by Zhi Bai
The waves of white warriors and white lions began to sweep through the clouds, and the collapse of the clouds became unstoppable. At the same time, the sun grew brighter and the black moon smaller and smaller. It was as if the shadow had to shrink to its smallest point after the sun rose.
Finally, the black moon disappeared, and the dark clouds retreated.
An Zheng suddenly opened his eyes and stretched his hands out, grabbing onto something in the air and pulling on both sides: "Open!"
In the sky, all the white armored warriors and lions were gathered together, forming two huge palms. They grabbed the retreating night sky and pulled on both sides of the sky … With a ripping sound, it sounded as if silk was being torn apart. The remaining night sky was completely torn apart, and the forests and mountains below began to crumble. It was as if water had been poured onto ink and washed away.
Scenes began to change nonstop. There was a desert, a mountain range, an empty space, and the stage that had previously disappeared.
The sky was chaotic, which meant that that person's mind was in a mess and their heart was in a mess as well.
An Zheng stood up, but his expression was surprisingly calm: "Let's go take a look, to see just who he is."
Chapter 242 - Dingjiang Mountain
As An Zheng's hands moved forward, the night sky was completely torn apart. The black armored warriors and demon beasts on top of the clouds all dissipated, turning into black mist and disappearing in the end.
The sky became incomparably clear, and the light emitted by the sun also began to dim.
Then, An Zheng realized that they seemed to have returned to the place on the stage.
A little boy around six or seven years old was sitting on the bench holding a small kettle, watching the performance on the stage without blinking his eyes. An Zheng could tell that the people on stage were all local plays of the State of Yan. Although there weren't many plays, the singing had a heroic and melodious tone, which was why the people of Yan liked it. The little boy seemed to be a little nervous. From time to time, he would look around, as if on guard against something.
"Are you afraid?"
An Zheng walked over and asked.
Du Shoushou tugged at Tan Taiche: "What's going on? Why is he back? This little guy is the owner of this charming heart? But he's so young, it's impossible. "
Tan Taiche lowered his voice and said, "Don't talk anymore. This charming world has calmed down, and it should have returned to its original state. This form of a little boy may not be real, but it may also be when the heart's charming master begins to daydream. Any of our drastic actions could potentially unbalance the peace of mind at present, so let's just watch. An Zheng seems to have used his own state of mind to communicate with this charming world to a certain extent.
Du Shoushou nodded, he did not even dare speak anymore. The two of them did not dare to get close and watched from afar.
An Zheng slowly walked over, and the little boy turned back to look at him. He seemed especially terrified, and his body involuntarily shrank back. Are you going to take me back to cultivate? "
An Zheng shook his head, and smiled especially kindly: "No, I also like watching people play."
He sat down beside the boy. "But I don't know what this play is called."
The little boy seemed to have let his guard down a little as he looked at An Zheng with his extremely clear black and white eyes. He said somewhat proudly, "This show is called Dingjiang Mountain, and it is said that when the State of Yan was established, you didn't even know about this. It's so embarrassing ~"
An Zheng laughed: "Because I have less time, I'm too busy. Even though I like to watch the show, I can't spare the time. So I don't know what kind of show it is, but you can't laugh at me either. "
The little boy was especially beautiful, but after hearing An Zheng's words, his face also became sad: "Actually … Like you, I've been forced to cultivate since I was four years old, and I'm not even allowed to leave my home. I'm sneaking out to see a play. I like to see a play, but they won't let me. Every time I sneakily run out to see a play, not long after, they would grab me back and beat me … They said that I am the future of the clan and that I don't have the time to look at these random things. I can only cultivate before I cultivate … But I'm so tired, I don't want to cultivate, and I also don't want to be the future of the family. "
An Zheng's heart tightened. He took out a handkerchief from his sleeve and wiped the boy's tears: "Don't worry, no one will capture you back today. I'll protect you."
"Really?"
The little boy looked at An Zheng in anticipation, then shook his head: "My family are all very fierce, no one dares to offend them. You should leave, big brother. I'm afraid I will implicate you. I'll look at it for a little while longer, and then I'll go back by myself. If they find me, they will beat me up. "
An Zheng's heart ached, he caressed the little boy's hair: "Don't worry, I already said that I will protect you, so I won't let anyone beat you again."
The little boy became excited, "Then I will finish watching Dingjiang Mountain today, and not once."
He subconsciously looked back, but he still seemed to be worried about something.
The moment he turned around, An Zheng felt that something was wrong. This was the charming world of a little boy. Whatever he thought, he would appear. After all, he was just a passerby. Just as An Zheng was worrying about this, the door was kicked open by someone. A group of black-clothed men barged in with sinister looks on their faces. They strode forward, and as they walked, they became skeletons, skeletons in black. It looked exactly the same as the skeletons that An Zheng and the others saw dancing on stage.
An Zheng suddenly understood. This was what the little boy was afraid of, hence even the performance on the stage had changed. The singing turned into a group of skulls dancing happily, but in reality, it was a nightmare for the little boy.
