And so, Liu Ying spent two days on this peach mountain. Aside from soaking in hot springs for health benefits, she was busy identifying potential hazards to prevent any danger for the Magic Bureau members who would later ascend the mountain.
Had Liu Ying not been actively searching for dangers, she would never have noticed that the warning sign at the foot of the mountain had been buried. She suspected it might have been Tiger Girl’s accidental doing the day before.
The discovery sent a cold sweat down Liu Ying’s back. If students had climbed up without seeing the warning sign, it would have been disastrous. The enchanted peach blossoms were terrifying enough, but even if they could be dealt with, escaping afterward would still be impossible.
Wiping her sweat, Liu Ying straightened the warning sign. After confirming that Yang Xiyan and the others hadn’t gone to that peach mountain, she left ahead of time. Now that the danger was eliminated, she could return to M City in just a day using her off-road motorcycle.
Seeing that they were already preparing to take out the off-road vehicle, Liu Ying, assured of their safety, recalled Tiger Girl, retrieved the vehicle, and headed back to M City.
All she wanted now was to report the hazard as quickly as possible, then return to the school’s restricted archives to search for the “Temporal Summoning Spell.” She needed to summon Future Ying and ask her about the specifics.
She wanted to know who had hurt Future Ying.
She also needed to tell her sister to help Yang Xiyan—that way, all their troubles would be resolved.
On the night of her return, a heavy downpour engulfed M City, the rain so thick it blotted out the moon, leaving only the neon lights flickering faintly through the deluge.
Liu Ying stepped into the bathroom and sank into the bathtub, a look of contentment on her face as she nearly dozed off—until her phone rang.
Though it was outside the bathroom, she heard it clearly.
After finishing her bath, she returned to her bedroom, slipping on oversized white slippers and pajamas before sitting on the edge of the bed. Glancing at her phone, she was puzzled to see a call from the City Lord’s residence.
Dialing the number, a pleasant female voice came through: “Hello… may I ask if this is Lady Liu Ying?”
“Yes.”
“Here’s the situation—there’s been a disappearance in the A Zone of the Beast Island training grounds. Despite dispatching numerous rescue teams, we’ve had no success. After reviewing the records of many mages active in that area, we noticed that your submitted report indicated you spent a considerable amount of time in Zone A. We were hoping you might have some leads.”
“Go on.” Liu Ying’s brows furrowed slightly, a vague sense of foreboding creeping into her heart.
“Among the students from Snow Spirit Noble Girls’ Academy who were on the return route through Zone A, they were suddenly attacked by an S-class beast—the Hurricane Darkwing Roc. Fortunately, the roc was merely passing by and only unleashed a gust of wind, so there weren’t many casualties.”
“Thanks to the relentless efforts of the rescue teams, most of the students are now safe. However, two remain in the danger zone, and one is missing. We wanted to ask if you were present at the scene at the time?”
“What’s the name of the missing girl?” Liu Ying’s grip on the phone tightened.
Snow Spirit Noble Girls’ Academy—that was Yang Xiyan’s school.
“Her name is Yang Xiyan, a B-class water mage. According to witness accounts, she went missing after diverting the Darkwing Roc’s attention.”
“Lady Liu Ying?”
“Lady Liu Ying?”
Liu Ying, now dressed in a flash, snatched up her phone and pressed, “Which direction did she go?”
“Ah, we’re not sure. It seems she ran southeast. The rescue teams have already begun searching in that area. Since you weren’t present at the scene, we apologize for disturbing you!”
Southeast?
Liu Ying mounted the off-road flying motorcycle, put on her helmet, and sped away with the throttle wide open.
Damn it, she shouldn’t have made such a rookie mistake. She should have been behind Yang Xiyan and the others. Damn it all—there was no need for her to take point.
The sky was thick with dark clouds, thunder rumbling within them as a torrential downpour poured relentlessly. The only sounds in her ears were the deafening roar of thunder and the ceaseless drumming of rain.
The world was silent except for the storm.
Liu Ying’s flying motorcycle raced at full speed. Twenty minutes later, she left the highway and entered the jungle. Spotting the blockade line, she didn’t hesitate to accelerate and charge straight through. The rain seemed to freeze in midair, and the on-duty personnel couldn’t react in time.
Time itself seemed to stop for that brief moment.
An hour of full-speed flight nearly drained the core energy of her off-road flying bike. Dismounting, she found herself deep within Training Zone A, roughly as far as Peach Mountain.
However, Peach Mountain lay to the southwest, while she was now in the southeast.
Liu Ying removed her helmet, leaning against the motorcycle as she caught her breath, then summoned Hu Niu.
Hu Niu quickly grew in size, eyeing her drenched master with concern. “Master, you’re too reckless! You actually used the power of time to shorten a day and a half’s journey into just an hour.”
Liu Ying stowed the motorcycle and climbed onto Hu Niu’s back. “Hurry up and use your nose to find Yang Xiyan’s location. Otherwise, the rain will wash away her scent soon.”
“Don’t worry, Master. Yang Xiyan’s scent is nearby.” Hu Niu sniffed twice before breaking into a sprint, her speed no less than that of a flying motorcycle at full throttle.
Liu Ying closed her eyes to recover her strength. With Hu Niu here, she no longer needed to waste energy.
She was strong—strong enough to shatter the heavens. Being called a peerless genius wasn’t just empty praise. She had no need for boasting; in this world, those who could defeat her could be counted on two hands.
She had mastered all seven elemental magics, the four fundamental theorem magics, and auxiliary magics. Among them, her time magic was the strongest.
The four fundamental theorem magics were: time, space, destruction, and life.
This was why, when Future Ying summoned her, she wasn’t surprised—only shocked and stunned. She firmly believed her strength was second to none, that no one in the world could seal her away. And yet, Future Ying had been sealed.
