Transforming into a stunningly beautiful fox spirit, leaving a scar on the heart of a prodigy.

Night always falls exceptionally early in the Moon Palace.

There were no lights here, only the pale moonlight covering the ground, a stark white that made people uneasy.

Su Xiaojiu sat on the cold jade bed, holding a withered cassia branch in her hand.

She picked it up from the yard.

The door was pushed open.

The wind blew in, stirring up the frost on the ground.

Tianpeng walked in.

She changed into a purple-gold robe with intricate cloud and water patterns embroidered on the cuffs, and wore a jade crown on her head, making her look extremely noble.

However, the jar of wine he was carrying ruined the solemnity.

"Still not asleep?"

Tianpeng placed the wine jar on the stone table, making a dull thud.

Su Xiaojiu put down the osmanthus branch in her hand and wrapped her cloak tighter.

"I can't sleep," Su Xiaojiu said. "It's too quiet here."

Tianpeng sat down opposite him and opened the wine seal.

The aroma of wine wafted out, dispelling the chill in the hall.

"It's good to stay calm." Tianpeng poured two bowls of wine. "In a few days, you won't be able to find peace even if you want to."

Su Xiaojiu looked at the wine bowl in front of her.

The wine was clear and cool, reflecting the moonlight overhead.

"How much longer?" Su Xiaojiu asked.

"Ten days."

Tianpeng picked up the bowl, tilted his head back, and took a big gulp.

Wine dripped down the corner of her mouth, but she didn't wipe it away, letting it drip onto her purple-gold robe.

"Ten days from now, it will be the night of the full moon," Tianpeng said. "At that time, your vital essence will be at its peak, and the medicinal power of your heart's blood will be strongest."

Su Xiaojiu nodded.

"understood."

Her tone was indifferent, as if she were talking about something that had nothing to do with her.

Tianpeng looked at her.

Her face appeared exceptionally pale in the moonlight, yet breathtakingly beautiful.

"Aren't you afraid?" Tianpeng asked.

"Will being afraid do any good?" Su Xiaojiu retorted. "If you're afraid, will you just stop taking blood?"

Tianpeng remained silent.

She poured another bowl of wine and pushed it in front of Su Xiaojiu.

"Have some," Tianpeng said. "This is the 'Drunken Immortal Brew' treasured by the Demon Court. It will warm you up."

Su Xiaojiu picked up the bowl and took a sip.

It's definitely warm.

A warm current flowed down his throat, dispelling the chill from his limbs and bones.

"Actually, even Indra couldn't do anything about it."

Tianpeng suddenly spoke, his voice somewhat low.

"Back then, Master withstood the backlash from Heaven to protect the fate of the demon race. This injury has lingered for thousands of years, but it can no longer be delayed."

"If our master were to perish, the fate of the demon race would collapse."

Tianpeng twirled the wine bowl in his hand, his gaze somewhat unfocused.

"At that point, it won't just be about one person dying."

Su Xiaojiu didn't speak, but listened quietly.

"Do you know why that old Taoist priest took that tiger as his disciple?" Tianpeng asked Su Xiaojiu.

Su Xiaojiu's fingers trembled slightly.

Why?

"Because he is the one destined for this calamity."

Tianpeng smiled, but there was a hint of bitterness in his smile.

"If Master cannot be saved, the demon race needs a new pillar to suppress its fortune. That tiger has a strong enough destiny and a heavy enough murderous aura, making it the best candidate."

"The old Taoist priest took him in not to teach him immortality, but to have him fill that hole."

Su Xiaojiu's fingers gripped the rim of the bowl tightly.

The knuckles are turning white.

"Fill the hole?" Su Xiaojiu asked softly, "How?"

"To merge with the Dao and become a boundary-suppressing stone," Tianpeng said casually, "just like Nuwa mending the sky back then. Except, he would refine himself into it, never to come out again."

The hall fell into a deathly silence.

Only the mournful sound of the wind blowing through the windowpane could be heard.

Su Xiaojiu lowered her head and looked at the wine in the bowl.

It turned out to be the case.

No wonder that old Taoist priest kept following Xiaobai, no wonder Xiaobai felt uneasy.

It turns out that this was a dead end from the very beginning.

Either she dies, or that old ancestor is brought back to life.

Either Xiaobai dies and fills that bottomless pit.

"This world is truly unreasonable," Su Xiaojiu said softly.

"They never reason."

Tianpeng finished the wine in the bowl and slammed it down heavily.

"Su Xiaojiu".

Tianpeng suddenly called her name.

"Um?"

"I tampered with the restrictions on the Moon Palace when I came in."

Tianpeng looked into her eyes, his gaze deep.

"There's a gap in the barrier around the back mountain. As long as you leave now, no one can stop you."

Su Xiaojiu was stunned for a moment.

She looked up at Tianpeng.

Tianpeng's face showed signs of drunkenness, but his eyes were clear.

