FXDL V7C9

This was a very long chapter that contains an entire roller coaster of events. But after this it’s just the epilogue left, then I’ll officially be done with the main series! There is still a bonus volume of random side stories, as well as the side stories I skipped earlier, but it’s exciting to be done with the main story soon. Also sorry if this chapter title makes no sense – it’s a pun in Chinese that explains the name of the series, and it isn’t really translatable (hence why I never tried to translate the name of the series from the beginning, and probably why the official English name of the series is just “Shalom Academy” instead).

Also I personally love how Fu Xing stopped the war – what do you guys think?

Translated by: TaffyGirl13

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Chapter 9:  Fu Xing arrives from the east (Fu Xing Dong Lai), Fu Xing returns to the west (Fu Xing dies)?!

A figure slowly crossed through the crack like a lead performer descending onto the stage suspended by steel wires. First was their feet, then their waist, shoulders, and enormous black wings. Finally, it was their face. 

Seeing the face that had arrived made many people cry out in shock.

“He Fu Xing?”

It was obviously He Fu Xing, with his Shalom uniform, slightly messy hair, and that same pure and naive face. There were two extra black bat wings on his back, as well as a strange, haughty grin on his face.

Seeing the one they had been concerned about appear unharmed, Leon and the others’ eyes lit up. 

“It’s Fu Xing!”

“He’s safe and sound?!” 

They all instinctively wanted to charge forwards and reunite with their friend. But before they could take a step forward, they were stopped by Zi Ye’s outstretched hand.

“Wait, something is wrong.”

“What?”

Zi Ye narrowed his eyes at the dazzling spiritual light flowing around Fu Xing, a sight visible to only him. “That’s not Fu Xing. The beast of axioms has taken over his body.”

Those words pushed everyone’s hearts from the skies of hope to the swamp of anxiety.

How would they chase away the beast of axioms without harming Fu Xing? How could they bring Fu Xing back?

They did not have much time to ponder this dilemma since the enemy before them had arrived in another flood, forcing them to reluctantly enter battle again.

Aside from Zi Ye, there were two others that could tell Fu Xing’s body was being controlled.

“All elves, advance to the Forbidden Tower to strengthen the seal!” Sanbi loudly commanded, a spell-imbued wind carrying his voice to every corner of the battlefield.

After hearing the order and hesitating for the briefest split second, the elves forcefully stopped what they were doing, regardless of whether it was fighting or putting up defenses. Their bodies glowed faintly as they flew in the opposite direction of the battlefield like a strong gale.

As the crowd of elves soared through the air, Sanbi’s command simultaneously entered Samukawa’s ears. With a quiet click of his tongue, he blocked Joel’s attack and immediately materialised his wings.

“Trying to run?” Joel threw a dagger at Samukawa. “Why are you withdrawing?”

“For your sake! Idiots!” Samukawa deflected the dagger with the hilt of his sword. “If the beast of axioms escapes from the seal, it’ll be the humans suffering a calamity!”

“Isn’t that too botched of a lie?” Joel scoffed, “In that case, why seal it?”

“Although I don’t want to admit it,” Samukawa bitterly snorted mockingly to himself, “It’s because this world needs humans.” With that, he joined the elves flying towards the Forbidden Tower.

Fidel, who sat in the centre of the battle, was both astonished and disappointed when Fu Xing appeared.

There were two black bat wings outstretched on Fu Xing’s back, confirming his identity as a non-human. It was like a declaration of being a demon.

“You’ve finally arrived, North Walker…” Elijah coldly smirked as he watched the dark figure in the sky. He pushed open the vehicle door and leapt out. Then, with a speed that no human could possess, he began to race towards the figure.

“Master Elijah!”

 

With arms crossed in front of his chest, Youny stood at the top of the building next to the Forbidden Tower, watching the chaos on the ground and the approaching elves in the air with disdain.

The Forbidden Tower area was quickly surrounded by elves. The old seal glowed blue on the ground as a new, reinforcing gold seal began to descend from above the building.

“Ahh, what a laughable farce.”

Youny extended a hand with arched fingers. Light shot out from his palm and struck the Forbidden Tower.

Shouts of alarm and pained cries rang out as broken brick tiles flew through the air and the tower collapsed. 

The sealing stones scattered throughout the campus all cracked, and the connecting net formed from the stones instantly dissipated.

Youny slowly descended to the ground, amidst the scene of devastation.

「Fu Xing」was glowing with a silver light as he elegantly stepped across the stones. Everywhere he passed through, the glittering sealing stones on the ground flickered black unsteadily before dimming and disintegrating into dust. The invisible seal was disrupted by the illogical existence and lost its ability to stably operate as it became violently distorted.

The corners of Youny’s lips curved upwards in excitement.

This was chaotic energy, the power that negated all normal states and principles—

Youny bent down and closed his eyes. The body of「He Fu Xing」was surrounded by a pale blue light as a silver silhouette floated out from Fu Xing’s back. Youny emerged from Fu Xing’s body like a butterfly leaving its chrysalis to fly towards the Forbidden Tower.

Fu Xing, who was no longer being controlled, collapsed and laid unmoving like a puppet whose strings had been cut.

Suddenly, an ear-splitting roar came from the broken Forbidden Tower.

