After their conversation, Lin Ran was even more certain that the immortal in front of her was not someone to be trifled with. Unlike those romance novels where immortals are portrayed as pure and easily deceived, where anyone could easily impersonate them, and they only excel in immortal arts while lacking in everything else. But perhaps because she had read the books and confirmed her stance, she was sure he wasn’t from the Demon Clan or a monster, so Lin Ran wasn’t that afraid of Lou Shuangzui. She was even eager to get on good terms with him.
The night passed quickly, and sunlight streamed through the windows inlaid with polished abalone shells, casting shimmering light on the desk, creating a play of shadows.
The Empress had died in the chaos of war, and now the one holding power in the harem was the Imperial Noble Consort Lan Zhen. She never liked Lin Ran, and with her daughter not getting a spot and crying so sadly, she saw Lin Ran as a thorn in her side. So even though Lin Ran was leaving home completely, the luggage she packed was sparse, mostly filled with useless junk.
Lou Shuangzui looked through the items one by one, stroked his chin, and sincerely offered his advice, “Actually, these things they gave you are useless. It’s better not to bring them. Once you get to the mountain, the uncles and elders will give you much better things, materials that can store immortal power and carve formations.”
Lin Ran thought about it and realized it was true, so she casually abandoned the things given by the consort, taking only a small bundle, and followed Lou Shuangzui back to the Immortal Realm.
While flying above the clouds, Lin Ran couldn’t help but look back at the distant mountains, seeing the unextinguished beacon fires and the dark land, she fell silent for a moment.
“Lou Shixiong, I saw you in the hall, and you seemed to have some sympathy for Lin Yue. With the war about to start again, aren’t you worried at all?” The girl’s voice was dry, her eyes clear like a sunny sky, filled with unprovoked compassion.
Lou Shuangzui shook the fan in his hand, seemingly knowing what she wanted to ask, and glanced sideways at the girl, “The Heavenly Dao has its own destiny. I merely accelerated the process. For a pampered princess, whether it’s sooner or later, what difference does it make?”
“I pity her for the disparity she was born into, but aside from her, I also pity the suffering of the common people, pity the women treated as commodities in the chaos, pity so many things that there’s little left for any one person. If the uprising happens a bit faster, a better world will come sooner, and fewer people will die. So this bit of pity won’t occupy my mind anymore.”
Lin Ran was silent for a while, then nodded, “That’s true. For Lin Yue’s one Hundred Birds Dress, who knows how many hunters died in the mountains, how many birds went extinct. Gains and losses, but I…” She gave a bitter smile, “I’m a girl, I always empathize.”
“Human emotions are complex. You were bullied by her, but knowing her future fate, you still feel pity. Just like the Emperor, he loves the Imperial Noble Consort, loves the Seventh Princess, but how much of that love is mixed with show-off, consideration, and insincerity? It’s more like a trophy than love. After acting for so long, he might not even know himself.”
Lou Shuangzui touched the storage sachet at his waist, took out a box of jewelry, and handed it to Lin Ran, “Accept your emotions, whether you like them or not. Love, hate, anger, and resentment are all parts of us. Accepting yourself allows you to better perceive yourself, making cultivation smoother.”
He paused for a moment, then explained, “This box of jewelry was chosen from the accessories I made before coming here. Each piece can barely be considered a low-grade spiritual tool. Your master is an artifact refiner, so I don’t need to worry about high-grade immortal weapons for combat. Over the past two years, I’ve been making accessories for your master, so I’ve researched many techniques, including some for making women’s hair ornaments. I hope Shimei won’t mind.”
Lin Ran held the box, feeling its weight in her hands. She opened the lid and glanced inside, seeing that each piece was better than what Lin Yue wore. Her eyes couldn’t help but redden, but she smiled, “Thank you, Shixiong!”
They flew for a while longer until they reached the White Jade Platform. The girl quietly asked her question, “I heard immortals have a ‘Dao’ they follow. What Dao does Lou Shixiong cultivate?”
She initially guessed it was the Path of Emotionlessness because he seemed gentle but was actually cold, definitely not the Path of Joy. And talking about entering the world and transformation didn’t quite fit either. As a supporting character in a web novel without much focus, Lou Shuangzui wasn’t elaborated on much in the book, so she had to ask directly.
“Why don’t you guess?” Lou Shuangzui was forming hand seals to control the cloud, so he casually asked back.
Lin Ran thought seriously for a moment, still firm in her initial thought, “The Path of Emotionlessness?”
“No, it’s the Path of Affection.”
“…The Path of Affection?” Lin Ran was a bit surprised, but quickly realized, “The most affectionate is also the most emotionless?”
Lou Shuangzui curved his lips at her.
Before going up the mountain, Lin Ran was Lou Shuangzui’s task. Once on the mountain, she was handed over to Yan Zhige, but the work at the Artifact Refining Peak was endless. Yan Zhige could only send a bunch of things over and temporarily leave her with the idle Mu Yunge.
However, Mu Yunge couldn’t take care of Lin Ran for long because the opening of the secret realm wouldn’t wait for the right time. This time, the once-in-a-century secret realm was a training ground—the Nuwa Secret Realm. It had been many years since its initial development, and the cultivation world knew it well. The treasure trove of the Earth Yin Nuwa Empress was perfect for someone like Mu Yunge with a yin attribute to train.
