The years I was in the human world

The demon clan, the wilderness of Cangwu.

The table with the colored glass cups, spiritual stone instruments on it was overturned, and the fragments of expensive treasures were scattered everywhere. The elder of the demon clan angrily threw the intelligence from Rongcheng in front of the demon king and said coldly, "This is the work of your good uncle."

"Why are you so angry, Elder?" Qi Nankuo frowned. He already knew that Xiao Fengzhuo had ruined the plan of the demons and evil spirits in Rongcheng. It would be a lie to say that he had no complaints about Xiao Fengzhuo, but it was not the turn of an elder, an outsider, to interfere.

"Wang, are you going to protect him to the end?" The elder glared at him, angrily saying, "You are close to Xiao Fengzhuo, which is understandable, but he is just a useless person now. Are you going to tolerate him ruining your plan?"

"Elder, have you forgotten how Uncle Wang became a cripple?" Qi Nankuo also stared at the elder and said in a bad tone, "The demon tribe does not have the bad habit of humans to destroy bridges after crossing the river. No matter how bad Uncle Wang is, the demon tribe will still support him."

"I didn't say you can't keep him." The elder also got angry. He wanted to throw the Ghost King's message on Qi Nankuo's face. "It doesn't matter if you spoil him, but the Ghost Den has already said, 'If the Demon King can't manage his own people, I don't mind cleaning up the messenger for the Demon King.' If you continue to indulge Xiao Fengzhuo, it will be a small matter for the Ghost King to kill him, but you can't bear the responsibility of ruining the great cause of the demon clan!"

Although Qi Nankuo had been particularly indulgent towards Xiao Fengzhuo because of the demon pill incident, what the elder said was not without reason. He frowned and pondered for a moment, and finally said: "I will call Uncle Wang back and will not let him run around until the matter is resolved. You elders will also stop."

……

The result of the retrial of the old case in the Beidu Court came out soon, but it was not satisfactory. Zhu Huang Yuzhao was cleared of the old charges and was given a posthumous title; Ye Yunzhou, Jiang Ling and others killed innocent people indiscriminately and committed heinous crimes, but considering that Jiang Ling was deceived and his other subordinates had died in Rongcheng, they were not held accountable.

The main culprit, Ye Yunzhou, should have been executed. Before the conviction, Master Ling Zhong said, "Zhu Huang was wrongly sentenced to a heavy sentence back then. Now it is best to give him a lighter sentence. If he has any objections in the future, there will be room for maneuver. Besides, Zhu Huang's little girl is pitiful and cannot be left without her parents to take care of her."

It was such a seemingly compassionate but extremely hypocritical statement that the crime of causing Yu Zhao's death fell on Ye Yunzhou, who was only exiled to the Southern Wilderness. As for Yaoguang, who was the real evildoer, under the protection of Master Mingjing, she found an excuse of being ill and not going out, and she didn't even show up.

The Beidu Court retried the old case. After all, it was a matter of great importance, so most of the cultivators in the final court went. Lu Zhouxue, who was burdened with the cause and effect of Yu Zhao, naturally did not miss it. Xiao Fengzhuo also followed the dragon, and thus, Peacock was the only one present at the Phoenix Terrace today.

She did not practice swordplay today, which was rare. She sat alone on the floor of the main hall with the doors and windows closed. The light from outside could not come in, just like the locked door of her heart. A peacock gently stroked the bricks and stones on the ground. That day, her mother attained Nirvana here. The flame of rebirth took away everything, leaving no trace of remembrance for her. Lu Zhouxue later restored the Phoenix Terrace, but it was no longer the place where she and her mother lived together.

"Mother, you will be happy, right?" Kong Que whispered softly. She remembered the loneliness of Yu Zhao being imprisoned for a hundred years, the bullying by outsiders, and her mother's blood soaking the floor. On the day of farewell, she said to her with tears in her eyes, nostalgic and powerless, "Kong Qing, I'm leaving you behind."

"Mom, he's fine, but I still miss you so much. When can you come back?" The peacock curled up and lay on the ground, trying to find a little breath of his former mother. The cold bricks and stones could not be warmed by body temperature, just as the dead cannot hear the whispers of the living's longing. A speck of dust fell from the eaves and accumulated in the cracks of the stones. In the unknown corner, something quietly grew roots.

The door of the main hall was pushed open with a creaky sound. A beautiful woman in a blue and white dress stood there against the light. Her flying bun on top of her head was adorned with pearls, jade and stones. She looked gorgeous and dignified. The woman saw the peacock sitting on the ground and laughed, "Kong Qing?"

"Mrs. Pojun?" Peacock stared blankly at the woman standing there. She was very beautiful, but she had a vicious heart. Peacock remembered her because she claimed to be seriously ill and took a bowl of her mother's heart blood every month. But at this moment, she could only pretend that she knew nothing because the person who could protect her was not around at this time. "Why are you here?"

