Side Story Chapter 1: Doomsday!
Rumble!
The land was devastated, the trees dried and shriveled, while churning dark clouds swept over the land. This sort of gloomy and apocalyptic atmosphere engulfed the entire world.
In a corner of this land stood a ruined city. It was like a small boat amidst raging waves, alone and dark. Its collapse was imminent.
The walls had already collapsed in many places, scattering eroded bricks across the ground.
And in the mud outside the city, a youth in ragged clothing, his body covered in wounds, crawled on the ground as he struggled on death’s door.
His breathing was weak, and there were such long pauses between movements that he already seemed dead. But the occasional arching of his spine indicated that he still lived.
…Even if this life was like a guttering candle that could go out at any moment.
This ruined city with shattered walls was called Chang’an. Apparently, it had once been the birthplace of many mighty civilizations and empires.
At present, it was now the place where the Han of the Central Plains were having their last gasp.
This youth crawling on the ground was called Li Taiyi. In this apocalyptic world, he was the lowliest existence.
“Trash!”
As Li Taiyi crawled like an ant on the ground, he endured the savage lashings of a stalwart Hu man.
Pa! Pa! Pa! Li Taiyi’s clothes were made even more ragged, and the skin of his body broke open, spilling out blood.
Hungry!
Too hungry!
He was so hungry that he didn’t have the power to resist. Only when his gaze passed over the whip-wielding Hu was there an imperceptible flash of hatred in Li Taiyi’s eyes, and an intense sorrow.
The disease had attacked the vitals, and there was no cure!
He alone could do nothing to change the situation!
“Hahaha, this is the Han…”
As he watched the blood-drenched Li Taiyi tremble under the lashing of the whip, the Hu smugly laughed, and he tightened the grip on his whip and began to strike even harder.
Seemingly thinking that the whip wasn’t good enough, the Hu suddenly kicked Li Taiyi in the face.
Thump! Li Taiyi was kicked so hard that his body flipped over.
It felt like the world had turned upside down. In Li Taiyi’s blurred vision, he felt like he could see the starvation scourging the land, the barren and desolate soil, his people eking out an existence by the broken walls, the scattered white bones, the women clutching the bodies of their dead children as they wept. He saw the decaying bodies of his people in the streets, and also… those people who were like walking corpses, their expressions numb as they gnawed on dead bodies due to their extreme hunger.
All of this wracked Li Taiyi’s heart with pain.
Who could have imagined that this had once been a prosperous and thriving city that had given birth to numerous mighty civilizations?
But now, it was desolate and barren… It was like an undeveloped and primitive land that made one want to flee.
They clearly resided in the land of the Central Plains, but they were laughably being bullied around by foreign peoples.
The whipping intensified, each one drawing blood, but none of it could overcome the pain in Li Taiyi’s heart.
How had the Central Plains fallen to this state?
Was it the defeat in the last war, causing the borders to shrink even more?
Or was it several hundred years ago, when the Emperor was assassinated, leaving no one on the throne and the people to fall into disarray?
Or was it even further back in time, when the borders had been broken by an alliance of several other countries?
In the end, Li Taiyi’s mind fixed on a certain incident, and he internally sighed as he spoke two words:
“The Tang…”
That had been the most resplendent era of the Central Plains, but it had also been the start of the decline, like the last rays of the setting sun. What had followed was a seemingly endless night.
This was an era that countless people had yearned for, but it was also one that caused immense sorrow!
If only the heavens would give him one chance and have him be reborn in that era!
Alas, there was no reversing time…
Li Taiyi felt like his heart was bleeding, and his eyes grew even more dejected.
“Ptuh! Trash that can’t take a beating!”
Seeing Li Taiyi gradually turn insensible, the Hu lost interest and left.
His eyes gradually turned blurry and his heart grew cold. But just when Li Taiyi was about to completely lose consciousness, a familiar voice that was as pleasant as a gurgling spring entered his ears.
“Taiyi! Taiyi!”
As the voice cried out, a cool and refreshing liquid flowed into his mouth.
Gradually, Li Taiyi came back to his senses.
Opening his eyes, he saw the familiar figure of a girl who was about fifteen or sixteen. Although her face was covered in filth, her star-like eyes revealed that she possessed outstanding qualities.
“Qing Luo.”
Li Taiyi felt a surge of warmth as he saw this familiar figure, like a ray of sunlight in this dark and drab world.
This girl’s clothes were just as ragged as the others, but there was a special persistence about her. It was like not even the end of the world could make her despair or give up.
And it was because of her that Li Taiyi had the resolve to live on.
