Yun Shouxi returned to his quarters and asked his three disciples, “Are you all on good terms with the Holy Sword Sect?”

Yu Xiu shook his head. “We’ve only just met them.”

Chu Yi also said, “We only spoke for the first time today.”

Along with Bai Zang.

The remaining disciple was Ling Luo. She placed roasted buns on the table while Yun Shouxi’s peripheral vision followed her continuously.

“A few days ago, I encountered Fire Demon when dealing with the prohibited medicine issue. Fortunately, the Holy Sword Sect came to my rescue,” Ling Luo explained, then asked, “Master, would you like to eat?”

After hearing this, Chu Yi couldn’t help but admire his junior sister’s cleverness.

Meeting the Fire Demon was true, but their good relationship wasn’t because of that incident.

Though he remembered that Yue Liangze was once a disciple of Tianji, he didn’t want to reveal this fact because it wasn’t something to be proud of.

If word got out, people would certainly mock him, saying a disciple rejected by Tianji immediately became a disciple of the Holy Sword Sect. Such rumors would be detrimental to Tianji’s reputation.

“Then we truly must thank them,” Yun Shouxi said casually as he sat down at the table. “The Holy Sword Sect stands outside the Twelve Great Immortal Sects, yet above them, possessing supervisory and judicial powers. To avoid suspicion, all sects maintain a distance from members of the Holy Sword Sect.”

“This disciple understands,” Yu Xiu responded earnestly with his head lowered.

Only he was completely obedient to Yun Shouxi.

The other two, though outwardly displaying understanding expressions, harbored rebellious thoughts.

Chu Yi, with a roasted bun in his mouth, inwardly admiring its taste, gave Ling Luo a meaningful look. “Master is still hungry. Go make him something to eat.”

Ling Luo said, “Master, these roasted buns…”

Yun Shouxi smiled slightly. “I don’t want them.”

“Then what would Master like to eat?”

“Just make whatever you like.”

Ling Luo rose and went to the small kitchen.

Without her privileged life, she had learned to cook a few dishes herself.

Taichu had arranged everything meticulously. The ingredients in the small kitchen were fresh, with some replaced daily.

Ling Luo fiddled with the ingredients in her hands, contemplating whether to simply poison Yun Shouxi and send him to the Western paradise.

But if Yun Shouxi died now, future events beneficial to her wouldn’t occur. Thinking carefully, it seemed disadvantageous.

It was better to continue living like this for now.

Enduring the torment of unfulfilled love.

Now she possessed all knowledge and was the one guiding their path, no longer Yun Shouxi.

She needed to consider carefully how to make herself happier.

Ling Luo prepared two dishes and a soup, bringing them out to Yun Shouxi.

Her senior brothers had already retired to their rooms.

Yun Shouxi rested his chin on one hand, tilting his head to look at her.

The young girl from years ago had grown much taller, her appearance changing, becoming increasingly beautiful. In his memory, the once-blank face was now filled with Ling Luo’s features, completely becoming her.

“Master,” Ling Luo sat across from him, placing the plate of roasted buns in front of herself. “Please eat while it’s hot. Have my senior brothers gone to sleep?”

“Mm,” Yun Shouxi responded softly, picking up his chopsticks. “Why did you change your hair ornament?”

“Does it not look good?” Ling Luo asked, feigning confusion. “Many people have complimented me these days, saying my hair ornament is beautiful, my clothes are beautiful, everything about me is beautiful.”

Yun Shouxi looked at her and said, “The previous one looked better. Change it back.”

“Does Master prefer the previous one?” she asked.

Yun Shouxi lowered his eyes and made an affirmative sound.

“But I’ve worn that style for several years and am tired of it,” Ling Luo said with a smile, looking at Yun Shouxi. When he raised his head to look at her, she said, “Master, perhaps you could try to like my new hair ornament?”

Yun Shouxi narrowed his eyes slightly, his aura momentarily turning cold.

In the past, Ling Luo would have obediently changed it, certainly not daring to anger him.

But now—

Come on, show me your anger, I’m watching.

Ling Luo played with her braid, lightly brushing it against her cheek. Her beautiful peach blossom eyes were half-closed, carrying a bewitching intent that made Yun Shouxi’s heart sink.

