Once they started talking about Xiong Xiaobao and Baili Xiaosheng, there was, of course, far more to discuss than just their potential marriage!

When it came to parents talking about their children, there was never any shortage of topics—especially for mothers, and even someone like Ziqing couldn’t escape that pull.

Talking about their son only stirred up longing all the more—she found herself wishing the sky would brighten faster, wishing this snow mountain would vanish sooner, wishing the isolated island would appear soon, wishing everything could just be over already.

Wishing she could return to her son’s side immediately, be there to watch him grow, to teach him statecraft, to teach him martial arts, and to teach him how to conduct himself as a person and, eventually, as a ruler.

Even Xuanyuan Lige, who barely knew Xiong Xiaobao or Baili Xiaosheng, joined in the conversation, while Xinyun listened off to the side, utterly captivated, suddenly curious to see for herself just what this Xiong Xiaobao they kept describing—part little devil, part little angel, sometimes mischievous and clever, sometimes hopelessly silly—actually looked like.

It was hard to imagine such a small child wielding a Cosmic Poison Pouch, commanding supreme poison beasts with such authority. As the group chatted on, they found themselves growing more and more animated without realizing it, and before they knew it, dawn had broken.

Only, the sun never actually appeared—the soft white snow kept drifting down all the same.

Jun Beiyue glanced up at the snow-capped peak and had no choice but to shift the conversation, reminding everyone of their current situation.

“We need to find a way through this quickly, or we won’t be able to hold out much longer,” Jun Beiyue said seriously. This time was different from before—previously, they could have chosen to simply remain on the cliff forever if needed, but this time, surrounded entirely by snow, staying put indefinitely simply wasn’t an option!

Ziqing was worried too. She knew all too well that a human body, exposed to snow without food, water, or any protection from the cold, couldn’t survive more than five days.

But she had no idea what the key was to escaping this snow mountain, nor whether her own exception would even apply this time.

If there were an exception, given how long they’d already spent here, surely it should have revealed itself by now!

Ziqing stood up, gazing at the mountain peak, lost in thought for a long while, feeling somewhat helpless. “Should we… try again?”

There was truly no other option besides trying again. Even so, everyone gathered their spirits, putting on determined faces.

“Let’s go!”

“Heh, I’ll follow you anywhere!”

“Onward!”

…

Though everyone had summoned their energy, Ziqing’s expression didn’t quite seem right—missing her usual vitality, missing that characteristic sparkle in her eyes, as though something weighed on her mind.

Yet even Jun Beiyue failed to notice, too preoccupied with the pressing matter at hand.

Step by step, as though on a pilgrimage, they made their way toward the peak. But from morning until noon, they found the distance between themselves and the summit hadn’t changed at all—clearly, they’d been walking in vain!

“Why don’t we split up and try heading left and right instead?” Xuanyuan Lige suggested.

Jun Beiyue nodded in agreement, and Baili Weisheng voiced no objection either. But when everyone turned to look at Ziqing, they finally noticed her low spirits.

“What’s wrong?” Jun Beiyue asked with concern.

Ziqing seemed lost in her own world, not hearing him at all.

“Tired? Let’s rest for a bit.” Jun Beiyue pulled her down to sit. Only then did Ziqing snap back to herself, looking at him, finally unable to hide her feelings any longer, saying softly, pitifully, “I miss Xiong Bao.”

They’d been chatting so happily last night, but tonight, once the conversation stopped, she realized just how much she missed her son—realized just how long, how truly long, she’d been away from him.

At these words, something struck deep within Jun Beiyue’s heart. How could he not miss him too?

While they’d been laughing and talking, he hadn’t quite felt it. But now that the conversation had ended, the longing truly hit him.

His son loved nothing more than climbing onto his back, small hands wrapping around his neck, little legs clinging to his torso, hanging on like a tiny octopus refusing to let go. Thinking of this, Jun Beiyue suddenly felt an emptiness across his back, as though something were missing.

Watching Ziqing’s spirits sink, Jun Beiyue felt both heartache and helplessness. Perhaps in this entire world, their son was the only one capable of making this woman—who was always so full of strength, so full of hope—feel this dispirited.

He found himself almost jealous of the boy.

Ziqing turned, lifting her eyes toward the snow-capped peak, sighing softly. “How I wish spring would bloom, so we could cross this mountain and quickly reach the fifth peak… I really want to go home.”

Everyone present found their emotions stirred by these words in complicated ways. This woman had come here searching for a home—yet now that she was here, all she wanted was to go home.

Was this her misfortune, or perhaps, in its own way, her fortune?

A helpless smile touched the corners of Baili Weisheng’s lips, tinged with a hint of self-mockery.

Going home—he’d said it himself, more than once, that he’d take her home. Yet now, she already had a home of her own, while he still didn’t even know where his own home might be!

The isolated island wasn’t truly a home at all.

The isolated island was nothing more than a responsibility to them, a curiosity, a persistence.

Everyone found themselves lost in Ziqing’s words—going home.

Not everyone had a home to return to; not every home was one worth returning to.

Yet just as everyone fell into this silence, something suddenly shifted beneath their feet. Ziqing was the first to notice, looking down to find that the snow beneath her feet had somehow vanished, with tender green shoots now breaking through the earth. Startled, she nearly cried out, but caught herself, worried about disturbing the tiny sprouts pushing up around her feet, instinctively covering her mouth instead.

At this, Jun Beiyue and the others looked down as well, only to find the blanket of snow completely gone, replaced everywhere by lush new green grass just beginning to grow.

And within that grass, flower buds were forming, growing, blooming!

Someone once said that the most beautiful sight in the world is the moment a flower blooms.

Yet at this moment, beneath Ziqing and the others’ feet, thousands upon thousands of flowers bloomed at once—so beautiful that it left them too overwhelmed to even exclaim in wonder, as though a carpet of flowers had been laid out before them.

Not only that, but this grass, these flowers, continued spreading outward in every direction, undeniably real and tangible, yet giving the impression of a painting come to life—spring in full bloom, the whole mountainside alive with the season!

Ziqing seemed to realize something, suddenly lifting her head to look toward the peak—only to be startled to see the fifth mountain standing not far in the distance. The place where they now stood was, in fact, the summit of the fourth mountain!

Should this be called a prophecy come true, or a dream come true? Ziqing began to wonder if she was actually still asleep in the snow, dreaming all of this!

“Han Ziqing, you… direct bloodline truly makes all the difference!” Baili Weisheng sighed repeatedly. “You’re not just a minor exception—you’re an absolute surprise!”

Everything here, it seemed, made an exception for Ziqing. Could it be that they had truly guessed correctly—that everything the Nanzhao musician had left behind had all been in anticipation of Ziqing’s arrival?

Waiting for this very woman, who carried both the isolated island’s direct bloodline and extraordinary musical talent.

At this moment, Ziqing found herself pondering the very same question. She remembered that during those days she’d lain unconscious in the capital, she’d had the same recurring dream over and over—someone telling her that finding the isolated island was the very meaning of her rebirth into this world, that if she failed to find it, she would leave this world entirely…