Chapter 122: Dragon, Phoenix, and Qilin

"What... what are you doing?"

The Little Yama caught sight of the sword in my hand, its cyan blade shimmering with a sudden, eerie light, and he was visibly startled.

"Nothing much. I just wanted to ask for your help. Lord Yama, I believe you would be willing to assist me with this, wouldn't you?" I walked toward him, speaking in a low, chilling tone.

The Little Yama retreated step by step, clearly unnerved. "Let's talk this over. I... I will look it up for you right now. If it can be changed, I will certainly help you change it, all right?"

I nodded. The Little Yama then went to his desk, took up the Book of Life and Death of the Small Underworld, and began to flip through its pages. After a moment, he said, "Lin Yi, the last time you came to the Small Underworld, you didn't actually lose anything."

"What?" I asked, surprised.

"See for yourself."

He handed the book to me, and I saw that it was indeed recorded there. Originally, I had lost two things: Er Pang and the Mountain God's Token. However, the Ferryman, Lin Yuan, had exhausted everything he possessed to trade for the return of everything I had lost.

Therefore, on my last visit, I had lost nothing at all.

But if that were the case, why had Er Pang turned into such a state? What on earth had he gone through?

At this, the Little Yama finally let out the breath he had been holding in his throat. He set the book back down and said, "Lin Yi, worldly affairs are ever-changing. The Small Underworld is not bound by the Heavenly Dao; the reason we can alter cause and effect is because, in doing so, other things inevitably shift as well. This is how the balance of Yin and Yang is maintained. You should understand this principle."

"Are you saying that even though Senior Lin Yuan traded his own possessions to get mine back, and it seemed as though everything was restored, the causality itself has been altered? So, what I possess will inevitably change?" I asked.

"Exactly. The Small Underworld alters pure causality. Since the first change already modified the course of events, we are forced to derive a new causality from these modified events to keep Yin and Yang in balance. Thus, what Lin Yuan traded for you is a new causality."

At this point, the Little Yama seemed to have realized something else. He asked, "Lin Yi, do you know what Lin Yuan used to trade for everything you lost?"

"His soul?" I asked, because back on the ferry, Lin Yuan had told me that all he had left was his soul, and nothing else.

However, the Little Yama replied, "It was not his soul. If it were his soul, I would never have agreed to the exchange. What he used for the trade was something far more important than his soul."

"Isn't a person's most important essence made up of their Life, Soul, Body, and Longevity? He had already lost the other three. Could there be anything more important than his soul?" I asked, bewildered.

"Of course. His destiny," he said.

"That can be traded too?" I asked, hearing of this for the first time.

"Of course it can. If you were willing, I could take your destiny and give you the entire Small Underworld in return. But you couldn't trade one of your Life, Soul, Body, or Longevity for the entire Small Underworld," the Little Yama explained.

"What would I want with your Small Underworld? It’s of no use to me," I retorted.

The Little Yama was left speechless by my remark. He composed himself and said, "Lin Yi, I will not hold this against you today. Lin Yuan's destiny, while not as great as yours, is not insignificant. Therefore, what he traded for you using that is a tremendous benefit."

"I don't see what benefit there could be," I said.

"Don't be so impatient. As things change, there will always be a result. You will understand in time. What Lin Yuan traded his destiny for is truly a great gift," the Little Yama said, sounding strangely excited—though I had no idea what he was so worked up about.

"Can you be a bit more specific?" I asked.

"Lin Yi, this is a heavenly secret. If I were to speak it aloud, it would inevitably alter causality, and I have no desire to be tainted by your complex fate. That's enough; I've said all I can. Take your wretched sword and leave; it's making my eyes dizzy." The Little Yama said impatiently.

"Thank you!"

After that, I left the Yama Palace.

Along the way, my mood lifted somewhat. At the very least, I saw a glimmer of hope regarding Er Pang. I even found myself harboring some expectations for him.

The Little Yama said he was a great gift from Lin Yuan—I wondered what that could possibly mean?

Come to think of it, Lin Yuan had been more than kind to me. He had once entrusted Weiyang to my care, but unfortunately, I had failed to protect her. I went to the River of Oblivion, where the ferry was docked, but the ferryman was nowhere to be seen.

"Senior Lin, thank you! I will definitely find Weiyang and bring her back!"

After muttering a few words, I left the Small Underworld and returned to the Forest of Returning.

The Flower Maiden didn't actually like Hua Yuyan, and the two barely spoke. When I arrived, Hua Yuyan was helping the Flower Maiden plant the Flowers of the Other Shore, but the Flower Maiden snatched the seeds from her hands, telling her that her help was not needed.

