“Let’s go back and discuss.”

Qin Wanwan folded the map and called everyone to return together.

Back at the guest rooms, Jian Xingzhi set up a barrier. Everyone gathered around as Qin Wanwan spread out the map. On it was only a large mountain. At the foot of the mountain was a square box. Inside the box was blank space with the words “Labyrinth” written in it. Directly above the box was an exit. Outside the exit was a normal map—at the end of a winding mountain path were the words “Snow God Cave.”

“Two checkpoints combined into one. Pass through the labyrinth, enter Xuanshan, and whoever can retrieve the ice lotus from the Snow God Cave wins.”

Jian Xingzhi understood the rules and clapped his hands: “It should have been this simple from the start. Why bother with all those human relations tests?”

“Then do we need to prepare anything?”

Qin Wanwan pondered, looking at Cuilu and Xie Gutang: “Sister Cuilu and Brother Xie, do you have any knowledge about Xuanshan?”

“Xuanshan is a forbidden area of Wuxiang Sect. We don’t know much about it,” Cuilu shook her head. “We can only take it step by step.”

“Then let’s leave it at that.” Qin Wanwan put away the materials and smiled at everyone. “Everyone rest well. We’ll set out together tomorrow.”

“Okay!” Nanfeng said happily. “I’ll prepare more food.”

“Why are you preparing food? We’re not going on a spring outing.” Jian Xingzhi tapped his head. “Just bring more candy and nuts yourself.”

“Dao Lord Jian,” Nanfeng helplessly rubbed his forehead. “Please stop hitting my head. What if you knock me stupid?”

Hearing this, Jian Xingzhi laughed and leaned against a nearby pillar: “If I knock you stupid, just have your master take care of you.”

“What if my master dislikes me for being stupid?” Nanfeng was full of worry. “I still need to ascend with my master.”

“Then I’ll take care of you,” Jian Xingzhi said with a smile, picking him up and walking outside. “Come on, I’ll take you for a bath. If she won’t take care of you, I’ll help her do it.”

Hearing this, Nanfeng finally felt somewhat reassured. Jian Xingzhi carried Nanfeng out the door. Everyone exchanged glances, and after confirming there was nothing else, they bid farewell to Qin Wanwan and went their separate ways.

Jian Xingzhi carried Nanfeng outside just as the sun was setting. The sunlight warmed the courtyard. Jian Xingzhi brought out a basin of water, placed Nanfeng in it, and took out a small brush to start scrubbing his shell.

Nanfeng lay at the edge of the basin, muttering quietly: “Dao Lord Jian, be gentler.”

“I’m giving you a bath and you still have so many demands.” Jian Xingzhi splashed some water on him and lightened his touch. “Is this okay now?”

Nanfeng said nothing, soaking in the warm water with his eyes closed, enjoying it.

Qin Wanwan finished organizing things and walked outside. Seeing Jian Xingzhi bathing Nanfeng, she sat down on the steps, watching Jian Xingzhi clean him.

Along their journey, though Nanfeng was Qin Wanwan’s spirit pet, he was also a male demon. It had always been Jian Xingzhi who took care of him. Qin Wanwan watched Nanfeng being scrubbed in the wooden basin and propped her chin on her hand: “Why are you suddenly bathing him?”

“He doesn’t like washing himself,” Jian Xingzhi complained. “Aren’t you meeting your parents tomorrow?”

Qin Wanwan was startled by these words. Jian Xingzhi continued scrubbing Nanfeng earnestly, seeming somewhat embarrassed: “Scrub him clean to bring you honor.”

Hearing this, Nanfeng secretly glanced back at Qin Wanwan and spoke quietly: “Master, we’re meeting your parents tomorrow?”

“Who knows?” Qin Wanwan didn’t speak with certainty. Seeing Nanfeng was almost clean, Jian Xingzhi wrapped him in a cloth, dried him off, then set him on the ground, warning him: “Don’t get dirty again, or I’ll beat you.”

“I know.” Nanfeng was unhappy. He shook his head and crawled back to his room.

Qin Wanwan watched Nanfeng leave, then saw Jian Xingzhi stand up to pour out the water. After washing his hands, he sat down beside her. After thinking for a moment, he said somewhat awkwardly: “Um, Wanwan, do you think I should prepare some gifts?”

Hearing this, Qin Wanwan looked back at him in surprise: “Prepare gifts for what?”

“Meeting your parents for the first time…”

Jian Xingzhi didn’t have the nerve to finish. Qin Wanwan laughed out loud: “We don’t even know if we’ll see them—you’re that confident? What if we don’t see them tomorrow either?”

“If we don’t see them, we’ll keep looking,” Jian Xingzhi said seriously. “But if we do see them and I don’t leave a good impression, then…” Jian Xingzhi lacked confidence. “What if they don’t like me?”

Seeing Jian Xingzhi with no confidence at all, Qin Wanwan couldn’t help but laugh: “What are you afraid of? If they don’t like you, just beat them up?”

“Tch.” Jian Xingzhi knew Qin Wanwan was joking and turned his head away. “You think I’m stupid?”

