Often, people are more willing to bare their hearts and reveal their true feelings to complete strangers, or the less interest they have in common, the more uninhibited they become.

The four people on the boat tonight mostly fell into this category.

The rich, strong wine in the wine jar seemed to have no end no matter how much they drank, allowing them to chat freely about heaven and earth with hearty laughter, drinking from deep night until dawn without seeing it run dry.

People had only ever seen others raise swords to kill – yet Jian Chou killed by lowering her sword.

Yueying, Daoist Diandao, and Fujiansheng all praised this endlessly.

Jian Chou herself remained indifferent.

As for the heaven-spanning wings that had appeared on her, though the others had doubts in their hearts, none asked detailed questions. After all, since entering the Ancient Era, human cultivators had dominated the universe, slaughtering demon races to deduce dao seals, causing demons to suffer devastating casualties with their strength greatly damaged. Even Kunpeng, a god among demons known as “Master of Heaven, Ruler of Sea,” might not be at full strength from its prime. Since Jian Chou came from the most ancient Primordial Realm, obtaining such a dao seal through chance encounters didn’t seem particularly extraordinary.

Daoist Diandao spoke the most. When the wine reached its peak, he asked about Jian Chou’s situation: “Did you make some great enemy in the lower realm? You’ve barely arrived in the Upper Void and already face pursuit from all sides due to this Ten Death Decree. Li Xieyang is no kind soul – there will only be more foolish Earth and Golden Immortals coming. Not to mention you previously killed so many people at Jiangnan shore. If you want to establish yourself in this realm, I’m afraid these people won’t tolerate you.”

Jian Chou drank wine while playing chess.

The chess pieces on the board were all star pieces. At a glance they all looked roughly the same, but each piece had subtle differences.

Hearing this question, she didn’t mind.

Having hidden in the Primordial Realm for nearly four hundred years before coming to the Upper Void, why would she need others’ tolerance?

Jian Chou lowered her eyes and said indifferently, “When the boat reaches the bridge, it will naturally straighten. Once they know that coming means certain death, no one will come anymore. I’ve never been one to let others slaughter me at will.”

Daoist Diandao asked again, “What about the person behind the scenes?”

Only then did Jian Chou glance at this Daoist who seemed upside-down yet was clear as a mirror in his heart. She laughed and said, “I have my own methods for that.”

The so-called “own methods” meant: I know this method, but I can’t tell you.

Daoist Diandao understood this clearly enough.

He was actually somewhat curious, but since the conversation had reached this point, it wouldn’t be appropriate to ask more. So he only raised his cup to clink with Jian Chou’s, and they each drained their wine.

A few thoughts also flashed through Yueying’s pupils, which faintly showed traces of dark purple. He only said, “But the matter of Pangu’s Desolate Domain won’t be so simple. First, the Long Ye Scrolls are hard to obtain, and second, the Desolate Domain itself isn’t necessarily safe. Legend has it that in ancient times, people also broke into the Desolate Domain, but most unfortunately perished. In my memory, it seems only one extremely mysterious ‘Dream Elder’ managed to walk out of the Desolate Domain alive without a Long Ye Scroll. But in these tens of thousands of years, there seems to have been no news of this person.”

No Long Ye Scroll, yet came out of the Desolate Domain alive?

Jian Chou was somewhat surprised, and some thoughts arose in her heart.

She slightly frowned: “Dream Elder?”

Yueying’s white robe was woven like snow feathers. Under the illumination of that sky full of frosty white moonlight, he appeared to be bathed in light, strikingly beautiful.

He held the wine jar and poured for everyone.

When the wine was full, he answered, “Dream Elder, also known as ‘Tianmu,’ can create dream realms and cultivates the dao of dreams. Legend says that tens of thousands of years ago, she sold dreams in the Upper Void. At Sacred Immortal level, her cultivation didn’t seem particularly high at the time, and her actions were mysterious, so there aren’t many written records in the Upper Void, and even fewer people know how she managed to come out of the Desolate Domain alive. We’ll see whether this person goes or not when the Desolate Domain descends this time.”

That meant even knowing such a person existed, one probably couldn’t trace her whereabouts, let alone hope to use this to understand the Desolate Domain’s situation.

