After the joy and tears, the four sat down to confess everything.
Xue Gucheng confessed to them.
"Shuang'er is my wife, and we came out this time on orders to seek the Wuliang Bag.
But somehow we ended up here, and unexpectedly lost our memories."
Yan Wushuang also added, "Thanks to you all these days, although we don't know much about this place, I guess this should be the human world."
Liansheng and Wan'er listened to her words and felt confused. Could they really have come from heaven?
Yan Wushuang thanked them.
"Thanks to you this time, without your shelter, we might not have found each other. Thank you for taking care of me and Brother Xue."
Xue Gucheng also expressed his gratitude.
"Thank you, Wan'er, Liansheng. We should have repaid your great kindness, but now we have nothing but the swords and clothes on our bodies."
"Are you leaving then?" Wan'er asked.
"Yes, we have to go back."
"If you're leaving, then leave a lock of hair."
Liansheng chimed in, "I want one too, I want one too."
He thought to himself, if he couldn't have her person, he would have a lock of her hair.
Yan Wushuang smiled slightly, took the flying knife from her waist, cut off a lock of Xue Gucheng's hair and her own hair, and gave them to Wan'er and Liansheng.
Then she reached out and pulled their hands together, holding them. Liansheng and Wan'er immediately blushed.
Yan Wushuang said.
"Compared to us, you two are the most suitable for each other. Although Liansheng looks delicate, he is considerate, meticulous, and sincere in his dealings with people.
I see Wan'er, you are also beautiful, intelligent, brave, and decisive, and a rare beauty. It would be best if you two could be together."
Liansheng retorted proudly, "Who likes her? She's fierce and even hits people."
Wan'er also retorted proudly, "You big man, you still fight with girls, aren't you ashamed?"
"I never hit you."
"Who told you you were so frail."
Watching them bicker, they looked more and more like a couple. Xue Gucheng couldn't help but laugh.
Xue Gucheng couldn't help but tease, "It's true that enemies meet. You two really look like a couple."
Wan'er and Liansheng blushed again at his words.
Just then, a strong wind suddenly blew outside, and a voice came from the sky, "It seems the two of you have passed the test of the Wuliang Bag."
Hearing the voice, the four walked out and came into the courtyard.
At this moment, they heard the person say, "Since the two of you have passed the test, please return."
Immediately, a golden light shone down from the sky. Xue Gucheng's clothes fluttered in the wind and turned white again.
Xue Gucheng and Yan Wushuang bid farewell to the two, saying, "Take care of yourselves, we're leaving."
Wan'er and Liansheng did not expect that they were really from heaven.
Xue Gucheng suddenly remembered something.
"Wan'er, your father asked me to marry you, but I haven't agreed yet.
Please trouble yourself to go back and tell your elder that this marriage cannot be accepted by Gucheng."
Wan'er listened to his words, although she was still sad, she still sent them off, saying, "Okay, I promise you. Have a safe journey."
Liansheng also bid farewell reluctantly, "Miss Wushuang, goodbye. It was a real fortune to meet you. You and your husband go with peace of mind."
Yan Wushuang replied, "Okay, you two also take care and be well."
With that, she pulled Xue Gucheng and walked into the light, disappearing into the wind.
Meanwhile, in the Wuliang Cave, Yan Wushuang and Xue Gucheng's consciousness returned to their bodies. When they opened their eyes, they saw the Wuliang Bag in their hands.
At this moment, Wuchenzi's voice sounded behind them.
"Congratulations to the two of you for passing the test of the Wuliang Bag. You are the fated ones that Master asked us to wait for."
Yan Wushuang asked him curiously, "Where did the Wuliang Bag take us?"
Wuchenzi replied.
"That was the human world. The Wuliang Bag's inner wall records thousands of years of history in the human world. This time, it brought you to the historical records of the Tang Dynasty under the rule of Emperor Wu."
Xue Gucheng also asked curiously, "So everything we experienced wasn't real?"
"You could say that."
At this moment, Xue Gucheng remembered the impending war and quickly asked, "Master, how long have we been in there?"
"Not long, only a day."
"A day?"
Xue Gucheng and Yan Wushuang couldn't believe it.
If that was the case, Yan Wushuang couldn't help but worry about Liansheng.
"Then what happened to Liansheng and Wan'er's ending?"
"You can see for yourselves."
As he spoke, he waved his whisk, and a projection-like image appeared on the wall.
Liansheng was originally a scholar from a poor village a hundred miles outside the capital. He also had a frail mother at home.
As the date for the imperial examinations drew closer, the villagers all felt he had potential and pooled some money to send him to the capital for the exams.
