At the same time, in the Academy of Cultivation.
Jiang Yexue was sitting beside a small table inlaid with yellow poplar jade. This small table had bulging legs, bulging teeth, and inverted horseshoes. The table was inlaid with high-quality Origin Returning Stones, which flowed with abundant spiritual power.
Because weapon refiners often needed to repair damaged items, they would have a similar table in their room, which could help the cultivator reverse the damage. However, every weapon refiner's level was different. Some weapon refiners could only repair a broken bowl, but for people like Jiang Yexue and Murong Chuyi, they could repair many more things.
This set of techniques seemed easy, but in reality, it had high requirements for the weapon refiner. If the spiritual flow was slightly biased during the repair process, it could lead to irreversible consequences. Therefore, if the first young cultivator wanted to become a weapon refiner, the final graduation test of the academy would definitely include "repair".
According to legend, the eldest son of a weapon refiner family, who was now Yue Chenqing's father, Yue Juntian, was able to repair 178 damaged treasures in a very short time, breaking the academy's century-old record. Yue Juntian always liked to brag about this. He once wanted to use this to pressure his brother-in-law, Murong Chuyi. In the end, Murong Chuyi became very impatient and destroyed more than a thousand treasures in the Yue Clan's Ling Long Pavilion. Then, under Yue Chenqing's livid expression, he restored all of these treasures within the time it took for a stick of incense to burn, ruthlessly slapping the Yue Juntian's face. Since then, Yue Juntian had never mentioned his previous achievement of graduating from the academy.
However, whether it was Murong Chuyi or Yue Juntian, they only restored things to show off their skills. They only smashed the treasures randomly, and did not deliberately crush them into pieces. Jiang Yexue was different. At this moment, he was facing a pile of Wang Jian records that were almost crushed into powder. Not only were they completely broken, but the order was also completely reversed.
"… How is it?"
"No wonder the people who destroyed Wang Jian didn't have to take the fragments away." Jiang Yexue sighed. "The Record of History, Wang Jian, has spiritual power attached to it. Even if it's broken into pieces, it's easy to find out where it is. He destroyed them to this extent. In the whole of Chong Hua, I'm afraid there are less than three people who can repair them. "
Mo Xi was silent for a while before he said, "The fact that I sneaked into the Hall of Censors shouldn't be hidden for too long. Please help me. It's better to recover as many scrolls as you can. It's better than not knowing anything."
Jiang Yexue said, "If Brother Gu's old case has any secrets, I'm very willing to help you uncover them. But … "
Mo Xi's eyes dimmed. "Can't it be fixed?"
"Not really." Jiang Yexue stroked the half-pieced bamboo slips on the small table. "But as you can see, I can only create a prototype for it. I can't turn it back to its original form. If you want to get a complete Wang Jian, it'll take at least a month. "
Mo Xi shook his head. "We can't wait that long. Junshang will definitely find out about this."
"…"
"I want to know at least a part of the secrets before he finds out." Mo Xi looked up. His dark eyes were like an endless night. He said in a low voice, "Do you have any other ideas?"
Jiang Yexue hesitated for a long time. His gaze wandered over Mo Xi's handsome and deep facial features. His gaze fell on the headband that bound his hair. Finally, he let it fall. He lowered his head and stroked the Wang Jian without saying a word.
Mo Xi caught a glimmer of hope from his actions. He asked, "There is, right?"
Jiang Yexue closed his eyes. He raised his slender fingers and carefully pieced the fragments together at the edge of one of the scrolls of Wang Jian.
"… Yes."
Without waiting for Mo Xi to speak, Jiang Yexue immediately said, "But Lord Xi He, it's too risky."
"What? Will you know the wrong past because it's not fully restored, or will these scrolls be damaged and there's no possibility of them being completely restored? "
Jiang Yexue looked at Mo Xi. He rarely saw such an anxious and uncontrollable expression on this man's face. But at this moment, Mo Xi's face, which had become very haggard because of the suffering of the past few days, was carrying too many emotions, which made him look somewhat unfamiliar.
Jiang Yexue said, "You won't be able to bear it."
"You know, one of the three great forbidden techniques, the Gate of Life and Death, has not been completely restored. But in fact, there are countless techniques and treasures derived from the Gate of Life and Death in Nine Regions. Most of them just inherited the tiniest details of the Gate of Life and Death, or restored a prototype — just like the Space-Time Mirror you just experienced. "
The fog in Mo Xi's eyes gradually dispersed, and he looked at the scrolls on Jiang Yexue's small table.
