She stood there stunned, unable to recover for a long time.
Mo Junqian stared coldly at her, then suddenly drew his sword and swung it at her. Qinghe instinctively raised her hand to protect her head.
At this moment, she had completely forgotten that she was a cultivator with profound knowledge and had reverted to the mindset of an ordinary person, closing her eyes and waiting for death to come.
However, the expected pain did not come. Qinghe slowly opened her eyes. The unfamiliar surroundings reminded her that she was no longer in the Qingyun Sect, but in a completely unfamiliar new place that she had never set foot in before.
The Milky Way shines brightly, and the sky and the earth merge to form a straight horizon.
Before her stood an incredibly tall tree, the species of which she did not know, for it bore not leaves and fruit, but moon-white spirits.
The tree was filled with spirits, but Qinghe did not feel any fear. Instead, a sense of sacredness and inviolability arose spontaneously within him.
She slowly walked forward, and only when she got closer could she see that the tree trunk was not an ordinary tree trunk, but one that exuded a rich spiritual energy. The veins and stripes on the trunk were clearly defined, and dark red liquid flowed through each of them, making it look like a living blood tree.
"This is the divine tree, the origin of all living beings within the Three Realms."
A long, distant voice came from behind. Qing looked around, but saw no one.
The voice was ethereal and elusive.
Qinghe stopped searching and stared intently at the divine tree, feeling that its aura was familiar, as if he had seen it before.
"For thousands of years, we have finally found another destined person." The voice continued, "A blessing for the Three Realms."
Qinghe, still in a daze, asked, "What destined person?"
The voice did not answer her.
Just as Qinghe was about to turn around and ask what was going on, he heard what sounded like wind and waves coming from afar, growing closer and closer until they were right in front of him.
Before Qinghe could defend himself, he was blown into the divine tree by the wind and waves.
The spirits that filled the tree vanished, and all that could be seen was a vast expanse of white.
There seemed to be something in the distance. Qinghe walked forward, and although it seemed to be close at hand, it felt like he had walked for a long time.
Only upon closer inspection could one see that it was a coffin made of vines and branches, with a person lying inside, covered by a red cloth, making it impossible to see their face.
Qinghe walked in slowly, a sudden unease rising in her heart. She stretched out her fingers and slowly pulled back the red cloth.
Before them appeared a finely sculpted, devilishly handsome face. Qinghe's pupils constricted. The person lying in the coffin was none other than Qi Rong!
Suddenly, the red cloth was lifted, and Qi Rong's entire body came into view. The familiar red clothes and black belt, the familiar scent of ink, and the familiar face were all present, but at this moment, she lay motionless and silent in the tree coffin.
"Qi Rong, wake up, Qi Rong."
Qinghe stroked Qirong's hair, which was originally black but had now turned deep red.
She didn't know what had happened to Qi Rong, why he was lying in a coffin, or even if he was still alive.
Since leaving Luochuan City, she has never received any news about Qi Rong, not even a short letter.
She originally thought that Qi Rong would be unable to resist writing to her, or would be unable to resist traveling a long distance to find her, just like she would always unconsciously think of him in the dead of night.
Heaven knows that every day she hoped Qi Rong would pop out from some corner to surprise her, or stand in front of a stall on a crowded street, waiting for her to walk in, and then say in that deep, lazy voice, "I've been waiting for you for a long time."
But there was nothing there.
So something happened to him? Was it because of her devouring the divine pearl last time? Or was it something else?
Qinghe stared at Qi Rong's pale face, clenching her fists tightly, unable to come back to her senses for a long time.
The dream dissipated with the wind, and Qing opened her eyes blankly, her eyes lifeless, as if she had lost all vitality.
The old master's lotus lantern led Qinghe into a dream, but fortunately, at the last moment, Qinghe escaped using the power of the bracelet.
She looked around and saw the grove of trees at the foot of Qingshan Mountain.
She slowly stood up, ignoring the mud on her body, and mechanically walked towards the town's inn.
...
Inn.
Li Jiang and a few others were playing cards out of boredom in a room.
Mu Dong had lost several matches in a row, and his face was covered with notes. Mo Junqian was the same.
The joy of victory belonged to Li Jiang and Shen Xun.
