“Hm?”

Speaking half the words with the other half left unsaid—this sounded quite strange.

When she first saw him, Jian Chou was still in shock, but by now she had reacted. She looked up at his figure half-hidden behind the tree and laughed as well.

“Your heart?”

“Nothing…”

Fu Chaosheng shook his head, lowering his eyes while the smile at the corners of his lips hadn’t faded.

“Just relieved to see my old friend safe and sound.”

Though night had already fallen, for existences like them, their vision wasn’t affected in the slightest.

He could clearly see Jian Chou’s features. In their people’s eyes, such appearance would definitely be first-rate. But Fu Chaosheng felt what was most comfortable was actually her demeanor—no matter when, it always carried a composed quality that inexplicably put people at ease.

Compared to when they parted in the Extreme Domain, she hadn’t changed much, only her cultivation had improved somewhat.

According to cultivators’ advancement levels, she was already at mid-Nascent Soul.

This speed would absolutely be shocking to the world if placed on others, but compared to the cultivation speed Fu Chaosheng remembered of Jian Chou, it seemed considerably slower.

“It seems the records about that chaotic rift current in the Extreme Domain were true after all.”

Back in the Extreme Domain, Fu Chaosheng had disguised himself as Lihan and traveled alongside Jian Chou, facing quite a few dangers together. In any case, they could be considered close friends who had fought side by side.

When she saw him, all the scenes of breaking through the eighteen levels of hell surfaced in her mind.

Although most cultivators of the Nineteen Continents probably considered Fu Chaosheng demonic, Jian Chou still found it difficult to harbor any ill will toward him. Seeing his appearance, her joy naturally outweighed her surprise.

However, hearing his abrupt statement, Jian Chou was momentarily stunned: “Chaotic rift current?”

“Correct.”

Fu Chaosheng nodded. Seeing that Jian Chou seemed to know nothing about this “chaotic rift current,” he roughly guessed her situation when trapped in the current.

“After you crossed the Shitian Fortune Array, I remained in the Extreme Domain. Worried about my old friend’s safety, I opened my cosmic eye to explore, wanting to glimpse your recent condition. Who would have thought I saw only vast emptiness. My cosmic eye couldn’t perceive you.”

The paired eyes—one was the cosmic eye that could observe all directions above and below; the other was the temporal eye that could see past and future.

It could be said that with sufficient cultivation and possession of these cosmic twin eyes, one could know geography and astronomy, understand past and present. Whatever the “eyes” reached, nothing remained unknown.

Yet Fu Chaosheng actually said that after she crossed the Shitian Fortune Array, his cosmic eye couldn’t perceive her?

Jian Chou’s brows immediately furrowed.

“At that time, I was fighting Lord Qin Guang and my mental strength was exhausted. After crossing the Shitian Fortune Array, I fell into unconsciousness. It sounds incredible, but I only felt like I slept through a murky dream, and when I opened my eyes, sixty years had already passed. I found myself in the Nineteen Continents with my cultivation advanced to mid-Nascent Soul. Before this, I only knew that the chaotic current behind the Shitian Fortune Array seemed able to blur space and time. Is this what you call the ‘chaotic rift current’?”

“More than just blurring space and time?”

As Fu Chaosheng spoke, he had already broken off that osmanthus branch. With a press of his fingertip, he crushed several osmanthus flowers hanging among the branches and leaves, though thoughtfulness flashed through his eyes.

When Jian Chou clashed palms with Lord Qin Guang and departed triumphantly, he was still wearing the Ghost King clan’s Lihan’s appearance.

Due to his excellent performance in the cauldron competition, he was ultimately selected into the Eight Directions City along with that cruel official from Great Xia named Zhang Tang. However, Zhang Tang was undoubtedly chosen by the First Hall Yama King Lord Qin Guang and became a judge, while he chose the Eighth Hall Yama King, the Wheel-Turning King.

After discovering that his cosmic eye couldn’t perceive Jian Chou’s traces, he even tried his temporal eye as well, only to find that he couldn’t see countless possibilities of Jian Chou’s past and future either.

It was as if this old friend who had enabled his enlightenment had never existed in this primordial universe.

Yet all rumors related to Jian Chou still circulated in the streets and alleys.

Whether in the City of Wrongful Deaths or Fengdu City, whether among the elders of the ten great ghost clans or the hundreds of judges in the Eight Directions Yama Halls, everyone still remembered the power of her palm strike and the shock she left when claiming to be from Yashan…

Everything proved that Jian Chou as a person truly existed.

Then why couldn’t the cosmic twin eyes perceive her traces?

