With everyone reminding one another, all closed their eyes and regulated their breathing.

Only Feng Jiu’er and Zhan Qingcheng, standing on the highest deck, remained side by side, their gazes fixed unblinking on the totem as it slowly grew larger.

Fierce winds erupted in an instant. The waves grew higher and higher, and the ship rocked violently, as though it might be capsized at any moment.

Yet Feng Jiu’er and Zhan Qingcheng stood unmoving on the high deck, their eyes locked on the totem.

This wave of wind and waves arrived far more suddenly and with far greater ferocity than the last. Before long, the sound of brothers falling could be heard.

Even so, the rest of them poured every last ounce of their lifelong cultivation into holding the ship steady.

The ship rocked more and more violently. More and more people fell, and some were even hurled into the air, in constant danger of plunging into the sea.

The situation grew increasingly dire. Feng Jiu’er was not without anxiety in her heart.

Yet to all appearances, she stood on the deck just as steadily as Zhan Qingcheng — unmoved, as though neither of them were affected in the slightest.

Brothers whose hearts were in turmoil had only to raise their eyes for a single glance, and at once their spirits steadied. They seized whatever opportunity they could to get back on their feet and press on.

But this was only the beginning. The wind grew fiercer and fiercer, until at last the sound of people falling into the water could be heard.

Feng Jiu’er, her gaze fixed on the totem, gripped the railing with white knuckles, her expression grave.

In the moment the phoenix was seized through the heart by the black dragon’s claw, the entire world shuddered as though heaven and earth were being overturned.

Feng Jiu’er let out a low cry. She bent forward and leapt, launching herself toward the totem.

Zhan Qingcheng’s tall frame followed close behind.

Those who heard Feng Jiu’er’s cry opened their eyes and looked up toward the sky.

They watched as two silhouettes shot rapidly toward the heavens, vanishing completely the moment they entered the totem.

In the instant that Zhan Qingcheng and Feng Jiu’er disappeared, the howling winds ceased, the crashing of the waves gradually faded, and even the ship slowly steadied itself.

“Miss Jiu’er — Miss Jiu’er has ascended to the heavens,” one of the brothers from the Celestial Mechanism Hall said, trembling slightly after witnessing it all.

“It is the Ninth Prince and the Ninth Princess Consort — they used their own bodies to shield us from the totem,” a brother from the Ninth Prince’s estate said.

“Where have they gone? Why can no one see them?” Qiao Mu found Zhao Yusheng in the crowd, fixed her gaze on him, and asked in a low, serious voice.

“I do not know either.” Zhao Yusheng looked back once at where the totem had been, then shook his head.

“Could something have happened to them?” Qiao Mu walked over and gripped the railing, her distress plain to see.

The surroundings gradually grew bright again, yet the totem had vanished entirely — not even a shadow of Zhan Qingcheng or Feng Jiu’er could be seen.

“Brothers have fallen overboard — someone save them!”

“Brothers have fallen into the sea — hurry, rescue them!”

Several voices cried out at once.

“Save them first.” Mu Mu looked at everyone around him and issued the command in a firm, low voice.

“Yes.” Jian Yi gave a small nod and went off with the brothers in all directions.

Qiao Mu kept her vigil at the bow for a long while, but still could see nothing. She struck the railing with a hard slap.

“Save the others first. For Jiu’er, the lives of her brothers matter more than her own.”

Her words brought Zhao Yusheng back to his senses.

Zhao Yusheng drew a deep breath and turned to go.

In less than a quarter of an hour, everything had returned to normal. The ship sat anchored in the black abyss of the deep, and had not moved forward.

Nearly everyone who was able to do anything had thrown themselves into the effort to rescue the fallen.

A quarter of an hour passed. Two quarters of an hour passed. Still there was no sign of Zhan Qingcheng or Feng Jiu’er. Everyone’s anxiety was mounting.

Yet they also understood clearly that for now, the only thing they could do was pull every last brother back aboard.

And that, surely, was also what their lord and lady wanted most to see.