Following the noise, a silvery figure descended from the sky. A snow-white beast with a half-broken horn jutting out from its forehead arrived from the heavens with a chilling, majestic presence. Its body was as pure as first snow, with scarlet flames circulating around it.

This was the beast of axioms’ true form—Youny’s original appearance.

The eudemon with the snapped horn loftily scanned the living beings below it. One human figure racing towards him on the ground caught his attention.

It was Elijah.

Youny smirked and thrust his front hoof in the air to summon heavenly flames, burning a large hole around Elijah.

“South Walker, you cannot do anything now that you have lost your physical form,” Youny regarded Elijah in disdain.

“At least my soul is completely intact.”

Elijah raised his head and whistled. His head and limbs glowed with gold spiritual light which gradually faded to reveal his beast transformation. Now, he was a single-horned beast just like Youny.

The gold eudemon ascended to the heavens and mercilessly stabbed its horn towards its sole kin. Youny dodged while creating more spheres of lightning and fire with a furious stamp of his feet.

In the sky, the two great beasts fought tooth and nail against each other in a fight to the death. The people on the ground momentarily stopped their actions to watch the beasts fight in awe and reverence.

These were the things that protected them, and the things they protected…

 

Leon and the others pursued「Fu Xing」and rushed to the Forbidden Tower. After searching for a while, they discovered the unconscious Fu Xing lying on the stones in the woods behind the tower.

Using the beastmen’s enhanced physical abilities, Brad instantly reached Fu Xing’s side first and lifted him up.

“Fu Xing? He Fu Xing?!”

Brad shook the person in his arms, his heart pounding so hard in his panic that he could barely feel the wounds that covered his body. He could not tell if the person before him was alive or not.

The others swiftly caught up and knelt around Fu Xing, watching him anxiously.

Leon stood outside the circle, not daring to get close. He was afraid to face a cruel reality.

Just like that day when Lia had died.

A member of the Sagveiss clan had returned with a bloodstained frock. The thin garment made of silk had been placed in an exquisitely carved wooden box to store Lia’s remnants. He had not had the courage to even take the box, leaving it with Lorenzo to stow away. In the past twenty years, he had never once taken the box out, let alone open it.

He was just that cowardly, only able to let his heart fill with the thoughts of revenge and try to eliminate the emptiness and pain inside through an unending path of vengeance.

Zhu Yue cupped Fu Xing’s face, caressing it gently with her ice-cold hands. It terrified her that the face was just as freezing as her hands.

The others silently watched Fu Xing, their minds blank. It wasn’t that they were emotionless, but that the pain was so abrupt and intense that they were momentarily numb.

“Wake up! Bastard!” Brad forcefully shook Fu Xing as he angrily shouted through clenched teeth, “You’ve caused so much trouble. Even though we’re easygoing and willing to help you deal with the aftermath…” He dropped his head in defeat as he choked out tearfully, “You still need to at least wake up and voice your thanks…”

Everyone remained quiet as they stared at the ground in wordless mourning.

“Oh…Brad…” A voice slowly said all of a sudden, “Are you crying?”

The weak voice was like a candle’s flame in the darkness that instantly lit everyone’s hopes up.

“Fu Xing!” They cried out in joy.

“You’re not dead!” Dan Juan was about to cry tears of happiness. “That’s great! I thought you were gone! If you died, I would’ve definitely helped write your obituary and funeral verses! This is wonderful! He Fu Xing! You’ve done well!”

Momiji shot Dan Juan a glare, but at this point,  no one could be criticised.

“Thank goodness you’re alright!” Zhu Yue asked worriedly, “Are you feeling any discomfort? Are you hurt anywhere?”

“Mm, I don’t think so…” Fu Xing mumbled as though half-asleep. “Um, what time is it?”

“You damn brat!” Brad patted Fu Xing on the shoulder in delight. “You gave us so much trouble, you bastard!”

“Brad, did you cry?” Fu Xing dumbly stared at Brad. “Why are you holding me? Are you that desperate?”

“Shut up! I just haven’t slept in two days, so my eyes are tearing!” Brad immediately let go and roughly used the back of his hand to wipe his face in embarrassment. “You’re the desperate one! It’s not like you encountered a bear, what were you playing dead for!”

“I wasn’t! I just happened to only wake up now!” Really, not honest with his feelings at all… “Where’s Leon?”

“I’m here.” Leon walked over and crouched down to face Fu Xing at eye level as he firmly stated, “I’m right here.”

Fu Xing felt relief wash over him and he beamed happily. “You’re back.”

The corner of Leon’s lips unknowingly turned upwards to form a relieved smile as he looked at Fu Xing.

A deafening boom of thunder and explosions suddenly drew Fu Xing’s attention. When he turned towards the source of the noise, he could only stare in shock at the unicorns fighting each other in the sky.

“What are those two things! Am I still dreaming?” Fu Xing muttered to himself dazedly, “A qilin must be struck with a flaming sledgehammer…”

“What are you going on about now?” Brad forcefully patted Fu Xing’s cheeks. “Are you awake?! Completely awake?!”

“The one with the broken horn is the beast of axioms, the eudemon that was sealed in the academy grounds.” Leon explained, “As for the other one, it seemed to have been brought by White Triangle.”

Beast of axioms? Fu Xing instantly understood. “It’s Youny and Elijah…”

“What?” Brad was curious. “You know them?”