Jian Chou thought for a moment, then finally sighed, “How difficult!”

“People trouble themselves needlessly!”

Hearing this, Daoist Diandao couldn’t help but laugh.

Having drunk much wine, his face had become somewhat red.

He slammed the wine cup on the chess board, making all the star pieces on the board tremble, yet he developed a rare heroic spirit, saying, “I see that people with worldly worries all want too much. The reason you’re still alive in this world boils down to just two words: ‘fear death.’ Think of our lives – we come from the universe and will ultimately return to the universe. Living well ourselves is enough; the rest is just ‘none of your damn business’ and ‘none of my damn business.'”

Living in this world ultimately boils down to fearing death.

Hearing these words, Jian Chou was stunned for a long while, then actually laughed.

Daoist Diandao’s dao was a carefree dao, but it wasn’t her dao after all.

The world’s dao had no distinction of superiority – each dao pointed toward a direction, and those walking their own dao were actually all lonely.

Drinking down a cup of wine, the rich, strong sensation burned from her throat to her abdomen.

Daoist Diandao said no more.

Yueying also fell silent, seemingly thinking about other matters.

Only Fujiansheng, having drunk some wine, kept frequently looking up at Jian Chou.

The drinking session continued until the eastern sky grew white before dispersing.

Jian Chou rose to take her leave.

Daoist Diandao and Fujiansheng also prepared to depart.

Yueying, as master of this Xuanji Star, only stood on the boat, bowing to them and agreeing to brew fine wine over the next two hundred years before inviting them to drink again, then watched them leave.

But just after leaving Xuanji Star, having entered that vast void, Jian Chou felt someone pursuing from behind.

She turned to look – it was Fujiansheng.

Earlier when they had played chess and drunk wine on that solitary boat on the lake, she had already had some guesses and premonitions. Seeing him now, her face showed little surprise.

Jian Chou stopped and asked him, “Is there something else?”

Fujiansheng didn’t really drink much, so he seemed unable to handle the wine, with some hazy intoxication. But he didn’t feel he was drunk on wine, but rather drunk on the sword realm of Jian Chou’s earlier slaughter.

The youth’s face was calm and gentle.

Even his gaze when looking at people was very restrained.

Like a piece of transparent glass, moonlight danced on the silver ring with white jade beads hanging by his ear. The reflected light hit his neck, gently swaying, just like his wavering emotions between movement and stillness.

But his words came without hesitation, his light voice easily reminding one of a passing spring breeze: “Daoist friend Jian Chou doesn’t have a dao companion yet, does she?”

“…”

Jian Chou was silent for a moment, then nodded.

Fujiansheng’s gaze fell on her, and he actually felt his palms slightly sweating. He slowly said, “All my life I’ve been single-minded, intoxicated by the sword dao. Meeting Daoist friend Jian Chou today, my heart was moved. Though we’re not yet familiar, and I don’t know what the future holds, among the many chance encounters in this world, perhaps there could be one or two who might become kindred spirits on the same dao. I truly don’t wish to miss this opportunity.”

Even if it was just a small possibility.

The stars in the universe were vast without boundary.

Some bright, some dark.

Their light fell into Jian Chou’s eyes, also becoming bright and dark, flickering and swaying halos, actually making one feel her pupils held some hazy mist.

She suddenly thought of long, long ago.

If a person’s life was long enough, among all the people they encountered, there would always be different people with similar appearances, or different people saying similar words.

But they were all different.

Jian Chou’s gaze moved far away, then finally returned to Fujiansheng’s face as she smiled at him: “But you’re too late.”

Fujiansheng was slightly stunned.

She was unwilling to say more, only saying “I’m the same as you” before turning and leaving, heading toward the other end of the star domain.

Fujiansheng stood in place, watching her depart, thinking this phrase “I’m the same as you” was probably responding to his earlier words “truly don’t wish to miss this opportunity.”

But what he didn’t want to miss was her.

And what she didn’t want to miss was probably someone else.

At this moment, a strange feeling of melancholy arose.

Daoist Diandao had been watching from afar for a long time. Finally unable to resist, he walked over and looked with him toward the direction Jian Chou had departed, extremely curious: “Rejected?”

Fujiansheng lowered his eyes and murmured, “She has someone she likes.”