Silent Crown

by Feng Yue

  She looked at Ye Qingxuan and stretched her hand to point towards a junction in the maze. Before Ye Qingxuan could say a word, she had already vanished, leaving Ye Qingxuan sprinting in the direction that she had pointed, like a fool. But very soon, at the end of the path where the six paths converged together, a new figure appeared once again and pointed ahead. Ye Qingxuan adjusted the ropes without a second thought. He wanted to use this opportunity to shout out loud but he realized that he could not make a sound.

  A loud explosion behind him almost flipped him over. Behind him, countless infected artificial intelligence had appeared from all over the place as they tried to catch up with him.

  “Crime crime crime crime!!!!”

  “Death penalty! Death penalty! Death penalty! Death penalty!”

  Countless red lights, that represented crimes, chased after him and tore away at his broken horse carriage. All they wanted to do was to stop the carriage, even if they only managed to tear away a single nail. First, it was a nail, then it was the main body of the carriage, and finally, the rear, the pedestal, the seat, the axles, the wheels, and even the rope snapped.

  Ye Qingxuan had no choice but to jump onto the back of the horse as he clung on to the horse’s neck for dear life while galloping in the direction that the illusion had pointed. Eventually, there was a spot of white light from a long distance away. Ye Qingxuan finally saw the exit.

  That slim illusion was standing right at the exit, as it quietly pointed the way for him. It was about to allow Ye Qingxuan to pass by and sprint towards freedom. But at the instant that they passed each other, Ye Qingxuan leaped off the horse before rolling on the ground crashing into the wall due to the momentum.

  Not too far behind him, the infected artificial intelligence was charging over in waves. But as they came nearer to the illusion, they began to slow down. The closer they came, the more they began to stutter. Eventually, they were trapped in a time that had slowed down by tens of thousands of times.

  They were so near yet so far.

  “You should not have stopped.” Ye Qingxuan heard her voice. Those empty pair of eyes were looking at him. She continued, “Bai Xi is waiting for you.”

  “Then what about you?” Ye Qingxuan looked into her eyes. He realized that the thinner the illusion became, the faster it would disintegrate and dissipate into the endless ocean of data.

  “I am fine where I am.” Chaoyue replied calmly, “I like it here. It is very quiet.”

  “Don’t be foolish. No one likes to become a machine! And no one likes a weird place like this!” Ye Qingxuan ignored her and stretched out his hands to pull her along, only to realize that his feet seemed to have been glued to the ground. He was no longer able to move. He barely managed to speak through gritted teeth, “If Bai Xi was to see you give up on yourself like this, she would definitely be mad at you too!”

  Chaoyue looked at him quietly. It had always been like this from the very beginning. It was as if she could never sense the pain of separation but was merely musing about something that could never be understood. The look in her eyes would become… one of confusion. “I poisoned you once. You should hate me.”

  “I think everyone in this world has tried to harm me before, but I’m the Holy Mother, so I will forgive everyone. No matter. Even if I get really angry, the moment I see the pleading look on their faces, I won’t bear to do anything to them.” Ye Qingxuan tried to squeeze out some thoughts and memories from his brain and continued with a smile, “You pointed the way for me, so we are even now.”

  Chaoyue remained silent. There were no reactions. She was like a little child that was in a daze, or perhaps… she was unable to react.

  That group of infected artificial intelligence kept approaching and was almost about to reach them! There was no time. Ye Qingxuan flew into a rage.

  “Chaoyue, Yunlou Qingshu is already dead!” He was shouting and jumping at the same time, but immediately became more restrained. “Alright, this is only a guess as I don’t have any proof, but it has been so long and he has yet to respond. There’s still Bai Heng, that b*stard, out there. That snitch must be dead already! Even if he isn’t, just treat it as he has! Don’t be a machine anymore! Do whatever you want, just stop being a machine!”

  “But I don’t know how to do anything else.”

  “Then learn! Like Bai Xi!” Ye Qingxuan was shouting at her with all his strength. “Be yourself!”