“I know the one with the broken horn.” Fu Xing plainly stated, “He also counts as my…friend.”

“Didn’t your mother ever tell you to choose your friends carefully?” Dan Juan frowned as he reprimanded, “Don’t befriend anyone with unknown backgrounds or weird characters, got it?”

“It’s extremely ironic that those words are coming from your mouth.” Emerald patted Dan Juan on the shoulder.

“Fu Xing, Fu Xing! Are you alright?!” The enormous black hound excitedly raced over while asking the question in Rocort’s voice.

“What’s that?” Fu Xing asked with wide eyes.

“That’s Rocort.”

“How did Rocort become like that?!”

“Don’t know, maybe he ate something weird,” Flora answered flippantly.

Everyone was together now.

Fu Xing glanced around at his companions, a feeling of warmth enveloping his heart.

He was very content and grateful for just having them all as friends.

“Since Fu Xing is fine,” Momiji assessed the battlefield in the distance. “We should withdraw.”

“What?!”

“Our objective for coming back here was to rescue you.” Emerald pragmatically stated, “Now that we’ve accomplished that, we should go.”

“Besides, we already expended most of our strength on the battlefield earlier.” Flora coolly analysed, “If we continue fighting here, we might end up unable to retreat unscathed.”

Fu Xing scrutinised his companions. Their clothing was tattered, they were covered in wounds, and were overall in very tragic states. Although this made him unhappy and hesitant, he could not leave. He still had to carry out his mission.

“I can’t leave…”

“Are you still asleep? What are you talking about now?!” Brad impatiently reached out to pat Fu Xing’s cheeks again.

“This is my duty.” Fu Xing stood and took a step back. “I must stop the war…”

The others exchanged looks with one another as they sensed the abnormality in Fu Xing’s behaviour.

“Are you alright, Fu Xing?”

“I’m great.” He jumped in place to prove he was fine.

He knew his friends were worried about him, he knew his friends were afraid that he was not strong enough and would be running to his death. However, they did not know that this was his role, a path that he had to follow.

“Don’t worry about me.” Fu Xing laughed hollowly, and asked somewhat shyly, “Oh, right, did you see my wings? They’re cool, aren’t they?” He moved the bat wings on his back.

“Mhm, and?”

“Isn’t it illogical for me to simultaneously have arms and wings? According to the principles and evolution of transformation, ‘any winged races will have their wings turned into arms when they take human form, and their arms will turn back into wings when they return to their beast form’. There’s no such thing as my case of having both.” Fu Xing bitterly smiled, “I’m not only a variant, but an abnormal one at that. I’m a failure as a human, but I’m not quite a monster either.”

The others could only stare blankly for a moment.

“And so what?” Flora clicked her tongue impatiently as she pointed at Rocort. “This guy even turned into that thing. All you did was grow wings, and you already think you’re super amazing?”

“No one cares if you have wings or not, if you’re normal or not. You’re our friend, and that’s it.”

“Drop all the chuunibyou stuff. This place is really dangerous, so we should hurry back home.”

Fu Xing looked at his companions, his eyes starting to smart.

Although he had expected his friends to say such things, he still felt emotional.

“I’m really very, very glad that I’m a special animate being, and very, very glad I entered Shalom and met you all.”

“Fu Xing?”

“You guys were always the one helping me deal with the aftermath and protect me.” Fu Xing smiled brightly with firm resolve. “This time, I’ll be the one protecting you guys instead.”

With that, he turned and with a strong flap of his black wings, soared up to the skies.

“Fu Xing!”

 

The gold beast and silver beast continued to clash in the heavens.

Elijah had released all of his eudemon powers from his soul to return to his original state from ancient times. He summoned gold lightning and storms to attack Youny. The constantly circulating, golden light around his body transformed into glowing arrows while simultaneously healing the wounds inflicted by Youny.

Although Youny had regained his body, he had only just combined again with his flesh. In addition, with the snapped horn having never regrown back, he could not use his full strength. At most, he could only remain evenly matched with Elijah, the two stuck in a draw. Moreover, as the proper time had not yet arrived, he remained bound to this space-time crack.

Youny brandished his hooves, sending black and crimson flames towards Elijah. Elijah swiftly darted backwards, but was a beat too slow and was struck on his right shoulder. Fresh blood began to gush out from the wound.

“Have you reached your limit? Human forms have their restrictions. Your life force must be close to its final dregs…” Youny chuckled contentiously. “Will you find a way to save the power to reincarnate and come back again this time?”

“I’m far from that point,” Elijah sneered back. “Even if I walk towards the path of destruction, I’ll make sure to watch your end first!” He raised his head, lightning crashing down like a storm and accumulating above the horn on his forehead.

The horn flashed with blinding gold, making it impossible for everyone present to keep their eyes open.

“Wait!” A dark figure abruptly barged in, flying up to Youny.

“Fu Xing?!” Youny’s eyes widened.

What did he come here for? And he managed to recover so quickly from the side effects of being possessed? 

“Hehe, it’s me.” Fu Xing scratched his head with a foolish grin. “You’re so pretty, Youny…”

“What kind of idiotic things are you saying…” Youny snorted. He knew that his current state was beyond tragic-looking.

Despite having seized his body back, because it was not yet the proper time and his soul’s integration with his flesh was not complete, he was in an unstable state. In addition to bearing the brunt of chain attacks while maintaining raised defenses, his power was draining bit by bit.

