The golden characters swirled around for a long time before gradually fading. Soon after, another summons accompanied by a clear bell sound fell beside Lei Xiuyuan alone—Wuyue Palace was recalling all disciples who were away. Those who didn’t return within three days would be considered expelled.
Lei Xiuyuan’s fingertips glowed golden as he lightly touched the summons. The clear, melodious bell sound immediately stopped, and the glowing summons slowly floated to the ground.
As if nothing had happened, he continued flipping through the black book in his hand, answering Li Fei’s previous question in a low voice: “Yes, it can breathe fire. That’s nothing special. The most extraordinary thing is you.”
Li Fei looked at him, then at the summons at her feet. “… Now is not the time for idle chat.”
Lei Xiuyuan said calmly, “Any actions of Wuyue Palace have nothing to do with you and me now. We just wait for the heavenly thunder and fire to descend.”
Nothing to do with them? Li Fei’s brow slowly furrowed. “Master Chongyi and Su Wan have already been implicated because of me.”
“If you don’t show up, their lives won’t be in danger. It’s just a trap to lure you out. Don’t worry about it.”
She knew this was an open and aboveboard conspiracy, using her master and friend as bait, waiting for her to take the hook. But as long as she didn’t respond, Immortal Cuixuan would have to act passively. He couldn’t kill True Person Chongyi and Su Wan, but there was no guarantee he wouldn’t use some means to extract more information about her from them.
Li Fei paced restlessly in the cave. By now, she was no longer afraid of her identity being exposed. What she feared was the innocent people related to her being implicated. She hadn’t told them anything to keep them from getting involved, but why? How did Immortal Cuixuan discover Qin Yangling’s matter?
This old immortal, due to his experience with the Sea Meteor, was suspicious and vigilant of even the slightest clue. His actions were decisive and cruel. Whoever fell into his hands would likely suffer.
Should she go or not? If she went, her identity would be completely exposed, and everyone related to her would suffer. They might even be labeled with absurd crimes like “colluding with overseas enemies.”
Why not just kill Immortal Cuixuan and these old immortals? Li Fei’s killing intent suddenly rose. But what about her master? Would she let him bear the crime of raising an ungrateful wretch? What about her previous resolutions?
A pair of hands reached from behind and embraced her. Lei Xiuyuan rested his chin on her shoulder, his voice lazy: “What are you thinking about?”
Li Fei felt her face tickle as he gently kissed her. Perhaps due to his Yaksha instincts, he always sought any opportunity to be close to her. But right now, she wasn’t in the mood for flirting.
She turned her head to avoid him, struggling a bit, and said softly, “Don’t do this.”
Lei Xiuyuan’s arms suddenly tightened, squeezing her chest until she felt breathless. Her neck also felt a sharp pain as he bit her hard. The next moment, he immediately let her go, stepped back, and held his forehead as if troubled. Two slender black horns slowly emerged from the side of his head.
Li Fei hurriedly reached out to support him. “I-I’m not blaming you…”
Lei Xiuyuan stepped back again, leaning against the stone platform and raising his hand to stop her from coming closer. After a long while, he finally lowered his hand. His face looked somewhat pale, and the horns that had just emerged were retracted. He sighed and beckoned to Li Fei: “Come here now.”
Li Fei didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. What kind of attitude was this? She wasn’t a pet.
Lei Xiuyuan pulled her over, looking down at her with some frustration. He pinched her face and sighed, “Good thing you haven’t shed your shell. It’s best if you never do.”
Li Fei looked at him quietly: “Is it because of the curse?”
Yes, the curse. She had no idea how much he envied Hu Jiaping.
Lei Xiuyuan’s fingers gently traced the contours of her face. Her gaze was focused and gentle. For this look that existed only for him, he could do anything.
“I love you,” he suddenly embraced her and said softly.
Li Fei was stunned, then her face turned red, and finally, it seemed her whole body turned red. Was this person Lei Xiuyuan? From the beginning until now, this was the first time he had said such words. Why choose this moment?
“I do love you.” Lei Xiuyuan’s arms gradually tightened, planting a soft kiss on her forehead, but his voice sounded like a sigh.
Don’t let the curse disturb this love. He didn’t want to wake up one morning to see her body torn apart by his own hands. Don’t turn her into a puppet without self-awareness. Let her laugh, let her get angry, let her do whatever she wants freely, even if it doesn’t please him.
He equally yearned to be himself, unbound by the fruit of Jianmu. She had asked him what he used to like doing, and he realized he had never even thought about this question. How he wished to live like a person, even if it meant indulging in vices like gambling or drinking—anything was better than such emptiness.
Li Fei hugged him tightly and said softly, “I know.”
Lei Xiuyuan laughed, “Just these three simple words? I’ve been waiting for your sweet talk all along.”
Li Fei laughed dryly, “What kind of sweet talk do you want to hear?”
“Who’s the one who can’t say a single nice thing?” Lei Xiuyuan pinched her cheek. “Quick, say something to make this master happy, or I’ll spank you.”
He raised his hand as if to strike. Li Fei hurriedly dodged, saying repeatedly, “I’ll say it next time! Let’s deal with the important matters first!”
“This is the important matter.” Lei Xiuyuan clamped her face with a “pah” sound, turning her to face him. He looked at her seriously, “Go ahead, I’m all ears.”
