Chapter 770: Casting Swords into Ploughs (16)

Slash the crimson eye.

"Not bad, not bad, this little girl has grown, huh."

Inside the night‑raid base, Lei O Nai gulped down barley wine and couldn't help but sigh, "Compared to improvements in martial skills, this kind of growth in life experience is far more gratifying."

"Compared to those who, no matter how many missions they go on, never grow at all, this is indeed much better," Ma Yin lifted her chin, her gaze purposefully sweeping over the boy beside her.

"Eh? Ma Yin, you aren't talking about me, are you?" Ta Zi Mi pointed at herself with a clueless expression.

"Hmph, I didn't name anyone specifically, you know~"

Ta Zi Mi tried to recall whether she had done something lately that angered Ma Yin; every time she said those words, her face turned bright red... Was she feverish? Or perhaps she accidentally knocked over Ma Yin's water bottle during yesterday's training, making her angry? Or maybe she cut her off during the mission briefing? None of those seemed like a big deal...

"Well, I actually think Ta Zi Mi's progress lately has been quite pleasing; could Ma Yin be referring to something else?" Lei O Nai reached out, clasping Ta Zi Mi's neck, casting a meaning‑laden glance at Ma Yin with a mischievous grin, "Ma Yin, why don't you elaborate, so Ta Zi Mi can improve in the future."

Ma Yin pursed her lips, turned her head aside, her ears flushing slightly, "I—I certainly won't... The so‑called 'growth' must be personally realized by him. If I were to voice it myself, it would feel off!"

——

"Ka Le Wa La's envoy and Yin Zhi went together to Jinren Xiang, intending to pick a spot to commemorate the hero. Since they had free time, General Huai Yan decided to invite everyone to go as well."

"Upon reaching the alley entrance, Pa Wo Er was a bit surprised: 'Ah, how does General Huai Yan have time to attend the ceremony?'"

"My granddaughter was greatly inspired after hearing the hero's tale told by Mika·Qi Wa Sha, and specifically asked me to bring her here," Huai Yan said.

In the grass at Jinren Xiang's entrance, a golden sapling had sprouted at some unknown time, glittering brightly in the night.

"What is this golden sapling...?"

"I am a descendant of Ka Le Wa La's stone‑guardian. My family has, generation after generation, tended the massive stone tablet left by the nameless hero," Pa Wo Er explained. "For centuries, a golden tree has grown beneath the tablet, its branches never withering. The Ka Le Wa La people regard it as proof of a mythic existence."

"Before departing, I cut a branch from this golden tree, hoping to transplant it here as a testament to the hero's return home."

General Huai Yan nodded approvingly: "Excellent. The celestial‑boat folk do not build coffins or spirit tablets; to rest amid bustling hometown streets and fireworks must surely please him."

"The hero once asked the ancestors to carve some words beneath the tablet. On this visit, I also traced the inscription. Though time has eroded it, it still seems legible—"

Pa Wo Er handed the traced inscription paper to Huai Yan.

It faintly read: "Drifting in a foreign land, death imminent, yet fortunate not to disgrace one's duty. If any passerby feels compassion, please bring a handful of the yellow earth before the ancient road and inter the body at Luofu."

"Mr. Pa Wo Er, do you know whether this hero ever left a name in your history?"

Pa Wo Er shook his head regretfully: "Sorry, the hero's days of battle are far beyond our memory; he left no name for others to call him. Yet in our myths, he descended from the heavens to the earth, and we call him the Cloud Knight."

Huai Yan looked at the golden sapling and whispered, "Welcome home, Cloud Knight."

In front of the sapling stood a newly forged guqin; the wind brushed its strings, producing a faint sound like unfurling new leaves and babbling streams.

"You can also rest here, Gu Yun."

——

Re: Starting from Zero in Another World.

"It's over..."

Inside Luo Zi Wa Er's manor, Cai Yue Mao sat cross‑legged on a blanket, leaning against a soft sofa. After the story from Luofu concluded, he suddenly heard a very faint sobbing.

The source was Ai Mi Li Ya, sitting on the sofa behind his side.

The silver‑haired half‑elf girl sat upright, her violet‑indigo eyes fixed on the golden sapling and guqin against the sky. Sunlight filtered through her silver hair, casting a gentle halo over her graceful profile. Yet beneath that halo, Sou clearly saw—

Tears were streaming down her cheeks one by one, gathering at her jaw.

She didn't even notice she was crying, just staring blankly at the sky.

"Ai Mi Li Ya..." Sou's voice caught in his throat, a little flustered, "Are you feeling unwell?"

"S‑sorry, Ang," Ai Mi Li Ya was startled by Sou's voice, blinking rapidly as if just noticing the dampness on her cheek, hurriedly raising her hand to clumsily wipe her eye with her sleeve, "I'm fine... it's just, just a bit..."

"Oh dear, Ang, you made Ai Mi Li Ya cry~" Pa Ke flew onto Ang's shoulder, a face that seemed to enjoy the spectacle, "If you don't apologize properly, I might get angry~"

Ai Mi Li Ya inhaled through her nose, her gaze drifting back to the sky, her voice soft.

"Pa Ke, it's not Ang's fault; I was just a bit moved, and also... envious."

"Envious?"

It was understandable to feel envious... perhaps envy of Gu Yun, such a loyal sword? Ang felt confused.

"Well, mainly I envy the will of that nameless swordsman. I wonder, if it were me, could I truly endure in an otherworld surrounded by countless foes?"

"Now I'm one of the throne candidates; if I become king... I'd certainly need a will like that swordsman's to be fit, right? Can I really do it?"

"Hmm, that nameless swordsman is indeed remarkable, but you shouldn't underestimate yourself because of others..."

"Besides, that swordsman also had Gu Yun by his side; I will always stay by Ai Mi Li Ya's side as well," Cai Yue Mao handed her a clean, soft square towel, "Use this; crying

"Th‑thank you, Ang," Ai Mi Li Ya took the towel, covering her face, her shoulders still trembling slightly.

Pa Ke let out a disdainful hum, "Well... honestly, if you're Gu Yun, then what am I? Clearly I'm the one who can stay with Ai Mi Li Ya till the end, right? You really are full of shameless bragging..."

——

"'Genius swordsman, disciple of Huai Yan. Flame Wheel Eight Leaves, Yun Li... do you wish to be unrivaled in the world?'"

"Sword."

"A sword."

The blade is broad and rustic, devoid of any superfluous ornamentation, bearing countless fine cracks. Within the fissures, a dark‑red light pulses, like coagulated blood... yet also like ever‑flickering flames.

But this sword is "watching" her.

Yun Li gripped the hilt tightly, staring at the vague silhouette reflected on the blade—it was herself, the Yun Li within the sword gazing at her with blood‑red eyes.

She within the sword became the focal point on the throne, a haughty smirk toward the world. The sword‑wielder's opponent was no longer the mundane foes of ceremony, but... the General's silhouette.

"Look, you will become the sword‑head that draws everyone's attention; the martial ceremony is merely a layer..."

"A fine sword (I) can make you... invincible."