Longevity Candle

Chapter 69 Born with Moon-like Eyes, Able to See Wandering Souls

Jiang Zhu had a very long dream.

In his dream, he was a crimson divine bird, wielding the fire of rebirth, capable of being reborn from the ashes.

He is a phoenix born between heaven and earth, soaring freely in the sky.

Occasionally, it would look down upon the earth, observing all living beings, who were as insignificant as ants.

But for some unknown reason, he was bound by a large iron chain, which imprisoned all his magical power.

An invisible force tore open his abdomen and forcibly seized his Nirvana Flame.

Even after losing the Nirvana Flame, the other party still wouldn't let him go; that invisible force tormented him constantly.

It felt like being torn apart by a thousand cuts, or like being whipped by chains.

In the hazy light, it seemed as if someone was whispering, as if asking him a question, or as if they were having a conversation.

He couldn't hear clearly.

He endured the torment and suffering as he was whipped.

Occasionally, I would wake up startled, but I would quickly fall back into a deep sleep, only to re-enter the nightmare, constantly repeating that I was a phoenix.

Later, the dream changed; he was no longer a phoenix, but a green lamp.

The flames of rebirth constantly scorched the green lamp, subjecting it to the torment of the flames.

At first, he was in great pain in his dreams, but gradually, he got used to the Nirvana Fire and began to master it.

He remembered waking up once and hearing Yao Yao's voice, sending a wisp of Nirvana Fire to her.

Within the flames of Nirvana, there is still a wisp of fire, the flame of illumination!

Only after mastering the Nirvana Fire did the Candlelight Fire completely merge into his body.

It was very smooth and natural, without any of the pain that preceded the Nirvana Fire.

The flame of a candle brings light, possesses extremely strong penetrating power, and is difficult for any object to extinguish.

“Am I a phoenix? No, I am Jiang Zhu, a spirit in the green lamp, or perhaps... a wandering soul.”

Jiang Zhu murmured, often losing himself when he was in control of the Nirvana Fire, thinking of himself as a real phoenix and forgetting that he was a green lamp.

Fortunately, I woke up and mastered the fire of rebirth, so I will never get lost again.

Under the sunset.

A family of three was having dinner, the dim candlelight illuminating the dark wooden house.

The candlelight flickered, and the green lamp, silent for over a hundred years, once again shone with a light unique to the spirit of the green lamp.

The couple were completely unaware, while the young child looked up at the figure emerging from the lamplight.

"Who are you?" Her voice was full of doubt and confusion. "Why can I see you?"

The couple looked up abruptly, their eyes filled with a dull, silvery white light. Following her gaze, they saw the green lamp, its candlelight still illuminating the scene.

"Blue Lantern Spirit, have you woken up?" the couple asked in trembling voices.

Jiang Zhu sensed the true energy of the Tianxuan Sword Technique within their bodies, and his body gradually solidified. He looked at the little girl, whose pupils and sclera were both silver-white.

Dull and lifeless, like an ornament, yet one can see their own wandering soul.

"I am Jiang Zhu. Where are Yao Yao and Qing Ping?" Jiang Zhu nodded slightly and sat down on the other side of the table.

“It’s been over a hundred years, they’re all gone, and Peach Blossom Village is gone too.” The couple could no longer hold back and covered their faces as they wept.

After more than a hundred years of waiting, the spirit of the green lamp has finally awakened.

But Yaoyao is gone, Li Qingping is dead, and Taoyuan Village is destroyed.

Jiang Zhu was silent for a moment, then sighed softly, "I knew this sleep would be very long, but I never imagined it would be over a hundred years."

Over a hundred years, even the longest-lived people have died.

In those days, natural disasters and man-made calamities, along with constant wars, meant that very few people lived to a ripe old age.

"Ancestor Yaoyao left Peach Blossom Village and never returned. The fairy fox said that she died in battle in the north, and also fought to the death with two immortal masters."

"Why would she go and fight against the immortal masters and Taoists?" Jiang Zhu frowned.

"Ancestor Qingping did not want to go to the West. The fairy fox said that he was extremely greedy and wanted the whole world."

But the fate of the nation was controlled by the Longevity Path, and no one knew when they would be able to wait. Yao Yao's ancestor secretly went to the north and participated in that battle..." The couple wept uncontrollably.

The little girl frantically groped around, crying, "Father, Mother, don't cry. Xuan'er is a good girl, Xuan'er is a good girl."

The wife quickly stood up, hugged her daughter, and walked into the room: "Xuan'er, be good, Mother will take you to sleep. Mother didn't cry."

"I'm not leaving. Xuan'er wants to stay with Father and Mother. Is he the guardian lamp we protect?" The little girl gazed at Jiang Zhu with her silvery-white eyes.

