Chapter Five
Darkness shattered, light burst forth, and the vibrant valley floor gradually imprinted itself before their eyes.
Blue skies, white clouds, green mountains, clear waters. A hundred flowers bloomed, streams murmured softly. All things were vivid and colorful, their sounds crisp and lively to the ear. As the first sight upon entering the world, it could not have been more perfect.
The golden phoenix tree leaves were warm and fragrant. A small beast nestled on a branch of the phoenix tree rolled over comfortably, half-opening its eyes to survey the strange new world. It yawned lazily, clearly quite satisfied with the place of its awakening.
A white cloud drifted down from the horizon, and a dark shadow leaped straight from it into a nearby stream, splashing water everywhere. Moments later, a naked youth emerged from the water.
The little beast quickly covered its eyes with its paws but couldn’t help leaving a tiny gap between them. Perhaps catching sight of something remarkable, it secretly curled its lips into a smile. Seeing the youth put on a robe and approach with a wooden bucket, the little beast kicked its legs, rolled onto its back, stretched out its paws, and began to feign sleep.
It wasn’t skilled at much, but as a species that had slept for a century, feigning sleep came naturally—unlearned yet masterful, with an air of grandeur.
After hiding the Drunken Jade Dew in the bamboo hut, Gu Jin flew up to the phoenix tree to find his precious treasure. Seeing the Water Condensation Beast sleeping soundly with a silly expression, he didn’t disturb it. Instead, he smiled and carefully carried the troublesome little creature down.
The little beast opened its eyes, caught a glimpse of the gentle smile in the youth’s gaze, and froze for a moment, quietly retracting the sharp claws hidden beneath its paw pads.
Today, although Qing Yi’s words were childish and innocent, they stirred a tightly buried memory in Gu Jin’s heart, filling him with sudden melancholy. Sighing with every step, he even canceled his daily routine walk. Instead, he poured a pot of Drunken Jade Dew, held the Water Condensation Beast, and sat in the courtyard, lost in thought.
“Qing Yi has only been at the mountain gate for a few years. He’s never seen Hua Shu, or else he wouldn’t have taken a liking to Immortal Lord Shui Lin’s eldest daughter,” Gu Jin murmured softly while sipping the Drunken Jade Dew, not forgetting to pat the little beast in his arms. “Little one, liking someone is a lifelong matter. If you give up too easily, it’s not true liking, don’t you think?”
The little beast’s paws seemed to twitch unconsciously, hooking onto Gu Jin’s robe as it snuggled closer in his embrace.
“Ah, you don’t even know what happened back then. What’s the use asking you?” Gu Jin leaned back, gazing directly at the moon in the sky, and let out a long sigh. “The moon was just as big on the day I met Hua Shu.”
The youthful innocence in his eyes gradually faded, replaced by a hint of melancholy and sorrow that didn’t belong to him, tinged with faint traces of self-blame and regret.
Gu Jin clearly hadn’t yet grown to the point where he could keep the mistakes of his youth buried in his heart forever. Qing Yi’s words had struck like a sharp axe, chiseling open a crack in his heart. For the first time, he set aside his usual playful expression and, holding the bewildered Water Condensation Beast, began to recall that day on Phoenix Tree Island five years ago—the day that changed his life.
In the century following the fall of the True God Bai Jue, the rarest event in the Three Realms and Eight Wastelands was undoubtedly the birth of the second Fire Phoenix in the Phoenix Clan on Phoenix Tree Island. It was widely known that the rulers of the Phoenix Clan hailed from the Fire Phoenix lineage, but since ancient times, each lineage had only ever produced one Fire Phoenix, making them exceedingly rare. Thus, the birth of the second Fire Phoenix became the foremost event for the Phoenix Clan. Even the Celestial Emperor Feng Ran hosted a banquet to celebrate it, known throughout the Three Realms.
Phoenix Tree Island, newly descended Fire Phoenix, together invite all gods to celebrate with us.
