Two Jindan cultivators confronted each other in the sky above Weijin Mountain, or rather… it was merely two Qi Refining Grandmasters facing off.
Wang Xiao knew little about Lian Yue; in the entire Yunhai Immortal Pavilion, very few had truly met Lian Yue even a handful of times.
This person was simply too mysterious. Ever since taking the position of Peak Master, she had secluded herself and seldom appeared, only showing up for particularly important occasions.
The rest of the time, she remained within that perception-isolating Heiyun.
As a peak Jindan cultivator, Wang Xiao shouldn’t have feared a Jindan seventh-level cultivator.
But he simply couldn’t fathom Lian Yue’s depths, so he didn’t dare to make the first move.
Now that Lian Yue had used Ether Qi to transform into Qingquan, he knew that if they fought, he still couldn’t win.
A skinny camel is still bigger than a horse; even a third of Qingquan’s power far exceeded cultivators of the same rank.
Fu Xu raised his eyes to the sky and clicked his tongue in amazement.
“Daoist Friend Lian Yue has actually waded into this muddy water. It must be the Sect Master’s intention.”
His voice was penetrating, echoing for all present to hear.
This remark also served as a reminder for Wang Xiao. As his gaze swept over Gu Ze, the other, and Lian Yue, he realized these two groups couldn’t possibly be associated.
What was said unintentionally struck a chord in the listeners. Li Xunmiao stared suspiciously at the figure identical to her master, then glanced at Gu Ze out of the corner of her eye.
Senior Brother Gu… seemed completely unsurprised by Lian Yue Immortal Venerable’s appearance. Could it be that Senior Brother Gu knew her from before?
How odd!
“Fu Xu, since you know I act under the Sect Master’s orders, why persist in your delusions? This Divine Fire was never meant to be taken. You and I both walk the Righteous Path; how can we use the lives of innocent disciples to further our own cultivation?”
Upon hearing these righteous words, Wang Xiao couldn’t help but retort, “You and I both walk the Righteous Path? Laughable.”
“That dual cultivation method of yours on Rouman Peak contains a portion of Demonic Path heritage. And now you stand here, talking so self-righteously?”
“Courting death!”
Lian Yue’s little face, veiled by a purple mist, flushed red.
She had only recently handed over her first kiss, which she’d guarded for more than a hundred years. All of her cultivation had come from Qingxiu, so how could she be shameless?
Fu Xu, seeing this, shook off his earlier boredom and watched the battle in the sky with great interest.
“Interesting, truly a fine show. Even if I don’t get the Divine Fire, it won’t have been a wasted trip.”
He’d only wanted to be a spectator. Now, bound by the Dragon-Binding Rope, he could only sit on the sidelines—a wish fulfilled, in a way.
Wang Xiao exchanged a few blows with her, hastily swallowed a pill, and couldn’t help but curse, “Qingquan’s Unlimited Water Physique—her spiritual energy is endless. She can even empower treasures and divine arts. It’s just unfair. Fighting you is a waste of pills.
Enough, you’ve already saved the disciples, the plan has failed, and whoever wants to clean up the mess caused by this World-Burning Flower can do it.”
With a sweep of his sleeve, he soared high into the air, preparing to leave the secret realm.
In truth, it wasn’t that he couldn’t fight at all, but as Jindan Peak Masters, there was no need for them to fight to the death.
Wang Xiao had deliberately given Lian Yue an out. The other party was sent by the Sect Master, and if the fight escalated, Gong Lixing would truly intervene.
Before coming, Wang Xiao and Fu Xu had both calculated that Weijin Mountain’s fate was spent. The Divine Fire was a calamity, deliberately nurtured by the secret realm to lure people in.
To obtain the Divine Fire, one had to endure this trial, bear the Karmic Retribution of Weijin Mountain, and offer up sacrifices enough to sustain the secret realm.
That way, the fish would be hooked.
Both of them had schemes, determined to seize the Divine Fire. After all, if they didn’t, the secret realm would collapse, and a readily available Jindan treasure would be lost for nothing.