There weren’t many Golden Core disciples. In the batch before Lou Shuangzui, there were only He Zhibai from the Sect Leader Peak, Murong Rao from the Magic Peak, Mo Jiangrong from the Herb Peak, Shangguan Shu from the Pill Peak, and a promising outer sect senior brother.
In this batch, only Lou Shuangzui and Mu Yunge had reached the Golden Core stage, so for this secret realm, Wen Shunian planned to have Murong Rao and Shangguan Shu take the two juniors along.
This was also because He Zhibai wasn’t good at fighting, Mo Jiangrong was busy taking care of his precious immortal herbs, rushing to grow a batch for the Pill Peak to prepare for war. So in the end, only Murong Rao and Shangguan Shu could accompany them.
A week before the secret realm opened, they set off from Chen Yue Sect. Lian Chaoxi sent Lou Shuangzui to the foot of the mountain—stormy weather was approaching, so he wouldn’t be going into seclusion for now. Plus, his first disciple was too capable, so he had been training disciples at the training ground, teaching both his own peak and those from other peaks who came to seek guidance.
He still wore the jade hairpin Lou Shuangzui had put on him that morning, with water droplet-shaped tassels hanging from the end, adorning his half-tied, loose, and lazy bun.
“The Sect Leader Shixiong will also be going in a few days. This is a training secret realm, with points and rankings to be calculated. Shixiong will go to oversee things, to prevent anyone from unfairly scoring and bullying our Chen Yue disciples,” Lian Chaoxi tidied Lou Shuangzui’s clothes and reminded him, “Take care of yourself. I don’t need you to earn any false reputation for me. Many Nascent Soul disciples are going this time, just do your best.”
—Don’t be fooled by Wen Weili being only at the Golden Core stage. In reality, he had to open his own peak out of necessity. Among the inner disciples, there were quite a few at the Golden Core and Nascent Soul stages. Each peak master and elder was at least in the late Nascent Soul stage. Lian Chaoxi had already broken through to the Transformation Stage and entered the Return to Void Stage a year after Lou Shuangzui joined.
Since there were no sword cultivators among the disciples going this time, everyone traveled by cloud. They summoned a large cloud together, taking turns casting spells to drive it, and without stopping, they could reach the secret realm entrance in three days.
Because there was a secret realm that opened every few hundred years, many inns, taverns, and small vendors had been established around the area, taking advantage of the timing to set up stalls.
The number of people coming from the five great peaks varied, and they often brought outer sect members. But since Wen Weili had been silent for five years, there were still many hidden issues in the inner and outer sects of Chen Yue Sect that hadn’t been addressed, so they didn’t bring any this time. Besides the five great peaks, there were also some unaffiliated cultivators and sects not accepted by the five peaks, who didn’t take on Heavenly Dao tasks, that would come.
So many tavern and inn rooms had to be booked in advance, otherwise, even four days ahead, one might end up sleeping on the streets.
Chen Yue Sect, of course, had already booked rooms, so after a brief rest, they had three or four days to explore the stalls.
This time, only the inner sect and sect leader elders came, so funds and rooms were sufficient, and each person was booked a single room.
When they went upstairs to their rooms, it was already late, and they didn’t encounter anyone. But the next morning, when Lou Shuangzui went downstairs, he ran into a group of drunken female cultivators.
Leading them was a spirited young woman with sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes, her cold aura seemed to freeze people. When she saw Lou Shuangzui, she didn’t continue down but moved to the side of the stairs, indicating for them to go first. She gave a polite smile and nodded slightly at Lou Shuangzui.
Then she walked a bit closer, noticing the Chen Yue Sect emblem on Lou Shuangzui’s lapel. The female cultivator paused, cupped her hands, and bowed, “So it’s a fellow Daoist from Chen Yue Sect. I apologize for the rudeness of our first meeting. I am Yu Zhiruo, the first disciple of Xia Ling Peak from Bai Hua Sect.”
Lou Shuangzui’s lips curved into a polite smile as he returned the gesture, “Lou Shuangzui, first disciple of Sword Peak from Chen Yue Sect. Nice to meet you, Senior Sister Yu.”
After a brief exchange, they parted ways. Yu Zhiruo took her hungover, wild-playing junior sisters back to rest, while Lou Shuangzui planned to explore the stalls around the Nuwa Secret Realm—Wen Shunian mentioned that some retired seniors might set up stalls to earn cultivation resources and funds.
Before leaving, his keen ears caught the conversation among the female cultivators from Bai Hua Sect.
“I heard there are fewer people from Chen Yue this year. We booked 80% of the rooms, so the rest must be for Chen Yue. Seems like there are about six rooms left, but that’s better than being with those unaffiliated cultivators.”
“Sister, don’t be prejudiced.”
“Oh, I’m just saying. Those unaffiliated cultivators are pitiful, but because they’re pitiful, they’re often poor and might harbor jealousy or malice. It’s just not very safe!”
…
After hearing just a few sentences, Lou Shuangzui connected it with the room booking information he got from Murong Rao and confirmed that Bai Hua Sect’s guess was correct.
It seemed this inn only had people from the two major sects, with no chance to meet other sects or unaffiliated cultivators. But with half a month in the secret realm, there would be plenty of opportunities to see other sects in person, so there was no rush.
The first disciple of Sword Peak leisurely descended the stairs. On the first floor, only the innkeeper was dozing off, with no one else in sight, so he went out on his own.
The morning crowd wasn’t small, the streets bustling and noisy. If not for the soundproof formations, the noise would have been heard in the inn long ago.
Author’s Note: