Zichen Hall.
Lin Yin flew straight in on her sword.
Her eyes no longer held the cold indifference they once did; since returning, there was something different in them.
At the mountain gate, Yun Yan, the Sect Master, stroked his white beard.
His disciple Jiang Yan had long stopped fussing with him and had already gone back early.
Young people nowadays~
Seeing Lin Yin head in the direction of Xuandan Peak, Yun Yan had originally wanted to follow and take a look, but it seemed something occurred to him.
“Disciple, I will return to Zichen Hall first.”
“Going back? Why? It’s so late, and I still want to practice for a while longer!”
Jiang Yan hadn’t wanted to hang around with this master anyway; now, being dragged out to the mountain gate for no reason and seeing him embarrassed was even more annoying.
But what else could he want to do now?
Yun Yan simply smiled, saying nothing. Seeing this, Jiang Yan chose to return to her quarters without another word.
Sigh, these disciples nowadays—each one more stubborn than the last.
Yun Yan had his own reasons; he returned to Zichen Hall to wait for Lin Yin.
He felt certain she would come looking for him, so he went back to Zichen Hall.
“You’re here…”
“Head of Lingjian Peak… Lin Yin, greetings, Sect Master.”
Lin Yin entered Zichen Hall and saw Yun Yan with his back turned to her, but she still cupped her hands and bowed.
“No need to be so formal; just call me Shibo.”
Lin Yin didn’t respond for a long time, and Yun Yan sighed.
“Speak. Coming to see an old man like me so late can’t just be to catch up.”
Yun Yan finally turned to look at this disciple left behind by his junior brother.
At this moment, Lin Yin’s aura had long since dimmed to an unrecognizable degree. Sometimes, seeing little and feeling little might mean no confusion.
When a person realizes the world isn’t so simple, they may need ten years or even decades to figure out some things.
These were the words Yun Yan’s sword immortal junior brother—who still drank—had said when talking about this disciple.
If Lin Yin continued like this, a tribulation awaited her, and no one could help.
“Sigh, the last time we met, you had almost the same expression. You must have found your disciple by now. How is he?”
“Sect Master, Lin Yin has actually come to bid you farewell once again.”
Yun Yan was surprised and asked, “You just returned, and now you’re leaving? Lingjian Peak really needs you right now.”
Lin Yin was moved but remained resolute.
“I’m sorry, Lingjian Peak… I have failed my master’s last wishes and betrayed your trust.
A peak that should be the pride of the sect has been left desolate and deserted because of me.
But even if I return now, I don’t think I can shoulder this responsibility.”
Lin Yin bit her lip, her gaze distant.
“I found Jiang Che, but I don’t think he’ll forgive me. It was my fault in the past.
I want to leave the sect for a while. Maybe only by putting distance between us can I calm down and understand what happened.
Also, Jiang Che is unwell. I need to search for medicine for him.
During my absence, please take care of Jiang Che and keep his identity hidden—I fear the events from three years ago will hurt him again.
When I return, I will clear everything up.”
Lin Yin finished speaking.
Looking at her like this, Yun Yan lightly stroked his white beard, full of helplessness. This was the longest speech he had ever heard from Lin Yin.
“Very well, go. I will look after Jiang Che for you.”
Lin Yin gave a simple thanks and was about to leave when Yun Yan called after her.
“By the way, where did you take Jiang Che?”
Without hesitation, Lin Yin answered, “I entrusted him to Chief Xu.”
Hearing that she had handed Jiang Che over to Xu Qianlan, Yun Yan nearly lost his composure and wanted to shout.
He gave Lin Yin a meaningful look but quickly pretended nothing happened.
Only after Lin Yin left did Yun Yan heave a heavy sigh.
Lin Yin’s intelligence… sigh, hasn’t improved at all.
Does she still not realize that Xu Qianlan, Chief of Xuandan Peak, has been coveting her disciple Jiang Che all this time?
What is this old man supposed to do now?
“Sigh, I’d better go see for myself.”
With that, Yun Yan summoned clouds beneath his feet and flew off.
In no time, he arrived at Xu Qianlan’s residence on Xuandan Peak.
Looking at the Medicine Garden here, he couldn’t help but marvel: they were all women, yet why was Xu Qianlan’s temperament so much more composed than Lin Yin’s?
Yun Yan’s figure floated down in front of the wooden hut within the garden.
As his fingertips touched the door panel, a subtle pulse of spiritual energy trembled in his palm.
He had intended to knock first, but reconsidered.
From what he knew, Xu Qianlan only used this kind of spiritual energy when refining pills.
Yun Yan stroked his long beard and shook his head with a wry smile.
Since he sensed she was at a crucial stage in refining, knocking seemed unnecessary.
With a slight thought, the wooden door silently slid open to the side.
A wave of heat mixed with a strong medicinal aroma washed over him.
Inside, the flames flickered, casting unsteady shadows on the walls.
Xu Qianlan stood with her back to the door. Her delicate face was half-lit by the firelight, her expression serious and focused—any usual laziness utterly gone.
Beneath her stood a rustic Elixir Furnace nearly half a person’s height, flames swirling upward.
The firelight danced across her dark green wide-sleeved robe, highlighting her bare shoulders and slender neck, exuding an aura of capable elegance.
Xu Qianlan’s eyes sharpened, her fingers paused mid-seal, then decisively pointed downward.
“Go!”
Over ten streams of light responded instantly, as if pulled by invisible threads, precisely and continuously plunging into the raging flames within the furnace.
Within moments, all the medicinal ingredients simultaneously melted and condensed.
Such skill in pill refining left even Yun Yan feeling inferior.
Xu Qianlan let out a deep sigh of relief.
“Sect Master, since you’ve come, please come in and sit. No need to stand outside all the time.”
“Haha, you can’t hide your divine sense from me. It seems your pill refining has not only held steady but improved during these leisurely days. Truly enviable!”
Xu Qianlan bowed respectfully. “Sect Master flatters me. What brings you here?”
Feigning ignorance, Xu Qianlan guessed Yun Yan would come but didn’t expect it to be so urgent.
Fortunately, she was refining pills; it would be troublesome if he had caught her doing anything else.
She thought this but kept her expression perfectly composed.
Yun Yan narrowed his eyes at Xu Qianlan, as if silently saying, “Old man, you don’t think I don’t know you?”
“It’s like this: Lin Yin said she brought Jiang Che back, so I came to see where the boy is.”
Yun Yan looked around. Apart from jars of wine, the only child he saw lay on a bed.
At that moment, Xu Qianlan stepped forward to block his view.
“What Jiang Che? She took him away, didn’t she? I only have this poor child here.”
Xu Qianlan gave a fake smile.
Although she had told Lin Yin to go find the Sect Master, it was only because she thought Lin Yin was too foolish not to at least remind her what to do.
Yun Yan looked at Xu Qianlan meaningfully, his eyes narrowing into a thin slit.