“Pull back, Youny. Why don’t we just go home?” Fu Xing sincerely urged, “Stop fighting…”

“You’re just a chess piece that I no longer have use for. You don’t have the ability to give me orders.”

“This isn’t an order. I don’t want to see either side disappear…” Fu Xing sighed. “You both sacrificed yourselves for this world. You’re both the same, so stop trying to slaughter each other…”

“Impossible!” Youny coldly refused. “Don’t stand in my way. I will mercilessly trample over any obstacles this time.”

When Fu Xing was about to earnestly reply to Youny, Elijah finished gathering his power in the distance. A massive ball of light floated above the tip of his horn.

It’s done. 

Elijah swung his head, causing the light atop the horn to lash out like a whip straight towards Youny, who was momentarily caught off guard. He hurriedly shifted his attention and prepared to dodge. However, the light was moving too quickly, and his injured body could not respond in time, making it difficult for him to act as he wished.

Oh no—

“Watch out!”

A force suddenly slammed him aside. The next second, the blazing light struck the dark figure right in the chest. Once it knocked its target out of the air, the light gradually faded away.

He Fu Xing began to fall towards the ground like a dying meteor.

Elijah and Youny were stunned, and time seemed to come to a standstill.

Both of the beasts stopped fighting in the air as they froze in bewilderment. It felt like the rest of the world suddenly faded away as all sound died. All they could do was watch that dark figure gradually descend through the skies inch by inch, like a film in slow-motion.

Elijah could not understand. Special Case #13 was just a pawn manipulated by the North Walker. Why make such a sacrifice for its sake?

Youny could not understand. He Fu Xing knows my identity, knows that he was just being used, so why help me still? What confused him even more was the intense pain in his heart. Where is it coming from? Why do I feel like this? How do I stop it? 

Fu Xing.

He Fu Xing.

What have you done? 

 

Fu Xing.

He Fu Xing. 

Someone was calling his name. It reverberated from every direction with no clear source like an echo through a valley.

Did I die? 

He could not feel anything, and all his senses were gone. The only thing remaining was his drifting consciousness.

I’m not dead yet? 

His vision gradually restored amidst the haziness, and he saw light.

There were many people standing in the light. He could not see them clearly, just indistinct silhouettes.

Where is this… Fu Xing pondered to himself.

If I’m dead, is this Heaven? 

A broken voice rang through his head in reply.

This is the resting place for the deceased. However, you are one that will end the war. You cannot die from the beast of axioms’ spell. You must return and complete your unfinished calling…

Startled, Fu Xing scanned his surroundings and the blurry figures. Amidst the haze, he seemed to see Countess Lee and her maids.

He doubtfully walked towards those figures he had once known, wanting to see more clearly. However, no matter how much he walked, he could not get any closer to them. The blurry silhouettes maintained the same distance from him the entire time.

The one that will end the war… He hated that title. He did not wish for it, nor was he qualified to take on such an important mission.

He had no idea where to even start.

“If I’m so important, why not make me more powerful and give me a higher status?” He shouted at the figures, venting his anger out at them.

They did not respond.

He hated his helplessness, and hated even more that despite his lack of ability, he always tried to intervene with things he was powerless against.

If he was strong enough, he could directly eliminate everyone standing in his way—

But then, isn’t that the same as what Youny is doing?

A small voice refuted, shooting down that thought.

If his status was high enough, he could have a group of loyal followers and influence them to gather their powers and deal with any issues faced—

Then isn’t that the same as what Elijah is doing? 

Fu Xing furrowed his brow and he helplessly sighed.

He suddenly began to understand just a bit why someone as ordinary as him had to take on such a critical calling.

Because he was not strong enough nor influential enough, the things he considered and cared about were different from those powerful beings.

He was weak, and stuck between the worlds  of humans and non-humans. He liked both sides, and could not bear to watch either suffer.

It was not necessarily because of any deep emotion of love and mercy, but simply because he had friends on both sides.

If any of them lost, someone would fall into hardship, and he did not want to see his friends suffer.

Fu Xing stared at the indistinct figures around him. Aside from Countess Lee, he could vaguely tell some were wearing White Triangle’s uniforms.

The deceased spirits of humans and non-humans stood next to each other without any clear distinction of their appearance or race as when they were alive.

However, he could sense that the deceased carried the same desire: the desire for true peace.

Fu Xing worriedly asked, “Er, does this mean that in order for the war to end, everyone from both sides must die?”

Not at all. 

The deep voice rang out again, directly rejecting his conjecture in a firm tone. At the same time, a commotion seemed to arise among the blurry figures.

Fu Xing was very familiar with that type of reaction. Anytime he did or said something foolish, he would receive that response.

“It’s great if that isn’t the case. I was just asking…”

He scratched his head awkwardly as he watched the deceased.

Thousands of years from now, he and Leon, Zhu Yue, and Fidel would become like these people…

If this war was gone, perhaps when the time came, they would peacefully coexist like these deceased.

Without physical bodies, conflicts between life forms would come to an end. After their lives reached an end, their souls would be able to confront each other in earnest without any boundaries, and they would come to understand each other.

—Without physical bodies? 

A light bulb went off in Fu Xing’s mind.