"You should leave," Tianpeng said. "Go back to your Yunmeng Marsh, or go somewhere else. Just don't let Di Shitian find you."

"And what about you?" Su Xiaojiu asked, "You released the medicinal ingredient, how are you going to explain that?"

"Explain your ass."

Tianpeng chuckled, leaned back against the stone chair, and gave it a sneer.

"At worst, I'll just get punished. I'm Marshal Tianpeng, commanding 80,000 naval troops. Can Indra kill me?"

"Besides, even without your drop of blood, the demon race wouldn't perish."

Tianpeng pointed to the west.

"That tiger is still around. At worst, we can let him fill that hole. It's his life anyway."

Su Xiaojiu looked at Tianpeng.

She understood the meaning in Tianpeng's eyes.

This is a choice.

Use Bai Yin's life to exchange for hers.

Su Xiaojiu smiled.

She picked up the wine bowl and drank the rest of the wine in one gulp.

"The wine is good." Su Xiaojiu put down her bowl and wiped her mouth.

"What?" Tianpeng raised an eyebrow. "Aren't you leaving?"

"I'm not leaving."

Su Xiaojiu shook her head.

She stood up, walked to the window, and opened it.

The moonlight streamed in and fell upon her, like a layer of silver gauze.

"Marshal, you're drunk," Su Xiaojiu said.

"I'm not drunk!"

Tianpeng suddenly stood up, knocking over the stone chair behind him.

"Are you stupid?" Tianpeng walked up behind her, his voice rising. "That's death! Taking your heart's blood will kill you! Is it worth it for that tiger?"

"He's just a demon possessed by evil! You'd risk your life for him?"

Su Xiaojiu did not turn around.

She looked at the moon outside the window.

The moon was round and bright, but also very cold.

"Marshal," Su Xiaojiu's voice was soft, "did you ask that person the same question back then by the Milky Way?"

Tianpeng's body stiffened.

In that instant, it felt as if a bolt of lightning had struck the top of her head.

The Milky Way back then.

The woman in white, as pure as snow, also stood in the moonlight.

Tianpeng asked her, "Is it worth it for me?"

What was the woman's response?

Tianpeng couldn't remember.

She only remembered that figure, resolute yet gentle, which eventually transformed into a sky full of starlight.

"You..." Tianpeng's voice trembled slightly.

Su Xiaojiu turned around.

The moonlight shone on her face, making the beauty mark under her eye appear particularly melancholic.

"I'm not leaving." Su Xiaojiu looked at Tianpeng, her eyes as gentle as a pool of water. "It's not because I'm not afraid of death, but because there's someone whose life is more important than mine."

"If he fills that hole, then every day I live will be torture."

"Instead of doing that, I'd rather pave the way for him."

Su Xiaojiu reached out and gently straightened Tianpeng's slightly disheveled collar.

Their movements were as natural as those of longtime friends.

"Marshal, there are some things in this world that cannot be measured by whether they are worth it or not."

"Just like this osmanthus wine, you knew it would make you drunk and give you a headache, but you still drank it."

"Because you want to drink it."

Me too.

I want to protect him.

Tianpeng looked at the face before him.

so similar.

It's so similar.

Not only their appearance, but also their foolishness, their willingness to risk their lives for others, are exactly the same.

Tianpeng felt a burning sensation in his eyes.

She turned around abruptly, not daring to look Su Xiaojiu in the eye again.

"madman."

Tianpeng cursed, his voice choked with emotion.

"You're all crazy."

She grabbed the wine jar on the table and strode out.

She stopped when she reached the door.

With her back to Su Xiaojiu, her shoulders trembled slightly.

"I will come to pick you up in ten days."

Tianpeng said.

"Don't cry then."

After saying that, she pushed open the door and rushed into the vast night.

The wind whipped up the snowflakes on the ground, swirling them as it chased after her retreating figure.

Su Xiaojiu stood there, looking at the door that had closed again.

She sighed softly.

"fool."

Su Xiaojiu murmured softly.

She walked back to the bedside of Hanyu and picked up the withered cassia branch.

My fingertips rubbed against the rough bark.

"noob."

Su Xiaojiu looked at the osmanthus branch in her hand, her eyes gradually becoming deep.

She placed the cassia branch beside her pillow and lay down again.

The cloak still carried Bai Yin's scent.

That was the smell of blood, but it was also the smell that brought her the most peace of mind.

Su Xiaojiu closed her eyes.

Inside the Moon Palace, deathly silence returned once more.

Only the unfinished jar of wine still emitted a faint fragrance.

That's the scent of osmanthus.

It's the taste of old friends.

"Bu Suanzi: Night Talk in the Moon Palace"

The cold moon shines on the lonely city, and the heavy frost seeps into my thin clothes.

A cup of clear wine faces an old friend, I wish to entrust my heart's secrets to him.

The road ahead is yours to travel, but who can fathom your intentions?

I would give up my beauty for your safety, life and death seem like yesterday.