After escorting his Shizun back into his quarters, Luo Binghe made his way back into the Water Prison and into Shen Qingqiu's former cell.

Laying on the floor where it had been left were the shards of Xuan Su.

Carefully picking up each of the shards and fragments, the Emperor of the Three Realms placed them all in a cut-proof pouch and used Xin Mo to return to his private quarters.

Setting the pouch onto a table within his quarters, he carefully reformed the sword's shards back into its proper shape like assembling a puzzle.

This tedious task took several hours, but it did not feel as such to Luo Binghe, his labor being rewarded with the form of the shattered sword again.

Yue Qingyuan was long dead, but like all bonded swords a piece of his soul would always remain bound to the metal.

And with how close the late Sect Leader was to his Shizun, and how Shen Qingqiu's mind had broken only after his death, the Emperor was fairly sure that this would be the best way to find more about his elusive Shizun's past.

Using some qi, Luo Binghe ran his fingers along the metal and took hold of the soul meshed in.

***

Within moments, Luo Binghe found himself standing in the streets of a random town, similar to how the dream realm was.

And, a bit of glancing around, he found Yue Qingyuan.

The former Sect Leader was a child, maybe around ten years old at absolute most, dressed in filthy ill-fitting robes sitting against the wall of a building in the shadows of an alley.

But what truly enraptured Luo Binghe's attention was the smaller form leaning against Yue Qingyuan, a shorter boy with messy black hair and ratty robes and the most familar green eyes.

Not only was Shen Qingqiu not a spoiled young master like he had long assumed, not only had he been a slave like he had recently discovered, but he had also been a street rat.

"Qi-ge, I'm hungry." The young Shen Qingqiu mumbled, looking out towards the street through where Luo Binghe was standing and towards a food stall

"Me too." The equally young Yue Qingyuan -Yue Qi, Luo Binghe mentyally corrected- agreed

"Let's go see if the Chens servants threw out anything." The shorter child suggested

But the taller of the duo shook his head, "Xiao-Jiu got beat last time."

Shen Qingqiu -Shen Jiu- rolled his eyes, "Only because we got caught by those stupid servants last time. We can just be sneakier."

The scene faded away and Luo Binghe now found himself in a different street and Yue Qi and Shen Jiu were a little older, maybe twelve, still street rats which surprised Luo Binghe as he had assumed that the pair would be with the sect by now.

Instead, Yue Qi was nearly run over by the hooves of a horse rode by a richly dressed young man -somewhere between seventeen and twenty- by trying to save another street urchin.

But before the horse could, Luo Binghe watched as Shen Jiu used inherent qi to transform a scrap of metal into a blade that he then used to stab the leg of the horse.

The horse and its rider turned, the horse bucking and thrashing in pain, but the rider stayed put.

The richly dressed man roared out, "Who did that?! Who did it?!"

But the street urchin who Yue Qi had saved immediately pointed at Shen Jiu, "It was him Qiu-gongzi!"

Qiu, Luo Binghe immediately realized, knowing this young man must be Qiu Jianluo.

Qiu Jianluo looked furious, grabbing Shen Jiu by the hair and dragging him away.

Yue Qi, to his credit, tried to rush after them but was quickly outpaced by the calmed horse.

But before Luo Binghe could follow after to see what happened to his Shizun, the scene faded away.

Here he saw Yue Qingyuan join Cang Qiong Sect and his time in Ling Xi Caves when he was trapped within by his shizun with only a sword after trying to leave the mountain to go save Shen Jiu.

Luo Binghe watched as Yue Qingyuan clawed at the stone until his fingers were raw, threw his sword around desperately lookin for an escape without a care for how he hurt himself; how this torture lasted an eternity as days turned into months.

With his sword fully bonded to his sword, even his life force, fed by desperation, Yue Qingyuan become the head disciple of Qiong Ding Peak by fifteen, naturally being chosen for an Immortal Alliance Confrence.

During this conference, Yue Qingyuan was wandering the forests and heard shouting and went to help, seeing two black clad figures, one in the distance.

