Mi Xingzhe couldn't see, so he sharpened his hearing, trying to catch even the slightest shift in the air around him.
The room was unnaturally quiet. In that stillness, he could hear his own heartbeat—until Li Luoning's deep sigh cut through it.
"Nian, hold out your hand," Li Luoning said evenly.
"Huh? Master—why?" Mi Xingzhe hesitated, thrown by the request.
"I just need to confirm something."
"Oh… alright." Li Luoning's tone sounded calm, so Mi Xingzhe obediently extended his hand, groping through the air.
Something was placed into his palm.
Mi Xingzhe felt a small embroidered pouch. He gave it a shake—several pills tumbled out into his hand. Out of habit, he almost popped one into his mouth, the way he would take any ordinary medicine.
Li Luoning stopped him at once.
"Master? Isn't this for me to take?" Mi Xingzhe asked, confused.
"Xingzhe, do you know what this is?"
Mi Xingzhe lifted the pill to his nose and sniffed. Then he shook his head, baffled. "Medicine, isn't it? They all smell the same to me."
Li Luoning's gaze did not soften. "Where did the embroidered pouch in your clothes come from?"
"Senior Sister Yue Ruling gave it to me," Mi Xingzhe replied without thinking much of it. "She said it had Dragon Arum Pills—good for blood flow and bruises."
"Have you ever used them?"
"No." Mi Xingzhe shook his head. "I thought I'd save them for when I really needed them."
Li Luoning fell silent for a beat. Then he said, "I see. I'll keep these for now. If you need them, just come to ask."
Later, alone in his study, Li Luoning sat with his fingers tapping a steady rhythm against the tabletop. Piece by piece, he reconstructed the past days—every overlap and coincidence that refused to be dismissed.
The Yanding Dragon King falls ill the moment I leave Liao Yin, and at that same time Xingzhe is poisoned. If it truly was him, it's too blatant. And he came that day bearing gifts—if he meant harm, why offer gifts at all? As for Xingzhe's fall in Ice Bamboo Forest… the traces did look like stones had been disturbed. But he was supposed to have fallen on the eastern side of the forest, while the Extending Land lies to the northwest. Who would bother carrying him that far just to leave him where he could be found?
"Qingyi— Qingyi —please tell me about the Extending Land," Mi Xingzhe whined, tugging Yun Qingyi by the elbow as they headed toward Li Luoning's study.
"That's not a safe place." Yun Qingyi nearly sloshed the tea he was carrying when Mi Xingzhe pulled again. "The less you know, it's better."
"Why's everyone acting like it's forbidden to even say the name?" Mi Xingzhe refused to let go. "I've been in Liao Yin for almost a year. You and Senior Sister Yue have taken me everywhere. What exactly is this Extending Land that everyone refuses to talk about? Just tell me."
They reached Li Luoning's study. Yun Qingyi stepped inside to serve the tea; Mi Xingzhe stopped and waited, still bristling.
After setting the tea down, Yun Qingyi began grinding ink for Li Luoning. Without even looking up, he said, "If you want to know so badly, ask Master whether he'll let you go."
Li Luoning lifted his eyes briefly toward Mi Xingzhe, then returned to his book. "You seem to have recovered well these past few days—full of spirit. Perhaps Qingyi should test you more often. If something like that happens again, you might at least be able to defend yourself."
Mi Xingzhe straightened, immediately eager to prove something. "In spells, sure, I can't compete with Qingyi-ge. But in close combat? Senior Sister Yue taught me well. I bet Qingyi-ge can't beat me."
Yun Qingyi glanced at him and smiled, the sort of smile that made the boast sound even more childish. "In that, I'd lose to you, naturally."
Li Luoning set his book down. "About that day in the Extending Land—do you remember anything else?"
Mi Xingzhe frowned, trying to pull the memory up through the fog. "I couldn't see clearly… but they said they found me injured on the road and took me back." He paused, then his expression shifted. "Oh—right. The woman had a faint bell sound on her."