"Is the Recorded History Wang Jian the same?"
"Yes." Jiang Yexue said, "The Gate of Life and Death is the origin, the Space-Time Mirror is the copy, and these …" He pointed at several edges with his porcelain-like white knuckles. "These Recorded History Wang Jian, the principle is the same. No matter how powerful they are, they all come from the Gate of Life and Death technique left behind by Fuxi. "
"About this forbidden technique, there's a hidden oracle in all the rumors — if anyone opens the Gate of Life and Death, they're destined to die miserably. The Space-Time Mirror and Recorded History Wang Jian don't have the ability to reverse the past like the Gate of Life and Death, so they can't curse the life of those involved, but … "
He paused and looked at Mo Xi's haggard face.
"Every time you force your way in, your body will be greatly damaged. … You should have already experienced it when you were on Bat Island. "
"…"
"Lord Xi He, I've known you for almost half my life. Your bloodline is pure, and your spiritual power is amazing. In the past, no matter how tired you were, you never showed any weakness. But when you came out of the Space-Time Mirror, your spiritual power and physical condition were already weakened to the extreme. " Jiang Yexue sighed. "Do you know what will happen if you rashly enter the incomplete Recorded History Wang Jian again?"
His soft white fingertips slid inch by inch across the ice-cold bamboo slips that emitted a faint ivory light.
"Your bones and tendons may be broken, or your spiritual core may go berserk."
"I have to go in. I believe that Gu Mang betrayed the country back then for a reason."
The two of them said this almost at the same time, and then the room fell into silence.
Outside the window, the bamboos swayed and rustled.
Mo Xi undoubtedly heard Jiang Yexue's words clearly. He lowered his eyes and said, "… Brother Jiang. After going around in circles like this, I still choose to believe him. "
Jiang Yexue looked at Mo Xi silently, his gentle black eyes seemed to be a little wet.
"… Mo Xi."
"…"
"You already believed him once back then."
Eight years ago, in the Throne Room, the young general stood in front of the court officials. He was angry and sad, and he faced a group of tigers and wolves alone.
Mo Xi's trembling voice from back then seemed to pass through the rapid passage of time and reached the ears of the two people again.
—
"Who betrayed the country? How could Gu Mang betray the country?! Are you all crazy? He didn't betray the country when he was in charge of our army. He didn't betray the country when he was besieged on all sides. All his sincerity and passion were soaked, and he gave his best years to the land under his feet. Now you're accusing him of being a traitor?! Are you all crazy?!! "
The court officials' expressions changed. "Lord Xi He …"
Jun Shang was furious. "Mo Xi! Who gave you the courage?! "
And Mo Xi was like a lonely beast that lost its companion … No, it was far more painful than that kind of loss. It was like an eagle that lost its wings, Kua Fuji that lost his legs, and Painter Shimiao that lost his eyes.
Chi Zi dug out the core of loyalty.
That innocent, righteous, and sad young man stood in the middle of the accusations and whispers —
He was an outlier among the nobles who rebelled, and those slave cultivators led by Gu Mang were destined to be unable to accept him.
He could only stand alone in the hall, guarding the last ruins left by his brother, his lover, and his god.
Mo Xi's eyes were wet and red, and he choked with sobs, but he still said firmly, "He won't betray us."
"…"
"I'm willing to swear on my life for him, and vouch for him."
"He'll definitely come back …"
In fact, he didn't even know if he was saying such an oath to Jun Shang, or to give himself the last comfort.
Jiang Yexue sighed and repeated, "You've already trusted him once."
"That time, you almost lost your life for him. Do you want to trust him a second time to find out the uncertain truth? "
Mo Xi was silent for a moment, and said, "… That year on the Dongting Battleship, I said something to him."
Another string of candle tears flowed down, flowing into the depths of the lotus lamp, quietly converging into a pool.
"I said that as long as he can come back, everything is fine." Mo Xi closed his eyes, folded his hands in front of his brow bone, lowered his head, and whispered, "As long as he can come back, it's fine to kill me. Life and glory … are no longer important to me."
"But he didn't do that. He used that knife to end everything with me, and then used the heads of millions of cultivators to tell me that he chose the path of revenge. "
"Over the years, he killed countless cultivators in Chong Hua, and many people died in his hands. The children of those nobles were sacrificed, and their parents cursed me and hated me. They said that I was a guarantor for the evil ghost, and that my brother caused so many villages in Chong Hua to be razed to the ground, and so many people's families were destroyed … They all said that I was blind, that I was blinded … Blood debts were placed in front of me, but I still didn't dare to face him, and I didn't want to fight a confrontation with him."
