Ah Fu thought his little uncle was too kind-hearted.

He couldn’t let such a kind-hearted little uncle be extorted at will.

So Ah Fu returned to his room and used the skin spirit, summoning the big tabby cat to sneak out, intending to frighten Ling Luo.

Yue Liangze glimpsed the big cat sneaking out but didn’t stop it.

Given Ling Luo’s temperament, she would likely come looking for him with the cat in tow.

Yue Liangze dried his hands and turned to get the ingredients.

After Ling Luo returned, her jade token buzzed continuously. Only then did she take it out to look—it was full of messages from Song Yuanyuan and Chang Fei.

“My little father!!!”

“Senior Brother Yue! I saw him!”

“Why did you two start fighting!?”

“How is my little father so powerful! What’s the name of his sword and what’s its history!”

“…”

Ling Luo expressionlessly closed the jade token.

They couldn’t enter Western Sea Primordial and were busy helping Chang Fei cover his tracks, so they couldn’t greet Yue Liangze. They could only frantically send messages to Ling Luo seeking information.

As Ling Luo was playing with the jade token lost in thought, a huge shadow suddenly appeared outside the window, blocking the lamplight and casting a large area of darkness, so thick it was suffocating, instantly depriving one of vision.

The black shadow outside the window opened its mouth, revealing terrifying fangs, ferocious and bloody.

With the wind howling, the black shadow said: “You—ouch!”

The flying Yingxi broke through the window and struck the shadow’s forehead, sending it flying and crashing far away.

The big tabby cat once again slammed against a wall and cried pitifully.

Ling Luo opened the door and went out, forming hand seals to set a small formation that pinned the cat to the ground, unable to get up.

“Hey—you, you, you!” The big cat panicked, wanting to dissipate its form and escape, but found itself bound by the formation, unable to dissipate. Its spirit consciousness was trapped.

Seeing Ling Luo approach, the big cat instantly became cowardly, shouting: “Little Uncle, save me!!!”

Ling Luo raised her hand, retrieved Yingxi, and looked leisurely at the cat sprawled at her feet: “Keep calling.”

Let’s see if your little uncle comes or not.

The big cat cried: “Release my spirit, and I’ll call my little uncle right away!”

“How old are you, still looking for others to rescue you for everything?” Ling Luo bent down, pinching its neck and lifting it. “If I were more cruel, I’d shatter your spirit directly, making you vanish into ashes, leaving only an empty shell of a body.”

The big cat: “…”

It was scared to tears.

Hearing its wailing, Ling Luo said with disgust: “Shut up.”

The big cat: “Waah!”

Ling Luo used Yingxi to lift its chin. The big cat thought she was really going to attack and immediately fell silent.

“Don’t, don’t be rash, actually I, I came to negotiate with you!” The big cat sobbed. “My little uncle can testify!”

“Is that so?” Ling Luo said with a cold smile. “Then I really should go ask your little uncle whether the intention is to negotiate or to silence me.”

“Lead the way.”

Ling Luo held the big cat by the neck, narrowing her eyes as she looked in the direction its paw was pointing.

Primordial’s inner courtyard—the Sacred Sword Sect’s treatment was indeed different.

The Sacred Sword Sect was outside the twelve major immortal sects but held the position of the Immortal Head in the cultivation world.

Though detached from the immortal sects, it couldn’t be ignored.

With the Immortal Head’s decree, when any immortal sect had issues, the Sacred Sword Sect could intervene in investigations and give orders. If any refused to comply, they could be removed from the ranks of the immortal sects.

Rumor had it that if one was removed from the ranks by the Immortal Head’s decree, there would be no possibility of achieving ascension through cultivation in this lifetime.

From being a lofty cultivator, one would fall to become an ordinary person without any spiritual power.

The Sacred Sword Sect’s special status made other immortal sects extremely wary.

No one had good relations with the Sacred Sword Sect, nor did anyone want poor relations with it.

