Li Fei had no choice but to drive her sword into the gap in the mountain. Suddenly, it felt as if she was squeezing into a warm, viscous pool of water. The light around her brightened, revealing an enormous cavern. The walls were adorned with several luminous pearls, making the cave as bright as day.
Inside the cave was a small lake, with a stone platform in the center. On the platform lay a black stone the size of a human head, its material indiscernible. Apart from this, the cave was surprisingly empty.
Li Fei was dumbfounded. With such a grand name as the Realm of Gan Hua, she expected at least a magnificent and luxurious cave. What was with this simple and empty cavern? And what was with the broken stone on the platform? Was this the cave of a thousand-year-old nine-tailed fox?
“You used to… cultivate here?” Li Fei asked cautiously.
Riyang was still angry, “Only fools like you care about the grandeur of a cave! Cultivation only requires abundant spiritual energy! Only humans are so restless, needing a grand cave, food, and clothing for cultivation! Some even covet beauty! Such distractions scatter the focus needed for cultivation. What can they possibly achieve?”
Alright, she admitted her shallowness.
Li Fei flew her sword towards the small stone platform in the lake. The closer she got, the more she felt the spiritual energy was incredibly dense, similar to the miasma at the academy, but here it was spiritual energy that was so thick it slowed her sword.
She curiously asked, “Riyang, isn’t it said that demons need miasma to cultivate? Why is your cave in a place where spiritual energy gathers?”
Riyang replied proudly, “I am a thousand-year-old nine-tailed fox! How could I be like those lowly demons?”
So what if he’s a thousand-year-old nine-tailed fox? He’s still a demon, right? Li Fei couldn’t understand his logic and shook her head.
As she approached the small stone platform, the little white fox eagerly jumped onto it, its sharp nose twitching towards the stone, eyes full of joy. Li Fei touched the black stone, feeling its rough texture. Upon closer inspection, she noticed specks of gold on its surface, which looked familiar.
She suddenly drew her stone sword, and indeed, the sword’s blade also had fine golden specks, only visible upon careful examination. Could it be that the stone sealing the demonic energy and the stone used to make the sword were the same material?
“This is a Spirit-Storing Rock, which only grows in places rich in spiritual and miasma energy. It can be used to seal and store spiritual and demonic energy. Your stone sword and the stone tower on the back of the forbidden area’s golden suanni are made of this stone,” Riyang snorted. “Well, only a little demonic energy was sealed, but it’s enough. Girl, keep your hand on the stone, and don’t let go.”
Perhaps because the demonic energy was within reach, the fickle and irritable fox suddenly became cheerful, and the term he used for Li Fei changed from “fool” to “girl.”
He was truly capricious. Li Fei shook her head and gently placed her palm on the Spirit-Storing Rock.
She was still worried about Lei Xiuyuan. Zhen Yunzi only wanted the nine-tailed fox hidden within her, so he might not kill her immediately, but he was determined to kill Lei Xiuyuan. While they hid in the Realm of Gan Hua, it was enough time for him to return and kill Lei Xiuyuan. What if he died at Zhen Yunzi’s hands? What then?
After an unknown amount of time, Riyang suddenly said, “Alright, let’s go.”
Li Fei immediately flew her sword out, only to hear him say, “I’ve absorbed the demonic energy sealed in the stone. I will soon fall into a deep sleep, and I must sleep for a long time. Be careful on your own.”
What?! He’s going to sleep so soon?! There’s still Zhen Yunzi outside! Li Fei exclaimed, “How long will you sleep? Why so soon…”
His ears twitched, and he pondered, “Several months, possibly several years.”
Several years?! Li Fei saw him about to leave, his small body turning into a wisp of blue smoke, and she couldn’t help but call out, “Wait! Riyang!”
His ears twitched again, and for the first time, his raspy voice carried a hint of warmth, “Are you so grown up and still relying on me for everything? I told you not to worry. Just go out, fly back with your sword, and you won’t die! If this absorption of demonic energy goes well, I can stay awake all the time. Don’t disturb me anymore, I’m leaving.”
This time, he didn’t hesitate, his body instantly turning into blue smoke and dispersing. Li Fei called out to him several more times, but there was no response. She was incredulous.
He left so quickly! What about Zhen Yunzi outside? What does he mean by “won’t die”? Who’s going to ensure they won’t die?! Does he think they’re like him, a thousand-year-old demon?! To him, Zhen Yunzi might be a nobody, but to them, he’s like a golden-armored giant god!
Moreover, if he sleeps for several years, won’t she not see him for that long? Why didn’t he say so earlier?
Li Fei looked around blankly, the empty cave mirroring her empty and anxious heart. The person she wanted to rely on had disappeared without hesitation. How long would he be gone this time?
She stood dazed in the cave for a long time, unsure of her feelings. She had to leave; she couldn’t hide here forever. What was meant to come would come. When she chose to learn the truth, she should have been prepared for this. Escaping wasn’t a solution.
Riyang was right; she had to learn to walk on her own, not always wait for him to wake up and be the fool who asked for everything, understood nothing, and relied on him for everything.
