Chapter 42

The sky was a blend of pitch black and vivid red, and the earth was engulfed in flames. The scent of blood and smoke filled the air, making one feel nauseous.

Tanyin lay quietly in the sea of fire. She had been lying there motionless for a long time. Her body was severely injured by a demonic weapon, and her divine power, thick as gold dust, gushed out from her wounds, only to be devoured by this strange, boundless world.

In Han Nu’s embroidered pattern was a small world she created, where all the rules were set by her. And now, this world was trying to consume Tanyin’s divine power.

It felt like a dream.

Tanyin’s consciousness remained in a state of chaos, and she could barely remember why she was there. Instinctively, she compressed her divine power to the extreme, slowly healing the wound in her abdomen. But the wound, inflicted by a demonic weapon, resisted the divine power. After lying there for a long time, she finally managed to close the surface of the wound, preventing her divine power from spilling out.

Tiny, flickering sparks fell like rain, one of which landed on her body, quickly corroding a small hole through which her divine power seeped out, greedily consumed by this world.

Tanyin closed her eyes, struggling to recall the reason behind all this. She remembered going to Mount Xiang for the Immortal Flower and Wine Festival with someone.

With whom?

Why?

She couldn’t remember, even though it was the most important person to her. What happened next? Who did she encounter?

That person had a familiar divine consciousness… it was Taihe’s.

Taihe? Taihe.

It was as if the world responded to her thoughts.

The black and red sky collapsed instantly, everything before her eyes twisted and shattered.

Suddenly, the stars shifted, and it felt like she was back by the Milky Way. The river sparkled, and the stars were brilliant.

Tanyin looked around in confusion. The Taihe Palace was right in front of her. Yes, Taihe’s body was sealed within the divine crystal; she needed to check on him.

She turned and slowly walked towards the Taihe Palace. In the center of the hall was a massive divine crystal, where Taihe lay in a peaceful slumber, his arms calmly crossed over his chest. Tanyin stared at his intact hands, feeling a strange sense of unease, as if something was wrong, but she couldn’t remember what.

She approached the divine crystal, gently placing her hand on the cold surface. Suddenly, the sound of cracking echoed beneath her palm.

Horrified, Tan Yin watched as the massive divine crystal started to crack from the spot she touched, shattering like a fragile glass wall!

Taihe’s body fell to the ground with the shattered crystal, and in an instant, it turned into a shower of golden fragments, scattering in the air and falling like rain, landing on Tanyin’s hair and shoulders.

She was stunned.

For a moment, countless scenes flashed through her mind, and the past she had forgotten all came rushing back.

Han Nu’s eerie voice echoed from all directions.

“How cruel you are, Wushuang. You shattered Taihe.”

Tanyin unleashed her divine power, sending countless arrows of divine energy shooting in all directions into the void, but they were swallowed up as if they had vanished into the sea.

Han Nu laughed, “The taste of Taihe’s divine consciousness is delicious, vast, and sorrowful. Thanks to him, I successfully became a demon. Wushuang, what does your divine consciousness taste like? You’ll certainly help me pass the human tribulation smoothly, won’t you?”

An illusion; all of this was an illusion.

This was the small world within Han Nu’s embroidered pattern, where Han Nu could do as she pleased, without restraint. She trapped Tanyin here instead of killing her outright, to toy with her emotions and destroy her will, like a cat playing with a mouse.

She must not respond.

Tanyin sat cross-legged on the ground, closing her eyes. She compressed her fluctuating divine power, gathering it in her chest. She shut off four of her senses, leaving only her sight, carefully observing this boundless, small world, trying to find a flaw.

“Poor Taihe, Wushuang.”

Even with her hearing shut off, Han Nu’s mocking voice still penetrated deep into her mind, “Acting on your emotions, doubting, and holding a grudge all on your own. I couldn’t bear to watch. Come, let me show you the truth about Taihe.”

