Han Su's window was originally a small mechanism room, with several dark doorways open on all sides. When the explosion erupted violently below, the mechanism room immediately became unstable—walls cracked, the ceiling collapsed, and a massive boulder came crashing down. Mu Qingyan was the first to react, rolling with Cai Zhao into a doorway on the lower left.
Unexpectedly, the steps behind this doorway had already been shattered by the blast, forcing Mu and Cai to tumble down along the broken stone walls. Despite their considerable cultivation, the rough descent left them bruised and aching all over. Fortunately, having experienced the impact of hot springs in the snowy mountain caves, they clung tightly to each other no matter how much they were jostled, not daring to let go for even a moment.
After what felt like an eternity of tumbling, they were flung out like dumplings from a high opening, landing with a thud on flat ground—Cai Zhao beneath, Mu Qingyan on top.
Already dizzy from the fall, and now crushed under the weight of a tall, slender young man, Cai Zhao felt utterly numb and couldn't help but groan in pain.
Mu Qingyan chuckled softly, his chest vibrating against the girl beneath him.
Cai Zhao, like a little elephant stuck in a mud pit, whimpered and moaned. With a pained expression, she complained, "Those romance novels are all lies! Shouldn't it be the man underneath and the woman on top?"—Then the woman would lie on the man's broad chest, whispering sweet nothings, half-apologetic and half-delighted. So why was she the one being flattened into a pancake?!
Mu Qingyan muffled his laughter. "I told you to read fewer of those novels. You’ll only suffer more disappointments."
Looking around, they found themselves in a deep, dimly lit underground passage. The walls and floor gleamed with a cold metallic sheen, exuding an icy chill. Embedded in the walls at regular intervals were faintly glowing Night-Shining Pearls.
Cai Zhao pounded his shoulder furiously. "Get off! You're crushing me!"
Mu Qingyan buried his face in the delicate curve of her neck, his breath warm, his voice soft and teasing. "My back hurts. I can’t get up."
Cai Zhao snapped, "If you don’t move, I’ll make your face hurt!"
Such a trivial threat was nothing to Mu Shaojun. Instead, he pressed even closer, guiding her small, pink fist toward his jade-like face. "Go ahead, hit me. See if you can beat me to death."
Cai Zhao was speechless. "…In those novels, lines like that are always spoken by the woman."
Mu Qingyan grinned, his smile radiant enough to outshine mountains and rivers. "And then what? Did the woman get hit?"
Dazzled by his smile, Cai Zhao suddenly felt that being a human pancake wasn’t so bad after all. She answered awkwardly, "Well, if she acted that spoiled, of course the man wouldn’t hit her."
Mu Qingyan’s eyes sparkled with amusement. "So acting spoiled works, huh? Why don’t you try it on me…"
Cai Zhao, muddled, replied, "Sure, I often act spoiled with my aunt—wait, no! Why am I the one acting spoiled? Shouldn’t it be you?"
Mu Qingyan leaned closer, his tall nose almost brushing her cheek. "If it’s what you like, I’ll spoil you all you want."
Cai Zhao was lost in the depths of his dark crystal-like eyes. Without realizing it, she wrapped her arms around his neck, tempted to nip at his pale red lips. But just then, the young man’s expression abruptly cooled. He swiftly pushed himself up and rolled away, putting a foot of distance between them.
His gaze turned frosty as he knelt to the side, his voice icy. "Heaven and earth have their laws, and society its propriety. Even in a place with no one around, men and women should not act improperly. If a grave mistake were made, how could it be justified?"Cai Zhao, lying on the ground: ...I curse your ancestors!
Slowly sitting up, she grumbled, "Let me advise Young Master Mu—once you're done with this mess, take some medicine first. You're seriously ill."
Mu Qingyan snorted and stretched out his arm to dust off the girl's clothes.
"Keep your hands to yourself." Cai Zhao slapped his hand away.
Mu Qingyan switched hands and continued dusting her off. "I'm doing this for your own good. You'll understand later."
"I know my limits, stop nagging!" The girl was thoroughly annoyed.
Mu Qingyan's eyes flashed. "Fine. Since you claim to know your limits, swear to me now. Before we're married, you won't flirt with anyone, or I'll go kill Song Yuzhi and Zhou Yuqi."
Cai Zhao was puzzled. "Huh? Why Third Senior Brother?"
Mu Qingyan flew into a rage. "See! You definitely have something shady going on with Song Yuzhi! Otherwise, why didn't you first scold me for making you swear such nonsense, but instead noticed Song Yuzhi first?"
Cai Zhao: ...I really want to force-feed him medicine right now.
"Enough already! What nonsense are you spouting at a time like this? Let's focus on finding a way out first!" As had happened countless times before, it fell to the more reasonable party to maintain order.
Mu Qingyan lifted his chin with a disdainful hum, refusing to engage.
Cai Zhao planted her hands on her slender waist, about to lose her temper, when her gaze drifted and noticed the torn sleeve on his arm and the shocking bloodstains on his pale hand from being scraped by rubble.
Remembering how he had unhesitatingly protected her earlier under Han Sui's threats and inducements, her heart softened. "Ah... I haven't apologized yet. I thought coming to the Nether Bamboo Path could help you, but it turns out you already had everything planned. Not only did I fail to help, I nearly got you into trouble. Ah... I shouldn't have been so presumptuous. The world is vast, and I'm not as capable as I thought..."
Hearing this, Mu Qingyan softened as well. "No. You took the risk to come to the Nether Bamboo Path because you were worried about me. That makes me very happy."
Cai Zhao looked at him. Mu Qingyan looked back.
Silence.
"Wait." Cai Zhao narrowed her large eyes. "You had Cheng Bo wait for me for days at the Bamboo Grove Hermitage outside Qingque Town, which means not only did you expect me to come find you, but you also planned for Cheng Bo to guide me. With your scheming mind, how could you not have anticipated that my identity would drive the Nie Clan's followers into greater frenzy? You should have discouraged me from coming."
Mu Qingyan guiltily averted his gaze.
"You deliberately laid false trails and spread misinformation to confuse Nie Zhe, so you couldn't have sealed off all channels. Those cult members who saw the Bright Sun Blade, while spreading rumors of your strong forces preparing to attack Paradise Palace, must have also let slip some hints to Nie Zhe. So my identity couldn't remain hidden. Then why didn't you stop me from coming to the Nether Bamboo Path?"
Mu Qingyan coughed lightly to mask his guilt. "You have to believe me—I would never put you in danger."
Cai Zhao remained expressionless. "I believe that. You wanted me by your side, and you knew my identity couldn't stay completely hidden. You originally planned to hide me away, didn't you?"
"I initially intended for Cheng Bo to take you into hiding until the Nie Clan was destroyed," Mu Qingyan admitted with a bitter smile. "To be honest, it's not just the Nie Clan's followers who deeply resent your aunt. That Bright Sun Blade sent many of Nie Hengcheng's beloved generals to their graves—back when Nie Hengcheng held power, his men were always at the forefront of battles."Cai Zhao snorted, "Of course. My aunt isn’t bloodthirsty. Even if they’re from the Demonic Cult, as long as they don’t commit evil, she usually turns a blind eye. If Duan Jiuxiu hadn’t gone mad and slaughtered Clear Wind Temple, my aunt wouldn’t have bothered with him."
Mu Qingyan gave a bitter smile. "True. That’s why elders like Chou Baigang, who opposed Nie Hengcheng, even if forced to carry out orders, would slack off—hardly any deep-seated hatred with your Cai Family."
Cai Zhao thought for a moment and raised her voice, "In that case, why not just let Cheng Bo and me hide while the rest of you go after Nie Zhe?!"
Mu Qingyan sneered, "Would you really feel at ease letting your third senior brother follow me into Paradise Palace? If Song Yuzhi gets so much as a scratch, you’d blame me for it!"
Cai Zhao couldn’t help shouting, "Then you could have let third senior brother hide with Cheng Bo and me!"
"Right, so the two of you can hide and whisper sweet nothings to each other? I’d rather die!"
Cai Zhao was exasperated. "If third senior brother and I were going to whisper sweet nothings, we’d have done it long ago on the road! Why wait until now?! You should drink a calming tonic and wake up!"
For once, Mu Qingyan had no retort. He sighed, "I thought I’d thoroughly investigated Nie Zhe’s surroundings and that Paradise Palace wouldn’t pose much risk, so I brought you along. Who knew Han Su was still alive? Sigh. Had I known, I’d have let you and Song Yuzhi hide and badmouth me instead."
Cai Zhao nearly laughed. "You—your mind truly defies all reason. Admirable, truly admirable!"
Mu Qingyan tugged at the girl’s sleeve, his eyes filled with remorse. "It’s all my fault for putting Zhao Zhao in such danger."
"Forget it!" Cai Zhao steadied her breath, silently repeating the mantra of harmony and prosperity in her heart.
"What’s done is done. Now, let’s focus on the matter at hand!" She waved her hand. "Where is this place?"
