“Xiu Yuan, did you just hear that?” Li Fei tugged at Lei Xiu Yuan’s sleeve. “Disciples from Xing Zheng Guan have arrived too! Do you think Ji Tongzhou might be among them?”
Lei Xiu Yuan stood up and squinted for a while. After five years, their group of children had grown into adults, no longer bearing their youthful appearances. Even he couldn’t tell which one might be Ji Tongzhou.
Just as he was about to walk over and take a closer look, someone suddenly called out from behind: “Is that Xiu Yuan?”
Turning around, they saw a young couple standing there. The young man was extraordinarily handsome with a steady demeanor, while the young woman was as beautiful as a peony, her thick black hair braided into two plaits hanging over her chest. Both wore joyful smiles on their faces. It was none other than their long-lost friends, Ye Ye and Bai Li Chang Yue.
Ye Ye stepped forward and patted Lei Xiu Yuan’s shoulder, smiling, “I wasn’t mistaken after all. It is you! Five years without seeing each other, and look how tall you’ve grown, lad!”
Lei Xiu Yuan, in a rare display of surprise, exclaimed, “You’ve come too?”
“They say a new trial ground has been discovered. Chang Yue and I had just broken through our second bottleneck, so we were chosen to come,” Ye Ye explained, carefully examining him before adding with a smile, “You’ve changed quite a bit from before. I wasn’t entirely sure it was you at first. By the way, where’s Li Fei? Didn’t she come?”
He had noticed the stunningly beautiful young woman beside Lei Xiu Yuan earlier. Their intimate demeanor suggested an unusual relationship, but as they were no longer children, it didn’t seem appropriate to inquire about such private matters. Ye Ye merely nodded slightly towards her. To his surprise, the young woman suddenly burst into laughter and stepped forward to grasp Bai Li Chang Yue’s sleeve. “Ye Ye, Chang Yue, it’s been so long! You’ve both changed so much!”
The two were shocked. They stared at her intently for a while, then looked up at Lei Xiu Yuan in confusion. Lei Xiu Yuan rarely laughed, but now he chuckled, “She’s right here.”
Bai Li Chang Yue exclaimed in astonishment, “…Xiao Bang Chui?”
No matter how she looked, she couldn’t see any resemblance between the young woman before her and the Jiang Li Fei from five years ago. However, her heartbeat was still as lively as ever, that familiar sound.
“It is you!” Bai Li Chang Yue couldn’t help but be moved, cupping Li Fei’s face in her hands to examine her closely.
Li Fei let out a yelp, grinning from ear to ear. She opened her arms and hugged Chang Yue, overjoyed, “I never thought I’d see you! This is wonderful!”
Bai Li Chang Yue’s face broke into a smile. She suddenly raised her hand to pat Li Fei’s head, saying gently, “You’ve grown taller. No longer a short winter melon.”
Li Fei held onto her, chattering endlessly, “We just saw people from Xing Zheng Guan earlier. Ji Tongzhou might be here too! Oh, and this place is close to the Eastern Sea, we might even see Ge Lin! Now all six of us could be together!”
Ye Ye laughed, “Now I believe she’s Li Fei. I was genuinely startled earlier.”
Lei Xiu Yuan and Ye Ye walked side by side, both young men exuding grace and charm, their faces as refined as jade. Behind them, the two young women were equally captivating, attracting the attention of passersby.
The four of them walked and talked. As they approached the enormous building, the two tiger spirits guarding the door suddenly stood up, baring their fangs menacingly and growling low at the four of them. Li Fei raised her hand, immediately casting two layers of Bronze Wall technique—strange, they hadn’t reacted when she entered earlier.
The disciples inside the building immediately erupted into chaos again. Keeping spirit beasts as guards was indeed dangerous! See? They suddenly turned violent!
The three elders from the two sects immediately came out. Seeing that the two tiger spirits were only baring their teeth and growling lowly without actually harming anyone, Elder Dong Yang immediately asked, “What’s going on? Did any of you provoke them?”
Li Fei was equally puzzled, “No, we were just about to enter.”
