"If we don't leave now, we'll be subjected to endless chatter." Lei Xiuyuan showed a rare expression of helplessness. "Shining Light Peak is too noisy, full of people. If we're late, each person will say something, and it won't stop until nightfall."
Li Fei couldn't help but laugh: "Guangwei Zhanglao must have many disciples, right?"
"Dozens of senior brothers and sisters." Lei Xiuyuan rose on his cloud, flying much faster than her. In the blink of an eye, he was already dozens of feet away.
She hurriedly chased after him, shouting: "Xiu Yuan! Next time, don't go through so much trouble to come here!"
He waved his hand, whether in agreement or not was unclear.
"Next time, I'll go to Shining Light Peak to see you!" she yelled at the top of her lungs, but Lei Xiuyuan's figure had already become a small black dot in the distance. She wasn't sure if he could hear her anymore.
Li Fei stopped her pursuit, the white cloud beneath her feet halting as she stared blankly at his figure growing smaller and smaller until it disappeared completely. An unprecedented sense of reluctance and loss filled her heart. How many hours had he flown just to see her for a moment? Three months—from barely being able to walk to barely being able to fly, then crossing the entire No Moon Court, all while continuing his other training—how exhausting must that have been?
Lei Xiuyuan was always like this. No matter what he faced or what he did, he always maintained that indifferent demeanor, as if everything were just trivial matters not worth mentioning. And yet, he was also willful and reckless, flying for hours just to call her short.
"Li Fei?" Zhao Min Shijie's voice suddenly sounded behind her, snapping Li Fei out of her daze. She realized she had been standing at the peak, lost in thought for who knew how long.
"I noticed you hadn't returned for a while and was worried something might have happened."
Zhao Min walked gracefully toward her. Seeing the silly grin on the young girl's face, she was momentarily taken aback. Then, noticing the lingering trail in the rolling Cloud Sea, she quickly pieced things together.
She had heard about this amusing incident from their master earlier. If not for Li Fei coming to No Moon Court, Guangwei Zhanglao wouldn't have gained such an extraordinary new disciple this year, one who could rival Hu Jiaping. Ah, that child was called Lei Xiuyuan, wasn't he? She had heard his talents were exceptional, and Guangwei Zhanglao had even stopped leaving his residence, dedicating himself entirely to guiding this new disciple at Shining Light Peak.
She stood beside Li Fei for a while before suddenly smiling. "Li Fei, was that Lei Xiuyuan just now?"
Li Fei nodded, then quickly shook her head. "Shijie, he flew for so long just to come here and say a few words. It wasn't slacking off, so please don't tell Guangwei Zhanglao or anyone else!"
She was worried that if Guangwei Zhanglao found out Lei Xiuyuan had secretly flown to Jade Fall Peak, he might punish him.
Zhao Min chuckled. "Lei Xiuyuan is a prodigy, and since joining, his training has been nothing short of diligent. This little trip is hardly out of line—who would scold him for it? But you, Li Fei—"
Her expression turned serious, and whenever Zhao Min looked at her like that, it meant another lecture was coming. Li Fei held her breath, bracing herself for a reprimand about not focusing on her training and wandering around instead.
"I bet you told him you'd go to Shining Light Peak to see him next time, didn't you?"
Li Fei was caught off guard by the question. "Y-yes, I did. Why?"
He had come to see her, so of course she should go see him too. That's what friends did—give and take!
"Don't go." Zhao Min gave her a glance, her voice cool. "A girl shouldn't be so easily moved by small favors. Where's your dignity? If he wants to see you, let him come himself. If you don't even let him put in this little effort, how can you expect him to shield you from storms in the future?"Li Fei was once again dumbfounded by her senior sister's words. "What—what do you mean by 'sheltering from wind and rain'?"
Zhaomin replied calmly, "A man should naturally shield his woman from storms and protect her like a delicate flower. Right now, you should focus solely on your cultivation and demeanor. Don’t dwell on trivial matters."
