At the summit of Tianque Mountain, the sword cultivator in white walked over from a distance, hurriedly heading towards the main hall.
The disciples behind him followed, softly advising, “Sect Master, the recent rumors…”
The sword cultivator, usually of good temperament, sternly rebuked, “Since it is just a rumor, it should not be spoken of within the sect!”
The disciple hurriedly withdrew, “Yes, disciple spoke too much!”
Shen Ciyu pushed open the door and entered the main hall. Once the door closed, only he remained inside. The calm expression Shen Ciyu had been forcing himself to maintain immediately changed. His sharp brows furrowed, and he quickly took out a jade token to establish a connection.
The jade token rang several times but no one answered. Shen Ciyu dialed again, and this time, it was picked up.
As soon as the jade token was connected, Shen Ciyu hurriedly spoke, “Sang Dai, there are rumors circulating in the Immortal Realm about Immortal Lord Ying Heng, do you know about this?”
But someone else’s voice came from the other side, “Sect Master Shen, my madam and the Sect Master have gone to Kunshan and are not here.”
Shen Ciyu: “…What?”
“I am Cui Shao, the demon servant sent by the Sect Master to attend to the madam. Your jade token was placed in the wooden cabinet by the madam. When I came in to clean, I noticed it was still glowing, so I took the liberty of answering it. If you have any urgent matters, I can help contact the Sect Master; he is with the madam.”
Shen Ciyu lowered his gaze, his throat subtly tightening. In a soft voice, he said, “It’s nothing. Do not mention what I just said.”
The voice from the jade token responded, “Understood, I will not speak of it.”
Those in the Beast Hall should all know that Ying Heng is not dead, but they are all trusted by Su Xuan, knowing what should and should not be said.
Shen Ciyu ended the call.
He had long known that she would never use the jade token. Sang Dai would never ask the Sword Sect for help, so she likely would not even wear the jade token he gave her.
Shen Ciyu slightly pursed his lips. There was no feeling of bitterness in his heart; he had long since let go. He could only sigh at how completely Sang Dai had severed ties with the Sword Sect.
The jade token lit up again, flashing three times urgently. It was from the Immortal Alliance.
Shen Ciyu’s expression darkened, and he answered the jade token.
“Sword Sect Shen Ciyu, Elder, please speak.”
The voice from the other side was old, “Sect Master Shen, since the day before yesterday, there have been reports that Ying Heng was not dead and appeared at Linglong Town, staying close to Sang Dai. The Immortal Alliance has inquired with the cultivators who were at Linglong Town at that time, and there was indeed a white-clad sword cultivator with his senses completely lost by Sang Dai’s side. You were also at Linglong Town and were familiar with Ying Heng since childhood. Can you recognize the identity of that white-clad cultivator?”
“Was that person Ying Heng?”
Shen Ciyu held the jade token with one hand, his other hand unconsciously clenched. His breath was clearly audible.
The person on the other side was silent, not urging him, but Shen Ciyu knew that on the other end of the jade token were a group of Elders.
Faced with their urging, Shen Ciyu only said, “No.”
There was silence for a while, then the voice flatly asked, “Sect Master Shen, are you so certain it was not him?”
Shen Ciyu replied, “I am certain, that was not Immortal Lord Ying Heng. I have met Immortal Lord Ying Heng many times. I recognized that person’s build. Although he resembled Immortal Lord Ying Heng, there were distinct differences.”
“Before the Immortal Alliance, no favoritism can be shown.”
“I have not shown favoritism, what I said is the truth.”
His attitude was very firm, as if that truly was not Ying Heng.
The Immortal Alliance Elder asked again: “Sect Master Shen, you must think this through. If it turns out that it was really Ying Heng, and later you admit you were wrong, we will believe you, but the outside world might not.”
There are so many people in the world who hate Ying Heng; he is a sinner across the Four Realms. Countless people want him dead, and if such a person is alive, the Four Realms might fall into chaos.
Shen Ciyu understood the Elder’s meaning—it was advising him to align with the Immortal Alliance. Regardless of whether Ying Heng was alive or not, identifying Ying Heng as still living and acting against him would mean standing with the Four Realms. No matter the outcome, the Four Realms would not hold a grudge.
But if Shen Ciyu denied Ying Heng was alive, and it turned out that Ying Heng was indeed alive, then what Shen Ciyu had said would not be something that could be solved with a simple “Sorry, I was wrong.” Many in the Four Realms would think he was covering for him, and his position as Sect Master of the Sword Sect would likely become unstable, not to mention the difficulty in obtaining the position of Supreme Lord of the Jiuzhou Immortal Alliance.
Shen Ciyu knew all of this.
His future might very well be threatened by the stance he took today.
“Sect Master Shen, are you sure the white-clad sword cultivator beside Sang Dai is not Ying Heng?”