To this day, the bold and domineering congratulatory message personally written by the Celestial Emperor back then is still a topic of lively discussion among the immortals.Moreover, rumors circulated that the long-hidden Ancient True God had also set foot on Phoenix Tree Island on the day this Little Fire Phoenix descended into the world. Even before its birth, it had drawn the attention of the Three Realms. Perhaps even the sudden appearance of Yuan Qi, the Little Divine Lord of Clear Pond Palace, could not compare to the glory of this little phoenix.
Years ago, the Celestial Emperor had invited Ling Juan, the High Lord in charge of destiny, to divine the fortunes of the Little Fire Phoenix. Ling Juan said little, leaving only the four peculiar words "a lifetime of folly" before patting his backside and departing. After this incident, the Elders of the Phoenix Clan panicked, daily infusing Spiritual Power into the egg to protect the little phoenix's spirit. Even the Celestial Emperor spent half his time on Phoenix Tree Island caring for it.
A century later, this egg, which had captured the attention of the Three Realms, finally reached its hatching day without incident. The Celestial Emperor was overjoyed and once again invited all the immortals to gather on Phoenix Tree Island to celebrate the Nirvana Rebirth of the second Fire Phoenix in the history of the Phoenix Clan.
That banquet was an unprecedented sensation. The Celestial Emperor decreed that the phoenixes of the clan should travel to the far corners of the Four Seas to welcome guests. The day before the Little Fire Phoenix's Nirvana Rebirth, guests from across the Three Realms gathered on Phoenix Tree Island, and the entire island rejoiced together.
By then, Gu Jin had already spent a century on Great Marsh Mountain, where Tian Qi had sealed his Divine Power and sent him to cultivate. Life in the mountains was dull and monotonous. Upon hearing the news, he happily reported to the old High Lord Dong Hua that he intended to go to Phoenix Tree Island to join in the celebrations.
Dong Hua, who had lived to an advanced age and was on the verge of attaining godhood, cherished this precious and noble disciple dearly. He dispatched a procession of grand-disciples to accompany Gu Jin. On Great Marsh Mountain, Gu Jin was young in age but high in seniority. It was quite a spectacle to see a dozen white-haired Immortal Lords following him, respectfully addressing him as "Uncle-Master."
Having grown up in Clear Pond Palace, Gu Jin had been doted on by Tian Qi and Feng Ran since childhood. The items he used were rarer and more precious than those of the Heavenly Palace's royal family. After entering Great Marsh Mountain, the old High Lord treasured him, indulging him for a full century. The immortals within the mountain sect were pure and kind-hearted, and Gu Jin's amiable nature, combined with his status as the old High Lord's favorite, quickly made him the treasure of the entire sect.
As the saying goes, a carefree heart leads to a plump body. Gu Jin's birth was an anomaly. Though only a little over a hundred years old, he had experienced a peculiar upbringing: his mother did not acknowledge him, his father had passed away, his aunt was the Celestial Emperor, and his uncle was a troublemaker. After a comfortable century of being pampered on Great Marsh Mountain, he naturally grew into a plump Immortal Lord.
The old High Lord Dong Hua had lived for over sixty thousand years, born since ancient times, and was highly respected with countless merits. The previous Celestial Emperor, Mu Guang, had gifted him four snow horses from the polar regions of the Western Sea and a carriage shaft forged from jade-green immortal stones for his thirty-thousandth birthday. At the time, this Snow Shaft Immortal Carriage caused a sensation, envied by all immortals and celebrated as a tale for the ages. However, Dong Hua was of a reclusive nature and rarely ventured out. Since arriving on Great Marsh Mountain, the snow horses had been left to roam freely in the back mountains. Thus, while the immortals and demons of the Three Realms had heard of this precious gift, none had ever laid eyes on the immortal carriage itself.
This journey spanned thousands of miles, and even immortals traveling a thousand miles a day would need three days to complete it. The white-bearded grand-disciples, wise with age, feared tiring their delicate little Uncle-Master and sought to please their master. On the day of departure, they retrieved the snow horses that had been grazing in the back mountains for tens of thousands of years, polished the dusty carriage shaft stored in the treasure pavilion until it gleamed, and gleefully set off with their little Uncle-Master.
