Six years ago, by the Darling River.
Night.
Mo Xi stood by the desolate riverbank, panting softly. Jiang Fuli's magic had just dissipated, but he was still dizzy. He held the reversal stone that Jiang Fuli had given him tightly, his palms wet with sweat.
He closed his eyes and raised his face against the cool wind.
This was the place closest to the King's City in the entire Darling River region. From here, one could see the city walls of Chong Hua. It was majestic and neatly hibernating in the distant night. Its shadow flickered vaguely.
At this moment, the war six years later had not yet arrived. Mo Xi knew that at this time, Jun Shang should be instructing the Murong Lian to secretly go to Darling River and completely destroy Gu Mang's memories.
Murong Chuyi was also still alive. Perhaps he was fiddling with his blueprints in the weapon-forging room.
And he … at that time, he was in the North, resenting Gu Mang's betrayal. He was even unwilling to come back and see him personally.
He felt a dull pain in his heart, but he did not have much time to wallow in self-pity. He had at most two hours. He had to obtain the soul box of Bloodsucking Scourge's power within these two hours. Only then could he change their future.
It was not difficult to find the imperial guards who were in charge of escorting Gu Mang back to the city.
He was very familiar with the way the Chong Hua soldiers were stationed and the way they marched. The seemingly impregnable defense was like a no-man's land to him. Thus, it did not take long for him to find the central tent where Gu Mang was being held.
Mo Xi cast a magic spell to separate the tent from the outside world. He then walked in front of the barrier and looked at Gu Mang through the cage-like beam of light. With just one glance, his eyes turned red.
Six years ago, Senior Brother Gu was like an injured wolf dog. He was covered in blood and was curled up in the prison's barrier. He was wearing the prisoner's clothes. His hair was messy and he was lying on the dirty felt mat. He was sleeping with his eyes closed.
Perhaps it was because he was not in a deep sleep, or perhaps it was because he sensed something in the dark, but when Mo Xi entered the tent, no one noticed, but Gu Mang woke up with a start.
Gu Mang abruptly opened his eyes and stood up alertly. The moonlight spilled in through the open ceiling of the yurt. He sat in the pure moonlight, and when he saw the face of the person who had come, his eyes widened in shock.
"Mo Xi …?"
However, those two words were like a boulder falling into the depths of his heart.
It was so painful that he couldn't breathe.
"… How could it be you …"
Mo Xi waved the beam of light away, passed through the magical cage, and walked into the beam of moonlight. He lowered his eyes and looked at the captive kneeling on the carpet.
He really wanted to apologize to Gu Mang on behalf of himself who did not return six years ago. "I'm sorry, I missed you."
He even wanted to take him away and let him go. In this way, Gu Mang would not have to suffer the humiliation of the Fallen Plum Garden for two years and the pain of having a bad reputation for three years.
He wanted to kneel down and hug Senior Brother Gu in the moonlight. He wanted to tell him, "Enough, you've done too much. It's my fault. I blamed you for not returning from the North." "I'm the last person you can trust, but I … but I didn't do anything at that time. I missed everything."
But he couldn't say it.
He only had two hours and one chance.
A chance to change his fate.
Mo Xi closed his eyes. His throat moved, and he swallowed all the bitterness into his stomach. He knew what he had to do to get the soul box immediately and smoothly.
He had to replace the Murong Lian and do what the Murong Lian should do tonight.
Only then could he get the box that contained the power of the Bloodsucking Scourge.
Thus, he suppressed the trembling in his voice and tried to hide his emotions in the deepest part of his eyes. He forced himself to be calm and said to Gu Mang, "It was Jun Shang … who sent me."
The light in Gu Mang's blue eyes flickered and dimmed slightly.
His heart felt like it had been split open by a knife dipped in salt. It was a bloody mess.
Mo Xi continued to speak, his voice hoarse. He said the words that should have been said by the Murong Lian, "… Gu Mang, you are a traitor."
Gu Mang opened his blue eyes and looked up at the person who used to be the closest to him. He did not say a word.
"Jun Shang told me that you wrote a letter to him, saying that you used the power of your soul to seal the power of the Blood Scourge and made it into a soul box. You hoped that if you offered it to Jun Shang, he would spare your life. Now, I'm here to get this thing. "
Every time he spoke a word with difficulty, it was as if his soul was being torn apart.
After saying this, Mo Xi could not say anything else for a while. He lowered his eyes silently, unable to look at Gu Mang's expression at the moment.
His voice was so hoarse that it was almost out of tune.
"Give me the soul box. I'll go back and report."
