Chapter 69 Turbulent Waters "What do you mean by 'pull'? That's the little bird bringing me here by itself..."

Somewhere on the Four Spirit Peaks, two people stood in a wide open space. Mist billowed around them, their clothes fluttering, sometimes disappearing into the vast white mist, sometimes appearing clearly in the distance.

However, the scene unfolding on the field was perfectly clear to everyone present. The woman in red on the stage raised her hand, and the gilded longsword gleamed, instantly unleashing a dazzling, crescent-shaped blade of light. Opposite her, the person targeted remained calm, simply raising his sword and unleashing a slash of sword energy. This sword energy was extremely sharp, thin as a needle, coldly piercing the menacing blade of light, shattering it into several fragmented rays of light.

Amidst the radiant light, the red-clad female cultivator strode forward, striking the white-clad woman's shoulder with a single blade, like a flame colliding with solidified ice.

It turned out that the sword energy was merely a cover for the next surprise attack. A flash of silver light, swords clashed, producing a clanging sound, and spiritual energy erupted, shattering surrounding stones and nearly snapping trees. Fortunately, both of them restrained themselves, and the shockwave stopped at a certain distance.

At this moment, a strange cold air rose up, and ice flowers around them instantly froze, then stretched into heavy ice shards. In the blink of an eye, they transformed from a beautiful sight into deadly weapons, stabbing towards the female cultivator who was holding a knife and locked in a stalemate with her opponent!

"Yan Xueya, do you really want to kill me?!"

Yi Xiaohan roared, flames erupting around him, yet the ice shards remained completely still, the melting parts barely visible. They passed through the flames, stopping only when they touched the person's cheek. A wisp of fine black hair rose and fell with the swirling wind.

Ruan Luoying, who was watching the game from the sidelines, commented: "This is somewhat influenced by personal grudges."

Chi Yueying breathed a sigh of relief, only letting go when the two stopped. She frowned slightly in anger: "These sword-wielding bastards always act like they want to kill each other when they fight!"

Heaven knows how nervous she was just now. Although she knew that the two were just sparring, Yan Xueya was still recovering from her old injuries and had been in seclusion for a hundred years. If anything went wrong, Yi Xiaohan would have more bloody holes in his shoulder.

Cold sweat dripped down his back. Yi Xiaohan took a deep breath and muttered, "Does it have to be this way..."

Yan Xueya sheathed her longsword and raised her hand to brush the long hair that had fallen in front of her eyes behind her ear. "Otherwise, you'll cheat and refuse to admit defeat, forcing me to fight two more rounds."

She breathed a sigh of relief, glanced at Yi Xiaohan, and then lightly raised her hand, instantly dissipating the dense, almost dripping mist.

"Yi Xiaohan, are you convinced now?"

The woman in red shrugged and said with a pout, "Alright, I won't charge you spirit stones next time I refine a magic weapon."

She wasn't resentful. Although Yan Xueya concealed her aura, anyone with a slightly higher cultivation level could sense that her cultivation was definitely higher than the other True Monarchs, making her the undisputed number one below the sect leader. In addition, having traveled with several others in her youth, she had already become the most outstanding sword cultivator of her generation, firmly establishing herself as the Sword Venerable.

As the performance ended, a messenger suddenly flew in, flapping its wings. Ruan Luoying reached out to take the letter from its claws, unfolded it, and then her expression changed drastically before she folded it back up.

Yan Xueya found it strange and walked over to ask, "What's going on? Could it be that something's wrong with the sect leader?"

The woman in green bit her lip, hesitated for a long time, and finally gave in to those snow-white eyes. She sighed and said, "A message came from a Dao Lord in the First Domain that the Shen Yuan Secret Realm was suddenly sealed off, and everyone inside was sent to the surface of the sea by a burst of white light."

That Daojun was a talisman cultivator. With the intention of being a helpful cultivator, he used talisman techniques to create about a hundred letters and sent them to messengers from various sects to see if any of his disciples were missing, whether they had broken their life tablets in battle, or were locked inside.

Of course, it would have been even better if it hadn't described the sea surface as being filled with people like dumplings being dropped into a pot.

After listening, Yan Xueya remained silent for a while. Yi Xiaohan was about to ask her more questions out of curiosity, but then he remembered that the two disciples beside him seemed to have gone to Shen Yuan's secret realm. He immediately shut his mouth and cautiously peeked at her, afraid that she might do something.

Although Yan Xueya was always the most reliable among them, there was, after all, a precedent regarding unqualified individuals…

Unbeknownst to them, Yan Xueya had already become the center of attention for the other three. She simply summoned her natal sword, turned around, and prepared to step forward. The surrounding temperature remained normal, with no ice crystals forming and no other unusual phenomena observed.

Ruan Luoying was worried and asked, "Xueya, where are you going?"

"Shen Yuan," Yan Xueya replied calmly, her white hair fluttering slightly in the breeze, like snow and silk.

As their master, she had already imbued the tokens with spiritual power connected to their divine senses. Since she hadn't sensed the tokens breaking, but hadn't received any notification either, it was best to check it out herself.

If she was truly locked in the secret realm, then she would destroy the entire secret realm.

Thinking of this, her silver eyes, though calm on the surface, were already icy cold, so cold that even the bright sunshine would freeze them.

She has already lost one student; now she cannot afford to lose a second or a third…

Just as he was about to fly away on his sword, a soft yet firm voice came: "Don't go."

Yan Xueya turned her head and met Chi Yueying's clear eyes.

“That was their destiny.” Chi Yueying pursed her lips and said slowly, “I once made a divination by chance that they would return safely.”

She remembered the divination as such, but it only said that the two would return... and the part about being safe and sound was added by her; the actual divination text was "union".

