When Li Fei first met Ji Tongzhou in Lu Gongzhen, he was an arrogant young prince, surrounded by a crowd of sycophants, stirring up trouble everywhere with his nose held high—utterly detestable.
Later, after experiencing many things together at the Academy, Li Fei gradually realized that beneath this blunt, princely demeanor was a boy who wore his likes and dislikes openly on his sleeve. If he disliked someone, he would mercilessly pick them apart; if he liked them, he would be unreservedly candid in his friendship.
And then, she watched helplessly as the sun-like young prince became shrouded in gloom. Beneath his seemingly cheerful and careless personality, there were so many unfathomable Heart Devils lurking.
Ye Ye later mentioned Ji Tongzhou in his letters to her, remarking how much he had changed. But now, she knew—this person hadn’t changed at all.
From childhood to adulthood, he had always been this blunt and willful—suddenly turning hostile, suddenly doing the most inexplicable things, never once considering others’ feelings. Because of his delusions, she had to endure public humiliation; because of his unresolved turmoil, she had to endure his erratic moods, swinging between warmth and coldness.
Years passed, yet Ji Tongzhou remained the same young prince she had met in Lu Gongzhen—doing as he pleased, flaunting his arrogance, pouring out all his good and bad sides before others without a care for their opinions.
Li Fei’s brows furrowed deeper the more she thought about it.
Not everyone in the world would indulge his fragile willfulness—at least, she wouldn’t. Never would.
A hand suddenly pressed between her brows. Startled, Li Fei turned to see Lei Xiuyuan flying beside her, smoothing out the creases on her forehead with his fingers.
“What are you thinking about?” His tone was indifferent, making the words sound less like a question and more like a command.
Li Fei suddenly laughed. When it came to willfulness, this man was no less than Ji Tongzhou—only, he hid it better, and most of the time, he only acted willful toward her. She shook her head, saying nothing, and simply grasped his hand, giving it two firm squeezes.
The next moment, he squeezed back even harder. Li Fei nearly jumped from the pain. “What are you doing?!” she cried.
Lei Xiuyuan smiled faintly. “Pain keeps you from overthinking.”
Li Fei scowled. “You’re always like this! Next time, I’ll make you hurt and see how you like it!”
“Fine,” he replied smoothly. “When my heart is preoccupied with another girl, you can make me hurt as much as you want.”
Another girl? A dull ache instantly flared in Li Fei’s chest—she understood exactly how he felt. After a long silence, she murmured, “I’m sorry.”
Lei Xiuyuan never feigned courtesy toward any woman—in fact, unless absolutely necessary, he rarely showed kindness to anyone at all. She was the sole exception. Precisely because of this, he had done everything possible for her, and in return, demanded the same—he wanted her, body and soul, to belong to him alone. The moment he sensed unfairness, he would immediately voice his displeasure.
His tenderness could be terrifying, and his cruelty just as frightening. Being with him was a constant emotional rollercoaster—one moment, he lifted her to the heavens; the next, he dashed her to the ground. All her most intense emotions were reserved for him alone—sometimes love so deep it consumed her, sometimes hatred so fierce she wanted to trample him underfoot and crush him mercilessly.This extreme and intense emotion sometimes even filled her with a trace of panic—she couldn't lose him, not even for a moment.
Lei Xiuyuan gave her hand another squeeze, though gentler this time. Just as he was about to speak, the elders flying ahead suddenly halted. Li Fei instinctively tried to pull her hand away, but after several attempts failed, she could only blush furiously and avoid looking at the elders' expressions.
Cuixuan Xianren closed his eyes in deep concentration for a long while before murmuring, "The migration of monstrous creatures has alarmed countless Immortals. It's inconvenient for us to show ourselves. Guangwei, you take over."
Guangwei Zhenren immediately stepped forward and bowed, awaiting instructions. Yet all he saw was Cuixuan Xianren pressing his palms together. Soon, a strange fissure slowly split open between his hands, as if another world lay hidden within that space.
Li Fei suddenly sensed an intensely familiar and comforting aura emanating from that rift. Without even thinking, she instantly knew that within it lay the Outlander Tomb that had unsettled her so deeply. She instinctively moved forward, but Lei Xiuyuan's hand still gripped hers tightly. He too was staring transfixed at the rift, his expression indescribably strange. The hand holding hers gradually tightened until she felt as though her bones might shatter from the pressure. Pain made her tug desperately, but to no avail.
"Xiu Yuan!" she called softly. Lei Xiuyuan slowly released her hand, but his eyes remained fixed on the rift, unmoving.
The fissure grew larger, as though the world had been split in two by an invisible blade. Inside, radiant light shimmered, vaguely revealing countless objects, their forms indistinct and unclear.
Shouzhong Xianren laughed heartily and turned back. "We two old fellows must take our leave first. Fortunately, the monstrous creatures along the way are all dull-witted and pose little threat—you can handle them easily. Once we reach White Edge Cliff, we'll take over the sealing."
With that, he flew straight into the Lesser World within the rift, followed closely by Cuixuan Xianren. The moment they vanished inside, the fissure closed instantly, transforming into a bronze mirror that Guangwei Zhenren reverently cradled in both hands before tucking it into his robes.