The twelve major immortal sects even had an unspoken agreement maintained for hundreds of years:

No one was allowed to have private associations with the Sacred Sword Sect.

The Sacred Sword Sect also had its own rules: not to be overly familiar with people from the twelve major immortal sects.

This was why Yue Liangze never mentioned which sect he had joined or where he was cultivating when sending letters.

After emerging from seclusion, when his senior brothers learned that he was writing to disciples of Eastern Island Tianji, they subtly hinted that unless the Sacred Sword Sect needed to be present or received an invitation, he shouldn’t take the initiative to visit.

That he was able to use the Sacred Sword Sect’s spirit birds to send letters for a year was already due to Immortal Head Qiu Ci turning a blind eye.

After emerging from seclusion, Yue Liangze occasionally wondered: Was Ling Luo not replying to his letters because she recognized they were from the Sacred Sword Sect’s spirit birds? Did she know these rules and refrain from replying to avoid suspicion?

He might have harmed Ling Luo by rashly sending so many letters. If someone with ulterior motives suspected she had private connections to the Sacred Sword Sect, her life would certainly become difficult.

It was his small selfish desire that had caused trouble for Ling Luo.

Yue Liangze had thought about this matter extensively.

He was concentrating on cutting vegetables when suddenly he heard a whooshing sound. Through the open window flew a furry object, which he caught as it was about to hit his face.

“Little Uncle!” The big cat finally couldn’t help but start crying. “She bullies this cat too much!”

Yue Liangze thought that it had been crying all day.

Ling Luo stood in the courtyard outside the window. Under the clear moonlight, those beautiful peach blossom eyes looked at him, the corners upturned—a familiar arrogance and haughtiness.

“As a dignified disciple of the Sacred Sword Sect, I only asked you to compensate me for a sword, yet you sent a skin spirit to silence me. Have you no shame?”

Yue Liangze was slightly startled.

She knew?

“I went to negotiate, not to silence you!” The big cat wailed. “Stop slandering this cat!”

Ling Luo snorted lightly, “Negotiations involve performing tricks outside my window?”

“You’re such a big person, and I’m such a small cat. What’s wrong with making my shadow bigger to talk to you?” With a backer, the big cat’s boldness increased. “I haven’t even mentioned how you, being larger, bullied me!”

Ling Luo: “Come on, say it.”

Just as the big cat was about to speak, Yue Liangze crushed the formation on its body, allowing it to dissipate and return to its true form.

Yue Liangze said: “My nephew is mischievous; I will discipline him properly.”

Ling Luo stood without moving, saying unhurriedly: “It also broke my window.”

“Primordial is so cold at night, and with my window unable to close, the cold wind will blow straight in. I have to participate in the banquet competition tomorrow, but now I’ve lost my sword and must endure a night of cold wind. What should be done about this?”

Yue Liangze remained silent.

After not seeing her for years, she had become even more eloquent.

“I’ll compensate you for everything,” Yue Liangze said.

“Do you have a lot of money?” Ling Luo was puzzled. “Or have you been in the mountains so long that you’ve forgotten how to interact with people? When a window is broken, don’t you know how to fix it?”

Yue Liangze: “…”

“Wait a moment,” Yue Liangze said. “I’ll come after dinner is prepared.”

“What are you making?” Ling Luo peered behind him, already smelling some appetizing aromas.

“Green peppers with meat, egg drop soup, and a plate of Bodhi Jade vegetarian dish,” Yue Liangze said as he washed his hands. “I can also make teriyaki chicken leg rice. Would you like some?”

This proactive invitation won Ling Luo’s heart.

She strolled over, yet said: “Who would dare refuse an invitation from the Sacred Sword Sect?”

Yue Liangze lowered his gaze, silent for a moment.

He turned to continue cutting the green peppers, saying softly: “I’m sorry, I didn’t consider things thoroughly.”

Ling Luo: “?”

