Li Fei pushed open the window. Outside, snowflakes fell slowly, painting everything in silver. It was already March, yet Zhuiyu Peak remained encased in ice and snow.
She adjusted her clothes in front of the bronze mirror. The black edges on her sleeves and collar now had three lines, indicating her status as Elder Chongyi’s disciple. During the Dharma Combat Competition earlier in the year, she infused countless streams of spiritual energy to heal the lingering dark wounds on Lei Xiuyuan’s body. Afterward, she seemed to have broken through the third bottleneck in her cultivation, a fortunate coincidence.
Suddenly, a giant fox face appeared in the bronze mirror. Riyan stood behind her, bleary-eyed, and said bluntly, “Move aside, you’re blocking me.”
Li Fei had no choice but to step aside, yielding the mirror to the fox.
He turned his back to the mirror, twisting his head to look at the reflection. The blood-red seal of the Calamity Years on his back still flickered on and off. Riyan snorted in annoyance, “It’s still not broken! What nonsense!”
“Has this seal not been broken at all?” Li Fei asked as she put on her pearl flower hairpin.
Riyan ignored her, muttering to himself, “This isn’t right… I’m now living freely and openly, so why does the seal still linger?”
Li Fei snickered. Freely and openly? He was quite the self-promoter. In reality, he was more irritable and impatient.
“What are you laughing at!” Riyan’s long tail swished, and his massive body was already outside the window. “If you can’t master the Earth Lord Protection today, I’ll never teach you any more Immortal techniques!”
Before he finished speaking, he had already vanished, probably wandering somewhere again. Ever since he no longer needed to fall into deep slumber constantly, he had explored almost every corner of the vast Wuyue Court. He was a restless fox spirit.
Earth Lord Protection… Li Fei sighed as she walked to the table. Riyan’s teachings were completely random and haphazard. At her current stage, using techniques that combined two types of spiritual energy should be sufficient, yet he always taught her high-level techniques that combined three or four types. When she couldn’t learn them quickly, he would fly into a rage. It was too much.
A letter appeared next to the oil lamp, its envelope flickering with the bright yellow magical mark of the Earth Storage Disciples.
Li Fei opened the envelope and read carefully. In the letter, Ye Ye and Chang Yue mentioned that they had yet to break through the third bottleneck and would soon be taken by their masters to trial grounds in hopes of a quick breakthrough. At the end of the letter, as usual, they asked if Gelin had replied to her.
Li Fei sighed quietly. Something strange had happened with Gelin. When they first returned from the East Sea, for about a month, they had exchanged letters almost daily. Then suddenly, without warning, Gelin stopped responding altogether. She hadn’t mentioned any trials or anything unusual in her last message, which was about catching a snake spirit to use as a mount and showing it to them at their next gathering.
The fact that the message spell could be sent proved that Bai Li Gelin hadn’t met with any accidents, but why wasn’t she replying? Could it be some sudden trial that prohibited communication with the outside world? But that seemed too long; it had been several months already.
Li Fei put this letter in the drawer. The drawer by her bed was full of countless letters exchanged between their group of friends over the past six years. Ye Ye and Chang Yue’s Earth Storage letters bore bright yellow magical marks, while Ji Tongzhou’s letters had black and white magical marks unique to Xingzheng Hall.
Ji Tongzhou hadn’t written to her either.
Much time had passed, and now Li Fei could think about Ji Tongzhou more calmly. He must have experienced something in the illusion. This outwardly cheerful but inwardly fragile young prince had found it more difficult than any of them to escape the illusion, which explained his inexplicable actions.
Now that he had returned to Xingzheng Hall and resumed normal cultivation, had he gradually escaped the illusion? Would he regret or mock his fragile reactions when he recalled his past frenzied or excessive behaviors? Regardless, she still hoped that when she saw Ji Tongzhou again, he would have returned to his former self. Otherwise, it would be too awkward.
As the hour of Mao approached, Li Fei got up and opened the door, quickly walking towards the central hall. Zhao Min was already inside having breakfast. Li Fei bowed and greeted her. Zhao Min put down her chopsticks and nodded slightly. The next moment, her palm suddenly emitted a silver light. Li Fei reacted incredibly quickly, immediately transforming into a puff of blue smoke to avoid the heavenly strike above her head. The ground beneath her feet became scorching hot, and flames suddenly shot up. Li Fei summoned a clear water lotus and stepped on it, smiling wryly at Zhao Min, “Senior Sister, you do this every day. I haven’t even eaten yet!”
