Ch134 - The final chapter

The bottom of the well was originally sludge, but it had now been baked into soft soil. Xie Zhiwei didn’t end up making too much a mess after landing on it. But the impact filled his surroundings with smoke and dust, which resembled sands obscuring a sunset or strange CGI effects in movies thanks to all the red light. He choked and coughed twice but didn’t sense any movement beneath the well. He was about to stand up when a white object came pelting down the well to fall on his shoulder.

He glanced over and saw it was Dog on its last breath. Half of its body of white fur was dyed red by blood; Yin Cangshan’s strike against it had been heavy. But after taking care of Yin Cangshan, it still insisted on running over to look for its master.

It had to be said that this cat was today’s star player. If it wasn’t for it, perhaps…

Xie Zhiwei didn’t continue that thought. He cradled Dog in his arms and pressed his hand against its chest to channel a large amount of spiritual energy to preserve its life. As soon as it gained some strength, it began to struggle and meow before stumbling in a certain direction. Xie Zhiwei’s heart jolted as he looked over. In a corner of the well were withered vines meandering around, behind which lay a person.

A figure in white robes.

Xie Zhiwei couldn’t peel his eyes from the sight as he stared without blinking. By the time he reacted, his body was already crawling that way. The well wasn’t big and the vines were less than one zhang away, but to Xie Zhiwei it might as well be ten million li. Mu He also seemed like someone he hadn’t seen in years.

Dog leaped onto the wines and cried out while Xie Zhiwei looked at him from above. “My person will be fine, don’t worry, big brother.”

He used a restriction spell and Dog immediately fell on its back with its limbs in the air. Xie Zhiwei gently placed him aside on the dry grass to snooze away.

The current Mu He had already lost consciousness. Only the slight swells of his chest remained, his breath like wandering silk. Yin Cangshan had used vines to cover him up to avoid prying eyes and ears. Xie Zhiwei could only see his bloodied white robes from outside. He peeled a few locks of vines from Mu He’s face, revealing him from eyebrows to chin. His head was bowed, his complexion pale, and the shadows of his eyelashes distinct and clear. Combined with his pursed lips, it seemed like he was quietly waiting for something instead.

Xie Zhiwei had the mistaken impression of a scene he’d shot in the past, where he was a bridegroom lifting the wedding veil off his lover. He had used the same movements then as he did now. Mu He was like the lover who had been waiting for him all this time.

He knew this was a ridiculous thought at the moment, but his heart began to pound at the thought. He felt more nervous than the time he’d gotten the Film Emperor Award. He subconsciously wiped his face, either to get rid of the blood or the dirt. But after fumbling around in the well for so long, the blisters on his palm and fingers had long been broken by the rubble, mixing dirt and blood together. Now he only ended up dirtying his face even more.

…motherf**ker,  no one can top this image.

Xie Zhiwei creased his brows but quickly relaxed. He sighed and thought to himself, What a shame I can’t let him see this bro being cool one last time.

His time was still limited even without System constraints. He didn’t want to think about what he had or didn’t have and kept peeling vines off Mu He’s body. The two red lights that pierced through his collarbones had been replaced with xuan iron locks. Mu He’s entire upper body was covered in long-dried blood. When Xie Zhiwei saw this, he suddenly found the strength to stand up and tap with Qingping Sword. Two streams of green light emerged from its hilt and hovered over the locks. In a flash, there was a kacha before they snapped and fell out of Mu He’s body.

Xie Zhiwei’s legs collapsed beneath him as he fell back down again. He did his best to grip the well walls so as to not fall on top of Mu He. When he saw fresh blood pouring out of the other’s collarbone injuries, he quickly pressed against them and channeled spiritual energy into the wound.

Mu He’s eyebrows twitched as he let out a low moan.

“Endure it,” Xie Zhiwei said lightly, “It’ll get better very soon.”

Mu He’s limp body suddenly stiffened before his eyes snapped open. “Shizun?”

