General’s Gown

Chapter 99 The long dream paid in full Part 5

The sky was bright, and under the vast sky, the white-capped mountains stood majestically. On the steep mountain road covered by clouds and fog, two figures were struggling to move forward. 

There were tens of thousands of steep and narrow stone steps, and each step was full of hard and smooth ice. If one were not careful, one would fall down, and the consequences will be disastrous. Wrapped in a thick cloak and leaning on crutches, Wei Jin cautiously climbed up the stone steps. Every ten steps he walked, he glanced back uneasily. 

Not far behind him, Helian Rongchuan climbed up step by step, carrying the tightly wrapped Yan Changqing on his back. His handsome and dark eyebrows were completely soaked with sweat, and his eyelashes were covered with ice. The higher he climbed, the steeper and slippery the stone steps became, the thinner the air, and the more unstable Helian Rongchuan’s steps became. 

Under pressure, he never stopped. 

Finally, he climbed the last stone step. 

On the top of the vast snow-capped mountains, in the depths of the misty clouds, a black stone gate loomed. A boy in a white robe ran out, saw Wei Jin, was stunned for a moment, and shouted: “Junior Brother Wei! Didn’t you keep saying that you wanted to help the world and vowed never to come up the mountain again? How dare you come back?” 

Wei Jin’s face changed slightly, and his tone was sincere: “I have something to ask Master. So—”

“So you brought a stranger here?” The boy in white snorted coldly: “Master hadn’t expelled you from the sect, so if you want to go in, I can’t stop you, but this person…” The boy snorted coldly: “Just kneel outside!” 

“This… it’s so cold outside.” 

“Cold what? It’s the master’s rules, strangers are not allowed to enter without Master’s permission. Did you forget when you went down the mountain to practice?” 

“You—” 

Wei Jin was about to argue, but Helian Rongchuan gently stopped him. 

“You go, I’ll beg on my knees outside. Maybe your master will be soft-hearted and will come out in a while.” 

Wei Jin sighed silently. Although the boy in front of him looked young, he was actually a dwarf, much older than him. He was highly skilled in martial arts, but not very skilled in medicine. He could only be a disciple of the outer chamber all these years, hating Wei Jin’s talent. At this time, he was trying to make things difficult and Wei Jin was helpless. So he had to take off his cloak and cover it over Helian Rongchuan. 

“Your Highness, take care, I’ll go and ask Master.” 

Helian Rongchuan’s lips were pale, and he nodded slightly: “I will have to count on you.” 

With a faint wry smile, Wei Jin turned around and walked towards the gates. 

The stone gate slowly opened and closed again. 

Helian Rongchuan hugged Yan Changqing in his arms and knelt quietly in the snow. The wind gradually subsided, and the snowflakes fell slowly. 

Helian Rongchuan stretched out his hand, watched a few crystal snowflakes fall on his palm, and sighed softly. 

Life in this world was like the snow in the morning, it’s life like a mayfly, fleeting. However, even this short-lived Mayfly can ride the wind in this world and spend a few days at ease before turning into dust.

But what about his Changqing? In his short life, he was locked in a cage, for his people, for his king, for his country. How many days did he live for himself in the end? Even if he died, the people he protected would lay waste to his burial place and extract the last bit of his blood. 

What’s the point of this? 

“I’m not reconciled.” Helian Rongchuan gently pressed against Yan Changqing’s cold forehead: “Even if I risk my own life, I must let you live again, just for yourself.” 

Gradually turning from bright to dark, the white snow peaks showed a cold glowing blue. It was cold here and the biting wind howls tried to crush every inch of the flesh and bones of the living. 

It was almost suffocating cold, his whole body freezing. 

Helian Rongchuan hugged Yan Changqing tighter in his arms, covered it with a cloak, and clenched his teeth silently. 

Time passed little by little. 

His vision gradually blurred, and the sound of the wind whistling in his ears became further and further away. Helian Rongchuan’s face faded to his last touch of blood, but he was still stubbornly kneeling, and the heavy snow fell on him, slowly turning him into a snowman. 

The sky was completely dark, and the moon revealed a few shimmers from the layers of black clouds, softly illuminating the heavy stone gate. Behind the stone gate, a thin figure hurried out. 