He recalled a memory, one filled with chaos and instability, but also with happiness.

I think…I know what to do…

At the same time, he noticed that his body was starting to fall as though sinking through water, dragged by an invisible force.

Fu Xing turned back towards the blurry silhouettes to voice his final question. “Am I able to do it?”

No one responded.

Fu Xing pouted. “Really…must everyone act so mysterious after turning into departed souls? If I die, I’m definitely going to become a noisy ghost. You guys had better watch yourselves! Who knows, maybe I’ll be back very soon!”

It is still early…

A voice with mirth in its tone replied.

Fu Xing closed his eyes, allowing his consciousness to gradually drift away.

He knew what he was supposed to do.

He was the one that would end the war. He would eliminate neither the humans nor the special animate benign, but the prejudice and conflict.

One could only truly understand another when standing in their shoes, in their situation.

As for how to make that happen, he had known that for a long time. In fact, he had done it before in practice. It had been during the school ceremony.

He just needed to enhance, expand, and transform the spell he had accidentally created—

And then wait to witness a miracle.

 

The dark figure continued to fall through the air. Leon, Brad, and the others raced forwards, prepared to intercept before Fu Xing hit the ground.

However, the body’s descent came to an abrupt stop approximately three metres from the ground, then slowly floated down like a feather and elegantly landed.

“Fu Xing?” Everyone was dumbfounded.

At the same time, as though drawn by an inexplicable force, everyone on the battlefield subconsciously turned to stare at the ordinary and average-looking dark-haired youth.

Fu Xing stood there in the centre, surveying his surroundings and observing the antagonism and slaughter on both sides due to lack of mutual understanding.

He closed his eyes and thought back to the spell he had created in the gymnasium before the school ceremony. He opened his mouth and softly changed something in a language no one had ever heard before, circulating his innate power through his body.

Pure chaotic energy began to radiate from Fu Xing in the form of a dim, pearly glow that rippled outwards in waves.

Whoosh—

Transparent objects of different sizes floated down from the sky, covering the entire expanse.

“What’s that?”

“Are those…bubbles?”

Elijah, who had expended nearly everything he had to unleash that one attack, lost his strength and descended back to the ground. He transformed back into his human form and weakly collapsed onto his knees, panting hard for breath as he stared up at the bubbles filling the sky with uneasy perplexity.

Fidel hurriedly rushed over to Elijah’s side to help him up, anxiously scanning his body for any injuries.

As the bubbles approached the ground, cries of confusion and shock followed. The bubbles that reflected dream-like colours of the rainbow quickly landed. Upon touching anyone, it instantly burst into tiny specks of multicoloured light before vanishing. When these bubbles popped, an invisible disturbance and force spread through the air. Each time a bubble broke, spiritual power rippled out in waves, one after another.

The battlefield was dead silent, completely frozen and dumbstruck. Everyone looked at their surroundings in shock, sensing that something was off.

Seeing Elijah’s eyes wide in terror, Fidel asked in concern, “M-Master Elijah? Are you alright, sir?”

Elijah shook himself free from Fidel’s grasp and stared at Fidel in panic.

“I’m not Elijah!” Elijah shouted hysterically, “This isn’t my body! This is the Souther Walker’s body!”

This is…He Fu Xing’s spell! The one that caused chaos before the school ceremony because it swapped the northern campus candidates’ souls! 

“Ah?” Fidel was taken aback. The next second, a baseball-sized bubble fell onto Fidel’s head and dissipated.

The bubbles continued to float down like snow everywhere, impossible for anyone to dodge. The shock and astonishment spread as everyone stared at their own bodies and touched their own faces in disbelief.

Fidel’s consciousness lapsed for a moment, but immediately recovered. An intense pain near his feet forced him to look down.

His long, black-clothed leg was bleeding, a silver bullet embedded in his shin. Waves of excruciating pain constantly came from the wound, as though his muscles and flesh were being ripped away strip by strip.

Yet the owner of the body continued to stand tall and straight, blades in each hand, seemingly having been still fighting.

Fidel couldn’t help but feel some respect towards them.

He glanced down at his own hands. They were slim and snow-white, the nails beautiful manicured with coral polish. Yet the sharp swords they held were dripping with fresh blood. His gaze shifted upwards and found that his chest carried soft, plump breasts.

This is a woman’s body?! 

But what shocked him more wasn’t the body switch, but the necklace this body wore. It was an ancient bronze cross.

He recognised this cross. It was from over a decade ago, when he was a student and volunteer soldier. He had bought the item at the Stuttgart antique market. It was a fake, but the one he had gifted it to had not minded, and happily accepted it.

The owner of this ancient bronze cross was a beautiful woman, a woman he had once admired, a woman that had betrayed him. She had been a beautiful spy hired by the Yin beasts.

She had approached him only to dig out intel on the World Sanctification Court. Then, the next time they met, she and her companions had killed the entire volunteer army, right before they could become official members.

However, she had left him behind as the sole survivor.

She had discovered him hiding in a cupboard, curled up and trembling in fear. Yet she had simply smiled bitterly in remorse, then quietly closed the door without notifying her companions. Like that, they had left.

He hated her. Hated her betrayal.

Yet, he could not understand why…she had kept this cross…

“Rachel…” This body belonged to Rachel Walter, that beautiful nightmare.