The scene before her changed again. It was when Han Nu had not long become a god. Tanyin often made odd little things for them to enjoy. That day, she made small wooden figures that could dance and sing.

She couldn’t remember what trivial matter had upset Taihe, causing him to give her the cold shoulder for days. She had lived so long yet understood nothing about men.

Perhaps all men in the world were fickle like this?

She wanted to make Taihe smile, so she racked her brain and made a few small wooden figures. At that time, she didn’t know how to sew clothes, so she asked Han Nu to make ten or so small garments for them to wear. As Han Nu dressed them, she laughed, “You really have a lot of odd ideas. Did you make these just for Taihe?”

Tanyin didn’t answer back then. She hadn’t thought about it. She made things on a whim, perhaps inspired by a sudden idea or to make everyday life more convenient. Doing something to make someone happy didn’t seem wrong to her.

Taihe was lost in thought by the Milky Way, so much so that he didn’t notice the group of small wooden figures walking up to his feet. The wooden figures started to clap and sing in a sharp, clumsy voice that startled him so much he nearly jumped.

Tanyin, hiding behind a tree, laughed so hard she nearly fell over.

Seemingly finding the little wooden figures amusing, Taihe crouched down and gently picked up one of the figure’s wobbly hat. Its arms and legs were still moving, and it continued singing an ancient, simple melody.

Tanyin rushed out from behind the tree, hastily trying to stop him. “You can’t do that! You’ll break it!”

Taihe held the wooden figure with a strange expression, as if he wanted to laugh but was holding it back. After a while, he finally asked in a low voice, “Did you make this?”

Tanyin was a bit flustered. “Y-yes, do you like it?”

He let out a long nasal “hmm,” neither confirming nor denying, and looked down at the wooden figure wriggling in his hand, carefully straightening its comical hat.

After a moment, he asked softly, “Did you make it for me?”

Tanyin nodded.

His expression was strange, one she had never seen before, so she couldn’t tell whether he liked it or not, making her feel anxious.

It was as if a star had suddenly fallen into Taihe’s eyes, a look she couldn’t understand at the time—bright and joyful, as if his entire soul had been ignited, not with the pain of burning but with supreme joy. Only now did she realize that such a gaze was one of love.

“I like it.”

Taihe laughed, tossing the wooden figure into the air and catching it again, as carefree as a child.

“It’s really fun.”

Tanyin sat cross-legged on the ground, like a silent, invisible observer, watching this old memory unfold with no way to escape. Although her body remained as steady as a rock, inside she felt as though she were being scalded with boiling oil. She had never understood Taihe’s feelings, not even a little.

The person in front of her continued to speak, “Since you made it for me, it’s mine. You’re not allowed to make these for anyone else.”

Why didn’t she understand?

As the sky gradually darkened, Tanyin had already returned to her palace to immerse herself in studying her crafting skills. Taihe slowly walked back from the Milky Way when suddenly Han Nu appeared in front of him.

She seemed troubled, deep in thought, as she walked, only noticing him when she was close, and hurriedly greeted him with a smile.

Taihe smiled and asked, “What’s wrong? You seem distracted.”

Han Nu smiled gently. “Oh? Aren’t you with Wushuang and the others?”

Taihe was surprised.

“With them doing what?”

Realizing her slip, Han Nu shook her head.

“It’s nothing. I’ll take my leave.”

Taihe watched her retreating figure with suspicion and then looked in the direction she had come from, which should have been where the Shenniao Terrace was, a place where the gods and goddesses often gathered to talk and laugh. He hesitated for a moment before finally circling around Taihe Hall and quickly heading towards the terrace.

As he approached, he saw the terrace lit with bright pearls, filled with laughter. Several gods and goddesses were gathered there.

In the center of the terrace, many small wooden figures were dressed and dancing, singing.

Tanyin was surrounded by a group of gods, smiling.

“These little things are quite interesting. It’s impressive that you made them.”

The gods were talking with her, their demeanor close and familiar.