Li Fei stared blankly for a long moment before suddenly bursting into laughter. "Senior Sister, have you misunderstood something? Xiu Yuan and I are friends. Friends should care for and support each other. If only one side gives, that’s not friendship at all."
Zhaomin studied her thoughtfully. "Friends? Then you should focus even more on your cultivation. Only equals can be called true friends. He can travel between north and south by noon—can you? To repay his kindness, you neglect your own training and make your elders worry. A friend like that is better off discarded."
Li Fei dreaded being lectured by this senior sister. She was excellent in every way—except for her tendency to sermonize. Li Fei nodded repeatedly. "You're right, Senior Sister. I’ll start cultivating right away."
With that, she hastily summoned her little white cloud and sped off toward Jade Fall Peak, half-flying, half-gliding, desperate to escape before Zhaomin could say anything else to make her head spin.
Unexpectedly, her senior sister called out again, "You’ve wasted nearly half a shichen. Today, you must make five round trips between the peaks before noon, or no lunch for you."
No lunch again! Li Fei’s little white cloud immediately accelerated. For the sake of lunch, she had to give it her all!
Time flew by, and soon it was already the fourth month. Above the Cloud Sea of No Moon Court, countless elders’ thatched cottages dotted the mountains, now alive with birdsong and fragrant blossoms under the bright spring sun. Only Jade Fall Peak remained bitterly cold and desolate, buried under ice and snow.
Early one morning, Li Fei pushed open her door and sighed at the sight of the raging blizzard outside. After spending most of the year in this frozen wasteland, she could barely remember what flowers and greenery looked like.
As she made her way to the central hall, she found Zhaomin, as usual, the first one there for breakfast. Seeing her arrive, Zhaomin suddenly placed two letters on the small table. "Li Fei, these are for you."
Letters? Li Fei picked them up in surprise and saw the signatures—Ye Ye and Ji Tongzhou. Overjoyed, she quickly opened Ye Ye’s letter first. It turned out that after half a year of cultivation at Earth Treasury Gate, Ye Ye and Chang Yue had performed exceptionally well, earning permission from their respective masters to correspond with the outside world. The letter had been delivered by Earth Treasury Gate’s unique messenger birds.
Next, she opened Ji Tongzhou’s letter. The young prince had clearly been inspired to write only after receiving Ye Ye’s letter. His words were as haughty as ever, boasting about his prodigious talents at Star Rectitude Hall and the favor he enjoyed from his master, Wuzheng Zi. He also casually inquired about Lei Xiuyuan, reminding him not to forget their six-year agreement.
Delighted, Li Fei immediately wanted to write back but suddenly hesitated. "Senior Sister, can I reply? How do I send the letters to them?"
Zhaomin thought for a moment and nodded. "You can. Come with me."
No Moon Court had its own unique method of message delivery. It required knowing the cultivator’s name and location, as well as possessing something from them—most commonly, a strand of hair. With just one hair, the sender needed only to write the recipient’s name and location on the envelope, then burn the letter and hair together. The next moment, the letter would appear directly before the recipient.
Li Fei frowned. "But I don’t have their hair. What should I do?""Then let's use the most common messenger bird." Zhaomin pulled out a talisman paper, and with a surge of spiritual energy, the paper instantly transformed into a small white-headed eagle. "Write your letter. It will take four days for the messenger bird to reach Earth Treasury Gate and ten days to reach Star Rectitude Hall."
Li Fei immediately picked up her brush to write the letter, making sure to remind them in the letter to send back a lock of their hair. She filled several pages before handing it over to the messenger eagle to deliver.
In April, Shining Light Peak was blanketed in flowers and shaded by lush trees, its beauty rivaling that of the Academy.
Hu Jiaping had been lying under a tree sleeping since early morning. Every morning, he was responsible for teaching the newly arrived junior disciple Lei Xiuyuan the art of Cloud Soaring Flight. However, this junior disciple was so naturally gifted that he hardly needed any guidance. Having arrived only half a year ago, he already seemed capable of darting through the skies like the wind—even surpassing Hu Jiaping's own abilities back in the day.