“Don’t worry,” Qin Wanwan raised her hand and rested it on his shoulder, comforting him. “They’ll definitely like you.”

“That’s not certain.” Jian Xingzhi had self-awareness. He took out his wine gourd from his universe bag, casually saying: “I’ve never been well-liked. Back in my sect, no one paid attention to me.”

Hearing Jian Xingzhi’s words, Qin Wanwan thought for a moment: “Don’t worry. If they don’t like you, I’ll talk to them.”

“You said so.” Jian Xingzhi cheered up, pointing at Qin Wanwan with the hand holding the wine gourd. “Don’t lie to me.”

“Why would I lie to you?”

Qin Wanwan took his wine gourd. Jian Xingzhi muttered in dissatisfaction: “You’re talking like you’ve never lied before.”

“What did you say?” Qin Wanwan took a sip from the wine gourd and turned to look at him.

Jian Xingzhi immediately cleared his throat: “I, I didn’t say anything. I was just asking… asking what kind of people your parents are?”

“My mother,” Qin Wanwan recalled, “is arrogant and domineering, beautiful, and also fierce. No one dares to provoke her. My father has a good temper—I’ve never seen him get angry from childhood to now.”

As Qin Wanwan spoke, she reminisced about her parents, chattering away with Jian Xingzhi.

Jian Xingzhi quietly listened to her talk about her parents, his mind constantly sketching images of these two people. After Qin Wanwan spoke for a while, she remembered: “What about your master? What kind of person was he?”

“Him?” Jian Xingzhi recalled this elder who had raised him, frowning: “I don’t remember too well. Every time I saw him, I got beaten. I just remember his sword.”

“Was he very strong?”

“Strong.” Jian Xingzhi nodded. “Very strong.”

For Jian Xingzhi to praise someone, Qin Wanwan understood this person was definitely no ordinary person. She couldn’t help but feel some longing: “If we have the chance in the future, we should go back and pay respects to your master.”

“There’s no chance,” Jian Xingzhi took back the wine gourd and took a sip, his voice steady. “When I was eighteen and out training, I heard he had fallen. He didn’t even notify me when he died, so I never went back. My master said the path of cultivation has shallow connections—you never know when someone you know will be gone. Getting too close only adds to heartache. He taught me to cultivate, and if I wanted to repay him in the future, I should cultivate well, bring glory to the sect, and contribute my strength to the heavenly dao.”

“Your master…” Qin Wanwan didn’t know how to comfort him and could only murmur, “truly was a carefree person.”

“But if you marry me,” Jian Xingzhi raised his eyebrow and turned to look at her, “taking you to visit his grave would be appropriate.”

“Who’s marrying you?” Qin Wanwan rolled her eyes. “Shameless.”

“Hey, don’t go back on your word.”

Hearing her denial, Jian Xingzhi started teasing her.

As the two were playfully bickering, Xie Gutang sat on the rooftop, gazing at distant Xuanshan.

Cuilu was passing by with rice wine when she sensed Xie Gutang above. After thinking for a moment, she leaped up and landed on the rooftop.

“Alone?”

Cuilu asked curiously. Xie Gutang nodded. Cuilu handed him the extra wine flask in her hand: “Care for a drink?”

“Thank you.”

Xie Gutang received the wine from Cuilu. The two sat on the rooftop, watching the distant high mountain form a towering black silhouette in the night. Cuilu took a sip of wine: “I heard you’ve been in the Realm of Life and Death all along.”

“Yes.”

“Doesn’t the Wenxin Sword sect only enter the Realm of Life and Death to guard the seal after reaching Divine Transformation?”

“Once you become a guardian, you won’t come out again.” Xie Gutang explained. “But right now it’s still my master inside. I was just cultivating there.”

“You could have achieved Divine Transformation long ago, right?” Cuilu turned to look at him.

Xie Gutang’s voice was steady: “Master said to suppress it a bit longer—it’s better to be more stable.”

“The Realm of Life and Death is a good place for you all to cultivate. A promising talent painstakingly cultivated like you—how could your sect bear to let you come out to run around everywhere with Jian Xingzhi and the others?”

Cuilu asked casually. After a moment of silence, Xie Gutang only said: “Why would the Ghost City Lord condescend to accompany them running around everywhere?”

Hearing this, Cuilu laughed softly and turned to look at him: “Your sect leader told me that Wenxin Sword cultivators are extremely indifferent to emotions. But I don’t see it now.”

Hearing this, Xie Gutang’s movements froze. Cuilu saw a figure approaching from not far away. She stood up: “Luo Bufan is coming. I’ll leave first.”

With that, Cuilu jumped down from the rooftop and turned to leave.

Xie Gutang drank the last bit of wine and came down from above. After waiting a moment, he saw Luo Bufan walk up to him.

He examined Xie Gutang, whose expression shifted slightly.

After a long while, Xie Gutang raised his hand and performed a grand salute to Luo Bufan: “Sect Leader.”

—

**Author’s Note:** There’s one more update.

PS: Xie Gutang and Xie Changji have no relationship—their names aren’t even the same, sisters. They’re just from the same sect.