Behind the black skeletons, an old lady with a dragon-headed cane slowly walked in, her face frighteningly cold. She pointed at the little boy and said sternly, "Capture him back and beat him to death! If you don't live up to expectations, your family will give it their all to nurture you, and make you the future hope of the family. Not long after that, you will be taken away to cultivate.
The little boy shrunk himself into An Zheng's embrace. "I don't want to go back, I don't want to cultivate … I like watching shows! "
An Zheng stood up and protected the little boy behind him.
"Who are you?"
The old lady looked at An Zheng with a gloomy expression.
An Zheng laughed coldly: "It's different from you; you are his heart's matter, and I am not. Don't you think that's too much? How old is he? You guys are forcing him to do something like this just because you don't listen to him? Do you really care about him? Or could it be that the only thing he cared about was whether or not the family had a successor? It was fine as long as the talent was good. If you really kill him, you'll just have to find the next successor, right? "
The madame said coldly, "This is my Gao Family's matter. What right do you have to ask?" I'll give you a chance to get out of here, or else I'll turn you into ashes. "
An Zheng felt that the little boy was trembling more and more violently behind him. He reached out and hugged the little boy, "I won't let them beat you up, and won't let them force you to do things that you don't like. This is your world. "Believe me, you're the only one who can get these people out of your head."
The little boy shook his head, his face frighteningly white. I'm afraid of her! "
He raised his little finger and pointed it at the madame.
The old mistress bellowed, "I am your grandmother! You dare to hide behind an outsider, you've wasted so much of my effort on you. In order to nurture you, the family has already paid enough of a price. How can you be so ignorant! "
An Zheng said: "What you care about is not him, but yourself, or perhaps the future of your so-called
family. Since you are his grandmother, have you ever considered him as a grandmother? Have you ever felt sorry for him? Did you ask him what he liked? You know what he wants to do? In his heart, you are not his grandmother at all, you are the demon he fears. "
"I'll kill you."
The old mistress pointed forward. "Chop him up and feed him to the dogs!"
The group of Black Cloaked Skulls started to pounce forward. An Zheng patted the little boy's shoulders and said, "Believe in yourself.
The ferocious looking old lady took a step forward and jabbed down with her Dragon-Headed Cane. "You dare!?" Don't forget that you are a descendant of the Gao Family. Everything you have now is given to you by the Gao Clan. The food, drink, clothes, and everything else, including your life, was given to you by the Gao Family! If you want to leave now, you're a traitor! "
"I don't want to!"
The little boy held his head and squatted there. "I don't want all of them!"
His clothes exploded with a puff, and he squatted there naked.
A hurricane appeared, engulfing everything like a raging dragon. Those black skeletons were caught up in the hurricane as they charged forward. They were instantly minced into powder. As the hurricane moved forward, the old mistress raised her hand in an attempt to sweep it away. However, when she raised her hand, there was no strength left. A hurricane swept past, lifting her up into the air.
"You won't be able to escape. This is your fate!"
In mid-air, the old mistress was still wailing mournfully.
An Zheng took off his outer robe and wrapped it around the little boy's body as he hugged him up, "You can, no matter what. No matter how dark the sky above was, the sun would always be there. Even if you couldn't see it, you had to keep the light in your heart. When you think that's really not what you want, you have to learn to say no. "
The little boy nodded his head vigorously, and then shouted towards the sky, "I don't! I don't like it! "
As the hurricane dissipated, the old mistress was nowhere to be seen.
On the stage, the singing of "Dingjiang Mountain" continued. The little boy laid on An Zheng's shoulder and chattered away as he learnt to sing. The surroundings became even calmer, as if nothing had happened. He lay there, tears still in the corners of his eyes.
After an unknown amount of time, the little boy suddenly struggled free from An Zheng's embrace. Standing there, he bowed deeply towards the people who were singing on the stage, "Thank you all."
The few people on the stage looked at each other, and at the same time bowed to the little boy. "Thank you."
Then the stage disappeared, and it was pitch black.
It was a kind of endless darkness, like the eternal night. But when An Zheng raised his head to look at the sky, a golden light tore through the darkness and shot down. Gradually, more and more golden lights appeared and the darkness shattered. A sun hung there, illuminating the surroundings.
Then, they saw not far away, an old man who looked like he had a head full of white hair and a beard was lying on a dead wooden chair. He was looking at An Zheng with benevolent and grateful eyes.
"Thank you."
"No," he said.
His voice was hoarse and hoarse, as if he hadn't spoken for many years. It looked like he was at least seventy or eighty years old. He leaned against it as if unable to move. A decaying smell that belonged to an old man emanated from his body, causing people to feel uncomfortable.
"Gao Yuan Tree?"
An Zheng asked.
The old man nodded. "That's me."
The old man raised his head to look at the sun. That light caused him to start crying, but he didn't seem to care at all.