She didn't know its meaning, but it seemed reasonable to interpret it as the two students having a better relationship. She couldn't think of any ominous sign in the word "unity," so she vaguely comforted Yan Xueya with this conclusion.

Ruan Luoying chimed in, "Xueya, I know you're protective of your own, but they will eventually grow up to be able to stand on their own, so we shouldn't worry about them too much."

Listening to their words of advice, Yan Xueya lowered her eyes, a complex expression flashing in them.

Finally, she sighed softly, the sword trembled slightly, and disappeared into her palm.

"Yes, eventually... everyone has to grow up."

If growth symbolizes suffering, and is the flesh and blood that must be born from separation and countless cuts, then she so desperately hopes that the two of them can always be under her protection, and never have to be forced to peel off the cocoon on their bodies.

If his first student heard this idea, he would probably laugh at him.

But your death was a tragedy caused by my momentary negligence.

...Nianqiu.

The woman whispered the name in her heart, but her heart remained silent, without any response.

-

In the thick fog, the girl moved cautiously. The enormous creature beside her was gone, replaced by a small black snake coiled around her forearm and hidden inside her clothes.

After walking for about fifteen minutes, a faint sound came from ahead, as if someone was whispering. Shen Lixia held her breath and focused her attention. She wanted to cautiously probe the area first to see if there was a place to hide, but unexpectedly, a force came from nowhere in the vast fog and suddenly pushed her forward.

As the fog lifted, only a deep blue remained. Shen Lixia looked up, and the scene before her had completely transformed. It was no longer a dense fog, nor did it convey a sense of desolation and decay; instead, it was a magnificent and bustling palace. The surfaces of these strangely laid-out buildings displayed vibrant colors, as if they were constructed from jade and seashells. Human-bodied, fish-tailed creatures moved among them, and in the distance, a palace, entirely moon-white, radiated a dazzling light, as if inlaid with luminous pearls.

She had heard of Atlantis in the modern world, described as a lost but once prosperous metropolis, but compared to this place, it would probably pale in comparison.

However, she was not inside the city, but behind a reef near what appeared to be a city gate. Intricately patterned marble pillars stood on either side, giving the place a distinctly exotic feel.

"Good boy/girl. That's all. Eat something first."

Shen Lixia followed the gaze and saw a woman with black hair and dressed in white squatting on the ground, feeding a small snake in front of her with a golden object. The snake was covered in wounds and hissed as it flicked its tongue.

She coaxed the poor little creature softly, almost humming, the deep blue ribbon in her hair swaying slightly. The little snake opened its mouth wide, wanting to swallow the shimmering object, but she held the food in her mouth with her fingers, preventing it from taking it in.

Seemingly amused by his greedy appearance, the woman said helplessly, "This is the demon core of a Nascent Soul spirit beast. With your cultivation level, eating it all will cause you to explode and die. No one... no snake taught you not to be greedy?"

As she spoke, she lovingly but irresistibly snatched the food from the snake's mouth, crushed the demon core, wrapped it in spiritual power, and fed a small fragment to the little snake.

The little creature swallowed it whole, and its wounds visibly healed rapidly. Satisfied, it raised its tail and wrapped it around the woman's fair fingertips.

"You're taking food and things with you." The woman chuckled. "Fine, I'm not leaving anytime soon anyway, so it won't hurt for you to come along."

As she spoke, she scraped the snake's belly with her thumb.

"Make a contract with me? Little snake, you haven't even developed any intelligence yet, but you want to give your life to me? Unfortunately, I already have a contract with someone. If I were to make a contract with you again, she would probably be so angry that she would pluck all her feathers out."

The woman shook her head and whispered, "Besides, making a contract with me will only bring you suffering. You'd better not leave here; being a carefree little snake is enough."

Shen Lixia was mesmerized, wondering what the woman's features looked like hidden by her dark hair. In her mind, she had already conjured up a pair of eyes based on that gentle voice, just like...

Like the eldest sister.

A thought flickered in her mind, and she knew she shouldn't think of Qiao Yanshen at this moment, lest she become distracted and unable to suppress her worry.

As she took a step, her foot sank, as if she had broken a piece of coral. Shen Lixia's heart leaped into her throat; she wanted to run, but her legs felt nailed to the ground. She was frantic, putting all her strength into her legs.

"Move your dead legs...!" the boy screamed in despair.

However, the seaweed that was covering her was still pushed aside, and the woman's face became clear—it was an exceptionally gentle face, and even her eyes were a light blue color, as gentle as water.

This person...

Memories surfaced and overlapped with the scene before her eyes. Shen Lixia was stunned for a moment, and suddenly felt a strong urge to reach out and touch the other person's cheek.

I've grown up...

The girl, dressed in a pure white robe and wearing beautiful cloth shoes adorned with pearls and jade, said, "I'm not afraid when you're here."

So that's what it looks like.

However, the woman's eyes showed no surprise or curiosity as if she were meeting a stranger for the first time; instead, they were full of smiles as she called out, "Xiao Yu, why aren't you practicing calligraphy in the palace? Did you hear your mother's voice and come all the way to pick me up?"

A complex mix of emotions welled up in Shen Lixia's heart.

Why did you call her by someone else's name?

The next moment, though she didn't move her lips, a voice came from her side: "Mother has been frowning a lot lately, and the atmosphere in the palace is very oppressive. But thankfully, Luo Yang, you're here... Ah, you've plucked that bird's feathers again!"

The woman blinked and looked down at her waist. Shen Lixia looked down with her and then realized that the tassel on the sword hanging at her waist was not a flawless white jade ring or a tassel.

It was a small, brightly colored feather. It was carefully tied and tightly bound to the sword.

She heard the other person laugh, like clear spring water flowing into her ears, melting even her thoughts.

"What do you mean by 'pull'? The little bird gave it to me itself."