Chapter 34: The Alternation of Fire and Wood, Tempering and Refining!

I bowed three times with reverence toward the spot where the Undead General had vanished, whispering to myself, "Rest in peace. I will surely fulfill your final wish." I no longer cared to distinguish between the virtual and the real; there was no need. In either world, my genuine emotions had become intertwined. To anyone who treated me with sincerity, I would respond with gratitude and loyalty.

I picked up the ink-black Dragon Spring Sword from the floor and slowly slid it into its dark-cyan scabbard. The sorrowful, haunting sound of the blade seemed to sing a dirge for its departed master. Rest easy; I will not let you be dishonored in my hands. Composing myself, I stepped onto the stairs. The mysterious, ornate mahogany door was within reach, yet I paused, filled with doubt, hesitant to push open the exquisite wood.

What could be hidden behind this door? The General’s earthly wealth? A gateway to another strange world? Or perhaps the secret to his true identity? Ten thousand angles of thought could yield ten thousand different answers. There was no use in overthinking! I took a deep breath, dispelling the inexplicable fear of the unknown, and pressed my hand against the door.

The two-meter-tall door swung open upon contact. The scene inside was revealed instantly: no mounds of treasure, no hideous monsters, and certainly no interdimensional portal. In the small inner chamber, a hot spring steamed, filling the room with warm, pink mist. In the center of the pool, a transparent hexagonal crystal, as tall as a man, stood faintly visible.

Could it be? Was this sauna what the Undead General had obsessed over in his final moments? While a dip in a hot spring is comfortable, it hardly warrants such solemnity. Could this be some prank by the system, setting up a tragic farewell just to test a player’s emotional intelligence? Wait—perhaps the mystery lies within that large crystal! I carefully probed the floor with my sword to avoid slipping into the unknown depths of the spring.

The spring was not large, enclosed by sturdy marble, and the massive crystal was within arm's reach at the pool's edge. "Alas... for twenty years, you are the first living person to break in here." Before I could discern the secret of the crystal, a desolate female voice drifted from within it. It resonated as if right beside my ear, yet also from the edge of the world—ethereal, flickering, and deeply uncanny.

"You... are you human or a ghost?" I asked, drawing my sword, my heart tightening. I felt no fear toward the physical undead, as they were no different from standard monsters in behavior and appearance. But this strange voice, belonging to an unseen entity, left me unsettled.

"How should I put it? I do not know if I can even be called a ghost. My physical body has been dead for twenty years; perhaps this state of existence could be called a wraith," the ethereal voice replied.

"Twenty years? What is your relationship to the Undead General outside?" Her voice sounded devoid of malice, and I relaxed, asking out of curiosity.

"Dust returns to dust. When my husband lived, he was invincible—the Great General of Divine Might, feared and respected by all neighboring states. Yet in death, he became no different from common soil. Driven by an undying conviction, he became an inarticulate, undead husk, a general of this ghost realm. Who remembers his peerless achievements now?" she lamented.

"You are his wife?!" I exclaimed in shock. Realizing he had died by my hand, I added somberly, "I am truly cursed; I killed him by mistake."

"Alas... he is finally free. Seeing the Dragon Spring Sword in your hands, I already knew. You need not blame yourself. He deliberately met his end by your hand in battle; an invincible general would be ashamed to commit suicide. To pass away before someone he trusted was perhaps the best possible ending. For twenty years, we could not speak, could not embrace, could not leave this ghost realm. We endured agonizing torment, a fate worse than death. If not for the hope of letting the secret see the light of day and reaching my Imperial Father, we would have long ago let our souls dissipate..."

"Imperial Father?! You were a princess?" I asked in astonishment.

"The past is too painful to recall! There is little time left. Since you are the messenger my husband chose, you must listen carefully to the origin and outcome of these events to understand why we are trapped here!" Her tone was resolute, brooking no refusal.

I replied honestly, "Proceed. I am listening."

"It began twenty years ago. My husband, Cheng Xijie, was a renowned military genius, already famous across the Four Seas by age twenty-four. After a great victory in the Western Regions, my father was overjoyed and bestowed upon him the imperial 'Dragon Spring Sword,' naming him the 'General of Divine Might.' He then granted me, his youngest and most beloved Princess Xiuning, in marriage to him. At eighteen, I had long admired his heroism, and he returned my feelings. We were wed with the blessings of the people.

