Book 8: Chapter 25: Before the Battle
No one brought up the Calamity of Threes.
The day before the showdown, everyone went about their own business in Jingshi Town. Yet avoiding the topic meant the matter weighed on their hearts. It just meant they didn’t express it.
Uncle Bao wandered around the foot of Ironhead Mountain, hesitating over whether to go see his old friend one last time. Tomorrow, his best friend would thoroughly vanish from the world. Him surviving would mean an even greater disaster. He would be a demon, no longer the original Ruan Tian Yi. Therefore, he was going to lose this only friend of his, regardless what happened. This ordinary friend with an extraordinary heart. This friend, who had ferried over countless resentful spirits, and ended up forcing himself into a dead end!
Daoism is the way of nature, and so was life and death. He should be able to accept it. However, men were ultimately not immortals. He couldn’t remain aloof in face of their many years of friendship. How could he accept it? After thinking it over, he still decided to meet his old friend again, even if it was just to exchange a few words from a distance. Considering the length of their friendship, he should at least say something before sending him off.
Meanwhile, Bao Da Tong was still training hard inside the town. Although Wan Li had told him to relax a little, he wasn’t able to sit still. If they were going to fight enemies and exterminate monsters, he would probably be very excited. Yet the thought of participating in the tragedy of patricide tomorrow left him uneasy. In fact, Wan Li was also very uneasy. Although he appeared to be reading calmly in his chair, he hadn’t turned a page in a while. His mind was clearly elsewhere. Ruan Zhan and Xiao Xia had already gone out. The two of them walked hand in hand through the small town, happily exploring every corner of it. Although they didn’t say a word along the way, their eyes remained on each other, and their fingers were interlocked. It seemed that every glance at each other deepened the impression in their hearts. They didn’t return to the inn until late at night.
Lying quietly in Ruan Zhan’s arms, Xiao Xia’s mind was in turmoil and she was unable to fall asleep. Her head nestled against his chest. Although she could hear his steady breathing and feel his strong and regular heartbeat, Xiao Xia could still sense the conflict within his heart, as if those painful and complex emotions were tangible. Anyone would find the task tomorrow daunting, let alone Ruan Zhan who was one of the involved parties. Although it was for his father’s sake, and had all been arranged by him, how could he bring himself to do it? And what if his life was really in danger? Will she really lose him?
Ever since she found out about the situation, she had bolstered her mind, telling herself he would definitely be fine. She also wasn’t going to let him leave like that. She kept telling herself this over and over again, but as the date approached and the showdown loomed, her blind confidence suddenly collapsed. During the day, she tried her best to act normal, as if she had everything under control. But on this chilly spring night, as his warmth and breath gently enveloped her, she suddenly feared that this beautiful moment might be their last, and she really feared losing him.
If he really died, she couldn’t follow him. Despite how much she loved her and the fact she might be better off dead without him, she couldn’t ignore her aging parents, or transfer her pain of loss to others by dying herself. Moreover, even if she were to die for love, she had neither spirit power or resentment. Her soul might dissipate quickly and it would be impossible for her to accompany him forever. What was she to do then? Should she learn from Lu Yan, give birth to Ruan Zhan’s son, then do as Ah Bai did and marry a ghost husband? No, she didn’t want to live in different worlds, unable to touch each other despite their love. She wanted to hold him, kiss him, spend time with him under the sun while growing old together. Therefore, she couldn’t be pessimistic. She had to be tough, and trust that she was his miracle!
Xiao Xia gently shifted Ruan Zhan’s arm from her waist, turning over to hug him, to feel his presence and warmth. But as she turned around, she saw him quietly watching her with his eyes open, as if he couldn’t bear to blink. His deep eyes were full of tenderness and affection, causing her own eyes to suddenly fill with a layer of mist.