186. The Only One
.
Jinyu City no longer existed.
It had become too damaged for any form of settling...
This land touched by such evil would take almost a hundred years or more to heal.
And yet...
There was a peaceful beauty as sun rays bathed this once dark City, and the Immortals rallied around, planning the way forward.
Luoyin had collapsed right after he confirmed Yu Wang was gone, so the first move was to set down formations and send everyone home!
Strands of demon aura still wove through the air... harmless to the Immortals, but harmful to Mortals, so with some help from the other Immortals, Old man Bao raised a wide Barrier which would keep unsuspecting mortals away.
The days that followed seemed to breeze by...
Yin Ying teleported to almost every known Mortal dwelling, bringing the truth near and far, while the Medicine Immortal, still recovering himself, worked overtime to heal the wounded.
It hadn't been a joyful victory.
Thirteen Immortals had been lost... Seven swallows and six of the elder Immortals had fallen to either the wraiths, or swarms of the Eternal Realm demons.
The Swallows had returned to their dwelling in the Mortal Realm, though word came that Tianlong had lifted their banishment, requesting their return to the Tree of Swallows in Sky Realm.
The Eternal Tier Immortals also returned to Sky Realm, after ensuring that no Yu Wang or Zhurong Fen remnants lurked anywhere, especially around Yueyan mountain.
The Shadow Immortal fortified the Shadow Realm Seals.
And Baishan's Sect Leaders and Elders remained in Yue City to await Luoyin's awakening, and decide how to punish the traitorous elders and Sect Leaders amongst them.
.
.
Meanwhile, Sky Realm's chaos was far from over.
It was the chaos of 'cleaning house'... There were simply too many offenders hiding in Sky Realm!
With the fall of Floral Realm, the Merman Sky General was captured, Zhurong Fen's flower elders were apprehended, and almost fifty thousand Blood-Flowers were retrieved!
Through the Blood-Flowers, all Zhurong Fen's followers were traced easily, especially since her death had caused the Blood-Flowers to wilt, leading to a backlash amongst her followers.
More than half her followers were Floral soldiers, or soldiers hidden right in the Sky Army itself! Several were Elder Immortals or regular Immortals, strategically placed, and more than a few were found in the major Deity Sectors or Pavilions.
Though Sun Liang was Immortal Jin's illegitimate son, he was surprisingly not a follower of Zhurong Fen...
He had simply hated Yin Xiaolong in the past because Yin Xiaolong had cost him his potential position as Fate Immortal! And this hatred only grew after Yin Xiaolong was proclaimed the 'Demon King Incarnate'.
Sun Liang was no more guilty than most other Immortals, not to mention Tianlong and Fei Yun who had been closest to Yin Xiaolong, yet also foolishly believed his guilt...
In the end, all the offenders were rustled up and bundled off to the Cliff of Destruction, where almost a hundred thousand make-shift cells had been created to accommodate their vast numbers till they were sentenced....
.
Some time passed...
When Luoyin opened his eyes, he was back in Yue City, warmly covered in his own bed.
A clatter sounded from the doorway drawing his attention, and his eyes fell on a shattered bowl of tonic.
Standing there was Weiyan, the hem of her light blue robes now spattered in the dark tonic.
But she didn't care, and in a flash, she was suddenly beside the bed, pulling him into a hug.
"A-Yin! You're finally awake!"
"Yan...yan..." His voice felt hoarse for some reason. Almost as if...
'No way! I've not been asleep for almost a year, right??!!' He wondered in a panic.
After he fainted in Jinyu City, he vaguely felt the Medicine Deity check his pulse and say,
"My Lady, please do not worry! There's nothing wrong with him... He simply leveled up too quickly! And then he even dared to use his power to this exten-! Aiya..." He shook his head.
"It couldn't be helped, but as with all things in cultivation, swift success comes with repercussions! He would naturally reawaken in a few days..."
Back at the Yan house...
"A-Yin, so you know to open your eyes!" Weiyan lightly swatted his back, a gentle reprimand in her voice. "I've been so worried these past days!"
'Ha! I was indeed asleep for only a few days!' Luoyin mentally concluded. 'So why...?'
He sniffed, and the answer hit his nostrils before he finished the question.
Weiyan currently smelled like she had been cooking herbs, while his own mouth presently tasted like all the most bitter herbs in existence had gathered on his tongue to hold a banquet!
It was a familiar unpleasant taste which nearly made him spit blood!
In her worry, Weiyan had taken to making him 'tonics' again, as usual boiling them so long that they lost both benefits or toxins, while attaining the grandest level of bitterness!
Then she proceeded to pour them down his throat, even going as far as using her own mouth to feed it to him, just to ensure he swallowed it!
Luoyin's arms tightened around her, not quite sure whether he should be touched by the fact that she put such bitter tonics in her own mouth simply to feed him, or whether he should head over to the kitchen right now and burn down the entire thing so she wouldn't get ideas in the future!
Yinying, Tong, and Meng Qiu heard the commotion and ran in.
Both froze in the doorway.
