Chapter Ninety-Seven: Of Unknown Origin

In dreams, there exists a vast and boundless world; the cycles of life and death are unpredictable. Only in a dream that spans a thousand years can one witness the myriad phenomena of heaven and earth. Thoughts arise from the heart; there is no true immortality—only the desire for life to be in one’s own hands, for life and death not to be dictated by fate.

The dream world was a chaotic blur, with no clear boundaries between earth and sky, no sense of direction—east, south, west, or north. Before his eyes raged flying sand and stones, encircled by dazzling five-colored lights. Cui Yue found himself amid this turmoil. Suddenly, his entire body began to split apart, scattering and then recombining repeatedly—reincarnating...

“Cui Yue, Cui Yue, wake up! Wake up!”

A sudden flash of golden light pierced through Cui Yue’s mind, and he felt himself being sucked out by a swirling vortex.

“Da Zhuang, you’re back?”

Cui Yue struggled to lift his heavy eyelids. In his blurred vision, he saw Da Zhuang kneeling beside him, wiping away tears incessantly.

“Da Zhuang, you big bear, why are you sniffling like a little girl?”

“I—I thought you all were dead. I was scared to death.”

Dawn was approaching. Da Zhuang had rushed day and night to fetch the neighboring town’s Yin-Yang master. Upon entering, he saw utter chaos and disarray—three people lying on the ground, their fates unknown!

The other two soon regained consciousness, but Cui Yue’s body alternated between hot and cold waves, and no matter how much they shook him, he would not wake.

Everyone present was dumbfounded by the unfolding events—such things were beyond belief.

“Good grief.”

Cui Yue felt as if his entire body had fallen apart. Suddenly recalling the Qingyi ghost, his heart skipped a beat. He hurriedly examined himself carefully, relieved to find all his parts intact, with no serious harm.

“Kid, do you still recognize me?”

Suddenly, a pair of rubber-soled shoes appeared before Cui Yue’s eyes. Looking up, he saw a man with a scruffy beard, messy hair, and patched clothes.

“Who are you?”

The man said nothing, only chuckling softly.

Cui Yue’s eyes brightened. He noticed various tattoos on the man’s knuckles and strange rings adorning his fingers.

“You’re Master Huo from the riverbank the other day!”

The middle-aged man nodded slightly, giving tacit approval.

It turned out that the Yin-Yang master Da Zhuang had hurried to fetch from the neighboring town was none other than the greedy, shabby Master Huo!

“Brother Cui, are you really alright?”

Little Feng timidly hid behind Da Zhuang, not daring to look directly at Cui Yue.

“I’m really fine. Don’t worry—I’m full of life.”

“But—but I saw with my own eyes you swallowed that female ghost alive, really swallowed her!”

Little Feng’s voice grew weaker and weaker until it was barely audible.

“How could that be? How could I possibly...” Cui Yue stammered, baffled by everyone’s astonished looks. He didn’t know how to explain; in fact, he himself was unsure of what had truly happened.

Just then, Master Huo spoke.

“The young girl is both right and wrong. The ghost you saw was formed from accumulated yin energy. Generally, those with strong yang fire can suppress it. When true flames are breathed from the mouth, the yin spirit immediately dissipates and dissolves. The merging of these energies can look like a living person swallowing the spirit whole. There’s nothing unusual about that!”

Everyone suddenly understood and nodded in agreement.

Zhang Hao patted Cui Yue on the shoulder. “Brother, you scared me to death. I thought you were a spy sent by the enemy.”

“Get lost—you’re the real spy.”

Laughter erupted, and finally, the crisis eased.

Cui Yue glanced at Master Huo with gratitude, but the latter remained impassive, as if it mattered little to him.

Cui Yue muttered to himself: Who exactly is he? Why did he help me? We’ve only met once, by the river, and I barely know him. Could there be some hidden agenda behind this?

Master Huo casually spouted a few more nonsensical words, which everyone admired profusely.

Only Cui Yue secretly thought, “I don’t buy it! The more you talk, the less sense it makes—you even invented alien visitors to Earth.”

The spirit hall was a complete mess. Out of respect for the deceased, everyone quickly helped to rebuild and redecorate.

Master Huo quietly approached Cui Yue with a mischievous look.

“Kid, how do you plan to thank me?”

Cui Yue was taken aback. He thought, it figures this old fellow isn’t going to let this go easily. Best to hear what he wants first.

“Master Huo, I have no money!”

Cui Yue knew too well the old man’s fees; he was hoping to save his wages for a bride.

“Oh, come on. Am I that mercenary? Do human relationships have to be so complicated?”

“Are you not?” Cui Yue muttered under his breath.

Suddenly, Master Huo pulled a wooden sword from his sleeve, his face hardening as he enunciated each word.

“Just tell me the origin of this sword, and it’s done!”

Cui Yue looked closely. That was his sword! When did it fall into this old man’s hands? It must have been stolen while he was unconscious.

“Give it back!”

Without hesitation, Cui Yue lunged to snatch it.

“Heh heh!”

Master Huo sneered, flicking his hand, causing Cui Yue to grasp at empty air.

“What do you want?”

“Simple. Tell me the story behind this sword!”

Master Huo’s face darkened, his sharp gaze piercing Cui Yue uncomfortably.

Cui Yue had no way to counter the old man’s tactics. He knew the shabby man was not as simple as he appeared and was no match for him.

The sword had been personally handed to him by the spectacled weirdo—a token of trust, intertwined with life and fate!

Whether blessing or curse, friend or foe, he was willing to risk it all.

“This sword is indeed mine. I hope you can return it.”

“Oh? Kid, are you trying to bluff me? Do you know this sword isn’t ordinary? The wooden sword has a proper lineage and isn’t wielded by just anyone!”

Hearing this, Cui Yue felt something was off. The shabby ghost actually knew something about the sword’s origin—could he be someone from the Daoist sect?

“Indeed, this sword was gifted to me by someone, so I have carried it with me all along.”

“Carried it all along? Nonsense! The last time you met the water ghost, why didn’t you use this sword?”

Cui Yue had no choice but to recount the entire story of what happened at the video arcade.

“You mean there was a white-clad youth wearing glasses who could use talisman magic?”

Master Huo asked eagerly.

“Yes!”

Cui Yue quickly explained the background of the spectacled oddball, finally dispelling Master Huo’s doubts.

When Master Huo heard the words “White Jade Immortal Sect,” his body trembled slightly, his eyes glazed over as if recalling something.

“White Jade Immortal Sect…”

But it was only for a moment. He soon regained his composure and tossed the sword back into Cui Yue’s arms.

“Well, so it’s the White Jade Immortal Sect. Lucky bastard!”

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