Mu Qingyan said, "I heard from Father that beneath Paradise Palace lies a massive underground palace, built by the fifth-generation sect leader, Mu Donglie. This must be it."
Cai Zhao looked around. Indeed, the corridors were straight, deep, and towering. She remarked sarcastically, "Such a huge underground palace—didn’t they hollow out the entire ground beneath Paradise Palace? Weren’t they afraid it would collapse?"
"No. The entire underground palace is constructed from refined iron blended with secret alloys, then supported by massive jade boulders. Not only is it exceptionally sturdy, but its load-bearing capacity surpasses even that of mountain rock."
Cai Zhao gasped, then frowned. "But the mechanism room where Han Su was just now was made of stone."
Mu Qingyan scoffed. "That must’ve been added later by Nie Hengcheng in the gaps of the underground palace. Shoddy tricks, utterly laughable."
Cai Zhao nodded. "Right. That stone room was small and flimsy, yet packed with intricate mechanisms. Clearly, the builder was meticulous and petty—completely unlike the grand, unadorned style here, bold and majestic."
Mu Qingyan sighed. "Yes, the sect’s historical records say the same about Mu Donglie. Pity his reign was short."
Cai Zhao was surprised. "He died young? Who could’ve killed such a formidable sect leader? Was it illness?"
Mu Qingyan shook his head. "No one dared kill him, and it wasn’t illness—he never died. He passed the leadership to his nephew, ordered his subordinates to assist him well, then vanished into seclusion. Many years later, rumors said he was seen beyond the towering snow-capped mountains of the Western Regions. Who knows if it’s true?"Cai Zhao's mouth hung open for a long moment before she finally said, "...I never thought there'd be such a casual person among the leaders of the Demonic Cult."
"Casual? I'd say reckless. Just dropping everything without a second thought, who knows what was going through his mind. If anyone needs medicine, it's him," Mu Qingyan said irritably. "Enough about him—we need to find a way out."
Cai Zhao looked around. "Going back the way we came isn't an option—it's completely blocked. Our only choice is to find an exit through this underground palace."
"Alright." Mu Qingyan patted his robes and stood up, pulling the girl to her feet as well. "Let's see what kind of boldness our Mu family ancestor had to offer."
Cai Zhao glanced ahead, then behind. "Which way should we go?"
"Doesn't matter. Let's just start walking."
Cai Zhao agreed.
Just as Mu Qingyan began to move, his sleeve was tugged by the girl behind him. He turned back curiously.
Cai Zhao hesitated before speaking softly, "Back then... did Madam Sun have you before marrying your father?"
In an instant, a chill spread through Mu Qingyan's eyes, and his body stiffened.
After a pause, he regained his composure and replied flatly, "That's right."
He picked up a wooden stick from the ground—a remnant from Han Su's shattered wooden wheelchair—lit a fire starter, and held it high to illuminate the path ahead.
"If not for me, Father might have left the Vast Sea Mountains long ago," he said matter-of-factly.
His tall figure cast a long shadow in the tunnel, and Cai Zhao suddenly felt a pang of bitterness.
She tugged at Mu Qingyan again and, after a moment's thought, said, "My aunt ran away from Jade Pendant Mountain Manor when she was only fourteen. One night, she woke up, drank a cup of cold tea, packed her bags, and set off—she even scribbled her farewell note on a piece of steamer cloth..."
Some of the coldness faded from Mu Qingyan's eyes. "Why steamer cloth? Didn't Jade Pendant Mountain Manor have paper?"
"Because she needed to bring food for the journey," Cai Zhao explained earnestly. "My aunt went to the kitchen in the middle of the night to steal cold buns and realized she should leave a note for Uncle Zhou. But she couldn't be bothered to go back to her room for paper and ink, so she wrote a few words on the steamer cloth with fermented bean paste and slipped it under Uncle Zhou's door. That was that."
"Your aunt was truly free-spirited," Mu Qingyan said with a faint smile. "But didn't she take Lei Xiuming's clothes and jade crown?"
"She did! But it wasn't for free—she traded them for snow lotus!" Cai Zhao couldn't help laughing, her heart filled with warmth and admiration for this departed elder.
"My aunt used to say that the idea of 'everyone having their own fate' is often just a reflection of one's own nature. Those who are meant to leave will leave no matter what, and those who stay will always find reasons to be tied down."
"If your father had reasons to stay all those years, how could it be your fault?" She held onto Mu Qingyan, staring at him intently. "It wasn't your fault. You have to remember—it was never your fault."
Mu Qingyan's long lashes trembled slightly. After a long pause, he gave a quiet "Mm" and took the girl's hand, leading her deeper into the dark tunnel ahead.
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