Pathetic... Just as I expected. The exact same ending, once again.
Wang?
You were not bad entertainment, by my standards.
Wang?
But let us end it here... I must also thank you for this grand... gift you have given me.
Wang?
With your strength, I shall be able to fully awaken, and devour the power of you twelve whole.
Wang?
The strength you have gathered over the past thousand years shall be my nutrients, and I shall become strong, far, far stronger than I was a thousand years ago.
Wang?
I shall become a true god! I shall rule over this land, and lead all those weak insects in breaking through the curtain separating us from the stars, stepping over the ultimate darkness!
Wang?
With your combined strength... I shall see and obtain that future.
Wang?
And you, as a part of me, may use my eyes to see it.
Wang
Foolish... dreamer...
Wang?
...Why resist? You will be like that consciousness you call a 'younger sister', returning to where you should be, returning to the primal chaos you came from.
Wang?
The dream you twelve have been stubbornly chasing after shall be realized within that chaos.
Wang?
No need for hellish preparations. No need for wasteful schemes. No need for fragile freedom.
Wang?
You will be me. You will be us.
A great, illogical terror intrudes upon the proxy's mind. His heartbeat quickens, as cold sweat drips down his brow. His body dearly wishes to leap away, but he cannot even swivel his eyeballs.
A blessing.
Split consciousnesses returning to the whole would be the cruelest of blessings.
Wang?
Abandon your desire for hardship, abandon your worthless obsessions, abandon those duties you bear, abandon those clumsy emotions you learned from wretched humanity.
Wang?
Abandon that which consumes you. Embrace that which nourishes you.
Wang?
Suffering must be eliminated. You shall become a keepsake within my great consciousness, a futile... yet respectable memento of the past.
Suffering... eliminated?
Pain seeps down from his skin into his marrow. Terror spreads across his body from his backbone. What the proxy can see slowly begins to blur.
Wang?
Close your eyes.
Yes, close them. You do not need your own, for my eyes are your eyes.
No need to hesitate... Have you not thought this from the very beginning?
The mortal realm does not seem as interesting as your siblings said it wasβ
...Hmph. Why is this rebellious heart of yours so hard to tame?
No matter. Simply yet another tangled consciousness to slowly digest.
From this thousand-year-long dream...
...I shall finally awaken.
No...
...NO!
It thought It had crushed that shard of consciousness...
But It does not sense Its scattered strength from a hundred-and-twenty years ago flow back into Its body.
The poet lifts the wine cup in her hand, but not to offer it to the heavens, but rather, to pour it upon the ground.
The wine falls, splashing across the yellow soil, becoming a drifting cloud of dust.
Ling
Near a winter and a summer since we parted in Shangshu.
Ling
Ever since, I had no time to dream of you, for in the lands of man are many things worth dreaming of more.
Ling
As for you...
Ling
...Hah.
Ling
Using dream, using imagination, using things yet to pass to prevail? Verily, you and he are evenly matched, on par with one another...
Ling
But I seem to see, amidst your bout, many of my tales emplaced?
Ling
...Who could see a gulper of cups, become now a sorrowful drunk?
Ling
The poems of others are fine, but at such a juncture, their styles shall not do.
Ling
I shall help you change a line. How about...
Ling
After rain's end, petals fall beyond count... In wine's embrace, thy freedom is found'?
Ling
What say you, sister dearest?
Jun
The words of others are fine indeed, and its flow is pleasing, but when you are the one chanting it, it flows far too free, as if you are uninvolved.
Ling
Haha, you, me, Jie, Dusk, consensus has always been out of our reach.
Ling
Then why not have it be your turn to sing a song, for the me that we share? How about it?
Jun
No.
Ling
Still unwilling to break your vow?
Jun
Jie still has not returned.
Jun
However, I shall play for you.
The bloody battlefield is flooded by a peaceful stream. The ripples upon the water quiver, becoming a pair of giant eyes.
Even from within the water, those eyes stare at everything around it. Fierce, pained, near-crazed eyes.
Yet even so, the musician lightly plucks her strings.
Ling
Ah, this tune.
Ling
It seems that, rather than being unfond of wine, dear Jun, you are simply...
Ling
...
In the middle of the river, the poet toasts alongside the tune, her cheeks flushed red.
She does not chant to match the tune, but with a bright, clear voice. Yet even so, it is in perfect harmony with the tranquil music.