“It’s me,” Xie Zhiwei replied.

Although Mu He was weak, his eyesight wasn’t affected in the least. The bloodstained face close at hand quickly transformed his gaze into clarity as he cried out. “Shizun!”

He tried to get up as he shouted, but Xie Zhiwei pressed him back. “Don’t move, Master is…treating your wounds.”

Mu He looked at him in a daze. Although he didn’t budge, he clenched the hands pressing against his collarbones and rambled, “How did shizun get here? Why was shizun so injured? Shizun…so the words you said in the dreamscape weren’t just coaxing this disciple!”

Xie Zhiwei curved his lips into a grin and nodded. “Master already said, you have to be well.”

“Disciple obeys, I’ll definitely be well,” Mu He’s eyes were clouded with a layer of mist as he gripped even tighter. “Shizun must be well too.”

Xie Zhiwei smiled and said nothing. A drop of sweat fell from his forehead, but it wasn’t very obvious thanks to all the blood, sweat, and dust already smeared on his face. A dull buzzing sound came from the top of his head before the airflow around them changed to even more scorching temperatures.

“Where’s Yin Cangshan?” Mu He looked cautiously towards the well opening with narrowed eyes. “He was the one who injured shizun, right?! Shizun, stop treating this disciple’s wounds. Disciple is fine, let’s leave the spell formation first. Disciple will never forgive him!”

“Don’t worry, he’s already dead by Master’s hands.”

Mu He gave a start before his eyes shone. “Shizun is indeed formidable as someone who’s reached ascension…but is it really all right for shizun to stay in this spell formation?”

“I’m all right,” Xie Zhiwei replied. As he spoke, he planted forward violently while the ground shook, drawing even closer to Mu He. Mu He wanted to ask what was going on outside, but at this proximity he could clearly see the bloodstains on Xie Zhiwei’s body as well as the blisters all over his skin—even underneath his hair.

“Shizun’s body…” Mu He was appalled. He glanced at the hands pressing against his collarbone and said, “Shizun’s hands too…what happened?!”

The originally fair and slender hands were now sticky and rotten. Because he’d clutched them so tightly, many of the blisters on the skin had ruptured, while the backs of the palms were covered in ulcerations.

“Don’t move!” Xie Zhiwei ordered sternly.

At the same time, wisps of red and golden light intertwined as they emerged from his fingertips. Red and Golden Lotus were being drawn from his body to enter Mu He’s divine consciousness along with his spiritual energy.

He wasn’t just treating Mu He’s wounds.

Ever since he decided to stay behind, he didn’t plan to leave himself alive.

Gallant Outlaw had no idea, much less the System, exactly what Option 3 meant for himself. The spell formation didn’t stop running with Yin Cangshan’s death, but lost control instead. Something unimaginable seemed to be emerging from the depths. There were some things he had to do right now without delay.

“No—!” Mu He quickly understood what Xie Zhiwei was doing and tried to push him away in a panic—the first time he’d ever tried to shove Xie Zhiwei aside. But Xie Zhiwei used all his strength to press him down, even more strongly than when he was facing off against Yin Cangshan in their life and death match.

Mu He had been in the spell formation for days and just had his collarbones unlocked, so he was no match for the current Xie Zhiwei right. Unable to break free, he pled, “Shizun, don’t…shizun stop it, really, disciple is begging you, shizun!”

Xie Zhiwei remained indifferent and Golden Lotus successfully entered Mu He’s body. Without anything left to protect his body, the festering places on his skin began to burn and turn black.

Next is Red Lotus!

Xie Zhiwei gritted his teeth and mustered up his life’s strength to ferry it out. Mu He’s face was already drenched in tears. “Disciple is begging shizun to stop… Why did shizun come?! Couldn’t you have just let disciple die? Shizun really doesn’t need to do this, shizun, why ah…”

“W…hy?” Xie Zhiwei’s throat burned. His lips were dry and cracked, making speaking difficult. “Didn’t you want to know, if I…would be sad…”

Mu He looked at him with teary eyes as he shook his head violently. It wasn’t clear whether he didn’t want to know or was just trying to stop him.