She was his love, his sole source of comfort, the last beautiful thing at the end of the world for Li Taiyi.
Qing Luo’s heart was wracked with grief. Suppressing her tears, she used a wet towel to wipe away the dirt around Li Taiyi’s wounds.
Li Taiyi seemed to not want Qing Luo to worry, and suddenly giggled like a child. He reached out and gripped the soft hand that was trying to wipe his face.
“Qing Luo, I’m fine.”
Li Taiyi warmly wiped away the tears struggling to break out from Qing Luo’s eyes, and softly chuckled.
“Taiyi…”
The sight of Li Taiyi trying to force a smile instantly made Qing Luo sob, her eyes reddening.
Li Taiyi chuckled and embraced Qing Luo.
Bang!
Suddenly, a peal of thunder came from the distant horizon, so loud that it seemed like the world was about to collapse.
“What happened?”
“What’s going on?”
“Euuugh… Mother, I’m hungry!”
Everyone looked toward the horizon, but all they could see was the usual dark clouds.
However…
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
Rhythmic booming like the beating of drums made everyone nervous. And as the booming drew closer and closer, something finally began to happen in the heavens.
The other end of the heavens seemed to split open, black cracks spreading like a spider web across the skies. If one looked closely, it seemed that transparent shards were falling off from the edges of those black cracks.
As Li Taiyi raised his head, he could see flashes of crimson at the edges of the dark fissures. It was like… the world was bleeding from being torn apart.
Gallop!
Besides the booming, large groups of Hu were frantically riding their horses, panic on their faces as if something terrifying was chasing them.
Bang!
Another large boom came from the distance.
This time, behind those frantically fleeing Hu, Li Taiyi saw an avalanche of black smoke. It was like the maw of a monster, devouring everything in its path.
Obliteration!
Collapse!
The destruction of the world!
Upon seeing this horrifying sight, his people instantly came to their senses and began to flee in panic.
But standing in the middle of the square, Li Taiyi was calm.
Was it real?
Long ago, he had heard that something had happened at the ends of the earth, and numerous panicked Hu had been fleeing this way.
Is this the end of the world? Li Taiyi wondered as he looked into the distance.
He and Qing Luo leaned against each other as if they were enjoying some sort of gorgeous scenery. As that black flood of smoke and the spider web of cracks approached, their expressions were at peace.
There had long ago ceased to be any meaning in living within this world.
Perhaps ending things like this was for the best.
This was what Li Taiyi thought, his mind a placid pool of water.
The black flood swept closer and closer, and furious winds began to blast Li Taiyi’s face. The darkness snatched at him like rakshasas from the underworld, but Li Taiyi remained unperturbed.
With his lover at his side, he did not care where he was.
But…
If lush vitality could be restored to his lands, if he could go to that era before the foreigners occupied their lands… if he could change the fate of the world, the fate of his people, that would be even better!
Li Taiyi looked up at the shattered sky, pursing his lips as a look of stubborn defiance appeared on his face.
Just when Li Taiyi was about to be engulfed by the darkness, Qing Luo spoke. “Taiyi, what is that?”
Behind the shattered sky, in the boundless darkness, a blazing light streaked into his vision like a comet.
Before Li Taiyi had time to look closely, that ‘comet’ struck him and Qing Luo at an absurd speed.
Bang!
The expected pain did not arrive, but his and Qing Luo’s bodies both began to disappear in a bizarre fashion.
Besides that, this terrifying energy forced apart their embracing bodies and threw them away from each other.
“Taiyi!”
“Qing Luo, don’t be afraid! I will find you! I definitely will!”
Li Taiyi cried out, his face frantic with worry.
But no matter how much he tried, the distance between them grew greater and greater. With cries of alarm, they both disappeared.
……
At the same time…
“Virtuous Empress Dou, the Third Prince has awoken!”
An excited voice broke the silence in front of Jade Dragon Palace like a stone tossed into a placid lake, instantly bringing some life and turmoil to the deathly still Jade Dragon Palace.
A moment later, escorted by numerous brightly-dressed eunuchs and maids, a beautiful woman with worry on her face strode into Jade Dragon Palace.
“Xuan’er!”
The woman couldn’t help but cry when she saw that thin figure on the bed. She delightedly rushed up and cautiously embraced him.
That thin figure was taken aback, and it took a long while for him to come to his senses.
His bright eyes took in his surroundings and instantly grew confused. Frowning, he spoke.
“Who are you?
“Where is Qing Luo?”
Everyone in Jade Dragon Palace was instantly struck dumb.