Li Fei’s face turned red. She was anxious one moment, flustered the next, her brows knotted in a frown. She thought hard for a long time, almost breaking into a sweat. Even after becoming dao partners, her skin was still so thin. Seeing her long-lost expression, Lei Xiuyuan couldn’t help but laugh. He blew a breath on her face, smiling ambiguously, “Want to boil eggs again?”
Li Fei looked at him pleadingly, “Next time?”
Lei Xiuyuan gently bumped his forehead against hers and laughed, “Coward.”
Li Fei couldn’t remember how she fell asleep that day. Lei Xiuyuan never gave her a chance to think about the expulsion order. He kept distracting her; she had originally wanted to discuss strategies with him but ended up in a mess. It seemed they just fooled around until she unknowingly fell asleep.
When she woke up, the stone bed was cold. She looked around the entire Ganhua Realm, but it was empty.
“Xiuyuan?” Li Fei quickly jumped off the stone bed and called out. Her voice echoed in the cave without response. A sense of foreboding suddenly arose in her. She rushed to the stone platform, but the Wuyue Palace summons from yesterday was gone.
He went back to Wuyue Palace?! Yesterday he never mentioned the expulsion order, was it because he wanted to solve her troubles alone?! Wasn’t he afraid of his Yaksha identity being exposed? He was always like this!
Li Fei slammed her fist on the stone platform and turned to rush out of Ganhua Realm.
In the main hall of Wengu Peak at Wuyue Palace, Lei Xiuyuan bowed and said loudly, “Disciple Lei Xiuyuan greets the elders.”
There weren’t many elders in the hall; most of the immortals had gone to the East Sea to deal with the impending heavenly thunder and fire. Lei Xiuyuan glanced around quickly. Besides True Person Guangwei and a few familiar elders, ten senior immortals were sitting in a circle with Immortal Cuixuan.
Everyone was looking at him. Some were lost in thought, some were full of joy, and some showed relief and approval. Immortal Cuixuan’s drowsy eyes opened a slit, staring at him steadily. He spoke: “You should have received that expulsion order. Why did you come back alone?”
Lei Xiuyuan’s voice was calm: “This disciple was also personally involved in the Qin Yangling matter, so I’ve come back to accept punishment.”
True Person Guangwei, seeing his beloved disciple return, couldn’t contain himself and hurriedly said, “You didn’t kill him! Since Qin Yangling provoked you, fighting back was just self-defense. There’s no crime. I ask the seniors to consider this.”
Immortal Cuixuan glanced at him and chuckled, “Your protective heart is too strong. I haven’t said I’m going to punish him, yet you’ve already cleared his name.” He slowly stood up and said with emotion: “Qin Yangling, Zhengxu, Zhen Yunzi… they’re all just insects. Even if ten of them died, it wouldn’t be much of a loss. Jiang Li Fei’s background is unclear, with countless connections to overseas. You’ve all seen the tragedy of the Sea Meteor. How two Yakshas slaughtered our Middle Earth immortals back then—White Edge Cliff gives a glimpse of that. Lei Xiuyuan, you’re a smart child. Since you chose to come back, you must understand the stakes. Now tell me, where is Jiang Li Fei?”
Lei Xiuyuan lowered his head and said, “This disciple doesn’t know. She left very suddenly. I waited for several days in the East Sea, then searched everywhere for many days. It wasn’t until I received the summons that I rushed back to the sect.”
Immortal Cuixuan’s eyes widened fiercely: “Is it that you truly don’t know, or are you protecting her?!”
Lei Xiuyuan remained calm: “This disciple truly doesn’t know.”
Immortal Cuixuan nodded and said coolly, “If that’s the case, you should go to the Tower of Reflection to think things over. Hmph, concealing and covering up will only sow evil fruits in the end. When the nest is overturned, who will talk about those tender feelings with you? You’re like this, and so is Chongyi. So obstinate, you’ll end up harming others and yourselves!”
With a wave of his long sleeve, Lei Xiuyuan was immediately bound by the Dragon Binding Chain. True Person Guangwei wanted to speak but hesitated, constrained by the many senior immortals in the hall. He could only watch helplessly as Lei Xiuyuan was carried down the cloud sea to the Tower of Reflection.
Among the ten senior immortals, one suddenly said, “The various peculiarities of that surnamed Jiang girl that Cuixuan mentioned sound very familiar to me. I’ve been rummaging through ancient texts in the library these past few days, and I’ve found some interesting things.”
Everyone couldn’t help but look at him. This old immortal took out a dirty and tattered bamboo scroll from his sleeve. Seeing the Wuyue Palace immortal technique binding strip on it, Immortal Cuixuan exclaimed in surprise, “A bamboo scroll? My goodness, how many years old is this relic you’ve dug up?”
The immortal smiled and said, “I’m afraid even the four sect leaders couldn’t tell its age. I only remembered it because I once idly flipped through all the texts in the library. Look, it only mentions one passage—”
The bamboo scroll recorded various major events of Wuyue Palace in the past. It mentioned that one day, the water in the East Sea suddenly receded, and a beautiful woman from overseas came riding the wind and treading on mist. She absorbed countless spiritual energies from mountains, rivers, and seas, seeming like a bottomless pit. The immortals feared her ability and killed her en masse. After the woman’s death, heavenly thunder and fire descended upon Middle Earth, but fortunately, it disappeared quickly without causing severe casualties.
This event came suddenly and left suddenly. The receded seawater was refilled within three days, and nothing strange seemed to happen afterward. Thus, the bamboo scroll only mentioned this one passage.