Zhao Min smiled slightly, “Cultivating disciples need this kind of adaptability. Sit down and eat.”
Adaptability? It was just Senior Sister Zhao Min wanting to find someone to practice combat with. Li Fei shook her head inwardly. After losing to Qin Yangling in the recent Dharma Combat Competition, which even led to the cold poison in her body running rampant, this competitive senior sister might appear calm on the surface, but she must be feeling uneasy inside. Since then, she had frequently sought Li Fei out for combat practice.
Next time, she should let her practice with Lei Xiuyuan. They were both combat enthusiasts.
Li Fei moved a small table over and picked up her chopsticks, about to start eating, when suddenly a clear bell-like sound rang in her ears. A talisman paper fell beside her, covered in a clear white light. It was the familiar elder summons.
Why would an elder summon her so early in the morning? She hadn’t even eaten yet!
Li Fei said goodbye to Zhao Min and immediately circulated her spiritual energy. In the blink of an eye, she was summoned to the main hall of Wengu Peak. She saw that the great hall was full of elders and Immortals, without a single disciple. Li Fei was immediately surprised. Elder Chongyi’s voice sounded from the front, “Li Fei, come here.”
Was it her master who had summoned her?
Li Fei quickly stepped forward, kneeling and bowing, “Disciple Jiang Li Fei pays respects to Master and all the elders.”
Elder Chongyi smiled, “There’s also Immortal Cuixuan and Immortal Shouzhong.”
Only then did Li Fei notice that all the dozen or so elders in the hall were standing respectfully, while two elderly Immortals with otherworldly appearances sat opposite them. These must be senior Immortals of Wuyue Court, whose status surpassed that of the elders. She was even more surprised. In her nearly six years at Wuyue Court, she had never seen Immortals other than the elders. Why had two suddenly appeared today?
“Disciple pays respects to Immortal Cuixuan and Immortal Shouzhong,” she bowed respectfully.
Immortal Cuixuan, dressed in blue robes, opened his half-closed sleepy eyes. Li Fei felt that his face looked drowsy, but the light shining through his narrow eye slits was terrifying. She lowered her head in fear, avoiding his gaze.
“Not breaking through the bottleneck, yet possessing cultivation beyond it. Interesting indeed,” Immortal Cuixuan suddenly spoke, his voice also drowsy.
The baby-faced, white-haired Immortal Shouzhong laughed, “The world is full of wonders. Chongyi, is this the disciple you want to bring? A disciple who has barely reached the third bottleneck might cause trouble if brought along. We have other important matters and may not be able to protect her thoroughly. Are you sure you want to bring her?”
Elder Chongyi cupped his hands and said, “Chongyi will naturally do his utmost to protect her and wouldn’t dare to trouble the two seniors.”
What were they going to do? Li Fei kept her head down, not daring to ask a single word. Was her master going to take her somewhere? Along with these elders and these two senior Immortals?
Suddenly, the bell-like sound rang out again in the hall. Li Fei’s vision blurred, and she saw Lei Xiuyuan’s figure appear not far away. He looked around quickly, reacting much faster than her, and immediately bowed, “Disciple Lei Xiuyuan pays respects to Master, all the elders, and the two seniors.”
The two elderly Immortals were much more interested in him. Even Immortal Cuixuan opened his sleepy eyes, looking at him with a smile. After carefully examining him, he said, “Very good. You’ve already reached the middle to late stage of the third bottleneck. After Qingcheng, there have been no more brilliant talents. Don’t lose to him.”
Lei Xiuyuan respectfully replied, “The Immortal overpraises me. This disciple is unworthy.”
“These are the two disciples you want to bring, right? You two masters, protecting your disciples is your primary duty. We will take care of the other important matters,” Immortal Cuixuan slowly stood up. His body gradually turned into light and electricity, disappearing before everyone. “We’ll meet at noon. Go back and prepare.”
