When Xiang Su woke up in the morning, she heard Wen Sheng calling her outside Liusu Hall. Opening the door to see his smiling face, Xiang Su shuddered—breakfast wouldn’t be white porridge and pickled vegetables again, would it?

Fortunately, Wen Sheng said, “Junshang requests you come to Shengyun Hall for breakfast.”

Xiang Su beamed with delight, following him to Shengyun Hall with light steps. Whenever Junshang gave her good food to eat, she felt she could temporarily stop complaining about him.

Xiang Su had just climbed the jade steps when she saw a table full of sumptuous pastries. Junshang didn’t eat, so naturally they were prepared for her. Without even glancing at Junshang, she rushed straight to the table to grab chopsticks.

“Wait.” Dong Tianyun said coolly.

This was the first time Junshang had stopped her from eating. Xiang Su looked up at him baffled, her fingers reluctantly sneaking toward the chopsticks.

“From now on, before breakfast you must practice magic. Early morning is the best time for cultivation.” Dong Tianyun looked at her expressionlessly.

Being looked at by him made Xiang Su’s whole body turn cold. She most feared this flat, level tone of his. “Mm.” She decided to pretend to be obedient. Since returning yesterday, Junshang had worn this cold face. His moods were unpredictable—she was used to it. As long as his malicious temper didn’t sweep over her, it was fine.

Looking at the table full of exquisite pastries, Xiang Su listlessly swallowed her saliva. When Junshang was unhappy, even eating a bite of his food was such a struggle!

“Junshang.” Kunpeng’s greeting voice sounded below the steps. Dong Tianyun said “come,” and only then did he use spatial transference to appear instantly on the jade platform to kowtow.

Xiang Su stood behind Dong Tianyun’s couch looking askance at Kunpeng. This bird was practically her enemy! He’d destroyed many of her beautiful hopes, bought such inferior food to deceive her, and told her so many lies!

Kunpeng was dressed all in black. His single-knee kneeling posture was quite handsome. Though his personality was detestable, his appearance was still quite good. That Xianji liked him wasn’t without reason.

Kunpeng caught sight of her provocation and with a cold face ignored it, only taking out a spatial storage box from his chest, presenting it with both hands to Dong Tianyun, reporting that the Ice Pole Charcoal had been retrieved.

Xiang Su had a bit of a scheme. Although Junshang said the bird feather fan was given to her and Kunpeng wouldn’t take it back, she still wasn’t quite reassured. The people of Shenghuan Manor were all too devious. She deliberately pulled out the crane feather hairpin from her hair and used spiritual power to open it into a fan, waving it back and forth while exploiting the tiger’s power. Look, look, this was what Junshang gave her.

Kunpeng indeed showed a resentful expression. In front of Junshang he couldn’t make a scene, but his suppressed gaze made Xiang Su’s spine turn cold.

“Xiang Su.” Dong Tianyun said lazily, as if he hadn’t seen the eye battle between Xiang Su and Kunpeng. “Practice using the feather fan to control wind.”

Xiang Su beamed with delight, nodding repeatedly. This was Junshang personally confirming the feather fan belonged to her! Dong Tianyun repeated the wind-controlling incantation word by word. Finally, he pressed the corner of his lips. “If you can’t learn it, don’t eat.”

Xiang Su’s smile immediately vanished. Why threaten her again? Food was a huge motivator. Xiang Su worked extraordinarily hard to remember the incantation, but could never recall two or three words in the middle, her face showing difficulty. She didn’t have the nerve to make Junshang repeat it again. Kunpeng disdainfully narrowed his eyes and gave a silent cold snort as if seeing through her. Xiang Su was furious yet helpless.

Dong Tianyun frowned slightly, as if expecting she couldn’t remember it in one go. His attitude clearly worse than before, he repeated it again. This time Xiang Su memorized it, silently reciting it several times in her mind, confirming she could use it correctly. Xiang Su felt a bit smug. She walked before Dong Tianyun, opened the feather fan and chanted the spell. Unexpectedly, what came out wasn’t wind but fine, dense, glittering star points.

Dong Tianyun wearily brushed his brow. “You recited the lightning-controlling spell.”

“Lightning?” Xiang Su curiously shook out more dense star points. This was actually lightning? So beautiful, shining even in daylight, like a rain of stars. Though she’d mixed it up again, it was truly novel, even prettier than the gardenia petals that flew out last time.