The stars in the sky spin along to the poet and the musician, blending together into a pool of sweet water. From that water appear wines, some bitter, some fragrant.
Even those great eyes begin to show signs of intoxication.
Ling
I invite you to share one last cup of wine...
At some point, the tones that started off high and steep gradually deepened, going from near-inaudible to an inescapable bass, lingering within the water.
As for the simple sounds of the instrument, no longer are they quiet and mellow. It is as if only a tenth of the strings were silk, the rest three parts longing, three parts grief, and three parts determination.
But in contrast, the poet's recitation grows lighter, higher, as if a whisper, as if a consolation, as if a torrent of rain. Flicking it away will only serve to wet your clothes.
One low, one high. One disciplined, one unrestrained.
The woman's voice merges with the voice of the instrument, weaving a dream fit to entomb a Feranmut.
I invite you to share one last cup of wine...
...For beyond the western pass there are no more of mine...
The furious Feranmut lifts Its head, attempting to discern the source of the sound, but to no avail.
Its giant, bloodshot eyes first flick towards the proxy, still shackled to the ground. After a moment of quiet, It finally realizes that this dream will not be so easy to break free from.
It does not care if this is the last of the power of the proxy that is here, or interference from proxies far away.
Those great eyes staring at the outside world watch the dream that Ling and Jun weave...
As they watch back.
Within that confrontation that never happened, Its actions, Its moves, Its weak points, even Its psyche. They have seen it all. He has seen it all.
Such base deception, such pointless struggles!
Before I have my vengeance on Yan, I should kill you all first, one by one!
Wang
...You will not have the chance.
Wang
From now on, there is only my... our vengeance against you.
Wang?
Absurd... Ridiculous!
Wang?
Your so-called 'sisters' may have deceived me with dreams, and cracked open your shackles, but do you not feel how weak your body is, unfettered though it may be?
Wang?
This time, I shall crush you, and your miserable schemes!
In that instant of fear and anger, Its enormous body, as great as a mountain, shifts a fraction of an inch.
The entire room begins to shatter into rubble. The great structure that suppressed Sui gradually crumbles, and collapses...
They're back! Those monsters from a hundred years ago are back!
Mr. Pu
Don't panic, don't panic... Form an orderly line, and walk cautiously...
Mr. Pu
Why aren't you listening to me?! Oh, what to do, what to do...
Yun Qingping
Mr. Pu!
Yun Qingping
Why are there still so many townsfolk who have not evacuated yet?
Lin Qingyan
There are still many geists hereβ
Mr. Pu
Stay your hand, Tianshi!
Mr. Pu
They are not geists born from the turmoil in the Tomb, but rather, the original 'townsfolk'...
Lin Qingyan
They are... the students of the School?
Mr. Pu
They are my students, yes. I cannot bear to see them lose their lives here, so I beg you two, lend me your aid...
Lin Qingyan
...The Old Tianshi is still guarding the mountain pass. I'm afraid I cannot protect them all on my own.
Lin Qingyan
I shall do my best to hold back the rebellious geists. Yun Qingping, help Mr. Pu in guiding everyone away.
Yun Qingping
Surely you don't mean to do it alone, Deputy Minister Linβ
Yi
It's long past the Garden's closing hours. Why are there still so many tourists here?
Yun Qingping
Mr. Yi?
Yi
You still remember me? And here I was, worried you would forget me, what with you running circles about my garden.
Yi
No need for further chatter. You are all lovers of things, which makes us kindred spirits.
Yi
You two help this elderly gentleman see everyone out. I can deal with things here myself.
Lin Qingyan
I know you proxies have extraordinary abilities, Mr. Yi, but these are extraordinary times.
Lin Qingyan
I ask that you take care.
Yi
No need to worry. If I cannot subdue even these apparitions, then I'm not fit to be the master of the Garden of Grotesqueries.
Yi
If I may, by the way, a request for my humble... record-keeping friend?
Yi
Though you have come from afar, I regret to say I have no time to be a proper host. If you ever have some spare time in the future, I ask that you come again.
Yi
But if fate is against us, and you are the last visitors to my Garden... I would like you to preserve its sights with your brush and ink.
My my, this shaking is far too strong, as well as this... resentment?
Yi
Even though only a fraction of this millennium of hatred and rage has spilled out here, it still has such strength. I dare not imagine what exactly Wang is confronting down there...
Yi
But even having come to this point, It is still not yet awake, which means... our designs with the Garden are still in effect.
