Chapter 391: Clear Mind

The cold patter of rain rang in my ears, and my skin trembled in the cold wind.

Pei Ye opened his eyes. In front of him was a dark cave in Gaokuang. The water at the entrance of the cave formed a rain curtain. Outside the curtain was the green and distant Cangshan Mountain, surrounded by pale mist.

The position did not move, and the woman in white was still sitting next to him.

"[Heart-cutting] only happened in a moment, you didn't waste any time." Ming Qitian said softly.

Pei Ye seemed a little slow and stiffened for a moment before whispering: "Yeah."

"The next sword duel will start in an hour. This is the time for the 'Ice and Snow Body' to rotate by itself." The woman said.

Pei Ye looked at the rain curtain, her vision stopped at the scene when she opened her eyes. For the first time, even the anger and pain seemed to have disappeared from the young man, and everything seemed to be sinking coldly.

He turned his head sluggishly and said in a low voice: "I'm sorry, I -"

The voice seemed to be cut off by something for a moment. Pei Ye looked at the woman tremblingly, and opened and closed his lips in an almost silent tone: "Miss Ming?"

The trembling eyes reflected the woman's current appearance. She was leaning quietly on the stone wall, with the open rain curtain of Cangshan Mountain as the background, as if she was a goddess living in Wushan, but she was about to be broken.

Another mutually damaging confrontation between Mingxin and Gushe almost tore her apart.

The porcelain-like cracks climbed across the neck and spread all the way to the pale and colorless lower lip.

Pei Ye's heart felt like it was being hanged.

"Some necessary price." The woman's pale face smiled slightly and said softly, "It seems that we have another chance."

"." It took Pei Ye a long time to regain the feeling of breathing. His throat kept sliding up and down. He controlled his body and stood up, ".Hmm."

He took out a porcelain bottle from the bag. The surface was still stained with his dried finger blood: "There is still some of Kongtong's wound medicine."

He pulled off the lid and poured out the remaining four or five pills. Ming Qitian on the stone shook his head and said softly: "Take it, it's not a wound, and the medicine for the wound is useless."

"Oh." He responded dryly, took two pills as he was told, and put the rest back into the bottle to put away.

The sky was getting darker, and Pei Ye looked around in confusion. At this time, the wind blowing in the rain made his skin feel cold again. He subconsciously pulled off the hem of his clothes, and the old dry vines under his feet came into view. He He picked them up one by one and piled them together. After picking up three or five pieces, he realized what he was doing and stopped.

In the silence, the young man suddenly slammed the withered vine in his hand to the ground, leaned against the stone wall and slowly sat down, covering his face and burying himself deeply in his knees.

The wood cracked and bounced, and the sound echoed sporadically in the empty cave, gradually returning to silence.

For the first time in seventeen years, the boy didn't know how to face himself.

He used to be really proud and confident.

After the dantian was broken, he still went fishing in the mountains and enjoyed a life of joy in hardship. He has always believed that when the dantian is restored, no one can stop him from getting everything he once had.

After his hometown was shattered and he bore deep hatred, this deep-seated arrogance still remained. He believed without a doubt that one day he would chop off the heads of those people, just as he and the old man had promised - no matter the enemy was called King Zhenbei or Taiyi True Dragon Immortal Lord.

I even naively think that I don’t have to pay a price other than “effort” for this goal. I thought I could still enjoy perfect friendship, budding love, and a happy life on the road.

So just after Zongfeng triumphantly won the leader, everything got a cold hammer.

The enemy ruthlessly destroyed his fantasy, and he was transferred to Xiangzhou as a street vendor. When he came back, it was already too late. The bloody blood on the girl's arm on the rainy night made him still unwilling to think about it.

In an unspoken rage, he vowed to tear apart everything his enemies had.

Silence, depression, and pain. Black Cat asked him, "What exactly do you want to prove?"

He wanted to prove that he couldn't be beaten.

He wants to prove that he can win the final victory and crush these villains to ashes! He wanted to prove that his choices were correct.

In the courtyard under the moonlight in Kongtong, he confessed his heavy heart to the woman repentantly, regretting his naivety and casualness. He almost recast himself for them. Kong Lanting, Guan Qianyan, and Zhang Jingbi were all very good people, but he never said another word to them.

He really put in all his efforts, staring straight at the enemy's back, only eager to use victory and blood to quench the thirst in his heart.

And now is the outcome of everything.

All Kongtongzhong's efforts, his anger and counterattack were meaningless.

He had long since admitted that he was stupid and weak. But I have never felt so clearly that I am a waste.

Nothing can be done well.

I can't see through the enemy's plot, I can't protect my beloved girl, I can't control my emotions. Everything from last night is still before my eyes.

He tried his best and desperately pursued the enemy, and they fought three times. Each time, he could not defeat the black robe in front of him.

First, he was ambushed and killed in the Hidden Sword Pavilion, only a hair away from death, and then he was escaped by the opponent in the killing situation created by Master Wu with his life. Finally, he gritted his teeth and chased after him, but he handed over the soul-stealing pearl.

