Time slipped by quickly, and Yao Ranran treated the journey as if it were a sightseeing trip.
When she first arrived here, she had thought only about escaping. Now, with no burdens weighing her down and two Senior Brothers taking care of food and lodging, she and Tang Xiangyin lived without worry, completely relaxed and carefree.
But as they drew closer to Central Continent, news spread everywhere: Yao Ranran was none other than the eldest daughter of the Yu clan.
Central Continent's number one Fairy, with beauty so stunning it shocked the heavens, and bearing the noble identity of the Yu family's eldest daughter—her name alone set countless male cultivators' hearts aflame.
Pei Xianqiao, who lived below Qing Su Hall, of course also heard the rumor.
"Why would Yao Ranran come back?" Pei Xianqiao asked, bewildered, after hearing her master casually mention the matter.
Yue Qingsu's expression remained gentle. "I don't know either. I heard Sect Master Han arranged her residence near Yi Yu Hall."
"Isn't that near… Elder Shen's quarters?" Pei Xianqiao almost blurted out the name she secretly cherished, her voice trembling with a hint of agitation.
Yue Qingsu didn't seem to notice. She nodded lightly. "Correct. Sect Master Han seems to be trying to pair Elder Shen and Yao Ranran. Judging by appearance alone, they make quite the match."
"What use is appearance? Elder Shen isn't someone who values looks. Beyond her pretty face, Yao Ranran's strength and status can't compare to his at all!" Unconsciously, Pei Xianqiao's hand tightened around her sword.
Yue Qingsu, detached as though speaking from afar, replied evenly, "She is Yu Weifeng's lost daughter. This time, upon returning, the Yu family will write her name into the clan register. As the clan leader's eldest daughter, her standing isn't as far beneath Elder Shen as before."
"But, but…" Pei Xianqiao wanted to find more faults, but at last she lowered her gaze. "Elder Shen won't be swayed by matters of the heart. Even if Yao Ranran lives near Yi Yu Hall, it won't matter."
Yue Qingsu looked at her apprentice's hair, dark as polished black jade, and asked softly, "Xian Qiao, why won't you tell me the full details of what you experienced in the Eastern Wilderness secret realm? What kind of enemy did you truly face in there?"
"There was no enemy. It was a heart demon," Pei Xianqiao answered, gripping her sword.
"Have you succeeded in eradicating it?" Yue Qingsu asked with concern.
Pei Xianqiao hesitated, recalling that day. "Perhaps it's gone."
Yet deep inside, she knew—she hadn't been strong enough. How had her heart demon vanished on its own?…
Yao Ranran's return was far from peaceful.
Upon reaching Central Continent's border, they entered the domain of Guan Fan Temple.
The three traveled day and night, their Crimson-beaked Crane growing exhausted. Wu Changde and Hu Zhongcheng decided to stop at a desolate hillside to rest.
By dusk, flames crackled brightly, tongues of fire curling upward to light the camp.
Wu Changde and Hu Zhongcheng went out once more to hunt for food. They seemed not at all worried that Yao Ranran would try to escape, leaving her alone by the fire.
"Fairy, I'm so bored!" Tang Xiangyin stretched lazily, her chubby little body swaying.
She had been dozing in Yao Ranran's sleeve for days.
Wu Changde and Hu Zhongcheng pushed harder on the road, rarely stopping to rest. But Yao Ranran and Tang Xiangyin, in contrast, had been well-rested.
"It really is boring. I haven't set foot on the ground in so long," Yao Ranran said as she rose, stretching her limbs. Her joints gave crisp little pops as if protesting their stiffness.
"Wow, look! The stars are so pretty tonight. Ranran Fairy, let's go up to the mountain top and see!" Tang Xiangyin hopped down from her arms, her tiny legs toddling uphill.
Yao Ranran looked at the barren slope. Even if she went up, Wu Changde and Hu Zhongcheng could see her clearly.
"Alright, let's go. After riding the Crimson-beaked Crane for days, even walking on the ground feels like we're still flying."
Step by leisurely step, they climbed the hill.
A cold wind swept over the desolate summit, bone-deep and chilling.
Tang Xiangyin shivered and clutched Yao Ranran's sleeve. "It looks like there's something up there."
They approached. At the very peak, stuck in the bare ground, stood a corroded bronze sword, mottled with age.
"What's this? An ancient bronze sword abandoned for a thousand years?" Yao Ranran muttered as she reached out and pulled it free.
The moment the sword left the earth, a terrifying wave of force erupted from within the mountain. It was like a volcano's fury, bursting skyward, rippling out in rings of multicolored light. Her long black hair whipped wildly, her robes snapping in the gale.
Tang Xiangyin was blown tumbling down the slope, rolling head over heels, crashing until her nose was bruised and her eyes spun.
Yao Ranran shut her eyes tight against the storm.
Rainbow light expanded outward, turning night instantly to day.
Countless streaks of radiance streaked in from a hundred miles, from a thousand miles away.
At Guan Fan Temple,
The Bodhisattva Hall rose against the mountain, magnificent and resplendent, golden and solemn. Within, a Buddha statue three zhang tall sat in serene majesty, surrounded by eighteen golden arhats, lifelike in form and posture, solemn and sacred.
Three thousand novice monks chanted scriptures in unison. At their center sat a young Buddhist disciple in meditation. The sound of their chanting filled the grand hall, bathed in golden light and Buddha's radiance.
Suddenly, a great wave crashed in from a thousand miles away. The chanting stopped at once. The Buddhist disciple opened his eyes.
His pupils gleamed golden, like stars piercing the autumn night—pure, radiant, unsullied by mortal dust. Neither sorrow nor joy, neither resentment nor anger touched him.
"Someone has disturbed the Chen Chi Sword."
His solemn voice carried weight. In a flash of golden light, he vanished, his figure already gone from among the three thousand monks.
Back at the barren hill,
Wu Changde and Hu Zhongcheng stood stunned, still clutching the goat they had caught.
In just a few moments of foraging, the desolate mountain had been surrounded by cultivators from every direction. The two men couldn't even push through the crowd. Yao Ranran was nowhere to be seen.
They hesitated. Should they watch the commotion, or search for Fairy Ranran first?
After all, a spectacle missed would never come again. Fairy Ranran… if she ran, she could always be found later!
Wu Changde and Hu Zhongcheng exchanged a look. Their decision was immediate.
"Come on, let's find out what's happening here for Sect Master Han!"
Calling out the name of Wuxiang Sect, they shoved their way through the throng.
"Senior Brother Wu, Senior Brother Hu, you came too?" Yao Ranran stood at the center of the crowd, holding the rusty bronze sword, gazing around in confusion.
"How… how could it be Fairy Ranran?"
The crowd froze. The excitement of watching the commotion had landed on one of their own?
Wu Changde and Hu Zhongcheng were dumbstruck.
Fairy Ranran's beauty was dazzling, but surely that didn't warrant everyone gawking like country bumpkins? They were cultivators—at least put on a show of composure!
"Fairy Ranran, you… you…" The two rushed toward her, intending to lead her away, but the words choked in their throats when they saw clearly the sword in her hand. Their eyes bulged nearly out of their sockets.
Following their horrified stares, Yao Ranran looked down at the corroded bronze sword she held. She lifted it slightly toward them.
"Is this what you all came to see?"
The instant the sword tilted in their direction, Wu Changde and Hu Zhongcheng staggered backward in fear.
"Fairy Ranran, where did you get that sword?!"