"The first bow to heaven and earth!"
"The second bow to the high hall!"
"The husband and wife bow to each other!"
Sangmo hung her head, lifted by a pair of gentle hands.
The person hesitated before gently lifting the big red bridal veil.
A face of peerless beauty appeared before Sangmo, his slightly upturned phoenix eyes filled with tenderness, he softly asked Sangmo, "Is the phoenix crown heavy?"
Before Sangmo could respond, she was interrupted by the Ritual Officer's loud shout, "Exchange the tokens of betrothal!"
Shen Yanqing playfully winked at her and whispered, "It'll be over soon." He then picked up a parchment scroll from the red tray brought by the wedding matron and handed it to Sangmo.
At the same time, a red tray was brought to Sangmo's side by a wedding matron, containing a dagger inlaid with seven jewels.
Sangmo picked up the dagger, and under Shen Yanqing's hopeful gaze, she swiftly unsheathed it and stabbed it fiercely into Shen Yanqing's chest.
The surroundings fell into a brief silence, and the music abruptly stopped.
Three seconds later, screams rang out, and someone shouted, "To the rescue! Quickly save His Majesty, the Emperor has been assassinated!"
Sangmo's escort party swiftly revealed their swords and blades, and the originally festive wedding hall instantly became chaotic.
Amidst the clashing of arms, Sangmo coldly pulled out the dagger.
Blood spurted out, and Shen Yanqing's eyes turned blood-red as he asked desperately, "Why?"
Sangmo's eyes also reddened. "I'm sorry, I'm not Su Jinyi, my name is Sangmo, I am a crane from the Supreme Heavenly Court, I came to the Mortal Realm to search for the reincarnation of the God of Agriculture."
Shen Yanqing let out a bitter smile and finally collapsed to his knees.
Sangmo knelt down as well, "I'm sorry, my master raised me, he lost his magical powers when he took the lightning tribulation for me, missing the auspicious time for blessing."
"I must help him return to the Supreme Heavenly Court."
She cradled Shen Yanqing's drooping head and pressed a kiss on his blood-soaked lips, "Husband, in the next life, I will surely atone for my sins."
Shen Yanqing was stunned for a moment before a look of sudden realization appeared on his face.
His blood-stained eyes stared fixedly at Sangmo, his hands unwillingly clutching at her sleeves, "Have you ever truly loved me?"
Sangmo revealed a puzzled look upon hearing this; she couldn't understand why a dying man would ask such a trivial question.
She didn't even have a soul, let alone love someone.
But seeing as Shen Yanqing was on the verge of death, she mercifully nodded, "I have loved."
The way she spoke was as if she was coaxing a three-year-old child.
The last bit of light in Shen Yanqing's eyes completely dimmed.
Perhaps knowing his end was near, his voice was very light. He just said one word, "Go away!" and then his eyes turned vacant, devoid of life.
At that moment, a group of neatly-dressed cultivators suddenly burst into the hall, holding staves and chanting Demon-Repelling Mantras.
Continuous moans of agony filled the hall.
Sangmo turned her head and saw a man in a bright yellow robe stride into the hall, it was Gu Chao, the person who had awakened the memories of the God of Agriculture.
She released Shen Yanqing and rose to greet him, "Master."
Gu Chao glanced at Shen Yanqing's corpse, his lips uncontrollably curling upwards, "Good disciple, quickly give me the Heavenly Book."
Sangmo handed over the Heavenly Book without hesitation.
He couldn't wait to receive the Heavenly Book, flipping through it with a crazed look on his face.
As Sangmo stood by, just as she was about to speak, she was suddenly stabbed in the back.
The sword tip pierced through her abdomen and was quickly withdrawn. Sangmo looked at her abdomen in disbelief, then lifted her head to look at the man in front of her, "Master?"
Gu Chao sneered, "Immortal, you've mistaken me for someone, I am not your master."
"..."
In that moment, Sangmo felt as if she had been struck by lightning, her facial muscles instantly stiffened, she opened her mouth, and after a long while, she said in disbelief, "What did you say?"