Three duels, swordsmanship, resilience, and state of mind. He was completely defeated in every one of them.

This is the coolest fact - you don't fail because you are careless, even if you try your best, are full of anger, and use all your strength.

You just can't beat him.

The gap is not shortened by your anger.

No one comforted him, and he never showed it. But the moment he was defeated in [Xi Ting Xin] was almost the most painful failure for the young man, and the pride that he insisted on in his heart was shattered.

But he still did not collapse.

He rushed to Jianfu Mountain to save the girl and brought her to this cave. He raised his fighting spirit again for the countless times, entered her mind with the most serious attitude, and faced the legendary [Gushe Tianxin].

Another cold failure.

And it was more thorough and more desperate. This was not a "war crime". Even if he did it ten thousand times, he would never really take the girl's sword.

You want to save the clear girl you met "for the first time", but it is just your beautiful fantasy.

He is really not afraid of his failure.

From Bowang to now, he has been constantly suffering from blows, and he can stand up again every time. But now it is not just about him, Pei Ye.

They curled up in death, and their lives were hanging by a thread. The woman handed the only hope of her life to him. She saved him so many times, and this time he just wanted her to live.

Kill Mingxin and bring back Gushe. The girl had clearly told him the only solution, but he was still foolish enough to face Gushe Tianxin.

She had known the result of this action for a long time.

That was why the girl had no intention of trying it at all, so she kept asking him if he had really decided.

He really failed.

When he left his state of mind, the fragile and shattered look of the girl in front of him really defeated him in an instant.

It was another consequence caused by him.

He really didn't know what he should do.

He really couldn't find what he should be like.

The boy hugged his face between his knees. He tried to suppress it. Every muscle in his body was exerting force, but there were still intermittent low sobs.

The cave was extremely quiet, with only the vast mountains and the cold rain. In the tens of thousands of years since its birth, it had experienced such cold rain that penetrated the sky and the earth countless times.

So when the wind that had been flowing for thousands of years blew into the cave, a clear and gentle voice suddenly sounded slowly in the heavy silence and depression.

It was lighter than the cold rain in the autumn mountains, and more gentle than the most gentle words in the world. When it blew into the ears, it was like a polished wind.

It blew straight into the boy's heart, soothing the broken wounds, supporting the painful collapse, and soothing the mind that was about to collapse to calm down.

Pei Ye raised his head in a daze. The woman in white was leaning on the edge of the cliff cave. The rain curtain blurred her face, and the breeze fluttered her hair. She lowered her head, and her white hands held a jade-like flute across her lips. The one a little further away was already covered with tiny cracks.

She played quietly with her eyes lowered. The cold rain on the Cangshan Mountain, the goddess's quiet flute sound, and the boy's sad eyes, nothing was abrupt in this scene.

Pei Ye listened in a daze, as if a window was knocked open in the deepest darkness, and his cold mind was gradually pulled back by the sound of the flute. It was so sad and beautiful, like the waxing and waning moon of a thousand years, like a sad story of eternal farewell; more like a close friend who left thirty years ago under the moon, like the longing in the quiet night after the eternal farewell.

The heaviest sorrow in his heart was evoked by the sound of the flute one by one. They were no longer heavy depressions, but lingering. The boy stopped sobbing without knowing when, but tears flowed quietly.

Suddenly the sound of the flute changed.

It became rapid and drifting, like a night run in the forest, like the short cry of a bird. Pei Ye's mind was also tightened, and he held his breath deeply. Fate seemed to be tumbling violently, and it seemed to be fighting dangerously. Gradually, the sound of the flute became more and more rapid, drifting faster and faster, and the dark and deep night forest seemed to have no end forever, and the dangerous screams of the birds seemed to break his heart.

Pei Ye opened his mouth slightly, and the heaviness in his heart was fully mobilized at this moment, rising from the depths of his heart, revealing its shape from countless dark places, blocking his eyes, ears, mouth and nose, almost suffocating him.

The sound of the flute could no longer be restrained, becoming more and more rapid and sharp. One did not need to understand music theory, but only the ears could tell that such a tune that rushed to the extreme had no possibility of turning back, but it was still rushing forward, and faster and faster.

In such a panic that was suppressed to the extreme, the short and sharp flute sound finally reached its extreme end, but the next moment was not a broken tone. Instead, it was a sudden break and silence.

Just when she could no longer endure such torturous darkness, just when the expected destruction was about to happen happily. The woman suddenly stopped playing, and everything was silent in the wind and rain cliff cave, and all the emotions that were pulled to the high point fell unexpectedly.

But it was only a half-breath pause, and the clear sword light that cut through the sky pierced through everything.

A sound that has never been heard in this life, the bright, clear, and clean flute sound instantly penetrated and cleansed the soul of the young man, making him shudder all over. It was so high-spirited and so lingering, all the darkness could not fall back into the heart, they turned into dark clouds lifted high, and were instantly penetrated by the sword-like sunlight.

Kunshan jade shattered and the phoenix cried.