Later, he arrived in the capital, and the prosperity of the capital stunned him.
At this moment, a sedan chair passed by him, and a jade-like hand threw a torn Xiu Pao from the sedan.
Seeing this, Liansheng stepped forward and picked it up. He saw the words "Wan'er" written elegantly at the bottom of the Xiu Pao.
He carefully tucked the Xiu Pao into his embrace and hurried to find lodging. Because there were too many people who had come early to prepare for the exams, the inn charged fifty copper coins a night.
He couldn't afford it and had to find a place to live everywhere. Finally, he found a dilapidated courtyard and rented it.
After that, he studied day and night. Because he had no extra money, he would buy a few steamed buns. When he was hungry, he would eat one, and if he couldn't, he would drink water to fill his stomach.
Later, he participated in the imperial examinations, and heaven rewarded the diligent. With his unique perspective and elegant writing, he ranked first in the Jinshi examination.
Later, he was appreciated by the Minister of Personnel and was appointed as a minor official in the Ministry of Personnel.
The Minister of Personnel greatly admired his talent and character, and promoted him all the way. In the end, he even arranged for Wan'er to marry him.
The couple lived a sweet life, with the husband singing and the wife responding.
However, fate is unpredictable. Someone informed Emperor Wu that the Crown Prince harbored intentions of rebellion.
Emperor Wu, in his rage, wrote a letter and sent it to Crown Prince Li Xian. Li Xian was terrified and eventually committed suicide in despair.
As a result, the Crown Prince's faction was also implicated. The Minister of Personnel was a supporter of the Crown Prince, and Emperor Wu suspected that they had instigated the Crown Prince to rebel.
Therefore, all of the Crown Prince's faction were imprisoned. For a time, only the sound of weeping and blood filled the capital.
At this time, Liansheng, who was on a business trip, was also summoned back by Emperor Wu to be questioned. The yamen runner who guarded him had received his favor, so he secretly helped Liansheng and Wan'er escape on the way under the cover of night.
Then, they found two corpses and reported that they had fled due to guilt and had fallen off a cliff to their deaths.
Emperor Wu was too lazy to investigate further, as long as they were dead.
Thus, Wan'er and Liansheng escaped and lived as fishermen and fisherwomen incognito by the banks of the Wujiang River.
Seeing this, Yan Wushuang couldn't help but shed tears. She never imagined they had gone through so much. Fate is truly ironic.
Xue Gucheng was both happy and sad, but he was still glad that they had escaped their tragic fate.
Wuchenzi waved his whisk, and the scene ended. He said.
"This is the true historical outcome. The Wuliang Bag's test for you was whether you could still walk steadfastly in this era of constant change, believing in the person you love.
Clearly, even though Xue Gucheng lost his memory, you did not give up and won this test by relying on your trust in him. Alright, you can take the Wuliang Bag and leave."
With that, he waved his whisk, and they were immediately transported to the foot of the mountain, with the two fast horses appearing behind them.
At this moment, a voice came from the mountain, "You may return."
Xue Gucheng and Yan Wushuang thanked him together, "Thank you, Master."
Then they mounted their fast horses and rushed back to the Western Purple Kingdom.
...
On the other side, the Four Evils also arrived at Blazing Flame Mountain. As its name suggested, the entire mountain was devoid of any vegetation, with only white smoke rising from the summit.
"It's so hot," Fuzimo complained, fanning himself with his hand and sticking out his tongue.
Guiye explained to him.
"Legend has it that Blazing Flame Mountain was once a battlefield for ancient guardians. One was the Earth King, who guarded the Earth Fire, and the other was the Heavenly Punishment, who guarded the Heavenly Water.
They both believed that what they guarded was the most powerful in the world and neither would yield to the other, so they casually chose a place to compete.
However, during the competition, the Earth King was defeated by the Heavenly Punishment and was very unconvinced. So, he summoned the Earth Fire and fought fiercely with the Heavenly Punishment. In the end, the Heavenly Punishment left, seriously injured.
Although the Earth King won, he was devoured by the Earth Fire and fell onto the mountaintop, becoming the later Blazing Flame Mountain."
Ye Changfeng lectured helplessly.
"This story tells us that we should know when to stop. If you lose, you lose. If you don't even have the courage to admit defeat, then you are truly useless."
Fuzimo then praised his elder brother with admiration, "Wow, as expected of my elder brother, to say such a classic line."
Ye Changfeng said proudly, "Of course, after all, I have the courage to admit defeat."
Fuzimo suddenly thought.