"After the wedding, we returned to his hometown—the site of these ruins. We found his entire family of over three hundred slaughtered in a brutal fashion. As we sought clues, we were ambushed. My husband’s guard of five hundred was surrounded by nearly five thousand. They were Japanese pirates from the barren islands of the East Sea. Their leader, a tactician named Kawamoto, had somehow learned that my husband possessed a treasure map to an artifact capable of destroying the world, which they intended to use for invasion.

"My husband had indeed found the map in the Western Regions, but it was only one-fourth of the whole. After reporting it to my father, he was allowed to keep it as a wedding gift. My father entrusted it to me, saying that artifacts belong to heroes and that my husband should find the remaining pieces to bolster our nation's power.

"When the pirates failed to coerce us, they attacked. My husband’s guards fought with incredible valor, but after losing two hundred men, they were nearly overwhelmed. Suddenly, mysterious witch doctors appeared, conjuring a foul, black mist that corroded the flesh of any soldier it touched. Our men could not see the enemy in the darkness and fell one by one. Worst of all, they placed a curse on this land; even after death, our souls could not move on to the afterlife.

"My husband was a supreme warrior, but he would not abandon me. He fought until his armor was drenched in blood, like a god descending from the heavens. When the pirate leader realized he could not capture us, he ordered the witch doctors to kill us. Consumed by hatred and fearing the pirates might still find the map, my husband triggered the secret mechanism of the estate’s underground chamber in his final moments. He channeled my soul into this ancestral crystal and used a forbidden technique to turn himself into an undead husk, retaining his mind but losing his voice. The trap destroyed almost all the pirates; only the tactician and a few survivors fled, empty-handed.

"The witch doctor's curse bound us here. My husband’s soldiers, though technically mindless, remained loyal through their subconscious, unlike the pirates who became mindless husks. My husband found this underground spring, which gathers the spiritual energy of the river to sustain my soul. Now that he is gone, I must follow. You have little time; ask if you must. The arrow trap mechanism is the trigger for the chamber's collapse. The water flow maintained the balance; once triggered, the water drains, and the structure will fall." Princess Xiuning sighed heavily.

"Princess, where did the other undead guards go?" I asked.

"That is another reason my husband sought release. After years of guarding, their energy was depleted. Days ago, when someone tried to break in, he summoned them. After the battle, they dissipated into nothingness. He had been waiting for a worthy messenger."

"What of the bronze statue formation in the corridor?" I continued.

"That was a test of worthiness. My husband hid the brocade box containing the map and his sword to keep them safe. We have waited twenty years for you. Will you accept our final request?"

The system prompt appeared: "Do you wish to accept the A-rank hidden quest 'The Princess's Final Entrustment'?"

Driven by gratitude for the General, moved by their undying love, and fueled by a hatred for the pirates' treachery, I answered firmly: "I accept!"

Princess Xiuning looked relieved. "Three steps from the left wall, there is a brocade box. It contains the map and some of our personal belongings. Please report the truth to my father within a month, deliver the map, and warn him of the pirates. Seek revenge for us!"

"But how can a commoner like me see the Emperor?"

"That has been arranged. Had the sword not been cursed, it would have been enough. Use the month to grow stronger. Pass the wooden puppet formation in the palace to gain an audience with my third imperial brother. He was closest to me; show him the pearl ring in the box, and he will believe you. Be warned: the puppets are over level 60. If you fail, you will not get another chance.

"The water has drained; the tomb is collapsing. Go! Thank you for granting us peace." As she spoke, the ground shook violently. The pink mist vanished, and the crystal cleared. In her final moment, I saw a scene I would never forget: a celestial maiden departing, her smile containing a complex tapestry of joy, relief, sorrow, and pity. It was a face that could topple cities—a man would lose his soul just looking at her. Alas, such beauty is often cursed by fate. Her face was etched into my mind—the admiration of a mortal for a celestial being.

After retrieving the box, large stones began to fall. The tomb was shaking like an earthquake. I had wanted the eight night-pearls in the outer hall, but the exit was blocked by rubble. With no choice, I pulled out a Town Portal Scroll. Reluctantly, I crushed the expensive 25-gold coin item—my first time using one—and transformed into a beam of white light, flying back to Dali.