The cliff-like tune never appeared again, it climbed straight up to the sky, and then the sharpness gradually disappeared, and the melodious and long. The bright sword blade gradually turned into autumn water, and softened a little bit.

At the end of the song, the rain curtain was still rippling, Pei Ye stared at the woman by the cave in a daze, and suddenly felt that he had settled down inexplicably, and those heavy depressions seemed to have entered another world.

No one made a move or said anything, only the sound of rain beating on her. The woman looked quietly at the distant mountains, slowly put down her flute, looked back at the boy, and whispered, "Do you still want to hear it?"

".think."

"Um."

The woman turned her head, lowered her eyes and raised the flute, and the melodious and beautiful notes slowly flowed from her lips again.

Pei Ye didn't know when the flute stopped. He only found that when everything fell into silence, his heart had been soothed.

The pain was brushed away, and he leaned against the stone wall, staring at the woman with his tired eyes, but he soon realized that he had to cheer up again. Even though he was in a desperate situation, everything was not over yet.

The enemy was approaching, and he didn't have much time. He had to think of a way quickly until the woman sitting elegantly and quietly beside the cave turned around and asked softly: "Do you want to learn to sword?"

".What?"

"Learning swordsmanship." The woman looked at him, "Now we have time."

"."

Yes, Sima and Yi Duanzhi arrived at some unknown time. They could not predict or stop them. The sword showdown between Ming Xin and Gu She would begin in more than half an hour, but it was also a desperate situation that could not be changed.

So, since you have nothing to do for more than half an hour, do you want to learn the sword?

It was the first time for Pei Ye to truly experience the touch brought by "Dingjing Bingjian".

His nose became sore again, he lowered his head and pursed his lower lip, saying hoarsely: "Miss Ming, I feel very bad."

"Um."

"The two most painful times since I left Bowang were when I put you in danger." The young man's voice was tired and regretful, "I acted willfully and failed to defeat Gu She, so you ended up like this. Look."

"And before, I failed to guard the Soul Seizing Pearl." He moved his throat, "They took it from me and completed the last step of harming you. I ran into the mountains and saw you—— "

The young man's voice was hoarse and he seemed unable to speak. After a moment, he said: "I really thought you were going to die like that. I could only watch and couldn't do anything. It was all because I was stubborn and stupid and weak. I always I’m doing something wrong—”

"But even then, you still didn't surrender to Him, did you?"

".What?"

"Taiyi True Dragon Immortal Lord."

"."

"He stretched out his hand to you, but I heard it. You tell him to get lost." Ming Qitian looked at him and said softly.

"If you die, Miss Ming, I will regret it for the rest of my life."

"But you would rather choose to bear this regret yourself."

"."

"Pei Ye." The woman looked at him seriously and said softly, "That is the bravest and most noble behavior I have ever seen."

"."

"I can't accept what I can't do, and I can't face the consequences of my mistakes. So when a helping hand from outside reaches out, I desperately grab it. I am a coward and a loser." The woman said softly, "But , you have never lost to yourself, have you?"

"In my eyes, you have never been stupid or weak. You have always done the same thing."

"When you first met Qing Qing, you were resentful of what happened to her and rudely interfered in matters that had nothing to do with you; during the martial arts competition, you hoped that Zhang Junxue would have a brighter future, so you lost your temper with her recklessly; when you arrived at Kongtong , even if you say you have a deep grudge and will do everything you can to make them pay the price. But facing Zhang Jingbi, you would rather give up the clues you got and save him." Ming Qitian looked at him, "Why don't you If you respect Zhang Junxue's choice - just as you don't respect my choice now - do you have to be strong for others? "

"." Pei Ye stared at the woman blankly, as sweet and warm spring water seemed to gush out from the deepest part of his heart.

"Because you are such a passionate person." Ming Qitian looked at him with a soft voice, "You are always willing to put the responsibility on your shoulders, even if it is not a pleasing thing; you would rather fail and be safe than be wise. Being criticized by others and suffering yourself - isn't it?"

"I" Pei Ye suddenly found that his body seemed to be shaking slightly again, but it was no longer suppressed pain, but a sign of something about to break through, "But. But, I"

"You keep failing?"

"Yes, Miss Ming, I."

"So what if you fail?" Mingqi Tiananhe looked at him calmly, "What if you fail, Pei Ye. Do you care more about victory or defeat than your own heart?"

"Will you discipline yourself with a sense of victory and defeat?"

Pei Ye was startled and looked at the woman in front of him in confusion.

Will you discipline yourself with a mindset of victory or defeat?

Will you change your choice just because you keep failing? Pei Ye?

With her heart trembling with heat, Ming Qitian looked at him quietly and tenderly: "I like to see you like this, Pei Ye. Failure never means anything. If you die, it will be a brilliant life; if you are lucky enough to live, Let’s just get back on our feet.”

"This is how we face Gushe Tianxin, and whoever comes after us, and we only make the choices we want to make.

Even if you try your best and don't succeed in the end, that's okay. "