As she spoke, the two tiger spirits approached, snarling and baring their teeth, their eyes blazing. Suddenly, one of them swatted a paw at Lei Xiu Yuan. The surrounding crowd erupted in gasps of shock, but fortunately, the Bronze Wall technique blocked the attack, preventing any contact. The elders were also at a loss, not wanting to kill the tiger spirits on someone else’s territory. They could only stand by, secretly on guard.
Soon, a local person in strange attire hurried out from inside. He immediately scolded the two tiger spirits harshly, kicking them while cursing. These tiger spirits, capable of tearing him to shreds with a single swipe, cowered in fear, their ears flattened, whimpering softly.
“My apologies,” the man turned and bowed, “These two creatures have always been obedient. I don’t know why they suddenly went berserk today. Please forgive us. Come in, we’ll have your rooms arranged shortly.”
Li Fei dared not dispel the Bronze Wall technique. The four cautiously walked inside, passing by the tiger spirits. As they brushed past, the two beasts let out threatening growls again, but quickly, the growls turned into low whimpers. After a few pitiful whines, they dared not make another sound.
Li Fei immediately breathed a sigh of relief. Although the two tiger spirits weren’t much of a threat, this place was full of spirit beasts who seemed to coexist peacefully with the locals. It wasn’t like in the Central Plains where they could be killed at will. If they accidentally killed or injured someone’s guard dog, it would likely cause a lot of trouble.
Entering the hall, they found it packed with people, all staring at them. They, in turn, scanned everyone in the hall. Ye Ye whispered, “It seems Tong Zhou isn’t here. How could he not have come?”
Given Ji Tongzhou’s aptitude, it seemed unlikely.
Elder Dong Yang suddenly announced, “We will be staying at this inn for three days before setting out. This place is close to the Eastern Sea and very different from the Central Plains. Remember, you are forbidden from conflicting with any person or spirit beast here. As disciples of the immortal sects of the Central Plains, you must maintain the demeanor of a great sect! When abroad, humility and courtesy are of utmost importance!”
Stay for three days? Weren’t they supposed to go to the new trial grounds? The two elders had brought them to this strange yet prosperous town and found an inn to stay in, leaving the disciples puzzled. They had been on edge, worried about encountering disciples from other sects on the way and potentially getting into magical duels over the slightest disagreement. Who would have thought that upon meeting people from Xing Zheng Guan here, everyone would be so cordial, showing no signs of wanting to duel? What was going on?
Ye Ye smiled and said in a low voice, “Seeing you all, I have a feeling that the so-called competition for trial grounds might just be a pretext.”
Lei Xiu Yuan replied, “The disciples coming here were all warned not to speak about this matter outside, and the excuse given was very vague. I suspect this might be a private interaction between a select few sects from both the mountain and sea factions. We’ll have to wait for the elders to explain the specific arrangements.”
While the two young men discussed serious matters, Li Fei had already pulled Bai Li Chang Yue to the doorway, waving, “Xiu Yuan, Ye Ye! Come on! Let’s go explore!”
Seeing how intimate Lei Xiu Yuan and Li Fei were in their behavior and conversation, quite different from their time at the academy, Ye Ye couldn’t help but ask, “Xiu Yuan, you and Li Fei…?”
Lei Xiu Yuan lowered his head with a smile, lightly punching Ye Ye’s shoulder, “Let’s go.”
He didn’t deny it? Ye Ye smiled too, returning the light punch, “Being with her has changed you a lot. That’s for the best.”
The city was unexpectedly large, seemingly rivaling even the capital of the Yue Kingdom, Duan Tu. Ye Ye and Lei Xiu Yuan were attracted to shops selling various books and maps, while Bai Li Chang Yue had wandered off on her own again—this girl was still as independent and free-spirited as ever, even after five years. Li Fei noticed a stall nearby selling all sorts of strange trinkets. She couldn’t resist picking up a small glass ball to examine it.
Inside the glass ball was a thumb-sized, bright red flower. She watched as it bloomed, withered, shed its decaying petals, and then rejuvenated, repeating this cycle endlessly.