"She's a very cute little girl, much cuter than that crybaby Yao Yao."

Jiang Zhu's voice was gentle as he stood up and held Xuan'er in his arms: "Does she have the essence of the moon within her?"

He could sense that the moonlight within Xuan'er had become one with her body, not just in her pupils.

If left untreated, he has only a little over ten years left to live, and he will spend that time on his sickbed.

“We practiced the Tianxuan Sword Technique and cultivated the sword technique in Yunmeng Kingdom. We gathered the moonlight into our bodies. We have visited and investigated everywhere, and we are the only ones with this condition.”

The couple said in low voices, "Although we stopped practicing our martial arts, when we were conceiving Xuan'er, the moonlight eroded her, and she was born with moon eyes, so she can't see anything."

“I can see them. I’ve seen many uncles and aunts floating in the sky, and I can also see the fairy of the green lamp,” Xuan’er said.

Wandering soul!

Tianxuan Sword Technique?

Jiang Zhu sensed the power between heaven and earth, but found nothing unique about it. Why could the Tianxuan Sword Technique gather the essence of the sun and moon, and only in the Yunmeng Kingdom?
He didn't understand, nor did he continue to think about it. He said gently, "Xuan'er, get some sleep. You'll see it when you wake up."

His voice seemed to have a magical power, and Xuan'er fell asleep silently.

After Xuan'er fell asleep, Jiang Zhu asked, "How should I address you two?"

“My name is Li Meng, and my husband is Li Zhu. My father was worried that outsiders would find out about your existence, so he arranged for us to get married so that we could stay with our ancestors,” said Li Meng, the wife.

"Don't be so polite. I'm still very young among the elves and don't want to be an ancestor. Just call me Jiang Zhu."

Jiang Zhu said, "I know about Yao Yao's matter. Tell me about Qing Ping's matter."

"The fairy fox said that after the death of the ancestor Yaoyao, the ancestor Qingping returned and wept bitterly in front of the green lamp. He planted the Worry-Free Tree and let the power of Worry-Free envelop you."

He abandoned a life of peace and tranquility, rejected the path of immortality, entered the mortal world, and raised an army in rebellion.

"He became emperor?"

"He gave up. The fairy fox said he had gone mad. His greed grew even greater. He released all the dragon energy, wanting all the immortal masters, Taoists, and mountain and sea spirits to be buried with the ancestor Yao Yao. He wanted to establish a kingdom by stepping on the spirits and immortal masters."

"I heard from the fairy fox that our ancestor used the Candlelight you bestowed upon him, unleashing the Sun Thunder. The entire sky above the capital was filled with lightning, killing many immortal masters and Taoists, and severely injuring many mountain and sea spirits..."

"The ancestor Qingping failed, but the army he left behind established a new country called Ning. Taoyuan Village was also destroyed by the Ning Kingdom."

As Li Zhu recounted the story, the fairy fox did not tell him everything, keeping the matter of Li Qingping's resurrection a secret.

“I once bestowed upon Yaoyao a spark of fire, which may offer her a chance to survive,” Jiang Zhu said.

That Nirvana Fire can bring people to Nirvana, but without his control, it's uncertain whether it will succeed.

Unfortunately, he woke up too soon and only managed to send out a wisp of energy. If he had sent out another wisp, perhaps Li Qingping could have survived.

However, even if they were to be reborn from Nirvana, they would no longer recognize themselves.

Furthermore, it has been over a hundred years.

"We don't know, the fairy fox didn't tell us," Li Zhu shook his head.

"What about Taoyuan Village? Why did Ningguo want to destroy Taoyuan Village?" Jiang Zhu asked.

"The origin story is that of a white fox who, greedy for worldly things, fell in love with a mortal... The Ning Kingdom's army has arrived; they are too domineering, wanting to take away Taiping Yipian and demanding our submission. Taoyuan Village only desires peace and tranquility..."

They told the story of Hu Ling and learned that the Ningguo army was not led there by the white fox, but by the alligator dragon.

This was later told to them in a dream by the Nine-Tailed Fox.

“Hu Ling said she went to find the page of peace, but there has been no news since. Zhang Ning is also missing. The Nine-Tailed Fox Goddess even appeared in our dreams, asking us to search for her,” Li Meng said.

　Two chapters delivered, bro, please stop criticizing me. Next up is the Yunmeng chapter. Yunmeng is no match for Ningguo.

　　Taoyuan will spread the aspirations for peace and prosperity, and follow the path of immortals, without interfering in worldly affairs.

　　The Yunmeng chapter paved the way to immortality, and from then on, immortality officially entered the mortal realm, continuing what Li Qingping had not finished.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)