At autumn’s end, maple leaves curled red as northern geese flew south.

A single flat boat traversed the sky, shuttling through the sea of clouds at extreme speed. On the small boat were two people – one sitting, one standing.

Chao Nian, who was sitting, thought about how this person before him now held the rank of Commander, surpassing ninety-five percent of Yedu’s people. He couldn’t help looking east and west, finally unable to sit still and standing up restlessly.

Not speaking between acquaintances was, for Chao Nian, even more unbearable than chopping wood in the back mountains.

“Commander?” Chao Nian squinted at the man standing with his back to the light, feeling that ten years had passed in a flash, seemingly leaving no traces on anyone except that once youthful and impetuous youth who repeatedly risked his life – he had completely changed.

Su You turned around.

Chao Nian’s eyes fell on his face, pupils contracting for an instant.

If one had to describe it precisely, it was that face – those brows and eyes magnificent and brilliant to the extreme, almost to a burning degree.

But compared to before, what first caught one’s attention wasn’t his appearance, but his overall temperament.

No matter how the youth of ten years ago disguised himself with that naturally innocent and unguarded appearance, occasionally, a few people could still detect the discrepancy between his exterior and interior. Back then, he wore white robes, cold as snow. Now standing alone, in the same flowing white robes, he possessed snow’s gentleness and tolerance.

Those rebellious, untamed, impulsive emotions could no longer be found in him, in his eyes, not even a fraction.

Ten years of bitter cultivation.

The youth had matured.

Su You nodded toward Chao Nian, his manner neither arrogant nor showing any elation from sudden success. His voice was like a cold spring formed from melted snow atop mountain peaks, with a unique, mesmerizing quality: “Chao Nian.”

He still remembered.

Chao Nian visibly relaxed, his shoulders dropping as amazement surged through his heart like ocean tides: “Just now at the Palace Guard Bureau, when I saw you, I still found it incredible, thinking I’d mistaken someone else for you.”

After speaking, he made an impressive gesture toward Su You, saying sincerely, “I already knew those valued by Her Ladyship were all geniuses, but I truly didn’t expect you could emerge in ten years. This speed almost matches Her Ladyship’s.”

“Tell me, what was the Flowing Current like?” Chao Nian asked with considerable curiosity, then added: “Those who’ve been inside are unwilling to discuss this topic again, avoiding it like floods and wild beasts. Every time I ask Chao Hua, she wants to jump up and hit people.”

As soon as the words “Her Ladyship” fell, Su You’s long fingers moved slightly. After a long while, he looked at the mist-like flowing clouds beside the small boat, his lips moving slightly to utter four words: “Varies by person.”

Commander wasn’t such an easy position to hold, nor was cultivation so easy to advance.

Inside was water and sky merged as one, day and night indistinguishable.

Those days were unbearable to recall – countless times of desperate flight, life hanging by a thread, mortal combat. Inside, there was no room for the word “slack.”

He couldn’t remember time, couldn’t distinguish seasons. His mind became numb through repeated越级battles. When his eyes were red with killing, all reason vanished, yet in the next moment, he’d be brought before one of the four great guardians – the “Propriety” guardian. He had to quickly compose himself, gritting his teeth to pull back from the edge of collapse, becoming well-spoken, appropriately smiling, and gracefully mannered.

Indeed, no one wanted to recall those details excessively.

Chao Nian was still amazed, clicking his tongue: “Someone with Chao Hua’s invulnerable mentality still took thirty-five years.”

Su You’s eyes curved upward in a smile: “Invulnerable?”

Chao Nian immediately made a silencing gesture at him.

Strangely, Su You had only started what seemed like a joking topic, four words between a smile and a non-smile, yet the originally somewhat heavy atmosphere immediately relaxed. Once the constraint disappeared, Chao Nian immediately opened his chatter box.

“How has Her Ladyship been these years?”

“When accepting Heavenly Book missions, did you follow the manual she gave you back then?”

After hearing Chao Nian’s endless stream of praise, Su You raised his eyes, seeming to follow along with questions, only pausing imperceptibly when mentioning “Her Ladyship.”

Facing those peach blossom eyes that seemed to always contain smiles yet were unfathomably deep, Chao Nian straightened his spine and said seriously: “Not long after you entered the Flowing Current, after handling the Second Young Master’s funeral, Her Ladyship entered the secret chamber for closed-door cultivation, only emerging two years ago.”

“Afterward, Her Ladyship stayed in Yedu for half a year, spending the remaining year and a half outside completing Heavenly Book missions.”

Immediately after, Chao Nian seemed to remember something. He winked at Su You with a mischievous smile, looking like he was watching a show: “I remember back then Her Ladyship kept you by her side, cultivating you with all her effort, teaching you carefully, never leaving your side.”

“Now someone’s going to replace you.”

