The zither sound had stopped, but its lingering notes still echoed endlessly.

The beast’s roars subsided, and the light spring breeze became gentle once more.

All sounds fell silent, yet snow continued to fall. Snowflakes floated gently, passing through moonlight to land on grass tips and treetops, drifting into streams and lakes, melting in an instant, like an illusory dream.

Only the occasional cool sensation touching the skin beyond one’s ritual robe gave people a sense of reality.

The cultivators listened to the lingering zither melody, and no one spoke.

The legendary Spring Mountain had risen from the plain, a solitary peak standing majestically, shrouded in mist and dust.

Looking up at the towering mountain, its deep pressure aura made one’s heart cold with fear.

Song Qian Ji and that fierce beast Chaos were now inside the mountain.

One mountain cannot accommodate two tigers. If the suppression failed, only one could emerge—either the terrifying, ferocious beast that devoured living creatures, or Song Qian Ji who had turned the tide.

Countless gazes fixed on the Spring Mountain, full of anxiety.

Even enemies of Thousand Channels or those who harbored dislike for Song Qian Ji sincerely hoped he would triumph at this moment.

Otherwise, if Song Qian Ji perished in the beast’s mouth, who could stand against the rampaging Chaos? Who would dare bet they could escape with their lives?

The cultivators who had nearly been devoured gathered together, still in shock, huddling to heal their wounds.

Suddenly, someone said: “If this is the true ‘Wind and Snow Formation Melody,’ then what was I playing before?”

This voice was hoarse and desolate, completely unlike its former gentle, ethereal quality.

It was none other than Immortal Miao Yan.

She stretched out her hand, feeling the snowflakes landing on her fingertips.

He Qingqing looked at Miao Yan with slight sympathy. She knew well Miao Yan’s obsession with this melody. At this moment, she surprisingly understood her counterpart.

“The sheet music itself has no difference, but he is after all the composer, so naturally he can play the true meaning within the music,” He Qingqing said.

Miao Yan threw back her head and laughed loudly: “You knew all along! You all knew and came to watch me make a fool of myself. Song Xun is Song Qian Ji!”

Her laughter was shrill, making people’s hair stand on end.

The cultivators who wanted to approach her showed fear in their eyes, hurriedly retreating.

“Who is this person?”

“Certainly not Immortal Miao Yan! The Immortal would never behave like this!”

He Qingqing didn’t know what “Song Xun” had done: “Since you want to withdraw from the cultivation world, who composed this melody should no longer concern you.”

Miao Yan shouted: “Song Qian Ji concerns me!”

He Qingqing’s face suddenly turned cold.

The snow gradually lessened, and there was no more movement from Chaos within the Spring Mountain.

Whispers rose from all corners of the underground palace, like spring insects reviving after a cold winter.

“I thought that dragon in the Red River was suspicious. It turns out it wasn’t Elder Blood Valley’s test at all, but Thousand Channels King trying to save us.”

“You were saved at the Red River? We were just rescued from the ice cave. Let’s introduce ourselves to each other.”

Amidst the joy of surviving catastrophe, there were still a few with peculiar expressions.

“If Senior Brother Song succeeds in suppressing it, will he take the opportunity to kill it? But a vicious beast’s final attack before death is its strongest.” Ji Chen worried, “What if it self-destructs…”

“Song Qian Ji won’t kill it.”

Ji Chen was interrupted and turned to meet Wei Zhen Yu’s deep gaze.

“Song Qian Ji’s understanding of the cycle of life and all things in heaven and earth is different from ours. Unless necessary, he is unwilling to kill. When it rains at Song Academy, he even rescues earthworms from the ground and returns them to the soil. Isn’t that laughable?”

A mocking smile curled on Wei Zhen Yu’s lips.

The Endless Fire burning in his mystical palace was not yet fully subdued. Snowflakes fell on him and instantly turned into wisps of white mist.

According to normal human cultivator thinking, fierce beasts are not of our kind and are so terrifying and violent—one bite can devour thousands, and one swipe can collapse mountains. Naturally, one would kill if possible, eliminating future trouble.

“What’s there to laugh about? You think you understand Senior Brother better?” Meng He Ze didn’t give him a pleasant look.

“I don’t understand.” Wei Zhen Yu was still smiling. “I never understood him. I never know what he’s thinking or what he’s doing. Neither do you; we’re all the same.”

He doesn’t kill fierce beasts and even saves earthworms, so why did he drive me away? Wei Zhen Yu wanted to shout at that person: if you want my life, just take it.

But Song Qian Ji didn’t want his life; Song Qian Ji had saved his life twice, and he had no idea what Song Qian Ji wanted.

He constantly endured the burning torment of flames in his mystical palace, finally understanding the danger of subduing a supreme treasure of heaven and earth.

If Song Qian Ji hadn’t borne the most violent backlash when the Endless Fire left its pool, he would probably have been burned to ashes.

