Chapter 1358: Soul Wound
The Phoenix Space was pitch black, with the pair of crimson Phoenix Eyes releasing the only light. But when this crimson flame light fell into Yun Che's eyes, it reflected an extremely dim gleam in his pupils.
The space fell silent, and for a long time, there was no sound at all. Yun Che stared blankly ahead, his colorless eyes without a single ripple, as if his soul had been drained away.
The Phoenix Soul Spirit did not speak again. It was extremely clear that for a profound practitioner, becoming a cripple was a fate crueler than death. In particular, Yun Che had once stood at the pinnacle of a continent, had countless glories and honors, had created one miracle after another that had never existed before... even divine miracles.
Yet after a single dream, he had become a cripple.
No one could accept this sudden nightmare. Even profound practitioners of the Divine Realm... even the supreme Divine Sovereigns and Divine Lords, would have their will shatter because of it.
Especially... a nightmare from which there was never any possibility of awakening.
"Is there... a way to recover?" he asked, his voice weak and slow.
"Since it is dead, how can it be revived?" the Phoenix Soul Spirit answered. "The current you is just a mortal... a mortal who needs to slowly recover from weakness. Everything from the past has turned to smoke and clouds."
"...Then can I... cultivate again?" Yun Che asked again.
"No." No matter how harsh the truth, the Phoenix Soul Spirit would not hide it. "Your profound veins are still the Evil God's Mysterious Veins, but they are dead Evil God's Mysterious Veins. In this world, no power can awaken a dead Evil God's Mysterious Vein... unless you can find another drop of the Evil God's Blood."
"..." Yun Che stared ahead, dazed and lifeless.
The ice phoenix girl at the bottom of the Minghan Heavenly Lake had told him that back then, to preserve this single drop of Undying Blood, the Evil God had annihilated his own existence in advance. That meant that the Evil God's Indestructible Blood that Mo Li had found in the Southern Divine Region back then was the only Evil God inheritance in the world. There was absolutely no possibility of any other Evil God's Blood existing.
In other words, he had not only lost all his divine power, but could no longer cultivate.
Forever... reduced to a cripple!
"Ha... haha..." Yun Che laughed, his laugh incomparably dry and hoarse. "Are you... joking with me... Is this the price of my survival? Is this the so-called... Nirvana..."
The Phoenix Soul Spirit: "..."
The so-called Nirvana... these few words were undoubtedly an affront to the Phoenix's dignity, but the Phoenix Soul Spirit was not angry at all, because it understood very well just how cruel a blow this reality was to Yun Che.
"Why didn't you let me die a clean death..." Yun Che hoarsely growled. "At least I could accompany her... I promised I would go to another world with her... Why didn't you let me die... Why..."
These few words left him breathless, and the blurred vision before his eyes made the bitter smile on his lips even more desolate and cold... He was not just crippled; he was even worse than an old man lying sick in bed.
That day, when he had forcefully broken into the Star God Realm, he had never thought he could rescue Mo Li... But at least he could die with her.
Although he had killed many Star Guards and even a Star God Elder, it had not hindered the "ritual" in the slightest. He had been unconscious for so many days. By now, the ritual was surely complete. And as sacrifices for the ritual, Mo Li and Cai Zhi had undoubtedly died.
But the Yun Che who had promised to accompany Mo Li... was still alive...
Living on as a permanent cripple...
His hands trembled as he slowly clenched them. He tried to raise them, but they only lifted to his waist before falling weakly back down.
Now, even if he wanted to end his own life, he couldn't.
"I understand your feelings," the Phoenix Soul Spirit said. "Life is the most precious gift that the heavens bestow upon every living being. No matter how humble one becomes, one should revere and cherish it. Besides, in your current life, is there truly nothing more important than death?"
"..." Yun Che was silent for a long time. One image after another, one face after another, flashed through his mind. Gradually, his dull eyes began to tremble, and the trembling grew more and more intense...
Here, he was in the Tian Xuan Continent... He had returned.
The ones he missed day and night, he could finally see them and tell them he was back... But then, a heavy fear rose in his heart... He was afraid to see them.
How could he face them... like this...
A long silence.
"Thank you for giving me a second life," Yun Che said slowly, his voice seeming to regain a bit of calmness, but his hands were still clenched together.
"Surely you cannot accept this reality now," the Phoenix Soul Spirit said. "It's alright. Don't force yourself to accept it immediately. Time will let you gradually find the meaning of this second life. Perhaps one day, you will discover that returning to mediocrity is not a bad thing."
Faced with Yun Che's current state, it could only offer this comfort.
Being crippled forever—this result was enough to shatter any profound practitioner's will. Yun Che's life now was a gift from it, and it didn't want Yun Che to waste it in endless gloom and silence.
"..." Yun Che didn't respond.
