Chapter 614: Pale Moon (I'm Back!)

The sky, cracks masking the pallor; the earth, You Water covering the soil.

This world is collapsing and overflowing; even though a force of incomparable power swept across it, it merely added another type of disaster to the world, without restoring order in the slightest.

Tang Zhao was slightly stunned and said, "What? Should the Ghost Disaster be subsiding now? The Altar has only just been opened, and the power has only just been released; shouldn't we wait a while longer for the effects to show?"

The sound of Manying's strings was urgent and fast, bordering on chaotic, sounding like a hoarse, weeping voice: "Of course not! The Altar is open, and the power of Wangliang has appeared; it should be suppressing the Ghost Disaster. Even if the You Water needs a while to recede, the sky should at least show signs of calming down! Look at it now, the cracks in the sky are getting even worse, as if it's the end of the world!"

Tang Zhao looked up at the cracks covering the sky like a spiderweb, paused for a moment, and could perceive that the fissures were still increasing, then said, "What if... it truly is the end of the world?"

Manying was suddenly struck dumb, and after a while, whispered, "Is the end of the world coming now? The end of Wangliang Mountain? I'm not ready yet."

This statement seemed unreasonable; how could a natural disaster like the end of the world give anyone time to prepare? And who could ever truly be ready?

But Tang Zhao could subtly grasp the meaning it wanted to express.

It was still the Abyss Envoy of Wangliang Mountain, and it was not yet prepared to deal with the next upheaval of Wangliang Mountain.

He was considering whether to respond slightly to Manying's recent probing and speak some things plainly, when Manying suddenly tensed up, lowered its voice, and said, "Don't move! Let's leave... find a place to hide."

Tang Zhao did not know what had happened, but he was very cautious; seeing Manying speak so solemnly, he immediately became vigilant as well, looking around to find a shelter.

At this time, the You Water was overflowing more and more; beneath their feet, it was already a vast expanse of water, and sand dunes of all sizes were submerged, leaving no place to stand. He pondered, wanting to find a place with higher ground to land.

At this moment, Manying used its strings to point to a sand dune in the far distance that had not yet been submerged, saying, "Go there."

Tang Zhao hurried over, and just as he was about to land on the hill, Manying said, "Go into the Shadow."

Tang Zhao suddenly realized; looking at this familiar layout, this Shadow must be some manor.

He took a few extra looks, and Manying shouted, "Hurry in!"

Just at this moment, Tang Zhao felt a wave of pressure himself, as if Mount Tai were pressing down on his head, and the next moment he would be crushed to pieces; he hurriedly took a step down and had already entered the Shadow space.

Once inside the space, that ominous, suffocating pressure instantly disappeared. He had just let out a sigh of relief when he smelled a stale, musty odor rushing toward him.

Looking up, where was this any manor? It was clearly a ruin. It was just that it hadn't collapsed as severely as that viewing platform; many houses were still intact. Seen from afar, it was a gray-white Shadow, yet that air of desolation did not need a close look; one could smell it.

"This is..."

"It is angry!"

Manying's voice said from behind, the panic almost unable to form into words.

"Who?"

"Wangliang!"

The pipa had no expression, but it was now unconsciously exuding an air of fear: "It is completely different from usual. In the past, when it was awakened for the Ghost Disaster, it had no emotions; it wasn't even necessarily awake—perhaps sleepwalking, or just acting subconsciously, releasing power only to suppress the disaster, just like a person instinctively swatting away flies in their sleep, which was enough to disperse the Ghost Disaster."

"But just now, it was angry; it was furious. It must have been provoked. Who on earth could provoke it? Its frenzy is not just to drive away the Ghost Disaster; it is as if it is having a fit, acting hysterically! Even a slight movement from it is an earthquake for Wangliang Mountain, let alone an unfathomable rage? We might be caught in the crossfire and suffer an unprovoked disaster!"

It began to tremble somewhat neurotically: "We are too close; I only hope that by hiding in this desolate place, it won't see us and will spare us!"

Its fear was so real that Tang Zhao could not help but feel a chill—he had come to Wangliang Mountain with the awareness of the risks, even the awareness of losing his life. He was not afraid of Wangliang strategically, but he could not afford not to be afraid tactically.

The imminent threat was real, and one could not help but be afraid.

Moreover, he was thinking:

"For this to happen at this juncture, could it be that Wangliang has sensed something?"

What exactly could it have sensed?

In truth, Tang Zhao did not really know how the Ghost Disaster was caused. The Sun Storm from before was released by him; it had been going on for nearly two days, and all communication between the mountain and the outside had been severed.

However, this severance had not caused the Ghost Disaster, which showed that the disaster was not something he had created.

Then it must have been the progress of the White Fox in Yinglang that triggered it? Although he hadn't received definite news, Tang Zhao inferred from various signs, including Manying's reaction, that she must have achieved great success, and perhaps the birth of the Ruyi Sword was not far off. The awakening of the Ruyi Sword might stir the order of Wangliang Mountain and trigger the Ghost Disaster, and it might also alert Wangliang.

The Sword Immortal who had been imprisoned by it for many years might be waking up; isn't it normal for Wangliang to be furious?

But this was not the only possibility. There was another one...

Besides the White Fox, there was another path making progress, and that was the Golden Crow.

It had even gone to raid Wangliang's lair—the Yingyuan.

Compared to the White Fox, the Yingyuan side was a true black box, with all communication cut off. Tang Zhao could not possibly know how the Golden Crow's progress was going, unless the Golden Crow used that one and only teleportation array to pull him over.