This was the second time Song Qian Ji had saved him.

The first time was during the assassination at Thousand Channels Market. Lin Fei Yuan knew she couldn’t hurt Song Qian Ji, so she turned her sword toward him.

Song Qian Ji took a sword blow for him, and hot blood splashed on his face. In his memory, it was hotter than the Endless Fire.

“We haven’t betrayed Senior Brother. Who’s like you?” Meng He Ze said angrily. “You’re still laughing? What’s so funny!”

He was naturally angry.

When Song Qian Ji transformed into Song Xun, they all saw “Song Xun” being ordered around by “King Wei,” treated with a cold face.

Why did Senior Brother infiltrate Wei Zhen Yu’s team? Was it to protect him?

Years ago, Wei Zhen Yu broke his sword, severed relationships, and damaged the flower stand. Senior Brother had traveled mountains and seas to protect him.

Yet he remained so ungrateful.

Wei Zhen Yu’s laughter grew louder. Meng He Ze was about to draw his sword when he heard the other say:

“In my youth, I left home and wandered the four seas. I’ve been both a person and a dog. Only he stood in front of me time and again. Since he drove me away, why does he still care whether I live or die? Isn’t that funny?!”

“You…” Meng He Ze’s sword couldn’t be drawn anymore.

When Wei Zhen Yu was tough, he wanted to cut him down. But when Wei Zhen Yu’s eyes reddened like a stray dog, he instead wanted to comfort him.

Ji Chen softly called out “Wei Ping” and approached: “Perhaps there’s some misunderstanding between you and Senior Brother. After leaving the secret realm, why don’t you come back to Thousand Channels with us?”

Ji Chen thought for a moment and added: “After you left, Senior Brother has been learning to cook. His noodles aren’t unpalatable anymore.”

Wei Zhen Yu was stunned, remembering “Song Xun” cooking for the team, always giving him the largest portion, but he would only take two bites before tossing it aside.

Song Qian Ji only knew how to throw in random seasonings when cooking noodles. How many times must he have practiced to make something that tasted normal?

“I won’t go back to Thousand Channels with you. When he comes out, I’m going to clear things up with him!”

When Song Qian Ji walked out of the mountain crevice, Chaos was already sound asleep. Long snores echoed within the mountain belly.

He hadn’t used the Shadowless Sword in battle; this sword retained Xian Jian Chen’s aura, and Chaos was sensitive to auras, and easily provoked.

If Chaos became enraged and self-destructed, it would be enough to collapse the entire underground palace.

In this trip to the secret realm, the Dragon Slaying Formation had been used at Red River, the items Xian Jian Chen gave him in the storage pouch were consumed in the ice cave, and the Spring Mountain and Seven Victories Zither were used to suppress Chaos.

He had repeatedly played his trump cards and was injured from both No-Form’s self-destruction force and the strain of wielding the Seven Victories Zither, while the enemy still had an unknown number of incarnations hiding in the shadows.

Promises between human cultivators are often accompanied by oaths, just like No-Form’s earlier condition of swearing never to raise weapons against each other again.

Only the most vicious oaths, subject to the heavenly way’s punishment, could bring about trust between people.

But this Chaos, half-understanding human nature yet somewhat foolish, needed neither oaths nor blood pacts. Song Qian Ji said he would return, and it believed him, then went to sleep contentedly.

With a full belly, it lay in the mountain that was warm in winter and cool in summer, snoring away, not considering whether Song Qian Ji might change his mind.

“Blood River Ancestor must have cherished it dearly in life, just as I cherish my vegetable garden,” Song Qian Ji turned his head, taking a final look at the jade tablet around Chaos’s neck.

A fierce beast that has recognized a master, even if hurt by humans before, would still trust people easily.

Song Qian Ji walked out of the dark cave, returning to the mountain peak.

He was greeted by thunderous cheers:

“He’s out! Thousand Channels King Song has won!”

“Thousand Channels King is divinely brave and invincible!”

“Divine King Song!”

Just moments ago, Song Qian Ji summoned the great mountain, suppressed the fierce beast, and played a melody that brought snow on a spring night.

Although his clothes were tattered and he was swaying unsteadily, in the hearts of the cultivators, he was still the savior who had descended from the heavens.

Song Qian Ji turned to descend the mountain, suddenly feeling embarrassed, like the second day after his rebirth when he was carried to the outer sect square to be paraded.

Chaos’s pressure aura faintly leaked out, enveloping the entire Spring Mountain.

Without him having to put up a giant banner saying “Fierce Beast Inside, Please Keep Distance,” the cultivators spontaneously circled the mountain, leaving warning markers to alert later arrivals not to approach, lest they forfeit their lives.

Having escaped from the beast’s mouth and still in shock, the cultivators set aside sectarian differences and once again experienced a moment of unity.

Cheers like the sea, joy like the tide.

At this very moment, an unexpected change suddenly occurred.