Su You suddenly lowered his eyes, his gaze falling on the clearly defined small meridians at his wrist. For an instant, he seemed able to hear the sound of blood flowing in his body.

His worry before entering the Flowing Current had come true.

The gentleness, forbearance, and composure learned from that “Propriety” guardian during ten years of bitter cultivation now served their purpose. He unhurriedly moved his lashes, his Adam’s apple sliding up and down as he said: “It seems the Palace Guard Bureau will have another Commander.”

Chao Nian suppressed his laughter and asked: “How about it, nervous?”

Su You looked at him. After a long while, he curved his lips: “A little.”

To outsiders, it sounded like cooperative small talk, but only Su You knew – a little, indeed, a little.

Closing his eyes, he could think of those ten years in the Flowing Current.

He had spared no effort in releasing all his potential, thinking of coming out earlier, and earlier still.

Because there was no one around, no chattering voices, he had more than once calmed his heart to ask himself.

Toward Xue Yu, was it just repaying the debt of saving his life, returning the favor of cultivation?

Initially, he answered himself repeatedly, saying yes.

What else could it be?

But why had he hesitated before entering the Flowing Current? Why, when thinking he might be replaced by young men she saved one after another, thinking she would also cherish talent, teaching them hand by hand, bringing them back to Yedu, would he feel a kind of agitation, displeasure, even an indiscriminate destructive urge rising from his heart? Probing deeper, there was also a heavy layer of indescribable panic.

These were all questions he had deliberately avoided before, pressing them down and pretending not to notice.

Ten years – enough time to forget a person.

Yet the more Su You questioned himself, the more confused he became.

Until he defeated the four great guardians and emerged bloody, seeing the heavenly light overhead in that instant, all those troubling emotions vanished, leaving only pure, long-missed joy.

He lowered his brows and eyes, washing the blood from his hands, changing into clean clothes, almost impatiently crossing ten years of wind and dust, hurrying to see one person.

Seeing his intentionally or unintentionally tightened jaw, Chao Nian finally stopped being mysterious and explained: “The Buddha Maiden from Northern Wasteland, do you still remember?”

“My sister just mentioned that although this mission is only four-star difficulty, it simultaneously involves the Holy Son of Chi Shui, the Buddha Maiden of Northern Wasteland, and Her Ladyship. Who knew that as soon as Her Ladyship and Buddha Maiden met, a Buddhist temple in the neighboring city had problems? Buddha Maiden had no choice but to personally resolve it, but left behind the young gentleman at her side, having him follow Her Ladyship to both help and learn from her.”

After speaking, he blinked: “Don’t worry, don’t be nervous.”

“Who could steal your position?”

Hearing this, Su You pressed his long fingers to his brow, tugging at the corner of his mouth. His smile didn’t reach his eyes as he said, “Alright.”

“I’ll take your good wishes.”

As if understanding the meaning of work-rest balance, in the year and a half since leaving Yedu, Xue Yu had consecutively accepted four missions – three were three-star, the remaining one was an unprecedented two-and-a-half-star.

The Heavenly Book seemed to have transformed, changing its character.

But facts proved the Heavenly Book was still the Heavenly Book. Even though missions became simpler, the relationships behind them were still intricately connected like silk threads. After Xue Yu completed that two-and-a-half-star mission, she seemed to sense something and went to Luozhou.

She thought that if nothing unexpected happened, the next mission would be in Luozhou.

From Shanhai City ten years ago to Suzhou, then Cangzhou, Junzhou, Huaizhou – without exception, all were places Xue Yu had investigated after the ghost infant incident. Places far from the imperial city to avoid attention, yet deeply controlled by the court, with opportunities for secret dealings.

One remained – Luozhou.

Therefore this time, when Xue Yu selected missions, she stood before the Heavenly Book for a long time. So long that the Heavenly Book began anxiously trembling and rolling up its scroll before she spoke, asking directly: “Is the next mission in Luozhou?”

This question was practically the same as openly asking the Heavenly Book whether these missions were related to the Human Emperor and the imperial court.

The Heavenly Book didn’t answer her.

But the selection result answered her.

—Luozhou, Flying Immortal Painting becomes human and flees.

A long-awaited four-star mission, black words on white paper, location in Luozhou.

At this point, Xue Yu could almost imagine what kind of earth-shaking web would be revealed when these missions were completely pieced together.

If this matter was within expectations, then learning from Shan Shu that Lu Chengze had also drawn this mission was truly unexpected.

Due to the Worldly Lamp case years ago, Xue Yu and Shan Shu had established a friendship. Therefore today, after the two had climbed over five mountain peaks, discovered the situation wasn’t simple, and both frowned while contacting their respective sacred lands to send capable assistance, Shan Shu suddenly seemed to remember something: “Before coming, Lu Chengze contacted me, asking if I’d also accepted the Luozhou mission. At the time, I thought my partner for this mission would be him.”

