"...Is this considered running away?" Li Fei remained silent for a long time before slowly asking.
Hu Jiaping stared at her seriously: "You're no longer a child. You should know the consequences of acting purely on impulse."
Was this really okay? Pretending nothing had happened, squandering the life Master had bought with his own.
"Jiang Li Fei, we're not from the Central Land. To them, we're even hated enemies. Not everyone has a heart as big as Master's. Five hundred years ago we already killed countless people. This time you wanted to kill No Moon Court Celestials too. Let me tell you, that's not called revenge—that's called slaughter, called bullying the weak. I don't believe Master would want to see you do such things from beyond the grave. When he raised you, he surely hoped to solve the mystery of Sea Fall so the tragedy that repeats every five hundred years wouldn't happen again—not for you to continue the slaughter."
If Master hadn't brought her back to the Central Land, hadn't taken in and raised the amnesiac child Hu Jiaping had become, everything today would be different. They'd deeply experienced both the warmth and cruelty of human hearts. These years living in the Central Land had made them more human—not cursed Yaksas or cold Graftwood Seeds. While gaining warmth, they'd also developed vulnerabilities and attachments.
In the ten years living with Master, never once had he looked at her as something alien. Li Fei recalled those distant memories—Master holding her and sighing: "I wonder if I'll live to see you grown up."
She was grown now. Seventeen years as an ordinary person in the Central Land had let her experience every human emotion. When Master saw her for the last time at the Outlander Tomb, though she knew nothing then, her face had been full of happiness. He'd smiled contentedly, and passed on contentedly. Now she finally understood the true meaning behind leaving her that black notebook.
Ri Yan always said humans were too fickle, that human hearts killed—friends today, mortal enemies tomorrow. Yet amidst these volatile emotions, there were always some rock-solid precious feelings. Hadn't Master initially been wary and curious about them as Overseas Foreigners too? Though human emotions were easily formed yet fragile, creating all sorts of obstacles in cultivation, that was precisely what made humans unique.
"I don't plan to return to No Moon Court," Li Fei suddenly declared solemnly. "With this Sea Fall coming, I want to go overseas."
Hu Jiaping sighed. "Looking for your kin? The Graftwood Seed only bears one fruit at a time—a new one only appears after the previous dies. Don't blame me for not warning you—don't get your hopes up about finding kin."
Li Fei shook her head. She took out the black notebook and said quietly, "I want to see with my own eyes all the places Master went. And that Building Tree too."
Hu Jiaping took the notebook and flipped through it, chuckling softly. "He went many places, but left so much unwritten. What a careless old man."
He hadn't even revealed his identity to Ri Yan. Understandable—Yaksas had left too deep a shadow on Central Land Immortals, to the point the mere mention terrified them. Best not to disclose if possible.
"I'm about to break through my fifth Bottleneck," Hu Jiaping returned the notebook to Li Fei and winked. "Reliving life has been good. After I become a Celestial, I'll take A Mu overseas to find Otherworld Fire and reforge Temper Edge. If I'm still alive by then."Li Fei also smiled softly and said, "Are Yaksas the same as humans? Or is it because you lost your memories that you're so talkative?"
To call him talkative... Hu Jiaping glared at her—this child really had no tact with her words!
"Yaksas are considered human too, of course. Their personalities vary wildly—what did you expect?" Hu Jiaping patted her head. "Yaksas only lose all reason when it comes to the Graftwood Seed. As for the feeling of being cursed, you can ask Lei Xiuyuan yourself. But in my opinion, that kid's cunning and mischievous nature is nothing like a Yaksa! Most of our tribe are silent types who act decisively—real men through and through."
She couldn’t see any trace of Hu Jiaping being the "silent type." The "acting decisively" part, however, was certainly on full display.
"That curse... can I break it?" Li Fei hesitated before asking.
Hu Jiaping shook his head. "I don’t know. Even the origin of the curse is just an ancient legend. But I do know that severing the horns causes loss of memory and abilities, yet it doesn’t lift the curse. I’m not sure how Master managed to break it by coincidence back then."
At this point, his eyes rolled playfully as he grinned and leisurely added, "Do you still plan to stick with that kid? Can you tell whether he truly likes you or just wants to possess you? Don’t say your senior brother didn’t warn you—that curse is utterly ruthless, recognizing no bonds. The previous Graftwood Seed was torn apart after being fought over by Yaksas, wasn’t she? There’s still one of her arm bones in the Outlander Tomb—you’ve seen it. So you’d better be careful... Oh dear, bad timing—speaking ill of him has riled him up..."
Li Fei turned swiftly to see Lei Xiuyuan perched high above on his Spinning Tortoise Shell, hidden in the tree shadows, his cold eyes fixed on Hu Jiaping. She couldn’t sense the slightest spiritual energy fluctuation from him.
"Too much nonsense," Lei Xiuyuan landed beside her. As if out of habit, he reached to pull her hand but for some reason withdrew it, instead glaring unwaveringly at Hu Jiaping.
Hu Jiaping spread his hands with a wry smile. "I’ve lost my horns, and the curse is gone. No need to treat me as an enemy, right?"
Lei Xiuyuan studied him silently for a moment before looking away and murmuring, "I’m the only one left now."
Once renowned and flourishing overseas, the Yaksa tribe had withered to this state because of the Graftwood Seed’s curse—truly lamentable.
Hu Jiaping chuckled irreverently. "So let’s both work hard to pass on this tragic bloodline."
Who knew if a child born between a Yaksa and a Graftwood Seed would grow up to fight their own father for their mother... The thought was both tragic and oddly absurd. It was said that past Graftwood Seeds met grim fates—either torn apart by frenzied Yaksas or imprisoned as coveted treasures for life. Despite their innate special abilities, they couldn’t withstand the Yaksas’ relentless battles. The curse harmed everyone, benefiting none.
"When did you recognize me?" Lei Xiuyuan ignored his flippant remark.Hu Jiaping pondered for a moment: "When I saw the little girl at the academy seven years ago, I vaguely remembered something. I knew Master had brought back the Graftwood Seed from overseas. Later, when she told me about Master, I realized her identity. Over the years, my memories have been gradually recovering. It wasn't until the Martial Competition Tournament, when you unleashed Dark Clouds Obscuring the Sun, that I immediately sensed you were of my kin. That's when everything came back to me."
"Why didn't you say anything?"
"Why should I? I was living a good life—why go looking for trouble?"
Lei Xiuyuan paused briefly before turning to look at Li Fei. She was gazing at him as well, with the same focused expression as always. His heart eased slightly, and he spoke calmly: "Back then, during the Netherworld Great Magic, I was regressed hundreds of years in time. I fled back overseas and fell into a deep slumber. When I sensed the newly grown Graftwood Seed being harvested, I pursued it, only to be severely injured by the Heavenly Thunder Fire Sea. Near death, I drifted at sea for many years, losing all my memories. It wasn't until a few days ago that they fully returned."
The Netherworld Great Magic only reversed time—their bodies became children, but their abilities remained. Their fragile forms couldn't withstand such immense power, forcing them into slumber. As a child, he would often unleash astonishing strength in moments of crisis, only to suffer excruciating pain afterward, all because his body couldn't bear the power of the Yaksa. During the Martial Competition Tournament, Li Fei completely healed his Hidden Wounds. Combined with her frequent use of Spirit Absorption, her outer shell became unstable. As the Graftwood Seed itself, she had the ability to amplify Yaksa power. All these conditions triggered together finally allowed him to awaken fully this time.
He had always wanted the power to protect Li Fei completely and had strived desperately for it. Ironically, now that he finally possessed that ability, he wished he had never remembered anything at all.
Hu Jiaping chuckled with a sigh: "If that old man knew what kind of karmic consequences his unintentional actions had caused, he'd probably be laughing so hard in the afterlife that he couldn't close his mouth."
For a Celestial as old as him, maintaining a childlike heart after nearly a millennium was truly rare and precious. That very heart had once brought him within a step of achieving the Great Dao, yet it was also why he ultimately failed to transcend the cycle of life and death.
Hu Jiaping heaved a long sigh and glanced back. In the distance, a figure flickered faintly in the night but didn't approach, silently hovering mid-air as if waiting.
"I should go now. I've said all I wanted and could say. Whether you resent me or doubt me, I'm just shamelessly determined to live my good life. Don't look for me if nothing's wrong, and definitely don't look for me if something is. Little girl, if I manage to survive and ascend to immortality overseas, treat me to a meal, alright?"
Even at the end, he remained as irreverent as ever, winking and waving before briskly mounting his small white cloud and flying toward the distant Black-veiled woman. She had packed a massive bundle, carrying it respectfully on her back. The two seemed to argue for a while before she reluctantly handed the bundle to Hu Jiaping. With his arm around hers, he chattered away without looking back as they flew off into the distance, leaving the academy behind.
Li Fei stood quietly by the lotus pond for a while. Beside her, Lei Xiuyuan stood just as silently, not uttering a word. He didn't move closer as he once had, yet he wasn't far either—maintaining a distance where she could sense his current unease."Xiu Yuan," she suddenly spoke, her voice carrying a hint of laughter for the first time in days. "Do you remember the last time it was just the two of us coming to the Book Collection Pagoda at night to return books?"
Lei Xiuyuan slowly responded with an "Mm." He said, "You tore the sleeve of my only disciple uniform."
Li Fei couldn't help but laugh. "That's all you remember."
Back then, the four of them were constantly exhausted from Hu Jiaping's relentless training. Every day, aside from cultivation, they had to copy books, and the copied books were returned to the Book Collection Pagoda in turns. She remembered that day the book they had to copy was especially thick. By the time the four of them finished copying it, it was already well past their usual bedtime. Coincidentally, it was Li Fei's turn to return the books that day. If she didn’t return them by the end of the day, she would face Hu Jiaping's Tickle Spell the next day. Despite her reluctance, she mustered her courage and flew alone to the Book Collection Pagoda.
Only when she arrived did she realize Lei Xiuyuan had been quietly following her from a distance the whole time. Baili Gelin and Ji Tongzhou had already succumbed to sleep, but he had silently accompanied her all the way.
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