Pang Yizhi watched as Gongye Jiwu walked with hasty steps out of the courtyard of Xiaoyao Sect. "It is done," he whispered.
The Devil God stepped out of the shadows. "You did well," he said coldly.
"You do know that the Celestial Punishment Formation can hurt you, right?" Pang Yizhi asked, glancing sideways at the Devil God.
"I know," the Devil God replied simply.
"If you know, why did you give that to your enemy?" Pang Yizhi asked.
The Devil God merely smiled. "Hasn't your master, Time God Jize, taught you anything?" he replied, ignoring Pang Yizhi's startled reaction. "You are merely a spoke in the wheels of time, little disciple. It's not for you to know these things. Just know you've done your part." He turned away.
Before the Devil God completely disappeared, however, Pang Yizhi thought he heard him say, "Thank you."
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Atop the highest tower of the city walls, Ye Qingyu looked up at the gaping hole in the sky, growing wider and casting an ominous shadow over the kingdom.
"W-what is that… horror?" he heard his soldiers gasp behind him. Gritting his teeth, he stood up on the battlements, ignoring the sounds of alarm from the soldiers, and took off the mask that had long hidden his real face from the world.
Grimly, he spread his arms and wielded the power that was bestowed to him, to fulfill the task that was entrusted to him.
Tantai Jin…
Ye Qingyu thought back to the last time he saw Tantai Jin in the Jing Kingdom.
...
Ye Qingyu was startled at the Devil God's appearance. "Y-Your Majesty…"
The Demon God's eyes glinted from the shadows of the corner where he stood. "Call me Tantai Jin," he said. He stepped forward, and the full might of the Devil God was revealed to Ye Qingyu, who took a few steps back out of sheer terror.
Despite his appearance, the Demon God's eyes looked… human, and Ye Qingyu felt somewhat calm seeing them. "What happened, Tantai Jin?" he asked.
The Demon God looked down. "It has come to this," he whispered, looking down at his pale white fingertips. "I have to become that who I feared of becoming, to save the one I love."
Ye Qingyu's lips tightened. "What happened to my sister?" he said reflexively, his brotherly love still strong for Li Susu despite knowing that she wasn't Ye Xiwu.
"She's safe… for now," the Devil God replied. He looked at Ye Qingyu. "But you must do something for me." He gathered power on his palm, a brilliant rosy light that Ye Qingyu felt strangely familiar…
"This is Pian Ran's remaining power," the Devil God said, in response to Ye Qingyu's unspoken question. "Once, I had taken her power to strengthen mine, but Ye Xiwu…" he paused, emotion suddenly clouding his eyes, before continuing. "Ye Xiwu stopped me from taking everything and killing her." He finished gathering the power on his hands and turned to Ye Qingyu. "I will give it back to you."
Ye Qingyu closed his eyes as he felt the Demon God transfer the power to him, felt the familiar warmth of Pian Ran's power penetrate his being, as it did that fateful day at the city gates.
"Let me… let your Pian Ran leave the world first."
Through the haze of pain, Ye Qingyu thought he heard Pian Ran's voice as he felt warmth seep through his bones, easing the pain vibrating in his whole body, pulling him back from the depths of unconsciousness.
"If fate has a plan for us, then we will meet again."
Pian Ran…
Ye Qingyu fell to his knees. He didn't realize he was shedding tears until he heard his own sobs echoing in the room. He felt the Devil God's hand gripping his shoulder in sympathy, and he held it, as if holding on to a lifeline he never knew was there.
When his sorrow reached its end, Ye Qingyu took a deep, calming breath and wiped his tears away with his sleeve. The Devil God reached out his hand, and helped him up.
"Tantai Jin," Ye Qingyu said, looking into the mortal in the Devil God's eyes, "what do I have to do?"
Tantai Jin smiled at him. "What you have always done," he said simply. "Protect the kingdom from the oncoming storm. Protect the people that Pian Ran, your father, and your brother died for." He laid a hand on his shoulder. "Protect your country, General Ye Qingyu."
Ye Qingyu looked at Tantai Jin with determined eyes. "I will."
Tantai Jin smiled at Ye Qingyu, who had always been the upright and honorable soldier he had first met 500 years ago. "And who knows, when all of this is over, you can meet again with a returning friend."
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Ye Qingyu allowed Tantai Jin to enter the Tantai Mausoleum.
"It's your family's mausoleum," Ye Qingyu had said exasperatedly. "Why did you have to ask my permission to enter it?"
The Devil God merely smiled.
In the darkest hour of dawn, the Devil God materialized in front of the Tantai Mausoleum. The way to the mausoleum was a familiar path, as if he had walked down it many times. When he was a young boy, he dreamed day and night about running down the halls of the mausoleum to look up at his mother's tombstone. When he was emperor, he finally had the chance to actually enter the mausoleum, but not without Ye Xiwu by his side.
"I give you the opportunity," Tantai Jin said, spreading his hands to show off the empty spaces at the mausoleum, "to pick a parcel of land that you'd like to be buried in."
Ye Xiwu gave a wry face. "Who said I'm going to spend the rest of my life with you?"
Tantai Jin turned to her, and pulled her to face him. "Answer me this, Ye Xiwu," he said. "Do you have… feelings for me?"
Ye Xiwu looked hesitantly at him. She wanted to look away, but he gently touched her face. "I… of course," she said. "One day together, deep love forever. You are my husband."
Tantai Jin shook his head. "I don't mean marital duty," he said. His eyes bored into hers. "I meant deep love… true love."
In hindsight, even before he became the Devil God, with the power to perceive all thoughts and feelings of all beings, even as the weak mortal Tantai Jin, he knew what he was asking for from Li Susu then was impossible.
"It's all right," he had said. "I know true love doesn't come easily. There's no need to rush."
He said that when he thought the world was in his hands. He realized he was so naïve.
But hope is a wildflower not easily crushed.
The Devil God paused at the last flight of steps that he knew would lead him to the main reason why he wanted to revisit the Tantai Mausoleum. His heart pounded in his chest, not in exhaustion, but in grief, which he had never thought he would feel again.
Tantai Jin. You are so ridiculous. Even at the pinnacle of power, you still linger in the dust and weeds of the mortal world.
The Devil God smiled bitterly. He still let himself feel the humble pangs of human emotions, because they grounded him and made him feel closer to the memory of Ye Xiwu, and the presence of Li Susu. With his foot on the stairs, he knew he was revisiting deep, old wounds, but they were worth the pain of remembrance.
He walked up the steps.
"Tantai Jin."
Her voice rang in his ears.
"What are you doing here? It's so cold, you're going to get sick if you stay here too long."
Her image seemed to shimmer in front of his eyes.
"Come on, let's go back to the palace."
He could almost feel her warmth in his hands.
In the days after Ye Xiwu's death, Tantai Jin had almost gone crazy in his grief with the illusions of her presence. Now, the Devil God welcomed those illusions to accompany him in this solitary walk. Sometimes it was Ye Xiwu's face that appeared before him. Sometimes, it was Li Susu's.
Two cold tombstones soon loomed before him, one blank, the other engraved with words which he had never forgotten, even through the loneliness of the 500 years that passed.
The Devil God stopped a distance away from the tombstones. He looked down at his clothes, the awful red and black robes of the Devil God that adorned his body.
Ye Xiwu won't like to see me like this.
He waved his hand, and transformed into the white robes of immortal sect disciple Cang Jiumin. He could almost see Li Susu radiantly smiling at him.
Cang Jiumin walked slowly towards the tombstone, drawn to the engraving on the stone. He remembered that lonely night when he carved those words himself with his own hands, without the aid of the power that he had wanted to obtain so much, and without the help of any of the people who served him. He remembered each memory that assaulted him as he worked, each throb when the Soul-slaying Nails pierced deeper in his heart. He remembered that soul-crushing finality when he finished carving the last word on the stone, the loss manifesting like a black hole in his heart.
He knelt in front of the tombstone and lovingly traced the words on it with his fingers. The tomb of Ye Xiwu, the beloved wife of Tantai Jin.
Ye Xiwu… and Li Susu. Beloved wife… and immortal goddess. The one who gave him another chance at life… and the one who can end his life to give another chance for life to many more.
Only the true god can destroy the Devil God.
Ten thousand years ago, the Devil God sought to destroy everything in the three realms and bring everything back into the chaos they all came from. To protect every living being in the realms, Mingye and the other gods fought valiantly at the cost of their lives, and delivered a final blow to the Ancient Devil God, who dissipated into the void.
Five hundred years later, Li Susu became Ye Xiwu in order to seek out the devil fetus and prevent him from turning into the Devil God, to alter the destiny of the world she was born into. In the process, she changed his fate completely, at the cost of her life.