Seeing Li Fei’s confused expression, Elder Chongyi smiled and said softly, “Quickly go back and pack your things. We’re about to leave.”
Li Fei hurriedly asked, “Master, where are you taking me?”
“Wuyue Court is in the center of the Central Plains. There’s a trial ground called the White Edge Cliff, prepared for disciples about to break through the sixth bottleneck. You can’t go to the trial ground, but there are many powerful spirit beasts and fierce beasts. I’m taking you to catch one to forge a magical treasure. How can you be a personal disciple without forging your magical treasure?”
Forge a magical treasure? Li Fei was a bit stunned. She had no idea how to forge a magical treasure.
“Isn’t this crystal mirror considered a magical treasure?” She took out the mirror from her bosom. It had been a great help to her, unable to sense spirit energy on her own. Its vast pure spiritual power was also enough to mask the peculiarities of her constitution. She couldn’t think of any magical treasure more useful than this.
Elder Chongyi smiled, “A magical treasure is only truly powerful when forged by oneself. Besides, forging magical treasures is the fastest way to improve cultivation. Otherwise, why would so many people stuck at bottlenecks search high and low for powerful spirit beasts to forge magical treasures? Elder Guangwei must have the same idea. He gave the White Tiger Tail to Lei Xiuyuan, which has ample offensive power but lacks defense. A disciple with exceptional offensive abilities can only use magical treasures to enhance defense. I guess Elder Guangwei must be planning to catch a Spinning Turtle.”
Just as he was speaking, Elder Guangwei came over, laughing, “You clever fox, you guessed that I want to catch a Spinning Turtle. What about you? What are you catching for your little girl?”
Jiang Li Fei had a water-based spiritual root with an earth affinity, so the magical treasure she forged should also be supportive. After some thought, it would probably be an evil-repelling treasure similar to the crystal mirror.
Unexpectedly, Elder Chongyi kept it a secret: “I won’t say now. You’ll know when the time comes.”
This piqued Elder Guangwei’s curiosity even more. He grabbed Chongyi’s sleeve, insisting on getting a clear answer. Seeing the two elders bantering, Li Fei quietly took Lei Xiuyuan’s hand and looked up at him with a smile, “It’s just the two of us going. That’s great! Do you know how to forge magical treasures?”
But Lei Xiuyuan didn’t respond. He was staring fixedly in the direction where Immortal Cuixuan had disappeared earlier, seemingly lost in thought. Li Fei shook his arm, and he finally came back to his senses. Seeing her excited face, he couldn’t help but laugh, “Do you think we’re going to play?”
“Elder Guangwei said he wants to catch a Spinning Turtle for you to forge a magical treasure,” Li Fei let her wild imagination run free. Would Lei Xiuyuan now have a turtle shell as a magical treasure? Where would he put the turtle shell? On his head as a hat? On his back? The more she thought about it, the funnier it seemed, and she couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
Lei Xiuyuan squeezed her hand hard twice and was about to speak when Elder Guangwei suddenly called out to him, “Xiuyuan, you two go back and pack now. The journey to White Edge Cliff is long; don’t forget anything.”
They both answered affirmatively. Seeing Elder Chongyi nod, Li Fei left, playing with Lei Xiuyuan’s arm and chatting happily.
Elder Chongyi watched the two of them leave, their intimacy evident, and said with a smile, “Guangwei, why did you suddenly decide to bring Lei Xiuyuan along?”
He said it was to catch a Spinning Turtle to make a magical treasure, but for Lei Xiuyuan, who already had the White Tiger Tail, what he needed most right now wasn’t a defensive magical treasure, but rather how to use the White Tiger Tail to amplify the power of his Immortal techniques. This old man’s sudden decision had taken him by surprise.
Elder Guangwei’s expression gradually became solemn. He lowered his voice and said, “On this journey to White Edge Cliff to seal the异民 (Yimin) Tomb, I plan to find an opportunity to tell him about it and let them see the Yimin Tomb for themselves. Disciples can’t be kept in the dark forever, knowing nothing about the overseas. The anomalies have already appeared, and the Sea Calamity will arrive in no more than ten or fifteen years. If we perish in this disaster, at least the disciples we leave behind won’t be completely ignorant. We can’t repeat the mistakes of five hundred years ago.”