In a few more years, this kid might really surpass him. The pressure of being a senior brother was immense.
Hu Jiaping rolled over on the ground and saw Lei Xiuyuan's feet gather white clouds beneath them as he swiftly circled Shining Light Peak twice, finally showing some mastery over the skies. Tilting his head lazily, Hu Jiaping offered a half-hearted compliment, "Not bad, not bad. Keep at it. This is the kind of focus cultivation demands."
Lei Xiuyuan flew back to his side, glanced at him, and remarked coolly, "Senior Brother spends every morning sound asleep. Truly, such focus in cultivation."
Hu Jiaping was momentarily speechless. When had this kid become so sharp-tongued and irritating?
"Earlier, Songfeng and the others seemed to be looking for you," Hu Jiaping yawned. "Probably to ask you to fetch water or do laundry again. You can handle it on your own."
Since arriving at Shining Light Peak, Lei Xiuyuan had received meticulous guidance and favor from Guangwei Zhenren. The master, who used to travel frequently, had stayed on the peak for half a year just for this boy. Before this, who besides Hu Jiaping had ever received such treatment?
Hu Jiaping was the senior brother, so Songfeng and the others couldn't do much to him. But Lei Xiuyuan was young, slender, and looked easy to bully—yet his cold demeanor and sharp words made him thoroughly unlikable. Who else would Songfeng and his group torment if not him? Today it was fetching water, tomorrow it was laundry. It wasn’t exactly bullying—these were chores new disciples were supposed to do anyway.
Occasionally, Hu Jiaping would intervene if he felt like it, but most of the time, he couldn’t be bothered. Learning how to get along with others was something these youngsters needed to figure out on their own. Youthful arrogance was inevitable, but being constantly prickly wasn’t a good thing.
As Lei Xiuyuan turned to leave without a word, Hu Jiaping suddenly said, "Xiu Yuan, the principle of balancing firmness and flexibility isn’t just for cultivation."
Lei Xiuyuan lowered his head in thought, then suddenly smiled. "Thank you for the guidance, Senior Brother."
Thank you for the guidance? Hu Jiaping chuckled. If only this kid could always be this agreeable.
Unlike Chongyi Zhenren, Guangwei Zhenren had achieved immortality very early and was renowned far and wide. Shining Light Peak was also the largest peak in No Moon Court. Under Guangwei Zhenren’s tutelage, there were ten direct disciples and hundreds of elite disciples. Compared to the desolate and quiet Jade Fall Peak, the bustling Shining Light Peak truly embodied the grandeur of a major sect.
Lei Xiuyuan soared along the mountain path on his clouds. As soon as he entered the disciple quarters, he saw Songfeng and the others carrying dirty clothes toward the well. There were at least three or four large basins piled up. Spotting him, Songfeng grinned. "Junior Brother Xiu Yuan, perfect timing. The weather’s been sunny and warm lately—wash all these clothes for us, and be quick about it. We need them soon."Song Feng had arrived eight years earlier and was now a robust young man, seemingly of noble birth from some country. His daily demeanor was rather flamboyant, and with his wealth, he had managed to gather a few elite disciples who often hovered around him.
Unlike the Academy, at the No Moon Court, if one's aptitude fell short during advanced training, the Master would no longer impart higher-level Immortal Techniques. Those who wished to learn further had to pay for it. Thus, even among elite disciples, those lacking in aptitude often struggled with financial constraints. With only three taels of meal allowance per month, how could anyone afford the hundreds of taels required for a single Immortal Technique manual from the library? Consequently, the wealthy never lacked for sycophants.
Lei Xiuyuan smiled faintly. Naturally fair-featured and delicate, his smile now appeared particularly pure and endearing, his voice also softening considerably: "I must trouble Senior Brother Song Feng to bring it out personally. You could have just left it in the room."
Song Feng, unaccustomed to seeing him speak so amiably, was momentarily stunned. Watching as Xiuyuan rolled up his sleeves and began fetching water to wash with remarkable ease, he found it utterly unbelievable: "Have you had an epiphany? To be so docile today?"
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