The farther away first was an older man who was maybe in his thirties or forties but the second was Shen Jiu, surrounded by bodies of various disciples they had killed and were robbing.

This part of his Shizun's history was utterly foreign to Luo Binghe so he just watched in shock.

Yue Qingyuan clearly had not noticed or cared about the bodies of his peers, stepping closer to Shen Qiu.

"Stay away!" Shen Jiu shouted at him, going to the ground and snatched an emergency firework off a body and fired it into the sky

Yue Qingyuan still walked closer and tried to say something but was interrupted by the sound of chuckling.

The older man had come closer, laughing a bit, "My dear disciple, who is he? He's scared you so terribly. So you do know what it is to be afraid."

Shen Jiu quickly dropped the firework casing silently to the ground before turning, "Shifu, I'm not afraid of him. I made a mistake just now; I wasn't paying proper attention, which gave this lot on the ground the chance to release a firework. What I'm afraid of is that someone will show up soon!"

The man that Shen Jiu called 'shifu' humphed, "When I saw that firework, I guessed that was the case. You've always been quick and nimble. What happened this time?! If they were going to set off fireworks, why didn't you chop off their hands?"

Shen Jiu's head lowered, acting shameful, "It's all this disciple's fault. We should go at once. If those old men get here, we won't be able to leave even if we try."

Yue Qingyuan blocked their exit, raising his sword, "I can't let you leave."

Shen Jiu gave him a furious look but his shifu seemed amused before scoffing, "From Cang Qiong Mountain –and even Qiong Ding Peak. The Xuan Su Sword, Yue Qingyuan?"

"Shifu, since he's from Cang Qiong Mountain, we won't be able to kill him swiftly. It will be better for us to escape, and fast. Once everyone arrives, we'll be finished!" Shen Jiu urged

His shifu sneered, "Cang Qiong Mountain may possess grand prestige, but I need not stoop so far as to fear a junior cultivator. Besides, he came seeking death himself!"

Yue Qingyuan and Shen Jiu's shifu began to fight but they seemed evenly matched, until the older man reached into his pocket, in which Shen Jiu stabbed him in the back.

With the shifu dead, Yue Qingyuan grabbed Shen Jiu's hand and sprinted away deeper into the dense forest.

When they stopped, they both panted a bit before looking at each other.

The taller of the pair seemed excited but the shorter spoke first, furious, "You joined Cang Qiong Mountain?"

Upon getting no answer, Shen Jiu continued, "You've become Qiong Ding Peak's head disciple? Not bad. Why didn't you come back to look for me?"

"I..." Yue Qingyuan mumbled

But his sentence never continued and Shen Jiu lost patience, "Why aren't you saying anything? I'm still waiting. I've already waited so many years, after all. Waiting a little longer will be nothing."

Eventually, Yue Qingyuan seemedto find his tongue, "Sorry. It's Qi-ge who let you down."

Instantly, Shen Jiu was enraged, "Sorry, sorry, sorry...all you've ever known to do is say sorry. It's utterly useless."

Just as all the others, this scene too faded away, and many decades had passed and Luo Binghe now found himself in the Water Prison, with Yue Qingyuan knelt by Shen Qingqiu's unconscious form.

Luo Binghe watched as his Shizun woke and noticed Yue Qingyuan's presence, "How did you get in?"

Yue Qingyuan sighed, pressing a hand to Shen Qingqiu's twisted arm, passing qi to try and heal him, "Stop talking. Focus."

Shen Qingqiu's teeth clenched, the process of his twisted arms healing incredibly painful, "That little bastard Luo Binghe sure has plenty of tricks up his sleeve."

"Shidi, we've already come this far, so why do you still refuse to consider your wrongdoings?" Yue Qingyuan sighed

Shen Qingqiu bitterly asked, "What wrongdoings? Zhangmen-shixiong, please tell me, what is Luo Binghe if not a bastard? You just wait. He won't be satisfied only taking it out on me. If, in the future, some tumultuous storm upsets the cultivation world, then the only thing I will have done wrong was fail to cut him down at the start."