"That's right, Big Brother didn't lose to the Demon King, nor did he lose to anyone else, he only lost to Prime Minister Liu and Li Xingye."
This was a sensitive topic. Ye Changfeng didn't think he had lost to them, but his younger brother brought it up, so he punched him on the head.
"My dear fourth brother, you observe very carefully."
Fuzimo then felt the killing intent from his elder brother and quickly changed his tune.
"Big Brother is the most powerful expert in the world. I will always support Big Brother."
Ye Changfeng then calmed down and smiled, "That's right. The four of us are the strongest experts. Think about how many people have fallen before us."
"Big Brother is still the most powerful. Long live Big Brother."
Zhu Yan thought with a hint of disdain, "He just said he would admit defeat, and then he changed his mind. Big Brother is really something."
Ye Changfeng seemed to sense suspicion, so he turned around and stared at Zhu Yan with a look that saw through his thoughts. Zhu Yan panicked and quickly praised him.
"Big Brother is truly amazing. Big Brother is the number one in the world."
Hearing his praise, Ye Changfeng laughed to the sky.
"I knew I was the most powerful, hahaha, let's go up and take a look."
Zhu Yan felt a chill down his spine, guessing that his elder brother might have learned mind-reading.
The four of them walked up the mountain along a winding path. When they reached the summit, they saw a peculiar sight.
The summit had sunken, and it was filled with boiling and hot magma.
The scorching magma was like tomatoes being cooked in a giant pot, turning into a thick puree. The large clouds of white smoke were emitted from the bubbling gas.
Ye Changfeng frowned at the boiling magma, "It's all magma, how can we find the Earth Fire?"
Guiye suggested, "The Earth Fire should be beneath this magma. As long as we split this magma, we should be able to see the Earth Fire."
"It's that simple. I'll try." Saying that, he drew his sword and leaped into the air, shouting, "One sword qi breaks through!"
Immediately, sword qi shot out and slashed at the magma, which immediately split apart but quickly closed again.
Ye Changfeng then unleashed several more sword qi attacks, but the result was the same – it healed quickly.
Ye Changfeng then landed on the ground, puzzled, "When did my sword qi become so weak?"
Zhu Yan said, "Let me try."
"Okay, you try."
He drew his Blood-Weeping Saber and shouted at the magma, "Open the mountain and break the path!" With that, he slashed with his saber.
A stream of air immediately rushed out, spanning the entire magma and tearing open a gap, but it quickly closed again.
It seemed it still wouldn't work.
Guiye seemed to have noticed something and said.
"I think this is not ordinary magma, but magma that protects the Earth Fire. We can't open it with brute force alone. We need to think of other ways."
"That's the only way," Ye Changfeng replied.
Just then, the entire mountain began to shake, and the four of them were swayed left and right. Fuzimo wondered, "What's going on?"
At this moment, a sound was heard from the magma. The few of them looked in unison, and suddenly with a "whoosh," two stone giants, a hundred meters tall and carved in the shape of warriors, stood up from the magma.
One held a spear with a pointed tip shaped like fire, and the other held a spear with a pointed tip shaped like water.
The two stone statues looked around and asked in unison, "Who has disturbed our slumber?"
Ye Changfeng asked them, "Are you the guardians of the Earth Fire?"
The two stone statues looked down and discovered the four small figures standing by the magma.
The stone statue on the left introduced them, "We are the guardians of the Earth Fire. I am the Fire Form Guardian, and he is the Water Form Guardian."
Ye Changfeng then told them his purpose for coming.
"Since you are the Water and Fire Guardians, then it's easy to talk. We are here on behalf of the Ten Thousand Demon King to seek the Earth Fire. We hope the two guardians will lend it to us for a while, and we will return it afterward."
The Water Form Guardian said, "For ten thousand years, many people have come here to seek the Earth Fire, but none of them could pass the test of the Earth Fire. All of them perished in this magma."
As he spoke, he waved the water-shaped spear in his hand, and immediately many bones floated up.
The four of them saw the thick pile of bones floating on the magma and suddenly felt uncertain. Fuzimo was even more terrified.
"No way, so many people, it's too terrifying."
The Fire Form Guardian told them, "Since you know how terrifying it is here, hurry back."
Unexpectedly, Ye Changfeng said firmly.
"Since we have come this far, how can we return without obtaining the Earth Fire?
Although it looks terrifying, we ourselves are terrifying beings, so please let us go and get the Earth Fire."
Fuzimo was deeply moved by his elder brother's impassioned words and praised him, "Big Brother is so handsome."
However, no one had obtained the Earth Fire for ten thousand years, which showed how terrifying the test was. If that was the case, could they still return alive?