I descended from the Blooming Flower Pavilion, my steps slightly unsteady. I told Master that I wanted to go to Shu; the disciples there had sent word that someone resembling our junior sister had been spotted.
Master refused, saying that with our senior brother out subduing demons, the sect couldn’t be left without leadership even for a day.
I had never disobeyed him before, but how could I ignore anything related to our junior sister’s whereabouts?
Master, however, coldly tossed out her Life Stone and said, "Yan Shang, she’s been dead for years. Why can’t you face reality? You’ve searched everywhere—north, south, east, and west—have you found her?"
I stared blankly at the small purple stone, shaking my head. It was just a stone, just a stone—how could it prove that our junior sister was dead? No one can prove it; no one has found her body! Maybe she just ran away out of mischief or because she was angry with me. Maybe she was injured and lost her memory, and she just forgot the way back to Morning Mist Mountain…
I gripped her Life Stone tightly as I walked down the mountain, almost crushing it to powder. I impulsively wanted to throw it off the cliff but restrained myself.
Every disciple of a celestial sect typically receives a Life Stone when they join. It's enchanted and marked with a drop of their blood. If they encounter danger while out on missions or battling demons, the sect can know whether to send help or retrieve their body. But our junior sister's Life Stone lost its light five years ago when she disappeared. I refused to believe it and held the stone, praying to the heavens repeatedly, but it ultimately became just an ordinary stone stained with blood that could never be wiped away.
I walked to the White Bamboo Forest and sat in our junior sister’s old room for over half an hour. Her Life Stone, smooth and warm in my palm, must have been frequently touched by someone. Master appeared indifferent, but he was the one who was most heartbroken, wasn’t he? Having grown accustomed to her cooking, he hadn’t been able to eat properly since she disappeared, and he no longer managed the sect’s affairs. I searched everywhere for news of her, only to disappoint him time and again, reopening old wounds. How could he not be hurt and angry?
I looked at the white jade statue on the table that our junior sister had been carving as a birthday gift for Master. It stood about a foot tall, almost complete, except for the unfinished face. She had endured countless hardships to find that piece of jade, carving day and night without rest, but in the end, she never got the chance to give it to him.
"Second Senior Brother, Second Senior Brother," her voice echoed in my ears, and I almost started crying again. I had found that little girl in the mountains and raised her like a father, like a brother. It’s a bond Master could never understand.
Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. I opened it to find the Night Lady holding a tray of tea. I waved her off, saying it wasn’t necessary.
"I'm going to Shu for a while. Take good care of Master. I noticed he doesn’t look well."
The Night Lady nodded, her eyes downcast. She never dared to look anyone in the eye. When we spoke, we always looked in opposite directions, creating an awkward atmosphere. I knew she didn’t resemble our junior sister in the slightest, yet looking at her always reminded me of Changpu.
Yes, Changpu. Years ago, while out subduing demons, I found her among a field of irises, so I named her after the flower—Changpu.
She was frail as a child, spending a whole day and night out in the wild, the cold seeping into her bones. It was only thanks to Master’s diligent care that she eventually recovered. She didn’t learn to walk until she was two, and even then, she was mischievous. I often carried her around on my back, playing with her. The disciples in the sect adored her, except for our senior brother, who always quarreled with her. But those happy days vanished the moment our junior sister disappeared.
Master abandoned the sect’s affairs, and our senior brother rarely returned. There were even rumors that he was secretly recruiting disciples outside, trying to gain support to replace Master.
And me? I have only one wish: to find our junior sister.
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