[Monthly Ticket Thanks Extra: Fu Yi Xin Mo]
This chapter is free, thank you all for your support and love. It is a 4300+ word extra chapter, I hope you like it!
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At the most critical moment of transformation, Zhao Fuyi fell into the illusion of inner demons.
"Zhao Xiu, come forward and test your spiritual roots."
Hearing this strange yet familiar name, it took Zhao Fuyi a long time to come back to her senses and she found herself standing in front of the Tianyan Sect's mountain gate.
A ray of golden light shot up from the crowd into the sky, as bright as the rising sun, astonishing everyone.
"A single spiritual root of gold attribute, rooted... nine!"
"It's just a little bit away from the golden spirit body."
The golden light lingered in the sky for a long time. Zhao Fuyi looked through the crowd and saw the little girl bathed in the golden light.
He has a thin body and a cold face, as if he was born with pride and never smiles at a young age.
She almost forgot that her original name was Zhao Xiu. She was just an abandoned baby of unknown origin in Zhaojia Village, adopted by an old Taoist priest who had reached the fourth level of Qi training in the Taoist temple in the back mountain.
The Taoist priest was already old, so he brought her to the gate of Tianyan Sect when she was six years old and measured her astonishing single spiritual root.
That year, no one had higher qualifications than her, and as soon as she entered the sect, she became the focus of everyone's attention.
The steps to heaven were opened, and the children who had received the wooden signs rushed up the stairs one after another. Only Zhao Xiu walked at the end, looking very mature despite his young age.
Zhao Fuyi followed Zhao Xiu and watched her calmly deal with the illusion on the Immortal Stairs.
Zhao Xiu is very smart and can always find flaws and pass the test easily.
"Who are you? Why are you following me?"
Halfway through the journey, six-year-old Zhao Xiu suddenly turned around, looked at Zhao Fuyi, and questioned her fiercely.
Zhao Fuyi was stunned. She didn't expect that Zhao Xiu could see her. Just now, she passed through other people directly, like a phantom, and no one noticed.
"Maybe... it's the inner demon."
This time it was Zhao Xiu who was stunned. "I haven't even entered the Dao yet, how can I have a demon in my heart?"
Zhao Xiu was precocious, having followed an old Taoist priest since childhood, and knew more about Taoism than others.
"Don't follow me, or I'll kill you first when I become a Taoist!"
Zhao Xiu raised his hand and pointed, his eyes full of anger, then turned around and continued to move forward with firm steps.
Zhao Fuyi stood on the steps, watching the little Zhao Xiu climb up the ninety-nine steps of the Qingyun Stairs, one step at a time.
So small, and so tall.
The corners of Zhao Fuyi's mouth curled up, feeling gratified and proud.
Time began to pass quickly. Zhao Fuyi followed Zhao Xiu all the time and watched her become an inner sect disciple.
He entered the Dao overnight and stepped into the first level of Qi training.
He was proficient in the art of talismans when he was in the middle stage of Qi training, and defeated an old disciple in the late stage of Qi training in public.
That day, Zhao Xiu was full of vigor and vitality, and shone brightly amid the cheers of the people.
She enjoyed the feeling of being the center of attention and was immersed in it.
On the day when Zhao Xiu just entered the late stage of Qi training, the Taoist priest who raised her passed away.
"Xiu'er, don't waste your qualifications and talents. Don't be dragged down by irrelevant things. Only by focusing on hard work and cultivating wholeheartedly can you achieve immortality."
Behind the Taoist temple, twelve-year-old Zhao Xiu knelt in front of an unknown tombstone. She didn't cry or make a fuss. She was quiet and peaceful, with no sadness or joy.
But her eyes became deeper and deeper, and the darkness could not cover the light in her eyes.
"Inner Demon, are you immortal?"
In the past few years, Zhao Xiu has always known about Zhao Fuyi's existence, but this is the first time he has taken the initiative to talk to Zhao Fuyi.
Zhao Fuyi looked at the tombstone without saying anything.
"What's the point of living forever if you are mediocre and unknown?"
Zhao Fuyi opened her mouth to speak, but Zhao Xiu had already stood up, taking with her a tattered array map left by the old Taoist priest, and piloted a flying magic weapon to leave the Taoist temple and Zhaojia Village.
He didn't even look down.
Zhao Xiu was born with a weak sense of kinship and a lofty ambition.
