307: Chapter 307 Snow Falls Again in Chengdu

Su Chen dared not even contemplate what Su Daji had endured throughout those long, drawn-out years.

And what Su Chen could not forgive himself for most of all...

...was those ten days he had managed to steal, the final countdown of her life.

During those ten days, even though she was in such agony that her vitality was completely exhausted, she still forced a smile.

To dispel his suspicions, she had put on an act, playing the part of a domineering, yandere-like figure to imprison him.

And what about him?

His heart was filled only with resentment.

Only the indignation of being forced into "physical intimacy."

Only the desperate urge to escape her "cage."

He had even cursed her in his heart, calling her crazy and a shameless vixen.

And when she was on the verge of death, vomiting mouthfuls of black blood, he had impatiently activated the teleportation array.

He hadn't even stayed to see her one last time or hear her final words.

He had just turned and left without a shred of mercy.

"Go quickly, don't look back at the way Your humble servant looks now; it's very ugly..."

These words were like a rusty, dull blade, slicing repeatedly into Su Chen's soul, inch by inch.

How could he have treated her like that?

By what right had he treated her that way?!

This overwhelming guilt and despair had devoured Su Chen's spirit like parasitic insects, hollowing him out completely.

His soul had chosen self-imposed exile.

Leaving behind only a shell, like a walking corpse.

"Brother's spirit... is gone."

Su Wanyue withdrew her Mental Power probe, her tears gushing out like a broken dam.

A person's spirit is the most secret and fragile part of their entire being.

At this moment, a thick layer of ice had formed around Su Chen's spirit.

Even a Mental Power master like Su Wanyue, who had broken through to the Twelfth Stage, dared not touch it in the slightest.

Because the slightest external interference would cause that fragile spirit to shatter completely.

If his spirit shattered, Su Chen would truly be dead.

Not just the death of his body, but the death of his soul as well.

He wouldn't even have the chance to re-enter the cycle of reincarnation or be reborn.

As the best healer on Blue Star, Cang Mingyue...

...after exhausting a vast amount of her own essence to examine Su Chen...

...reached a conclusion in despair.

"Young Master Su's body is unharmed, but his heart... has died."

"In Young Master Su's current state, no external medicine or spiritual power will be of any use."

"A heart ailment requires a heart-based remedy; he must rely on himself to endure through this."

"It is useless for anyone to try and forcibly awaken him; it would only harm him."

"Are we just going to sit here and watch him become a fool?"

Jiang Luoli gritted her teeth and gripped Su Chen's pale, slender hand—which had already withered to bone in the few days since he had shut himself away.

His hands were still so beautiful.

Long, slender fingers with distinct knuckles.

It was just a pity that they felt so cold to the touch now.

"Perhaps there is one more way."

Zhuge Jinyu took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the sorrow in her heart.

"Since Sir closed his spirit due to external stimuli, it is naturally possible to reopen it through external stimuli as well."

"We shall use the things in this world that can move him the most to knock on that door."

"Some deeply ingrained memories that we, the people here, have shared with him."

"Perhaps they can resonate and stimulate his consciousness to return."

Upon hearing this, the women all nodded gloomily.

Treating a dead horse as if it were alive—this was the only thing they could do.

Thus, in the time that followed, the "Awakening Plan" for Su Chen began.

Outside, the invasion of the Otherworld Demons never ceased.

The women had to take turns leaving one person behind in Jianghai City to accompany Su Chen, attempting to restore his sanity through their shared memories.

Meanwhile, the others continued to endure immense grief and pressure, throwing themselves into the brutal war against the Otherworld Demons.

As for Su Daji's remains, Cang Mingyue had carefully sealed them in a Mysterious Ice Coffin and placed it by Su Chen's bedside.

To prevent his body from going into a frenzy due to being separated from Su Daji.

...

The first to stay behind was Zhuge Jinyu.

That day, it was snowing heavily in Jinguan City.

Zhuge Jinyu shed her usual attire.

And changed into that long-unseen, moon-white Prime Minister's robe that symbolized the supreme power of the Great Qian Dynasty.

She brought the catatonic Su Chen to the top of Mount Qingcheng.

There, she used a formation to conjure the simple yet warm little wooden hut from those years ago.

Supported by her, Su Chen sat down on the bamboo couch by the window.

Outside the window was the familiar sea of clouds.

Only now, this sea of clouds was stained with the dark red hue of the catastrophe, no longer pure.

His arms were empty, his hands resting on his knees, unconsciously held in a vague, grasping gesture.

Zhuge Jinyu did not speak immediately.

She first skillfully lit the fire in the small clay stove and boiled a pot of mountain spring water.

Once the water boiled, she took out some well-preserved tea leaves and brewed two cups of tea.

She placed one cup on the low table in front of Su Chen and held the other herself.

The aroma of tea curled and permeated the quiet cabin, dispelling some of the deathly silence.

Zhuge Jinyu held the warm teacup and sat down on the meditation cushion opposite Su Chen.

Through the swirling steam, she watched him quietly.

After looking at him for a long time, she spoke softly.

"Sir, look."

Zhuge Jinyu knelt before the stove, cupping Su Chen's cold, stiff hands in her own palms.

"Do you still remember that year when the Great Wei army besieged the city?"

"It was also winter, and the snow fell even heavier than it does now."

"A full army of three hundred thousand surrounded Mount Qingcheng so tightly not even water could trickle through; we were cut off from food and water, and everyone thought we were doomed."

"At that time, you loved to sleep just like you do now, only back then, you were sleeping inside a mirror."

"I was so incredibly foolish back then; in order to wake you up, I actually carried your mirror-body and kowtowed every single step from the foot of Mount Qingcheng to the summit."

Zhuge Jinyu gently placed a small wooden chess piece carved with plum blossoms into Su Chen's palm.

"I was so scared back then, so very scared."

"Even though I knew I only had a few days left to live, I was still afraid of death, afraid of pain, like a little girl who couldn't do anything without Sir."

"And I was even more afraid that you, Sir—who had pinned all hopes of unifying the world on me—would be disappointed in me if you saw that I had ruined everything."

"But you, Sir, didn't say anything."

"You only said."

"Xiao Yu."

"Let Sir spend the New Year with you."

As she said this, tears spilled from Zhuge Jinyu's eyes.

"That was also the last New Year we spent together in the Great Qian..."

"Sir, we survived the three hundred thousand iron cavalry of Great Wei."

"You always said that the world is like a chess game, and you guided me to win many matches that others saw as perilously dangerous."

"Today, Xiao Yu has set up the chessboard; won't you play one more game with me?"

However, Su Chen just sat there blankly.

He lowered his head, staring fixedly at his other hand.

That hand remained in a vague, embracing posture.

As if he were still holding that woman in the red dress.