The bottom of the well suddenly shuddered again before its rim cracked and the four walls began peeling apart. The seam of the demon realm was now out of control, sending waves of hostile qi surging as a body began to emerge from the depths.

Xie Zhiwei didn’t have time to care and gave Mu He a deep look. “How could I be sad…I definitely won’t be sad…”

His body seemed drained of all moisture as it quickly dried up and withered. Wrinkles broke out on his face.

Large drops of tears dripped down Mu He’s face as he nodded repeatedly and cried, “Anything’s fine! Shizun doesn’t have to like disciple! Shizun doesn’t need to feel sad either! I only beg shizun..don’t…”

Bits of gravel fell on their bodies. Mu He couldn’t push Xie Zhiwei away and simply hugged him in his arms and sobbed while blocking the stones with his sleeves.

Xie Zhiwei took the chance to murmur by his ear, “Master likes you so much…so how could I…let you die?”

Mu He’s sobs hitched, but he still managed to ask, “What did shizun say?”

Xie Zhiwei stifled a grunt as Red Lotus left his body!

“Fuse!” He placed Qingping Sword in Mu He’s hand and gave a strong shove, using the energy to send Red Lotus thoroughly into the other’s body before he collapsed onto the ground.

“Shizun watch out!” Mu He finally stood up to take Xie Zhiwei back into his arms, but at the same time the entire well collapsed. Smoke and dust rose in all directions as waves of hostile qi swept in. The swooping airflow formed a huge whirlwind in the well with Xie Zhiwei at its very center. He instantly disappeared amidst the tumbling rocks and sand.

Mu He disregarded everything else to rush over with a roar from his lungs. “Shizun!”

BOOOM!

There was a huge explosion that made his voice sound extra weak. Mu He found himself stepping on air as a strong wind tossed him in a different direction while the mouth of the well was filled with rocks. A huge fissure appeared over the center of the spell formation and large amounts of hostile qi poured out from the depths. Everywhere it went, sand and gravel cracked while dry wood turned to ashes. The once splendid King Yin Estate changed from ruins to a wasteland with no human in sight.

The mutations lasted until the third watch.

First the fires outside intensified, followed by the aggravation of red light akin to a sea of blood sending off shockwaves. Strange cries filled the ears like the crying of spirits, or howling of ghosts, or roaring of ferocious beasts. Neither one sounded like anything of this world.

The crowd guarding the flames outside King Yin’s Estate were horrified and all evacuated, but the daoist sect, Buddhist sect, and King of Nine Provinces only withdrew slightly while refusing to leave.

For about an hour after that, a multicolored haze emerged in mid-air, alternating between gold, white, red, black, and green. Then the green hue turned into the shape of leaves while the remaining four merged together to create a complete lotus. In the time it took to burn an incense stick, this haze vanished into the thick cloud cover.

The turbulent spell formation gradually calmed down in its wake and the strange cries were forcibly suppressed as if sent back to a different realm that didn’t belong to this world. Snow kept falling so thickly that the piles at the tops of the roofs kept sliding down. The hostility from the red qi finally dissipated, and the King of Nine Provinces was the first to take the lead and rush into the unrecognizable grounds of King Yin’s Estate. Following him closely were the daoist sect and then the Buddhist sect.

Everyone searched anxiously in the almost flattened ruins before someone heard a cat’s meow. Behind a half-human high ruin, the snow civet beast was limping as it tugged at something.

Like the corner of some white robes.

The crowd rushed behind the ruins in a panic and was stunned by the scene they saw before them.

Mu He was kneeling in the gravel as he tearfully kissed something in his arms. He kept muttering over and over, “Now I know, shizun…disciple knows everything now…”

…it was a person, but to put it more accurately, it was a charred corpse that had been burned out of any traces of moisture. The clothes on the body were tattered, but the daoist sect members were very familiar with them.