Ever since she could remember, the villagers always called her a bastard, but she always shrugged it off.
It was because she had seen the methods of immortals and Taoist magical powers since she was a child, and understood that most of them were just mortals.
The old Taoist priest said that she was not an ordinary person.
Zhao Xiu looked up to the sky, and only swans and cranes could stand shoulder to shoulder with her.
The voices of mortals are like the chirping of ants.
After she left, she never came back.
After returning to Tianyan Sect from Zhaojia Village, Zhao Xiu rejected the olive branch from Tianjian Peak and turned to Tiangang Peak to learn formations.
Young people should have lofty ambitions and strive to be outstanding in the vast sky.
Zhao Xiu devoted himself to studying the formation, and was unstoppable in the Qi training competition, winning first place with a crushing momentum.
He never took a disciple, but instead asked the sect leader for the opportunity to study in Wanfa Hall.
After that, Zhao Xiu's name has always been the first among the same level in the Formation Academy.
"Why is it Zhao Xiu again? She's so amazing!"
"How can anyone survive if they get full marks in the formation test?"
Every month when the results of the Formation Academy examinations were announced, Zhao Xiu always liked to stand in the corridor and listen to the admiration from his fellow brothers and sisters.
Zhao Fuyi silently looked at Zhao Xiu, who stood out from the crowd. His brilliance was so overwhelming... that he didn't even have any friends.
"The moon waxes and wanes, water overflows when it is full, and people become depleted when they are full."
Zhao Fuyi couldn't help but speak, interrupting Zhao Xiu's interest.
"Inner demon, stop disturbing my mind!"
Zhao Xiu had a gloomy face. He pushed Zhao Fuyi's body apart and left with the formation plate in his arms.
"well… "
Zhao Fuyi let out a long sigh. It was a beautiful day, but she didn't know that the rain would come suddenly, just like the plum rain season, drizzling and never clearing up.
Zhao Xiu's glory in Wanfa Hall only lasted for one year, not because she fell out of the top spot, but because she never fell behind.
"This month, Wei Chong actually took second place in the Formation Academy. He was last last month."
"It's a bit unbelievable. Let's go and ask him for advice."
Zhao Xiu stood in the rain, getting wet, and feeling cold and heavy all over.
Her name was still at the top, but no one seemed to see it.
“Since when did being second become something to be proud of?”
Zhao Fuyi held an umbrella for Zhao Xiu, but the umbrella was just an illusion like her, unable to protect Zhao Xiu from the wind and rain.
"You are too good. They no longer see the hope of surpassing you. They have given up and become accustomed to it. So they turn a blind eye and a deaf ear to you."
Zhao Xiu clenched his fist, "Is being excellent wrong?!"
"There's nothing wrong with being excellent, but your heart is wrong."
Zhao Fuyi looked at Zhao Xiu seriously.
"I'm not wrong! Get out of here, you inner demon!"
Zhao Xiu left in anger and swallowed the foundation-building pill when he returned.
At that time, Zhao Xiu was sixteen years old.
He raced against time to build his foundation, just to break the Tianyan Sect's record of eleven years of foundation building.
He acts impulsively, but is also determined to move forward courageously, and fortunately, he is blessed by heaven.
After ten years of laying the foundation, he succeeded in becoming a first-rank Taoist.
Zhao Xiu thought that she would be the center of attention again, but after the whole sect announced it, everyone's reaction was...
"Zhao Xiu? That's not surprising. It would be strange if she couldn't break the record!"
Later, this sentence became the most common phrase Zhao Xiu heard, and it also became an unbreakable shackle for her.
When going out on a mission and encountering a life-and-death crisis, everyone can escape except her, because she is Zhao Xiu.
In the competition among the three sects, everyone could lose when encountering opponents from different factions, except her, because she was Zhao Xiu.
Even the time for forming the elixir was "arranged" by someone, and it must be before the age of thirty-five, just because she was Zhao Xiu.
Zhao Xiu can only be excellent, can only stand at the top, can only keep breaking records, can only be a "good boy".
Zhao Xiu cried secretly. She felt very tired and suddenly began to miss the Taoist temple in Zhaojia Village.
"Inner demon, what should I do?"
"Yes! I don't care about their looks at all!"
Zhao Xiu flicked his sleeves and walked out, and Zhao Fuyi slowly uttered the second half of the sentence.
