As soon as the word “Master” left Qin Nai’s lips, both Dalu and Miao Pei froze.
Within the City Lord’s mansion stood an ancient tree that blocked out the sky. It had long been untended, and chilling gusts of wind swirled beneath its branches. Seizing the moment of their distraction, Tang Yuqiu ignored Jiang Yan entirely. He controlled his light, transparent body to ascend the tree, disappearing into the dense crown in just a few movements.
Dalu was the first to snap out of it. He looked toward Qin Nai, bewildered. “Immortal, what did you just say?”
Qin Nai was pulled back to reality by the question. Seeing Jiang Yan staring intently at the tree with a look of investigation, he chose not to clarify things. He quickly shook his head. “He looks similar to my Master. I must have been mistaken.”
Dalu looked up at the treetop with a suspicious expression and called out, “Your Highness, I have brought people to send you into reincarnation.”
Even someone as slow-witted as Miao Pei sensed something was wrong now. He turned to Dalu. “So you do know him. You told us you did not, and you called him a restless spirit.”
Dalu waved his hands frantically, explaining himself, “No, it is not like that! Our Highness is trapped by that spirit. If he were not, how could things be like this? Even if he is a ghost, he should not be visible to people at will. He must be trapped by that thing.”
Miao Pei had never heard of such a thing. He turned to look at Jiang Yan, but the man had already shifted his gaze away to look at Qin Nai. “Are you certain he looks exactly like your Master?”
Qin Nai frowned at him, his usual composed, gentlemanly demeanor nearly shattering as he curled his lips into a cold sneer. “What is it that Brother Jiang wishes to say? That my Master is already dead, reduced to a wandering soul? That he is here committing evil deeds, leaving the dead in unrest?”
Miao Pei let out an exclamation, staring at Qin Nai in confusion. Realizing that Qin Nai had misunderstood, he hurriedly walked over to tug on his sleeve before Jiang Yan could speak. “Senior, you have misunderstood. The Sect Master was merely asking; he meant nothing by it.”
If he meant nothing by it, he would not have needed to confirm it again, Qin Nai thought. He turned his gaze away. “My Master is perfectly fine at the Wufeng Tower. How could he possibly appear here? You saw wrong.”
Jiang Yan let out a low, ambiguous chuckle. “I do not yet know the reason you left the Wufeng Tower. If your Master met with misfortune after your departure, the timing would be quite fitting for him to be here.”
“You are spouting nonsense!” Qin Nai barked. The polished manners he had been putting on vanished completely, and he glared at Jiang Yan with rage. “Our Wufeng Tower has no grudge against you. Why are you cursing my Master for no reason? Is it possible that we could somehow affect you?”
“Your Wufeng Tower,” Jiang Yan repeated. He turned his head and gave a light, dismissive laugh, ignoring Qin Nai entirely, his disdain absolute.
Miao Pei, having no idea what was happening, quietly released Qin Nai’s sleeve and gave a dry laugh. “Let us just get the person down from the tree. Once we see him clearly, we will know for sure.”
Dalu, also flustered by the sudden turn of events, offered a placating smile. “I will bring His Highness down.”
The Highness in his mouth understood human speech and possessed shifting moods. If he was unhappy, no amount of persuasion would work, and clearly, he was in a foul mood today. Dalu called out beneath the tree several times to no avail.
“Perhaps he is afraid because there are so many strangers.”
Miao Pei walked to the base of the tree and looked up. The branches were intertwined, and the leaves were thick. Before he could make sense of what was happening above, a sword hum rang out. He turned to Dalu and asked, “Did you hear the sound of a sword?”
Dalu nodded. “A little, but how could there be a sword hum in this tree?”
Before they could find a reason, a rustling sound erupted from deep within the foliage. Miao Pei looked up again to see a flash of bright white descending from the sky, accompanied by a low curse. Yu Zaixi braced himself on Miao Pei’s shoulder, flipped backward, landed, and turned to grab Miao Pei by the collar, throwing him upward while laughing. “Pei! You are over four hundred years old; this is the prime time to push yourself! Go!”
His appearance was far too sudden. Everyone present, save for Jiang Yan, was stunned for two seconds. Jiang Yan, however, let out a resigned sigh and flicked his finger, pulling Yu Zaixi to his side.
“Why are you not resting?”
He spoke with the same oppressive, elder-brother authority he used when facing Yuan Qi. Yu Zaixi did not like Jiang Yan speaking to him that way, so he slapped his hand away in disgust. “Why should I rest? I do not want to sleep.”
Mostly, he felt relieved after figuring out what had happened two nights ago. There was no longer a need to hide from Jiang Yan. While his mind was still troubled, he was more afraid of missing out on news.
Qin Nai’s expression softened slightly after Yu Zaixi appeared, though he was clearly still angry. He asked Yu Zaixi, “How did you get here?”
Yu Zaixi pulled at one corner of his mouth, offering an awkward laugh. “I followed you.”
He did not possess the strength to travel thousands of miles with a single array like Jiang Yan, so he had simply chained several arrays together to get here. He was no match in skill, so he had to rely on his wits. It was messy, but since he was alone, no one knew.
Jiang Yan glanced sideways at him. “If you had opened ten more arrays, you would have finished a tour of the Wuwang Void.”
Yu Zaixi clicked his tongue. “What are you talking about? I do not know.”
He turned away, arms crossed, to look at the tree, but the leaves were too thick to see anything. Even if they could see, they could not find Miao Pei; he was no longer in the treetop. Yu Zaixi hissed. “Why is there no movement? He has not gotten lost in an illusion, has he?”
