My Enemy Became My Cultivation Companion-Chapter 729 - 466: Long-Awaited Reunion (Two in One)_3

She was not at all distraught; quite the opposite—her mind seemed unusually clear, like the luminous flare of a candle before extinguishing. After leaving the guest hall, she returned to her tiny loft. Huang Niang called to her, wagging its tail furiously, and Yin Tingxue scooped out extra food for it. The leftover rice, fried eggs, lean meat, and hollow-heart vegetables from the past two nights and today's delivery were all mixed together.

Just like that, he died.

Yin Tingxue believed it was true. Countless people in this world die unclear and unjust deaths, especially those in fictional stories, where death is nothing more than a matter of flipping a page. It wasn't anything strange. She rubbed the Bodhisattva statue absentmindedly, not noticing even as Huang Niang pawed at her pants leg.

The yellow dog stared at the young woman, whose entire presence seemed frozen; its heart felt as though locked away.

Having gone through this before, Yin Tingxue felt no particular distress. From outside, came the sound of knocking. She lit a lamp, opened the door, and saw Zhou Yitang standing there.

"He's dead." The one-armed woman spoke, then fell silent.

Yin Tingxue nodded and replied, "I know."

No more words passed between the two. Both fell into quiet synchrony, the absence of sound stretching endlessly.

Eventually, the one-armed woman asked again, "How will you live?"

"Starting today, I'll eat well, dress well, sleep well…" Yin Tingxue said solemnly, her face reddening. She tilted the flushed face toward the lamp's light.

"How lovely." With those two words, Zhou Yitang turned away and left.

The cold wind howled as it dragged snowflakes through the air, stinging her face. Yin Tingxue took down the veil hat hanging on the wall, the long fabric falling over her face. She adjusted her clothing, suddenly feeling much warmer.

She didn't seem sorrowful at all.

Such matters were things Yin Tingxue had experienced far too often; even the tears refused to come.

She wanted to cry, but trying to force sadness felt impossible. She could only feel that he had gone somewhere very, very far away.

As dusk deepened and the sky darkened, it was unclear how long she kept standing there. Fine snow collected along the brim of her hat.

Suddenly, hurried shouts echoed from across the mountain.

"There, there, catch him!"

"Don't let the soul escape, hold him fast."

"I've sealed his path; he can't get away!"

Could it… be him?

She had no idea who they were chasing…

Chaotic sounds of pursuit stretched closer from the wind, with faint silhouettes stirring back and forth in the distance, activity erupting over the mountainside. Yin Tingxue couldn't fathom what might be happening; her surroundings remained tranquil. Fine snow sifted past the lamplight, scattering amid the temple gates. For a fleeting moment, she thought of the girl in the song "Si Fan"—the little nun who, wearied by the monotony of the mountain, fled downhill into the mortal world for which she had long yearned. Was she now but another such scene's protagonist?

Yin Tingxue, with veil hat atop her head, suddenly stepped over the threshold and into the swirling snow.

The lamplight flickered and danced upon her face.

The young woman dashed into the woods in a sudden burst, running who knows how far. Exiting Cangwu Peak, she caught sight of directions being shouted about which way to chase; she heard and hurried toward them.

The trees and brush obscured her, while the moon cast a melancholy glow.

Yin Tingxue quickened her pace through the dense forest, eyes darting around, trying to see—but only finding emptiness. Abruptly, a shadow swept past in the distance.

She didn't know who it was, just glimpsed them—fleeting—in the thickets. Her peripheral vision caught it; Yin Tingxue stopped abruptly, wanting to call out. Yet the bushes, so tightly packed, clung to her garments like snagged threads. He retreated, quicker and quicker. That figure might not even be him, she thought, and ultimately her courage failed her.

The snow continued its quiet descent.

The silhouette had disappeared entirely; even those chasing him seemed to have vanished somewhere unknown. Yin Tingxue could no longer find them. Turning back toward her return path, she stumbled upon a rock and fell, her knees flaring with pain that shot upward, piercing her chest.

In that moment, she felt an overwhelming sharp ache,

and suddenly thought: would this be the very last meeting?

Yin Tingxue hastily pulled the ugly Bodhisattva statue from her arms, lifting her gaze to the heavens above. It was vast and vacant, filled with fleeting blossoms falling against its blank canvas, with no trace left to be found.

"Where are you?" she shouted aloud. "Come out now!"

But no one answered—only the boundless silence of death surrounded her, as if the entire universe had lapsed into mute submission.

Before her eyes: cedar shadows, mountain crests, a distant horizon… all had vanished. All that remained was the endless expanse of white—snow in disarray—until even the snow dissolved into nothingness. It was then that Yin Tingxue absentmindedly remembered Yintai Temple.

Everything was gone.

"Have you disappeared too?" the girl whispered hoarsely.

Her cheeks suddenly grew warm, tears spilling forth—falling like beads from a shattered curtain. Yet there was no grief in her heart, not an ounce. Strangely, she found this all rather good—truly, rather good.

The snow screen stretched limitless.

"I'm alone again, free and unfettered, how wonderful…"

She wept endlessly amidst the snow,

"So wonderful, so, so wonderful…"

Empty cold surrounded her, freezing even the depths of her heart, yet her hot tears kept falling.

...…

The dim sky lost all shades of color, leaving Yin Tingxue's vision blurred, her thoughts stupefied.

Her eyes were slightly swollen, as if she could no longer tell the real from the unreal.

"Did someone so depraved, so utterly wicked, truly die like this?" she mumbled hazily.

"Yes, yes, I was depraved, I was wicked beyond redemption, and I died miserably."

Yin Tingxue froze for a moment, then turned her head in astonishment, finding a face so familiar it was beyond recognition—paired with a broad grin.

Her mind went blank for what felt like ages.

After a long pause, Yin Tingxue finally managed to speak. "You're not dead? Or am I hallucinating?"

"Dead—very dead,"

The shadow, dark and tinged with blue, stood before her. He reached out, feinting a touch to her head, then gestured at himself, rambling in strange phrases incomprehensible to her...

"Like a cat, like a cat."

Yin Tingxue's body froze, then she couldn't hold back a giggle,

In an instant, it felt as though fire burned within water, and all the flowers blossomed at once.