Shan Shu said, “This is my first time seeing a four-star mission with such scale, capable of involving three parties simultaneously. I’m afraid this mission won’t be simple.”

Xue Yu immediately frowned. Mentioning Lu Chengze, her words carried impatience Shan Shu had never heard: “He’s coming?”

“From his meaning, yes.”

“Chi Shui is far away, and they always follow rules, never flying through the air. He’ll probably arrive several days late.”

Shan Shu gave her a rare glance and asked: “What’s wrong? Do you have grievances with him?”

Xue Yu met Shan Shu’s gaze, tugging at her lips: “Long-standing resentment, difficult to resolve.”

Soon after, Shan Shu had to leave first due to Buddhist temples collapsing for unknown reasons nearby. Once she left, Xue Yu ignited the spirit talisman at her waist. Chou Li’s voice quickly came through: “Your Highness.”

“Send someone with a flexible mind and strong abilities.” Xue Yu said concisely.

Hearing this, Chou Li smiled: “Your Highness, rest assured. We’ve sent a Commander for you – he’s already on the way.”

Two days later, in Luozhou City, in a simple thatched cottage courtyard, Shen Jingshi removed the face veil, placing an incongruous straw hat upside down on the uneven wooden table. Demon pearls of various sizes immediately rolled across the table, clustering in groups of three to five like small mountains.

He looked at Xue Yu: “Young Lady, I’ve investigated. South of Wuwang Mountain, we found three nests, and Qiuyun Mountain has one nest. Thirty-seven demons total, yielding sixteen demon pearls.”

He made a “here” sound, pushing the demon pearls forward: “Look, they’re all here.”

Not knowing what method Shan Shu had used, the human youth who had once been bored to death and sought only death finally stopped causing trouble, reconnected his meridians, and cultivated properly. Ten years passed in a flash – everything was fine except that casual, devil-may-care temperament remained unchanged.

For example, those two sentences to Xue Yu – “Young Lady” and “you” sounded no different from calling her “sister,” except he spoke with a smile, maintaining this attitude with everyone he spoke to. It didn’t sound frivolous or disrespectful.

Once accustomed to it, one found this person interesting.

Xue Yu looked at those twenty-some crystal-clear demon pearls that bloomed with seven-colored radiance in sunlight, light flowing in her eyes as she spoke clearly: “Demon beasts don’t gather without reason. Generally speaking, such situations have only two causes.”

Shen Jingshi turned to look over, rarely restraining his smile to assume an attentive listening posture.

“First, clan revenge. Second, great demon summoning.”

Shen Jingshi fiddled with the demon pearls beside him, saying in a low voice: “Revenge so coincidentally? Several clans acting simultaneously? This enemy would have to be someone like Luozhou City’s lord.”

Xue Yu remained silent for a long time.

Being able to discover small demon beast gatherings was because when Xue Yu heard the name Luozhou, she remembered the Luozhou Beast Tide case from five hundred years later – the only five-star mission the Heavenly Book ever issued.

When that mission was published, all of Luozhou City had already been affected.

Thousands upon thousands of demons and beasts rushed down from various mountain peaks as if mad, like swift tidal water, overwhelming everything. They rampaged without reason – ordinary people struck or stepped on by them screamed as they became blood mist. Even cultivators who came to help could only dodge left and right, retreating repeatedly.

Those demons were endless, unkillable.

At that time, six sacred land inheritors, including Xue Yu, were nearly trapped to death in Luozhou City. They fought desperately, giving people time to retreat behind barriers, but even more died.

That beast tide left too deep an impression. Therefore, almost instinctively, when Xue Yu stood on this picturesque land, she first went to the beast tide’s origin from years later – Wuwang Mountain.

Perhaps the timing was too coincidental – they went at midnight with the moon hanging high.

When they lifted a cluster of hanging vines, a nest of six or seven rabbit demons with red eyes, restlessly grinding their claws in a very wrong state, made gurgling sounds of forceful swallowing from their throats, as if the humans were some delicious food, then violently attacked.

Shen Jingshi killed five with one whip strike. The remaining one was particularly small. Just as he was about to cheerfully finish it with another whip, Xue Yu stopped him.

In less than half an hour, as the full moon slowly moved position in the sky, that rabbit demon gradually awakened, trembling like a sieve under their aura, nearly kneeling to kowtow and beg for mercy.

This was a small anomaly. If not for Xue Yu’s memories from a thousand years in her previous life, if not for the Heavenly Book bringing her to accept this mission, this tiny detail would have remained silent in the mountain valley, fermenting day after day until finally brewing disaster.

But signs of the beast tide that would occur five hundred years later were already appearing now – how could this not be alarming?