Lei Xiuyuan watched for a moment before finally looking away. He smiled faintly and murmured, "So this is the legendary Lesser World. My first time seeing it."
Ri Yan had mentioned Lesser Worlds before, even giving rare praise to Cuixuan Xianren once. Curious, Li Fei asked, "What's a Lesser World?"
"When certain Celestials reach a certain level of cultivation, they can create another world that belongs solely to them—mountains, rivers, sun, moon, clouds, and seas. All the rules of that world are set by the Celestial. No one can forcibly breach a Celestial's Lesser World... Hmm, you could say it's the most powerful self-preservation Immortal Technique."
Li Fei snorted a laugh. Such an incredible thing, and he described it as a self-preservation technique. But thinking about it, it made sense—if you were losing a magical combat, you could just tear open your Lesser World and hide inside, leaving your opponent fuming.
Now she finally understood, at least partially, why so many elders and two senior Celestials had come out together. Cuixuan Xianren's Lesser World clearly held the real Outlander Tomb. Were they heading to White Edge Cliff to seal it within the Trial Grounds?She recalled the empty Outlander Tomb in Chestnut Blaze Valley. Unexpectedly, the No Moon Court placed such importance on it. She had assumed it was merely a collection of Otherkin corpses slain during Sea Fall by the Immortals. Yet they had gone to great lengths to transport the tomb all the way to White Edge Cliff at the heart of the Central Land after the anomaly appeared—clearly, there was another purpose.
What exactly was hidden in that Outlander Tomb? Come to think of it, Qing Cheng Xian Ren had once severed a Yaksha Horn—could it also be stored there? Could it be... they feared that Yaksa might return to reclaim its horn?
Lei Xiuyuan seemed lost in thought again. Just as Li Fei was about to tell him about the Outlander Tomb hidden in the Lesser World, a low voice from one of the elders interrupted: "There are spiritual energy fluctuations in the forest below—a group of disciples, yet no elders are present."
With monstrous creatures rampant in this area, a group of disciples who had just broken through their second bottleneck wandering around without elder supervision could easily meet with disaster. It was rather concerning.
"Nearby must be the trial grounds of another sect. It's not unusual to encounter Immortal disciples. We must focus on our journey and avoid delays," Guangwei Zhenren cautioned, carefully covering his chest. He carried the Lesser World transformed into a bronze mirror by Cui Xuan Xian Ren—the weight of responsibility rested solely on him, and he naturally wanted no complications.
Just as the group prepared to continue flying, a dozen or so disciples—both male and female—suddenly emerged from the forest. Judging by their uniforms, they belonged to the Embrace Sky Sect. Their faces were filled with panic, and upon seeing so many No Moon Court elders, they immediately approached to pay respects. The leader urgently pleaded, "Esteemed elders, we are disciples of the Embrace Sky Sect. Fifty of us came for the trial, including two elders. We were delayed and arrived slightly late. Before landing, we still saw the elders and fellow disciples ahead, but in the blink of an eye, they all vanished! Our cultivation is shallow, and we are at a loss. We humbly beg for your assistance!"
Elders and disciples disappearing together? Such a thing was unheard of! Guangwei Zhenren asked in surprise, "Could they have entered the trial grounds' barrier?"
The Embrace Sky Sect disciple paled further: "No! The trial grounds are still several li away. We couldn’t have mistaken it—they truly vanished suddenly!"
Maintaining harmony among Central Land Immortals was always necessary, especially when disciples pleaded for help. With so many No Moon Court elders present, they couldn’t simply ignore the situation. They descended on their clouds to search for traces of the missing group.
"Esteemed elders, look—this is where they suddenly disappeared!"
The Embrace Sky Sect disciples led the elders into a forest. Dawn had just broken, and the mist-filled woods obscured vision. Chongyi Zhenren surveyed the area thoughtfully. "There’s no demon qi nearby, but I can sense residual spiritual energy. Elders and disciples were indeed here."
Among the elders, Chongyi Zhenren was the most adept at detecting spiritual and demonic energies. Everyone watched as he carefully traced the lingering spiritual energy. After a few steps, he mused, "The spiritual energy cuts off abruptly here—completely clean..."
Frowning in deep thought, he suddenly clasped his hands and closed his eyes, concentrating. His spiritual energy rippled outward like waves—this was Chongyi Zhenren’s renowned Immortal Technique, "Spirit Net," using his own energy to sense the subtlest traces of demonic and spiritual energies within a ten-li radius.After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the overwhelming release of spiritual energy finally began to wane. Chongyi Zhenren suddenly opened his eyes, let out a surprised "Huh?", and immediately strode forward, only to stop abruptly in astonishment: "Oh? So it's actually..."
Before he could finish speaking, right before everyone's eyes, he suddenly vanished.
The disciples of the Embrace Sky Sect screamed in terror. The elders of the No Moon Court quickly formed a protective circle around their disciples and hastily retreated several steps. Dongyang Zhenren stepped onto his giant gourd, which immediately spewed forth countless pale green sands, spreading a thin layer across the ground. After concentrating and forming hand seals for a long while, he finally revealed a trace of shock and bewilderment: "...No demon qi or spiritual energy? What is this?!"
No sooner had he spoken than he too disappeared before the crowd's eyes.
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