“…I am sure, he is not.”
The jade token call was ended.
In the main hall, Shen Ciyu was left alone. He stood still for a while, not sure what he was thinking, but it was very quiet.
After a while, he suddenly moved and turned to walk outside the hall.
—
Sang Dai and Su Xuan sat inside the mustard seed boat.
The little fox leaned by the window brewing tea for her. Sang Dai’s head rested on the windowsill, and the passing clouds carried moisture, bringing with them a chilling coldness when touched.
“Should I close the window?” Su Xuan asked. “Kunshan is in the northern region, it will be colder.”
Sang Dai shook her head. “No need, it’s not that cold.”
With the barrier in place, along with Su Xuan’s Hellfire orb, she was indeed not cold.
Sang Dai took a sip of tea, speaking softly, “Master is being looked after by Young Master Liu, we will return after a few days.”
Su Xuan responded, then asked, “What are you going to search for?”
Sang Dai met his gaze, and the little fox’s eyes were very serious.
She suddenly realized that, except when in bed, she rarely heard Su Xuan’s inner voice anymore.
Although his inner voice mostly consisted of sweet words, compared to before, it had certainly become much less frequent.
Su Xuan did not get an answer and asked again, “Dai Dai, what are you going to find? I need to know in order to help you.”
Sang Dai shook the tea cup in her hand, saying, “I’m not sure if it’s there or not.”
“What is it?”
“My master’s third spiritual root.”
Su Xuan’s throat slightly moved. He had not expected it to be for this reason.
“…Why do you think it’s this?”
Sang Dai said, “That man in black seems to be guiding me to discover something. I’m getting closer and closer to the truth, growing stronger. In my dreams, it seems we have a very good relationship. I… I have an inexplicable trust in him. Do you remember what we argued about the night before the mating season?”
Su Xuan, of course, remembered. After Sang Dai arrived in the Beast Realm, they hadn’t had any arguments, except for that one time.
The little fox looked a bit wronged. “…I remember. He told me the truth about the destruction of the Weisheng family, but I didn’t tell you.”
Sang Dai continued, “Yes, why did he specifically tell you that? During the lightning tribulation, I didn’t hear his final words. After returning, you didn’t tell me the truth about the Weisheng family’s destruction either. So, he personally came to the Beast Realm to send a message, intending for me to investigate this matter.”
“Su Xuan, he led me to investigate the truth about the Weisheng family’s destruction, which means there’s something there that will help me, perhaps the truth itself, or maybe an item.”
“I don’t know why, but I always feel… it’s an item. Maybe it’s the last part of my master’s spiritual root. You’ve seen it too, the first two parts of the spiritual root were all arranged by him for me to obtain. Now, because my master’s spiritual root is incomplete, his memory hasn’t fully recovered. Many truths are still unknown to me. And we’re about to go to the Guixu. If we go there with unclear truths, we might be schemed against.”
Su Xuan set down his tea cup, his expression growing serious. “So, you mean, he might want to give you the last part of the spiritual root, allowing Immortal Lord Ying Heng to remember everything?”
“Perhaps.”
Sang Dai wasn’t sure, but the fact that the man in black led her to Weisheng’s family meant there was something important there.
The person behind it didn’t seem to want to harm her, so they must be helping her.
Before going to the Guixu, what could help her was obtaining more truth, going there with clarity.
Ying Heng was the person who knew everything in the past. It seemed that the person behind it was restricted by the laws of heaven and couldn’t tell her the truth directly, but could only guide her to discover it herself through threats to her life.
Su Xuan understood now. With just the last piece of the spiritual root, Ying Heng could recall everything.
It seemed that every time the man in black led them somewhere, Sang Dai always obtained something crucial.
Su Xuan felt a bit jealous. “Why is he so nice to you… doing favors without reason?”
Sang Dai immediately caught the sour tone in the little fox’s voice and raised an eyebrow. “Such a strong scent of vinegar, did you spill some vinegar inside the mustard seed boat?”
The little fox turned his head to look at the clouds outside. “I’m not jealous.”
Sang Dai smiled even more and deliberately teased him. “You say he’s doing favors without reason, but weren’t you doing the same thing before? Didn’t you send me the pastries I received? Didn’t you give me the clothes and jewelry I wear after I arrived in the Beast Realm?”
“Little fox, isn’t that right?”
Su Xuan’s ears flushed red. He drank his tea in one gulp and glared at his sword cultivator fiercely. “That’s different! I wouldn’t harm you. We’ve known each other for so many years, but he doesn’t know you at all!”
Sang Dai leaned her elbow on the table, resting her chin on her hand, her smile light and playful as she spoke to the little fox. “Yes, he doesn’t know me. How could he possibly like me? Su Xuan, do you think his eyes showed affection when he looked at me?”