“I haven’t grown tired of seeing it. How could you tire of it first?” Yun Shouxi said softly.

In his previous life, Yun Shouxi had such an easy time because Ling Luo was too obedient.

Whatever Master said looked good, she would dress accordingly.

She never suspected anything.

When someone suggested that Yun Shouxi might have feelings for her, she even beat them up, reasoning that they were insulting her master and trying to drive a wedge between their master-disciple relationship.

Later, when she was imprisoned by Yun Shouxi in a water cage using the Soul-Capturing Lock, becoming neither human nor ghost, forced to listen daily to Yun Shouxi’s professions of love. Her initial shock and disbelief eventually turned to disgust, disdain, and hatred.

Master was the best master in the world.

But why did he have to treat her this way?

Ling Luo looked directly into Yun Shouxi’s eyes, released her braid, and obediently said, “Then I’ll change it back tomorrow.”

Unable to fight or kill him, she would endure for now.

Only then did a smile return to Yun Shouxi’s eyes. “Go rest early.”

Ling Luo stood up and asked, “Master, during these four years, did the Qingshi Workshop receive any letters delivered by the Holy Sword Sect’s spirit birds?”

Yun Shouxi’s expression remained unchanged, his chopstick movements continuing without pause. “No.”

Ling Luo couldn’t help but marvel inwardly at his shamelessness.

“How strange. The disciple from the Holy Sword Sect said he sent me fourteen letters, yet I didn’t receive a single one,” Ling Luo said indignantly. “He deceived me!”

Yun Shouxi asked with a smile, “Who?”

“That junior brother of Immortal Master Bai Zang,” Ling Luo said as she left the stone table. “To deceive me with such lies, he truly is a person fond of flowery speech.”

That wooden block could not be more different from those four words.

Ling Luo returned to her room angrily.

The smile in Yun Shouxi’s eyes disappeared, leaving only gloom.

Ling Luo returned to her room and went to sleep, her night filled with dreams.

Past events rose and fell in her dreams.

She saw herself trapped beneath the boundless sea, the Moon-Bright Pearl illuminating her surroundings with dappled light and shadow. Unable to swim out of this boundary, she was pressed down by the water pressure, only able to look up in despair.

The silence of the water was absolute, yet that figure would always arrive on schedule.

She also saw a man standing at the mountain peak, sword in hand, his back to her. Blood dripped from the blade as the man coldly said, “You are just a useless person who cannot even hold a sword.”

Then he walked further and further away.

A woman’s weeping accompanied arrows falling from the sky.

A girl’s pure voice called her “sister,” sweet and soft.

The girl picked up the wooden sword that had been knocked down and handed it to her, saying angrily, “My sister is the most formidable sword cultivator in the world! They are the useless ones!”

There were also people kneeling in gratitude to her: “Thank you, Dao Lord! If not for your guidance, we would have been trapped here for generations!”

“This dragon carriage was created by that female Dao Lord called Ling Luo. Without it, you would have died long ago!”

“The flying dragon carriage—its creator is the foremost person in the cultivation world!”

“If she hadn’t defended the city for three months, this place would have been trampled by the demon army! You would all be nothing but bones! What’s wrong with calling her Immortal Master? Even calling her the city lord wouldn’t be excessive!”

Once, glory and praise adorned her, respected by the world and worshipped by others, but it could vanish in an instant.

“Beast! Worse than a beast!”

“How can you allow her to slander Immortal Master Canxi? Look at what you’ve done!”

“I said early on that a woman couldn’t create the dragon carriage!”

“Stop your nonsense! That which has nothing to do with our city!”

“Women are weak, and you are an insect.”

That sword stood between her and the world.

So she knocked down the person holding the sword and asked, “Do you have any regrets?”

None.

So her sword fell.

The eye that appeared in the sky watched her, trying to stop her from destroying this world.

She pointed at the Heavenly Dao and said, “You cannot stop me.”

The world collapsed.

The last thing Ling Luo saw in her dream was scattered fragments of Duanyi and the unsheathed Wusheng.

With the competition for the top position coinciding with the Hundred-Day Banquet, the Twelve Great Immortal Sects arrived successively yesterday. More people arrived early this morning, making the entire Western Sea Taichu lively.

