Lei Xiuyuan dipped his brush in ink and began writing another letter, this time addressed to Ji Tongzhou. No matter what awkward entanglements existed among the three of them, the matter at hand was too important—any discomfort had to be set aside for now.
Unexpectedly, Ji Tongzhou’s letter couldn’t be delivered either. With the August meeting still a month away, it seemed their friends had all grown restless, unwilling to stay put and cultivate diligently within their sects.
"Are you worried that Ge Lin’s silence might be related to Zhen Yunzi?"
Li Fei pondered for a long while and felt this was the most likely possibility. Baili Gelin had been silent for nearly a year. The fact that letters could still be delivered meant she was alive, which was the only thing that gave them some peace of mind.
"Zhen Yunzi’s current status is quite awkward," Lei Xiuyuan remarked. "He was once one of the three great elders of the Profound School, but the Profound School’s techniques are unique—those who don’t advance will regress. He can no longer serve as an elder, yet he isn’t a disciple either. He likely avoids staying in Star Rectitude Hall as much as possible to spare himself the embarrassment. Now, with Sea Fall approaching, he’s deliberately heading near the Eastern Sea. I suspect this isn’t his first time going there. I can’t say for certain that Baili Gelin’s disappearance is related to him—there are too many unexpected things in this world. It’s best to be prepared."
Li Fei could no longer sit still. She immediately picked up her brush, dipped it in ink, and wrote a long, detailed letter to Baili Gelin, explaining everything about Zhen Yunzi. If she didn’t reply this time, it was almost certain she had fallen into Zhen Yunzi’s hands. The envelope wrapped with her hair was tossed into the flames and delivered steadily without bouncing back. Li Fei quietly sighed in relief.
After what felt like an eternity, shadows suddenly flickered across the worn wooden table. Li Fei’s heart leaped—had Ge Lin replied?
Lei Xiuyuan leaned in with her to examine the characters pieced together by the shadows: "All is well. Have not heard of Zhen Yunzi’s affairs. Will meet again in Lu Gongzhen in August. Eagerly awaiting."
The handwriting was delicate and precise—unmistakably Baili Gelin’s. She was safe and sound. But why had she suddenly gone silent for an entire year? She was all alone in the distant Eastern Sea, with so many people here worrying about her, yet she remained as willful as ever.
Li Fei felt a surge of irritation and wrote another letter demanding an explanation. But this one sank like a stone into the sea—no reply came even as night fell.
Lei Xiuyuan returned from the courtyard after chopping firewood and found her still lost in thought. "She’s always been like this since childhood," he said. "When trouble comes, she won’t seek help or advice—she just toughs it out alone. There’s no point waiting."
Li Fei was surprised that Lei Xiuyuan understood Ge Lin so well. Their relationship had never been good—ever since his deception was exposed, Ge Lin had largely ignored him. Among the six of them, the most distant pair wasn’t Ji Tongzhou and Lei Xiuyuan, but Ge Lin and Lei Xiuyuan.
"Do you always secretly observe people from the shadows?" Li Fei asked with a wry smile. Since there was no reply, she decided not to wait any longer. Some things were best asked face-to-face.
Lei Xiuyuan picked up a book and began reading by lamplight. "So in your mind, I’m not just sharp-tongued but also sneaky?"
Li Fei laughed and rested her chin on the table, tilting her head to watch him. She loved seeing Lei Xiuyuan quietly absorbed in his tasks—whether reading or writing. At times like these, he exuded a refined gentleness entirely unlike his demeanor during magical combat.
Lei Xiuyuan lowered his head and silently turned the pages. Halfway through the book, he noticed her breathing grow slow and deep—she had fallen asleep right there on the table.He gently laid her on the bed and began untying her sash when his fingers brushed against something hard in her bosom—it must be that black notebook given to her by Qing Cheng Xian Ren. She truly carried it with her at all times. Slowly, he removed her outer garments and shoes, tucked her under the quilt, then took the black notebook to examine under the lamplight, carefully opening it.
Last time, he'd only given it a cursory glance. Now he needed to study it thoroughly.
Yet strangely, though he'd clearly seen densely inked characters filling the pages before, upon opening it this time, the notebook was completely blank. Lei Xiuyuan quickly flipped through the thin black volume from start to finish—not a single drop of ink remained. His brows gradually furrowed.
What was this? Had some Immortal Technique been cast upon it? He placed his hand over the pages, probing with spiritual energy, but detected no reaction whatsoever. After pondering for a moment, dark golden light suddenly flashed in his eyes. Instantly, the previously blank pages revealed fragmented, flickering text with large sections still illegible.
Concentrating, Lei Xiuyuan turned to the first page where bold, vigorous characters sprawled across the paper: "Alas, we immortals of the Central Land are but crude wilderness dwellers! Beyond the four seas lies such a world! These records contain my experiences and observations over decades, awaiting a destined reader."
His spirits lifted immediately. Turning to the second page, he found Qing Cheng Xian Ren's narrative concise and direct: "21st day of the third month, Guichou Year—Ri Yan and I departed from Manshan in the Eastern Sea..."
The Guichou Year? Merely a century ago? And it mentioned Ri Yan—so that fox had indeed accompanied him overseas. No wonder he seemed so knowledgeable about Li Fei and his own origins.