If the Golden Crow made any moves over there, that would be blooming from the center of Wangliang's lair, and who knows what reaction it would trigger. Although Tang Zhao guessed that Wangliang had sealed itself beneath the Altar and might not have returned for many years, if there were any changes in the Yingyuan, it should be able to sense them, right?

If it discovered that its home had been turned upside down, it wouldn't be strange for Wangliang to be enraged, would it?

Tang Zhao guessed at these two possibilities, but he also knew he could only guess. Regardless of the current situation, this was a matter between two, or even three, Sword Immortal-level existences; he could not yet intervene.

Now he could only stay in a relatively safer place to avoid the sharpness of Wangliang.

"Where is this?"

With nothing to do for the moment, Tang Zhao first used the communicator to contact Sunset Manor and learned that everything was normal there and that Weise could fully control the situation, only then setting his mind at ease. He reminded them again to be careful of Wangliang's changes, and if necessary, they could take their own people and move directly out of Wangliang Mountain, leaving those manor owners on the mountain.

Hanging up the communicator, Tang Zhao temporarily cast aside his myriad thoughts and relaxed his mood, strolling forward and approaching the ruins. As he moved his feet, he kicked a sign.

Looking closely, it turned out to be a... half of a Plaque.

Because it was on Wangliang Mountain, the color of this Plaque was only black, white, and gray; it certainly couldn't be called bright, but the handwriting was clearly legible. One could see that the brushwork had quite a luster, and even though it was buried in dust, it had not dimmed; it must be metal, or perhaps even inlaid with pure gold. This sign was broken into two pieces; judging from the fracture, it didn't look like it had fallen and broken, but rather smashed, or perhaps someone had stepped on it and snapped it.

"Danyue..."

Tang Zhao read the only two remaining characters and pondered, "Seems like I've heard of this somewhere?"

Manying said gloomily, "It is the manor where Gui Rong came from; later, he wiped out the entire family."

Tang Zhao said "Oh," and only then did he remember.

That was a past event; Tang Zhao had vaguely heard a bit about it. At the time, he thought Gui Rong had counter-killed the Danyue Manor to take revenge for being bullied in his youth, but considering his Sword Intent, perhaps there was also the intention of killing people to collect death energy.

Relying on Life-Death Transformation to gain power was just a slightly better-sounding way than relying on slaughter to gain power; Gui Rong's sword had a bit of the "demonic sword" flavor from stories.

This sword was now in Tang Zhao's hands; it was his legal collection. It was impossible for anyone to reclaim this sword. Everyone who had even the slightest connection to the ownership of this sword was already dead. Some of them had died right where Tang Zhao was standing now.

That sword also came from Danyue Manor, yet it was the death warrant for the people of the manor.

Now, those people and the manor had turned into dust everywhere.

The vicissitudes of life, things remain but people change; it is nothing more than this.

I wonder if that sword will ever meet a Sword Guest truly suited for it; that must be someone who perceives life and death, understands life and death, and faces life and death directly, only then would they be worthy of this sword that has the potential to transcend life and death.

Tang Zhao thought this to himself, walking leisurely through the ruins, as if he were Shuttle-ing through the dust and smoke of the past.

Pipa remained where it was, glancing sideways at that tall and slender figure.

Suddenly, it spoke: "A Yu must like you very much."

Tang Zhao turned his head slightly; in the black and white Shadow, his side profile was faint and indistinct, giving him even more the feeling of someone from a painting.

Pipa's gaze seemed to hold a glimmer of appreciation as it said, "She likes beautiful people the most, and has always been looking for someone perfect, or someone so wonderful that all flaws can be ignored... perhaps she has already found him."

Tang Zhao did not answer its words, but instead Ask-ed, "Who are you?"

Manying and Tang Zhao both understood the meaning of this sentence.

Manying's words just now were a probe; openly mentioning Ling Baoyu seemed to count as revealing its own identity. But this probe was not abrupt. Because when the two were alone, Manying had probed Tang Zhao's identity at least twice.

And both times, Tang Zhao had remained silent. Seemingly not answering, but not giving a reaction of ignorance, this was already an answer. Therefore, Manying's third question went straight to the point; it seemed bold, but in fact, it was a natural progression.

If it had truly awakened a portion of its memories, then having some guesses was not strange. On the contrary, it was Tang Zhao who now needed to confirm who it was.

From human to Pipa, from under the sun and above the clouds to within the Shadow, did it know who it was now?

Of course, if Pipa considered itself an Abyss Envoy, it might not tell the truth. But Tang Zhao believed that even if it had completely fallen into darkness, suddenly awakening memories of so many years, it must have all sorts of emotions, and it should want to pour some of them out.

Now, this Pale Moon ruin was isolated from the world, with the endless Ghost Disaster outside, as if the Shadow of the apocalypse were following behind, creating a sense of urgency where one's life hung by a thread; inside, there were only Tang Zhao and Manying, standing in the ruins eroded by time, where speaking was something known only to heaven, earth, you, and me.

If one could not open one's heart and unburden oneself at this moment, there might never be another chance in the future.

Sure enough, Pipa sighed and said, "Who I was originally, I think A Yu has already told you, and this is the foundation for us being able to speak here. But who I am now, it is really hard to say. I would like to figure it out, but the more I think, the more confused I become."

"I am a person, also a sword, and also an Abyss Envoy."

"I am Mange, and also Manying."

"I am everyone, but I am no one."

Finally back, feeling much better, so I'm writing a little for everyone to see, haha.