"Is everything packed?"
"Father, are we really moving? The secret realm has collapsed. Perhaps the elders of Mingxia Sect have already forgotten about us." Zhou Lili was reluctant to leave the place they had lived in safely for so many years.
Zhou Shengqian clasped his hands behind his back, his gaze serious. "Li Li, it is precisely because the secret realm collapsed that we have this chance to catch our breath. Right now, all sects are focused on the secret realm. Elder Kuang of Mingxia Sect would not have come here otherwise.
But he is extremely petty. Besides, with the secret realm collapsed, the resources everyone can acquire have decreased. For the Eastern Wilderness, which is already poor in resources, this is a warning that disaster is coming!"
"Is it really that terrible? I think everyone was just too greedy with the secret realm, which caused a secret realm that had existed for tens of thousands of years to collapse! In a thousand years, it will appear again. Haven't the collapsed secret realms always returned?" Zhou Lili was far less worried than he was.
Zhou Shengqian shook his head, then hesitantly nodded. "Your guess is not impossible, but your father is a cautious pessimist. You should know, Biliu Sect has survived to this day and dominates Shiyan City because I took caution to the extreme."
Zhou Lili pouted. "In other words, imagining threats everywhere and seeing danger in everything. Over the years, I've moved to several places following you!"
Zhou Shengqian sighed deeply, placing a hand on her shoulder and patting it gently. "Li Li, your father's abilities are limited. This is the only way I can protect you. But perhaps once we move there, we won't have to live in fear like this again."
Zhou Lili furrowed her brows. "I just hope that when we go, we can keep the Baibao Pavilion business running."
Zhou Shengqian patted her shoulder with a smile. "Li Li, you've had a talent for business since you were a child. Even in a small village, as long as there are people, Baibao Pavilion will continue to grow."
…
Wanxiang City
Yun Gu Sect
"Gu Ling Mountain?" Yun Dehe paced back and forth in the main hall, repeating the name.
"Father, haven't you heard of this mountain?" Yun Hui could not hide his impatience. He wanted to know the origins of the female cultivator who had defeated him.
Yun Dehe thought long and hard, then shook his head. "The female cultivator you mentioned and Gu Ling Mountain are unknown to me. Perhaps she lied to you. Neither Gu Ling Mountain nor Yao Ranran are real!"
Zhao Lingyi was unconvinced. "Sect Leader, that woman's eyes are pure and her expression calm. I do not think she lied."
Li Qingtin nodded in agreement. "I have never seen such beautiful eyes. I could tell she was truthful just by looking at her once."
Seeing his two most talented disciples vouch for her, Yun Dehe looked slightly confused. He turned to Yun Hui. "What do you think? Did she deceive you at all?"
Yun Hui glanced at his senior brother and senior sister, recalling the brief moments he had looked into her eyes. He had to admit her eyes were stunning. A soft white glow enveloped her, pure and remarkable—not like a ghost cultivator, nor like any mortal.
Reluctantly, he nodded. "I also think she did not lie."
"And what about the others?" Yun Dehe asked, sweeping his gaze over the disciples who had accompanied him to the Tang residence.
They all nodded in unison, without hesitation. At that moment, their trust in a stranger was uncanny.
Yun Dehe paused, stroking his beard. "I see. Let's set this aside for now. The most urgent matter is to find the one chosen by the Spirit of the Fixed Mirror."
Zhao Lingyi said, "Sect Leader is correct. The Spirit of the Fixed Mirror suddenly seeking a master caused the secret realm to collapse. This is not good for people of the Eastern Wilderness."
Yun Dehe gazed at the horizon. "In recent years, cultivation resources in the Eastern Wasteland have grown slower than usage rates. The chosen master of the Spirit of the Fixed Mirror must be found!"
…
The evening sun lazily filtered through the broken houses, caressing the woman's fair skin and gently wrapping her in warmth. Her long, soft lashes fluttered like butterflies. Yao Ranran slowly opened her eyes, rubbing them out of habit.
"Is it morning? Time to get up."
She stretched, and the previously broken bones had miraculously healed. She looked at Tang Xiangyin and Xiao Rong. Both were lying unconscious, pale and suffering.
"First day back home, I'll get you a medical cultivator!" Yao Ranran hurried down the mountain.
Without Xiao Rong's vines, she could not reach the unnamed peak across the way.
This was fine—she would not encounter Lu Ziqian.
Exiting Gu Ling Mountain, she realized it was not sunrise, but sunset, leaving her momentarily dazed.
"I slept this long… I wonder if there will be a medical cultivator operating in Yanlong County tonight?"
She felt slightly uneasy. It might be difficult, and perhaps an extra fee would be needed. Not ideal.
"Better ask the local resident Xiao Jiang first."
Yao Ranran hurried over mountains and stopped in the near-ruined village by Longyin Village. Jiang Shengxiang was standing in the center and immediately noticed the aura of holy light around her.
"Fairy Ranran, what brings you here? Why didn't Rong-yé come to the village today? Were you tired from traveling these days?"
Xiao Rong used to visit Jiang Shengxiang every day. Today, with Rong-yé absent, he feared that his favor had been taken by the newcomer Tang Xiangyin, leaving him uneasy.
Yao Ranran was slightly distracted, not fully listening. She looked at the passing Daoist cultivators and asked, "Are these cultivators also villagers here?"
With cultivators like these, how could a single ghost mist have once devastated the village?
Jiang Shengxiang cautiously observed her expression. Nervously, he said, "Fairy Ranran, this matter came suddenly. I planned to report it to you later, but you came down yourself, so I will tell you here."
"Go ahead."
Jiang Shengxiang carefully organized his words, ignoring his own bribes, and said cautiously, "Fairy, these cultivators are not villagers. They are disciples of Biliu Sect."
Yao Ranran was slightly surprised, but showed no strong reaction.
Jiang Shengxiang felt secretly hopeful. This attitude suggested the fairy had no grudges.
"The matter is this. The leader of Biliu Sect thought this village had good Feng Shui and pleasant scenery, and with you nearby, Fairy Ranran, they moved the sect to the closest mountain peak and rebuilt Biliu Sect."
Yao Ranran was stunned.
Jiang Shengxiang held his breath. He wished Rong-yé were there.
"Good!" Yao Ranran's eyes brightened.