“Ha! Haha!” Jin Lin gave Zi Qu Shengjun an awkward smile. “Master… could you trouble your esteemed self to send me back to the Divine Realm?”
Everyone was dumbfounded…
Zi Qu Shengjun was the first to react. He looked at Jin Lin and asked patiently, “How did you get back? Where is my disciple, Qingxue?”
“Fell off a cliff!” Jin Lin wore a bitter expression. “We found the Cangmu Bamboo near a divine spring in the Divine Realm, at the foot of a precipice. At the time, I didn’t think much of it…”
Jin Lin recounted the entire incident in detail and, at the end, couldn’t help but ask Zi Qu Shengjun, “Master, what’s the deal with that cliff in the Divine Realm? It actually suppresses all magical power!”
Zi Qu Shengjun shot him an exasperated yet amused glance. “It’s not the cliff’s problem—it’s yours!
Honestly, out of all the divine springs in the Divine Realm, why did you have to search for the Cangmu Bamboo at the one on the very edge? Hmm?”
“The edge… of the Divine Realm?” Jin Lin froze for a moment. “Master, are you saying… that cliff marks the border of the Divine Realm? My jump… took me beyond its territory?”
“What else would you think?” Zi Qu Shengjun rolled his eyes. “Below that cliff lies the barrier separating the Divine Realm from the Xuanling Continent. Any magic used there is absorbed by the barrier!”
“So… Qingxue is now alone in the Divine Realm, searching for the remaining two herbs?” Mo Changxing seized the key point.
Jin Lin quickly nodded, his eyes glistening as he looked at Zi Qu Shengjun. “Master, I can’t bear the thought of Qingxue being alone in the Divine Realm. Please send me back!”
*Wuwu~* The hard-won chance to be alone with Qingxue—he couldn’t let it slip away like this!
“Go back?” Zi Qu Shengjun glared at him. “You’re dreaming!”
“Why?” Jin Lin frowned. Why couldn’t he get another chance to be alone with Xuexue?
Zi Qu Shengjun scoffed. “I just helped you and Qingxue cross the Divine Realm’s barrier, and not long after, you came right back through it.
If I send you up again, do you think the Divine King and the other deities would just sit back and not notice you two crossing the barrier so frequently?”
Jin Lin sighed in defeat, only to hear Mo Changxing bluntly toss two words at him: “Idiot!”
Normally, if Mo Changxing dared insult him like that, Jin Lin would have fought him on the spot—even knowing he couldn’t win.
But right now, he didn’t feel like speaking. He just felt… heartbroken.
—
After Jin Lin fell, Yun Qingxue didn’t rush to leave. Instead, she found a spot near the cliff to rest and recover from her poison’s effects before slowly retracing her steps out of the forest.
“Flower King!” Just as Yun Qingxue was about to exit the forest, an elderly man with white hair and beard emerged from a large banyan tree at the forest’s edge.
The old man had a youthful face, a full forehead, and a radiant complexion. His smile was warm and inviting.
Yun Qingxue paused and turned to him. “Elder, is there something you need?”
The old man smiled. “I noticed you the moment you appeared. When you ventured deep into the forest, I assumed you intended to leave the Divine Realm via the cliff barrier.
But why have you returned?”
“Well…” Yun Qingxue smiled faintly. “I can’t disclose the specifics. If you have no further business, I’ll take my leave.”
“Your Majesty!” The old man called out again. “If you cannot say, I won’t pry. But from your demeanor, it seems you wish to journey deeper into the Divine Realm, yes?”
“Yes. I have matters to attend to,” Yun Qingxue replied vaguely.
“Ah!” The old man sighed. “Unless it’s absolutely critical, I implore you, Flower King, not to go!”
“Why?” Yun Qingxue asked, puzzled.
“Come out, all of you!” The old man didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he spoke to the forest.
Soon, over a dozen figures emerged from the trees. Upon seeing Yun Qingxue, they all knelt in unison. “We greet the Flower King!”
“Please, rise,” Yun Qingxue said, stepping back slightly.
The old man from the banyan tree spoke again. “We are all spirits who cultivated from plants and trees, enduring heavenly tribulations to attain immortal forms.
We once believed ascending to the Divine Realm would allow us to cultivate freely.
But alas! The Divine King has decreed that all plant and tree immortals must remain at the edges of the Divine Realm, forbidden from entering its central regions—no matter how high our cultivation!
Anyone who dares defy this order will be executed upon discovery, their souls eternally barred from reincarnation!”
“Why would the Divine King issue such an order?” Yun Qingxue asked curiously.
“Because even as immortals, the Flower King’s decree can still control our lives with ease… Thus, we remain subjects of the Flower Tribe, bound to obey both the Divine King and the Flower King.
The Divine King fears this duality of loyalty, hence his prohibition,” a young fairy explained sorrowfully.
“It’s more than that,” a middle-aged man added. “The ban on plant immortals entering the Divine Realm’s center began 1,500 years ago.
Before then, many plant spirits lived freely in the Divine Realm’s heartlands. But suddenly, the Divine King expelled all plant immortals to the fringes.
I was among those exiled here at that time.”
“Enough! Enough!” The old man cut them off. “I called you out not to recount history!”
He turned to Yun Qingxue. “The Divine Realm restricts us to designated border zones. Though I don’t know why you’ve come here, Flower King, unless it’s a matter of life and death, you must leave immediately!
If the deities discover you, they won’t spare you—regardless of your status!
Even with your formidable power, you cannot fight them all. If captured, death is certain!”
“Yes, Flower King, please leave at once!” the others chorused in agreement.
“My life *is* at stake,” Yun Qingxue said firmly. “If I turn back now, I won’t live much longer anyway. Rather than wait for death, I’d rather take this gamble.”
The old man and the others were stunned.
But Yun Qingxue had no more to say. With a faint smile, she nodded. “Thank you for your counsel, elders of the Flower Tribe. I must be on my way.”
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage