The Stars Beyond

Under a silver moon, the chorus of insects heightened the quiet solitude of the mountaintop, scattered with rubble and overgrown with weeds—a scene of desolation. Wang Xuan suddenly opened his eyes and brought out the purple gourd, returning to the real world. Though he had left on a deep night, after days in the celestial realm, he returned to a world still bathed in moonlight.

The chirping of insects, occasional calls of night birds, and a gentle breeze brought a serene calm to the night. Wang Xuan felt a momentary sense of unreality—had he truly left? Was the concept of becoming an immortal simply about the spirit wandering through time?

Here in the Old Earth, amid the dust of the mundane, he had sat unmoving for days, only to travel to the celestial realm and return? The experience seemed both dreamlike and profound.

Fortunately, he was certain this was no dream; the purple gourd was in his hand, its surface smooth and lustrous. However, the traces of primordial chaos that once shimmered within were gone, corrected by the vast universe, an invisible suppression that even celestial treasures could not withstand.

Something was amiss. Why was there no joyful noise? Where was the little creature? Looking down, he saw her, deeply asleep in the soil, having burrowed a small den for herself atop the mountain. She had set up a formation and then gone to sleep, carefree and unguarded against Wang Xuan, who she had whitelisted to the extent of automatically ignoring his presence so as not to disturb her slumber.

Wang Xuan felt an urge to pinch her cheek and wake her, but he had other concerns. He urgently opened the purple gourd to release the grown version of Celestial Sword Maiden Jiang Qingyao.

This action startled the little creature, who sprang up, all alertness, and then saw Wang Xuan holding the gourd, her energy instantly rejuvenated.

"Where am I?" she clamored, scrambling up from the ground, blinking her big eyes.

Jiang Qingyao emerged, stepping out from the gourd, clad in white, a celestial figure with a sword slung on her back, like a character from a painting. She stood atop the modest hill—not a famous mountain, but a nondescript barren one, where she had once undergone her tribulation and ascended to immortality. Looking down at the weeds and scattered debris, she recognized this place as her old Taoist abode, now nothing more than ruins after hundreds of years.

The two figures, one tall and one small, both Celestial Sword Maidens, faced each other in the moonlight, their moment seeming to freeze in time.

"Why are you bleeding?" the miniature Celestial Sword Maiden asked, her gaze shifting suspiciously towards Wang Xuan.

"She got hurt," Wang Xuan explained.

"Just from picking someone up? What happened?" the pint-sized Celestial Sword Maiden looked anxious.

"You two wait here, I'll go fetch some celestial medicine," Wang Xuan declared, wasting no time as his spirit dashed into the Solitary Void.

Celestial Sword Maiden Jiang Qingyao had sustained serious injuries while shielding him, bearing the brunt of a pursuit by a sword intent of surpassing might. Who was this pursuer? Once a rival to the ancient world's foremost figure, now wielding the Human World Sword, unrivaled under heaven!

Concerned for her, despite her assurances of being alright, Wang Xuan feared she was downplaying her injuries and sprang into action, hoping celestial medicine known for its life-restoring properties would aid her recovery.

Lately, whether it was the celestial vine transformed from the Nine Tribulations Lotus, the cactus, or the first celestial tea tree, all were thriving vibrantly.

Wang Xuan plucked a cactus leaf, still budding with flowers, then gathered a couple of leaves from the celestial vine, and a handful of tea fruits, swiftly returning to the real world.

The journey was long but took merely moments; his travels between realms had become incredibly swift.

Upon his return, the scene before him was startlingly serene. The two figures, one tall and the other small, both exquisitely beautiful, were bathed in moonlight, looking ethereal as they observed each other and then burst into laughter.

"I was really cute as a kid!" Jiang Qingyao remarked, admiring her younger self.

"The grown-up me is the most beautiful in the world!" the smaller Celestial Sword Maiden boasted with self-admiration, fixating on her mature counterpart.

The two celestial beings, gazing at each other and praising their own beauty, created a charming scene, their perfection enhancing the beauty of the moonlit mountaintop.

But the tranquility was soon disrupted as Jiang Qingyao, unable to resist, reached out with a "devilish hand" and pinched the younger version’s chubby cheeks, exclaiming, "Such a great feel, so plump and cute!"

"Jiang Qingyao, who are you pinching?" the little Celestial Sword Maiden cried out indignantly.

"I'm pinching myself!" the grown Celestial Sword Maiden replied with a laugh, unable to resist giving her younger self a squeeze, utterly enchanted by the adorable, plump cheeks. "Ah, it’s just me after all! How can I resist pinching myself?"

"Ah, but I am you and you are me! How can you pinch yourself like that!" the little one wailed.

Jiang Qingyao chuckled, "I love it! I haven’t seen myself as a child in ages, and look how cute I was! No wonder I grew up to be so stunning; it’s all in the good foundations!"

"Of course! Who do you think grew up from that cuteness? You… stop pinching now!" Initially delighted, the younger Qingyao soon grimaced under the relentless affection, finding it a bit too much, even if it was herself doing the pinching.

Quickly, she retaliated, clinging onto Jiang Qingyao like a koala, reaching up to pinch her elder self’s flawless face in return.

Her counterattack was swift and fierce; not only did she mimic the face-pinching, but she also tousled Jiang Qingyao's sleek, black hair, playfully tugging and twisting it.

Wang Xuan watched the playful scene unfold and eventually, couldn't help but join in, pinching the younger Qingyao’s cheek, relishing the familiar, long-missed sensation.

"You… ah!" the little one protested immediately.

Jiang Qingyao turned around, glaring at him, reminding him that pinching the younger Qingyao was akin to pinching her.

"It just looked so adorable, I couldn't resist," Wang Xuan said sheepishly, attempting to explain himself.

Both versions of Jiang Qingyao, united in their indignation, made it clear this was their personal affair, and Wang Xuan's unsolicited hand was entirely out of place.

Wang Xuan, ever so serious, quickly intervened before the younger Celestial Sword Maiden could escalate her protest, solemnly saying, "Qingyao is injured; she mustn't be jostled. Come on down now, and look here, this is celestial medicine for you to take immediately."

The tactic proved somewhat effective as the younger Qingyao reluctantly dismounted from her older self, though she wasn’t easily fooled and in a sprightly leap, she pinched Wang Xuan’s cheek hard in retribution.

The Celestial Sword Maiden's injuries were more severe than she had initially let on. Earlier, to keep Wang Xuan's spirits up, she had downplayed the terrifying nature of the ancient madman's sword intent, which would have obliterated a lesser being, leaving nothing of their soul or body intact. Fortunately, back in the old lands of the real world, even the overwhelming power of a figure as formidable as the madman, Shang Yi, was significantly diminished.

Once back, Jiang Qingyao's powers too were greatly reduced, a side effect of her reincorporated spirit and physical form returning from the celestial realm. Without any delay, she consumed the celestial medicine and settled down to heal, scrutinizing the malicious intent within her and reflecting on the horrific sword lights that lingered in her mind, aligning them with the supreme sword scripture she had acquired.

Wang Xuan, undeterred by the late hour, promptly contacted Chen Yongjie and Qingmu to send messages deep into space, reaching out to the ancient spaceship, warning Old Zhang and Fang Yuzhu’s avatars to stay vigilant against the unpredictable Shang Yi, who might become a devouring "black hole" in his quest to amass all supreme treasures.

After the calls, under the tranquil moonlight atop the quiet mountain, Wang Xuan noticed the younger Qingyao still eyeing him with a vengeful look.

She seemed to hold a grudge, likely planning to pinch his face in retaliation.

"Is it necessary? I just thought you were adorable, seeing you as one of us, which is why I couldn’t resist…" Wang Xuan explained, deciding to meditate right there to contemplate the world’s premier sword scripture, revisiting the madman's final devastating strike.

"You have blood at the corner of your mouth," the younger Qingyao, no longer holding a grudge, noted and helped him clean it off.

"Thank you for helping me bring her back," she said quietly.

"We're all on the same team; no need for thanks. But if you really want to thank me, let me pinch you again!" Wang Xuan joked as he sat down, only to be promptly thumped on the head by the little one.

Indeed, Wang Xuan had also sustained injuries, not from Shang Yi's last sword flash—which Jiang Qingyao had shielded him from—but from viewing the sword scripture. His eyes and heart had been pierced by terrifying swords, slashing through stars and carving through cosmic rivers. In his mind, countless colossal blades obliterated all in their path.

Jiang Qingyao had borne the brunt of this force, ensuring he could witness the complete sword scripture without disintegrating.

Now, seated in meditation, Wang Xuan's spirit entered his personal sanctuary, and then he ventured into the ethereal realms, distancing himself from the playful younger Qingyao, ready to grasp the mysteries of this mythic era’s greatest sword scripture.

In the Solitary Void, Wang Xuan practiced over and over, refining the sword lights within his heart, engaging in profound contemplation of this supreme, unrivaled sword scripture. Only after exhaustive weariness did he halt, his thoughts summoning a colossal sword that cleaved through red substances, its domineering intent vanishing as it withdrew.

Yet, not long after, he resumed his sword practice with a frenzy, immersing himself in the assertive essence of swordsmanship that depicted scenarios of slicing through cosmic seas, annihilating star systems, and tearing open the universe itself.

"It's time to return. I've roughly sorted out the essence of this sword scripture, but mastery requires time and cannot be achieved overnight. Even that madman couldn't have perfected it when he first practiced this scripture," Wang Xuan reflected as he returned to the real world, opening his eyes to find his face unnaturally pinched, undoubtedly the work of the younger Qingyao, leaving him speechless.

The silver moon still hung in the sky, little time having passed in the real world. He found Jiang Qingyao had initiated her special realm, meditating on swordsmanship within her soul's domain, her injuries seemingly under control thanks to the celestial medicine, ensuring her condition wouldn't worsen and would instead improve.

The younger Qingyao, too, was mock-practicing swordsmanship, stealing glances at him and feeling triumphantly pleased upon seeing the marks on his face.

Throughout the night, Jiang Qingyao repeatedly entered her special realm for meditation, her sword intent growing increasingly profound, and the sword she carried sang ever more sharply.

By dawn, as the first light of day brightened the sky and the sun began to rise, she concluded her meditation, emerging bathed in the morning's glow, radiating an ethereal, transcendent beauty.

"How are you feeling now?" Wang Xuan inquired.

Jiang Qingyao smiled, "I'm fine now. I've intentionally preserved that sword intent, analyzing and reconstituting it for my own use. Once I fully grasp it, it will accelerate my understanding of the premier sword scripture and aid me in forging my unique path in swordsmanship."

Relieved, Wang Xuan then asked, "When will you two merge back into one?"

"Yeah, hurry up, I want to grow up!" the younger Qingyao eagerly awaited.

Jiang Qingyao pulled gently at the little Celestial Sword Maiden's cheek, her voice tinged with affection, “Wouldn’t it be nice to give you a carefree childhood?”

“You’re the one having a childhood! I want to grow up. You are me, and I am you; mocking me is like mocking yourself!” the younger Qingyao retorted.

Jiang Qingyao considered for a moment before replying, “I think it’s better to maintain the status quo for now. With the era of the extraordinary ending and myths becoming silent, dramatic changes are likely on the horizon. It might be safer for us to remain separate. Actually, it’s probably wise not to be in the same place at the same time, maintaining two bodies for a while.”

The younger Qingyao was visibly displeased, “So you get to roam the mortal world while I continue sleeping on this desolate mountain?”

“How about I meditate here and you take a turn in the mortal realm?” Jiang Qingyao offered, her intention clear to delve deeper into sword techniques.

Wang Xuan chimed in, “For the short term, there aren’t any threats in the old land. I’ll take you both out to see and experience how the mortal world has changed over a thousand years.”

“Yes, yes!” the younger Qingyao excitedly raised both hands in agreement.

At that moment, Zhao Qinghan sent a message in the group chat asking Wang Xuan where he was, how he was doing, and if he wanted to join them for a meal.

This group, named 'Beyond the Vast Space', consisted of those who had ventured to the land of immortality, plus Qin Cheng who joined later.

Zhao Qinghan and Wu Yin hadn’t left yet, feeling that with the downfall of the extraordinary, the new star was more chaotic compared to the safety of the old land, where they had acquaintances and powerful guardians.

"Old Wang, where are you? You’ve been missing for days, don’t vanish into deep space without a word again," Qin Cheng also added.

“Alright, let’s meet at the Flowing Gold Era Restaurant in Ancheng at noon!” Wang Xuan replied, then turned to the two immortals, “Let’s go, I’ll introduce you to the world and some new friends.”

Soon after, Jiang Qingyao, flying on her sword, led Wang Xuan and the younger Qingyao towards Ancheng. They approached cautiously, stopping just outside the city to avoid attracting public attention.

Although the younger Qingyao had spent a year in the real world and was aware of various dramatic changes, Jiang Qingyao, new to these experiences, gazed at the sprawling modern city with a sense of loss, knowing that her old sect and the Sword Mountain of yore were no longer visible.

"What are you thinking about?" Wang Xuan asked.

"I'm recalling the first time I entered a city, and how my master bought me a candied hawthorn stick. It was such a sweet memory," Jiang Qingyao spoke softly, reflecting on how ancient towns had been replaced by skyscrapers, and those people were no longer around.

"I miss my master too," the younger Qingyao said, her eyes reddening. On that rainy night, her entire sect was killed by a man in black, never to be seen again.

"There are still candied hawthorn sticks now, I'll take you both to get some!" Wang Xuan offered.

Before long, both Celestial Sword Maidens, one tall and one small, each held a stick of candied hawthorn. Jiang Qingyao appeared slightly lost in thought, while the younger Qingyao was already happily nibbling away, enjoying the sweetness.