Footsteps approached him. He glanced up to see “himself” walking over.

This was his first time looking straight at himself in its entirety. It was not quite the same as a reflection in the mirror — it felt more real, as though he could see not just the body, but everything else as well.

His body was stained with blood and filth, and covered with wounds. This was the him that had experienced a “holy war”, yet why…

Does it look nothing like the holy war’s angels sanctifying the world, but a demon walking out from a bloody massacre? 

“Is that you, Fidel?” 「He」asked.

Fidel stared at himself suspiciously, uncertain who the soul occupying his body was.

“Long time no see.” 「Fidel」continued, “You’ve grown stronger and matured so much…”

“Rachel?”

Alarmed cries rang out in succession along with screams of disbelief, roars of adamant denial, and confused shouts.

“This isn’t me!”

“This is a Yin beast!”

“It’s a human! I’ve turned into a human!”

Special animate beings and humans both were shocked to the core by this absurd and outrageous miracle.

Leon’s group was similarly dumbfounded, though their reaction wasn’t as intense as the others. They knew what had happened – before the school ceremony,  they had swapped bodies and exchanged souls because of this exact spell.

However, the changes did not end there this time around.

The chaotic energy did not stop after just switching bodies. It continued to operate within, stirring up still waters and upsetting established reality. 

Aside from their souls, the memories and emotions residing in each body circulated continuously, welling up inside them.

Different individuals of different races were experiencing each other’s pain and sorrows, while also inheriting their hopes and triumphs.

Although their pasts varied, they shared the same emotions of happiness, anger, sadness, and joy. Despite being of various ages and possessing unique capabilities, they all had faced the vicissitudes of life.

Leon stared at his own hand. It was missing the little finger, and its palm was covered in calluses.

He could see in his mind’s eye who the owner of this body was, someone that had once been a plain and simple worker. Their parents had passed away early, leaving him and his little sister behind to rely on each other for survival. He had given up school to work hard at jobs, raising himself and sister. While their days had been tough, they had experienced everyday joys as well.

Until one night, his younger sister never returned home.

Several days later, the police had contacted him and informed him that they had found his younger sister in a gutter behind a factory, her body completely drained of blood.

That night was when this man took his first step on the path of revenge. After making hundreds of inquiries, he had joined the World Sanctification Court, the organisation that could help him find the perpetrator that murdered his sister.

Leon’s heart throbbed painfully. He could not tell if the resentment belonged to the owner of the body, or himself.

This person was like him…

This is exactly just another me…

A startling realisation dawned on him as empathy, sympathy, sorrow, and intense shame wrapped around his heart.

These same emotions were spreading through other individuals as well.

The members of the World Sanctification Court saw how their past execution of “justice” had caused countless innocent lives to face the suffering of separations in life and death. The Yin beasts that they had believed were the source of evil actually experienced the same emotional ups and downs and the effects of mortality. They were the same, everyone was the same. They were all equal life forms, equivalent existences.

True understanding burst forth the moment souls and memories were exchanged. The prejudice and antagonism began to slowly fade away, just like the bubbles.

Youny stood across Elijah face-to-face. The two of them stared at each other in silence.

Elijah witnessed Youny’s memories.

Youny had traveled through the world and seen how humans had incited war and destruction. He had disseminated seeds of benevolence that had withered away before they could even sprout. Bitter malice, fierce resentment, selfish desire, and insatiable greed had been the main drivers of history’s development. He felt disappointment in this state of the world. He wanted to bring another power, another type of existence that had been secretly hiding and taking advantage of living in human civilisation to lead the world.

He wanted to directly interfere with history to turn earth back into paradise.

North Walker…so this is what you’ve seen and the reason behind your “armed rebellion”?

Youny witnessed Elijah’s past. When Elijah had existed as the South Walker, he had viewed the ugliness and suffering of the world too.

However, Elijah had been more patient. He had forced himself to shoulder the burden of everyone’s sorrows and had continued to diligently roam the earth and carry out his duty of unobtrusively sowing the seeds of goodness and kindness. He had run to the deepest ends of the darkness to illuminate it with the faintest sparks of hope. In the abyss of suffering, he had silently summoned a spring breeze for the people to have happy dreams at night.

His mission was to guide: to guide people to draw from their innate good, to guide them towards actively changing their own tragic fate. He knew that this mission was like trying to drain a sea with a cup, but he continued to earnestly clear out the water one scoop at a time, carrying out his duty without any second thoughts.

Until the moment when North Walker had interfered with history. That was when he had decided to appear as a force to maintain balance, standing on the side of humans.

Youny let out a deep sigh. He had thought Elijah had simply fought him as an act of opposition…

The amount of grief and suffering he’s had to bear is no less than what I had to shoulder.

South Walker…you truly are a ridiculously foolish idiot…

Stupid. So stupid that I no longer want to continue this…

 

A profound silence stretched across the entire courtyard.

For a very long time, no one uttered a single syllable. Then, faint whimpers and choking sobs escaped from a corner, which then spread like a light spring rain. 

Tears fell from everyone’s eyes, the sparking and translucent drops washing away the resentment from their hearts and revealing their deepest repentance.

Their souls fluctuated within their bodies, resonating with each other once more.

While they were not paying attention, they unknowingly returned to their own bodies.

As they glanced at their bodies with tears blurring their vision, they discovered that their souls had gone back to their original places.