Su Xuan had seen the man in black twice.
He understood the look between men and men very well. For example, Su Xuan could tell that Shen Ciyu liked Sang Dai, and that Qiu Chengxi admired her, but the man in black…
He thought carefully, and he had never seen any romantic feelings between them. His behavior toward Sang Dai seemed more like…
Admiration.
Just like Ling Yin’s view of Sang Dai.
Sang Dai reached out across the table and patted the little fox’s head. “Yes, even when I met him in my dream, he didn’t like me. We seemed more like old friends.”
So, the little fox was sulking in silence.
Su Xuan leaned his head closer, his two fluffy ears standing upright on top of his head. Sang Dai grabbed them in her hand and gently squeezed, the texture soft and delicate.
The little fox’s ears were pointed and pink, and the tip of his tail was also pink, very cute.
Su Xuan stood up, grasped her waist, and pulled her into his arms, placing her gently on his chest. He liked holding the sword cultivator this way, and Sang Dai naturally wrapped her arms around his neck.
“Dai Dai, why does he want to help you?”
Sang Dai shook her head. “I don’t know. I feel like it might be related to the familiarity I saw between him and me in my dream. Some things, I need to see him to understand.”
Su Xuan kissed her cheek, burying his head in her neck, breathing in her pleasant fragrance.
“Dai Dai, our marriage ceremony hasn’t been held yet.”
Sang Dai sighed. “It’s my fault. How about… we wait until we return from the Guixu?”
Su Xuan’s body stiffened.
The truth was, they were heading to the Guixu with the intention of killing the Heavenly Dao. The Guixu was the closest place to the 81st Heaven, but for something like Heavenly Dao… they didn’t know the chances of success.
So, Su Xuan had formed a twin soul marriage contract. No matter what happened, they would die together, ensuring that they would always be together.
Sang Dai kissed his face. “Su Xuan, let’s hold the ceremony when we return from Weisheng’s family. Afterward, we’ll go to the Guixu. No matter the outcome, we’ll be rightful partners.”
They had given each other their only hearts, and their only lives could only belong to each other.
The little fox responded quietly. “Okay.”
He lifted his head to look at her, tucking her hair behind her ear, holding her chin, and kissing her.
The tea in the teapot had cooled, and Su Xuan released her, kissing the slightly reddened corner of her eyes.
“Good girl, you’re always so sweet and soft, everywhere.”
Sang Dai pinched his ear. “That’s because you’re shameless.”
The little fox, feeling completely content, offered her his tail. Sang Dai understood, gently holding it and brushing his fur.
Su Xuan, satisfied, hugged his sword cultivator tighter, and Sang Dai rested her head on his shoulder.
The mustard seed boat smoothly traveled through the void, eventually landing on the ground.
Kunshan, located in the Floating Light Ridge, was on the border of the Immortal Realm. It was sparsely populated, with only small sects under the jurisdiction of the Sword Sect.
However, in reality, very few cultivators came to Fuguang Ridge because most of the area had been encompassed by Kunshan. Kunshan’s terrain was dangerous, with packs of wild beasts, and many spirit beasts had turned into malicious creatures, causing frequent tragedies.
Sang Dai stood beneath Kunshan, looking up at the towering peak. The mist was thick, and the trees were dark green. Both of them were at the Tribulation Stage, and they could vaguely sense the roars and spiritual fluctuations within.
Su Xuan said, “Kunshan indeed has many spirit beasts, and even more wild beasts. The head of the Weisheng family practiced beast taming, hiding here and using these spirit beasts to conceal their traces, making it a good idea to deter others from coming here.”
The little fox took her hand, their fingers interlocking. “Let’s go up together. There are too many wild beasts here, we need to be careful.”
Sang Dai nodded in agreement. “Okay.”
In reality, Su Xuan’s worries were unnecessary.
Kunshan was rarely visited. The Weisheng family had been wiped out for many years, and the entire mountain was inhabited only by spirit beasts. Even the path up the mountain was overgrown with weeds.
They didn’t know where the Weisheng family had been, so they could only walk up and explore along the way. Su Xuan used his spiritual power to cut through the weeds blocking their path.
They knew there were many spirit beasts here, but they didn’t realize there would be so many, almost one every ten steps.
Most spirit beasts were kind-hearted. Those without spiritual awareness were no different from ordinary animals, their eyes innocent and naive. When they saw the two of them, they would hide behind bushes or trees to watch, without advancing to attack.
The wild beasts they encountered, on the other hand, were mostly cruel in nature, enjoying killing and bloodshed. They were also much larger and stronger than the spirit beasts.
Few of the wild beasts had spiritual awareness. They often relied solely on their instinct to kill and tear apart their prey. But as they traveled, most of the wild beasts they saw stayed in the distance, watching them leave without making a move or blocking their path.