These were their sect’s most common crow-gray robes.

—

Xie Zhiwei was still self-aware despite clearly being dead. This was his second death, so he had some experience. Neither had he transmigrated, because his surroundings were dark except for a faint glow that resembled starlight despite the lack of moon or stars.

What now? Did I go straight into being a ghost this time? Am I going to float around for the rest of my life?

“Teacher Xie.”

Xie Zhiwei gave a start. “Huh? Who’s calling me?”

“It’s me.”

“…can’t you say a name.”

“I am the Main System. You are currently in the System Lobby.”

Xie Zhiwei understood and laughed coldly. “You’re that legendary Main System? What, here to express condolences after being pitted by my heroic sacrifice?”

“Just about, but it’s more curiosity.”

“Curiosity about what?”

“You’re not the only transmigrator who managed to reach five stars, but you are the only one who requested to stay in your transmigrated world. So I’m curious. What made you decide to stay?”

Xie Zhiwei replied, “No comment. What does a System like you understand?”

“I’m asking because I don’t understand.”

“Then you can ask, but I don’t have to answer.”

“Author Gallant Outlaw gave previous feedback that you are a hard person to get along with. Now that seems to be true. So I’m even more curious why someone as disagreeable as you would choose to stay in an unfamiliar world. System Improvements dearly need your assistance. Otherwise, if every transmigrator wants to go back to their original world, this System would be too much of a failure. If you answer, System will reward you.”

“Reward?”

“You want to stay in this world, but your physical body has already died. How about System allow you to resurrect?”

After that sincere and fearless self-sacrifice, Xie Zhiwei’s heart had already been reduced to ashes. Therefore, he’d been wantonly treating the System with dislike. Now his voice shook as he asked, “What did you say?”

“You didn’t hear wrong. System can delegate you spiritual spring water again so you can revive once more.”

Xie Zhiwei took a deep breath. “What kind of information do you need? I’ll cooperate.”

“Very well. I shall immediately assign you a questionnaire.”

After Xie Zhiwei received the questions, he immediately buried his head in answering them. He had never moved so quickly, or with such momentum, even when reading scripts in the past. Soon enough, he pushed the questionnaire aside. “Done.”

“Thank you for your cooperation. You managed to finish 200 questions in 10 minutes, an impressive feat. I shall activate the spiritual spring for you right now. During this time, please check the message that Gallant Outlaw replied to you.”

“Send it over.”

Immediately the excited voice of Gallant Outlaw appeared. “Ahhhhhhh Idol, as expected of Idol, too great! In the end I never thought you’d pick Option 3. I was even worried about you, but the Main System said as long as you cooperate with the questionnaire it’ll give you a chance, so I’m relieved now. Idol, I finished writing my new story, it’s a Happy Ending oh! When you go back, you have to be happy oh! Stay with the hero at Summit City forever and ever oh!”

Xie Zhiwei rolled his eyes. What Summit City? There’s only two people in it, so the meaning’s all bent…better change it to Foundation City instead.

He coughed and replied succinctly, “I understand, I’ll remember.”

Main System said, “The spiritual spring is now active. Next you will enter a period of deep sleep. Please make preparations.”

“Deep sleep? The hell?” Xie Zhiwei gave a start.

“Reviving with the spiritual spring takes four years. Because you had a similar experience in the past, you need to take reality into context and sleep for four years before resurrecting.”

Xie Zhiwei sucked in a cold breath. “Dammit, why didn’t you tell me earlier? A System can even have OCD…isn’t there any other way?”

“System has already prepared the program and cannot change.”

Xie Zhiwei had no physical hands, feet, or body at the moment, so he gritted his teeth and flashed the middle finger with his thoughts before losing consciousness again.

Once he was sent off, the System opened up the questionnaire for a look.

Q: Why did you stay?

