The ferryman was at the end of the world.
That sky was the reflection of the River of Forgetfulness, and the end was the endless river water. As it splashed, no one knew where it flowed to, but it turned into an endless horizon …
If a person drank a mouthful of the River of Forgetfulness' water, perhaps they could forget the past, just like Su Ming at that moment. He ferried the boat and paddled the oars. The splashes of water scattered in the air, and one drop fell to his lips. It tasted bitter.
He was still by the River of Forgetfulness, still in the wooden house that did not seem to have decayed in the passage of time. Su Ming sat quietly under the eaves and looked at the sky, the world, the rise and fall of all lives, and the person who might come during the rainy night.
During the summer of one year, the rain brought with it a hint of coolness in the scorching heat. On one night, another person finally came to the wooden house.
It was a man dressed in a long robe. He was built and had a dignified face. He stood quietly beside the wooden house and stared at the river. There was a hint of dejection on his face.
"Ferryman," he said softly.
Su Ming sat under the wooden house and lifted his head. When he looked at the man with his face that had fused with the darkness, a smile appeared on his face. He ferried Cang Lan away, and his eldest senior brother came.
"Is this river called the River of Forgetfulness?" the man asked softly as he stared at the river.
"Yes."
"Is the other side of the river?"
"I don't know."
"I'm waiting for someone." The man turned his head around. When he looked at Su Ming, moonlight fell on his face. There was a deep reluctance to part in his gaze, along with an indescribable sorrow of parting.
Su Ming smiled. He got up and walked to the stern of the boat. He turned his head around and looked at the man calmly. The man was silent for a while before he laughed. His laughter grew louder, and as he laughed, he looked as if tears were about to fall down his cheeks. With a step, he stepped onto the bow of the boat and sat down cross-legged.
The boat moved forward. It was night in the River of Forgetfulness. Rain fell on the river and let out endless sounds. It fell into the boat and knocked against the wood, as if it was telling the story of the past and the future.
They were brothers in the same sect in Su Ming's previous life, and in this life, they would be in the same boat in the River of Forgetfulness. Su Ming stared into the distance, and the smile on his face gradually turned into a soft sigh in his heart. When they reached the other side, the man stood up in silence and walked out of the boat.
"The person I'm waiting for is my Junior Brother. Boatman, if you see him, please tell him … he … must come!" The burly man didn't turn back as he strode off into the distance.
Su Ming looked at the man's back, and after a long, long while, he nodded his head lightly.
"I will." He turned around and returned to the place where he was supposed to be waiting for the next person on the boat.
The rainy nights of this season seemed to leave a little slower. Even after a few months, it still rained for a long time. Regardless of whether it was day or night, it was as if someone was shedding tears in the sky. Those tears fell onto the earth and turned into rain.
It was especially so at night. When the wind blew, raindrops fell on different places on the ground, be it the soil, the leaves, the wood of the boat, the river, or the eaves on which Su Ming stood. The different sounds traveled into the air at the same time, forming a heavenly melody that could be easily missed if one did not listen carefully.
Su Ming sat under the eaves and fused with the darkness. He listened to the rain and calmed his heart. He stared into the distance and quietly got through the cold of the rain. When midnight arrived, a candle was lit and placed under the eaves. He carefully placed a cover over it, causing the wind that blew towards him to be unable to extinguish it. It became the only source of light in the dark, so that the people who came at night would not be unable to see this place and would not get lost.
As he stared at the candle, Su Ming did not think about his past, did not think about his level of cultivation, and did not bother about the disaster's descent and the matters in Arid Triad. The only thing he cared about was being a ferryman who would ferry his friends and loved ones to the other side of the river during the one hundred and twenty cycles of sixty years.
At some unknown point of time, a straw cape covered Su Ming's heart, and a straw hat covered his soul. He had his head lowered, and under the straw hat, he stared at the candlelight in the shade. He saw the world in the candlelight, and he saw the emotions of the people he was familiar with in that world.
Then, when dawn was about to arrive, a ghost came to him.
It was a ghost whose entire body was hidden in darkness. He stood in front of Su Ming and stared at the candle flame in the lampshade with him. There was an indescribably complicated look in his eyes, and he gradually lifted his head to look at Su Ming.
"You might have deceived the others, but you can't deceive me … Since this is your decision, I only hope … that there will come a day when I can still see my youngest junior brother.
"In this life, you are a ferryman. Let's go. Bring me across the river." The ghost smiled, but his smile was very bitter and astringent.
Su Ming lifted his head and stared at the ghost in front of him, then at his second senior brother. He quietly got up and rowed quietly until they reached the other side of the river.
"I don't have money for the ferry," the ghost said languidly while standing at the bow of the boat.
"I've already given it to you in my previous life." Su Ming shook his head and sent his second senior brother off with his gaze. When his second senior brother heard his words, he seemed to have smiled. There was a reluctance to part in that smile, and when he turned his head around, even though the two of them were separated by the River of Forgetfulness and the lone boat, the smile could still be seen clearly.
"This was originally not your responsibility."
"This was my original intention."
