Chapter 4: The Ritual Ends, Eerie Revival

Chapter 4: The Ritual Ends, Eerie Revival
The following day, in the capital of the Great Xuandi Empire. As the dawn light tore through the veil of night, the fine drizzle that had fallen throughout the night, barely perceptible, also retreated with the darkness. In the east of the empire, a blazing sun hung high. The sky was bright.
The steward, who had watched over the high tower all night, finally breathed a sigh of relief. He understood that this signified the successful completion of the soul sending ceremony. Although there were some mishaps this time, including an unknown old man returning to life, the result was ultimately favorable... “No, wait... Mr. Shangguan, it's bad, I must go take a look!” Zhang Zhenghua hurriedly set off. “No need to. He has vanished. My spiritual sense just scanned that area,” the old family head, who had been sitting in the courtyard all night, unexpectedly stood up and said calmly. “However, I couldn’t detect his corpse or soul, so he’s most likely still alive, at least existing in some form... Well, let’s not discuss this matter anymore. We will soon announce to the outside world that Shangguan Zhenyang has gone on a journey and has not returned.” The old man changed the subject and waved his hand, “For now, just focus on your duties.” With that, he went back inside the house. “The servant understands,” the middle-aged steward replied. Now, he had to do a thorough check of the residence to clean up after the soul sending ceremony—that was his duty...
The weather was just right, with clear blue skies; the night’s rain seemed to have left no trace of gloom, lifting people's spirits. However, Qing'er was far from joyful. She had waited all night at the entrance, constantly anticipating the arrival of dawn. But when that moment finally came, she sensed not a single sound from the courtyard. At first, she thought the young master might be too exhausted and chose not to disturb him. Soon, she could no longer contain herself. “Young master~ Young master~ are you alright?” the young girl softly called. There was no response… She knew this was unusual; the ritual had already ended, and logically, all the Soul Wardens should have returned to their senses and woken up. However, she was too afraid to rashly open the big door, fearing that she might break some kind of balance and cause even worse consequences. She could only wait for the designated clan member to come and investigate.
At the very beginning of this ceremony, Dongfang Zi's body had already undergone some unusual changes. He had a head of brilliantly shining silver hair, his breath had nearly faded away, and his face was serene, resembling a normally elderly, yet still youthful... uh, young man. Clearly, his appearance had not changed. However, this had not yet been known to others until a second before the courtyard door opened...
A guard captain dressed in purple quickly led a team of family guards to investigate this area and reported the situation to the steward. Soon after, Zhang Zhenghua arrived at the gate. "Third Young Master, the old servant has come to confirm your safety, so please grant your permission," he said in a loud voice, but no one responded. "I beg your pardon for my rudeness." After saying this, he wasted no time, swiftly drew his sword, pushed open the courtyard door with one hand, and leaped inside the villa.
门口，那一队家族卫队也个个手握佩刀，围成个圆弧，紧紧把守着院门。东方家的别院不小，进门后先见得是一屏风，左右为一回廊，相互连接，呈“回”字形。管家还能看到这些原属于别院的布置，这算的上是个好现象。毕竟，若真是仪式出了差错，这里恐怕早已被侵蚀，会变成什么模样都不稀奇。尽管十分警惕，但他的脚步也不慢，分秒只间便绕过屏风，看到了东方紫的身躯。“咦？没有元神，也没有呼吸，像是死了，但身体却十分鲜活，也不见其魂魄。”张正华简单探查后，并未得到结果，反倒更加迷惑了。他也注意到了东方紫这身躯的怪异银发，这像是生命力流失的标志。但他也无法做出准确结论，只能断定东方紫多半没有死，只是处于某种怪异的状态……所以他也不敢轻易挪动其身躯以及场内布置，以免破坏了这种平衡，造成不可知的变故。
The butler quickly stepped out of the annex, "You all stay here and guard this place, no one is allowed to enter for the time being!" he instructed the captain of the guards. The guards remained silent, merely continuing to keep watch, as if tacitly approving this somewhat irregular directive. The butler promptly reported the situation back to the main residence. "I will go personally," the old family head said as he rose, and in the blink of an eye, he arrived at the door of the annex. "Master," the figure in purple knelt on one knee in salute. The old family head did not respond, simply waved his hand, signaling them to stand aside. The guards quickly parted into two rows, clearing the way.
In the courtyard, the head of the family approached the silver-haired Dongfang Zi. He stood with his hands resting, seemingly deep in thought, indicating that he was somewhat aware of Dongfang Zi's condition. After observing for a moment, he did nothing else and turned to leave. He only left behind one sentence: “Leave two guards to watch over here, the others can disperse, let Zi-er rest well.” Although Shuang Qing’er was still worried, she had no choice but to accompany the others as they scattered back.
That night, in the small courtyard, the silver-haired man gradually regained his breath and slowly opened his eyes... "I... have I come back to life?"
??If you want to know what happens next, stay tuned for the next episode~
?
????
(End of this chapter)