The glow around He Fu Xing – the key that had caused these changes – gradually dimmed. Then, as though the strength in his body was completely drained from him, his legs crumpled underneath him.

Leon dashed forwards to grab Fu Xing’s arm before he fell onto the ground.

“Fu Xing!” Leon worriedly gazed at Fu Xing, whose face was covered in cold sweat from overexertion. “How’s your condition?”

He clutched Fu Xing tightly, terrified the other would pass away just like that.

“Not great.” Fu Xing barely forced out a chuckle. “I’ll need to take a sick day tomorrow…”

“Fu Xing!” The rest of the group hurriedly rushed over.

“Hi guys…” Fu Xing weakly waved a hand.

“You didn’t die after getting struck by that light attack?” Dan Juan exclaimed in genuine admiration. “That’s amazing! How did you do it?”

“Nothing really.” Fu Xing reached into his coat’s inner pocket and pulled out a severely damaged Requiescet Campana. “This thing saved me.” Haha, this probably counts as a cheat. 

The rust-coloured Requiescet Campana was covered in deep black cracks, a testament to how intense the blow had been. The next moment, with a crack, the dark metal shattered into pieces before their eyes.

“How is that possible? It’s just an old bell…” Dan Juan refused to believe it.

“It’s possible,” a voice suddenly answered unprompted. “Because it was created from my blood and bone, it naturally can block my attack.”

They turned their heads to see Elijah unsteadily walking towards them.

“Elijah!”

Leon and the others reflexively stood in front of Fu Xing protectively.

“The war has already ended. There is no need to be so wary.” Elijah laughed self-derisively as he stared at Fu Xing with mixed emotions. “Fidel was correct, you truly are the key to ending the war.”

He Fu Xing had exchanged everyone’s souls and memories, erasing their desires to fight. The supreme strategy of war was making the enemy surrender without fighting. Since both sides were the same and no longer wished to fight, there was no need to prove who was right and who was wrong. The opposition that had existed since ancient times had been a mistake. Generalised views stemming from misunderstandings was the true sin.

“Master Elijah…”

“I was too narrow-minded. I prophesied that the antagonism and war would come to an end, yet had never imagined the conflict to close in such a way.” Elijah blankly gazed out into the distance. “It’s good this way…”

He could be at ease now.

Elijah coughed out a mouthful of crimson blood, and he began to fall backwards. Fidel rushed over in time to catch Elijah’s weakened body.

Fu Xing watched in alarm. “What’s wrong with you?”

“Exhausted his strength and now he’s about to die,” a voice laughed, clearly rejoicing in the other’s misfortune. Youny, transformed back to his human form, descended from the sky with calm gracefulness. 

“Youny?”

Youny slowly approached Elijah. Fidel alertly prepared to launch into the defensive, but Elijah stopped him.

“Hah, you really are about to die, aren’t you.” Youny arrogantly looked down at the feeble Elijah. “How does it feel after using up the remnants of the eudemon’s power in your soul?”

“Terrible. Just like seeing you…”

“Tsk tsk, you were just in my body earlier though.”

As expected, Zhu Yue let a strange giggle escape from her mouth.

The others shot Zhu Yue a look as they internally sighed in tacit understanding.

Ah, what a familiar feeling…

That giggle was like a declaration that the war had ended, and that they could return to their peaceful lives.

“You truly are useless.” Youny shook his head.

“So?” Elijah asked in annoyance, “Did you come specifically to mock my tragic state, North Walker?”

He was not the least bit concerned Youny would do anything to harm him because there was simply no need to anymore. Besides, he knew that Youny was no longer the same as before.

He understood North Walker had lost the heart to battle further, lost the heart to meddle with the world’s vicissitudes through his own means.

“Yes.” Youny admitted, “Though you’re useless and in a sorry state, you are the most suitable candidate to become a leader.”

“What?” Elijah was dumbstruck.

Youny reached out to rest his hand over Elijah’s heart.

His palm lit up with a warm, silver glow. Like water in a desert, it was swiftly absorbed into Elijah’s body. As Elijah felt power course through his veins once more, his fatal wounds began to heal themselves as well.

“What are you…”

“Since this world does not need my one-sided revolution, it is up to you to stabilise and improve it for the better.”

“Then what about you?” Fu Xing interjected, though he knew it was rude of him. “Where will you go, Youny?”

“My soul has already reached its limit. I cannot return to my own body, nor can I maintain this spiritual form.” Youny looked at Fu Xing, “So, I may need to leave.”

He would return to nothingness, return to his original “home”…

“North Walker…”

“Call me Youny.” A gentle smile formed on Youny’s face, an expression that had not appeared in a long time now. “I prefer this name.”

He had missed his opportunity, but he felt no negativity towards that.

He simply thought it was a slight pity. He wanted to stay a bit longer as well, and happily live on with his “companions”. He wanted to be Fu Xing’s friend — a genuine friend.

However, he did not have the chance. There was no time left.

Youny’s body began to faintly glow white, his body gradually fading and turning transparent.

“Youny, you…”

“I had a lot of fun. Thank you.”

“No, this can’t be it….” Fu Xing did not want to let go.

He wanted Youny to stay. After all, he had gone through so much to end the war and they had finally managed to understand each other…

“Hmph! Did you guys forget about my existence?” Rocort chimed in to seize the spotlight, butting into the reluctant parting session. “You can leave him with me.”