Taihe stood alone for a while before his robe fluttered as he turned and left without looking back or saying a word.

“You…what have you done…”

Tanyin was stunned, unable to believe what she was seeing.

What was going on?

She had never done any of this!

Before she could finish speaking, all the gods and goddesses on the terrace turned into countless threads, which were then gathered up by a pair of hands.

Han Nu’s voice laughed, “Just a little trick of mine. How is it? Fun, isn’t it? Taihe was so angry, didn’t you see his expression? It was quite amusing.”

“Shut up!”

Tan Yin shouted angrily.

This behavior was simply appalling!

“It was you… it was all you…”

She didn’t even know what to say.

“It was me,” Han Nu’s voice was gentle.

“Without this, how could I have obtained Taihe’s divine consciousness? Only the soul of a god can help me become a demon.”

Tanyin felt an overwhelming fear. She suddenly stood up, wanting to move forward, but an invisible, transparent wall blocked her.

She pounded on it with all her strength, shouting, “I don’t want to see this! I don’t want to see this!”

She could almost foresee what was about to happen.

Taihe was long dead, his soul scattered, and his divine consciousness devoured by Han Nu.

Just the thought of it filled her with unspeakable terror.

Her divine consciousness began to feel the burning pain again, as the human tribulation started to consume her body.

Five thousand years!

Taihe had been dead for five thousand years, and she hadn’t known!

She gasped for breath as a battle between gods and demons erupted beyond the transparent wall.

All the gods were overwhelmed, and Tanyin, as a craftsman providing support from the rear, was exhausting herself trying to think of solutions. She had come up with a method to seal the cold ice of the Milky Way into the arms of the gods using divine language, but it had never succeeded.

Taihe was tormented to the brink of death, and she was running out of time.

What should she do?

That day, the seal still failed.

Tanyin left in despair, while Taihe sat alone in the hall, gently stroking his dark red left hand.

He must have just awakened from the pain-induced fainting, his forehead still wet with cold sweat, yet his gaze on his left hand was tender.

“Taihe, how are you?”

Han Nu walked in from outside, her face full of concern.

Taihe lowered his sleeve to cover his left hand and smiled faintly, “I’m fine.Thank you for your concern.”

Han Nu covered her mouth with a laugh, “I just saw Wushuang dragging God Qinghuai, saying she wanted to seal the sun’s golden sands in his right hand. God Qinghuai heard how much you suffered for this and absolutely refused, leaving Wushuang hopping mad. It was really quite childish.”

Taihe’s face was pale, but he forced a smile.

“Really?”

Han Nu sighed, “The war between gods and demons has brought much suffering to the gods. Taihe, don’t overthink things. Get some rest.”

She soon left, and Taihe lay down on the couch, his eyelashes trembling as he slept fitfully.

Suddenly, voices came from outside the window, causing Taihe to open his eyes abruptly.

It was Tan Yin’s voice.

She was pulling God Qinghuai, her expression aggrieved.

“I won’t let you suffer! I’ve tried it on Taihe several times. Once it works, I’ll seal the sun’s golden sands for you.”

Taihe’s expression changed dramatically.

He quickly pushed open the window, and Tanyin, seeing his pale face, immediately looked guilty and ran off.

God Qinghuai shrugged at Taihe, smiling with the superiority of a victor.

“You again?”

Tanyin’s voice trembled as the wound in her abdomen began to tear open, and she pressed her hand tightly against it.

Han Nu did not respond.

The scene changed again. On the battlefield, Taihe deliberately let the demons sever his left hand, which fell to the mortal world.

His face showed pain, but more than that, it showed a kind of numbness.

“Foolish man, his heart is truly terrifying. He hated you to the core, yet still gritted his teeth and endured, willingly falling into a deep sleep. Was this how he thought he could avoid the human tribulation? Wushuang, Taihe’s human tribulation was you. His tribulation began the moment his hand fell to the mortal world.”