The night was calm, the moon was bright and the stars were few, but the inner hall was bustling with activity.

Despite everyone's objections, Qi Changfeng insisted on hosting a welcome banquet for Qing and Li Jiang, and even specially contributed his beloved small kitchen to prepare a table full of delicious dishes.

Mu Dong sat in his seat, muttering to himself, "They've been back for several days now, what kind of welcome banquet is this?"

Li Jiang raised her hand and gave him a sharp rap on the head: "Eat quietly."

Qinghe ate happily. As expected, her own master was the best, knowing to hold a welcome banquet after she woke up.

Shen Xun said from the side, "Don't be too happy yet. Something is definitely amiss if things are not going well."

Qinghe turned his head to look at him, and sure enough, the next second he heard Qi Changfeng say, "Xiao Da, finding the whereabouts of the Divine Pearl is of utmost urgency and cannot be delayed for even a moment. After today, you shall set off."

Everyone shuddered and frowned.

Qi Changfeng smiled kindly: "Today we are both welcoming you and bidding you farewell, so let's treat this welcoming banquet as a farewell banquet."

Everyone's hearts skipped a beat.

Qi Changfeng continued, "I was thinking of you all. I was afraid that if I told you later, you wouldn't be mentally prepared. Now it's just right, isn't it? Look how well I've done as your master. I'm afraid there's no master in the world who has done it better than me."

After he finished speaking, he looked up at the ceiling with a sigh on his face.

Everyone: You must have misunderstood the meaning of the words "morning" and "evening".

Qinghe cursed inwardly: Shameless old thief! So this was all premeditated. She was just praising her master, but it was all a lie.

Shen Xun had expected this, so he showed no surprise or complaint and quietly ate his meal.

Suddenly, the hand holding the chopsticks paused, the pupils contracted sharply, and a strange discomfort welled up in my heart.

He was familiar with this feeling, but because he hadn't experienced it for a long time, it gave him the illusion that the discomfort had disappeared.

With his hands trembling slightly, Shen Xun quietly left while everyone was still lost in thought about Qi Changfeng's words.

As night fell and the banquet ended, everyone went home. Qinghe coldly watched Qi Changfeng, who was being supported by his disciples and was completely drunk, guessing that he must be so happy because he had saved money on another meal, which led to his drunken end.

Turning her head, she caught a glimpse of Mo Junqian out of the corner of her eye. He seemed to have drunk quite a bit, his body swaying slightly. Noticing Qinghe's gaze, he suddenly raised his eyelashes and looked at her, then lowered his eyes and left in silence after a moment.

Qinghe then left the inner hall, but went in a different direction.

The Luhua Terrace was quiet and serene at night. The night breeze rustled the maple leaves, like a symphony of the night. Qinghe continued walking straight to the Fanglang Residence to rest, so that she would be in good spirits for her journey the next day.

Some are sleeping peacefully, while others are busy.

That night, a dark figure quietly appeared on the back mountain of Qingyun Sect. He raised his hand and made a strange gesture, and a black sand swallow slowly took shape. The sand swallow flew into Qingyun Sect without a sound. After an incense stick's time, another figure followed the sand swallow.

"Father."

Lingyin knelt on one knee and bowed to the dark figure in front of her.

"Has the Divine Record been found?" The voice was soft yet sharp, and Lingyin frowned almost imperceptibly.

My father never used to speak like this. I don't know when it started, but he has become increasingly strange. He even wrapped himself in a black robe, so his face could not be seen.

"No, the Divine Record is not in the Qingyun Sect, nor is it on those disciples."

The man in black robes moved slightly: "Then forget it. Leave the matter of the Divine Record to me. Your current task is to wait until they have collected all the Divine Pearls, then take the Divine Pearls and hand them over to me."

Lingyin hesitated, "But the divine pearl possesses extraordinary power, I'm afraid..."

"What are you afraid of?"

"I'm afraid that revealing my identity would be bad for my father."

The man in the black robe smiled darkly: "Don't worry, even if your identity is exposed, I won't blame you."