A: Because of love.

Q: Why did you defy all odds to save the protagonist?

A: Because of love.

Q: Why were you the first to reach five stars?

A: That’s right, because of love.

Q: What are the merits of this world?

A: This world is filled with love.

Q: What’s the secret to surpassing the image of the original host?

A: All because of love.

And thus, the remaining 190+ questions were all answered the exact same way.

“…..” said the System. He doesn’t have to be so blatantly perfunctory. Why is he in such a rush?

But the Main System seemed quite brainwashed by the answers, because it answered quite smoothly, “Because of love…”

—

The storyteller slapped his gavel and declared, “In the end, Shizi Mu He combined the Five Treasures and sealed the crack of the demon realm just in time. Those monsters and demons were banished back inside and the large fire was finally quelled.”

A person below the stage urged, “What about Xie zhenren?”

“Supposedly, Xie zhenren was dug out from the bottom of the ruins by Shizi Mu He…for such a high-level daoist to be burnt into charcoal by the hostile qi is worthy of praise enough to make people cry, ah.”

A little girl wiped away her tears and said, “Shizi Mu He is so pitiful! Xie zhenren too! So what if they’re both men, they’re not hurting anyone by being together. Instead, they sacrificed so much for the sake of the world.”

Including her, the others around her were all sighing as well.

The storyteller went on, “Don’t be sad. What kind of person is Xie zhenren or Shizi Mu He? They wouldn’t die from this. Xie zhenren was someone who reached ascension in the past! After the fire in the capital city, temples were built to Bixu zhenren all around the world to help accumulate merit and virtue for Xie zhenren and let him come back sooner.”

Someone had to ask, “Where is Xie zhenren now? And where is Shizi Mu He?”

The storyteller shook his head. “Nobody knows the answer. After that incident, Shizi Mu He took Xie zhenren’s remains and disappeared. It’s already been four years, but some people have seen him in the Wansheng Peaks in the north, while others spied his immortal traces in Jade Wheel Island in the south. Rumors say he occasionally appears at the daoist sect as well. But never has he truly shown up.”

“Was he alone?”

“Some people say he was leaning against a figure in crow-gray robes when enjoying the sunrise over the sea of clouds. But others say he was alone. Who knows. Immortals are always flying here and there, they’re very mysterious.”

The young girl asked in a daze, “So far away…then, they’ll never come to a small township like ours at the base of the Buddhist sect. I really want to see them, ah.”

The storyteller stroked his beard. “This Shizi Mu He is so elusive that even his own father never saw him later on, let alone us. It’s hard to tell, ah.”

The crowd at his feet broke into speculation again.

Outside the spring breeze was blowing past the willows and the skies were clear and shining. People bustled past the bridge while a sugar figurine seller stood by its edge burying his head in his work. A moment later, he handed over a candy. “Here, the sugar lobster you wanted. Take a look, are you satisfied?”

The white-robed man before him lowered his head slightly beneath the trailing willow trees, whose shade partially obscured the bottom half of his face. He nodded and said, “Many thanks.”

As he took the sugar figurine and prepared to leave, a group of fighting ragamuffins passed by him. One of them was walking a little too fast and crashed straight into his body. The freshly-made sugar lobster fell to the ground and shattered into pieces.

There was a slight change of expression on the white-robed man’s face.

His features were soft with a high nose that originally made him very handsome, but now that he was narrowing his eyes, he only looked cold.

The little ragamuffin was so scared his legs turned soft. “Sorry, I didn’t do it on purpose. Spare me!” he shivered and dug out the penny he just managed to beg. “Is this enough to pay you back?”

The white-robed man remained silent for a moment before he said slowly, “No need. Go off and play.” He faced the stall owner and said, “Make another one, I still want a lobster.”

The little ragamuffin looked up warily and found that although the man in white was still expressionless, the ice in his eyes was gone as if he’d just been hallucinating things.