“An illusion?” Jiang Yan looked at him.
Seeing the confusion in Jiang Yan’s eyes, which did not look fake, Yu Zaixi let out an exclamation. “You did not know there was an illusion entrance up there? Is there actually something you do not know?”
Jiang Yan looked back up at the crown. Before Yu Zaixi could mock him further, he drew the Wushang sword, stepped into the air, and vanished into the foliage.
Qin Nai moved to follow, but Yu Zaixi reached out to stop him. “There is nothing worth seeing inside. It is a man’s memories; it is tragic. Let us not look.”
Illusions came in many forms: artificial fabrications, mirror illusions left behind by the deceased to review their lives, the inexplicable dream illusions that appeared in Yu Zaixi’s own dreams, and various smaller ones born from deep-seated resentment or excessive spiritual energy. The one in the tree was a mirror illusion. Yu Zaixi turned to Qin Nai and asked, “Are you certain your Master is still at the Wufeng Tower? How long has it been since you returned?”
Qin Nai did not mention how long, but he said with absolute certainty, “He is at the Wufeng Tower.”
Yu Zaixi nodded. “Then this likely is not your Master’s life. I took a look; it is about this city.”
Dalu leaned in, asking, “About what in this city?”
“It is the memories of the protagonist in this city. Why are you so nervous?”
As soon as Yu Zaixi finished speaking, Dalu’s face turned ash-gray. His lips trembled for a long time before he muttered, “Then this is a maze. They will never get out.”
“But I just came out,” Yu Zaixi tilted his head and said.
“Did you enter the city?” Dalu asked.
“No, I reached the gate, but some soldiers shot arrows at me. I got angry and left.”
“Once you enter the city, you cannot get out.” Having said this, Dalu grabbed Yu Zaixi’s arm. “Immortal, please go and save them. I do not know what grudges exist between you all, but it is a waste to have healthy people go in and never return. I cannot get in, but can you go and bring them out?”
“Then we must hurry.” Seeing Dalu’s tears and his heartfelt plea, Yu Zaixi’s expression turned uncharacteristically serious. He said to Qin Nai, “I will go. You wait outside.”
Qin Nai shook his head. “I am entering the city.”
“Ha?” Yu Zaixi, having walked halfway away, could not help but turn back and glare at him. “Are you sick? It would be faster to just go back to the Wufeng Tower and see if your Master is still there.”
Luozhong had been a small city since ancient times; it was not large, and its population was sparse. Surrounded by larger cities, it often saw merchants passing through, so the city was filled with inns and taverns.
When the two of them entered the illusion, there was no one at the city gate. Yu Zaixi pondered for a moment. “Is there any point in us going in?”
Qin Nai was not there to save people; he just nodded and walked straight ahead.
Unlike when Yu Zaixi had entered earlier, the gates were wide open this time. Merchants and vendors bustled about, and the city was thriving. Yu Zaixi followed Qin Nai with his arms crossed, walking with a wobbly, unmethodical, drunk-like gait that was nonetheless remarkably at ease.
He had no idea how many years ago this was. As he walked, he observed. Seeing that Qin Nai was searching aimlessly, he let out a sigh. “Searching like this is no solution. We have to think about where your Master would appear. Think about what he likes most.”
Unfortunately, by the time Qin Nai went up the mountain, Tang Yuqiu was already the Tower Master; he had no idea what Tang Yuqiu liked while down in the world. Yu Zaixi did not hold high expectations for him, but to his surprise, Qin Nai accurately named a place: “Changfeng Restaurant.”
“Does your Master like the wind?” Yu Zaixi asked curiously.
Qin Nai shook his head. “Coincidence, perhaps.”
He then asked, “How do you know there is a Changfeng Restaurant in Luozhong? Have you been here before?”
Qin Nai glanced at the street. “I have not, and I do not know where the Changfeng Restaurant is. Let us look for it.”
Yu Zaixi nodded. “That is easy. Just ask.”
He flagged down a passerby, and after a polite inquiry, was pleasantly surprised to learn it truly existed.
Qin Nai turned, stunned. “Really?”
The passerby looked at them as if they were crazy. “Do you want it to exist or not?”
“It exists, it exists! Thank you so much! My friend is just too excited.” Yu Zaixi laughed and sent the man on his way, then returned to Qin Nai’s side. “This does not necessarily prove the soul is your Master, but let us go and see.”
Qin Nai was silent for a moment before giving a bitter smile. “You heard it all.”
Yu Zaixi nodded. “You looked quite terrifying when you were angry. If I were standing opposite you, I definitely would not anger you. Who knows how many complex arrays you have hidden in your heart? It would be a headache to get entangled in them.”
Qin Nai sighed at his words. “You…”
He was truly like a refreshing breeze, unbound and free.
“Let us go and see,” Qin Nai continued.
Yu Zaixi had no objections. As they walked, the bustling streets and the conversations of the crowd grew overwhelming, making Qin Nai’s bitter tone stand out even more. “So, you knew from the very beginning that I was not what I seemed.”
“Not exactly. I just knew you had an agenda.”
“I apologize for keeping you aggrieved for so long.”
“You are the one who has been aggrieved, are you not?” Yu Zaixi laughed loudly. “You have to endure Jiang Yan’s moods every day. How pitiful.”
After laughing, he added, “Who lives their life without an agenda? Making friends even more so.”
Qin Nai seemed to think of something. He narrowed his eyes and asked, “Then what is your agenda for living?”
“To go home.” Yu Zaixi did not hide the fact that he was an outsider soul. He repeated, “To leave this body and go home.”