The stall owner, seeing her engrossed, said, “Young miss, all the items here are legendary treasures from overseas! The flower you’re looking at can only be found on the thousand isles and myriad islands across the sea.”
Upon hearing the words “thousand isles and myriad islands across the sea,” Li Fei’s hand trembled, nearly dropping the glass ball. She quickly and carefully put it back.
Of course, she didn’t believe that such a small stall would have anything truly from overseas. The flower’s cycle from bloom to wither was simply enchanted with the most basic illusion magic. She smiled, then noticed a very strange carved wooden figurine next to it, about the size of a palm, yet exquisitely made.
The figurine looked exactly like a normal person, but its expression was ferocious and hideous, exuding a murderous aura. Three inches above each ear grew a horn, making it look both eerie and mysterious.
Just as she was about to pick it up for a closer look, she sensed someone standing beside her. She glanced casually and saw a young man in white robes standing next to her, scanning the various goods on the stall with great interest.
Li Fei found him increasingly familiar. He appeared to be around eighteen or nineteen years old, with black hair falling to his shoulders. The simple disciple’s robe he wore seemed to transform into a grand garment on him, exuding an air of elegance and nobility. With his long eyebrows and starry eyes, along with his tall stature, he was an exceptionally handsome and dignified young man. Who else could it be but Ji Tongzhou, unseen for five years?
“Ji Tongzhou!” she called out instinctively.
He was slightly startled and looked down at her, his expression very puzzled.
Who was this girl? He hadn’t noticed earlier, but now looking carefully, he realized her skin was as white as snow, her eyes bright and gentle—she was a stunning beauty. Did she know him?
Li Fei’s smile brightened her entire face, “You did come! We didn’t see you among all those Xing Zheng Guan disciples at the inn earlier. Where have you been?”
Ji Tongzhou was increasingly bewildered, “I am indeed Ji Tongzhou, but may I ask who you are, miss?”
Li Fei nearly fell over laughing. “I am” and “Who are you, miss”! Had this arrogant and domineering young master become so refined and polite after five years apart?
“Tong Zhou!” someone called from behind. Ji Tongzhou turned, even more confused, only to see Ye Ye—wait, was it Ye Ye? And the person next to him… Lei Xiu Yuan?!
His expression changed instantly, his mouth unconsciously opening, his face a mix of wild joy and astonishment as he stared at the two approaching. Suddenly, he exclaimed, “It’s you?! How did you come here too?”
Still fearing he might be mistaken, he looked at each of them in turn. These two were indeed his friends from the academy, unseen for five years. He slapped Ye Ye on the shoulder and punched Lei Xiu Yuan hard, his face instantly lighting up with joy, “Ye Ye! Lei Xiu Yuan! Am I seeing things?”
The two returned his punch, and Ye Ye laughed, “You rascal, you’ve grown so tall too! You look more steady than before. How has your cultivation been these past few years?”
Ji Tongzhou, overjoyed, examined them closely. Ye Ye hadn’t changed particularly much, but Lei Xiu Yuan had transformed considerably. In his memory, Lei Xiu Yuan had seemed a bit sickly, but the young man before him now was handsome and spirited. He had grown taller too, almost matching Ji Tongzhou’s height. As his features had matured, was this really how he looked now?
“Are you alone? Where’s Jiang Li Fei? You little devil! You’ve finally emerged from Dan Xue? How’s your cultivation now? Let’s spar later! No, let’s find a place and spar right now!”
As he finished speaking, the three couldn’t help but laugh. Ji Tongzhou’s personality hadn’t changed one bit; upon seeing Lei Xiu Yuan, he always wanted to fight first thing.
“Ji Tongzhou, I was the first one to call out to you,” Li Fei couldn’t help but laugh. He had remembered to ask Lei Xiu Yuan about her, yet he didn’t recognize her standing right in front of him.
Ji Tongzhou frowned, staring at her intently for a long while. Suddenly, he was startled and, unable to be certain, softly asked, “…Jiang Li Fei?”