Page after page, Lei Xiuyuan read slowly. The legible sections described astonishing customs and wonders of the Overseas Thousands of Continents and Myriad Islands, far beyond imagination.
Further on, vast blank spaces made reading impossible. He skipped to the final page where intermittent text appeared to express amazement, mentioning "shell cracking open," "transforming into swaddling clothes," "features indistinguishable from humans," and "initially possessing striking beauty, but after six months growing increasingly similar to the appearance shown by my illusion spell."
Was this describing Li Fei?
Closing the notebook, Lei Xiuyuan glanced back at the sleeping girl curled peacefully under the blankets, her breathing deep and even.
Thankfully she couldn't see these words.
He blew out the candle and lay down beside her. Still unaccustomed to sharing a bed, she instinctively shrank away upon sensing another presence in her sleep. Lei Xiuyuan drew her close, encircling her shoulders. She stirred briefly, then relaxed upon recognizing him.
"Tomorrow... make tofu with bamboo shoots..."
Her drowsy murmur—whether dreamtalk or not—drew a soft chuckle from him. Tucking the quilt snugly around them, he held her as they drifted into deep slumber.
After six years, Lu Gongzhen remained virtually unchanged—the same narrow streets, the same hurried pedestrians. This year's Academy preliminary selections apparently weren't held here. The ancestral hall stood empty, only wisps of incense smoke rising from the bronze cauldron before it, devoid of the bustling crowds and lively clamor of years past.Li Fei looked around nostalgically, recalling the day Dongyang Zhenren had brought her here. The wooden box containing numbered copper plates had been placed in that corner, and the black-veiled woman had sat by the inner door of the ancestral hall, testing each child's Eight Extraordinary Meridians to select those with exceptional talent.
This was where she had first met every one of them—even Ri Yan had spoken to her for the first time here.
Su Wan was also curiously glancing about. She had just arrived in Lu Gongzhen when she ran into Li Fei and Lei Xiuyuan. Li Fei had invited her early to this gathering, prompting Su Wan to rush through her unfinished cultivation tasks. What intrigued her most was the legendary "alluring Ocean Sect female disciple"—she couldn't wait to see her in the rumored Eastern Sea attire that bared the waist and arms.
"Why is there no one here?" Su Wan wondered. "Are we the earliest?"
Li Fei tugged her into the ancestral hall, where an inner door stood. Smiling, she said, "This very door—the year I stepped through it, I met all the friends gathering today."
She remembered entering that inner door and immediately spotting the Rainbow Deer in the backyard. Its novelty had captivated her so much that she stared for a long time, earning mockery from Ji Tongzhou and his lackeys.
Though her relationship with Ji Tongzhou was now worse than that of strangers, she still cherished that first encounter—the ill-tempered young prince, his arrogant followers, all perched imperiously in a small pavilion while the other children dared not challenge them.
Su Wan chuckled. "I'm more interested in your past with Junior Brother Lei. By the way, last time you mentioned the first time you saw him, he was bleeding from being hit with stones. What happened?"
Just as Li Fei was about to answer, Lei Xiuyuan spoke coolly from behind, "Senior Sister, Senior Brother Deng just sent a letter—apparently for you. Would you like to read it?"
Unaware of his habitual topic-dodging, Su Wan fell for it instantly. "Huh? Senior Brother Deng wrote to me? Quick, let me see!"
Lei Xiuyuan mercilessly handed her Deng Xiguang's letter, filled with saccharine words and pleas for them to "keep an eye on Su Wan" so she wouldn't "fancy any outsiders." While she stared dumbfounded, he smirked at Li Fei and ruffled her hair. "Can't keep your mouth shut?"
Li Fei shook her head with a laugh. He always avoided mentioning that period of pretense, as if trying to erase its existence. He'd rather their first meeting had been when he was as clever and capable as he was now—not the cowardly weakling he'd been then.
Deng Xiguang's letter left Su Wan feeling "utterly uncomfortable," prompting her to tear it apart ruthlessly. The trio entered the backyard, where two figures—a man and a woman—sat close together in the pavilion, seemingly whispering intimately.
Ye Ye and Chang Yue? Unlikely. The spiritual energy fluctuations felt more like...
Noticing their arrival, the pair stood and turned—revealing Ji Tongzhou and Lan Ya Junzhu.
...Of all people to meet first, it had to be the most awkward combination. Li Fei froze. Since when did Lan Ya Junzhu come? Ji Tongzhou held her hand, their bodies close. Huh? Had he finally moved on?Ji Tongzhou glanced at her and actually gave a slight nod in greeting. Li Fei was taken aback for a moment before nodding back politely. Beside him, Lan Ya Junzhu also greeted them with graceful composure. The aristocratic air surrounding these two made them appear exceptionally matched and dazzling when standing together.
Li Fei politely introduced Su Wan: "Let me introduce you. This is Su Wan, my friend. This is Ji Tongzhou, and this is Lan Ya Junzhu."
Ji Tongzhou nodded toward her, while Su Wan introduced herself with effortless grace: "I am Su Wan, an elite disciple under Guangwei Zhenren of the No Moon Court. Junior Brother Ji, may I be so bold as to ask—is that flame aura of yours the legendary Profound Splendor Fire?"
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