But Gong Lixing couldn’t possibly ignore this.
He had intended to hand the matter to Qingquan and force the two to stop, but as luck would have it, Qingquan was already in seclusion preparing for a breakthrough. Gong Lixing simply gave the task to Gu Ze.
Just as well—it could serve as a trial for the two of them.
To prevent mishaps, Gong Lixing had secretly asked Lian Yue to assist the pair.
Whether he truly knew about Lian Yue and Gu Ze’s relationship, that was another matter…
This was supposed to be a minor issue that Qingquan could have solved with a wave of the hand, but Gu Ze got tangled up with two Jindan for so long that they barely managed to make them stop.
Watching Wang Xiao’s departing back, Gu Ze finally let out a sigh of relief.
One defeated, one fled, and he and Li Xunmiao had survived to the end.
They’d made it through by the skin of their teeth.
Only after Wang Xiao’s aura completely faded did Lian Yue slowly land at Gu Ze’s side.
She had noticed earlier that Gu Ze had been holding Li Xunmiao, watching the spectacle from afar.
She stared at Gu Ze’s arm, which was still wrapped around Li Xunmiao’s waist, for a few seconds, then dispersed the mist around her and revealed her true appearance.
With a flick of her water sleeves, she took out the sunglasses Gu Ze had given her, covering those bright blue eyes.
“Still holding her?” She deliberately turned her head toward Li Xunmiao, still in Gu Ze’s arms.
At her words, Gu Ze gently set Li Xunmiao down.
But Li Xunmiao seized the opportunity to approach, and as she brushed past Lian Yue, she took a subtle sniff of her scent.
Familiar.
Vixen! So this is the vixen who’s tried to seduce Senior Brother several times.
And she’s even a Jindan… Senior Brother Gu, you sure have an appetite—even old Jindan women aren’t spared, Li Xunmiao marveled inwardly.
Lian Yue seemed to have stared at Gu Ze too long, feeling a little dizzy, and gently supported her temple as she leaned toward Gu Ze’s embrace, completely unconcerned that Li Xunmiao was right beside them.
“Gu Ze, little brother, I think I’ve exhausted too much Ether Qi. Could you transfer me a bit of spiritual energy?”
She fumbled for a moment, caught one of Gu Ze’s big hands, pressed it to her chest with both hands, and spoke in a delicate tone.
Gu Ze was silent for a moment, glancing out of the corner of his eye at Fu Xu, who had completely concealed his aura and now stood in the center of the World-Burning Flower, unmoving like a stone by the roadside. There was still someone else present—Lian Yue was truly bold.
Or was she deliberately putting on a show for Li Xunmiao?
Gu Ze had never seen Lian Yue jealous of Li Xunmiao, but at their very first meeting, the two women were already at odds.
He felt that in the future, the bickering between these two would never end.
Bring back my cool and aloof fairy!
“Ahem, Senior Brother, is this Immortal Venerable an acquaintance of yours?”
Seeing Lian Yue clinging to Gu Ze, Li Xunmiao couldn’t restrain herself and poked Lian Yue in the back, trying to get her to move.
She questioned Gu Ze, who could only reply with a helpless nod.
“Immortal Venerable Lian Yue has helped me quite a lot, and Moon Mark was a gift from her.”
Lian Yue blinked, her sunglasses hiding the cunning in her eyes. “Gu Ze, little brother, I still prefer when you call me Fairy Sister~”
Bang!
A piece of basalt near Li Xunmiao was blasted apart by sword qi.
Lian Yue stuck out her tongue. This was fun.
She just enjoyed seeing Li Xunmiao fume at her, yet unable to do anything.
Hmph, that’ll teach you for acting so prim and proper with Gu Ze all the time. If I don’t make you panic, you’d really think no one would fight you for him, Lian Yue thought to herself.
She gently pushed Gu Ze away—by now, she’d really absorbed too much of his yang energy and felt dizzy for real.