With such a conspicuous display, it took less than a day for the immortals and demons of the Three Realms to learn that the old High Lord Dong Hua of Great Marsh Mountain had taken on a new, treasured disciple, even going so far as to use the Snow Shaft Immortal Carriage for him. Unfortunately, it was said that while this little disciple came from a distinguished background, he was a third-rate immortal with mediocre Immortal Power, hardly worthy of the spotlight.Old High Lord Dong Hua was quite well-liked, so as soon as these words were spoken, some Immortal Lords grew displeased. How could anyone doubt the old High Lord’s judgment? Having lived for sixty thousand years and nearly attained godhood, how could High Lord Dong Hua take on a disciple who only knew how to put on airs and idle away his days, yet dote on him like the apple of his eye? It was utterly unreasonable!
But the matter was absolutely true! Every Immortal Lord who had witnessed the scene of the young disciple from Great Marsh Mountain traveling along the way swore with a hand on their chest that these words were no falsehood. What evidence was there?
Just look—those dozen or so white-bearded grand-disciples trailing behind him were proof enough! With such formidable strength, why would he need protection from juniors? With such pure character, how could he order elders to toil as laborers?
In the Three Realms, strength was revered, and the posturing of fledglings was generally looked down upon. Thus, even before Gu Jin had entered the island, immortals and demons who had received the news began to lament in secret that Old High Lord Dong Hua’s lifelong reputation for simplicity and integrity was likely to be ruined by this disciple who had appeared out of nowhere.
Such whispered gossip naturally never reached the ears of the easygoing, plump Little Fatty Gu. He slept soundly the entire journey, reclining in the Snow Shaft Immortal Carriage as he made a grand, ostentatious entrance into Phoenix Tree Island, drawing pointed fingers and murmurs along the way.
In all fairness, this truly wasn’t Little Fatty Gu’s fault. He had tumbled down from the Ancient Realm, where even the lowest-grade carriages were drawn by divine beasts that had attained godhood. Had he known that a single Snow Shaft Immortal Carriage would tarnish half his lifetime’s reputation and affect Hua Shu’s opinion of him, he would have crawled to Phoenix Tree Island on his own.
Within the Three Realms, only three knew of Gu Jin’s descent to the Mortal Realm: Tian Qi, Feng Ran, and Dong Hua. In their eyes, it was perfectly normal for Gu Jin to travel in a Snow Shaft Immortal Carriage—or even to tread upon Azure Dragons and Black Tortoises—so they paid no mind to the matter. However, Feng Ran agreed with Tian Qi’s philosophy of raising children through hardship and adversity, intending to humble the young man. Thus, she arranged for his resting place to be the Nine Splendors Pavilion.
The Nine Splendors Pavilion was located in the secluded and desolate rear part of Phoenix Tree Island, rarely visited by anyone. Upon hearing that Gu Jin, who had come by his master’s order to offer congratulations, had been tossed into the Nine Splendors Pavilion by the Celestial Emperor, the immortals—who had looked down on Little Fatty Gu’s pretentious airs—felt both gleeful and secretly astonished. They wondered if the fiery-tempered Phoenix Sovereign’s disdain for High Lord Dong Hua’s young disciple was a bit too obvious. For a time, half the Immortal Lords who had come for the Little Fire Phoenix found their attention inadvertently drawn to the Nine Splendors Pavilion.
After all, whether a donkey or a horse, it had to be led out for a trot to be truly judged.
The ways of the world are mysterious, with causes and entanglements often unclear.
Many years later, some would say that if the Celestial Emperor had not kicked Immortal Lord Gu Jin of Great Marsh Mountain into the Nine Splendors Pavilion back then, the Three Realms would likely not have witnessed so many grand and turbulent events in the millennia that followed.
Yet some things are fated, inescapable and unavoidable. Whether they bring fulfillment or smooth sailing, they are but the span of a single lifetime.
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