  In that instant, amidst the fleeting time, Ye Qingxuan sensed that he was beginning to hallucinate. But that hallucination was so short that he barely detected it. Chaoyue had already vanished. Before she vanished, the corners of her mouth had curled up slightly. As if she was smiling.

  As the figure was broken, he was also pushed out of the maze and he was falling from the sky. He could hear the sound of wind roaring past him as fell, as if he would fall forever. He saw the group of infected artificial intelligence crashing into each other at the exit but they could pursue him no further.

  He finally entered the deepest level of the central core. He was getting closer to the Originator. But when he looked down at his bare hands, he could not help but feel overwhelmed with rage and gloom.

  In the end… in the end… in the end, he did not manage to do anything. Light had swallowed everything. He has finally entered the Originator.

  792 Choice

  What had the high heavens created?

  Where was the edge of the vast earth?

  Where had everything come from, and where was it going?

  From the moment that humanity had opened their eyes and stared at the world, they began to guess: where did it all start from? Or they had had even more foolish questions.

  Was there truly a paradise in this vast universe? Was there a way of liberation for humanity? Did heaven exist in the world?

  Could humans have souls?

  Ye Qingxuan had no interest in any of this.

  He was in the Originator.

  But he was not here to find any answers or truths.

  He was just here to bring a girl back.

  Since they had parted in the Sacred City, he had missed her so many times, tried so many times, and failed so many times.

  This alone Ye Qingxuan absolutely had to do.

  He could not give up.

  Then, he finally saw Bai Xi.

  In the sound of the mighty stone chime, the clouds parted yet again, revealing a bustling imperial palace. As the vermillion gate rumbled open, a hundred ministers with jade boards marched over the white jade towards the solemn palace between heaven and earth.

  Under the huge dragon head statue made skillfully and painstakingly of poured black gold and beautiful jade embellishments, they kowtowed towards the only master of this world.

  The highest ruler of heaven and earth.

  “Bai Xi?” Ye Qingxuan stared in shock at the cold silhouette that was worshipped behind the curtain. He got a glimpse of her slender eyes. In them, he beheld the power over life, death, and indifference.

  The Empress looked down at Ye Qingxuan and frowned slightly.

  “Shameless! Who dares speak the holy name?” someone yelled in a shrill voice. “Get him! Get him! Get the traitor quickly!”

  A burly figure rushed towards Ye Qingxuan with heavy footsteps.

  Ye Qingxuan unconsciously stepped back and raised his hand, but he did not feel an impact. The stocky guard seemed to be made out of mist, and he dispersed into pieces, and with him went the mythical, majestic palace and ministers as they once again disappeared into the mist.

  “What are you looking at, cousin?”

  Ye Qingxuan heard the soft voice behind him. He turned around in shock and saw her delicate face. She looked close enough to touch, and she looked up at him.

  She smiled softly and happily.

  “What’s wrong? You don’t like my outfit?” Bai Xi saw his suspicious expression and unfolded her sleeves and turned around in a circle to let him see her light yellow cloak fluttering in the wind.r />
  Her long hair was like silver as it reflected the warm light.

  Her eyes were like water, calm and quiet.

  Although the world was so large, she had eyes only for him. Her smile was full of satisfaction and happiness. Then, she carefully hid something behind her and winked at him.

  “I have a present for you, cousin.”

  Crack! Ye Qingxuan heard the sound of bones fracturing. He quickly turned around and saw blood flowing onto the ground. Someone fell to the ground behind him as an ax separated her head from her body and blood splashed in all directions.

  She was dead.

  But Ye Qingxuan could not see her face; he could only see the crown of the Anglo Kingdom floating in the blood, still so beautiful.

  Before his eyes, a slender figure lifted its foot and stomped it down on the head in the blood, and there was a sickening sound as it was crushed. She looked back at him with her flushed face.

  Her face was not as arrogant and spoiled as in the past, but had become quite charming.

  It was like a corpse had blossomed in the mud.

  There was a dark, insane atmosphere.

  The ax was thrown into the pool of blood.

  Bai Xi looked at herself and grinned, but it was a chilling smile.