"Heh—" Gu Chao sneered, his lips curled up in disdain, "All those things I told you were taken from someone else's memories."
"How could you be so foolish? I deceived you with such ease."
"I'll take the Heavenly Book. In your next life, be a bit smarter, Immortal."
Sangmo was utterly confused, she staggered forward, "Where has my master gone? Who is he?"
Gu Chao stepped back, and a guard at his side plunged a sword into Sangmo's chest.
"Isn't he right behind you?" Gu Chao said with contempt.
Sangmo slowly turned her head, and behind her, other than the guards brought by Gu Chao, there was only the corpse of Shen Yanqing still kneeling in its original place.
She stood there stunned, with an expression indicating complete confusion.
"It's that fox demon you just killed!" Gu Chao couldn't help but burst out laughing.
What?!
Shen Yanqing is the reincarnation of my master?
"You're talking nonsense, his appearance was just modeled after the master's statue when he was transforming, he's not the master! He isn't!" Sangmo couldn't believe it and shook her head frantically.
How could my master be a fox demon?
It's not true, it must be Gu Chao deceiving her…
Gu Chao squat down laughing, "You believed all the lies I told you, so why don't you believe the truth?"
"That year, after he was banished from Changli Mountain, I coveted his Demon Core and followed him all the way."
"I saw him getting drunk in a tavern when suddenly a rainbow light flashed over him, and then he started crazily insisting on going to Changli Mountain."
"I heard him mumbling something about ascending to the Supreme Heavenly Court, and then I used the Soul Fusion Technique to control him."
"In his memories, I saw the Immortal Realm, and I saw someone who looked very much like you."
"From that moment on, I knew you weren't Ajin. You came down from the heavens with the purpose of taking Shen Yanqing back to the Supreme Heavenly Court."
"I erased that part of his memory."
"Later, he was banished from Changli Mountain again, became the Demon Monarch, and obtained the Heavenly Book."
"I knew that only you could get your hands on that Heavenly Book, so that's why I made up a lie."
So, that year when Shen Yanqing came to Changli Mountain, claiming he had something important to tell her, he wasn't lying…
"Ah!"
Sangmo took two steps back, calling out in pain and panic.
The loss of blood made her entire body feel cold, and she couldn't support herself anymore and fell down.
It was her… who killed her master…
If it weren't for her, Shen Yanqing, holding the Heavenly Book, could have cultivated and returned to the Supreme Heavenly Court on his own; she had destroyed everything.
It's all her fault…
In a daze, she heard a clear yet profound sound of a bronze bell, and the majestic statue of the Emperor appeared in her mind, "Sangmo, do you still remember the task I assigned to you?"
"..."
After descending to the Mortal Realm, she had devoted all her effort to searching for her master, and she had long since forgotten about the task.
The Emperor's divine power was boundless, and he probably knew long ago. He had come now to question her guilt.
But the Emperor just sighed gently and didn't blame her; his tone was that of an elder educating a younger one, "Sangmo, you have been deluded."
Deluded?
What does being deluded mean?
She was just a bird, with a very small brain, unable to comprehend such profound language.
Deluded, deluded…
She tried hard to think, wanting to understand the meaning of the Emperor's words, but the more she thought, the more lost she became.
She grew anxious, breathing heavily, and extended her hand towards the Emperor, "I only know I was wrong, but I don't understand…"
The Emperor sighed again.
Sangmo lost consciousness amidst this sigh.
.
When Sangmo woke up once more, she saw red silk hanging from the ceiling beams…
She slowly sat up. Where is this place?
The scenery before her eyes didn't seem to be the Underworld; rather, it was more like… the dwelling of mortal women!
She looked down and to her surprise saw a letter written in blood, it read: "The mortal, Su Jinyi, offers her own life as a sacrifice, in hopes that the esteemed being will fulfill this mortal girl's wish…"
What happened?
She hadn't died but had returned to the time just after she descended to the Mortal Realm…