When the man said this, although he tried to suppress it because of the noble and arrogant aura in his bones, his voice was trembling. Jiang Yexue could hear the choking in his throat, like a jar of wine that hadn't been opened for eight years, soaking his throat and vocal cords until he couldn't make a sound.
Mo Xi slowly opened his eyes, and said in a hoarse voice with self-mockery, "They were never wrong."
"Over the years, I know that he owes tens of thousands of lives to Chong Hua. I've walked through villages burned by war, and I've seen cultivators lying in pools of blood, and wolves digging into their stomachs. I've seen wives who lost their husbands, old men who lost their sons, and children who sat beside their parents' corpses and cried bitterly." Mo Xi pinched his forehead with his index finger in pain. Who could he say these words to over the years?
He was cold, he was tense, and he was supporting himself.
Others had wives, children, and parents, but what did he have? Even the only light and warmth in his life had become his darkness.
What was left of him …
Until today, when he staked everything in exchange for an uncertain hope, Mo Xi was finally able to say these words to Jiang Yexue.
His shoulders were trembling slightly, and his voice was so hoarse that it was hard to distinguish its original pitch.
"I've seen the bones of the deputy generals torn apart alive, and I've seen the dead bodies that could fill up a river — they were committed by the people I protected." Mo Xi closed his eyes in shame, "They were committed by the cultivators of the Burning Country …"
"Do you know what that feels like?"
It was as if all the souls who died in vain gathered around him, spitting at him, cursing him, wailing him, screaming for help, and digging out their hearts — Your Gu Mang, your lighthouse, the person you used to admire and cherish the most in your life killed us!
Lord Xi He … Lord Xi He …
Four generations of loyal men, the son of a general … Chonghua's guardian god … Save us … Protect us … I beg you to give us justice, I beg you to send that bloody and unforgivable devil to the gallows, I beg you to kill him!!!
Please wash away the blood of hatred for your mountains and rivers.
I beg you …
I beg you, please give us justice …. '
Why didn't you do it?
Why didn't you confront him head-on and kill him? Why didn't you resolutely put on your armor and go into battle to kill him? Do you still believe him? Do you still love him?
Are you still so stubborn, hoping that the evil spirit will turn back, hoping that he will wake up on his own, hoping that he will return to yesterday?
You are also a traitor …
Coward … traitor!! Coward! Traitor!!
Mo Xi buried his face deep and covered his ears with his hands. These voices followed him closely for eight years, biting him, torturing him, and whipping him all the time — Yes! He once wished that Gu Mang could die!
He thought of the child who lost his parents crying in his arms, sobbing like a kitten. In the end, he was still overwhelmed by the evil spirit and died of the Black Demon Plague of the Burning Country.
He thought of the old man with white hair and wrinkled skin who lost his mind in tears in the dilapidated village under the setting sun, repeating the name of the child who would never come home again …
How could he not wish for Gu Mang to be executed? How could he not wish for the generals who fought these cruel battles to be killed?!
That was why when Gu Mang was captured, he chose not to say a word and handed this person over to Chong Hua, to be dealt with according to the law. But …
His long, overlapping eyelashes seemed to be wet at this moment.
But when he really saw that person … he would find that the heart that should have been tempered into stone was still made of flesh.
He had a private life.
He felt ashamed because of his private life. He felt restless and restless because of his private life. He saw the child in his arms open his blood-red eyes and curse him. He saw the old man turn his head and transform into a green-faced, fanged face to shout at him and scold him.
Traitor!!
Traitor …
Jiang Yexue looked at the person in front of him. In the end, he couldn't help but say softly, "… Brother Mo …"
Mo Xi didn't respond. He quietly paused for a while, and the corners of his lips curled up into an almost sorrowful smile.
"If Historian Wang Jian could let me know the truth of that year, if I could really find out that he had hidden something …" He raised his eyelashes and looked at Jiang Yexue with wet eyes, "Even if I die, I will be happy."
"…"
"At least in this life, I didn't protect the wrong person, I didn't judge the wrong person. I also … we also … "Mo Xi's calmness and composure were shattered by his words. He suddenly closed his eyes, his Adam's apple moving, and didn't say anything else.
We are finally no longer traitors and cowards.
These eight years of soaking in blood can finally come to an end.
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