"The Beidu Court has re-sentenced an old case. Does Kong Qing know who was sentenced?" Yaoguang stared at the little girl in front of her with interest. Five hundred years old is considered an adult in the demon tribe, and the girl in front of her is only a hundred years old, which means she is still a child. But a hundred years is enough for her to understand some things.

Peacock looked at her warily without saying anything. The demon race was precocious, but she was just a child after all. How could she outsmart the ruthless Yaoguang?

"Don't you think Kong Qing hates him?" Seeing Kong Que's alert eyes, Yao Guang didn't care. She had a confident smile on her face and continued, "The Snow Phoenix who came back from Nirvana took your mother's life, and now she wants to send your father to hell. Is Kong Qing really so indifferent?"

"Empress Pojun, you are joking. It is clearly my father's fault that he ended up like this. What does it have to do with others?" Kong Que was not confused by Yaoguang's concept of substitution, but he did not refute her words that Xuefeng took his mother's life. It seemed that he had such thoughts in his mind.

The fox-like Yaoguang could not hide Kongque's thoughts. She smiled even more deeply and continued, "Since ancient times, there has never been a saying that the phoenix has a drastic change in personality after nirvana. So Lu Zhouxue is not so much a snow phoenix in nirvana as a sinner who took away your mother's body. What do you think, Kongqing?"

Peacock was silent. Even though she had briefly felt resentment for her mother being replaced, she was not a heartless person. She knew that Lu Zhouxue treated her well. At the same time, she also knew that Yaoguang would not be so kind. She must have had bad intentions in saying these things today, so she did not respond.

"What if I tell you that there is a way to get your mother back?" Kong Que thought that she could keep silent and hide it from Yao Guang, but she didn't know that her thoughts were exposed to her. Yao Guang's casual words had broken through her defenses, and she said, "How can Xue Feng treat you better than Zhu Huang?"

Yaoguang stopped talking after saying this, and just stood at the door, waiting patiently for the battle between Peacock and Heavenly Man. After a long silence, the girl raised her head and asked with a determination after a fierce struggle: "Madam Pojun, are you serious?"

……

When Ye Yunzhou left, apart from the monks who escorted him, no one saw him off. It was just as deserted as Yu Zhao's departure that year. Lu Zhouxue stood on the last city tower leading to the human world in Zhongting. The wind of all four seasons blew on the ancient southbound road, blowing up his long hair and causing his complicated yet thin sleeves to flutter. The setting sun fell down, casting a long shadow.

"I didn't expect you to come and see him off in person." A young man's voice sounded beside him. His tone was exceptionally calm, the kind of calmness that comes from being completely disappointed and having no expectations. "My mother didn't treat me so tolerantly back then."

Lu Zhouxue said "hmm" indifferently, turned around and walked down the bluestone steps. The expression on his face made it hard to tell what he was thinking. He went to Baili Changqing first. Wei Ruge was standing at the wooden gate outside the bamboo house on Wuxiang Peak. When he saw him coming, he said, "Brother, you are here. Master is waiting for you inside."

Lu Zhouxue nodded, pushed open the wooden door, left his boots in the yard, and walked into the main house wearing only his socks. Baili Changqing was playing chess, and when he heard his movements, he didn't even look up, but placed a piece on the chessboard: "You went to see Ye Yunzhou off? You seem to be nostalgic for the old times."

"It's not that I'm sentimental." Lu Zhouxue knelt down in front of him and glanced at Baili Changqing's chessboard. "But the verdict is absurd. I don't believe in evil and I have to see it with my own eyes. It's really 'eye-opening' - Master plays this game of chess in an interesting way."

"Oh?" Baili Changqing looked up at him, holding a black jade chess piece on his fingertips, signaling Lu Zhouxue to continue talking, whether it was about chess or "vision". Lu Zhouxue took the teapot that Baili Changqing had placed aside and poured himself a cup of hot tea. The rising heat blurred his face, and he said softly: "Pick it up high and put it down gently. Human life is like an ant. The so-called protection of the people is really a joke."

"Are you resenting me?" Baili Changqing placed a piece on the chessboard and looked at Lu Zhouxue with sharp eyes through the mist rising from the tea.

"Not really." Lu Zhouxue picked up the teacup, and his fingertips touched the wall of the cup. The cold air penetrated through it, and the tea quickly became cold. The verdict of the Beidu Court was indeed unfair, but it had nothing to do with him. How could he resent it? He just felt sorry for the innocent souls who died in Dongshan.

The heavy sentence that was thought to be a redress of injustice turned out to be such a child's play. The people who really made the mistake did not suffer any pain, and it was still that group of people who suffered. Lu Zhouxue was not satisfied with the result, and was also a little disappointed with Baili Changqing. After all, this so-called supreme elder had so much evidence, but was not as good as Xiao Jin who came back from the land of annihilation. That guy could force Ke Qin to be cautious without any evidence.

