“The Biyi bird, unable to fly without its mate, ceases to drink or eat when they are apart… If one dies, it will be reborn, but they will never be separated again.” He spoke confidently, “The Biyi blossom is similar to the Biyi bird. They say this tree blooms only once every hundred years, and only those destined can witness its blossoming. And those who see it bloom…” He paused abruptly.
“What happens?” Fairy Qinghua inquired.
Gu Caiyu hesitated for a moment, then sheepishly lowered his head, “They will be together for eternity, never to part.”
“I could cut off your head and refine your bones into a spiritual artifact, and we could be together forever,” Fairy Qinghua stared at him.
Gu Caiyu coughed lightly, “It’s just a legend, don’t take it seriously.”
Fairy Qinghua glared at him, then bent down to pick up a fallen Biyi blossom from the ground. The fiery phoenix flower rested on her fingertip. Perhaps moved by the vivid and intense colors, she smiled faintly as she gazed at the flower.
Gu Caiyu was mesmerized by her smile.
After that, life continued as usual.
Gu Caiyu stopped working on new woodworking projects and ceased writing his sarcastic poems. Instead, he became obsessed with painting.
He painted Fairy Qinghua, but he dared not do it openly. He would only sneakily draw when she was practicing swordsmanship or trying to break the barrier. Sometimes he added an emerald-colored jade hairpin, other times he depicted a skirt resembling clouds. Sometimes he sketched the vivid red flower on her fingertip, other times he captured her bright and captivating yet slightly aloof eyes.
His drawings were meticulous, and the cracks in the barrier grew larger and larger. Perhaps soon, they would be able to leave.
Zanxing saw the deep night sky light up with brilliant colors.
Gu Caiyu’s voice echoed beneath the Biyi Blossom tree, “Fairy, come out and see!”
The woman in white stepped out of the thatched cottage. The giant tree in the wilderness was adorned with colorful paper lanterns, illuminating the vast expanse, while fireworks burst into bloom at the edge of the night sky, painting the heavens with a kaleidoscope of colors, breathtakingly beautiful. The man’s voice rang out, with a hint of teasing laughter: “The lanterns are like a fire tree and silver flowers, shining brightly on the branches.”
“Boring.”
“How can you call it boring?” Gu Caiyu’s voice remained cheerful. “Every day, I carve a stroke on the pillar of this wall. It’s been half a year now, and today is New Year’s Eve. Even in this hidden realm, we can’t forget our customs. Look, aren’t the fireworks beautiful?”
Fairy Qinghua looked into the distance.
The fireworks noisily ascended into the night sky, casting a colorful constellation over the wilderness.
She said softly, “It’s just an illusion, what’s there to see?”
“Fairy, you know about illusions too?” Gu Caiyu exclaimed, surprised.
“Illusions are tricks used by the demon race to deceive people’s hearts. They have no attacking power, and ordinary cultivators disdain learning them. How did you learn it?”
“It indeed has no attacking power, but young ladies like it,” Gu Caiyu said with a grin.
Fairy Qinghua turned to stare at him.
He touched his nose, then looked up at the night sky and said seriously, “Illusions are simple, yet ordinary people always fall for them. It can only mean that they indeed hit the most vulnerable part of the human heart. For example, the fireworks are fake, but the feeling of wanting to see them in that moment is real. Illusions are fake, but the longing in that moment is real.”
“In one’s life, there will be many moments of discomfort when they don’t want to face reality. Even someone like you, living so clear-mindedly, might one day need such illusory tricks for comfort.”
“Nonsense,” Fairy Qinghua said coldly. “Why would I need such things?”
“Well, you never know,” Gu Caiyu said, patting the chicken in his arms. “Life is full of surprises.”
Fairy Qinghua fell silent, only lifting her head to look at the distant lights. The Biyi blossoms bloomed luxuriantly, as if they would sway fervently like this forever.
Then, the scene became chaotic, accompanied by various loud noises.
She heard the clash of swords and the sounds of battle, as if many people were fighting on the battlefield. Fairy Qinghua seemed to be injured. She saw Shaoyang Zhenren sitting beside Fairy Qinghua’s bed, sighing, “Treat it as an illusion and forget the past.”
“An illusion…” Zanxing saw Fairy Qinghua lowering her gaze, her voice calm. “No.”
She said, “I will never forget.”
Zanxing saw Fairy Qinghua selecting a green staff from the armory. She planted a Biyi Blossom tree in the Elysium Hall and used illusion technique to make the Biyi Blossom bloom completely, like the fiery phoenixes on the wilderness. She danced with the staff under the flower tree, the rain of flowers intertwining with the wind of the staff, finally creating ripples of moonlight.
It became an illusion.
Those scenes flashed rapidly through Zanxing’s mind like a revolving lantern. She saw Fairy Qinghua in the Elysium Hall, sculpting two crude clay figurines, placing them under the Biyi Blossom tree. The radiance on the green staff grew brighter with each passing day.
She saw Fairy Qinghua place the Qing’e Flower-Picking Staff technique on the shelf in the martial arts hall.
So that’s it.
Zanxing suddenly understood.
She had thought that the Qing’e Flower-Picking Staff was simply a technique created by Fairy Qinghua, the proud daughter of the heavens, nothing more. But now, within this Biyi blossom, she understood many previous connections. Gu Caiyu, with the surname “Gu,” was most likely the father of Gu Baiying, and the mysterious lover of Fairy Qinghua.
Mirror Flowers and Water Moon, was a metaphor for the fragile and elusive days spent with Gu Caiyu, like the shimmering fake fireworks on the wilderness, merely to reminisce about the bright moments of the past. Perhaps there was even more. This technique, every move and style, was intimately related to Gu Caiyu, created by Fairy Qinghua as a ‘consolation’ to cherish her beloved.
Since it was a consolation, it was full of tenderness, sincerity, gentleness, and regrets.
She had never truly understood this technique because, from the beginning, it was not meant for her to see.
Now, a trace of Fairy Qinghua’s consciousness remained in the painting of the beauty. The goddess had departed, and the past was elusive. As for Gu Caiyu? That man who had built a straw cottage in the wilderness, although his face was not clear, it seemed that she could always catch a glimpse of his bright smile.
All the scenes suddenly converged, and the chaotic white gradually filled the field of vision.
All the noisy sounds slowly faded away, the vibrant colors drained, and the once vibrant red Biyi blossom in her hand was no longer as it had been, now shriveled and its vibrant hue turned deep, its once soaring wings now drooping weakly.
At some unknown moment, it had withered.
“You saw it.” The woman’s voice was cold and indifferent.
Zanxing lifted her head, meeting Fairy Qinghua’s gaze, which was complex, vastly different from the vacant expression moments before.