Now, with the full clarity of the Devil God's powers, Tantai Jin realized that the entanglement between him and Li Susu was never about preventing the second advent of the Devil God, but rather to put an end to the cycle of conflict and destruction that began ten thousand years ago.
Only he can become the Devil God, and only she can end the Devil God.
Cang Jiumin stood and walked over to the blank tombstone. After a last glance at Ye Xiwu's tombstone, he raised a finger and, with his immortal power, carved words onto the stone. He worked silently, his face devoid of emotion as he completely focused on the task at hand. When he was done, he stepped back and read the words on the stone.
The tomb of Tantai Jin, the husband of Ye Xiwu.
It was the end that he had once prayed to the gods, five hundred years ago. At the eve of his wedding, when he finished embroidering his hopes and wishes on Ye Xiwu's bridal veil, he clasped his hands together and prayed to the gods to let him stay by her side, until death parted them. He imagined them growing old together, and in death, lying side by side like this, slumbering peacefully together, forever.
He was so naïve.
And yet…
Cang Jiumin raised his hand, gathering power in his fingertips once again, and pointed towards Ye Xiwu's tombstone. A bright light shone through the tombstone, and a figure was slowly taking shape.
"Tantai Jin."
Li Susu's form materialized in front of him, walking towards him with a bright smile on her face. Cang Jiumin smiled back. Her eyes roved over his face, and asked, "Tantai Jin, are you going somewhere?"
"Yes, I am," Cang Jiumin replied.
Li Susu's smile faltered, but as she looked into his eyes again, her smile returned. "Then I'll be here waiting for your return," she said. "You must come back early, all right?"
"I will," Cang Jiumin promised her. "I'll be back soon."
Li Susu's eyebrows narrowed slightly, picking up on the odd tone in his voice. "Tantai Jin, don't be sad," she said reassuringly. "I believe in you. No matter what people say, you are not the monster they fear." She smiled happily. "You are Tantai Jin. You're the one I love the most."
Cang Jiumin raised a hand to touch Li Susu's face, but the image dissipated into a million specks of illuminated dust on his fingertips. He had only meant to conjure up her image to accompany him in his final, lonely act, to take one last look at her loving face and feel for the last time the warmth of her affection, but he didn't expect the illusion to speak the words he had yearned to hear from her.
You are Tantai Jin. You're the one I love the most.
The trappings of being the Devil God and immortal disciple fell away at that moment, and the fragile mortal Tantai Jin was left, brought down on his knees in grief, weeping. He wept for the lost time, the unspoken words, the undone actions, and the suppressed feelings. He wept, shedding for the first and only time all the emotions that he had learned to feel, letting himself be entangled in the string of affection that had been missing in his life for so long, and surrounding himself with all the precious memories of Ye Xiwu and Li Susu, not wanting to let go.
Each tear spoke of his regrets and pain.
Li Susu, I love you.
I can't bear to be parted from you for even just a second.
I want to see your smile, to hear your laugh, to feel your hand holding mine as we walk through this life together.
No matter if we live as short-lived mortals, as cultivating immortal disciples, or as deities watching over the three realms, as long as I am with you, I can endure anything.
But…
Cang Jiumin rose to his feet and wiped away the tears on his face.
This is the only way to save the world you love.
This is the only way to save the one I love.
With a steadying breath, Cang Jiumin turned away from the tombstones, and with deliberate steps, walked away. As he stepped down on the stairs, he transformed back into the Devil God, devoid of emotions, looking cold and ruthless, hiding away the fragility of his true self, ready to face the destiny that awaits him and Li Susu at daybreak.
Xxxxxxxxxxxx
The faint light of daybreak caressed Li Susu's face as she opened her eyes. She turned to her side, and felt the cold, empty space beside her. Memories of last night spilled over onto her waking consciousness, accompanying her as she gingerly raised herself up, still feeling the slight aches in her body. As her blanket slid down, she instinctively held onto it to cover herself, but at the last moment let the cloth slip through her fingers. She gazed down at her naked body, and saw the marks that Tantai Jin made on it.
Proof that last night wasn't just a dream.
Proof that they both let go of who the world wanted them to be, stripping themselves of their duties and their destiny, and simply became who they were to each other.
Proof that for just one night, for one final moment, she had held onto the one she loved the most, and that he loved her back, and they promised each other they'd never part.
Li Susu covered her face as her tears fell onto the blanket, soaking the sheets with regrets and broken dreams.
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A/N: This will be the second to the last chapter of this story. Again, thanks for reading, and do let me know if I'm doing well with this story. =)
