Yi Chen wandered aimlessly around Mt. Aocang.
As an adepti mountain, the scenery was naturally exquisite—rolling seas of clouds, ancient pines and strange rocks, spiritual energy so dense it formed mist. Just taking a breath made one feel refreshed and clear-headed.
But after walking around for a while, Yi Chen's restless nature began to surface.
Mm… the scenery is nice, but after looking at it for too long, it's kind of the same?
He scratched his head. It wasn't as familiar as Cider Lake in Mondstadt, nor did it have the lively, human warmth of Liyue Harbor.
For him, a place of immortal seclusion felt a bit too… quiet.
He continued walking and, without realizing it, arrived at a relatively secluded woodland.
A massive ancient pine stood like a canopy, and beneath it sat a figure in silent meditation—it was Shenhe.
Yi Chen stopped, not approaching right away so as not to disturb her.
Tilting his head, he watched his senior sister's nearly perfect profile as she cultivated, her expression serene and tranquil. It was quite pleasing to the eye.
However, the longer he looked, the more Yi Chen frowned slightly.
A very faint presence—one that instinctively made him uncomfortable—was lingering around Shenhe.
It didn't seem to originate from her herself. Rather, it felt like some external, cold, polluted thing clinging to her, completely at odds with her clear and icy aura, carrying an ominous and restless feeling.
"Evil spirit…? Or some kind of curse?"
Yi Chen narrowed his eyes and muttered softly.
Almost instinctively, he felt the blood in his body warm slightly. A primal urge—rooted deep in his ancient bloodline—to cleanse impurities was stirred.
Even his fingertips itched, and a reckless impulse to let a bit of blood and "try something" flickered through his mind.
But he quickly suppressed the thought.
Senior Sister was still cultivating. Interrupting her rashly would be rude—what if he startled her or disrupted her practice?
So Yi Chen decided to stay put. He quietly moved a few steps closer, wanting to observe more carefully, while patiently waiting for Shenhe to emerge from her meditative state on her own.
As he drew nearer, the natural suppressive force of his Qilin bloodline—especially potent against corrupted and baleful entities—spread out invisibly.
Shenhe, who had been meditating, was originally using her inner breath and the power of the red cords to suppress and resist the Solitary Star baleful aura within her—an aura that was constantly restless.
This process was anything but easy. It was like walking on thin ice; she had to stay focused at all times, for the slightest lapse could lead to backlash.
But suddenly—
She felt the baleful aura that had clung to her like a curse embedded in her bones abruptly shrink back, as if it had encountered something terrifying!
It retreated violently, withdrawing at once.
A wave of indescribable ease and peace instantly spread through her entire body.
It was a sensation she had never experienced before—deep, internal comfort, as though a heavy shackle pressing on her soul had quietly been lifted halfway.
This sudden change made it impossible for Shenhe to maintain deep meditation.
Her long eyelashes fluttered slightly as she slowly opened her eyes.
What just happened?
Why did the baleful aura, which had never rested, suddenly become so… obedient?
Her gaze instinctively followed the source of that comfort. Turning slightly, she saw Yi Chen standing nearby, looking at her with concern.
Shenhe understood immediately.
It was the presence of this junior brother—silently suppressing her baleful aura.
Seeing Shenhe wake up, Yi Chen immediately smiled and stepped forward.
"Senior Sister, are you done cultivating? Um… I felt like something around you wasn't quite right. Are you okay?"
Shenhe gently shook her head, as though speaking of something trivial.
"It's nothing. I was merely suppressing the Solitary Star baleful aura within me. There was no mishap."
"Baleful aura?!"
Yi Chen's eyes widened instantly, as if he'd heard something shocking.
"Aren't we a righteous sect? An immortal abode? How can there be baleful aura stuff?! Are we actually an evil cultivation sect?!"
His face was filled with shock and suspicion—Did Master trick me into joining some weird organization?! He even subconsciously took half a step back and scanned his surroundings warily, as if expecting demonic cultivators to jump out at any moment.
Shenhe was momentarily stunned by his exaggerated reaction and unusual train of thought.
She looked at Yi Chen, who appeared ready to run off and interrogate his master about whether this was a cult, and fell silent for a moment, organizing her words before explaining in her usual flat tone:
"We are not evil cultivators. This is my own fate-bound affliction—the Solitary Star Calamity Aura. I have carried it since childhood. It easily draws misfortune and harms others. Master took me in and taught me immortal arts and the red-cord soul-binding technique precisely to suppress and resolve this aura—not to cultivate it."
Hearing this, the shock faded from Yi Chen's face. He nodded in sudden realization.
"Ohhh, I see! As long as it's not evil cultivation, that's fine! You scared me!"
He patted his chest in relief.
But then he frowned again, as if realizing something deeply unreasonable, and muttered,
"…That's really unfair."
Shenhe paused slightly.
"Unfair? In what way?"
She was used to others reacting with fear, pity, or avoidance upon learning of her baleful aura.
But someone like Yi Chen—whose first reaction wasn't concern for his own safety, nor lamenting her fate, but instead bluntly saying it was unfair to her—she had never encountered before.
The feeling was unfamiliar… yet not unpleasant.
Yi Chen planted his hands on his hips, clearly indignant on her behalf.
"Of course it's unfair! Senior Sister, you're such a good person, yet you're born with something this troublesome. You have to constantly suppress it, and if you're not careful, it could hurt others or yourself! How is that fair at all?"
"It's like shoving a burning-hot potato into a good person's hands and then blaming them for not holding it properly! That makes no sense!"
The analogy was crude and blunt, but the sincere protectiveness behind it sent a small ripple through Shenhe's calm heart.
She looked at Yi Chen—earnestly standing up for her—and remained silent for a moment before speaking softly.
"…Fate is decreed by heaven. Fairness has nothing to do with it. To receive Master's guidance and walk the immortal path is already a blessing."
Yet the slight lowering of her gaze betrayed a faint, deeply buried resignation—one she herself may never have fully acknowledged—toward this so-called heavenly fate.
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