A flash of light appeared in her palm. Lingyin looked up and saw the man in black robes handing her a stone artifact, cylindrical in shape, covered with densely engraved runes.

Lingyin took it, and it felt cold to the touch, as if a chilling aura was rushing towards her.

The man in black robes said, "When the time comes, you can use this to store the divine pearl, and no one will notice."

Lingyin bit her lip and asked, "Father, what effect will the Divine Pearl have on your illness? Why is it so important to obtain the Divine Pearl?"

The black-robed man's sharp gaze suddenly shot towards her.

After a moment, his eyes softened, and he said softly, "Yin'er, just take the divine pearl and give it to your father. You don't need to know anything else."

Seeing Lingyin's hesitant expression, he coughed softly: "Yin'er, don't you want your father to get better soon?"

Her father's illness was indeed Ji Lingyin's weakness. She looked at her father with concern and finally agreed.

The man in black robes nodded in satisfaction, then swept his sleeves and disappeared into the night.

*

The next morning, before Qinghe had fully woken up, his master coaxed and shooed him out of the Qingyun Sect.

Qinghe opened her squinting eyes. Li Jiang and the others at the foot of the mountain were already dressed and waiting for her, but their faces were as sleepy as hers.

Qinghe said to Qi Changfeng expressionlessly, "You have to let me finish my breakfast."

Also, when did the color of this mountain gate become so bright? Has it been renovated?

Qi Changfeng rolled his eyes, acting like a child despite his age. "I've given breakfast to Xiaoda, he can eat it on the way."

He held Qinghe's hand affectionately and said, "Little Er, I will miss you. Come back soon, okay?"

Without hesitation, he released his grip and closed the mountain gate.

With a "bang," Qinghe was shut out of the door.

Qing sighed softly, looked up at the still not fully bright sky, and resignedly descended the steps one by one.

Extending a hand, Qinghe said to Lijiang, "Breakfast."

Li Jiang paused, then rummaged through her package and pulled out a bundle wrapped in cloth. She unwrapped the cloth and handed it to Qing He: "Here you go."

Qinghe looked down, her previously dazed eyes suddenly clearing. "Is this breakfast?"

Inside the cloth bundle were several pieces of flatbread, hard and broken into pieces, and a few pieces that were blackened, clearly burnt and defective.

Li Jiang nodded: "You didn't see wrong."

Qinghe waved her hand, deciding against it; with her picky stomach, she definitely couldn't eat it.

She was still hungry, but Qinghe didn't care. Anyway, she had money, and she would have a big meal when she arrived in the new area.

Feeling suddenly relieved, she reached into her bosom, only to exclaim in horror, "Where are my silver notes?"

Li Jiang said calmly, "When you were unconscious, your master took it away, claiming it was to keep it safe for you."

“Oh, right,” he pointed to the brightly lit mountain gate behind him, “it was repainted, with your money.”

The mountain wind howled, and Qinghe remained stunned for a long time.

After a long while, she sighed. In the end, she couldn't escape her master's discerning eyes. His behavior towards silver was even less ethical than hers.

However, there are always people more capable than you, and there is always something beyond your understanding. Qi Changfeng never expected that she had hidden a hundred taels of silver in her jade pendant space, enough for her to live a carefree life for a while.

She took out the pure white, translucent jade pendant from her neck. It was a gift from Qi Rong. She still remembered the scene in the room on the second floor of the gambling den that day very clearly.

As her thoughts drifted away, Qinghe couldn't help but think of Qirong, wondering what he was doing now. Was he brewing new tea at the gambling den, or drinking fine wine at the tavern? Whatever he was doing, Qinghe could imagine how he would look doing these things—lazy, alluring, and incredibly noble.

She thought that if she could find the Divine Pearl sooner, she would definitely go to Luochuan City to find him. The two of them would do nothing but sit together, brew tea and drink wine, and not stop until they were drunk.

As dawn broke and the sun rose, the group embarked on their journey once again over Mount Chuhua.

This time, however, it wasn't riding a horse, but sitting on the back of a nine-headed fiery phoenix, soaring through the sky.

The cry of the phoenix echoed throughout the entire Chu Hua Mountain.