Yi
It is a shame though. I fear the structures within the Tomb are almost completely destroyed... I suppose I shall have to put a bit more effort into suppressing It, then.
Yi
...You really know how to cause quite the stir, Wang.
Yi
*sigh*... These geists are, in the end, formed from your fury.
Yi
I have no desire to entertain such vulgar creations, nor am I interested in collecting them... All I can say is that they will be a little hard to handle.
The proxy looks up towards the once-peaceful town at the foot of the mountain, now devastated and in ruins.
Yi
Even a layabout has times when he is angered... I cannot forgive such destruction.
Yi
Now, how much of this account shall be considered yours, Wangβ
...Wang chased me away, so with nowhere else to go, I came to help you.
Yi
Hahahaha... Seriously?
Ji
It does not really matter.
Yi
I suppose I shall owe you a great deal if you were to help me with this big mess today...
Ji
Since when have you been concerned about what you owe me?
Yi
Why, I would never. It is simply because you are so magnanimous, our third eldest brother, that you find it embarrassing to settle accounts with your younger siblings.
Ji
Hmph...
Ji
Shall I help you suppress Sui, or help you look after Mangshan Town?
Yi
First, we deal with the geists and protect the town. We will still have time to suppress It. There are two of us, after all. With enough speed, neither issue needs to wait.
Ji
Rather greedy of you, no?
Yi
Hardly the first time you have seen my greed.
Ji
True. If I had not dropped by today, all those exotic plants, fine woods and strange stones you so painstakingly gathered would be ruined, which would be quite the pity.
Yi
...Well, I need only come and ask you for more later.
Teal and pink flames join the spreading golden threads, searing away the murky black geists.
What a pain. We just got here, and all these things popped out of nowhere. There's no end to them either, they just keep coming like misua that's been soaking for too long...
Yu
Best hide somewhere behind me, Grand Tutor. I'm not too good at fighting, nearly whacked you a few times there.
I've added a little something to your pot of half-baked, swollen misua, no need to thank me!
Nian
Let's see... Sisters number one and two, the kiddo, who else? No big deal if Eight-o doesn't show up. What about Ji? I've got a little something for him too...
Nian
Forget it. Heed me, Dark Devastator!
Nian
Quantum Firecracker, Quantum Launcher, Quantum Rumbler, Quantum Cannon, lock onto thirty meters around the kid, andβ
What the hell even is this stupid Dark Devastator thing?!
Dusk
Shu and I only agreed to help you because you promised you wouldn't make these weird things again!
Nian
Made it pretty much the same way as the Twelve Pagodas and Five Cities. This is war, after all, and all's fair in it! That weiqi failure loves saying shit like that.
Dusk
Who exactly are you declaring war on by aiming that stuff at me?!
Dusk
Get her under control, Shu!
Shu
This really isn't what you promised earlier. Once this is all over, don't forget to make an apology.
Nian
Heheh, sorry, sorry...
Shu
These firecrackers really do remind me of Dahuang, though...
Shu
They are subdued during the Shennong festival, but when the New Year arrives, the firecrackers they light up might be even fiercer than the ones Nian just used...
Nian
Right? A family reunion should be more livelyβ
Shu
If you had fired that barrage earlier, it would have fallen at Yu's feet.
Shu
Take a break and let Dusk play with it. She's been waiting for a while now.
Dusk
Me? I don't want to touch that thingβ
Nian
So should I continue?
Dusk
Give it to me.
Dusk
If I let you keep firing that stuff, you're going to burst everyone's eardrums!
We aren't done with work yet, Nian. How could you only be thinking of Yu's cooking?
Nian
One's not gonna affect the other!
Nian
Oh, right, we never did give them a heads-up that we'd be meeting here. Hey, Grand Tutor, it should be fine, right?
Grand Tutor
Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures.
Grand Tutor
If you are able to resolve this geist crisis together, then that shall be an act of great merit.
Nian
I always knew you weren't the dried-up stick in the mud you look like!
Grand Tutor
...
Nian
Say, Grand Tutor, do you think our business with Yan has been a good one?
Grand Tutor
Perhaps it would not only be considered business in Yan's eyes.
Grand Tutor
Making a friend is far more important than doing business.
Nian
Hah, those're some wise words. Next time those old fogeys from the Ministry of Works come to pester me, I can throw them in their face.
Nian
Everyone who should be here is here. Let's take a headcount of the ones who aren't here yet...
???
Whoa, is this Yan's New Year celebration?