“Your Highness? Your Highness?” 

Wei Jin’s eyes were red and swollen, and his forehead was bruised. He knelt beside Helian Rongchuan and patted Helian Rongchuan lightly on the shoulder. 

“Your Royal Highness, my master has agreed, will you come with me?” 

Helian Rongchuan maintained the posture of hugging Yan Changqing, kneeling straight. His hair, eyelashes, and the corners of his lips were all covered with ice, and his entire face was as white as paper, and he said nothing. 

Wei Jin was stunned for a moment, then stretched out his trembling index finger, touched the tip of Helian Rongchuan’s nose lightly, and suddenly retracted it.

Wei Jin bit his lower lip abruptly and wiped away the tears from his face with his sleeves. He clearly looked like a weak scholar, but at this time, he did not know where this brute force came from, and he actually dragged the two of them up through the snow. His arms were thrown on his shoulders. Trembling and limping slowly, he approached the stone gate. 

————————————————- 

Endless. In the darkness that kept falling downwards, suddenly there was a ray of light. 

The light was getting bigger and bigger, like a group of radiant white clouds, still blooming with warmth and a faint floral fragrance, gradually enveloping Helian Rongchuan’s body, then slowly lifting him up higher. 

The light became more and more bright, almost dazzling. Helian Rongchuan’s eyelids trembled, and he slowly opened his eyes. 

The high stone wall dome was reflected in his amber-like eyes, and the bright sunlight was projected from the high stone dome. Helian Rongchuan covered his eyes with his hands and stood up. 

There was a slight chill under him. Helian Rongchuan looked down and saw that there was a large transparent ice bed under him. 

The cold air lingered around the ice bed, and a few huge, budding Tanhua faintly appeared. The silver-white flowers and leaves moved automatically without the wind, and the snow-white petals like cicada wings were folded layer by layer, exuding a faint moonlight-like light. 

On the other side of the ice bed, Yan Changqing was sleeping quietly. 

Helian Rongchuan felt a little at ease. Just as he was about to get out of bed, Wei Jin, who was lying beside his bed, woke up. He saw Helian Rongchuan and was stunned. He opened his mouth, and said, “Are you awake?” 

Helian Rongchuan nodded, slightly confused: “How long have I been sleeping? Why is it already bright?” 

Wei Jin smiled softly, bursting into tears. Just as he was about to say something, footsteps sounded behind him.

A tall and thin figure walked out of the darkness, dressed in a snow-white robe, with long hair loosely tied around his waist, with a clear face and deep eyebrows. Although he could not tell his age, his expression revealed his vicissitudes. He lowered his eyes and glanced meaningfully at Wei Jin who was kneeling beside him, then turned to Helian Rongchuan and said, “My disciple must have told you, but it is extremely dangerous to use Mengxian Tan to change your fate against the heavens.” 

Helian Rong Chuan nodded: “I’m not afraid.” 

“Aren’t afraid?” Yun Bugui snorted coldly and continued, “I’ve been looking through classical books for years, only to find out that in order to use this Mengxian Tan, I have to use the purest water in the world. But this water is not the snow water of the highest snow peak, nor the clearest river in the world. It is the tears of people.” 

“You must have the willingness to sacrifice your life and the determination to sacrifice everything for the person you want to save. There can be no regrets, no hesitations. Such sincere tears can drive Mengxian tan, the living dead, and the flesh and bones. But if you are shaken a little bit, or even have a momentary fearful distraction, Mengxian Tan will be polluted by your impure tears. You will fall into an illusion constructed by it and never wake up, until the oil runs out and the lamp dies.” 

Yun Bugui silently turned around and looked into the depths of darkness. Wei Jin felt a shudder in his heart. He knew that there were more than a dozen stone coffins placed there. 

“These years, it’s not that no one has looked for me. Those people can climb up this high snowy mountain with a dead man not far away, and it’s not that there isn’t sincerity. It’s a pity that they were all exhausted by Meng Xiantan’s illusion in the end. They died and now lay there. They may not know it until they die, but it turns out that their self-confidence was still mixed with a few different things. But it’s not their fault, it’s just human nature.” 

Yun Bugui sighed and turned around: “I will ask you one last time, are you really not afraid?”