"I never thought that I would wake up from that dream one day. I'm not even sure which world is real. But luckily... Not everyone's heart was filled with darkness. So I want to thank you, whoever you are. "
He looked at An Zheng, "Thank you. If possible, I would like to say it a few more times. But I'm going to end myself. I'm going to end my life. When I came out of that dream, I knew what choice I had to make. I don't like everything here. If I could be reborn, I would be willing to be the child of an ordinary family, playing with mud when I was young, secretly running into the river to bathe, then being carried back home by the adults to give me a beating … That kind of beating shouldn't be painful at all, right? "
Tan Taiche asked from behind, "Don't you want to start from a new beginning? Wouldn't it be a pity if it ended like this? "
Gao Yuanshu smiled. "No, it's not the end. It's the beginning."
Du Shoushou grunted, "I don't like you, no matter what. You've killed so many children and young girls for yourself, you should have died a long time ago! "
Gao Yuanshu was clearly stunned for a moment before smiling bitterly, "So she placed this sin on me. Everyone is just her chess piece, I'm at her mercy … The deaths of those children had nothing to do with me. Did she say those children were killed to save me? No, she was doing it for herself. She should have died a long time ago, more than a decade ago, but she began to extend her life in such a sinful way. All the punishment the Gao family received now was due to the crimes she committed. However, all of this will have nothing to do with me … All of you are good people, you shouldn't have died here with me. "
He waved his hand.
The surrounding scene changed.
An Zheng and the others returned to the courtyard, the branches of the leaves in the sky had disappeared, and the two persimmon trees had returned to their original appearances.
Vaguely, An Zheng seemed to hear a child, and used a young and tender voice to sing that phrase "settled mountain".
The sound grew farther and farther away.
Chapter 243 - Blood Pearl level up!
The few people standing in the small courtyard all seemed to be in a daze. No one knew if what they had just experienced was real, or if they were hallucinating at the same time. They never seemed to have left the little yard, never entered the room. The two giant persimmon trees seemed to have never bloomed, moved, or changed.
Du Shoushou rubbed his eyes and looked down at the sleeping cat in his arms. He was a little dazed: "Am I dreaming?"
Tan Taiche looked at him and laughed: "It's a good dream.
He walked over and patted An Zheng's shoulders: "I remember, I seem to have said it before, use forty percent of your family's property in exchange for you to be my head manager?"
An Zheng laughed: "Looks like it's not a dream."
Tan Taiche was silent for a moment: "Fifty percent, according to what you said, I will give you half of the family property, you help me. "As long as you think about it, come find me anytime."
An Zheng laughed: "I will."
Du Shoushou looked at Tan Taiche who was walking far away, and after staring blankly for a good while, he asked: "You really didn't dream? Why does it feel like it isn't real at all … It was as if everything had just happened, or as if nothing had happened at all. This kind of feeling is really f * cking depressing. I really want to go back in and see what's so weird about it. "
An Zheng laughed: "Then let's go in."
He pulled Du Shoushou and then strode into the room.
With a creak, An Zheng opened the door. The light in the room was dim. When An Zheng opened the door, the room became clear. The room was very small and the furnishings were extremely simple. Although it had been a long time since someone had lived here, there was still a strong smell of medicine in the room. An Zheng saw that there was a desk not far away. There seemed to be a book on the desk.
He walked over and opened the window.
The wind outside the window blew into the room, blowing the book on the table open and turning the pages one by one. It was not a book, but a pattern drawn on every page. It could be seen that it was drawn with a naive brushwork. Every character wore the same clothes and drew the same facial features as the people in Dingjiang Mountain. The wind blew, flipping the pages of the book, and
it was as if the people who were painting on it were alive.
An Zheng looked at the book, and let out a long sigh: "In the next life, I hope that you'll be well."
It was unknown if it was an illusion or real, but it was as if An Zheng heard an old voice saying to him … Thank you, I will.
Du Shoushou, who was watching from the back, couldn't help but shake his head: "Gao Yuan Tree should be Gao Yuanhu's big brother. Gao Yuanhu looks to be at most thirty years of age, while Gao Yuanshu looks to be seventy or eighty years of age. "
An Zheng looked out of the window.
At this moment, the page turned to the last page. There was a line of words on it, and it seemed like Mo Xiang had just written it down.
"Thank you, for a present. The two persimmon trees outside are called the Twin Twins. They have some special abilities, so you should be able to use them. "
Just as An Zheng wanted to read more, the words on the page disappeared.
Then, there was a loud bang outside. The two trees were uprooted, and the earth shook. After a while, the two trees turned into two fist-sized balls of green light and floated in from the outside, and landed in front of An Zheng. When the green light dissipated, An Zheng saw that they were two saplings that had turned golden. It was very small, and the two saplings were only the size of a finger, with only two leaves on each.
The leaves were shiny, as if they were made of pure gold. And on the trunk, there were faint purple lines.
Purple Golden-Rank, which is also the peak of Golden-Rank.
"Two lifetimes Twin Tree?"
An Zheng picked up the two saplings and looked at them. Then, he suddenly felt pain on his fingertips, and subconsciously, he threw the sapling out.
Then, the sapling suddenly disappeared into the Blood Pearl Bracelet on An Zheng's wrist. It was unknown if the Blood Pearl Bracelet sucked it in or if it drilled it itself.