“Now that Weijin Mountain is in our hands and the World-Burning Flower is ours as well, this outcome will please both Qingquan Daoist Friend and the Sect Master.”
Lian Yue said softly, raising her eyebrows as she looked Li Xunmiao up and down, her gaze finally landing on Li Xunmiao’s clenched, white-knuckled fist.
“Xunmiao, you don’t look very happy.”
“Hmph, Senior Brother likes me the most. No matter how you try to seduce him, it won’t work.” Li Xunmiao pouted, but clearly lacked confidence.
Lian Yue patted her shoulder and leaned in to whisper in her ear, “I’m sure you know who I am.”
“Actually, my physique is special—I can’t touch men. If I force myself to be close to Gu Ze, I can only last a few dozen seconds before I pass out.”
“Let me have him for a few dozen seconds occasionally, and the rest of the time, he’s all yours. Is that acceptable?”
“If you agree, I won’t fight you for him.”
It was a tempting offer, even if Li Xunmiao didn’t want to let Gu Ze go for even a second.
In the end, weighing the pros and cons, she didn’t want another troublesome rival, so she nodded slightly.
Lian Yue smiled, then stuck out her tongue at Gu Ze behind her.
In truth, she hadn’t deliberately shielded her voice with spiritual energy, so Gu Ze heard every word loud and clear.
The two of them having struck a deal, Lian Yue turned to deal with Fu Xu, who had been left alone for quite some time in the secret realm.
But behind him, cracks began to appear in the air.
Lian Yue’s brows drew together. Something was wrong! This scene—was the secret realm already collapsing?
Weijin Mountain had failed to replenish its spiritual energy, and the entire secret realm was beginning to unravel.
At the core, Fu Xu was the first to break free from the secret realm’s laws, instantly recovering his Jindan strength.
The Dragon-Binding Rope around him naturally fell away.
Lian Yue tensed, on guard. If Fu Xu struck now, the three of them, still at the Qi Refining stage, wouldn’t be able to resist.
But instead, Fu Xu stroked his chin and channeled all his spiritual energy into the World-Burning Flower at his feet.
His cultivation realm began to decline, falling from the peak of Jindan to Jindan ninth level.
At the same time, the vast surge of spiritual energy replenished what Weijin Mountain needed. The World-Burning Flower shot up, unfurling its three petals above the sky.
Countless divine flames rained down, dyeing the entire Cloud Sea a blazing red, painting the whole land crimson.
Wings sprouted from Fu Xu’s back, and with a single sweep, a fierce wind swept through, extinguishing the divine flames one by one.
Finally, all the spiritual energy converged into his palm, forming a flame of three interwoven leaf-shaped fire wisps.
In the distance, beyond sight, Wang Xiao’s voice rang out, “Watering the Divine Fire with your own cultivation, Fu Xu, do you truly think it’s worth it?”
“It’s worth it. Think of it as the price of admission for a good show. Only, I haven’t had enough yet—I want to watch another.”
As he spoke, the Divine Fire fell, the three fire wisps splitting apart and descending toward the three still trapped in the secret realm.
“Be careful, Fu Xu’s methods are bizarre—even outside the secret realm, I may not be able to handle him,” Lian Yue said tensely, shielding the other two behind her.
She was just about to transform into Qingquan to face the enemy, when she sensed a wisp of spiritual consciousness within the Divine Fire and paused in surprise.
“He’s really giving us the Divine Fire? Willing to drop his cultivation just to watch… another show?”
In an instant, the cracks in the secret realm sealed shut again. Gu Ze’s vision flashed white, and he raised his hand to shield himself from the glare.
When he came to, the Dragon-Binding Rope was already back in his hand.
He stood beside a tranquil lake, the air damp and heavy with the sound of mosquitoes—something nearly impossible in the original Weijin Mountain.
The shape of this great lake looked unmistakably like the caldera of Weijin Mountain, now filled and forming a heavenly pool.
Where had Fu Xu sent him this time?