A Child's Pure Heart

The Eagle Red Grass stored in the Spatial Bracelet was retrieved and rushed to the main quarantine zone. Time had been lost, but the delivery arrived before the second wave of infected patients succumbed.

Elder Lu worked at breakneck speed to prepare a cure and distributed it to every person in the zone. Those with mild infections recovered their health quickly, while the critically ill needed only a few more days of rest before they could reunite with their families.

The quarantine zone filled with laughter and tears alike. People had been worn to the bone — in body and spirit — by the plague's torment and then the assault of Demon-Beasts. When it was finally over, those who had endured came to understand the preciousness of life in a way they never quite had before.

What they didn't know was that the reason they had survived both illness and attack was a single young man and a Celestial Eagle of mixed blood.

The mixed-blood Celestial Eagle had been buried somewhere in the earth of this land. Just as the Totem Xuan Serpent lay hidden in the depths of West Lake, silently watching over the city, the eagle too had become one of its guardians — no matter how humble its bloodline, no matter how meager its strength. That debt of grace, though buried in the soil, would surely be sung of for a thousand years.

As for the young man the Gray Eagle had carried back at the cost of its life, he had not awakened even after everyone else had recovered. He lay dormant in the military medical ward of the Western Fortress.

His soul had been stripped away, leaving only an empty shell — yet on the day everything finally grew quiet, that empty shell received the highest honor the soldiers of the entire Western Fortress could bestow.

Just like the Gray Eagle, he was small and held no rank. Yet to protect everyone, he had been willing to give everything.

Looking at the cold, motionless body of someone not yet of age lying upon the steps of honor, people understood with perfect clarity: what deserves respect and admiration is never a high rank or great age, and certainly not raw power. It is that pure, uncontaminated heart that has never been touched by the world's corruption.

The one who looks terrifying may well be the guardian who saves your life. The one who wears a kind smile and holds all the reins of power may well be the cancer that detonates disaster.

This crisis had given people far too much to reflect on, and far too much that must never be forgotten.

One can only hope that a tragedy like this never visits Hangzhou again — and that in times of peril, more people like Wang Xiaojun will step forward without hesitation: a young boy who walked through the ranks of the White Demon Eagle Legion that had the entire city trembling, who held no rank and yet never cowered before power.

What drives everything toward ruin is rarely a powerful enemy from without. It is more often the rot that begins within — a spineless cowardice with no will to resist, spreading through a populace like plague, pulling everything apart...

"Is there really no way to bring him back?"

Lingling lay draped over the edge of the preservation ice bed, her eyes holding the faintest trace of hope.

Elder Lu stroked his white beard, his expression touched with quiet resignation. He shook his head and sighed. "There is a legend that the highest magic of the Healing Element can resurrect the dead. I have not reached that level myself, but I believe there are those in this world who have touched it. Even so, what people call resurrection requires that the soul remain fully intact. His body is whole — but his soul has been almost entirely stripped away. To bring him back to life, there is only one place in this world that could do it."

Lingling snapped upright. "Where? Tell me!"

Elder Lu hesitated, then finally said the word. "The Parthenon."

Something flashed through Mo Fan's mind.

*The Parthenon?*

*That was the second time he'd heard that name. Some sacred ground in another country, from what he could remember. When he'd asked Tang Yue how to save Xu Zhaoting, the answer she gave had been exactly the same.*

*What was it, exactly? The supreme temple of the Healing Element?*

*If this place could truly bring Wang Xiaojun back to consciousness, wouldn't the Hangzhou government have enough influence to summon a Healing Element master from the temple?*

"If you know where he can be saved, why not send him there right now?" Lingling demanded.

Elder Lu shook his head slowly. "I don't know all the details myself, but taking Wang Xiaojun there would accomplish nothing. They do possess the power to restore a shattered soul — but on one hand, they would never use it lightly, and on the other, they are currently refusing all visitors. The city government alone would not be enough. Even if the president of our nation's Magic Association came to beg in person, it's far from certain they would mend a single soul."

"So there's no saving him?" Mo Fan said.

"Let's think of it as him sleeping for a long while. Perhaps a miracle will come. His soul may slowly stir back to life. However slim the odds, we will keep watch over him." Elder Lu's voice was soft.

West Lake

Walking the Su Causeway again, past its long rows of swaying willows, the scene had become something else entirely. It wasn't only the drifting catkins filling the air and settling across the ground — the causeway itself was packed with tourists, all of them gazing toward the water to the west, hoping to catch a glimpse of the Totem Xuan Serpent with their own eyes.

Overnight, the Totem Xuan Serpent had become something of an attraction, drawing visitors from every direction. That the causeway had been under lockdown only days ago seemed to have slipped entirely from people's minds.

Sadly, the Totem Xuan Serpent had not shown itself once since the battle ended. What the sightseers found was nothing but a glimmering expanse of water.

Word of the Totem Xuan Serpent had already spread far and wide, and people now understood clearly that Hangzhou truly did have a guardian watching over it — no wonder, throughout its long history, this city had suffered Demon-Beast attacks less than any other.

Life had returned to normal. Elderly couples strolled the causeway. Young lovers sat together on benches, stealing quiet moments. Families wandered at a leisurely pace, drinking in the view. Now that the fear hanging over the city had lifted completely, this calm and ease was visible everywhere... whether people truly appreciated what they had was something only they themselves could know.

"Here — this is for you." Teacher Tang Yue gave her long black hair a light toss, turning to face him with a brilliantly pretty smile.

Mo Fan accepted the gift with a puzzled look, slowly unwrapping the outer covering.

"What is this — it's hard as a rock and pitch black?"

"It's what you asked for," Tang Yue said, perfectly earnest.

*What I asked for is you, Tang Yue,* Mo Fan grumbled silently. *What am I supposed to do with this thing?*

"These are shed scales from the Totem Xuan Serpent. You can have them made into a piece of Armor Enchanted Gear to protect your body!" Tang Yue said.

"Oh — right. How come you didn't give me more? I was hoping to make a few whole sets." He eyed the scales in his hands — clearly only enough for a single piece of Armor Enchanted Gear.

"These aren't anomalous scales, and shed scales are incredibly difficult to smelt to begin with. I tracked down a very skilled Armor Gear master just to extract this much. Fine — if you don't want it, give it back!" Tang Yue snapped.

Materials suitable for crafting Enchanted Gear were something special. What could actually be forged, smelted, inlaid, and inscribed came from Demon-Beast materials containing a rare Anomalous Element — a chance of less than one in a hundred. The shed scales of the Totem Xuan Serpent held almost none of the workable anomalous elements needed for the craft.

If the entire shed skin were usable, Enchanted Gear could be produced wholesale. But that was precisely why such items were always rare — not only was the craft itself extraordinarily difficult, but the materials were nearly impossible to come by.

"One protective piece is still pretty great." Mo Fan grinned, not daring to show anything but gratitude for Tang Yue's trouble.

"Serpent scales are a very unusual material — especially from the Totem Xuan Serpent. I'd recommend going to the Oriental Pearl Magic Tower to find a truly exceptional craftsman. Not just any artisan can handle scales like these." Tang Yue added the advice carefully.

"Yeah. I've been in Hangzhou long enough — time to drag myself back to school." Mo Fan laced his hands behind his head, a lazy smile spreading across his face.

"You earned a great deal of credit in all of this. The Hangzhou Tribunal will be granting you an extremely rare slot as recognition."

"What kind of slot?" Mo Fan asked immediately.

"Go back to school and you'll find out. No need to thank me." Tang Yue smiled, keeping her secret.