She had just reached the window and looked suspicious upon hearing this.

What did that mean?

Had he just asked if she wanted to eat and now changed his mind?

“What are you apologizing for?” Ling Luo asked.

Yue Liangze said: “I didn’t think through the letter-sending. If you were suspected by others for receiving letters from the Sacred Sword Sect, I apologize for that.”

He felt he should clarify this matter; otherwise, he would be confused about it for the rest of his life.

That would be too painful.

Ling Luo listened, completely bewildered.

She stood by the window, silent for a while.

At that moment, only the sound of Yue Liangze cutting vegetables could be heard, heavy and muffled.

After a long while, Ling Luo finally said: “You said I received letters from the Sacred Sword Sect?”

Yue Liangze’s gaze was calm, showing no ripples. His hands continued moving, and his words held no blame: “In the second year after leaving Tianji, I sent you fourteen letters.”

Ling Luo: “…”

She looked up at Yue Liangze, somewhat stunned.

“Say that again,” Ling Luo said. “How many did you send?”

Yue Liangze repeated: “Fourteen.”

I didn’t receive a single one!

Ling Luo was dumbfounded.

“Weren’t you sending them to Song Yuanyuan and the others?” Ling Luo asked.

Yue Liangze said: “I sent them seven letters. Except for not receiving a reply to the last one, I received responses to all the others.”

“Only the fourteen I sent to you—you didn’t reply to a single one.”

Ling Luo was shocked by these words.

Fourteen letters, not one reply!

Just hearing it made her want to condemn herself!

If it were her, she would have thrown down her pen and stopped writing after the second unanswered letter.

How did this man persist to fourteen letters?

Ling Luo was frantically criticizing in her heart, and it took a while before she realized: Wait! I’m the one who didn’t reply to the letters!

________________________________________

“People from the twelve immortal sects cannot be close to the Sacred Sword Sect, and I cannot have private associations with them either. Earlier, I didn’t understand the gravity and sent so many letters, troubling you. It was truly inappropriate.”

Yue Liangze was still apologizing.

Ling Luo opened her mouth, her black pupils reflecting his profile—the same as in her memory, yet somehow unfamiliar.

“Did you send them to Qingshi Square?”

“Yes.”

Ling Luo narrowed her eyes upon hearing this.

Qingshi Square, spirit birds.

Not a single letter was seen.

Yun Shouxi.

Anger flashed across Ling Luo’s eyes.

Without deep thought, she knew who could intercept fourteen letters from spirit birds without a trace.

Ling Luo said angrily: “Where is that spirit bird?”

Only then did Yue Liangze turn to look at her, somewhat confused, but still answered: “Dead.”

“Serves it right!” Ling Luo said irritably. “That year I didn’t receive a single letter!”

Now it was Yue Liangze’s turn to be bewildered.

After a brief moment of surprise, he frowned and said: “You didn’t receive a single one?”

“No! If I had received them, would I not have replied?” Ling Luo pointed at him. “Tell me! Would I not have replied to you?”

Faced with Ling Luo’s angry questioning, Yue Liangze was stunned, the fingertips holding the knife involuntarily twitching slightly.

He had truly thought—

“That stupid thing failed to deliver the letters, and I didn’t receive a single one! Next time, don’t send me letters. If you want to say something or give me something, come to me in person!” Ling Luo was furious, completely forgetting about her rebirth and revealing her demonically cultivated disdain for various rules. “Cannot be close to the Sacred Sword Sect, cannot have private associations with the twelve immortal sects—what do their rules have to do with me? I’ll be close to whoever I want to be close to!”

“You and I not only have private associations, we even—”

When her eyes met Yue Liangze’s calm gaze, Ling Luo stopped abruptly, quickly swallowing the words that had reached the tip of her tongue.

Yue Liangze asked: “Even what?”

He’s still asking. You’re clueless!

Anger rose in Ling Luo’s heart, and she said maliciously: “Even held hands and kissed, what of it!”

