Gazing at the woman who skipped over with a face full of joy, the moon-robed woman gave a light smile, her expression reserved and tinged with nobility, neither cold nor distant. Regardless, three years had transformed the once naive girl into a more mature woman. As the crowd in the hall glanced at the subtle smile on the moon-robed woman’s beautiful face, they were all somewhat dazzled and mesmerized.
After the moon-robed woman entered, an elder in a similar robe followed, beaming as he walked in. He stood behind the moon-robed woman, his eyes occasionally flashing with sharpness, and his withered hand outside his sleeve moved rhythmically, like the sharp talons of an eagle.
After greeting the moon-robed woman, Ling Lin sweetly smiled at the elder behind her, “Elder Geye.”
“Hehe, it’s been a few years, but Ling Lin, you’ve grown even more beautiful,” the elder, called Geye, nodded with a smile.
A hint of red flushed her cheeks, and the red-robed woman, named Ling Lin, affectionately took the moon-robed woman’s fair, delicate hand, exclaiming in delight, “Nalan Jie, I didn’t expect you to personally come down from Yunlan Mountain. If Father knew, he would be very happy.”
“Following the teacher’s instructions, and I happened to be planning to return home for a while, so I came here,” the moon-robed woman replied softly, her eyes sweeping across the hall, joking, “Seeing Ling Lin’s distressed look just now, was someone bullying you?”
As the moon-robed woman brought up this issue, a hint of embarrassment appeared on Ling Lin’s face. Though she was usually arrogant, she wasn’t foolish. From the way the elder who saved her treated Xiao Yan, she knew that this young man, who seemed slightly younger than her, should not be trifled with. Therefore, she did not reveal the details, to avoid any unnecessary complications.
“It’s nothing, just met an interesting person,” Ling Lin waved her hand, but her gaze involuntarily glanced at the liquefied stone sculpture beside her, her face turning slightly pale. The young man, who looked quite refined, was unexpectedly ruthless.
Three years of training had clearly made the moon-robed woman no longer the naive girl who dared to run to someone else’s home to demand a breakup. Thus, the change on Ling Lin’s face did not escape her notice. Her gaze followed the liquid rock, which still emitted a faint heat, and her face became grave.
She turned slightly, exchanging a glance with Geye, both seeing a hint of surprise in each other’s eyes. “It must be a strong practitioner of fire-attribute Dou Qi,” they thought simultaneously, quickly concealing their surprise.
Ling Lin’s paleness vanished in an instant, and she turned to look at the group of young men who had been vying for her attention. Now, they gazed at the moon-robed woman with longing, one of them even blushing and looking extremely passionate.
Seeing their embarrassed expressions, Ling Lin frowned, muttering to herself, “A bunch of ignorant fools. Your families’ power is nothing compared to hers, just a pebble underfoot.”
Shaking her head, Ling Lin ignored the young dandies, smiling at the moon-robed woman, “Nalan Jie, it’s getting dark. Why don’t we stay overnight? We have a room specially prepared for someone of your status.”
“Alright, thank you, Ling Lin,” the moon-robed woman nodded, her gaze once again sweeping over the liquefied rock, smiling meaningfully, “Before descending the mountain, my teacher told me that the Dou Qi continent is vast and filled with strange and wondrous things. I didn’t expect to see such things so soon.”
Hearing this, Ling Lin gave an awkward smile and led the way, guiding the moon-robed woman and the elder up the stairs.
As they disappeared at the end of the stairs, the whispers in the hall grew louder.
“Who would have thought? Even the Cloud Rending Sect’s direct disciple came to celebrate Mo Cheng’s birthday. The Mo family has really gained face.”
“Yes, she’s so beautiful and young, and I can’t even see through her strength. She truly lives up to being the Cloud Rending Sect’s direct disciple.”
“Hehe, what a beauty. Whoever marries her will be incredibly lucky. The future leader of the Cloud Rending Sect, the princess of the Nalan family, who could match their combined power in the Jia Ma Empire?”
“I heard that the third young master of the Xiao family from Wu Tan City is her fiancé, isn’t he?”
“Ah, that’s old news. Three years ago, Miss Nalan went to the Xiao family and forcibly broke the engagement.”
“Really? The Xiao family must have lost all face.”
“So what? Can the Xiao family compete with the Nalan family and the Cloud Rending Sect? They just had to swallow their bitterness. Besides, the third young master was a well-known waste, how could he match the gifted Miss Nalan?”
“Ha, some people just talk nonsense.”
A man sitting in the corner sneered at the two talking loudly, and when they glared at him, he lazily continued, “Miss Nalan did go to the Xiao family to break the engagement, but instead of getting the contract, she received… a divorce paper. Yes, that Young Master Xiao directly divorced his fiancée, whose status was comparable to that of an imperial princess.”
“Divorced?” The entire hall fell silent, everyone gaping in disbelief. Who could believe that a young master, who was once a waste, would dare to divorce a fiancée of such high status?
“Damn, that guy is incredible…”
Although most people in the hall doubted the truth of this, a few still looked shocked. It takes a lot of courage to divorce such a high-status and beautiful fiancée. Many realized they didn’t have that kind of courage.
Standing at the door, Xiao Yan watched the middle-aged man from the Mo family leave, then slowly closed the door, turning around and finally showing a hint of fatigue on his indifferent face. Rubbing his dark circles, he shrugged helplessly at Hai Bo Dong.
“I bet that guy will investigate us as soon as he gets back,” Hai Bo Dong sipped his tea, telling Xiao Yan.
“Sure,” Xiao Yan nodded, smiling, “Let him. The Mo family doesn’t have the means to find out about us. We should rest and recover. These days of travel have pushed me to my limits. Tomorrow, we’ll enter the Mo family to find Qing Lin.”
Stretching, Xiao Yan walked into the room, still talking. Watching his back, Hai Bo Dong nodded and also headed to another room, feeling a bit tired from the journey.
Entering the room, Xiao Yan forced open his heavy eyelids, resisting the urge to fall asleep. He gently touched his ring, and a green light rose, forming a green lotus seat floating in mid-air.
Lightly tapping the ground, Xiao Yan sat on the green lotus, the warm energy seeping into his skin, gradually dispelling the fatigue hidden within his body. Taking a deep breath, he stretched out his palm, and a green flame flickered slightly, but awkwardly. After a moment, he shook his head, murmuring, “This energy is terrifying, but not as easy to control as I thought.”
After practicing controlling the green flame for a while, Xiao Yan closed his eyes, entering a meditative state. As he meditated, the energy around him fluctuated, and visible strands of energy converged into a tapestry, absorbed much faster than before. Clearly, the benefits of the improved technique were beginning to show.
The energy, slightly impure, quickly passed through the green lotus barrier, purified, and infused into Xiao Yan’s body. Inside, the energy, covered in green light, flowed rapidly along the meridians, the walls of which moved like cells, cleansing the energy of impurities. The impurities were absorbed and eventually expelled through the skin.
After the energy completed a cycle, its purity had increased significantly. Now, after being refined by the green lotus heart fire, the energy shrank visibly, and soon, it completely disappeared, replaced by a drop of glowing green liquid, which slowly dripped into the vortex.
As Xiao Yan entered a state of focused meditation, outside the room, Ling Lin led the elegant moon-robed woman to the room opposite, opened the door, and entered slowly.
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