“What a sneaky move!” Purple Melody Sage’s words hung in the air as Mo Su’s face darkened with fury.
“You severed our connection with the Flower King for a full thousand years! Do you have any idea what my people and I endured during that time? We trained relentlessly while desperately searching for a way back!
Now that I’ve finally found a way to return, I would have let it go if the Flower King had been safe under your care. But instead, the moment I arrive, I learn of her disappearance!
Purple Melody Sage, I can’t help but question how you and Yun Ye have been watching over our Flower King all these years!”
“Elder Mo Su, your words are too harsh!” Purple Melody Sage’s expression turned solemn. “Qingxue is your Flower King, but she is also Yun Ye and Snow Dawn’s daughter!
Back then, Snow Dawn risked her life to ensure Qingxue’s safe birth! This child is not just precious to you—she means everything to Yun Ye and me as well!
If anything were to happen to her, not even death could atone for our failure to Snow Dawn!” His voice carried unprecedented gravity. “So, Clan Leader Mo Su, you need not worry. I, Purple Melody Sage, would stake my life to protect Snow Dawn’s daughter!”
Mo Su’s beautiful eyes bore into Purple Melody Sage’s resolute face before she suddenly let out a cold laugh. “Words mean nothing!
Purple Melody Sage, don’t blame me for speaking bluntly. Today, on behalf of the Peony Clan, I declare this—
Yun Qingxue, the Flower King, is a debt owed to our floral kin by you, Yun Ye, Phantom Heaven, and even Blue Snow Dawn!
If anything happens to the current Flower King, you won’t need Phantom Heaven to come after you—my Peony Clan will be the first to declare war!”
“Very well. I’ll remember your words, Clan Leader Mo Su,” Purple Melody Sage replied, his expression unreadable.
Without another word, Mo Su turned and left Luoyun Mountain, her expression icy.
She never expected that after spending over a thousand years searching for a way out of the Yunhuang Illusion, her first news upon returning would be the Flower King’s disappearance!
The new Flower King must not come to harm!
The fate of her Peony Clan—no, the entire floral race—rested on Yun Qingxue’s shoulders!
If anything happened to her…
Without the Flower King, without hope, the floral race would remain at the mercy of schemers, never regaining their former glory, never knowing peace again!
After Mo Su departed, Purple Melody Sage rubbed his temples, exhaustion weighing on him.
The pressure in his heart was immense. If anything happened to Snow Dawn’s daughter—the child she had twice risked her life to protect and entrusted to his care—how could he ever face her again?
No! He strode out of the room. No matter what it took, he had to find Qingxue—and bring her back unharmed!
Stepping outside, he knelt on the open ground before his dwelling.
Mo Su’s appearance had been a wake-up call. Continuing to search blindly would only risk Qingxue’s safety.
He had to resort to extreme measures—even if it risked alerting Phantom Heaven. Right now, retrieving Qingxue was all that mattered.
Steadying his mind, Purple Melody Sage swiftly traced something on the ground with his fingers.
After the time it took for an incense stick to burn, a glowing purple array appeared beneath him.
Placing his left palm upon the sigil, he began chanting under his breath.
Meanwhile, deep within the Yunhuang Illusion, Yun Qingxue was truly at her wits’ end.
She remembered her master’s warning—if she failed to return to the Xuanling Continent by the appointed time, she would be trapped in this illusion for decades.
While a few decades might be nothing to a god, to her, it meant everything!
Though she was divine, she was a god who needed to grow.
If she returned to Xuanling Continent, with Purple Melody Sage’s guidance, her cultivation would soar. But staying here? She’d stagnate completely!
The intermittent agony wracking her body had already severely hindered her progress. She needed to return and seek her master’s help.
Yet now, though the exit of the Yunhuang Illusion was right before her, she had no idea how to open it!
“AAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!” Frustrated, Yun Qingxue screamed into the abyss below—then suddenly brightened, smacking her forehead.
How could she have been so stupid? If all else failed, she could just jump off the cliff again!
After all, Huanling had assured her it was perfectly safe—she wouldn’t die from the fall. This cliff was the gateway back to Xuanling Continent.
The only catch? She wouldn’t know where she’d land.
If she ended up among allies, fine. But if she dropped straight into the Ten Thousand Purple Palace of the floral race, wouldn’t that mean falling right into Tong Yun’s hands?
Yun Qingxue knew her current strength was no match for Tong Yun.
Landing among humans would be just as bad! The Grand State Preceptor Chen Qing was no saint either. Though she wasn’t sure of his exact power, his influence among human cultivators was undeniable.
If he rallied a mob of human immortals to gang up on her…
Just imagining the scene made her shudder.
Then there were the beastfolk. Beast King Cang Yan was ambitious, hell-bent on using her to conquer the floral race—and she’d already escaped from him once.
Tch. Landing there would be a nightmare too!
She knew little about the Feather King Feng Zihuang, and the demon realm was equally uncertain.
After weighing the risks, only two places seemed safe—the aquatic realm and Luoyun Mountain.
This was like a gamble where the odds of losing far outweighed winning.
“Ugh!” Yun Qingxue sighed heavily.
“Master, are you upset?”
Huanling, who had successfully wheedled her way into becoming Yun Qingxue’s follower, floated over with an innocent look.
“I’m about to be trapped here—of course I’m upset!” Yun Qingxue groaned skyward.
“Don’t worry, Master! With me here, you won’t be lonely!” Huanling chirped reassuringly.
“Ha!” Yun Qingxue smirked. “Who said I’m afraid of loneliness? Do I look like someone who can’t handle solitude?”
Pah! That sounded so wrong. She sighed again.
“Then what’s bothering you? Your silly master will come back eventually!” Huanling offered.
Yun Qingxue:
…Eventually? Ten years? Twenty? Fifty?
The next time the Yunhuang Illusion’s entrance opened? The time after that? Or the one after that?
Huanling wasn’t wrong—her master was a bit of an idiot!
After all this time, why hadn’t he thought to check where he’d lost his disciple?!
Today was the last day the Yunhuang Illusion’s entrance would remain open.
Once it closed, she’d truly be trapped here for decades!
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