The prison was terrifyingly quiet. One could even hear the whistling of the wind outside and the footsteps of the soldiers walking back and forth.
After a long time, Gu Mang did not hand over the soul box.
Instead, he said, "Junior Mo … I … I didn't think that the person who came would be you."
"…"
"I thought that you wouldn't want to see me again. I thought that you would stay in the north and not come back. I didn't think that you …"
Gu Mang did not continue speaking. But these words were like needles, piercing Mo Xi's heart. He had to use all his strength to not collapse at this moment.
Gu Mang sighed and said, "… Forget it. Whatever Jun Shang said, I don't want to argue anymore. He's right. I am indeed a traitor. "
"…"
"It's just Junior Mo." He suddenly laughed softly. "If Senior Mo asks you to do me one last favor on account of our friendship over the past ten years or so. Would you be willing? "
Mo Xi clearly knew what he wanted him to do, but he still had to endure the intense heartache. After a moment of silence, he asked, "What do you want me to help with?"
"I can't say too much to you." Gu Mang said softly, "Some secrets are best kept in my heart alone. If a second person knows too clearly, it will implicate the second person and cause them to be greatly threatened. … Mo Xi, in the Emperor's heart, even if I've done many things to let you down in the past, I still want to remind you that you have to leave a way out for yourself. Jun Shang is not as trustworthy as you seem. "
After a pause, he saw that Mo Xi did not refute. So he lowered his head and silently chanted an incantation to cast a spell.
In the end, the box that was later sealed by the Murong Chen and hidden in the golden platform appeared in Gu Mang's palm.
"This is the soul box that Jun Shang wants you to retrieve."
Mo Xi knew that according to what the Murong Lian had said, Gu Mang would ask him to give this soul box to Jun Shang, but there was also a key to open the box. He asked him to keep it well and destroy it when the opportunity arose.
Mo Xi waited for Gu Mang to speak. As long as Gu Mang said it, and he agreed, he could end this nightmare and go outside to find a place to completely destroy the box. Then everything would have a new ending.
He waited.
Gu Mang spoke as expected. But what he said was …
"I ask you to take a piece of my spirit tonight, at this moment, and cast it into the key to imprison this soul box."
Mo Xi suddenly raised his eyes and looked at him in disbelief. "What?!"
Gu Mang stared at his face and repeated, "I ask you to personally take a piece of my spirit and cast it into the key to imprison this soul box."
Mo Xi suddenly took a step back.
What, what was going on? How could this be?
Gu Mang … what was Gu Mang saying?!
Under the bright moonlight, Gu Mang suddenly smiled faintly.
He stood up from the ground. His pale ankles were shackled, his neck and wrists were all shackled. He let his ink-black hair hang down and looked at him quietly with a pair of eyes that were like the sea.
"Mo Xi." He sighed softly. "I think I already know where you came from."
"…"
"When you first came in, I thought it was you who returned from the north. But I didn't dare to believe it … until you looked surprised. Then I knew … you're probably not Mo Xi who came from the north. You're General Mo who came back from the future. "
Like a stormy sea, Mo Xi widened his eyes.
"You … how is it possible …"
The chains clanged as the thin and fair prisoner came before Mo Extinguish. He raised his head and scrutinized Mo Extinguish's face. "Do you know? When you looked at me, there was no hatred in your eyes, only sadness. "
"…"
"So you came back through other means after I chose to sacrifice myself, right, Junior Brother?"
The most painful and soft parts of her heart were fiercely struck. Mo Xie immediately turned her head away. However, even though she could turn her head away, her tears could no longer be stopped. They flowed down in a daze.
"How could you …" He couldn't say more and he choked on his sobs.
"Silly, don't cry. It's my fault. I knew this day would come. " Gu Mang lifted his handcuffed hands and gently cupped Mo Xi's face. "Mo Xi, in the end, I let you down. I want to bring you into my life, but I already know when I'll choose to die, and when my Spirit Soul will shatter … I can't watch you be with me … "
Mo Xi suddenly turned his head. His eyes were like torches, but there were tears in them.
"How did you know?! You clearly … you clearly … "
You're clearly a person from the past!!
I came back to change this ending.
"Because when I fused my soul with Bloodsucking Scourge," Gu Mang pointed at his blue eyes, "I was seriously ill for seven days and was unconscious. This demon has the ability to predict my own death. After I fused with it, I actually saw my future sacrifice. I also had a precognitive dream. In the dream, I saw today's situation — you came back from the future with the reversal stone, thinking that you could change everything. "
"But I know that I can't change anything."
"Impossible …!"
Gu Mang shook his head and said, "Mo Xi, the reversal stone doesn't have the ability to change one's fate. The ancient books say that 'it doesn't hurt the mortal world, its fate is already predetermined'. "
"…"
"Nothing in the past can be easily changed. The reason why the Three Great Forbidden Techniques are forbidden techniques is because once there is a change, the consequences are very likely to overturn the entire mortal world. But the reversal stone can change the life and death of so many people without paying a price — do you think this is reasonable? "
These words were as cold as ice. Mo Xi's fingertips were trembling.
"How is this possible …"
"Before I met you, I also thought that maybe the precognitive dream was wrong," Gu Mang said, "but now it seems that it wasn't wrong at all."
Mo Xi suddenly looked up. The light in his eyes flickered, like demons and monsters galloping past. He seemed to be extremely sad and almost crazy.
"Then why did Jiang Fuli still give me the stone?! He has already recovered Chen Tang's memory. Doesn't he know the use of this stone?! "
"Mo Xi, Pharmacist Jiang gave you the reversal stone, so he knew what the result would be. But if he told you honestly that you took this stone and went back to the past to complete your mission with your own hands, to tear out my soul and make it into a key — would you be willing? "
"…"
Yes, he couldn't do that. He couldn't agree.
Gu Mang smiled. His smile was sorrowful, "The real name of the reversal stone is the destiny stone. When heaven and earth created the world, fate was predetermined. From then on, there was the reincarnation of heaven. But the act of creating the world was too grand. Even gods make mistakes sometimes, so they left the reversal stone in the world. These stones can take people back to the past and make people do things that they think they can change the future. In fact, it's just a scam. "
"Those who went back to the past only followed the original destiny. They went back to fix what they should have done but didn't do. So in fact, you're the same. Mo Xi, you came back to the present from the future. It seems like you want to change the past, but in fact, according to the destiny set by heaven, you will definitely complete the task Jiang Fuli gave you. You used my soul to make the key. This is the destiny that this stone needs to fix. "
His blood was as cold as ice.
Mo Xi's lips trembled slightly. He wanted to say that he must have made a mistake somewhere. It couldn't be like this. His understanding of the reversal stone was wrong. Jiang Fuli didn't lie to him.
But when he looked into Gu Mang's eyes, he knew deep in his heart that what Gu Mang said was true.
Yes … if a stone could really change the way of the world, why did it need to be divined? Why did it need to listen to the divination and give the stone to the destined person to return to the predestined moment?
It couldn't change fate at all.
It only followed the will of the underworld and fixed the mistakes of the past in a cycle of time.
Mo Xi wanted to say something, but he was really tormented by too many emotions. He finally couldn't hold it in anymore. He was so sad that he almost collapsed. He asked, "So after you returned to the city, you lost your two souls and your rationality … I always thought that the people who harmed you were from Liao Kingdom and dug out your soul … but it turned out … but it turned out …"
Tears fell. He was like an abandoned dog. He looked miserable. His eyes were red as he looked at Gu Mang.
He looked up and laughed crazily, "It turned out that it was me?!"
"…" Gu Mang closed his eyes.
"This is my destiny?"
"Tonight, Murong Lian will come to look for you. During our time, he once said that he saw you covered in blood and on the verge of death. He said that he thought that the interrogators had tortured you too much. Actually, that was not the case at all! It was because I wanted to do it myself. It was because I had just dug out your soul when he came! I completed the destiny that this stone gave us! Am I right?!! "
"Mo Xi …"
"What do you take me for?! What do you take me for?! You can see the future, you have precognitive dreams. Then, have you ever dreamed of how I felt after you were sacrificed to the devil?! I can't cry, I can't panic, I can't be sad. I can't even bury your body! "Mo Xi choked. He held Gu Mang's hand and pressed it against his chest." Gu Mang! I'm also a living person. Have you foreseen how I feel … "
After Mo Xi finished speaking, he suddenly lowered his head. His tears fell like rain.
Gu Mang had known him for so many years. His little junior brother had never cried so sadly. It was as if all the pain had been paid off.
Gu Mang had mixed feelings. He didn't know how to cross the chasm of fate and erase all the pain.
In the end, they couldn't change all of this.
If possible, he also hoped that it wasn't Mo Xi. He even hoped that he could complete the creation of the key lock himself. But his spirit core was damaged. He couldn't do it.
He could only walk over and hug Mo Xi. Six years later, after returning from the battlefield, he had already lost his brother Gu Mang.
He hugged him. He felt the man's exhaustion, despair, bloodthirst, and helplessness. In his eyes, the Empire's General Mo had always been a kind-hearted youth in the school who was flogged to pay for a meal for a poor slave brother and sister. He sat alone under the cypress tree.
