Xuan Yi stood at the mountain gate of Zhongshan, silently gazing at this enormous mountain peak buried in ice and snow, shrouded in perpetual darkness. In the end, she had returned here again.

On the way back, Baize Dijun had said something to her, but she had forgotten it all. Her memory had never been this poor before.

Qi Nan hurried over to greet her. He looked very alarmed—he was always getting startled—repeatedly asking her: “What happened to the princess?”

She was perfectly fine, except that the tiny wound on her neck was a bit numb, and her heart was still somewhat shocked. Since she’d left Zhongshan to study at Mingxing Hall, she had offended countless members of the divine clan. She had never been wary of any hatred or disgust, sometimes even taking pleasure in it. But the instant Fucang drew Chun Jun, she was finally shocked.

He actually hated her this much.

Xuan Yi walked up the long staircase step by step, suddenly asking: “Qi Nan, am I sometimes quite hateful?”

Not just sometimes—practically every moment, Qi Nan secretly grumbled to himself, but smiled dryly on the surface: “It’s a good thing the princess has self-awareness.”

Xuan Yi continued: “I’m asking, is it a sin to hope a Divine Lord will accompany oneself?”

Qi Nan’s marriage-desperate heart began to beat wildly. He considered carefully: “Well… is the princess referring to Fucang Shenjun? Of course that’s not a sin. How could mutual affection be a sin?”

Xuan Yi pressed her lips together, saying indifferently: “Then without mutual affection, it becomes a sin?”

Qi Nan felt something was off: “What is the princess saying? Everyone can see who Fucang Shenjun likes. If you don’t like him but still cling to him, that would be a sin.”

But she didn’t want his affection. Don’t show that gentle look of wanting to draw near. Don’t get too close to her. She didn’t want to hear Mother’s low, suppressed sobbing again and again, nor did she want to constantly see that blood spread all over the ground. Divine clan members remembered things from birth. Since her birth, she had rarely seen Mother smile. Occasionally when Father coaxed her into happiness, she would soon be streaming with tears.

Love was a kind of sin. Falling into it would make one like the walking dead, would cost one’s life.

She only wanted him to stay far away, quietly, just accompanying her like that. Perhaps that was the sin.

Seeing she didn’t speak, Qi Nan grew anxious and couldn’t help but say: “Don’t tell me the princess had another conflict with Fucang Shenjun? Provoking him again and again like this—even the best temper will be ruined!”

Xuan Yi glanced back at him: “Why do you always want to push me out? Will I be obliterated staying by myself?”

Qi Nan took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled: “Because the princess clearly looks extremely lonely.”

Her? Lonely? Xuan Yi showed a strange smile and left with a flick of her sleeve.

Breaking through cloud boundaries all the way back to Zifu, the pomegranate flowers on the trees were already blooming vigorously like fire. That vivid, glaring color made her particularly uncomfortable. With a wave of her hand, the entire Zifu was covered in ice and snow, plunging everything into complete darkness and pallor, making her calm down.

Qi Nan quickly followed in. Seeing ice and snow everywhere, he was secretly shocked in his heart. He slowly walked to the young princess’s side. She was standing beside a tree of jade-like branches, head lowered without speaking.

“Qi Nan, take leave for me,” Xuan Yi said lowly. “Take leave for a thousand years.”

Qi Nan shook his head: “Aside from cultivation breakthroughs, where is there leave for a thousand years? Wenhua Hall has clear regulations—disciples’ leave cannot exceed two years.”

“Then two years.” She casually brushed, and white snow from the pomegranate tree fell rustling down.

Qi Nan sighed deeply, grabbed her sleeve, pulled her to the crystal bench before the hall and pressed her to sit down. He sat opposite her, saying gently: “Does the princess truly not like Fucang Shenjun?”

Xuan Yi said indifferently: “I don’t want to hear this question.”

Qi Nan fell into silence, only able to sit quietly with her in this world of ice and snow, watching this pale ice and snow glow with an orange color that seemed both cold and warm under the setting sun.

*

The turbid-qi-laden wind from the mortal realm struck her face, sticky and uncomfortable. Zhi Xi touched her nose uncomfortably and turned to look at Shao Yi beside her, riding on the back of a vermillion phoenix. He expressionlessly gazed at the enormous, pitch-black Sea of Parting Regret shrouded in clear light in the far distance, looking neither excited nor curious.