He exclaimed, “You really are a good person! Thank you! You’ll definitely be rewarded with good fortune!”

The white-robed man nodded and revealed a small smile. “Thank you for your well wishes.”

He stood beneath the willow trees at the bridge, his white robes swaying neatly in the breeze neither too fast nor too slow. He was good-looking to begin with, but his smile made him simply astonishing.

The ragamuffin hadn’t seen much of the world and could only marvel, “You must be an immortal, right!”

The white-robed man didn’t comment as he withdrew his smile, took the brand new sugar lobster, and tapped against the ground with his toes. Like a jade butterfly, he fluttered into the air.

The little ragamuffin cried out. “Ah! It really is an immortal!”

People of the mundane world had never seen such a sight and instantly went on their knees to kneel or pray at the figure in the skies. Du Sheng just happened to be returning from his travels when he reached the bridge, saw the situation, and asked what was the matter.  The little ragamuffin and sugar figurine stall owner both explained and described what had happened.

Hearing about the white-robed man who could fly even without riding a sword, Du Sheng looked up at the empty skies and cried out, “That was…Shizi Mu He, ah!”

—

Amidst the thousand-li range of Wansheng Peaks was a cave located at its summit. The inside of the cave was filled with ice and a frosty coffin had been carved out in the center. Inside lay a figure dressed in crow-gray robes.

Cold air rolled off the walls, but this person’s face was rosy and unafraid of the chill. He seemed to be sleeping peacefully and lay surrounded by liquid that didn’t freeze. Outside the cave came the sound of cranes from a distance, not very loud. But the person suddenly creased his brows before opening his eyes.

He seemed to have slept for a long, long time and for a while his vision was hazy. He looked bewilderedly at his all-white surroundings before sitting up with a jolt.

Xie Zhiwei dazedly recalled his memories while climbing out of the ice coffin before he fell heavily on another layer of ice. He tried moving but his hands were numb, tried again but his legs and feet were stiff.

Main System your grandpa! Four years, ah! Another four years! How anxious must Mu He be by now! Mu He…where is he?

Speaking of which…what is this place?

Xie Zhiwei looked around him for ages before he could get up smoothly. He used spiritual energy to dry out his robes while exiting the cave.

And then his entire vision was swallowed up by a golden glow.

It was evening and the sun was slowly setting behind the mountains. The sea of clouds between them fused with the light, shining like a rushing golden river at its peak and the depths of a golden sea at its base. Such beautiful scenery presented itself completely unobstructed from Xie Zhiwei’s vantage point.

He remembered where this was even though he’d never come in person, because he’d mentioned it to Mu He in the past.

Mu He must be here!

Xie Zhiwei turned, preparing to hunt his way up the mountain paths, but suddenly crashed into someone’s chest. That person seemed to have been waiting for him for eternity, because he hugged him tight.

Xie Zhiwei’s first move was to hug him back.

The person embracing him was shaking uncontrollably as tears filled his eyes. Still, he wore a smile and said, “Shizun was finally willing to wake up.”

Xie Zhiwei nodded and wiped away the wetness from the corners of his eyes. Lightly he replied, “A Master for a day is a Master for a lifetime.”

—So you see, how could I bear to keep sleeping?

– Arc 3 – END –

Translator’s Notes: The main story ends!! I changed my PFP to a dancing girl to celebrate heehee~

To be honest I had “Nightglow” from Honkai Impact playing in my head for this chapter. Heck if these two didn’t have to hurt for their happy ending, ahhhhh. Anyways, I translated lots of author’s notes and comments, so read them at your leisure while you unwind from that emotional roller coaster~ And Happy 4th of July! I’ll be spending the rest of today with my family.

The author has something to say:

Huff…finally finished writing.

I was crying while writing the last chapter at the same time. Maybe this story’s not that touching, but it accompanied me through a year of ups and downs so it means a lot to me. Originally I wrote it to tease/make fun of He Xiaozheng's (何小征) story and even used He Zheng (何峥) as a name. I wrote Senior Brother was too much by-the-books, so I wanted to let loose this time and practice writing something else. I didn’t expect the book to be so long, or for Teacher Xie and Wood Box to cause me so much distress.