A bell? Li Luoning's mind turned over the names and faces he'd been circling for days—none of them matched a woman who carried bells.
Mi Xingzhe leaned forward, impatient again. "Master, what exactly is the Extending Land? I've been asking Qingyi-ge for days, and he won't say a word."
Li Luoning answered calmly, as if reciting a rule everyone should know. "The Extending Land is where humans, demons, and immortals mingle. A chaotic realm—half immortal, half vile—where no laws hold. The three realms agreed long ago not to interfere there. It's a place they abandoned."
Mi Xingzhe blinked behind his gauze. "So… like an exile land?"
"You could say that."
Mi Xingzhe toyed with the leaf in his hand, voice dropping as if he didn't want to be caught wanting it. "That really does sound… interesting."
Li Luoning arched one brow. "Interesting?"
Mi Xingzhe's curiosity surged, reckless and bright. "Isn't it? I've never seen what demons look like! I heard a lot of them are beautiful—fox demons, rabbit demons, and all that—"
Yun Qingyi cut in at once. "I advise you not to be curious. Not all demons are friendly. With your soft skin, you probably wouldn't even make it to the Extending Land—you'd be skinned alive by evil spirits in the demon forest."
Mi Xingzhe bristled. "But I'm a disciple of an immortal sect. Shouldn't those evil demons be afraid of us?"
Yun Qingyi pointed at him, tone turning deliberately sharp. "They target the ones with weak cultivation. Your kind's blood is a great elixir to them—good for advancing their cultivation."
"Me!" Mi Xingzhe pouted and turned toward Li Luoning like a child appealing to a parent. "Master, look at him—he always tries to scare me."
Li Luoning said nothing, only shook his head as if he couldn't decide whether it was amusing or troublesome.
Mi Xingzhe still wouldn't let it go. "But you've been there before and came back safely. What's wrong with going to see it?"
Yun Qingyi's patience thinned. "Even Master has to be cautious and disguise himself when he goes. With your cultivation, you'd be a lamb walking into a tiger's den."
Mi Xingzhe's attention snagged on the wrong word immediately. "Disguise?"
Li Luoning understood at a glance what was really behind it: boredom, restlessness, that itch of wanting to see a world bigger than the walls of Mirror Cloud Residence.
"If you're truly stifled," Li Luoning said, "I'll have Qingyi take you to the human realm for a walk soon. New Year is approaching. It will be lively."
Mi Xingzhe's fingers paused on the leaf. "What's so good about New Year," he muttered, the brightness draining out of his tone.
Yun Qingyi looked at him, puzzled. "You don't like New Year?"
Mi Xingzhe's mouth pressed into a line. When he spoke again, there was a quiet, stubborn bitterness underneath. "New Year is for the rich people. For someone like me—someone who could barely afford to eat—the best I could hope for was picking up what people threw away after the holiday. There was never anything festive about it."
A trace of inferiority—and something close to shame—slipped into his voice before he could stop it.
Yun Qingyi's expression softened. "If you don't like it, you don't have to go. Staying at Mirror Cloud Residence with Master and me is fine."
Mi Xingzhe still muttered under his breath, unwilling to admit what truly pulled at him. "The human realm doesn't sound as fun as the Extending Land."
Yun Qingyi sighed. "Stop thinking about it. As an immortal sect disciple, without a special permit on the Empty Flower Token, no one can enter the Extending Land."
Mi Xingzhe repeated the words faintly, as if tasting them. "Empty Flower Token…"
Yun Qingyi eased his tone. "If you're bored, come with me in a few days when I go gather herbs. At least you won't be stuck at home alone."
"Alright, alright, I know~" Mi Xingzhe sang out obediently, then rolled his eyes the instant he thought neither of them could see. (If you won't take me, I'll go myself.)
