chen felt as if he saw them all again, ascending spiraling stone steps into the vast blue yonder — the balance of soul's judgment, at that moment, found equilibrium with the feather of truth.

As the original inscription on the temple walls stated:

[This is the end of your journey.

The gods present three paths:

To the next life?

Or return to the mortal realm?

Or be consumed by overwhelming sins?]

— Everyone took the path meant for them.

The anthropomorphic beasts placed the hearts back into the chests of Xie Yin Xue and Bian Yu Chen, infusing them with fragrant spices, anointing their skin with resin, and finally wrapping them from feet to head in linen strips.

At that moment, Xie Yin Xue thought of Ming Sheng.

He wondered if the last thing Ming Sheng desired to see before his death was the eyes of his beloved.

Bian Yu Chen once said that Ming Sheng wished to exchange his life for his loved one's. Did the rescued Ming Sheng know of Ming Sheng's sacrifice?

Was she oblivious? Or did she knowingly take advantage of Ming Sheng?

If it was the latter, did Ming Sheng know? And if he did, would he still have given everything willingly?

Ming Sheng's thoughts and feelings were inscrutable to Xie Yin Xue.

All he knew was his own willingness.

Ancient Egyptians would inscribe Chapter 30 of the Book of the Dead on the base of the scarab heart amulet. Before his hands were bound, Xie Yin Xue gently raised his right arm, caressed the muzzle of the wolf-headed creature, and once again murmured a name seemingly etched onto his own heart: "Bu Jiu Zhao."

"I said you weren't appealing to look at, not because of your current appearance, but because I believe you're most beautiful when you're free."

Chef A Jiu in the Qin mansion, masked and uninhibited; the ship captain on the He Er Zhi Meng vessel, whom he'd playfully deprived of grilled meat; the young hare in the Eternal Academy reaching up to hold his hand...

Countless visages of Bu Jiu Zhao flashed before Xie Yin Xue's eyes. He gently touched the man's eyelashes with a smile, "Your eyes have always been captivating."

Such mesmerizing eyes, filled with his reflection.

"You've always been a beast, no need to act human."

"Being human has its drawbacks, burdened by complex emotions and insatiable desires. But if it means you'd transform from a spirit to a human—"

Xie Yin Xue's voice wavered momentarily. He wasn't like Chen Yun, born with a natural compassion for others.

His act of saving someone was more out of convenience and inclination; saving or not had no moral weight for him. Being indifferent and aloof for so long, he felt as cold as a cluster of snow, offering no warmth to those near him. Thus, if Bu Jiu Zhao sought warmth elsewhere, he bore no resentment.

A familiar gaze, as if they'd met in a past life.

Looking into those eyes, which seemed to reach back through millennia, Xie Yin Xue mused: Having been mistaken as the Ferryman so often in "Lock of Eternity," let me play the role of a true Ferryman today.

He wished to sing praises of the Sun God Ra, pray with reverence, and guide Bu Jiu Zhao to the reed fields in ancient Egyptian mythology, where pain and death were nonexistent, only the warm sunlight shone.

Thus, with closed eyes and a soft smile, Xie Yin Xue whispered,

"I'd gladly enter your cage, to grant you freedom, to let you be human for once."

Author's Note:

① Cicadas lament in the cold, their cries mournful. As seasons turn to dusk, they linger by the river. — Quoted from "Elegy of the Cold Cicada."

② Colors like the sky, scattered with golden flecks, radiant as if stars adorned the heavens. — Quoted from "Stone Elegance."

③ That intense gaze, heavy with meaning, as if recognizing someone from a past life. — Quoted from "Traces of the Moon and Flowers: Episode Three."