This question had actually troubled Fu Chaosheng for some time, until he accidentally saw that leaf book while investigating reincarnation matters in the Wheel-Turning King’s hall.

“My old friend will understand at a glance.”

Extending his palm forward with an open hand, a palm-sized withered yellow tree leaf appeared in Fu Chaosheng’s hand. He handed it to Jian Chou.

“When I discovered it, it was tucked inside a register of rebirths from over three hundred years ago.”

About three cun long and one and a half cun wide.

This leaf book looked quite aged, with even the leaf edges somewhat damaged. Dense dark gold characters covered the front of the leaf.

They couldn’t even be called characters—just some oddly-shaped symbols.

When Jian Chou received it and looked, she knew this was an ancient script she had read about in the Scripture Repository.

If she remembered correctly, “leaf books” had long ago exited history, replaced by more easily preserved bamboo slips, which were later replaced by jade slips.

This leaf book probably had significant origins.

Thinking this, Jian Chou gently turned over the leaf book and began reading carefully.

Unexpectedly, this reading was utterly shocking, every word striking the heart!

“When the universe was first born and primordial chaos was split, the world became chaotic and deities were born. This is called ‘Primordial Ancient.'”

“The Great Pangu, with his axe splitting chaos, separated yin and yang, clear and turbid, arranged the celestial stars, gave birth to all living things, beginning the ‘Remote Ancient’ era. Our clan migrated from the mother realm, settling on this star, which the Great Lord named ‘Origin.'”

“From this point, reincarnation was established.”

“Our clan moved in the long night, struggling through hardships, barely surviving.”

“However, when opening the Extreme Domain, we encountered a turbulent current that swallowed cosmos and devoured universe. Those who fell within might emerge thousands of li away, or leak traces of years, white hair becoming youthful, black hair suddenly turning white.”

“The Great Lord investigated and found this was a rift formed when this realm’s universe was first born but not yet complete. He then expended his divine power to move it outside the Extreme Domain, sealing it to form high walls, separating yin and yang.”

“Only the Heaven-Reaching Mirror was built to allow passage between the two domains.”

“Our clan’s cultivators, if…”

Abruptly ending.

The end of these dark gold ancient characters was precisely where this leaf book was missing a small piece. Jian Chou couldn’t know what else was written afterward.

But just the preceding content was enough to make her soul tremble!

Universe’s first birth, opening heaven and splitting earth, establishing reincarnation, opening the Extreme Domain…

Just these phrases suddenly made her recall the boundless universe and vast galaxy she had seen when first obtaining the temporal eye! And that long evolution, the powerful beings traversing different eras!

“So the chaotic current I passed through had such origins.”

Actually, she didn’t find the word “universe” unfamiliar.

But when this concept truly fell before her, she couldn’t imagine its vast scope and encompassing meaning. Only an inevitable sense of insignificance surged uncontrollably into her heart, making her sigh deeply.

“Incredible…”

“That my old friend only experienced sixty years, emerged still in the Nineteen Continents, and remained safe and sound is already extremely fortunate.”

Fu Chaosheng had long since read this leaf book and, born bearing the collective will of the Mayfly clan, knew few unknown things in the world. The content on this leaf book—only the vaguely described “deities” and “reincarnation” troubled him persistently; everything else he regarded as ordinary.

“I departed from the Extreme Domain and passed through here because I sensed my old friend’s qi. I didn’t expect to encounter some trouble on the way and fight a battle with it, only arriving now.”

“The thing in the night sailing ship’s great hall?” Jian Chou keenly detected the “trouble” and “battle” in Fu Chaosheng’s words. Raising an eyebrow, she asked naturally, “So you were the one fighting it…”

“I didn’t intend to act originally…”

Speaking of this, Fu Chaosheng’s brow also slightly furrowed, with heavy thoughts passing through his eyes.

“Unfortunately, I let it escape in the end.”

Escaped.

The “salted fish” hooked on his finger suddenly rolled its white eyes more obviously, and its tail listlessly swayed once, quite conveying a sense of “looking down on you” contempt.

Fu Chaosheng was immediately speechless.

Seeing this, Jian Chou found it hard to look away. Observing this salted fish’s appearance, she naturally thought of the black fish in the fish basket when Fu Chaosheng came to Kunwu to borrow the temporal eye for river boating.

A thought suddenly couldn’t be suppressed: “Kun?”

“…”

In this instant, the “salted fish” that had been moving like a “corpse coming back to life” seemed frozen by someone, immediately becoming motionless. Only its still-rolled white eyes suddenly revealed a “hero’s final journey” tragic sentiment.

Seeing this, Jian Chou’s mouth couldn’t help but twitch.

