Thousands of demons poured out like a tide, and within a night, the cultivation world was turned upside down, leaving everyone on edge.
Chu Ming wiped the fine sweat from his forehead, looking somewhat flustered. He hadn’t had a good night’s sleep in days. Since the demons had launched their sudden attack from an unknown source, he had been leading the Qing Yu disciples around to provide aid, trying his best to prevent innocent civilians from suffering.
Not only the Qing Yu disciples but all the major sects were responding to this unexpected disaster. As a leading figure among the younger disciples, Chu Ming felt exhausted. Just as he managed to catch a moment’s respite, he overheard a fellow disciple, who had also just come from a fierce battle, express concern, “…Why hasn’t there been any news from Yun Zhong Jun? These demons are so aggressive; she may be in danger.”
Chu Ming froze, placing the water bottle he had raised to his lips back down, lost in thought.
He was the only one in all of Qing Yu who knew that Yun Duan and Shang Can were in Yun Cheng. He had intended to let the two of them rest for a while, which was why he hadn’t reported their whereabouts. But now, with the impending battle, he couldn’t help but worry about their safety.
Were they still in Yun Cheng? Had they encountered any dangers? Shang Can’s eyes hadn’t fully healed; even if she had the skills, she couldn’t utilize them. Fortunately, she was with her junior sister Yun Duan, who would definitely ensure her safety. However, the fact that the rare Immortal Body was so coveted made him hope they wouldn’t be exploited amidst the chaos.
As these thoughts raced through his mind, anxiety began to grip him, and he felt an urge to go meet up with the two of them. But for some reason, he seemed unusually busy today. No sooner had he sat down than he heard urgent news from a Qing Yu disciple about a village in the north being attacked. He had no choice but to rise with his sword and head toward that location.
On the way, Chu Ming surveyed the surrounding cultivators and remarked in confusion, “…Why does it feel like there are so many fewer people? It seems like there are hardly any besides us from Qing Yu.”
“Indeed…” A young disciple nervously scanned the crowd and whispered, “The deputy sect master of Tianwai Tian hurriedly left this morning with quite a few people, saying they had urgent matters to attend to. But they didn’t take us along, nor did they tell us what it was about… I find it a bit suspicious.”
Chu Ming’s heart skipped a beat, feeling a mix of frustration and an inexplicable unease. Just as he was about to dig deeper into Tianwai Tian’s whereabouts, his peripheral vision suddenly caught sight of something white gracefully soaring toward him from the sky.
He immediately turned his head and stared for a moment before exclaiming in delight, “It’s a paper crane!”
Before the young disciple could react, Yushan Jun stepped forward, a blend of surprise and joy on his face, and carefully caught the paper crane with outstretched hands. After a quick glance, his eyes squinted with a smile.
It was Shang Can’s handiwork.
Yun Duan’s paper cranes were always neatly folded, with crisp lines, making dozens look nearly identical. But the founder, Shang Can, wasn’t so meticulous; some had long wings, others had flattened beaks, and each one looked a bit different.
He hadn’t expected to receive a spirit-calling paper crane from Shang Can after all these years, which evoked a bittersweet nostalgia. Realizing he was still in front of his juniors, Chu Ming quickly gathered his emotions and gently touched the paper crane to hear Shang Can’s message.
“…”
The paper crane stirred but remained silent. Just as Chu Ming began to suspect that Shang Can was teasing him, he suddenly heard her calm voice resonate.
“…In the southeast direction of Qing Yu, fifty miles away, it would take about the time of a cup of tea to fly there on a sword. There is a solitary mountain.”
The topic came out of nowhere, and Chu Ming was taken aback as Shang Can continued, “It’s the same mountain that was once attacked by a wave of demons. You should have some memory of it.”
Ah, it was the place Yun Duan almost encountered danger while traveling down the mountain. Chu Ming raised an eyebrow in realization, but his growing unease intensified. The paper crane could only repeat the recorded words, unaware of his feelings, and continued in a steady tone, “Follow the small path up the mountain until you see a tree burned by fire. Then follow the ash trail; I’ve cast a spell to keep it from scattering.”