The boat left into the distance. The River of Forgetfulness was separated by the previous life and the current life, the past and the present, and perhaps a person who would never be able to meet again … Su Ming could not tell whether he was sending him off, or whether he was sending him off …
Su Ming knew who that 'he' was. His second senior brother knew, and perhaps others would also know.
Once Su Ming ferried Cang Lan away, sent his eldest senior brother away, and watched his second senior brother leave into the distance, he returned to the place that belonged to him during the one hundred and twenty cycles of sixty years. It was beside the wooden house that would no longer decay as time passed. However … while the wooden house would not decay, Su Ming's face was no longer that of a young man, but that of a middle-aged man.
There was stubble on his middle-aged face, and there was a faint ancient air about him. However, most of his face was covered by the bamboo hat. Sunlight could not shine on him, and it was only natural that his eyes could not see him clearly. Perhaps only the candlelight in front of him could see his face as he sighed softly.
The rainy day seemed to be about to end. On another rainy night, Su Ming stared at the candlelight, then turned his head around to see a small white flower that had bloomed beside the wooden house at some unknown point in time.
The flower was very beautiful. It shuddered in the rain as if it was trembling, but it continued blooming stubbornly. It was a daylily.
The daylily in the rain was beautiful, but there was strength in its beauty. It was like a woman.
It bloomed quietly. There was no thick fragrance coming from it, neither was there a graceful elegance. It was very simple and normal, but in Su Ming's eyes, it was the only thing in the rain.
As he stared at the daylily in the rain, Su Ming walked over. A paper umbrella appeared in his hand, and he shielded the white daylily from the rain. The umbrella was not big, but it could shield the white flower from the rain, as if it was giving it warmth. When the flower bloomed, it was as if there was a woman in Su Ming's mind smiling at him.
That smile was incredibly beautiful. As he stared at it, a smile also appeared on Su Ming's face. He stared at the flower quietly, as if he could look at it for the rest of his life.
The rainy season was finally over. When the autumn wind blew, Su Ming placed the small white flower in a pot and placed it before him. He used his body's warmth to protect it, and it became his companion as he watched the autumn wind.
From the distance, it looked as if there was a woman sitting beside Su Ming. She was watching the sun rise, waiting for the sun to set, watching the moon, and counting the stars together.
The leaves scattered in the wind. One of them landed in front of Su Ming, on his lifted palm. That leaf had the color of autumn, and the clear veins on it seemed to be hiding a person's entire life. If a person tried to count the veins on it, they would be able to see the traces of the veins.
The most beautiful thing about autumn was not the autumn leaves dancing in the wind, but the setting sun. With a red glow, it slowly descended from the sky. Its afterglow shone on the ground, causing Su Ming's shadow to gradually grow longer. However, if anyone took a closer look, they would find that the increasingly longer shadow was slowly becoming fainter. When dusk arrived, the shadow would disappear. No one would be able to tell whether it had fused with the ground or fused with the night. It was just like how no one could tell when time would end, and no one could tell … whether they would truly meet again in the distant world.
At that moment, as he stared at the autumn leaf on his palm, Su Ming sighed, as if he wanted to send out all the longing he had for the latter half of his life.
Dusk was about to end. When Su Ming's shadow fused with the River of Forgetfulness, he could not see the shadow behind him, and neither could he see the woman's reflection beside it.
Time seemed to have stopped at that moment. The scene was incredibly beautiful. Some of the autumn leaves fell into the River of Forgetfulness and stirred up ripples, causing Su Ming's shadow to fluctuate slightly. The woman's shadow looked as if it was about to melt, and the scene was no longer calm.
When Su Ming lowered his head, the small white flower showed signs of withering, but it seemed like it wanted to spend more time with him, which was why it persisted in existing.
When Su Ming lifted his head, he saw a woman in a red dress with a hint of arrogance on her face. She had a sword on her back, and she walked towards him from the distance. Her footsteps were not quick, but at the instant she appeared, it was as if all the gazes in the area were gathered on her. It was not because of her beauty, but because of the might that came from the depths of her heart.
It was different from a normal woman's gracefulness. It was a mature charm, just like her clothes. It was as red as the sun, and from the distance, she looked like a fierce horse. If anyone had the ability to subdue her, then she would belong to them.
If they could not, then she would belong to the distance.
"Ferryman, do you have wine?" As she got closer, the woman stopped beside the wooden house, and with a profound look in her eyes, she looked at Su Ming.
Su Ming lifted his head and smiled.
"Hmm? Ferryman, you're not young, but you do have quite the charm. " The woman cast Su Ming a glance, then suddenly took a few steps forward to get closer to him. She scrutinized his face.
"I don't have any wine, but there might be some on the other side of the river," Su Ming said with a smile.
"Then what are you waiting for? Hurry up and get on the boat!" The woman smiled, and it was as if a rose had bloomed. She turned around and stepped onto the boat. When she turned her head back, she saw Su Ming getting up and bringing the withering small white flower to the stern of the boat.
At the instant the sun set, the boat left on the River of Forgetfulness. On one side of the boat … there were three deep shadows.
Here's the second update: Reserved monthly tickets for November. Fellow Daoists, the sword will be unsheathed in November! At twelve o 'clock, there will be a third chapter!
The explosion will begin now!
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