Why did she suddenly feel the kind of guilt that comes from unintentionally puncturing someone’s self-respect?

“Cough.” Fu Chaosheng seemed to want to laugh, suddenly making a fist to cover his lips and cough, proactively taking up the conversation. “It’s not any kun, just indeed a smoked dried salted fish.”

Is that so?

Jian Chou’s gaze withdrew from Fu Chaosheng’s smiling eyes. Her heart was clear as a mirror, but she remained noncommittal: “Then it seems I was overthinking. By the way, you mentioned earlier asking Qu Zhengfeng to bring me a message?”

“I saw him in the night sailing ship’s great hall and recognized his identity. I originally wanted to ask him to bring a greeting to my old friend. But later, thinking that though I had matters to attend to, finding my old friend would only take an instant, I came myself.”

Fu Chaosheng didn’t mention again that Qu Zhengfeng hadn’t delivered his message—after all, that was others’ business.

“Seeing my old friend safe, I must depart now.”

He didn’t mention it again, so Jian Chou didn’t ask further.

Since their strange encounter on the Immortal Path’s Thirteen Islands, her impression of Fu Chaosheng was that he always seemed to be on a journey of rushing and seeking. Today was no exception.

“Where will you go this time?”

“To the Snow Region.”

While speaking, he had already stood up. Glancing at the osmanthus branch in his hand, he gently placed it back among the osmanthus tree’s branches.

After a moment of silence, he continued: “I bear the great wish of the Mayfly clan and was born for it. In the Extreme Domain, I have glimpsed all secrets that could be glimpsed, yet puzzles remain unsolved. The Snow Region’s esoteric sect has Holy Son Jiye, who might resolve my confusion.”

Holy Son, Jiye.

This person, or rather this existence, Jian Chou also knew of. Though she didn’t know how Fu Chaosheng’s investigation related to him, it was ultimately his own affair.

A smile hung at Jian Chou’s lips. She didn’t feel any parting sentiment, only saying: “Then I wish you success in this journey.”

“I accept my old friend’s auspicious words.”

Fu Chaosheng also slowly curved his lips in a smile, though this smile carried more uncertainty.

Whether the Snow Region would have the answers he sought, whether the legendary Holy Son could resolve his doubts—no one would know before arriving.

He slightly bowed to her, which served as their farewell.

A gentle breeze blew through the courtyard, still carrying the fragrance of osmanthus. When Jian Chou looked again, the azure-green figure before her gradually faded.

Only from the distance came some vague voices.

“Sigh, tonight at this moment, my dignity is completely swept away…”

“When have you ever had such a thing?”

“…”

Seemingly choked by that response, the original voice also disappeared without a trace.

In the blink of an eye, only Jian Chou remained at the original spot.

She looked up at this osmanthus tree by the wall, recalling Fu Chaosheng who had departed without a trace. Somehow, she suddenly sensed a kind of loneliness from him—

This world-crossing great demon, since the day of his transformation, had been searching and seeking.

Yet during his long journey, it seemed he could only come to see her, this so-called “old friend” with whom he’d had few encounters…

“Forget it, what concern is it of mine?”

Jian Chou shook her head, dispelling all these strange thoughts from her mind. An existence like Fu Chaosheng was special even to heaven and earth—how could he not be lonely? It wasn’t for her to worry about.

The leaf book was still in her hand.

She walked along the wall base toward her nearby courtyard, walking while thinking about the records on this leaf book. Her fingers almost unconsciously lightly turned this leaf over.

The withered yellow leaf, dark gold ancient characters.

The tree leaf’s texture and veins, after years of compression, were deeply branded on it, like human meridians and bones, naturally possessing a unique beauty.

Even the back was completely smooth…

Wait.

The back?

Jian Chou suddenly gasped, her steps stopping, and her fingers holding this leaf book stiffening: Just now during that rotation, she seemed to have seen something…

Her fingertips, slightly cool in the night wind, moved gently.

She slowly turned this leaf book over: The front of the leaf book had dark gold ancient characters, dense and numerous, flowing with mysterious dim light. But on the back of the leaf book…

It wasn’t completely blank.

Above, five characters lay empty and alone.

When Jian Chou was reading the leaf book earlier, she hadn’t noticed them at all. Because these characters weren’t ancient script, but the most common ancient seal script from recent centuries!

The habit of reading ancient characters made her subconsciously overlook them.

The moment she noticed these characters on the leaf’s back, her heart thundered with a “boom,” feeling like the depths of her entire mind exploded!

This handwriting!

It was identical to the first of the nine handwritings of the master in that old mansion in the City of Wrongful Deaths!

“This path, I do not submit!”