Baili Changqing noticed that Lu Zhouxue looked at him strangely, not with resentment, but not friendly either. He didn't know why, but still said, "I know you have resentment in your heart, but this is how the final court is now. The one who has power will survive. If you are dissatisfied with the verdict, you should fight for it yourself, instead of waiting for so-called justice or waiting for others to preside over justice. The fate of a cultivator has always been determined by man, not by God."

Baili Changqing subconsciously believed that Lu Zhouxue would inherit Yu Zhao's old hatred, and said this just to encourage him to practice hard. After all, Lu Zhouxue behaved too casually and did not have the spirit of a cultivator to break through everything.

"Fight?" Lu Zhouxue looked at Baili Changqing sarcastically and said, "What the Supreme Elder said is interesting. Could it be that the evil ghost You Rong, the dead soul of Dongshan, and even your disciple Yu Zhao, ended up like this because they didn't fight, and they deserved it?"

Lu Zhouxue put down the teacup in his hand, and the porcelain fell on the table with a sound. He took out a white piece from the chess basket beside Baili Changqing and placed it in a position. "Those who really care about the verdict are those who are already dead. Grand Elder, waiting for the dead to crawl out of the grave to seek justice for you is the tragedy of justice. It is the incompetence of you so-called people who support the country. How can you blame the world for not fighting?"

As soon as Lu Zhouxue made that move, the situation on the chessboard changed in an instant. However, before Baili Changqing could see clearly, the chessboard was overturned by the opponent. He only saw Lu Zhouxue looking at him disappointedly and helplessly: "They are just mortals. How can they compete with the monks of Zhongting? Why don't you just eat meat, Grand Elder."

Baili Changqing is a ruthless person who firmly believes that "Heaven is cruel and treats all things as straw dogs". His so-called upholding justice and protecting the people are also out of responsibility and bottom line, rather than compassion and love for all living beings. Therefore, Lu Zhouxue's words sounded unorthodox and deafening to him. He stood there in a daze, and did not even react to pick up the chess pieces scattered on the ground.

Lu Zhouxue said, "We have different ideologies, so we cannot work together. I will still respect you as my master, but that is the end of it."

Lu Zhouxue was gentle and easy-going in front of Xiao Fengzhuo, but in fact he was a person who did what he wanted to the extreme. Baili Changqing was so angry at his bad temper that he almost choked: "Do you mean to draw a clear line between you and me? Kong Qing, you don't care anymore?"

Lu Zhouxue asked Baili Changqing to teach Peacock. At this time, the two of them drew a clear line between them. Baili Changqing could go back on his word and ignore the little girl. Of course, he would not do such a shameful thing. He said this just to turn things around and hope to restore some of the master-disciple friendship with Lu Zhouxue. After all, this guy's personality is quite similar to his eldest disciple in some aspects. He is actually quite satisfied with Lu Zhouxue because he loves Lu Zhouxue.

Poor Baili Changqing, the master of the generation, has no idea how to deal with people. It would have been better if he didn't say this. Once he said it, Lu Zhouxue was directly annoyed. The latter simply turned cold and said, "Master, please do as you please. Kong Qingzuo is just Yu Zhao's daughter. In the final analysis, she has nothing to do with me. If you don't care, just let her fend for herself. Why should I worry about it?"

Of course, Lu Zhouxue was just saying this in anger. When Yu Zhao had just passed away, he took over the girl because no one wanted her. Although she is sometimes careless, she is still half a daughter. How could he let her fend for herself? He was just angry at Baili Changqing and said something without thinking.

After Lu Zhouxue finished speaking, he pushed open the door of the bamboo house and was about to leave, but he didn't expect to see Kong Que sitting outside. The girl was sitting on the porch, swinging her feet and looking around. When she heard Lu Zhouxue coming out, she smiled and turned back, calling sweetly, "Brother Lu."

Lu Zhouxue was stunned for a moment: "Kong Qing, why are you here?" He didn't know whether the girl heard his angry words just now, and he didn't care about how she addressed him.

"Today, the master taught Kong Qing to practice sword. He was here the whole day, but Brother Lu didn't notice it." Peacock said.

Lu Zhouxue nodded and said, "It's getting late, do you want to go back with me?"

Kong Que shook his head, tightened his hands under his sleeves, and said, "No, Kong Qing still has some questions about swordsmanship to ask the master, Brother Lu, you can go back first."

"Well, take your time in everything and don't rush for quick success." Lu Zhouxue naturally had nothing to say about his own son's hard work and progress. He nodded and gave him a few words of advice, then bent down, picked up the boots on the ground, put them on and left.