I could understand the Flower Maiden's feelings.

Later, Hua Yuyan and I left the forest. On the way back, I said to her, "Yuyan, the Flower Maiden just has a blunt personality. Please don't take it to heart; she's only grieving for her master. She served her master for over a thousand years, and now that her master is suddenly gone, it’s hard for her to let go. She needs time."

Hua Yuyan nodded and said, "I know. I don't blame her."

On the way to the Mountain God Temple, Hua Yuyan was very quiet. As we neared the temple, she suddenly stopped. I turned back and asked her what was wrong.

"Lin Yi, there is something I shouldn't have hidden from you," she said.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Actually, when you and the Flower Maiden were drunk yesterday, she said something. She said that her master belonged to the Phoenix clan. Since phoenixes are reborn through fire, she believes that Weiyang is not dead—that her master will definitely return!" Hua Yuyan said.

I hadn't expected her to bring this up; I was surprised, and even more, filled with hope.

I pondered for a moment and said, "Yuyan, thank you for telling me this. But those were just drunken words from the Flower Maiden. Whether the Phoenix clan even exists is still unproven, and no one knows if the Paulownia Grove is real..."

"No, Lin Yi. She was very certain. It wasn't just drunken rambling; I felt she was speaking the truth from her heart. I believe her words are true," Hua Yuyan said, looking at me earnestly.

"Why are you telling me this?" I asked. The more I dwelled on Weiyang, the more painful it would be for Hua Yuyan. My own heart surged with emotion at her words, yet I didn't want to hurt her any further.

"I just want you to be happy," she said.

With that, she walked ahead, her steps hurried, returning to the Mountain God Temple.

I stood there alone, my mind in turmoil.

Back at the temple, I asked my grandfather about the Paulownia Grove. As the Mountain God, he was knowledgeable about the secrets of the mountains and the earth; he was bound to know something.

However, when I asked, he shook his head and said, "Child, the Paulownia Grove vanished over a thousand years ago. During the ancient tribal wars, the Dragon, Phoenix, and Qilin clans fought a great battle. The Dragon clan was the strongest, while the Phoenix and Qilin clans were slightly weaker. Eventually, the Phoenix and Qilin clans joined forces to oppose the dragons. In the end, none of the three clans gained anything, and all suffered heavy losses. It was then that the Heavenly Dao seized the opportunity to send down a calamity, destroying all three clans at once. From that moment on, the Dragon Abyss Mountain, the Paulownia Grove, and the Qilin Cliff—the three ancestral veins—vanished along with the extinction of those clans."

"Of course, after the calamity, there were survivors from all three clans. But with the ancestral veins gone, their destiny withered and dried up until they eventually disappeared entirely. It is said, however, that the Dragon clan left behind the White Dragon line. But where exactly they are, no one knows."

When Grandfather mentioned the White Dragon line, I naturally thought of my mother. I asked him about it, and he said, "Yes, your mother is indeed of the White Dragon lineage. If I'm not mistaken, she holds a very high position within that clan. However, the White Dragon line is a taboo for her, and I never asked. But their existence must be shielded by some heavenly secret; otherwise, the Heavenly Dao would never have tolerated the survival of the White Dragon line."

I recalled the memory within the dragon's aura, where that man had threatened my mother by targeting her people. It seemed my grandfather's rumors about the White Dragon line were true.

"What about the Phoenix clan?" I asked again.

Grandfather thought for a moment and sighed softly. "The Phoenix and Qilin clans weren't as fortunate. Their strength was already relatively weaker, and with the exhaustion of the war and the calamity of the Heavenly Dao, they were completely wiped out. After their extinction, the Paulownia Grove was incinerated by heavenly fire, and the Qilin Cliff's veins collapsed, causing them to disappear entirely. This kind of disappearance is just like the drying up of the Changbai Mountain dragon vein; the locations may still exist, but they have become dead lands. Since then, there has been no trace of the Phoenix or Qilin clans in this world."

"Grandfather, could there still be descendants of the Phoenix clan left in the world?" I asked.

Grandfather paused, looked at me, and said, "Why do you ask?"

Seeing that I remained silent, he patted my shoulder and added, "As for descendants of the Phoenix clan, I believe there may still be some."

"Really?" Hearing this, I couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement.

Seeing my reaction, Grandfather said, "Child, are you asking all this because of Weiyang?"

"Grandfather, do you know her?" I immediately asked.