Chapter 125: Above The River Of Forgetfulness
Translator: Larbre Studio Editor: Larbre Studio
All of a sudden, the giant golden palm disintegrated when it was about to smash into Cangxu, and golden soul energy started to rain down from the sky.
“You are overstepping your boundary, Beidou!” the ancient voice boomed in the sky.
“Cangxu has transgressed against the rules that we set, Feng Du. Why are you defending him?”
“Yes, punishment is due for his transgressions, but since he’s in my territory, I’ll be the one in charge of his punishment.”
“Feng Du!” the voice in the sky roared furiously.
“Do you intend to go to war?” the ancient voice boomed again.
“Fine, I’ll let this go for you, Feng Du, but you owe us an explanation. If you don’t come up with a good answer, a war between the two worlds will be inevitable. His transgression isn’t minor after all!”
The giant golden palm coalesced in the sky again. It grasped the eight deities within its palm before disappearing into the sky.
“Sigh… Cangxu, I did not expect you to end up like this!”
Cangxu’s lips trembled when he heard this voice. He did not expect that the Great Emperor Feng Du would go so far to help him.
He knew how big a transgression he made. What he wanted to do could even trigger a war between heaven and the underworld. However, the Great Emperor Feng Du still stood up to protect him.
Cangxu was filled with regret when he recalled his act of betrayal in the past.
He knelt down and kowtowed on the ground while facing the sky.
“Hear me, Great Emperor. I, Cangxu, am willing to take responsibility for everything I did. I will never drag the underworld into this, even if it means tearing my soul apart.”
Another sigh was heard from the sky.
“Go and settle your unfinished business!”
“Thank you for your permission, Great Emperor!” Cangxu kowtowed a few more times before standing up and walking into his palace resolutely.
……
In his residence, Cangxu was lying in his silk emperor’s robes, a beautiful woman cuddled up close to him.
“Now do you know how to write it?”
The historian before him dipped the brush in ink, before raising his trembling hand ever so slightly.
“Your Majesty, are you sure about this?”
Cangxu nodded calmly. He knew that he must make a choice if he did not want to drag those from the Land of Cangxu into this.
The historian wrote this down with sorrow in his heart:
Cangxu, His Excellency of the great domain of the Land of Cangxu, usurped the throne by killing Yuanxu, the original ruler of the land. He oppressed the people of the Land of Cangxu during his reign. He drowned himself in the vice of lust at all times. He was an embarrassment to all kings. He even had a savage ambition, to single-handedly spark a war between heaven and the underworld. Those in the Land of Cangxu should take his evil actions as a negative example. After deliberation from all powers in the Land of Cangxu, we have decided to strip him of his ruling authority. He will now be sentenced to exile…
The historian took a deep breath after he finished writing and handed the piece of paper to Cangxu.
Cangxu glanced at it before nodding, a forlorn expression flashing across his face.
“Notify every district in the Land of Cangxu that everyone should celebrate the eradication of someone as evil as Cangxu. This should be a cautionary tale!”
Cangxu looked down at the unparalleled beauty in his arms after the historian left, a hint of tenderness rising up from the depths of his eyes.
“You toiled away for tens of thousands of years just to be known as an evil dictator who will be treated with disdain by everyone after this. Will you regret it?” the woman lying in Cangxu’s embrace blinked her beautiful eyes.
“As long as you don’t hate me, so what if everyone else loathes me? This life is already worth it.”
The woman’s lips curved into a soft smile as her eyes filled with affection, “Don’t leave me behind this time.”
“Yes, we’ll go together this time. It will cause me to worry if I leave you behind.”
The woman’s eyes radiated happiness when she heard that. She picked up a glass of wine from the table next to them.
“Here’s a belated betrothal drink. I shall marry you, but do you take me as your wife?”
“I do!”
Cangxu picked a glass of wine, too, and both of them crossed their arms.
……
Both of their bodies started turning into stone after they downed their wine glasses. They were still embracing each other at the moment they greeted death, and their faces were filled with happiness.
Perhaps leaving together was the ultimate form of freedom for them, after their hundreds of thousands of years of hardship.
An ancient sigh rang out in the great hall.
“I will send the both of you into the Six Paths of Reincarnation, Cangxu. With this, your mortal business is done.”
A pair of soul wisps were extracted from the stone bodies, which dissipated into thin air, as if they never existed in the first place.
……
On the Bridge of Forgetfulness, Six Paths of Reincarnation.
