Chapter 58: A Pitiful State
Her time had stopped in the past.
The former Gu Jing was a gentle yet powerful cultivator.
She respected her masters and cherished her fellow disciples. Even as the wielder of the Autumn Maiden Sword and a young Divine Foundation sword cultivator, she never displayed any arrogance.
Her path of cultivation wasn’t particularly remarkable. She never sought to forge a unique path for the ages, nor did she have any goals she absolutely needed to accomplish.
She simply followed her heart in everything she did. Though it might have seemed less determined, it carried a unique sense of contentment and freedom.
But… when exactly did it start?
That Gu Jing gradually disappeared.
Her inner world, her prospects, her future were being devoured by intense yet helpless emotions, like a tree hollowed out by insects.
Beneath the dense surface riddled with insect holes, the inside was already empty.
And now, even that small section of trunk barely holding up…
Had collapsed.
On the day the Autumn Maiden Sword shattered, she also lost her life as she knew it.
So, she found a way to live in the past.
A fabricated past.
The flowers she had been growing all these years weren’t ordinary flowers.
Their essence had “worry-dispelling” and “wish-fulfilling” effects. By planting them on the dead Autumn Maiden Sword that still carried Luohe’s aura… she achieved the effect she needed.
She couldn’t forget the dream she had six years ago, that eighteen-year dream that was etched into her soul.
She knew that Luohe was definitely in that dream, truly experiencing everything with her.
That was undoubtedly harmful and humiliating to him, but it also gave Gu Jing a sliver of hope, albeit tinged with darkness.
What did Luohe mean to her, and she to Luohe… in the end?
Did she have a chance, any ability at all, to make even the slightest amends for everything?
Even if it was something detestable, something worthy of contempt.
But the cruelty of this hope lay in Gu Jing’s clear understanding that such a chance didn’t exist.
Because everything had proceeded as expected, and she had forever lost the right to seek answers.
So she stayed in this small place, living among ordinary people, repeatedly throwing herself into that illusory world.
These illusions were crude and full of flaws, but Gu Jing willingly allowed herself to be deceived.
Because in this place, she could still glimpse something that had long since disappeared from reality.
But it seemed heaven didn’t want Gu Jing to continue like this.
Less than two days after Su Huanhuan left, Gu Jing discovered that the remaining traces of Luohe on the Autumn Maiden Sword…
Had completely vanished.
This meant her dreams could no longer be sustained.
The world didn’t want her to escape; it wanted her to clearly feel the pain.
And so, panic about reality surged in Gu Jing’s heart.
She uprooted the flowers one by one and dug up the Autumn Maiden Sword she had buried with her own hands, looking at the spirit sword that had truly died.
It was entangled with countless roots and vines, like iron chains, tightly locking her heart in place.
From beginning to end, she had been a prisoner of her own making, locking herself away, exiling herself.
In the end, when the dust settled, even though the prison that held her had rotted and rusted,
She still sat inside, unable to leave.
Just like this dead sword, tightly bound by vines.
Tap, tap…
Gu Jing heard footsteps approaching.
But she had no desire to respond.
The footsteps stopped in front of her.
“Hmph… so that’s it.”
Su Huanhuan’s voice came from above her.
“The other day I saw all those worry-dispelling herbs planted in your yard and didn’t know what they were for. So… the secret was hidden here.”
“You’re quite good at entertaining yourself… stuck in your ways, wallowing in self-pity, what a pitiful state.”
“…”
Gu Jing still didn’t answer.
She remained kneeling on the ground, holding the Autumn Maiden Sword, glancing up at Su Huanhuan before quickly looking away again.
Su Huanhuan didn’t press further, but simply looked at the half-broken Autumn Maiden Sword, thinking carefully.
Come to think of it, that stupid fox carried the sword’s soul, but it still lacked a vessel.
Though she wasn’t sure if this broken sword could still be used… bringing it back would surely be the right thing to do.
With this in mind, Su Huanhuan didn’t think further and immediately sent out a stream of energy, cutting through all the entangled roots.
And as she expected, a sword glint immediately brushed past her temple, taking a few strands of her hair with it.
Even after years of neglect and physical deterioration, the Divine Foundation stage Gu Jing’s strike was still beyond Su Huanhuan’s reach.
Gu Jing had somehow stood up, holding the Autumn Maiden Sword with its severed roots and scattered soil, pointing it at Su Huanhuan.
But at this, Su Huanhuan only showed an even more sarcastic smile.
“If you cherish it so much, why bury it in the ground, turning it into such an ugly, pitiful state?”
“And why show mercy to someone like me who covets it? Don’t you find that contradicts your tragic demeanor?”
“…”
“Or is it because you think I care about him, so you treat me this way?”
“Senior Sister Gu, I suddenly realize you’re not hypocritical, you’re ridiculous.”
“Your thoughts are genuine, but genuinely laughable… Is it because your life was too smooth before, leaving you unable to handle unexpected changes?”
“If I were you, I would have long ago cut down anyone who tried to touch this thing.”
“…”
Gu Jing still gave no answer. Her empty eyes stared for a long time before finally lowering the sword.
“Go away.”
“If I leave now, Senior Sister Gu, I’m afraid you’ll regret it.”
Su Huanhuan said languidly, while keeping her gaze on the mud-covered Autumn Maiden Sword.
“Senior Sister Gu, have you ever wondered why the aura of the Autumn Maiden Sword suddenly disappeared so completely?”
Su Huanhuan certainly knew why—the sword’s soul had gone to Luohe’s side.
But upon hearing this, Gu Jing seemed frozen, even her breathing slowed for a moment.
Su Huanhuan was someone who would repay a debt of gratitude just as surely as she would seek revenge for a slight.
“The heart-bewitching ghost cultivator you saw six years ago—well, ghost cultivators originate from wandering spirits that failed to enter reincarnation. Once their former self dies, naturally they leave no trace.”
“What I’m saying is just speculation, but…”
Su Huanhuan’s lips curled into a mysterious smile:
“To the south, there’s a secluded mountain with a patch of yin energy called the Qiluo Devil’s Cave. The ghost energy there is extremely heavy, and most wandering masterless spirits eventually drift there.”
“Perhaps, I’m just saying perhaps, you might find something unexpected there.”
Su Huanhuan saw something new appear in Gu Jing’s eyes.
She still looked as lifeless as before, but Su Huanhuan could feel that something had changed in this sword cultivator who resembled a withered tree.
Su Huanhuan felt she had done a tremendous good deed.
See, hadn’t Gu Jing immediately come alive again? This was her repaying one favor.
And Su Huanhuan had never told a single lie—the Qiluo Devil’s Cave was real, and the masterless spirits were real too.
She did say “perhaps,” didn’t she?
Su Huanhuan looked at Gu Jing’s trembling sword-holding hand, her smile growing wider.
After all, she couldn’t be sure that child wouldn’t reveal secrets…
Rather than gambling on that possibility, she might as well give Gu Jing this idea herself, sending her in the opposite direction.
From now on, one would go north, one would go south.
Unless the world was round, Gu Jing would never find the two of them, haha.
…