Mu Dong glared fiercely at Shen Xun, and said indignantly, "It's one thing for Senior Brother to beat me, but you, a little brat, have such good card skills. It's truly a case of the heavens being jealous of talent!"
Shen Xun looked at him provocatively: "When it comes to playing cards with me, you're a noob."
Mu Dong exhaled angrily, the note on her face bobbing up and down.
Mo Junqian had no interest in playing cards and just joined in their fooling around, saying, "I wonder how Senior Sister is doing."
Since being rejected by Qinghe last time, he has resumed the respect he had for his senior sister. Although he still calls her "senior sister" as before, the meaning is different now.
Li Jiang also said, "Qinghe is cautious in his work, so there's no need to worry too much."
Shen Xun looked at him strangely: "Are you sure she's just being cautious, and not just acting unpredictably?"
Li Jiang: "I believe her."
The three started chatting, leaving only Mu Dong focused on the card game. "Stop talking, play your cards quickly, I'm sure I can beat you this time."
Li Jiang and Shen Xun continued chatting, occasionally playing a card that completely overwhelmed Mu Dong, leaving him powerless to retaliate.
After the game ended, Shen Xun looked at the hand and said with slight surprise, "You won just like that? You're too weak."
He gave Mu Dong a disdainful look, successfully pulling him from the brink of anger into the heart of it.
"I'll fight you to the death!" Mu Dong lunged at Shen Xun with bared teeth and claws, but before his hand could even touch Shen Xun's body, he was startled to the ground by a sudden "bang" as the door was pushed open.
Looking up, I saw Qinghe standing at the door, his clothes stained with blood.
"Qinghe!"
"Senior Sister!"
Li Jiang and Mo Junqian called out at the same time, quickly stepping forward and saying with concern, "You're injured!"
Mo Junqian raised his hand to help Qinghe in, but then felt it was inappropriate and said instead, "Senior Sister, come in quickly, healing is the priority."
Mu Dong got up from the ground. "That's right, healing is important. I have some medicine here, you can have it all."
Shen Xun also ran over. Although he didn't say anything, his worried look was obvious.
Ran Qinghe stood there coldly watching them, her gaze sweeping over them one by one, and when it landed on Mo Junqian, her eyes were particularly complicated.
After a long pause, she said calmly, "Has something happened to Qi Rong?"
Everyone was taken aback, then fell silent.
Seeing their expressions, Qinghe felt a chill run down her spine.
"Answer me."
After a long while, Li Jiang said, "That day you forcibly swallowed two divine pearls, and your body was severely overdrawn. Qi Rong exhausted all his spiritual power to save you." He looked at Qing He, "We tried many methods but couldn't save him. Sending spiritual power in was like throwing stones into the sea, it had no effect at all. When we left, he was already dying."
The last sentence struck Qinghe's heart like a hammer blow. She trembled, her lips moved, but she couldn't utter a single word.
After a long silence, she said, "I have something to say to my senior brother. You all need to leave."
Li Jiang sighed and gestured for Shen Xun Mudong and Mo Junqian to leave.
The door was closed, and the three of them waited quietly in the inn's corridor.
After an unknown amount of time, the door opened again, and Qinghe walked past everyone without looking back.
Seeing that things were not going well, Mo Junqian suddenly stepped in front of her and blocked her way. "Where are you going?"
Qing said coldly, "I don't want to lay a hand on you. Get out of my way."
The unprecedentedly cold tone stunned Mo Junqian. He sensed that his senior sister was filled with disgust and hatred towards him, but he couldn't understand what he had done to offend her and make her hate him so much.
Li Jiang said, "Let her go."
Mo Junqian said anxiously, "But..."
Li Jiang shook her head, signaling him not to stop her.
Mo Junqian pursed his lips and finally stepped aside.
Qinghe didn't linger, walking away without stopping, her back view resolute.
Once Qinghe's figure had completely disappeared from the inn, Mo Junqian finally couldn't help but ask anxiously, "What exactly happened? What did she say to you?"
Li Jiang didn't speak, her gaze fixed on the entrance of the inn. After a long while, she went into her room and closed the door.
Mu Dong stared at the scene for a long time before she came to her senses. "What's going on here?"
He turned his head to look to the side, but Shen Xun was nowhere to be seen.
Mu Dong's eyes widened suddenly, and she asked in alarm, "Where did that brat go?"
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