“What?”

Rocort walked over to Youny. “Eve had to continuously expend energy to seal you, so her recovery has been very slow. Since she no longer needs to do that, her soul should be recovering soon.”

“I saw your original form earlier. You’re the netherworld’s three-headed hound, Cerberus.” Youny raised a brow, “It was Eve that brought you out of Acheron to come here?” Ha, that woman’s even crazier than I thought. 

Rocort clicked his tongue. “Yeah, and it’s all your fault, you naughty child.”

“Who is Eve?” Dan Juan was curious.

Emerald felt dizzy. “In my memory, there’s only one woman named ‘Eve’ with that kind of ability. The Elf Queen…”

My friend was actually sent by the Elf Queen?! 

“Her soul resides within me. I still have one more vacant spot, so it wouldn’t be a problem if I took you as well. Just like Eve, if you split your soul and body and allow them to recuperate separately, you’ll recover much faster.”

The netherworld’s three-headed hound had three heads, but only one consciousness. The other two heads could store other souls with individual consciousnesses.

“You make it sound like cleaning an AC filter,” Emerald couldn’t help but voice his true thoughts.

After hearing Rocort’s suggestion, Fu Xing excitedly looked at Youny. “If you do that, you can continue existing too!”

Youny hesitated slightly. “Are you sure that’s necessary?” Am I allowed to do that? Do I really deserve to continue living after doing so much wrong? 

“As long as you live, there is hope.” Fu Xing happily beamed. “In the future, you can protect the world just as you did before!”

“What is your decision?” Rocort urged. Although he could store other souls, they had to be willing in order for it to work.

Youny glanced at Elijah, his sole brethren.

“After committing so much sin, it would be too merciful to let you go just like that,” Elijah coldly stated.

“I agree.” He did not deserve forgiveness.

“So you must stay to redeem yourself.” Elijah commanded, “Live on and do what you should do. Do you understand, North Walker, O Sacred Beast?”

Youny was at a loss for words, and could only chuckle dryly in surrender. He walked over to Rocort, his body turning brighter with each step. Finally, he turned entirely into light that surrounded Rocort’s head before vanishing.

“That’s it?” Brad was curious. “Where did that guy go?”

“He’s in my body right now…” Rocort yawned and plopped down on the ground, leaning against a snapped pillar as he curled into a ball. “Storing two souls is a bit of a heavy burden, so excuse me for needing to sleep…”

He would naturally wake up once Her Majesty’s soul returned to her body. He believed that when he re-opened his eyes, he would be welcomed by a leisurely and peaceful morning at Shalom, filled with liveliness and clamour.

Everyone else, both World Sanctification Court and special animate beings alike, did not move. For a while, they were all just awkwardly at a loss on what to do.

“Fidel.” Elijah stood up straight, having regained his usual king-like aura.

“Yessir.”

“Withdraw the troops.” Elijah ordered succinctly, “All personnel are to retreat.”

“Understood.”

Elijah respectfully bowed at Fu Xing, then turned and strode away with his head held high, leading the World Sanctification Court’s people out of Shalom.

“So…” Fu Xing glanced around at his companions. “What do we do now?”

“Today’s Wednesday.” Dan Juan checked his watch. “9 PM, which is right when class ends. Introduction to East Asian Philosophy starts in another ten minutes.”

“The school building is destroyed, how the hell are we supposed to go to class?!” Brad retorted in exasperation.

“True.”

“Fu Xing!”

Another voice called out his name. He turned his head to see He Fu Qing currently running frantically towards him. She pulled him into a tight hug, as though afraid of losing an important part of her family.

“Don’t keep worrying others…” He Fu Qing softly said, her voice muffled against his shoulder and her tone choked with sobs. “I thought I’d lose you…”

“Fu Qing…?” Fu Xing felt a bit awkward. This was his first time seeing his older sister show such genuine emotion.

“If you do something this dangerous again…” He Fu Qing lifted her head with a stern expression as she coldly threatened, “I’ll have Lin Lin completely clean up your room.”

“Please don’t do that!” That’s way too mean! 

“Are you hiding something in your room?” Brad sniggered evilly as he probed, “Is it as interesting as the thing you had in the cookie box?”

“Shut up!” Fu Xing indignantly countered, “By the way, Brad, you were crying earlier, weren’t you! You were holding me and crying, weren’t you! I never knew you cared about me so much Brad. I’m really not worthy of your sincerity.”

Zhu Yue was positively beaming as she let out little giggles.

“You’re mistaken, that was purely a physiological reaction. My tear glands were automatically secreting. That wasn’t crying, it was just tearing.”

“Turtles tear when they lay eggs.” The living embodiment of knowledge, Dan Juan, decided to jump in. “Are you a turtle? Are you laying eggs?”

“I think there’s another part of his body that’s very skilled at automatically secreting.” Momiji schemingly voiced her speculation. “Especially when he imagines himself eating seafood.”

“Mhm, that’s right.” Emerald added, “The fishy kind.”

“All. Of. You. Shut. Up!” Brad howled in fury.

The noisy bickering continued just like old times.

Their daily, peaceful and carefree school life that they hadn’t experienced for a while finally returned now that the long war had drawn to a close.

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