  “I’ve given you everything, cousin, so why are you still thinking about her? I know, I must have done something wrong, made a mistake, made you angry, I’ll do anything…”

  She left a row of scarlet footprints on the ground as she walked towards Ye Qingxuan.

  Her voice was weak in her throat, as if she was suffocating. “It must be this flirtatious hussy’s fault. She must have seduced you. Look at me, cousin. I beg you, look at me, ok? You see? I’ve worked so hard…”

  Ye Qingxuan shut his eyes.

  The tragic sound disappeared.

  But the suffocating feeling continued.

  When he opened his eyes, the corpse’s head and Bai Xi had disappeared.

  There was only a figure standing alone in the distance.

  It was Bai Xi.

  It was like she had aged greatly in an instant. All the tenderness of a young woman was gone.

  She turned around, and her white hair was tied up in a bun behind her head. She wore a long black dress that contrasted with her pale white skin. Black gauze hung down from her cap, covering half her face.

  She did not take notice of Ye Qingxuan behind her.

  She was lost in misery.

  She quietly stared at the tombstone in front of her, mourning her husband, who had died young. Tears fell from her cheeks and landed on the tombstone, finally leaking down to the name on it: Ye Qingxuan.

  Ye Qingxuan felt like he had been struck by lightning.

  Someone was kneeling on the ground and pulling at his trousers. “Hey mister, God bless you.”

  The sly and deformed beggar dragged a rotten leg behind her as she crawled on the ground. Her white hair was falling out, revealing her wrinkled scalp and the malign sores on her face.

  She was changed beyond recognition.

  She held up a broken bowl and stared at the stranger in front of her. Her voice was as shrill as an owl’s. “Have pity on me, mister. I beg you.”

  The impassioned sound of a horn rang out.

  The song of the end of the night and the upcoming victory of the dawn played.

  A stake descended from the sky, crushing the beggar, and chains wrapped around Ye Qingxuan.

  At that moment, Ye Qingxuan snapped out of his shock. He thought he was under attack by the Church. But when he turned around he saw a purification musician behind him playing “Night on Bald Mountain.”

  She wore clothes as black as a crow, and her eyes were cold and gloomy.

  “Give up, Sinner Ye Qingxuan.”

  But then a new image appeared. With a sharp whistle, the Black Knight’s warship crashed through the waves. On the deck, the pirate queen’s short silver hair flowed in the wind. Her mature, lovely cheeks had been tanned bronze, and there were scars in the corners of her eyes.

  “Enough!” Ye Qingxuan roared. “Stop it!”

  Everything stopped.

  A vague shadow appeared beside him, staring at him quietly. Its eyes seemed to be full of pity, and it seemed to be a thousand miles away.

  “Where is this… No, the Originator shouldn’t be like this.”

  A calm voice answered his question. It was as soft as a woman’s voice, but it was both distant and cold. “The Originator is not here, Ye Qingxuan,” it said. “The Originator is not anywhere that humans can find. You cannot find it. Where you are is just the Originator’s outline on the ground. You are swimming in an ephemeral reflection, like a flower in a mirror or the moon in water. But this does not matter to you. What you are looking for is here.”

  “Bullsh*t!” Ye Qingxuan yelled at the shadow. “I don’t want an illusion! Do you want to play with me? I’ll give you all you can handle!”

  “You have not seen any illusions, Ye Qingxuan. What you have seen is nothing more than the future. Countless futures caused by countless choices in countless pasts…”

  The vague shadow led him forward, once again returning to the majestic palace to see the Empress.

  “This is Bai Xi,” it said. “She has abandoned herself in the balance between love and ambition. She does not need Bai Heng to defeat the Empress. She thinks she can be even better than the past Emperors could even imagine. Better than anyone could imagine. Empress Bai Xi.”

  They moved forward.

  Ye Qingxuan once again saw that smile of joy. Her eyes lit up at the sight of him. Out of anything in the world, she could only look at him.

  “This is Bai Xi after she has given up her self, Ye Qingxuan. She depends on you, loves you, and cannot leave you. She only wants to win your smile and warmth. She only wants to be with you forever. The Bai Xi that no man could refuse.”

  Then, there was the girl in the pool of blood.

  “She loves you down to her very bones. She goes crazy due to your betrayal. The insane Bai Xi.

  “This one is after ten years of marriage with you. After you die of illness, she takes charge of your funeral. The Bai Xi that has abandoned herself to despair.

  “This Bai Xi did not meet you after leaving Cloud Tower. She trusts another man and is sold into prostitution, and becomes a beggar after her youth fades. She begs for your pity in the mud. Ah, the pitiful Bai Xi.

  “And this one, on the day she was chased she did not see Old Phil and did not run into the alley where you were reunited. She hides in Westminster Church. Mephistopheles adopts her and regards her as if she was his own, and sends her to the Holy City. She is the person in charge of the Purification Bureau. The catastrophe lamenting Bai Xi.

  “There are more, infinite Bai Xis. This is the Bai Xi that did not go to the Anglo Kingdom but instead went to the Illusion Islands to become a pirate queen. This is the one that was saved by her uncle Yunlou Qinxi before he died, received the Yunlou inheritance, and killed her father and sister. The Duchess of Yunlou Bai Xi. Bai Xi the sage who replaced Hermes. Bai Xi the inheritor of the Yunlou family bloodline…countless pasts, countless choices, countless futures.”

  The drifting figure halted and looked at him askance. “This is what you sought from the Originator, Ye Qingxuan.”

  “What are you?” Ye Qingxuan looked closely at the vague figure. He could only tell that it looked like a woman, but it was difficult to see its face. “Or, should I call you ‘The Originator’?”

  It was like looking in a reflection in a mirror.

  In the face of a human’s questions, it gave a human-like self-deprecating chuckle.

  Then, it shaped itself out of nothingness and ambiguity. It took on the form closest to perfection from Chaoyue and Bai Xi’s memories, the full face of motherhood.

  “I am a reflection,” it replied indifferently. “What you are facing is nothing more than a hollow outline formed by the personalities of the two vessels. The information fills
the logic machine and a face is revealed to enter into dialogue with you and answer your questions. I am a vessel for miracles. Of course, you may call me the Originator. For humans, there is no difference between us.”

  “You finally reveal your face.” Ye Qingxuan looked into its eyes and could not hide his rejection and hostility. “I don’t care what you want to do. What meaning do you have for humans? I don’t have any questions that I need you to answer. I came here only to get Bai Xi. So don’t get in my way, no matter what you are!”

  There was no anger nor snobbish mockery. There was no astonishment or resentment, or even unhappiness at the antagonism.

  There was just calm.

  It was like it did not care what Ye Qingxuan did.

  “The land will not refuse people cultivating it, nor will it stop people from harvesting. The Originator is the same. From beginning to end, the only ones who want to change are humans.

  “You are free to do what you want, Ye Qingxuan. No one will stop you, at least not for the next five minutes.”

  It looked at him and its eyes pierced through him. It was careless, as if their conversation was absolutely meaningless. “No matter what you do, you are the only one responsible for your choice.”

  “But where on earth is Bai Xi?!”

  “Right behind you.”

  Ye Qingxuan turned and saw Bai Xi. Thousands of Bai Xis, standing there quietly.

  Bai Xi the Empress, Bai Xi the lover, Bai Xi the mad, Bai Xi of the Yunlou family, Bai Xi the catastrophe lamenter, Bai Xi the pirate queen…

  At that moment, countless pasts and futures were superimposed in the projection of the Originator. Countless kinds of Bai Xis with countless kinds of fates had appeared there.

  They were staring at him.

  Ye Qingxuan could no longer suppress his anger. He yelled at the projection of the Originator, “I don’t want these fake things! Give me Bai Xi, the real Bai Xi! Or I’ll find a way to kill you!”

  “Is what you have seen not the Bai Xi that exists within the countless choices, Ye Qingxuan?” asked the projection of the Originator. “Can you not choose now? From a human perspective, it is difficult to observe the endless changes, and now the Originator has given everything to you. Every one of them here is the real Bai Xi. The only difference is which one you will take with you. This is not a trick, Ye Qingxuan. It is a simple choice. The one that you choose will be the one that is left in the world.”