Over the following days, Xue Yu and Shen Jingshi both rushed to deep mountains at midnight to investigate, but the things lurking in the shadows seemed to sense their movements. For several consecutive days, there were no more disturbances.

On the fourth evening, with sunset clouds filling the sky, Xue Yu said to Shen Jingshi, who had developed enthusiasm for midnight demon hunting, “We won’t search tonight. Our mission here is the Flying Immortal Painting – let’s find the painting first.”

If her guess was correct, finding the painting would naturally lead to subsequent matters.

The Heavenly Book never disappointed when it came to making full use of everything.

Deep into the night, with bright moon and sparse stars, tree shadows swaying, the entire city sank into the intoxicating lamp shadows. Just as Xue Yu covered her face with a veil, preparing to travel far, she saw all the lamps in Luozhou City flicker two or three times as if their wicks were blown by wind, then plunge into empty darkness.

Subsequently, tidal waves of discussion and fearful whispers arose.

Shen Jingshi paused in his bending motion, then straightened up, asking hesitantly: “What’s – happening?”

As he spoke, two slender, graceful silhouettes gradually appeared against the dark sky before the entire city’s eyes.

Willow-leaf brows, smiling eyes, small cherry lips, gold hairpins throughout their hair, silk garments covering their bodies, colored ribbons flying – two flying immortal women seemed about to ride clouds to the heavens. Simultaneously, misty golden light dispersed the dark clouds, illuminating the entire city bright as day, as if it had become the mottled background beneath an antique, treasured, famous painting.

“Flying Immortal Painting.” Xue Yu’s eyes sharpened: “Go.”

Two figures swiftly broke through the night sky, falling toward the distance like meteors.

The first men bewitched by those two flying immortal women walked step by step into the golden light, faces wearing intoxicated smiles, opening their arms as if smelling alluring flower fragrance. Warm light sprinkling on their bodies felt like bathing in winter sunshine – every inch of their bodies stretched and sighed as they melted into water.

Water.

Some melted into blood water.

Xue Yu’s hands suddenly formed seals, her entire body like a sharp arrow breaking through space and thrusting into the flying immortal ancient painting. Shen Jingshi followed behind her, his long whip like a swimming dragon coiling around people sunk in golden light to pull them out, simultaneously roaring: “Those who don’t want to die, retreat into your houses!”

Such a sudden change came too abruptly. Xue Yu and company could only break one flying immortal figure. The other, seeing this scene, smiled even more intensely with playful amusement, the harvesting golden light becoming more concentrated like flying knives – each fall was bloodless killing, murder without a trace.

Yet there were still people bewitched into rushing forward one after another, pushing and shoving toward death.

Seeing this situation, Xue Yu stopped. She said, “Calculated timing for arrival.”

“This painting is absorbing blood essence.”

The flying immortal woman before her, who had been torn apart, sighed lightly, as if sighing sadly for such human tragedy, yet also like mockery wrapped in silk.

Shen Jingshi couldn’t help but sneer, his dark pupils rotating: “If you think this alone can leave sacred land inheritors helpless and unable to reach, you underestimate them too much.”

In the blink of an eye, ripples spread from beneath Xue Yu’s feet, quickly extending to the surrounding hundred li. Above grew countless dancing, flexible, thin threads that firmly wrapped around people’s legs, pushing those bewitched and confused toward the shadows of mansions and courtyards.

The next instant, Xue Yu acted, expressionlessly tearing apart the woman formed of golden light before her.

She looked toward the other side.

A stunning sword shadow carried incomparable sharp, fierce energy, approaching from far to near, piercing through the other flying immortal figure in her vision. This was extremely clean, decisive swordwork with a supremely powerful killing force.

Thus those magnificent clouds, streaming brilliant illusions, mirage-like backgrounds, all shattered to dust and dissolved into nothingness under one sword strike.

The city’s lamps relit.

This sword had the power to battle her.

Xue Yu didn’t even blink. She looked toward those two figures sweeping from the horizon’s end.

Chao Nian excitedly waved at her, repeatedly calling “Your Highness,” his face full of enthusiasm that Xue Yu found overwhelming.

The person in front held a sword, lips carrying a gentle smile, cupping his hands toward Xue Yu. His voice was indescribably clear and composed: “This subject greets Your Highness.”

After a long while, Xue Yu moved her lips: “Raise your head.”

Su You obediently raised his head, eyelids slightly lowered, lashes motionless and drooping. Even the smile on his lips appeared perfect and flawless. Only his trembling Adam’s apple, as if unable to restrain some unbearable emotion, quietly rolled twice under her gaze.

This person was still as remembered, yet completely different everywhere.

Mature, steady, and powerful.

Calculating the time and recalling that horizontal sword strike just now, Xue Yu stepped forward. When their four eyes met, she curved her lips in a brief smile, praising: “Palace Guard Bureau Commander.”

“Well done.”