The song flowed on, soft and lilting, while the night lay still as water.
"Just as I thought — Miss Fang Qiu really is singing something gentle and lyrical. That voice is truly moving," a sailor murmured.
The moment he said it, the sailors sitting nearby nodded in agreement.
Up on the mast, Kaedehara Kazuha closed his eyes and listened quietly.
Hearing Fang Qiu's voice, Lumine and Paimon exchanged a glance, both relieved.
Fang Qiu had only sung two lines so far, but they no longer worried about how good the song would be.
Those two lines alone were already stunning.
That was Fang Qiu for you.
Xinyan, though, let out a small inward sigh.
Fang Qiu's singing was lovely, no doubt — the lyrics and the melody were both excellent.
But it was too gentle for her taste.
She still preferred songs with more fire in them.
Beidou simply watched Fang Qiu, listening in silence.
She sang on — of a forgotten sword sealed away long ago, of chasing the sound of a flute and the beat of hoofbeats to find someone, of a hero's fate sealed in the most glorious sacrifice, and of a heart weeping even as the sword fell true.
Fang Qiu kept singing.
But then the melody began to climb, and everyone was startled for a moment — before they could react, a brief silence fell.
The music surged on, of life as proof that love had ever existed, of a greater existence born from fire, of killing as an ode to splendor before ruin — all for one person, as peach blossoms scattered across a scene of sorrow, as a lifetime of blade and battle refused to be brushed away, of a fate of wandering and broken wings, until that one person had helped her find herself again.
In that moment—
everyone present seemed to see it: a battlefield under torrential rain, corpses strewn across the ground, rain washing the blood away.
A heroic spirit, dead on this battlefield a thousand years past, woke from its long sleep.
He looked at the enemy, at the bodies of the younger warriors scattered across the ground, at the very person who had just woken him — now fallen beneath an enemy's blade. Peach blossoms drifted down over so desolate a scene.
Without hesitation, he charged the enemy.
In the instant his sword struck, his heart wept.
He knew he had died long ago, and that the one he loved had long since turned to dust.
But the young ones lying dead at his feet were different — they were still so young, with families and happy lives waiting for them.
Yet, like him, they would never see the ones they loved again.
So he fought on.
To protect what he had once protected, and to protect what these newly fallen warriors had wanted to protect.
This was a warrior's fate.
To fight for the ones you love, to fight for the greater love in your heart.
And so he swung his blade without pause.
One by one, the enemy fell.
When at last every enemy lay slain, he sat back down alone beneath the peach tree, his eyes deep as a wolf's, and waited quietly for the dawn.
The song came to an end.
Fang Qiu let out a long breath, releasing all the weight that had built up in her chest.
The Legend of Sword and Fairy 1 was her childhood.
The moment she sang this song, her mind drifted straight back to the height of summer in her childhood.
That year, Li Xiaoyao, Zhao Ling'er, Lin Yueru, and the others had carved an indelible impression into her heart.
When she'd watched Lin Yueru die at the Demon Locking Pagoda, and Zhao Ling'er's soul perish in the Nanzhao Kingdom, she had cried until she was a mess of tears.
Even now, she still couldn't quite let it go.
It was through that show, too, that she'd first come across the game.
Her sister had told her that in the Sword and Fairy game, Zhao Ling'er hadn't actually died in the end, and Li Xiaoyao had managed to save Lin Yueru as well.
So, in exchange for sitting through horror movies with her sister, she'd borrowed her sister's computer and played through Sword and Fairy herself.
But once she finished the game, she'd ended up crying all over again.
Li Xiaoyao had lost everything.
Even his one remaining daughter, Li Yiru, had died in Sword and Fairy 5...
"Sigh."
Fang Qiu sighed quietly to herself, then lifted her eyes to look at everyone — only to find the deck utterly silent.
Silence.
Complete silence.
Just as Fang Qiu began to feel a little at a loss, the deck suddenly erupted into fierce applause and cheering.
"By Rex Lapis, was that really Miss Fang Qiu singing just now? I've got goosebumps all over."
"I was wrong — I actually thought Miss Fang Qiu could only sing gentle, lyrical songs."
"Call it sorrowful, and yet it left my blood boiling. Call it fiery, and yet it made me want to cry."
"What a fantastic song — every bit as good as anything Miss Fang Qiu has sung before."
Everyone chattered excitedly, looking at Fang Qiu with awe in their eyes.
Even Kaedehara Kazuha's gaze, as it turned to Fang Qiu, held open surprise.
"Fang Qiu, that song was incredible!"
Xinyan said, her face bright with excitement, "It's not Rock 'n' Roll, but it stirs the soul all the same."
"Thanks for the praise."
Fang Qiu said with a light smile.
"That was a fine performance!"
Beidou took a sip of wine and said, "Listening to that was just plain satisfying!"
Paimon and Lumine both chimed in with praise as well.
Amid the lively chatter, the cook came out carrying a huge platter of grilled fish.
Copying Xiangling's technique, he laid the toppings over the fish and drizzled hot oil across it.
Then he handed each of them a bowl of dipping sauce.
"Here, give this a try."
The cook wiped his nose with a confident air. "This is the exclusive recipe I begged off Sister Xiangling two days before we set sail. For the dipping sauce, you grind dried, pan-fried Jueyun Chili into powder, mix in minced garlic and scallions, then add salt, vinegar, and soy sauce, and finish it off with a splash of hot oil to bring out the aroma. Grilled fish with this sauce — it's simply unmatched!"
"Wow, it smells amazing!"
Paimon wiped away drool, marveling at it.
Staring at the platter of grilled fish and the fragrant dipping sauce in front of her, Fang Qiu fell into deep thought.
Seeing the trouble written across Fang Qiu's face, the cook said, "Don't worry, Miss Fang Qiu. I also got a brand-new recipe from Sister Xiangling — milk mixed with honey and a bit of fruit juice, which cuts a lot of the spice. She's actually been working on it recently just for you. And since most of the heat is in the sauce, the fish itself is only lightly spicy. I put just a pinch of Jueyun Chili powder in your bowl, so it should be fine."
"All right, I'll give it a try."
Fang Qiu nodded.
Truth be told, Fang Qiu had refused at first.
She did want to eat spicy food, but eating it was simply too much of an ordeal.
But hearing that Xiangling had gone to the trouble of developing this just for her, she couldn't very well let such kindness go to waste.
She took a sip of the drink first, then picked up a piece of fish, dipped it lightly in the sauce, and put it in her mouth. A burst of spice exploded across her tongue at once.
Fang Qiu hurriedly grabbed the drink and took another gulp.
The rich taste of milk, honey, and fruit juice flooded her mouth, washing away much of the burning heat.
Even so, the spice still left a flush of red spreading across Fang Qiu's pretty face.
"How is it?"
the cook asked cautiously.
"It's all right. I can manage."
Fang Qiu took two more sips, until only a faint tingle of spice remained in her mouth.
She nodded and said—
"Wonderful! Sister Xiangling will be so happy to hear that."
The cook's face lit up with excitement.
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