Ling Luo rose early and changed her hair ornament, wearing a golden hairpin and a light blue dress as she went out.

Chu Yi, standing at the doorway, looked back at her, merely raising an eyebrow without asking further.

“Yu Xiu left at dawn. Master was invited by the Second Elder, probably to discuss the prohibited medicine issue.”

The two walked toward the Golden Luan Pool Banquet Platform.

Today’s championship competition has been moved from the arena to the Golden Luan Pool Banquet Platform.

The attendees from the Twelve Great Immortal Sects and others had already taken their seats on the banquet platform. Servant disciples were continuously presenting platters and dishes, music played, and the atmosphere was lively.

Feng Tianyao stood in the Weak Water, holding his sword with his chin up, his back to the morning sun, his expression arrogant.

When Ling Luo descended into the Weak Water, she looked at the Golden Luan Pool Banquet Platform instead.

Disciples who had made it into the top hundred in this competition had been invited, but some had died from taking the Qianzhuan Pills, creating a somber atmosphere among the disciples.

In contrast, the area with the various sect leaders and dignitaries was filled with joy, laughter, and feasting.

Chu Yi went to sit beside Yun Shouxi.

He said, “Why did Ling Luo change her clothes and hair ornament today?”

Yun Shouxi smiled, “Does she not look good?”

Chu Yi nodded, “Yesterday’s attire was more beautiful than today’s.”

Yun Shouxi said with a faint smile, “Is that so? I think today’s attire suits her best and makes her most beautiful.”

Chu Yi drank his tea with an impassive expression.

The Northern Pavilion Moon Palace was positioned opposite the Eastern Island Tianji.

Jiang Miao wore a veil, sitting quietly with Mu Xujing beside her.

While others were chatting and laughing, she lowered her head to examine the food on the table with curiosity and inquiry. As she reached out to take it, the dish was taken away by Mu Xujing.

Jiang Miao glanced at him and made a hand gesture.

Mu Xujing still responded with those three words: “Can’t understand.”

Jiang Miao remained silent.

Next to the Northern Pavilion Moon Palace was the Southern Mountain Snow River.

The sect leader of Southern Mountain Snow River was Feng Yunhong.

His presence was like a mountain, cold and imposing, giving people a sense of oppression and insurmountability.

The person himself was also like a great mountain in the cultivation world.

Currently the most powerful swordsman.

Not to mention being a true disciple of Southern Mountain Snow River, his mastery of the family’s inherited divine sword intent was already consummated. His battle achievements against demons and monsters were illustrious, making him the most revered and respected figure among current sword cultivators.

He arrived with his wife, Lady Li, who was frail and susceptible to cold, wrapped in fox fur. Her features were delicate, her red lips vibrant, still revealing her exceptional beauty.

The marriage of the Southern Mountain Snow River sect leader to a woman from a pleasure house had once caused a sensation. Others said that Sect Leader Feng was merely seeking novelty, yet Feng Yunhong doted exclusively on their only son, and the couple remained deeply in love.

Lady Li looked down at Feng Tianyao, her gaze gentle. “Has Yao’er become more formidable than before?”

Feng Yunhong said, “Of course.”

“Although competition is important, he must also take care of his body,” Lady Li said. “What if he gets injured?”

“It’s nothing for a boy to suffer some injuries,” Feng Yunhong glanced at the Zhenxian Yu below. “As long as he wins.”

Lady Li looked at Ling Luo with curiosity. “This girl appears to be about the same age as Yao’er.”

Feng Yunhong replied, “She’s older. Yao’er is younger than her, so he has more room for improvement.”

Ling Luo glanced past the others toward Yue Liangze.

Yue Liangze was playing rock-paper-scissors with the painted skin spirit huge cat beside him.

Ling Luo: “…”

How childish!

She walked into the Weak Water and stood with Feng Tianyao before Zhenxian Yu, her eyes reflecting his arrogant face.

Feng Tianyao held his sword and said, “Considering you’re a girl, I’ll let you have the first three moves.”

Ling Luo smiled and replied, “The last person who said he would give me three moves ended up with a broken sword.”