Both Yun Qingyi and Li Luoning understood perfectly what he meant anyway.
Yun Qingyi turned the mischief back on him, smiling as he asked Li Luoning, "Master—what happens if Nian sneaks into the Extending Land?"
Li Luoning didn't even look up when he answered, tone almost casual. "Then we break his legs, so he will not go anymore."
Mi Xingzhe went rigid at once. Hearing the smile in Yun Qingyi's voice, he realized they were deliberately frightening him—but it didn't stop his spine from tightening.
"You two!" He huffed. "Forget it. I'm going to read." With that, he turned and stormed out.
The moment Mi Xingzhe left, the trace of humor on Li Luoning's face faded. He turned to Yun Qingyi, voice lowering.
"Qingyi—how is the progress?"
Yun Qingyi understood immediately. "Master, do you mean the black-clad figure that flashed past the gate that day… or the origin of the Seamless Bead?"
"The shadow I told you to follow," Li Luoning said. "Any clues?"
"The Luminous Butterflies I released confirmed the figure vanished near the Jade Pure Palace," Yun Qingyi reported.
Li Luoning's gaze sharpened. "Jade Pure Palace? Are you certain?"
"Absolutely."
Yun Qingyi's answer was firm. "The next day I followed the starlight pollen the butterflies dropped, and the trail ended in the Jade Pure Palace's back garden."
Li Luoning fell silent, thinking. Jade Pure Palace is a place the Immortal Sovereign frequents… but others come and go there as well. The net is too wide.
Yun Qingyi asked quietly, "Master… could the person who poisoned Xingzhe that day be tied to the same group?"
"Likely."
Li Luoning's fingers tightened around the old tome in his hand. "Someone in Liao Yin has set their sights on Mirror Cloud Residence. And Xingzhe—he was the opportunity they'd been waiting for."
Yun Qingyi frowned. "It's strange. They've watched us for years. Why act only after you took Xingzhe? Before this, they only watched and never moved."
That shadow had lingered outside Mirror Cloud Residence since Li Luoning first arrived in Liao Yin. For years it never acted, and Li Luoning had chosen to ignore it. Even after taking Yun Qingyi as his disciple, he'd told him not to mind it.
But now, with Mi Xingzhe repeatedly caught in danger, Li Luoning could no longer pretend the watcher was harmless.
"Be vigilant," Li Luoning said. "If anything changes in Mirror Cloud Residence—anything at all—tell me immediately."
Yun Qingyi bowed. "Understood, Master."
Within the Liao Yin Immortal Realm, Yue Ruling led a squad of celestial soldiers on her usual patrol. But today, she was visibly distracted, her gaze unfocused, her thoughts drifting elsewhere.
"It's been several days since I returned from the mortal tribulation…" she murmured to herself, barely aware she'd spoken aloud. "Why did Master suddenly go into seclusion?"
Her brows knitted. "And why… why don't I remember anything from the mortal realm at all? I wanted to ask Master, but he went into seclusion without even a word."
She slowed unconsciously, her patrol falling into step around her. "Logically, after a tribulation, you should retain some memory. But I can't remember anything from those days. Could it be… because my inner core was formed artificially?"
Anyone who saw her could tell at a glance: Yue Ruling's mind was somewhere else.
O Shinan happened to pass by. He noticed her expression at once.
[The rumors say Yue Ruling and War God Qingyuan underwent tribulation in the mortal realm. After returning, the War God was punished by heavenly thunder. But Yue Ruling seems to know nothing of it—only that something is troubling her.]
Something must have happened.
Curiosity stirred. O Shinan altered his path and approached her, bowing gently. His plain robe lifted slightly in the morning breeze, and the faint purple mark on his forehead seemed all the more striking under warm sunlight.
"Yue Ruling" he greeted, voice mild, "you seem distracted today. Is something troubling you?"
Yue Ruling's steps halted.
"O Shinan?"