"Go now," the Phoenix's crimson eyes narrowed slightly at this moment. "This second life is not only a blessing but also a trial. If you can overcome this difficulty through your own will, what you will gain is not only a rebirth of life but perhaps also a true... Nirvana of the spirit."
Yun Che: "..."
At that moment, the Phoenix's eyes closed. The world fell into darkness, then burst forth with countless bright lights.
The surrounding world switched silently, and Yun Che found himself back at the entrance to the Phoenix Trial Ground.
The barrier sealed shut again. Ahead of him, Feng Xian'er, Feng Zu'er, Feng Baichuan, and many other Phoenix clan members were waiting there, deep worry and anxiety etched on every face.
When they saw Yun Che emerge, their expressions all turned to concern. Feng Zu'er and Feng Xian'er immediately stepped forward, supporting him on either side.
A warm current rose in Yun Che's gloomy heart. Their worry and concern came from the bottom of their hearts, with no trace of falseness or contempt despite his crippled state. He forced a faint smile and said, "Senior Feng, I asked Xian'er to bring me here. Please don't blame her."
Feng Baichuan smiled and shook his head. "Take care of your health first. Everything else is unimportant."
"Brother Benefactor, let us help you back first," Feng Zu'er said. "Mother just made some bamboo soup. I'm sure you'll like it."
The two supported Yun Che, walking with extreme care. Yun Che looked ahead, his gaze still dazed and vacant.
This was the Phoenix Relic, located at the heart of the Ten Thousand Beasts Mountain Range. Everything in his line of sight was basically the same as in his memories, except that the sky was vaguely tinged with a layer of crimson... That should be the barrier set up by the Phoenix Soul Spirit to protect the Phoenix remnant clan.
It had already existed when he and Feng Xue'er came five years ago... Or perhaps it had existed even before that.
"Senior Feng," Yun Che suddenly spoke. "You all already knew that I was crippled, didn't you?"
The hands supporting him tightened slightly at the same time.
Feng Baichuan's steps paused briefly, then he looked at Yun Che and said calmly, "Ten days ago, when Lord Phoenix God sent you here, he mentioned this matter."
Yun Che: "..."
"Although my profound cultivation is low," Feng Baichuan continued, "I also understand that this must be an unacceptable thing for you. However, for our clan, no matter what you become, you will forever be the greatest benefactor of our entire clan... This will never change."
"Brother Benefactor, don't lose heart," Feng Zu'er forced a smile and said. "This is all temporary. Maybe once you recover your health, you'll slowly get better. Even if... even if it really doesn't recover, at worst... you can start cultivating again!"
"Mm!" Feng Xian'er nodded vigorously. "Brother Benefactor is so amazing. He was already invincible under heaven in his twenties. As long as Brother Benefactor is willing, he can surely become as strong as before very quickly... No, even stronger."
Feng Baichuan turned his face away, letting out a silent sigh.
Yun Che smiled bitterly. "Thank you."
Back then, when the siblings were only eight years old, when they looked at him, their eyes sparkled with starlight—a look of deep admiration and worship.
Even now, when they were both twenty, when they looked at him, that worshipful starlight still shone in their eyes.
But they didn't know that the person they had admired and pursued since they were eight had now fallen into utter crippledom... permanent crippledom... even worse than himself before the age of sixteen, when his profound veins were disabled.
At least back then, he still had the profound power of the Initial Xuan Realm, Level 1, and could flicker a faint profound light.
In his hazy vision, a low, old tree appeared. Its branches were cracked and withered, hunched as if about to fall, like an old man at sunset. A few withered yellow leaves let out their final groans in the gentle wind.
"I want to go sit over there for a while," Yun Che said softly, pointing to the old tree.
Feng Xian'er and Feng Zu'er both parted their lips slightly and looked to Feng Baichuan for help. The latter's expression was complex, but he nodded slightly.
The two siblings helped Yun Che over to the old tree. Yun Che leaned against the withered tree, facing the cool mountain wind, and gazed into the distance. He wanted to calm his heart, to make himself accept the current reality. But his will, his soul, seemed to sink into a bottomless abyss, unable to find a way out.
"I want to be alone for a while," he said, his voice even lighter than the mountain wind.
Feng Baichuan did not refuse. He nodded slightly. He understood far better than Feng Xian'er and Feng Zu'er, whose hearts were still too simple, the darkness Yun Che was enduring.
"But... but only for a little while. You'll catch cold if it's too long. My brother and I will come back for you soon."
Feng Xian'er gave a worried "warning" before finally leaving, looking back repeatedly.
Whoosh...
The mountain wind grew a bit stronger, tousling the disheveled hair on Yun Che's forehead. But his eyes remained dull and lifeless, and the chill in his heart was not carried away by the wind at all.
His vision had returned to that of an ordinary person. He couldn't even clearly see the small stones a little farther away.
A bird chirped by his ear, but he didn't notice when it had landed.
A withered leaf fell on his shoulder, but he couldn't trace its falling path.
The rest of his life would be like this.