Seven days later, at the Qingyun Sect.

When Qinghe woke up, she immediately noticed the bed canopy. She paused for two seconds, feeling that it looked somewhat familiar.

Looking at the room's furnishings again, they seemed even more familiar.

Finally, upon seeing the calligraphy hanging on the wall—the four large characters “放浪形骸” (meaning “unrestrained and dissolute”)—it dawned on me that this was her “Unrestrained Abode”!

Luhua Terrace remains as picturesque as ever, with maple leaves turning fiery red, and swings on the large stone slabs swaying in the wind, creaking softly.

Standing at the door of the cabin, Qinghe felt refreshed and invigorated, the pain from his battle with Huoyan completely gone.

I can't help but sigh, there's no place like home.

She knew nothing about what happened after she fainted, and she didn't even remember the process of returning to Qingyun Sect.

A disciple carrying a broom approached from a distance, presumably to clean. Upon seeing Qinghe standing at the door, his eyes widened in shock, as if he had seen a ghost. He dropped the broom and ran outside, shouting, "Senior Sister Qinghe is awake! Senior Sister Qinghe is awake!"

Qinghe: "..."

It's just a nap, why are you so surprised?

Ignoring them, they strolled outside. When Li Jiang and the others arrived, Qing He had already left Lu Hua Tai. On their way to the main hall, the two groups met halfway.

Li Jiang, Mu Dong, Shen Xun, Mo Junqian, and Ling Yin were all there, but one red figure was missing.

Qing smiled slightly, but didn't show it on his face.

Seeing that they were all staring at her as if she were some rare species, she frowned and asked, "Is she pretty?"

Everyone averted their gaze, only Mu Dong replied foolishly, "It looks good."

Qing smiled at him, raised her hand and gave him a hard flick on the forehead, "We'll talk about it later."

Mu Dong covered her head and hid behind Li Jiang. "What I mean is, it's a miracle that you survived. I'm exaggerating when I say that."

Qinghe asked, puzzled, "What do you mean?"

Li Jiang: "You were unconscious for seven days and seven nights. Even Master shook his head. We all thought you wouldn't make it."

Qinghe opened his eyes wide, his expression even more exaggerated than that of the sweeping disciple before.

Li Jiang continued, "But now you're not only awake, you're also feeling great, so Mu Dong was right, you're a miracle."

Mu Dong nodded vigorously from behind.

After a long silence, Qinghe asked, "Where is the Divine Pearl?"

Li Jiang: "It's already been handed over to the master."

Qinghe nodded and then asked, "Where is Qirong?"

No one answered her this time.

Looking at their expressions, Qinghe asked, "Did you stay in Luochuan City?"

Li Jiang opened her mouth, but still didn't say anything.

Qinghe muttered to himself, "That's true. Luochuan is his home. Where else could he be if he's not home? I was overthinking it."

"Sigh." She sighed and walked past them toward the main hall. Now that she was awake, she had to go and see her master.

Watching Qinghe's retreating figure, Shen Xun asked, "Why didn't you tell her?"

Li Jiang: "What good would it do to tell her? Qi Rong exhausted her spiritual power to save her, almost losing her life. She's so weak now. Even if we tell her, it won't help."

Everyone fell silent, their minds filled with the image of Qi Rong, so weak and frail, pouring all her strength into Qing He's body, on the verge of death.

Upon entering the main hall, Qinghe saw Qi Changfeng and his Uncle Lu Chang talking quietly in the main seat.

Qinghe stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Master, Uncle-Master Lu Chang."

The two stopped talking, and Qi Changfeng exclaimed "Oh dear!" as he walked up to Qinghe and said, "Xiao Er is awake, what a miracle!"

Qing gave a perfunctory smile.

Qi Changfeng didn't care about her attitude and continued, "You made a great contribution to the search for the Divine Pearl. You must have witnessed many strange things while traveling around."

Qinghe: "Indeed."

The next second, Qi Changfeng suddenly leaned close to her and asked, "Did you meet a lot of handsome men too?"

Qinghe thought for a moment and nodded.

Qi Changfeng raised an eyebrow: "Have you met anyone you like?"

Qinghe didn't speak, but her hand unconsciously touched the bracelet on her wrist.

Lu Chang suddenly coughed, and Qi Changfeng sullenly stopped gossiping.

He regained his composure and solemnly said, "We now have three divine pearls. We must find the other two before the Five Sects Grand Competition. At that time, I will seal all five divine pearls and never let them be seen again."

Qinghe: "Yes, sir."

After saying that, Qi Changfeng took out three divine pearls and handed them to her with a solemn expression: "The power of the divine pearls is too great. I have set a seal on them. If you encounter a critical moment, as long as the seal is not broken, your life will not be in danger. You can use them with peace of mind."

Qinghe nodded and accepted the divine pearl.

Qi Changfeng waved his hand, signaling her to leave.

Qing bowed and turned to leave the main hall.

Outside the hall, Li Jiang and the others had already left, leaving only Mo Junqian waiting for her.

Qing looked directly at him calmly and asked, "Is there something you need?"

Mo Junqian pursed his lips and said, "Can we talk?"

Crescent Moon Lake, its waters rippling, the sunlight reflecting off the surface, making the water crystal clear.

Two figures strolled along the lake, their shadows stretched long by the sun.

Looking at the shadow on the ground, Qinghe suddenly remembered the shadow game she and Qirong played on the Dragon Slaying Platform and chuckled softly.

Mo Junqian suddenly spoke up: "You look beautiful when you smile."

Qinghe snapped out of her daze, withdrew her smile, and looked up at him.

Mo Junqian really wasn't good at praising people; just this one sentence made his cheeks blush.

He moved his lips, as if to say something, but Qinghe spoke first: "Where is Lingyin?"

Mo Junqian paid no attention to Lingyin, so naturally he wouldn't notice where she went, nor did he understand why Qinghe asked her, "I don't know, why bring her up?"

"She's beautiful, and she's a perfect match for you."

Mo Junqian looked at her and said, "But I like someone else."

Qinghe said calmly, "That person is definitely not me."

Mo Junqian: "Why?" His tone was somewhat hurried.

He didn't understand why she kept pushing him away. Along the way, he had spent very little time alone with her, and they hadn't even exchanged a complete sentence. This situation became even more pronounced after that other person appeared.

The warm evening sunlight shone on Qinghe, creating a strange sense of comfort, but the words he uttered were like daggers to the heart: "Because my heart already belongs to someone else."

Mo Junqian stood frozen in place. The weather, which had been mild, felt incredibly cold to him, as if he were in an ice cellar, and even his heart felt frozen.

After a long silence, "It's Qi Rong, isn't it?"

Qinghe answered without hesitation, "Yes."

The indifferent yet firm reply pierced his heart like a cold sword. Mo Junqian stood frozen in place, his trembling fingers clenched into fists. After a long while, he finally relaxed them, closed his eyes, gave a bitter laugh, and said in a hoarse voice, "I understand."

The two shadows merged into one, and Qinghe sat alone on a rock by the lake, gazing at the water without uttering a word for a long time.

A figure stood under the banyan tree in the distance, a pair of gentle eyes taking in everything that had just happened.

Lingyin stared at Qinghe's back for a while, then looked in the direction Mo Junqian had left. Her cherry-red lips were pursed into a line, and her eyes were filled with a different kind of emotion.