Feng Li, having learned of the situation, stood on one of the decks, his gaze fixed unblinking on the sky.

Xue Gu, as she had done every day these past several days, stayed by Feng Li’s side except when she slept.

No words passed between the two of them, yet there was no awkwardness to speak of. Even though they did not know each other, it was as though each had grown accustomed to the other’s presence.

“General Mu, everyone has been accounted for.” Zhao Yusheng, drenched from head to toe, returned to the deck and looked at Mu Mu. “There are injuries, but none are serious.”

“Good.” Mu Mu gave a brief nod and turned to look at the sky.

Zhao Yusheng also turned and raised his eyes to the heavens for a moment. His expression grew heavy.

“General Mu, do you know…”

“I do not.” Mu Mu cut off Zhao Yusheng’s question.

He truly did not!

Mu Mu was deeply frustrated with these two people who never consulted him before doing something like this — yet the truth was that no one present wished more fervently than he did for them to come back safely.

Sensing Mu Mu’s barely concealed anger, Zhao Yusheng asked nothing further and turned away to attend to his duties.

When everyone at last returned to the deck to rest, a pair of figures appeared once more in the distance — a dragon and a phoenix. But this time, they were not black. They blazed with golden light.

And the dragon and phoenix were no longer fighting. They looked instead as though they were frolicking with one another.

The earlier totem of the weeping phoenix and black dragon had filled everyone with an overwhelming sense of dread. This new totem of the dragon and phoenix at play radiated unmistakable joy.

Without quite realizing it, the brothers all settled into cross-legged positions on the deck and closed their eyes to rest and cultivate.

Somehow it felt as though practicing at this very moment would yield extraordinary results beyond all expectation.

In the end, even Qiao Mu, Jian Yi, Zhao Yusheng, Tuoba Keyan, Long Yi, and Long Shi’er settled into seated positions — only Mu Mu remained standing at the bow, his gaze fixed on the distant horizon.

Two quarters of an hour slipped past in the blink of an eye. Everyone’s inner energy had risen to a noticeable degree, and the exhaustion from before had vanished entirely.

“It is Jiu’er.” The moment Qiao Mu opened her eyes, she leapt to her feet with excitement. “And the Ninth Prince — they have come back!”

Hearing Qiao Mu’s shout, everyone snapped their eyes open, rose to their feet, and looked toward the horizon.

There, growing rapidly closer, was a pair of figures who looked for all the world like immortal lovers.

Golden light enveloped them, making them appear all the more radiant and breathtaking.

In the span of a single breath, Zhan Qingcheng, holding Feng Jiu’er’s small hand in his own, landed gracefully on the deck.

Everyone stared for several long moments at the pair who had descended like celestial beings before any of them managed to come back to their senses.

“Jiu’er.” Qiao Mu rushed forward and pulled the person from Zhan Qingcheng’s arms, drawing her close. “What happened just now? How did you two break the formation? Tell me, quickly — what on earth happened out there?”

Feng Jiu’er looked at Qiao Mu with a soft smile, let out a quiet sigh, then turned to take in everyone around her. At last her gaze came to rest on Qiao Mu once more.

“What is the situation? Were all the brothers who fell into the water found?”

“Every last one was rescued — not one is missing.” Qiao Mu replied, then pressed on at once. “Now tell me! How did you break the formation? Tell me everything!”

Feng Jiu’er turned to look back at Zhan Qingcheng, but he said nothing at all, walking alone toward the ship’s cabin.

Watching the Ninth Prince and Miss Jiu’er return safely, the brothers were overjoyed — yet none of them pressed for answers.

Everyone knew the Ninth Prince was a man of few words, but curiosity was a universal human trait.

The brothers from the Ninth Prince’s estate, having drawn their gazes back from Zhan Qingcheng, let their eyes fall quite openly on Feng Jiu’er.

Qiao Mu gave Feng Jiu’er a tug, pulling her around to face her.

“Jiu’er, tell me now! What exactly happened just now? You are going to drive everyone mad with suspense — just say it! Stop keeping us in the dark!”