—It was bizarre.
Of course, if it was as Future Ying said that she had lost half her power before being sealed then it was possible. But why hadn’t Future Ying dared to speak of it?
“Master, how are you holding up?” Hu Niu asked as she ran.
“Even for me, using the power of time at such intensity is exhausting. But it’s nothing serious.” Liu Ying lay on Hu Niu’s back, removing her wet clothes and covering herself with a blanket as she closed her eyes to rest.
Though she was worried, she had to sleep.
Hu Niu didn’t disturb her, instead activating a barrier to shield them from the rain. She then lengthened and softened her fur to keep Liu Ying warm.
Time flew by, and Liu Ying soon fell asleep.
The rain grew heavier, plunging the world into darkness. The jungle was filled with nothing but the sound of pouring rain, and Yang Xiyan’s scent grew fainter.
After an hour of searching, Hu Niu finally detected Yang Xiyan’s location. Through her amber eyes, she saw a mountain of peach blossoms ahead—within it lay Yang Xiyan’s scent, along with that of the Darkfeather Roc.
Tiger Girl bared her teeth and charged in with a fierce snarl.
Despite her massive size, she moved with astonishing agility, darting into the mountains in the blink of an eye. The area was shrouded in relentless rain and swirling mist. There, an S-ranked Darkfeather Roc was ensnared by an enormous ancient tree, already on the brink of death.
The towering ancient tree stretched so high its height was immeasurable, casting a terrifying shadow over half of Peach Mountain. Many of the peach trees had already withered under its oppressive presence.
Countless branches and leaves shot toward Tiger Girl from the ancient tree. She twisted her body to evade the attack and spat out a fireball, but the branches effortlessly swatted it away, and the downpour quickly extinguished the flames.
“Roar—!”
Tiger Girl let out a furious roar, summoning several bolts of lightning from the sky. The deafening thunderclaps boomed, but the effect was minimal. Baring her fangs, a white magic circle materialized beneath her feet, and she unleashed a blinding white laser from her jaws.
“BOOM!”
The black branches swiftly moved to block, but they stood no chance against the devastating beam. Instantly, a massive hole was blasted through, and the colossal tree slowly dissolved into dark light, leaving behind the lifeless body of the Darkfeather Roc.
Liu Ying climbed down from Tiger Girl’s back, her phoenix-like brows arching. “Girl, is this Peach Mountain?”
“Yes, but not the one we visited before. There was a Phantom Boundary Tree here—I drove it away!” Tiger Girl lifted her head proudly.
“Another Peach Mountain?!” Yang Xiyan’s expression darkened. She had already cleared many dangers from the previous Peach Mountain, leaving little threat beyond the Love Peach Blossoms themselves. But this new Peach Mountain meant facing a fresh wave of perils.
She had to find her quickly.
“Tiger Girl, you handle the remaining threats. I’ll go find Yanyan.” Liu Ying leaped off Tiger Girl and dashed toward the mountaintop. She had heard that Love Peach Blossoms often had counterparts—many of them—but she never expected to encounter them like this.
Was this sheer luck?
And to think there was an S-ranked magical beast lurking at the edge of the safe zone—Yang Xiyan must have had the worst luck imaginable. Liu Ying had never met anyone so unfortunate.
Sure enough, when Liu Ying reached the summit, she found a tranquil hot spring surrounded by clusters of Love Peach Blossoms—or rather, Love Peach Trees. There was another Boundary Tree here, though not a phantom one, as well as a steep cliff.
Both the cliff and the hot spring were encased in a magical barrier, clearly set up by Yang Xiyan.
Liu Ying barged through the barrier and was met with a dazzling sight—magic crystal lamps illuminated the area. But before she could take it all in, a sudden chill froze her feet in place, and a massive ice spear shot straight for her face.
Liu Ying raised her hand and caught the spear, shouting ahead, “It’s me!”
The air fell silent. A figure emerged from beneath the cliff, still wrapped in an all-encompassing onesie pajama set. Her face was a mix of shock and relief. “Xia Qiu, you—you’re okay?”
“I’m fine.” Liu Ying effortlessly dispelled the ice magic and hurried over, grasping Yang Xiyan’s delicate hands and pressing a palm to her forehead.
Tears welled in Yang Xiyan’s eyes, her emotions overwhelming. After surviving countless near-death experiences, she had thought it was all over—yet here was Xia Qiu, appearing just in time. Had this girl always been her protector?
But Liu Ying’s expression was grim.
The Love Peach Blossoms—this girl had fallen under their influence.
Yang Xiyan, unsettled by her silence, broke the tension. “Where did you run off to? You said all those strange things and then disappeared. I still have so many questions for you.”
“Did you soak in the spring?” Liu Ying met her gaze evenly—they were nearly the same height, with Yang Xiyan just a centimeter or two shorter.
“Hmm, what’s wrong?” Yang Xiyan found her expression rather odd. She had gone through great lengths to lure the Darkfeather Roc here to escape danger, so of course she wanted to take a dip in the hot spring upon seeing it.
Liu Ying’s lips twitched. She actually went in the spring? If it were just the scent of the Love Peach Blossoms, she might have been able to handle it, but soaking in the water—that was beyond her control.
The Gentle Water Hot Spring contained a high concentration of Love Peach Blossom essence. Anyone below SS-rank wouldn’t be able to resist its effects. Tonight was bound to be a sleepless night.
Could she let Yang Xiyan handle it on her own? Probably not…
Gazing into Yang Xiyan’s innocent eyes, she said, “Um… let’s go inside the cave first. There’s something I need to tell you.”
She wasn’t prepared for something like this. If they really ended up doing that tonight, she couldn’t just ignore it like Future Ying had suggested.
What should she do?