Yue Liangze: “…”

The big cat, who had been eavesdropping inside: “?!”

It covered its face in embarrassment but didn’t cover its ears.

Yue Liangze blinked, his heartbeat quickening for a moment. The scene he thought he had forgotten suddenly came back to him upon hearing those words.

The cold, icy pool, the shimmering moonlight underwater, and the soft hair of the young woman spread across his fingertips.

In truth, he remembered every small detail with perfect clarity.

Seeing him avoid her gaze, Ling Luo resumed her arrogance, raising her chin: “Don’t think too much of it. That was just me helping you breathe underwater. I had no improper thoughts.”

Finally, she added: “And you’re not allowed to have any either!”

Yue Liangze released his grip on the knife handle and calmly avoided the topic, saying: “If you didn’t receive a single letter, how did you know I was a disciple of the Sacred Sword Sect?”

Ling Luo: “…”

Yue Liangze had thought she was being alienated because people suspected her due to the Sacred Sword Sect’s letters. But if Ling Luo hadn’t received any letters, such a situation wouldn’t have arisen. So how did she know about the Sacred Sword Sect?

Ling Luo said with an unchanged expression: “When the spirit bird delivered letters to Song Yuanyuan, I happened to see it. I became interested in the bird and asked my master about it. That’s how I found out.”

Is that so?

Yue Liangze suppressed his doubts and didn’t ask.

“If they all received theirs, it means the spirit bird didn’t deliver to the wrong place. But why didn’t you receive even one…”

Before he could finish, Ling Luo said: “I’ll investigate this matter. Don’t concern yourself with it.”

Yue Liangze glanced at her.

Ling Luo glared at him: “I didn’t receive any!”

“I understand,” Yue Liangze looked back at the cutting board.

He had just lied.

That spirit bird wasn’t dead.

Back then, he only cared whether Ling Luo had replied, not considering other possibilities. Now it seemed he should find the spirit bird and question it thoroughly.

Ling Luo said: “If you don’t believe me—”

“I believe you,” Yue Liangze said. “If you had truly received them, you wouldn’t have ignored my letters.”

Only today had he dared to confirm this.

Ling Luo snorted lightly.

The big cat inappropriately emerged, saying: “Little Uncle… my master just sent a message. The Second Sect Master is coming over. If he sees this person…”

It looked at Ling Luo, confused about how to address her.

Upon hearing this, Yue Liangze told Ling Luo: “You should go back first. I’ll come fix your window after I finish here.”

Ling Luo glanced at him: “Do we have something to hide from others that requires avoiding suspicion?”

The big cat thought to itself, don’t we?!

Yue Liangze calmly said: “We do, so we cannot let Primordial’s people discover it.”

This made Ling Luo blush.

She felt her cheeks warming, her expression seemingly annoyed. She raised her hand, pointing at Yue Liangze fiercely: “Don’t, don’t talk nonsense! And remember to bring the food over too!”

Yue Liangze acknowledged.

Ling Luo left angrily.

When she returned to the west courtyard, Chu Yi was also there.

Chu Yi was standing in the courtyard examining her broken window.

“Who did you fight with?” Chu Yi asked.

But Ling Luo said: “Senior Brother, since which year has the Spirit Tiger frequently appeared in Qingshi Square?”

“Three years ago. Why are you asking about this?” Chu Yi looked at her. “The frequent appearance of the Spirit Tiger indicates that Master’s cultivation has greatly increased.”

She also remembered it was three years ago.

Chu Yi confirmed it, so her memory wasn’t wrong.

Ling Luo strolled into the room, recalling how the Spirit Tiger often patrolled the mountain that year—but she also remembered that it was the same in her previous life.

That year, the Spirit Tiger suddenly began appearing frequently in Qingshi Square, and she also thought it was because Yun Shouxi was cultivating.

But now it seemed somewhat terrifying upon deeper reflection.