She resentfully glanced at Kunpeng. He must be mocking her again, right? Kunpeng was also looking at her. Their gazes inadvertently met. He actually averted his eyes first as if guilty, his face seeming somewhat red.

“Does it look good?” Dong Tianyun leaned sideways against the armrest of the wooden couch, asking Kunpeng lightly.

Kunpeng quickly glanced at Xiang Su and said softly, somewhat reluctantly, “It looks good.”

Dong Tianyun’s face darkened. “What use is looking good? Can it injure enemies and protect oneself?”

Kunpeng lowered his eyes, his ears somewhat hot. So Junshang had been asking about Xiang Su’s technique…

Dong Tianyun raised his eyebrows, seeming somewhat apologetic. “I’m thinking of crafting some small items while forging the sword. Kunpeng, go fetch some more charcoal.” His slender fingers tapped the armrest once. “Wen Sheng.” Wen Sheng appeared at his call. “Time is pressing. You and Kunpeng go together. Go quickly and return quickly.”

Kunpeng and Wen Sheng’s faces immediately paled. Fetching charcoal was a small matter—the key point was this wasn’t work they should be doing. Clearly it was punishment.

Kunpeng’s brows locked tight, pondering why Junshang had punished him twice in a row.

Wen Sheng had a look of knowing exactly why. Surely Xiang Su had complained behind the scenes. The white porridge and pickled vegetables were clearly ordered by Junshang. When the two quarreled, he became collateral damage.

Xiang Su didn’t take this matter to heart at all. As long as she wasn’t sent, it was fine. While Junshang was instructing them, she glanced at the pastries several more times.

After Kunpeng and Wen Sheng both disappeared, Xiang Su perked up again. But… she still hadn’t recited the spell correctly. Was Junshang going to lose his temper again?

Unexpectedly, Junshang frowned for a while himself, as if troubled by something, and impatiently waved his hand at her. “You eat.” Though his attitude was poor, as long as she could eat, it was fine. Xiang Su sat down at the table beaming and started eating.

After she’d eaten her fill, looking at Junshang reclined on the couch, seemingly asleep yet not, brows tightly furrowed—his appearance was first-rate beautiful, but Xiang Su felt her heart wrench watching. By the looks of it, Junshang’s mood was bad again. She’d have to live in fear and trepidation again.

“You…” When Dong Tianyun spoke, his eyes didn’t even open. Watching, Xiang Su felt an indescribable feeling inside. Junshang’s appearance was too bewitching. She was somewhat afraid to look yet couldn’t bear not to, her heart clenching. “Come with me somewhere.”

“Alright.” Xiang Su agreed dazedly, somewhat understanding Chilin and Dragon Lady. With Junshang like this, refusing him was truly difficult. Even someone like her who somewhat disliked him was unknowingly bewitched by him, let alone those infatuated ones.

The journey took a very long time. Xiang Su completely lost her sense of direction, standing on the cloud top in a daze. When they landed on an extremely high mountain peak, she looked around baffled. The sun was already slanting west. The sea of clouds at the mountain’s waist remained dense and thick, flowing like surging waves with the wind, blocking the view. All she could see besides clouds was more clouds.

“Where is this?” Xiang Su turned to look at Junshang. He stood there quietly. The mountain wind blew his robe hem and hair, as if he might ascend at any moment. His deep, profound eyes slightly unfocused, his handsome countenance thus tinged with some sadness. She saw Junshang like this for the first time. Her heart suddenly went blank, only staring at him in a daze.

“This is Mount Jiujue… the place where I first met Master.” Dong Tianyun seemed to sink into memories, the corner of his mouth slightly upturned. But Xiang Su watched with a sour nose. Why did Junshang’s smile at this moment make one’s heart ache so? She had a premonition that Junshang’s master was no longer here.

“Where is your master?” She unwillingly pursued with another question.

“He passed away in meditation.” Dong Tianyun slowly sat down. The mountain wind blew toward him. He appeared carefree yet lonely, standing aloof from the world.

That year, he hadn’t yet cultivated human form. Master came riding a golden-winged celestial roc, outstanding and distinguished. Envious and jealous, he couldn’t help but curse “dead bird-person”…

He glanced at Xiang Su, who for some reason wore a face full of sadness. As for her joys and sorrows, he no longer wanted to investigate—there would always be answers that made him not know whether to laugh or cry.

Until he met the little gardenia tree who had also cursed him like this… He thought this was a link in the cycle of cause and effect. Qingsui and Qingze, Bi Lian and Ji Feng, him and the silly gardenia tree.

Just as it had been with him and Master back then.

“Your master… who was he?” Xiang Su carefully sat beside him. In the endless sea of clouds, the world seemed to contain only the small mountain peak where he and she stood. She herself didn’t notice that during their conversation she’d used “you” to address Dong Tianyun. In the boundless loneliness, she felt incomparably close to him.

Dong Tianyun was silent for a while. For immortal spirits who had already vanished into the vast world, names, legends about them… were no longer important. From the nine heavens above to the endless Yellow Springs below, this person’s traces no longer existed. For those who still missed him, speaking his name still brought endless bitterness to the heart.

“Master’s lifelong wish was to gather the Xuanyuan Three Swords and reforge the Guwen divine weapon… but always lacked some luck.” Dong Tianyun closed his eyes and let out a long breath, exhausted yet infinitely satisfied. “I finally completed it for him.”

Xiang Su looked at this peerlessly handsome face, as if feeling the myriad sighs and sorrows in his heart. She felt inexplicably like crying. “If you have any unfinished wishes, after you die, I’ll also fulfill them for you.” In her emotional excitement, she solemnly promised.

Dong Tianyun choked, speechlessly opening his eyes to look at her. “No need. I don’t plan to die just yet.”

Xiang Su regretfully covered her mouth. What was she saying…

Dong Tianyun laughed and looked back at the slowly flowing sea of clouds.

How did Master lack luck? He took on such an outstanding disciple. And he… had been stuck with a fool. He glanced again at Xiang Su, who was timidly stealing looks to see if he was angry. Her exquisitely lovely face made him momentarily lose focus. Perhaps he was also fortunate.

“This sea of clouds…” He dispersed the strange stirring in his heart and turned his gaze back. “I watched it for hundreds of years.”

“Ah?” Xiang Su was dumbstruck, her brain unable to quite process this.

“This is my birthplace.” Dong Tianyun also realized he was speaking rather a lot today. Having finally completed Master’s wish and brought her here, his emotional fluctuations surprised even himself.

Xiang Su frowned looking toward the boundless sea of clouds with no scenery. No companions, no change, just passing hundreds of years alone like this? She suddenly felt heartache. As a wood spirit, she had too deep an understanding of this helpless feeling of being placed on a high cliff!

Junshang was too pitiful, not even having someone to talk to. No wonder he’d become this temper. Here and now, she empathized deeply with his loneliness. “Don’t be afraid, from now on I’ll always stay with you!” She made another bold promise, all her usual dissatisfaction with him transforming into deep sympathy.

Dong Tianyun turned his face to look at her. She sat shoulder to shoulder with him. Her water-bright pupils looked at him clearly and sincerely, her pink tender lips… He suddenly lowered his head and kissed her.

“Mmm…” Xiang Su was greatly startled and instinctively drew back, but he grabbed her in an embrace, pressing her tightly against his chest.

A nameless palpitation surged within her. Xiang Su felt her whole body suddenly lose strength. His lips and tongue were lingering, with a power that made her soul scatter, somewhat uncomfortable yet unwilling for him to stop.

After a long while, Dong Tianyun reluctantly raised his head, seeing on her delicately flushed face from rapid breathing not shyness but an extremely adorable confusion.

“What was that for?” Xiang Su worked hard to calm her breathing. Dong Tianyun looked at her lips, crystal bright and tender from kissing, and couldn’t help but give a low laugh and kiss them again.

“Expressing gratitude.”

Deceiving an ignorant little wood spirit had a kind of wicked pleasure. He too had been shamelessly deceived many times by Master.

Watching her confused yet deeply trusting appearance, he especially felt her adorable to the bone. Meeting her… was an arrangement of fate. He had also resisted, wanting to treat her as just another ordinary passerby in countless millennia. Deciding to bring her here, he’d also felt unwilling.

Not until this moment did he accept wholeheartedly that even someone like him, planning to pass through an eternal life indifferently, would always meet such a person he wanted to be with constantly.

This person in the vast world of mortals, with just one sentence, one glance, one smile… tightly hooked him.

He’d seen the beautiful colors of the three realms, yet not one person’s beauty made his heart tremble slightly in an instant, making him—this old man of many years—like those young fools Kunpeng and Shui Xian.

Since they’d met, he wouldn’t let her go.