From around September to the end of November, I had some problems with my writing state due to IRL issues, so I stopped and scrapped tens of thousands of words to make a massive edit. Many people abandoned the work around this time. Even now, I haven’t regained confidence in my writing…mhm.

But I’m very thankful to the readers who supported me all the way without abandoning me. Without you guys, I wouldn’t have been able to finish this story, *bows*

Teacher Xie is not a likable character, really. In the beginning many people disliked him, but I think if you understand what kind of person he is now, you might like him too. I can say even less for Wood Box. He’s always been a careful, cautious, sensitive to the point of painful person.

To me, being able to update this story in JJWXC was a surprise. I didn’t expect to get so many views here when I mainly posted on Tieba, so I’m quite flattered by the attention.

In any case, I’ve finally finished the conclusion. My next work is a quick transmigration story. I can’t promise I’ll see you guys again, but readers who are interested might meet me if fate allows.

Another bow for you guys. I’ll keep writing a few extras because the story is far from over.

He, him, and them will all continue to live on.

—

I’m still thinking about the song PLANETS. Although it’s Japanese, the lyrics and melody are really the best interpretation of Teacher Xie and even the love line of this book.

The Chinese commenters:

After finishing reading I’d like to talk about my views. These opinions only represent my personal feelings, if they’re wrong or different from yours, please bear with me.

At first, I didn’t like Xie Zhiwei. His character setting was an actor in the entertainment circle, which meant he experienced the subterfuge of showbiz such as others stealing his parts, playing tricks, or using the cold treatment etc. as a black history. That meant Xie Zhiwei wouldn’t easily trust others and had a tough, cold personality. It’d be hard to move his feelings, so at first I was like “Shoot, his old gong's gonna suffer abuse, the gong’s love line are gonna have thorns all over the place.” Later on that’s exactly what happened.

Xie Zhiwei really worked hard for the sake of the plot at the beginning. Even though he didn’t like the protagonist, he still didn’t let him down. Whether he was sincere or just respectfully awed by the “hero” character doesn’t matter. Everything he did was for the sake of the plot. The protagonist relied on him, so he died once to increase the hero’s independence and blackening values. He had always observed this world as an outsider and treated the hero well for the sake of completing his tasks. Thus, even though Xie Zhiwei gave a lot of treasures to the hero, I felt he never gave his true heart. Wood Box got sick of living and wanted to suicide for his sake, which really hurt my heart. That’s why I was so angry when Xie Zhiwei’s attitude was so cool, because there’s no point in liking a heartless person. You’ll never get an ending together and only make yourself suffer by trampling on yourself.

But no one can be a bystander for too long, especially someone like him who was already involved in the story. Xie Zhiwei isn’t a god, so he can’t really abandon his feelings. Maybe it was habit, maybe something else, but he finally left the confines of the plot and started treating the hero well. Although he couldn’t accept Wood Box’s feelings for him, he still worried about Wood Box. I changed my views about [XZW] at this point, but still remained prudent. It wasn’t until the end, when he gave up his life for Wood Box’s sake, that I really felt like Wood Box’s feelings towards him were worth it. He too, treated Wood Box with his true heart. Although the two spent less and less time together, their hearts were one and will stay one no matter how much longer later.

The author’s words were spectacular and touched my heart. I like it a lot. The suspense was also great. Let’s talk about Wood Box’s father, for instance. At first I felt this was a very sinister character who harbored no human sentiment towards others and scorned Wood Box’s master as well as the daoist sect. He had a lot of machinations and even raised murderous hands against the daoist sect’s members, like he’d be some sort of boss or something. Or maybe he was just using his son. When he announced he was cutting off ties as Wood Box’s father, my heart chilled. But in the end, his true motive was to protect his son, so that hugely changed my views on him. Moreover, he’s an open-minded parent who originally thought Xie Zhiwei stole his role as father. Later he found out his son liked his own master and accepted it openly. That was way too cute.

