Chapter 365: Every Night Is Like This

“Cough, cough, cough.”

Jiang Huai felt dizzy and his head throbbed.

He lay back down on the bed again. He looked listless, his face pale, lips dry and cracked, eyes slightly sunken.

He had no energy at all.

“I told you not to move recklessly. How can an injury like this heal in just a few days?” Wu Zhaohua hurried over, took Jiang Huai’s hand, her palm warm as she slowly channeled spiritual power into him, warming his shattered meridians.

Her brows were tightly furrowed, lips pursed, her gaze fixed on his face, carrying a mix of heartache and anger.

“Even with your Yin-Yang Body, it’s hard to say how long this will take to heal.” She paused, then picked up the medicine bowl from the bedside.

“Open your mouth. Drink the medicine.”

Wu Zhaohua supported the back of Jiang Huai’s neck with one hand, and brought the medicine bowl to his lips with the other. The medicinal juice was thick and black, emitting a bitter smell.

She carefully tilted the bowl’s rim, letting the medicine trickle into his mouth little by little.

Not a single drop spilled; each mouthful was fed very slowly, afraid he might choke.

At this moment, everything from the past seemed to have reversed.

Once, it was Jiang Huai who went out to find a livelihood and returned home to feed Wu Zhaohua medicine. He would crouch by the bedside, blow on each spoonful to cool it, coaxing her to drink.

Now, it had turned into Wu Zhaohua gathering immortal materials, brewing medicine to heal Jiang Huai’s injuries.

“Q… Qin Qingyue and the others?” Jiang Huai lay on the bed, asking weakly.

Wu Zhaohua’s expression changed drastically. She slammed the medicine bowl heavily onto the table.

A few drops of medicine splashed out, landing on the table.

She said coldly, “Try mentioning them again? If you do, whoever you mention, I’ll kill.”

“For now, the Five Provinces are under my rule!”

Her face, usually pure and ethereal, was now covered in frost, her brows knitted with anger, her beautiful eyes slightly narrowed, lips tightly pressed.

Jiang Huai immediately stopped mentioning it, forcing a dry laugh, and more or less understood.

It seemed Wu Zhaohua wouldn’t let them come see him, which was why he hadn’t seen them. But this also meant they were at least safe, probably also busy rebuilding the Five Provinces?

“From now on, unless I die, you are not allowed to go see them.” Wu Zhaohua sneered, picking up the medicine bowl again and personally feeding it to Jiang Huai’s lips.

She scooped up a spoonful of medicine and brought it to his mouth.

As he drank the medicine, Jiang Huai frowned and said, “Don’t say things like that. What ‘if I die’ and so on.”

“Isn’t everything getting better? Once I recover and break through to the Great Ascension Stage, or even higher realms, everything will be fine.”

“Perhaps, we can become the only world to escape Nirvanic Extinction.” A smile hung at the corner of his mouth.

This was simply the most perfect outcome.

Everyone was alive, everyone was moving toward a brighter future.

With his Yin-Yang Body’s abilities, he could even bring life force back to other worlds.

More and more worlds would be restored to vitality.

Wu Zhaohua was silent for a moment, then said softly, “How could such a beautiful thing exist? Everything comes at a price. Perhaps you just don’t know.”

“Beauty always requires someone to sacrifice.”

Jiang Huai lay for a while, then nodded apologetically: “Sorry, I only thought of myself.”

“To have made it to today, many lives have been sacrificed, including those of the Human Race, the Monster Race, and the Dragon Race.”

Wu Zhaohua looked down and said, “Perhaps more than you imagine, or perhaps you don’t care.”

Having said that, she didn’t explain further, stood up, and walked out. Her cloth skirt swayed lightly, footsteps fading away.

Jiang Huai watched her retreating figure, somewhat puzzled.

What did she mean by him not caring? Was there some other price? He slowly closed his eyes, sinking his mind into the Small World.

The Small World was in shambles.

The sky was gray and overcast, without sun, moon, or stars.

The earth was cracked, ravines crisscrossing. Rivers had dried up, leaving only parched riverbeds.

Grass and trees withered, charred branches twisted toward the sky.

Ji Xi was no longer there.

“Senior, are you still alive?” Jiang Huai called out within the Small World. No one responded.

The very tall figure in green robes had vanished, along with her teasing words. Only the sound of wind sobbing remained, whipping up ashes.

He had survived, but Ji Xi seemed to have disappeared like that. Hadn’t even a wisp of remnant soul been left behind?

“Senior Ji…” Jiang Huai lowered his head, speaking sadly to himself. “Senior, I will definitely erect a monument for you in the future, letting all the Five Provinces…” He suddenly felt an itch on his heel and slowly turned around.

A tiny, nearly transparent remnant soul was behind him, carefully poking his heel.

That little remnant soul was only the size of a palm, its form blurred, almost impossible to see clearly.

“Senior? You’re still alive?”

“You didn’t die?!” Jiang Huai exclaimed in surprise. He carefully crouched down, cupping the tiny soul in both hands, as if holding a dying candle flame. The small soul looked listless, poking Jiang Huai twice to indicate it was still alive.

“My body is gradually recovering too. Do you intend to recover inside my body, Senior?” Jiang Huai asked carefully.

He had a feeling that this tiny remnant soul could only be nurtured gradually if placed inside his Small World, just like the landscape.

The small soul lightly nodded in acknowledgment.

Jiang Huai held it close to his chest and began using what little spiritual power he had to build a small wooden cabin on a flat patch of ground.

He split wood for planks, laid stones for the foundation, using an axe and chisel.

The cabin was very small, just big enough for one person.

He placed a Spirit Gathering Array around the cabin, drawing the remaining spiritual power of the Small World to this spot.

Spiritual energy, like thin mist, wove in strands, enveloping the cabin.

“Ji Xi” comfortably nestled inside the cabin and fell into a deep sleep.

The remnant soul was no longer transparent, seeming to have solidified a little.

Jiang Huai slowly opened his eyes, his heart much more at ease. For him, this was indeed the perfect ending.

—

Several months passed in a row. Jiang Huai’s injuries recovered quickly.

The recovery ability of the Yin-Yang Body was far beyond ordinary people’s, and with Wu Zhaohua’s attentive care, he could already get out of bed and walk.

Yet he was still confined to the small courtyard by Wu Zhaohua. Not allowed to go out, and certainly not allowed to see other women.

The small courtyard wasn’t big, with mottled earthen walls and an old wooden gate.

There was a tree in the yard, and under the tree, a stone table with two stone stools.

On the table were often placed a teapot and teacups, along with a stack of white paper, brush, and ink. Wu Zhaohua had prepared this, wanting him to write some stories for her to read while in the courtyard. When Jiang Huai had nothing to do, he would only bend over the stone table writing short stories.

Wu Zhaohua handled Wenxuan Sect affairs during the day and returned to the small courtyard at night.

As night fell, Wu Zhaohua finished washing up, changed into a simple nightgown, and lay down on the bed. Jiang Huai lay beside her, picked up the story, held her in his arms, and read the tales to her one by one.

Sometimes he would fall asleep while reading, the manuscript slipping from his fingers. Wu Zhaohua would just look at his face like that, until she too closed her eyes and fell asleep.

Moonlight streamed in through the window, falling on the two of them.

Although they were both cultivators, they lived like mortals. Night after night like this.