Chapter 63

Pei Ye had no words to express the shock in his heart at that moment.

His first reaction was to be speechless.

I did say that, but you didn’t come to save me—you came to destroy the Divine Seed, to resolve this matter—everyone was counting on Ming Qitian to turn the tide.

How could you take it literally?

But the next instant, a surge of emotion stirred within him; he opened his mouth, but no sound came out.

Only much later, when he had time to reflect on this moment, did he understand that this feeling of being struck came from a “gradient” from periphery to core.

Since entering Xin Cang Mountains, “Pei Ye” had always been a pawn manipulated by others.

He was weak in strength, low in status, and only entered others’ awareness because the Divine Seed had taken root in him.

Everyone knew him through the Divine Seed, and judged him based on their attitude toward it.

Jing Ziwang, Qiongqi, Xing Zhi, even Zhu Gaoyang’s choice to take him out of the valley—all stemmed from the Divine Seed accidentally landing on him.

If they could destroy the Divine Seed, they would kill him; if he could carry it away, they would escort him.

Pei Ye never thought anything was wrong with this.

The Divine Seed had settled on him—he had no one to blame; it was natural that others didn’t care for him, for the potential disaster the Divine Seed might bring was what truly mattered.

Even the Black Chi’s primary goal was to slay this Immortal Lord.

Even Pei Ye himself had come to think this way—he grew frantic over his enemy’s growth, anxious and confused over Ming Qitian’s missed opportunities to strike—completely forgetting that it was his own body.

Pei Ye had always tried to cooperate with them, but his efforts were negligible, and often ignored.

Until now.

For the first time, someone had raced here without pause, fighting desperately—not to destroy the Divine Seed, but to make Pei Ye’s safety the sole objective.

That’s why she held back many strikes, forsaking chances to severely wound the Divine Seed; that’s why she focused solely on eliminating those shadows, even at the cost of taking a claw from Qiongqi.

Finally, in a realm heavy with ghosts, she rescued the frail youth, who had been possessed and usurped by the Divine Seed and had lost all sign of life, whole and unharmed.

Though it stemmed from a misunderstanding—you said you’d come to save me, so I came to save you—but could Pei Ye’s life really matter more than destroying the Divine Seed?

But at this moment, Pei Ye hadn’t yet understood any of this; his emotions had reacted instinctively, leaving him speechless.

“Where’s Zhu Gaoyang?” Ming Qitian asked.

“He… Buxing …”

“Mm.”

“Actually, you should go back and kill Him.” Pei Ye struggled to speak, regaining composure, “His power is growing terrifyingly fast—tomorrow, no one may be able to stop him.”

“It’s too late now,” Ming Qitian said. “Only if you’d killed Him from the start.”

Pei Ye fell silent, glancing at her bloodied back: “How bad are your injuries?”

“Not too bad.”

Just as Pei Ye was about to speak further, a flapping of wings sounded behind him; he turned and saw Qiongqi had caught up!

Now that He had absorbed all the power, while Ming Qitian was wounded, the balance had shifted—and He turned his greedy gaze once more toward her.

But Ming Qitian seemed to have sensed it long ago; she didn’t turn back, only continued leaping from branch to branch.

Yet her speed was slightly slower, and Qiongqi gradually closed the distance.

“Is it… because I’m with you?” Pei Ye glanced behind, then turned back and asked.

“You’re not heavy.”

“Oh.”

Seeing she wasn’t talkative, Pei Ye was about to ask, “What if we’re caught?” to devise a strategy, when suddenly someone came running toward them from ahead.

It was Xing Zhi.

When Qiongqi appeared, the group had immediately fled—why had she returned alone now?

Had she seen Ming Qitian’s swordlight?

Xing Zhi raised a jade talisman high, running as she shouted: “Come quickly!”

The jade talisman dissolved into a green liquid, swirling around her body, then expanding into green mist, then further breaking down and growing—as if what had been compressed within was now released.

A grand gathering of mysterious qi coalesced like clouds.

Seeing this familiar sight, Pei Ye was overwhelmed with joy; he tugged Ming Qitian’s sleeve: “Go quickly!”

Ming Qitian floated gently into the mist; the three vanished, leaving only the mysterious qi slowly dissipating.

【Spirit Illuminates the World, Dust Unbound】—Zhu Gaoyang did indeed have a teleportation talisman, but this talisman, inscribed with divine art, he had given to Xing Zhi.

That familiar sense of lofty transcendence descended again, but this time, beside him was no limp corpse; Pei Ye felt himself gently nudged, his feet touching solid ground.

He looked around: Ming Qitian and Xing Zhi stood beside him; they were atop a high mountain.

The very one he had gazed at from afar before.

Beyond this mountain lay Fenghuai.

…

When the three entered Fenghuai City, dawn had just begun to lighten the eastern sky.

Only then did Pei Ye realize Ming Qitian had arrived far earlier than her promise of “before sunrise.”

Fenghuai remained the same familiar, peaceful little town—ancient city walls, smooth green stone paths; perhaps due to the earlier rain, many broken bricks bore a layer of green moss.

The roosters had not yet crowed thrice; people still slept, and the streets were utterly quiet.

Assuming the old man hadn’t woken yet, Pei Ye first went with Xing and Ming to the county office—but when he pushed the door open, light glowed inside, and a withered silhouette was cast upon the window by candlelight.

Pei Ye recognized him at once: Chang Zhiyuan. He hurried over, pushed the door open, and the old man, hearing the noise, propped himself up; his eyes still held shock, but his mouth had already formed an unconscious smile. “Pei… Little Pei… you’re alright?”

“I’m fine, Master Chang,” Pei Ye smiled.

This was an official room; glancing back, the county office had been mostly repaired, though collapsed buildings remained untouched.

Lanterns still moved in the back courtyard; Pei Ye guessed it was Jing Ziwang’s death that kept them busy.

“Master Xing has returned too, and this… is Ming… Miss Ming. Both are injured—send for a physician.”

“Mm, good.”

“No need. I know medicine,” Xing Zhi said.

“Then that’s better—Master Xing must be far more skilled.” The old man, sleepless through the night, clearly felt dizzy; “But this place is too cramped… come to the back courtyard, sit down, sit down.”

“I won’t, Master Chang,” Pei Ye said. “I must go home and check on my family.”

“Are you worried about your elderly relatives?”

“Yes… and a cat.”

“I’ve already brought Brother Yue here to care for them—the cat too.”

“Ah! They’re here at the office now?”

“Yes. Brother Yue loves to sleep—he’s resting in the back courtyard.”

“Truly, thank you, Master Chang—I’m deeply grateful… deeply grateful…”

“Grateful to the core,” Chang Zhiyuan laughed, gripping his arm. “Don’t say more. You’re Fenghuai’s hero.”

The three followed Chang Zhiyuan into the back courtyard; Pei Ye immediately saw a soft black ball curled on the stone table.

He hurried over and picked it up; the kitten lifted its drowsy eyes.

Pei Ye lifted it to eye level, studying its emerald gaze closely—it wasn’t stupid!

“Little Chi!” he cried in delight.

“Mm.”