"… Sometimes rebellion fails, and that's okay. I wish I had understood that sooner."
At the age of thirty-five, Zhao Xiu formed a first-grade elixir and took the Taoist name Fuyi.
When the work is done, I will leave without a single leaf sticking to me.
Zhao Xiu was reminding himself that his mind should be as calm as water, unaffected by the hustle and bustle, and that fame, wealth and power would just pass by in the distance.
However, Zhao Fuyi discovered that she was the kind of person who would say that she didn't care the more she wanted something.
He brushes his clothes and deceives himself.
After reaching the stage of Dan, Zhao Xiu seemed like a different person. He became calm and indifferent. He was absorbed in the art of formations and didn't care about worldly affairs. He completely isolated himself in the world of formations.
Gain joy and satisfaction from the continuous improvement of the formation.
However, when she heard that Li Jiuchuan, who had five spiritual roots, had taken ten years to build his foundation and was only a few months behind her, she couldn't help but be surprised.
Seeing Li Jiuchuan being praised by the sect leader and everyone in the sect discussing it heatedly, he felt sad.
"Since when did five spiritual roots become something worth showing off?"
Zhao Xiu practiced harder and harder, and even if she worked behind closed doors, she could still make a famous car.
Before he was two hundred years old, Zhao Xiu successfully conceived a baby and became the abbot of Tiangang Peak.
On the day of the ceremony, it was deserted. It was not because no one came, but because the place was full of guests and friends, which made Zhao Xiu feel "deserted".
She could see that those smiles and respects were not heartfelt and were just superficial.
She is aloof, cold and arrogant, and has never been good at making friends.
Along the way, the only people who were the most tolerant and supportive of her were the two sisters, the sect leader and the supreme elder.
In the ghost tide of the Nether Sea, Zhao Xiu was driven out of the sect by the supreme elder and went to Wentian Island to coordinate all the formations of the allied forces.
After years of studying formations, Zhao Xiuchu didn't realize how far she had left all the other formation practitioners in the world. When her usual 'small formation' attracted everyone's admiration and surprise, Zhao Xiu's calm heart was disturbed again.
Above the Dark Sea, Zhao Xiu achieved many remarkable feats and was always at the forefront.
Wherever Zhao Xiu is, there is Zhao Xiu's formation, and the allied forces will be victorious in every battle!
Zhao Xiu was full of vigor and ambition, and he was ready to take action.
It’s a pity that Zhao Xiu is only one person after all, while the tide of ghosts is endless and can never be eliminated.
Others are not her, but she also gets tired sometimes.
Ultimately, the Allied forces were defeated, and faced with the impending surging ghost tide, the Allied forces wanted to retreat.
Zhao Xiu was unwilling, unconvinced, and unwilling!
She stayed alone, and even if everyone left, she would still defend Wentian Island.
Because, she is Zhao Xiu!
"You know, there's no use staying."
The sea breeze was salty and humid, Zhao Fuyi whispered to Zhao Xiu.
Zhao Xiu had a gloomy look on his face. He kept waving his sleeves to plant the heavy battle flags in various places on the island, focused and stubborn.
"If you don't try, how do you know it's useless? I, Zhao Xiu, have always been as firm as a rock. The inner demons will never be able to seduce me!"
Zhao Fuyi remained silent and could only watch Zhao Xiu fail and even ruin Li Jiuchuan's future.
After returning to the sect, Zhao Xiu was in a state of disarray and locked himself in the main hall of Tiangang Peak. Whenever he thought of Li Jiuchuan's dying appearance, he became restless and filled with guilt.
She has always been alone, bearing the bitterness alone and tasting the sweetness alone.
This was the first time she had hurt someone because of herself, and she tried her best to make amends, but still couldn't comfort herself.
Zhao Xiu's 'retreat' was broken by the Supreme Elder, who gave her a child and asked her to teach him.
After accepting Li Shenzhi, Zhao Xiu was "forced" to accept Mu Wushuang, who caused the fight between Cang Huo and Ling Guanghan.
Zhao Xiu had never worshipped a master along the way, and even the sect leader who treated her like a master, she rarely got close to him.
She didn't know how to be a master, so she could only teach with all her might while trying to prevent the regrets that happened to her two disciples, such as the ghost tide incident.
Zhao Xiu always believed that she was not strong enough, otherwise those things would not have happened later.