Li Fei forced herself to gather her spirits and flew her sword out of the Realm of Gan Hua. Outside, the cool breeze blew, the new moon still hung high, shadows of trees swayed, and the mountains undulated, with no sign of anyone.
Her heart felt like it was about to leap out of her throat. What to do? Was Zhen Yunzi still there? Was he waiting here, or had he gone back to kill Lei Xiuyuan? She wanted to return but didn’t dare. If Zhen Yunzi was still there and followed her, wouldn’t that put Lei Xiuyuan in danger?
She flew her sword around aimlessly, focusing all her attention on her senses. The surroundings were eerily quiet, with no sound of insects or owls. She couldn’t sense anyone—if he wasn’t following her, he must have gone to the courtyard to find Lei Xiuyuan!
Li Fei was anxious and immediately flew her sword back to the courtyard. When she landed, she saw the doors tightly shut, no candlelight inside, and she didn’t know if Lei Xiuyuan was safe. She couldn’t care less and pushed the door open, shouting, “Xiuyuan! Are you there?”
The next moment, she saw Lei Xiuyuan sitting up in his undergarments, his long hair loose. He was surprised, staring at her dressed and armed with the stone sword. After a while, he softly asked, “Do you… need something?”
Li Fei felt her whole body relax, a mix of excitement and relief. She rushed over, grabbing his sleeve, almost crying, “Did you bring the talisman paper? Quick! Get dressed! We’re going back to the academy!”
Lei Xiuyuan held her arm, pressing it twice. His cool voice had a strangely calming effect, “Calm down, what happened?”
Li Fei grabbed his outer robe and draped it over his shoulders, “Just hurry up and go!”
Lei Xiuyuan was about to speak when he sensed something amiss. He leaped out of bed, shielding Li Fei behind him, and stared intently at the door. A figure slowly appeared outside, and soon, a man in a blue robe with a stern face stood at the entrance—it was the long-unseen Zhen Yunzi.
He was secretly shocked. Zhen Yunzi had indeed disregarded the academy’s rules and chose this moment to act against them. It seemed he had underestimated Zhen Yunzi’s obsession with Li Fei.
He squeezed Li Fei’s hand, signaling her to use the talisman paper immediately. They both activated their spiritual energy to trigger the talisman, but the energy circulated once, and the talisman seemed to malfunction, showing no reaction. Cold sweat dripped down Lei Xiuyuan’s back, but he stood straight, staring at Zhen Yunzi.
He kept Li Fei tightly behind him and spoke, “Mr. Zhen Yunzi, you must have been following us. You hesitated before because of the academy. Now, disregarding everything to take academy disciples, aren’t you afraid of being hunted by the immortals?”
Zhen Yunzi replied indifferently, “Zuo Qiu knows my purpose but hasn’t publicized it, naturally because of Xingzheng Pavilion. You two are merely the lowest disciples with one foot in the immortal gate. Even if there’s a hunt, it would be an overreaction. In the cultivation world, strength is respected. I’ve been an immortal for years; who dares to interfere when I deal with two disciples?”
He seemed unwilling to waste words with Lei Xiuyuan, flicking his finger. Li Fei felt as if a giant hand had grabbed her, and in a blink, she was beside Zhen Yunzi. She was terrified, trying to run, but her body felt bound by ropes, unable to move.
She watched helplessly as Zhen Yunzi approached, his cold eyes fixed on her, hiding a terrifying fanaticism beneath his emotionless gaze.
“You just went to the nine-tailed fox demon’s cave, didn’t you? What did you take? Where is he?”
Li Fei felt his voice, cold as a spring from the underworld, probing her soul, making it impossible to lie. She almost answered involuntarily but suddenly bit her tongue hard, the pain snapping her back to reality, narrowly avoiding his spell.
Blood filled her mouth, her tongue bitten, making her speech slurred, “I don’t know what you’re talking about!”
Zhen Yunzi sighed silently, “I’ve been stuck at a bottleneck for over fifty years. Now my power has regressed to the point where even a little girl like you can resist my Tianyin spell.”
Li Fei retorted, “Your bottleneck is because you’re too obsessed!”
Riyang had said that practicing the Tianyin spell required severing emotions and desires, and Zhen Yunzi’s bottleneck, coupled with his eagerness to seek demonic artifacts, trapped him further. It was his deadlock.
Zhen Yunzi’s eyes gleamed, and he sneered, “Did the nine-tailed fox demon tell you that? As I suspected, the fox has been attached to you all along. Where is he?”
Li Fei felt his hands clamp onto her shoulders, his fingers like iron pincers gripping her bones, almost crushing them. Her face turned pale, and she trembled, “I don’t know any fox demon! You can’t break through your bottleneck; it’s your fault!”
Zhen Yunzi lifted her, his voice chilling, “Stuck at a bottleneck, unable to move forward, how can you understand this pain? Immortals and demons naturally plunder each other. As a human, why protect a demon?”
Li Fei felt her shoulder bones nearly crushed, screaming in pain. He coldly said, “Come with me. If you don’t speak, I’ll break your bones inch by inch. When your entire body is shattered, unable to live or die, let’s see if you’ll talk.”