Yue Qingyuan shook his head and asked, "Did you really kill Liu-shidi?"

Shen Qingqiu didn't look at his face at all, abruptly yanked his hand out of Yue Qingyuan's grip before sitting up.

"You repeatedly said that you'd kill him one day. But I never thought that you would actually do it." Yue Qingyuan softly said

"Aren't you thinking it now? He's already been killed. Does Zhangmen-shixiong not think it too late to rebuke this humble Shen at this point? Or do you wish to cleanse the sect?" Shen Qingqiu coldly replied

"I have no right to rebuke you." Yue Qingyuan said

"Then what are you trying to do?!" Shen Qingqiu furiously asked

"Has Shidi ever considered that, it you hadn't treated Luo Binghe like that in the beginning, everything that unfolded today never would have happened?"

Shen Qingqiu burst into laughter, "Why does Zhangmen-shixiong say such ludicrous things? What's happened has happened! I've already 'considered' it hundreds and thousands of times! There is no 'if', no 'in the beginning' —there was never any chance of redemption!"

"There was." The Emperor said for no one, knowing he could not be heard, "Many chances, any moment of kindness would have been enough."

Yue Qingyuan slowly raised his face, woodenly staring blankly at Shen Qingqiu, looking so browbeaten and defeated.

"You should go. I'll tell you this: Even if all of this could be redone from the beginning, in the end, the conclusion would remain the same. My heart is full of malice, my insides hatred and resentment. Today, Luo Binghe wishes for me to die horribly, and I only have myself to blame." Shen Qingqiu stated

"Do you still hold such hatred within yourself?" Yue Qingyuan asked, his eyes soft with pity

Shen Qinggiu laughed again, "Only when I see other people unhappy can I be happy myself. What do you think?"

Luo Binghe knew that to be a falsehood, as Shizun always seemed happy when Ning Yingying was badgering him with affection.

Yue Qingyuan offered Xuan Su to Shen Qingqiu, "If you still hold such hatred, draw Xuan Su and take my life."

Shen Qingqiu scoffed, "You ask me to kill you here, Sect Leader Yue? Are you unsatisfied with the crimes Luo Binghe's already charged me with? You think them too few? Besides, who do you think you are? My hatred will be resolved as long as I kill you? I'm far beyond cure; I hate everything. Don't blame this humble Shen for any disrespect or mockery, but if Sect Leader Yue considers himself that very cure, he thinks too highly of himself!"

Yue Qingyuan did not withdraw his hands his courage bolstered, "Xiao-Jiu, I-"

"Don't call me that!" Shen Qingqiu snarled

Slowly, Yue Qingyuan's hands slumped, the sword lowering with them, instead going to hold Shen Qingqiu's hand again and sent more spiritual enengy, and never again opened his mouth to speak.

"I thank Zhangmen-shixiong for his generosity. Now get lost. Never appear before me ever again." Shen Qingqiu said,

Yue Qingyuan put Xuan Su back on his waist, then complied with Shen Qingqiu's wish and slowly walked out.

Once the Sect Leader exited the Water Prison, the scene went black again and Luo Binghe found himself watching Yue Qingyuan nearing Huan Hua Palace to try and rescue Shen Qingqiu after receiving the box holding his legs.

And he saw himself smiling in victory, drawing a bow and arrow.

He watched as the arrow flew and hit its mark right in Yue Qingyuan's heart.

But the Sect Leader did not fall, still running even with the arrow in his chest.

Yue Qingyuan only made it ten more steps before ten thousand more arrows followed from all the hidden archers.

***

Luo Binghe emerged from the memories, staring down at the broken shards of Xuan Su, having so many more questions than answers.

He desperately wanted to know Shizun's side of the story, to fill in all the blanks left.

There was something major just outside his knowledge and he wanted nothing more than to know it.

But for now, he had to settle for what he had saw.

Standing up, Luo Binghe left his quarters and made his way towards the kitchens to make Shizun dinner.

As he left his room, he passed a mirror, not noticing how his hair was no longer at all straight but rather wavy with a few curls.