Therefore, she had extremely high requirements for Li Shenzhi and Mu Wushuang, even higher than she did back then.
The two disciples' completely different personalities also caused Zhao Xiu a lot of trouble.
Zhao Xiu is a little paranoid and likes perfection. Li Shenzhi and Mu Wushuang do not meet her expectations of what kind of disciples she has.
But the two disciples had awe and admiration for her that was greater than anything else.
Zhao Fuyi watched from the side, feeling bitter at the sight of the two disciples enduring all the hardships but still enjoying it, and seeing how they could not make her happy even though they tried their best.
She is really not a good master.
Later, Zhao Xiu accepted Tang Weiman and He Wangchen. In fact, the disciple she wanted most at that time was Lu Nanzhi.
The first time Zhao Xiu saw Lu Nanzhi, he felt that she looked like his younger self.
Indifferent, focused, clear-minded and undistracted.
Zhao Xiu's eyes still could not see the dust below, but only saw Lu Nanzhi standing at the peak of that generation.
In the Yinfeng Gorge, the person who was ignored by Zhao Xiu was seen by Zhao Fuyi this time.
It turned out that at that time, the way Jiang Yuebai looked at her was full of admiration, just like her disciples.
"Zhao Xiu, have you seen her?"
When coming out of Yinfengjian, Zhao Fuyi asked Zhao Xiu.
"who?"
Zhao Fuyi shook her head. What was coming could not be avoided, so there was no need to avoid it.
Later, when all the pride of Quan Zong Xiaobi was shattered, Zhao Xiu suddenly realized.
Time was frozen in a dark space, and Zhao Xiu faced Zhao Fuyi who looked exactly like her.
"I am the inner demon, right?"
Zhao Fuyi looked at Zhao Xiu, watching time go back on her, all the way back to when she was a child.
Little Zhao Xiu's eyes were filled with reluctance and stubbornness. "Are you here to kill me?"
Zhao Fuyi lowered her eyes and thought for a moment, then bent her waist which had always been unbending, half-knelt in front of the little Zhao Xiu, and looked into Zhao Xiu's eyes calmly.
"I want to make peace with you."
"Make peace?" Zhao Xiu opened his eyes wide in disbelief.
Zhao Fuyi nodded and raised her hand to tuck the messy hair at Zhao Xiu's temples behind her ears.
"You are me. Despite your failures and imperfections, you are still an indispensable and extremely real part of me. No one is perfect. Everyone makes mistakes. As long as you correct them, it's fine."
"There is no need to dwell on past failures and torture yourself with your past stupidity in your dreams. The past has become an unchangeable fact, just like I know the outcome but still cannot change your decision."
"So, I want to make peace with you and accept you as a stubborn and imperfect person. Can I... hug you?"
Zhao Xiu bit her lips with tears in her eyes, clenched her fists and her whole body became stiff.
There was also mist in Zhao Fuyi's eyes. She opened her arms and embraced Zhao Xiu, the ignorant and imperfect self, and reconciled with herself.
Zhao Fuyi let Zhao Xiu go, and Zhao Xiu also let Zhao Fuyi go.
Only by letting yourself go can you let yourself go.
The inner demons can also be transformed into a force that drives you forward. Don’t people grow from their mistakes
Zhao Xiu clenched her fist and wiped away her tears, then looked at Zhao Fuyi and asked.
"What kind of person do you want to be in the future?"
Zhao Fuyi thought about it seriously, took Zhao Xiu's hand and stood up, looking up at the stars shining in the dark night.
"I want to be like the Big Dipper, a person who can provide guidance for those who are willing to raise their heads and fight for their lives, no matter how the times change."
Zhao Xiu smiled, "Then you have to become a local leader first before you are qualified!"
Zhao Fuyi also smiled, "Yes."
"Zhao Fuyi, I hope you can truly do this in the future. When your work is done, you will leave. Not for fame or gain, but only for... a pure heart and an untainted heart."
"Yes."
Zhao Fuyi and Zhao Xiu looked at each other and smiled. The little Zhao Xiu turned into a ray of light and merged into one with Zhao Fuyi.
The sound of the heavenly tribulation faded away in her ears, Zhao Fuyi's divine transformation was complete, and above her head was the sky...
The stars surround the Big Dipper, and the birds pay homage to the Phoenix!
(End of this chapter)