"The master is awake!" Tong shrilled with glee, seeing her mistress happy again!
"Master! Thank Heavens!" Meng Qiu exclaimed with a bow. "I'll have a light meal prepared at once!" He said, then hurried out to the kitchens.
Yinying shook his head, his eyes suspiciously wet. "Xiaobai, you really insist on giving this old man more gray hairs!" He accused, Mingguang, the Light Tiger cub, now sleeping openly in his arms.
By now Weiyan knew he was the cub's father, so Yinying no longer needed to hide!
Luoyin offered Yinying a cheeky nod. "Laoying, you had gray hairs before I was born!"
"That does not mean you haven't increased the number!"
"Ei?!! But there's not much difference!" Luoyin shrugged. "So I'm not working hard enough?!"
"You-!"
It was only because of Weiyan's stern look that Yinying did not attempt biting Luoyin!
.
A little later, Weiyan had brought in the 'Light meal' Meng Qiu had arranged...
"Is he compensating for the days I missed?!" Luoyin asked, eyeing the massive bowl of porridge on his meal table!
But before settling down to eat, he took Weiyan's hand.
"Yanyan, I must say this before you even ask... Once I give my heart to someone, I won't look back, and there's only space enough for one!"
Weiyan's eyes glistened with sudden tears, as she realized he was likely speaking about his past with Feng Lian!
Luoyin gently wiped away her tears as he spoke. "I gave 'Xu Weiyan' my heart, and in this very room, I cut off my affections for 'Yan Liwei', long before I even realized you were one and the same person...
"In this case, I barely recall the moments with the one name Feng Lian, but even if I did, I would cut of those affections in the same way!"
He pulled her into a hug, kissing the top of her head.
"So rest easy, Yanyan! You're certainly the only one in my heart!"
.
.
That same night, Lord Xu manifested in the Yan House, having somehow learned that Luoyin was awake!
He offered Luoyin a full half-bow on sight, but Luoyin blanched, his eyes rounding fully!
"Fa- Father-in-law!! How can you bow your head to me??!! Do you want your daughter to make me more toni-?!" He caught Weiyan's whitening face and swiftly shook his head. "Ah! No, no, I meant, Father-in-law, this is improper in everyway!"
Lord Xu laughed as he straightened. "Forgive my daughter's special cooking talents!" He joked. "I'm honoured to be your Father-in-law here in the Mortal Realm, but aren't you much much older than any of us? And most importantly..."
He dropped to his knees, offering a full kowtow. "You have saved us all! If not for you, Yueyan would have fallen from the first attack, and the world would surely be in peril by now!"
Luoyin forced himself out of bed and hurried to help Lord Xu to his feet.
"Father-in-law, wasn't I the sole reason Yueyan was attacked in the First place?" He asked seriously. "I've not yet thanked you for taking me under your wings all this while... You put me in charge of the Light Tiger, granting me the earliest resources I needed to heal and grow.
"You entrusted your precious daughter to me, and at the Yu Shui Arena, when my identity was called to question, you were one of the first who jumped in to defend me!"
Luoyin cupped his hands and bowed. "It is I who owe you a salute of respect!"
"Aiya! That's enough of that!" Lord Xu caught his arm, straightening him. "How about we settle for no bows between us, hmm?!"
"Ehehe..." Luoyin scratched the back of his head. "Actually, I'm not finished. As for the matter of age... After so many memory trips, I recognise you from my past." He turned to Weiyan. "I can guess why you don't want to rehash bitter moments..."
Weiyan now wore a guilty look, and she simply turned away, leaving Lord Xu even more confused.
Luoyin sighed. "But Yanyan, you can't leave such things unresolved, can you?"
A silent moment passed and she shook her head.
Then she turned to Lord Xu and offered a bow of respect. "Father, would you please accompany this daughter for a talk?"
Lord Xu's brows raised into his hairline at her formal request.
But after a while, he simply sighed.
"Hao. Then why don't you lead the way..."
.
Weiyan led Lord Xu to the quiet garden pagoda, but she remained standing quietly, her back still to him.
"Yanyan, what is the matter?" Lord Xu asked, more worried than curious.
His daughter had always been quiet, but she had never been so hesitant before him before!
"Xiaoyin's words insinuate I was some Immortal in my past life?" He continued with a solemn sigh. "Did... I perhaps harm you back then? How did I offend you?"
But a quiet sob escaped Weiyan, and she finally turned to him with tears in her eyes.
"Father!" She fell to her knees, bowing in a kowtow. "It is I who wronged you...!"
After the return from Jinyu, Weiyan had met a familiar face with Yin Xing.
"Elder Sister!" Yan Linfeng had hurtled into Weiyan's arms in a reunion which was more than thirty thousand years due!
"Linlin!" Weiyan had hugged her little sister tight, gently patting her as tears ran down both their faces.
They calmed down after sometime, Weiyan wiping Linfeng's tears away, much like she had always done so many thousand years ago.
But during the usual discussions that followed between reunited loved ones, Yan Linfeng explained the entire story of what had happened to the Swallow Clan...
.