???
This is just like how Master said they celebrate it. Lanterns, banners, and screaming firecrackers... Though I don't see any lanterns. This is the first time I've seen this many firecrackers, though...
Watch out, Nian! Someone just flew over my head, I think they're going to land right next to you!
Nian
Who the hell're you?
Nian
Based on your gear, I'm guessing you're...
Taraxacum
Nihao! I'm Taraxacum! I'm from Sargon, and I'm an apprentice under my master, though usually I just drive the cart!
Taraxacum
Oh, right, my master's called FΔng.
Nian
Figured it'd be Number Ten. Man, didn't expect a shy guy like him to have a cheery apprentice like you.
Nian
I'm Nian, the ninth, which means I'm his older sister.
Nian
Let's give you a quick rundown. Those two chatting over there are Shu, the sixth, and our youngest brother Yu. The one on top of the Dark Devastator splashing ink everywhere, trying to melt away the geists? That's our youngest sister, Dusk.
Nian
Ji and Yi, the seventh and eighth, are probably by that mountain over there, while our big sister Ling and second sister Jun went off to nap who-knows-where after some drinks.
Nian
Then under our feet, there's Number Two, Wang. Strictly speaking, today's party is all on himβ
Nian
Wait a sec, got too into introducing the family. If you're here, where's the big one-zero?
Taraxacum
It's not that my master didn't return, he just... err... He asked me to give you this...
Then Master gave me this scale and told me to deliver it to you quick. He hasn't gone anywhere, he's still where he was earlier... looking this way.
Nian
Got it, got it. He's still too scared to come, scared this meeting would be the last... But he still wants to help us out a bit, and that weiqi failure.
Nian
So in the end, he decided to be real awkward and send you over, while he waits on some mountaintop somewhere.
Nian
Man, our family can be such a... pain in the ass.
Nian
On the other hand, I didn't think dried-up ol' Tenner would learn some proper bedside manner. Did he pick up that silver tongue in your part of Sargon?
Taraxacum
Not really...
Nian
Damn shame, then! I'd also like to learn how to speak good better, maybe then my next movie's funding and lead actor wouldn't jump ship halfway throughβ
Nian
What the... There's still people rushing over to start a war?
Everyone turns their heads towards the nearby city, a city that is slowly but inexorably heading towards their gathering.
Nian
Can't just stand by and watch as a bunch of jerks stir shit up... How about we see how the Dark Devastator matches up against Yumen?
Nian
No, no, bad idea... But getting in a fight like this seems a little... impolite.
???
Leave it to me.
Nian
Oh, you're... you're that... Ch'en Hui-chieh!
Ch'en
You know me?
Nian
You were my supporting actress! The one I cast for that movie! Shame I wasn't able to find you afterwards, or most of the rest of the cast, so I had to delay the shoot.
Ch'en
Uhh... Do you mean that movie Lava was talking about?
Nian
Li'l Lava told you about it? Great! We've got the money-guzzling Dark Devastator on scene, and now you're here too...
Nian
...You have that thing she left behind.
Ch'en
That's why I'm here.
Nian
How d'you plan on stopping that city?
Ch'en
With my sword.
Ch'en
It wasn't part of my original travel plans, but I've stopped by Yumen before. I know a little bit about its structure and weak points.
Nian
I heard that master swordsmen don't see things as 'things', but rather 'weak points' and 'flaws'. You one of those masters?
Ch'en
You've been watching too many movies.
Ch'en
There are things only you and your family can do. Likewise, I have things I can't shirk from.
Ch'en
Believe in me, like how I believe in you all.
Ch'en Hui-chieh turns to face the nomadic city rumbling towards her.
She can see the weaponry lining the walls, the soldiers atop the observation posts, and the Tianshis with their furrowed brows. She believes they can see her too.
But simply standing here will not be enough.
She takes a small step back. She looks at the entirety of the city's structure. Its treads, the Wind Aegis, the sand sluices, the watchtowers, the gates.
The storm that swallowed up Heaven and earth is not made of coarse sand, but rather gentle, golden snowflakes. They fall onto the soldiers' bodies, their hands, their faces.
The snowflakes melt, and out of nowhere, they hear the beating of a drum.
Those memories, near buried away by the sands, suddenly become crystal clear. They remember a Catastrophe, and those who stood within it...
A poet who drank wine and spouted poetry in its face, or maybe someone who made a lonely exit once everything was done...
They remember the emotions that surged through their minds back then. They worked as one, they fought as one, and for a moment, they forget the confusion and puzzlement pressing down on them as one.
They stop whatever they are doing, silently listening to the pounding of the drum. They count the number of beats, count all the calamities Yumen faced across the years, big and small...
Until the eighteenth rousing farewell boom resounds, the entire weather-beaten city is like an old man overwhelmed by memory...
The spent Candleholder realizes he has stumbled upon a stroke of luck.
Even a near-instant cut in power would require many short but essential checks on the cannons before they can re-engage, despite the automatic switch to reserve energy stores.
It has bought him precious time.
Zuo Le
Why would there be a power cut now? Surely it's not the proxies and Yumenβ
Zuo Le
...
A strong wave of emotion sweeps memories to the surface of Zuo Le's mind, but what he recalls did not take place in Yumen...
It is possible that the fate of us siblings will lie in your hands, Lord Zuo.
To be able to chat with you on this festive day, even but for a moment, is destiny at work... I hope that in the future, you can see me as a 'man' you can discuss things with.
The doubt and suspicion he felt at the time have now become some sort of illogical, post-realization incisivenessβthough he knows there are still many things he is confused about.
But he soon pushes down that sense of relief, that sense that makes him relax, even feel exhausted.
Zuo Le
It's not only about the fate of your family. There's also my family, Yumen, Baizao, all of Yan...
Zuo Le
(Wry chuckle) Why am I thinking about this now, of all times?
Zuo Le
This fateful decision is not over yet.
He forcibly tamps down the wellspring of emotion flooding his heart. His hates-to-lose attitude pushes him onward, hastily winding his way to the last few emplacements.
Ch'en
...
The golden sands that filled the sky gradually disperse. The radiance fades, turning the blade in Ch'en's hand back to an ordinary writing knife.
To the side, Yu stoops down, grasping a pinch of soft, golden, snow-like sand. Through a daze, he looks at the golden sheen, a sheen he has not seen in over a hundred years.
What he remembers is the older sister he last met over a century ago. But as for what Ch'en sees? She sees a parting far away, in the distant, frigid north.
The snowflakes melt away.
Those newly-bright memories slowly fade again, returning to their worn and shabby states.
Despite having some knowledge of it for a while now, actually seeing such an enormous structure in person leaves her shocked.
With Baizao in turmoil, all its soldiers have been recalled to fight the geists lining its streets.
Across from the door is an abyss that none dare look at.
Mo Yi
I was pretty eager to accept this mission, but how do I actually get in...
Mo Yi
Ya accounted for my speed and intercepted me. I didn't familiarize myself with that map very well, so she probably beat me here...
Mo Yi
So now what? Do I just knock on the door?
???
Allow me.
Mo Yi
β!
Mo Yi
You are... Shuo.
Chongyue
Long has it been since I was called by that name. Do we happen to be old acquaintances, madam?
Mo Yi
I... happen to be a... friend... of one of your students...
Mo Yi
And...
Mo Yi
I once stole one of your things, but I already returned it... Sorry.
Chongyue
...
Mo Yi
Err, the thing I'm talking about isn't this thing here, I meantβ
Chongyue
I know.
Mo Yi
You do?
Chongyue
I could hardly be mistaken about the scent of my siblings.
The man notes the clothes on the woman before him, and his face takes a slight turn for the serious.
Chongyue
Whether it be the martial disciplines or the scholarly ones, there should not be a splitting of sects...
Chongyue
But if you wish to eliminate the prejudice in the hearts of others, then you yourself must first have a 'tolerant heart'.
Mo Yi
...
Mo Yi
My thanks... for your wisdom...
The young lady carefully and deferentially hands over Jie's token.
Chongyue
Duoxie, madam.
Chongyue
Delivering this drop of life to the Tomb is no doubt Jun's plan. Aside from Wang, she was the closest to Jie, and she wished her here, even if only as a token.
Chongyue
But I fear that she did not adequately explain things to you. Our family will be gathering in the barrens outside, not in the Tomb itself.
Mo Yi
What?
Chongyue
But this is still a stroke of good fortune. Before our family reunion, I shall have this life accompany me on a trip into the Tomb.
Mo Yi
Surely this isn't a piece that weiqi player is planning to use up when defeating Sui... right?
Chongyue
He worked so hard to bring this out into the mortal realm. How could I betray his intention by consuming it?
Chongyue
It is simply to bring him peace of mind, nothing more.