She couldn’t help but speak: “Shao Yi Junior Brother, have you looked enough?”

This Extreme Northern Abyss had become extremely heavy with turbid qi due to the fall of the Sea of Parting Regret. For young divine clan members like them, it was really quite unbearable. Perhaps because it had lost the divine realm’s clear qi envelope, the Sea of Parting Regret that had fallen to the lower realm was expanding much faster than when in the divine realm. According to the generals at the Southern Heavenly Gate, in just these few months the black fog had already expanded several li. At this rate, affecting mortals was only a matter of time.

For this reason, the number of divine generals descending to the lower realm daily had to be increased by five hundred, using clear qi to obstruct it. Only then was the expansion temporarily stabilized, but this was treating the symptoms rather than the root cause. The Dijun and Great Emperors in the upper realm had racked their brains over this but still hadn’t thought of any good solution. They could only delay day by day.

Shao Yi blinked and smiled: “I was thinking, we can’t let it expand like this unchecked.”

Zhi Xi’s heart trembled slightly. She hadn’t expected that he, who usually only knew romantic matters, could actually say such serious words. She couldn’t help but say softly: “But we have no solution either. We can only wait until we reach fifty thousand years old, receive divine positions, and then worry about the order of heaven and earth.”

Shao Yi stroked the vermillion phoenix’s head, making it turn direction, then smiled: “What divine position does Senior Sister want to receive in the future? Senior Sister is so astute and fair—you’re suitable for the Ministry of Justice.”

Zhi Xi’s heart trembled even more violently. She did indeed want to go to the Ministry of Justice. Why had he seen through it with one sentence?

“…What about you?” Zhi Xi asked in a small voice.

Shao Yi tilted his head in thought, becoming somewhat serious contrary to his usual manner: “I naturally want to be a war general, going down to the lower realm to watch over the Sea of Parting Regret, not letting it affect the order of heaven and earth. One day, I will restore it to its original state.”

Zhi Xi felt her chest bones ache from the shock. She commanded her Xiezhi to chase alongside the vermillion phoenix, opening her mouth involuntarily: “I, I also want to be a war general, watching over the Sea of Parting Regret.”

Shao Yi turned back with a smile to glance at her, his eyes sweet yet teasing, saying lightly: “A goddess as beautiful as Senior Sister—being a war general would be too wasteful. I most fear seeing beautiful goddesses shouting about fighting and killing. The Ministry of Justice is much better—the ceremonial robes are magnificent and very suitable for Senior Sister.”

Zhi Xi wished she could cover her face with her sleeve. Even her neck was burning hot—he must have seen through her. She was extremely ashamed, but deep in her heart was actually some joy. This was the second time he’d praised her beauty.

The longer she spent with him, the more she discovered his rigorous and rational other side, making her unable to stop, as if bewitched. Her mind was filled with him every moment—this situation even made her feel afraid.

This fear instead made her dare not reveal her feelings, as if once he saw through her, she would be no different from those warblers and swallows constantly around him. She hoped she was at least a special existence to him.

Zhi Xi lowered her head, hoping the mortal realm’s wind could cool the heat on her face. After a long while, she said in a low voice: “When we return this time, let’s urge Teacher to quickly teach techniques. The lower realm’s situation is so bad—learning more techniques can’t hurt.”

Shao Yi shook his head, saying indifferently: “This trip back, I should withdraw from studies.”

What?! Zhi Xi looked at him in shock: “Withdraw from studies?”

“Yes.” He was being targeted by that clever, cunning little loach, but now the timing was still far from right. He didn’t want to continue entangling with the little loach. What if he really turned into a brute like Fucang Senior Brother? That would be terrible.

“Moreover, Teacher probably won’t teach techniques until we’re under forty thousand years old. Last time was just to amuse us.” He turned back to smile at her slightly. “After I leave, Senior Sister needn’t miss me too much.”

Zhi Xi suddenly gasped—he had seen through her! He had seen through her long ago! How could someone as clever as him not see her heart?

“What I said that day at the Azure Emperor Palace were my heartfelt words,” Shao Yi’s voice became gentle yet distant. “Senior Sister, I’m not a good person. Forget me.”