He originally wanted to protect him for a lifetime. But in the end, he, Gu Mang, had protected everyone in the world except for him.
"Senior brother …" After a while, he heard Mo Xi's voice. It wasn't as intense as before, but it was much more depressed than before. It was as if a fire had reached its limit and suddenly died out.
Mo Xi said with a hollow voice, "I came back … not to complete the destiny and hurt you …"
"I know."
"I've already lost you in the future."
"…"
Mo Xi suddenly choked with sobs. His tall body bent down and hung low. He was like the helpless youth who had been stripped of all his support in the past. He almost whispered, "I don't want to lose you in the past again …"
"I know, Mo Xi. I'm sorry …"
"Why did it have to be me …"
Gu Mang listened to his beast-like sobs and his tears fell. He hugged his junior brother Mo tightly. His tears silently soaked Mo Xi's clothes.
Why did fate choose Mo Xi?
In fact, both of them were very clear.
Because the person Gu Mang trusted the most was Mo Xi. Because the only person who could listen to Gu Mang and complete the final cruel task was Mo Xi. Because if they didn't have the key, Jun Shang would have obtained the power of the bloodsucking scourge soon after the soul box was handed over to him. Jiuzhou would have fallen into chaos within three to five years.
Because in this world, the person who understood Gu Mang the most and was most similar to Gu Mang was Mo Xi.
Gu Mang once said that some things had to be done and some sacrifices had to be made. When fate found you, you didn't want to be a coward. You were destined to face it.
Everyone had their own path to take.
And now, this was the path they had to take.
The final journey.
Resentment, unwillingness, and pain were no match for the clarity engraved in their bones. From the beginning, they had joined the army and become commanders. They could no longer escape their responsibilities.
Commander Gu was Commander Gu, not a traitor.
Commander Mo was also not a coward.
As a commander, there was no such thing as being all-powerful or showing off. There was only the weight placed in front of them. Even if they were in pain, they would still carry it.
This was a commander.
"… Do as the reversal stone says, Mo Xi," Gu Mang finally said softly, "I know that the place you came from is already a sea of blood. But I believe that it is not the end. If the mortal world was destroyed here, why would the stone bring you back here to complete the repair of the past? "
He paused and comforted him, just like when they had rushed to the battlefield together. He knew that the future was unpredictable, but he still comforted and encouraged him.
Wherever Commander Gu was, there would be fire and light.
It would make people feel that this was not the end.
"There will be a turning point."
Mo Xi's gaze was unfocused as he murmured softly, "But in that turning point, will you still be there?"
Gu Mang was silent.
He said hoarsely, "Have you seen it before?"
"…" Gu Mang let go of Mo Xi's hand. He stood in front of Mo Xi and said seriously and solemnly, "There is a dream that I have had many times. But just like how I couldn't be sure that the dream was a precognitive dream before I saw you today, I can't be sure that the dream I have repeatedly had is a precognitive dream, or because I … I miss you too much. "
At this point, Gu Mang took a deep breath. With all his might, it was as if he wanted to give all the love and light he had in his life to Mo Que, to cover his scarred heart.
His blue eyes shone with a moist and gentle light. He said, "I dreamed that after the war, it rained and I found you in the rain."
Maybe it was because of the faint hope.
Or maybe it was because he craved some comfort.
Mo Xi looked into those blue eyes and asked, "What happened after that?"
"After that, I told you to go home."
"…" Mo Xi's lips trembled and his eyes were moist. He lowered his eyes silently and blinked gently.
"After that, the rain stopped and we went home."
This was the best dream. Like him, he didn't dare to believe that it was a precognitive dream.
Gu Mang had clearly sacrificed himself in the future.
But even so, he still had some courage in his heart — he loved him so much. As long as there was a spark of hope, he was willing to set the prairie ablaze.
Mo Xi asked longingly, sorrowfully and pleadingly at the same time, "What happened in the end?"
"In the end, you and I were always together."
Gu Mang's thin face revealed a warm smile.
He raised his hand and intertwined his fingers with Mo Xi's. "As long as we don't reach the end, there is hope for everything. After I sacrificed myself, didn't you also not expect that I could still talk to you like this and hold your hand? "
"…"
"Mo Xi, no matter what the result is, you never admit defeat. I am the same. I know that you also pity all living beings and put the country first. We have always been on the same path. So, follow the instructions of the reversal stone. "
As he spoke, he tiptoed and gently kissed Mo Xi's lips.
"Whether we live or die, I will always love you and be proud of you."
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