Her unflappable voice suddenly paused, and after a moment, it resumed, as if the earlier pause had been merely Chu Ming’s imagination. Shang Can’s voice was so calm it seemed almost emotionless.
“Yun Duan is there. Bring her back to Qing Yu.”
Chu Ming’s mind erupted with a loud bang; he hadn’t fully grasped the meaning behind Shang Can’s words before her voice fell silent again. He anxiously grasped the paper crane, his eyes widening but careful not to apply too much pressure. After a long while, he heard a faint sigh.
“…I thought I should say something to you, but I couldn’t think of anything.”
She spoke gently, and Chu Ming could almost envision her expression, as if she were being nonchalant to the point of irritation—
“I buried a jar of wine under the Yuyin tree on Yuheng Peak.”
Shang Can said this lightly, as if it were casual chit-chat: “So many years have passed; I don’t know if it’s still drinkable. If you want it, take it.”
As her words fell, the paper crane flapped its wings one last time before its spiritual energy dissipated, leaving it lifeless.
“——”
Chu Ming’s hands trembled slightly as he held the paper crane. He wanted to grip it tightly but couldn’t bring himself to do so, his teeth grinding as veins bulged on his forehead.
The young disciple beside him was taken aback by his appearance. The spirit-calling paper crane only transmitted the message to Chu Ming alone, and the disciple, confused, hesitated for a moment before bravely approaching to speak. But Chu Ming was quicker, urgently turning to leave. The disciple paused, then hurried after him, stumbling over his words, “Y-Yushan Jun, aren’t we supposed to head to that village—”
“Go ahead without me.” Chu Ming’s voice trembled slightly, and the disciple noticed that his grip on the sword hilt had turned white from the force. “I need to find someone.”
“Find someone?” The disciple repeated in confusion. “Who? Do you need our help?”
“…”
Chu Ming paused, a bitter expression slowly emerging on his handsome face.
“…You won’t be able to help.”
The young disciple watched as the usually steady Yushan Jun smiled in a daze, raised a hand to cover his eyes, and said hoarsely, “…I’m afraid this trip will… not bring anything back.”
A sea of flames engulfed them.
The barriers erected stood as fragile as paper before the endless flow of fiery meteors. The massive hand of flames effortlessly tossed people aside, the air thick with the smell of burning, the heat so intense that hair curled and ignited. Each breath felt like a stabbing pain from the scorching flames.
Exhausted from fighting, the cultivators occasionally caught a brief moment to look up, only to see the cause of this hellish scene hovering in the air, her fiery wings shining like a second sun in the sky.
All assaults directed at her were easily deflected, and any reckless cultivators attempting to engage her in close combat were swiftly struck down by her wings. They could hardly discern any emotion from the figure behind the white jade mask; they could only catch a glimpse of her crimson-golden eyes, radiant and calm to an unbelievable degree, as if she were gazing at insignificant creatures dancing in her palm. There was no sorrow or joy in those eyes, only a chilling aura that left them shivering.
All who witnessed this one-sided battle could never forget this scene. For the rest of their lives, they would be haunted by it, repeatedly insisting that they had never seen such a powerful demon. Yet no one dared to admit that, compared to the terrifying monsters they described, that figure seemed more like a divine being delivering punishment.
As if bored with the sight before her, the cultivators saw Shang Can lower her head, and a low, weary voice drifted down from above.
“Leave.”
In an instant, a fierce wind suddenly arose, and the unextinguished heavenly fire blazed even more fiercely against the wind. Some cultivators, frightened out of their wits, hurriedly flew away on their swords. Only the people from Tianwaitian remained still, not daring to act recklessly. They shouted hoarsely in the storm, “Substitute Leader! What should we do?”
The tone of their calls clearly showed that their fighting spirit had vanished, and soon several voices responded around them, indicating that the cultivators were all intimidated by the overwhelming power displayed.
With morale lost, even a large number of people were like a scattered sand. Standing at the forefront, Pei Chen’s gaze turned cold, a sarcastic smile creeping onto his lips. He did not respond but merely raised his sleeve to shield himself from the flying sand and stones brought by the gale, then turned his gaze back toward the direction where Shang Can had been.
But he couldn’t see her figure; Shang Can was no longer there.