Also, the heroine Mengmeng. She was cute at first and I liked her a lot, but when she recovered her memories and turned icy, I liked her less than before. When she refused to save the hero later, I started finding her annoying even though she wasn’t wrong but fully justified. But when she died in the end, I liked her again. Although I didn’t like her as much as her cute amnesia self, she still left a deep impression on me. Next is the stubborn little commandery princess. Although capricious and unaware of good vs. bad, she’s still a girl with a trace of kindness.

The author’s characters are well-rounded and even the protagonist has bad points. The cannon fodders and villains also have reasons we can’t hate them for. Every person has their strengths and shortcomings. They aren’t just sketched-out characters that can be defined as “good” or “evil,” but actual people, the kind you can’t jump to conclusions about until the very end. They are very complex and each and every one has their own thoughts while living out their own lives. As a novel I’ve read, this one’s not bad.

P.S. One suggestion for the author, okay? There was too much angst in the story but not enough sugar. I cried a few times while I read it, which really stabbed my heart. Once one round of angst was done, another begun anew, especially that high-level angst after the confession. I almost had a heart attack, my heart was clenching so bad. I beg the author to give more sugar, less angst in the future.

[Excerpt]: In terms of the plot this novel really doesn’t follow conventions hahahah it’s really hard to guess what’ll happen next. The plot is a plus for this book! (For example, I never thought Yin Cangshan wanted to take over the world just so his daughter could have her pick of men??? Daughter-cons are scary.) (And when Xie Zhiwei’s disguise dropped! Hahahahaha back then every update had commenters shouting at him to lose his disguise.)

Personally I really like this story, transmigrating into a Master and falling in love with a young disciple, all of these are my moe points _(:з)∠)_ That’s why I’ve followed it until now hahaha. After reading it from beginning to end again and seeing Teacher Xie’s POV in the start, I almost feel like, “Eh, eh, so he used to be that sarcastic.” The current Teacher Xie is much softer now. You don’t even need to compare to see the big changes he underwent. And Wood Box too, comparing him in the original novel vs. after Teacher Xie transmigrated, the change is super obvious. (From someone who doesn’t cry to someone who cries to Teacher Xie while revealing his feelings) I can say both of them changed each other. I really liked a lot of supporting roles too! Like Mengmeng and Gallant Outlaw _(:з)∠)_ It’s a pity Mengmeng ended up with a tragic death, I’m really heartbroken over her ah…

Wood Box was attached to Teacher Xie ever since his rebirth because Teacher Xie was the only person to treat him so well. He waited so long after Teacher Xie’s first death and another four years after his second demise. The main character shou perspective means we didn’t get to see the journey of Wood Box’s heart, but if he can keep liking someone after years and years of waiting, it’s not just as simple as describing it in some words! I really felt distressed for him!! Thankfully, Teacher Xie resurrected in the end or else I’d be heartbroken over Wood Box _(:з)∠)_

Blahblahblah I said so much, I never thought I’d like this story so much at the beginning to keep following it to its ending. I don’t know if this counts as a long review 2333 In any case, I hope the author’s next work can go smoothly too!

Healing Fairy Water (Author): Thank you reader for such a detailed review! The purpose of writing this story was to practice spitting out words, figuring out the characters and emotions. The really impressive plot I tossed aside completely and was left with this result by the end. I’m pretty satisfied. I didn’t describe Wood Box’s final emotional journey in detail because I feel like anything else would be extraneous by this point. At the end when he said it was fine if Teacher Xie didn’t like him, and those words he said while cradling Teacher Xie’s corpse, was enough to explain everything. There’s no need to explain his thoughts even plainer after that. That’s my bold view of things. Once again, let me bow and thank this reader for supporting them with such care~