Looking at the soup given by Meng Po, the Goddess of Forgetfulness, a flash of remembrance flitted through the woman’s eyes. She eventually accepted the soup and finished it in a gulp.
However, Cangxu’s silhouette appeared in her mind when she closed her eyes.
“The root of love is deeply entrenched within you. However, you can only cross this bridge after you cut ties with your past, and he belongs in that past. Not to mention that you’ve already had one bowl, which is supposed to wipe your memory clean…”
Tears streamed down Xian Ke’s cheeks. She stretched out her hand at Meng Po, saying, “Give me another bowl. I want to go after him. I want to be with him in my next life.”
Meng Po almost could not bear to do it, but she still gave her another bowl.
After gulping down the second bowl of the Water of Forgetfulness, Xian Ke crouched at the side of the bridge and cried while cradling her head, “I still can’t forget him!”
Meng Po sighed when she looked at the weeping Xian Ke, “Fine then. I will help you forget him.”
A bowl of pure, unadulterated Elixir of Forgetfulness appeared in Meng Po’s palm, and she handed it over to Xian Ke gently.
“Drink this. You’ll surely forget about him after that!”
……
Xian Ke stood up slowly after she drank the bowl of pure elixir. She walked forward in a trance as inexplicable tears streamed down her cheeks.
She felt as if she had lost something important, but she could not recall what it was.
A silhouette appeared beside Meng Po. He watched on affectionately as the woman stepped away from him, till she disappeared at the end of the bridge…
“Have you decided?” Meng Po gazed at Cangxu and asked.
“The fault lies with me this time. It will be no different than giving amnesty to me if you send me into the Six Paths of Reincarnation. The deed has been done. What one does, one takes responsibility by oneself. Only by destroying my soul can I atone for my sins. I do not wish to trouble the Great Emperor of Feng Du, nor do I wish to spark a war between the two worlds.”
Meng Po sighed heavily when she saw Cangxu’s face of resolve. Then, she opened the Gate of Forgetfulness, which was beneath the River of Forgetfulness.
“You will cease to exist after this. Cangxu might be no more in this world, but I, Meng Po, have seared you in my memory!”
Cangxu nodded and walked unwaveringly to the Gate of Forgetfulness.
Meng Po’s voice rang out again right when Cangxu’s silhouette was about to be engulfed by the Gate of Forgetfulness.
“Two destinies tied together by fate over a hundred lives. I will revive the memories of your past lives at this final moment, Cangxu. Giving you a glimpse of your past relationship is the last thing I can do for you.”
The beams of light before him were getting stronger, and silhouettes started appearing at his final moments. Cangxu saw the reincarnations of his past hundred lives and tears were streaming down his face uncontrollably.
She had always been by his side.
He was a king in his first life. Although he ruled the world and his empire was as picturesque as it could get, nothing could compare to the crimson mark between her eyes and her unparalleled grace.
He was a general in his second life. Although he lived a life of lavishness, nothing could compare to her dark silky hair and her exuberant smile.
He was a swordmaster in his third life. Although he traversed the world and made a name for himself with his sword, nothing could compare to her elegance and the gentle flick of her sleeves.
He was a pianist in his fourth life. Although he performed for nobilities and played uncountable tunes of elegance, nothing could compare to the silvery tune of her flute.
He was a monk in his fifth life. Although he had cleared his heart of lust and practiced the path of Buddhism, he still lost to her passing glance and almost deviated from his duties.
He was a minister in his sixth life. Although he left his name in history and was pure and uncorrupted, nothing could compare to her doing her braids and makeup in front of the mirror.
He was a scholar in his seventh life. Although his life was that of extravagance and accomplishments, nothing could compare to her delicate handwriting and her brush strokes of reed.
He was a farmer in his eighth life. Although he had miles of plum blossoms and acres of silk, nothing could compare to her braided hair and the crimson of her wedding dress.
He was an artist in his ninth life. Although his skills were sought after and his drawings were the treasure of nobles, nothing could compare to her minimalist way of living and the way she laid the table for a meal.
……
He was the ruler of a land in this life. Although he had a million soldiers and tens of thousands of capable generals, nothing could compare to her smile and her fleeting, beautiful life.
His soul gradually came apart under the River of Forgetfulness. However, the pain of his soul getting destroyed was nothing compared to the agony of his yearning from a hundred past lives.
Cangxu’s white hair flowed in the water as he arched his head up to the sky and howled. However, his howl contained the bitterness of his yearning in a hundred lives.
Their destiny finally came to an end in this life…
Cangxu’s expression was still that of regret even at the last moment of his soul getting ripped apart…