She really didn’t like fighting, Shang Can thought, feeling both pain and bitterness.
If she were to say this to the cultivators who had just fought with her, they would surely scold her. After all, Shang Can had just unleashed her demonic power, suppressing over a hundred cultivators single-handedly, leaving them with no chance to retaliate. Now to say she didn’t like fighting seemed nothing short of hypocrisy.
Only Shang Can herself knew how much she didn’t want to take action. When she had emerged from the cave, she was already at the end of her strength, intending to find a quiet place to sleep, but Pei Chen had come so quickly with his people that she had to force herself to respond.
After all, Yun Duan was still on the mountain and hadn’t regained consciousness. If these cultivators discovered the sleeping, flawless immortal body—
Shang Can did not trust them, especially Pei Chen. Previously, he had been the perfect gentleman, but now his eyes were filled with hatred. During their confrontation, Pei Chen’s attacks had been ruthless, every strike a killing blow. Shang Can felt she had nothing to explain, yet seeing his seemingly frenzied state stirred an inexplicable unease within her.
Feelings… were the most hurtful.
For reasons she couldn’t understand, Shang Can had held back against Pei Chen and chosen a moment to escape far away—she indeed had little strength left.
Only then did Shang Can realize that her whole body felt like it had been torn apart, a painful, unbearable prickling sensation spreading. She took a careful breath and instinctively reached for her medicine but found nothing. It was then she realized her current situation and couldn’t help but laugh at how muddled she had gotten in the fight.
After all, at this point, having already given half of her life essence to Yun Duan, the fact that she could still move and think was truly remarkable—even just now, she had found a way to tap into the terrifying spiritual power. Shang Can herself found it puzzling. However, as the initial test subject for that medicine, she had no one else to refer to and could only guess that it was because Yun Duan hadn’t awakened yet, and the medicine’s effect needed some time to manifest.
She wondered if Chu Ming had received her paper crane. When she had made her move just now, she had been quite careful, hoping she hadn’t affected the fire ash markers she had left behind; otherwise, it would take a lot of effort to find Yun Duan.
At that moment, she had left the mountain where Yun Duan was and had arrived at another mountain not far away; otherwise, she felt there was still a risk of being discovered by the cultivators or Chu Ming. Shang Can had no particular destination. The events had unfolded to this point, and she had displayed an unusual calm throughout. She realized her change in temperament might be related to the half-demon blood in her; when her eyes turned like this, she felt a sort of inexplicable arrogance, as if nothing could catch her attention. She simply made a rational decision and waited for the end to arrive.
For some unknown reason, the surroundings became noisy. Shang Can heard the intense roars of beasts and the cries of birds. The once quiet desolate mountains suddenly became chaotic and loud, as the spiritual creatures and wild beasts in the mountains seemed to have been greatly frightened and fled in all directions. Shang Can stood still, puzzled, and was about to gather her spiritual energy to deal with the sudden situation, only to realize that those beasts were wailing as they escaped, none daring to come near her.
The situation was strange, but Shang Can had no intention of investigating further; she merely felt pleased with the tranquility. Slowly, she found a large rock on the mountaintop, leaned against it, and sat down.
Shang Can slowly removed her white jade mask and set it aside. She gazed at the ethereal scenery of the town far below, staring blankly for a long time.
After an unknown period, a discordant sound of footsteps suddenly echoed through the quiet mountain forest. The footsteps were slow but undeniably approached Shang Can step by step.
It seemed that tranquility was no longer an option.
Shang Can lowered her eyelids, let out a gentle sigh, and spoke, “The Substitute Leader walks quite fast.”
Pei Chen’s eyes were dark as he slowly emerged from the woods. When he spoke, his voice was heavy, “I want to take your life to avenge Nan Shuang; naturally, I can’t wait even a moment.”
“…”
His words left no room for negotiation, and he stared intensely at the monster that had killed his beloved. Yet, for some reason, after an inexplicable silence, Pei Chen saw Shang Can smile gently.
“Then you might not be able to take it.”
Shang Can’s voice was very gentle, unlike one speaking to someone threatening to kill her. Her gaze was calm and soft, as if looking at something far away.
She cheerfully said, “Because my life has already been entirely given to Yun Duan.”
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