Chapter 136

Li Yu tilted her head, thought for a moment, then shook her head. "I'll go with you. After all, I've already reached the fourth rank—if we run into danger, it'll give us more security."

"You're coming with me?"

Lu Fang raised an eyebrow with a sly grin.

Li Yu huffed. "I'd rather not go with you, but what can I do? Your Highness is just too weak."

"Blame me?" Lu Fang hesitated, then finally shook his head. "I need to do this alone. Don't worry—I may be low in realm, but if I face a strong enemy, I can't win, but I can still run."

The underground palace he sought might contain some unknown presence.

There was no doubt it would be extremely dangerous.

He did want to go with Li Yu, but if it was too dangerous, he'd rather not.

Li Yu frowned. "Just pretend I'm not here. Do what you need to do—I won't interfere."

Lu Fang shook his head. "I want to go with you, but that place can only be entered by one person."

Li Yu nodded. "Alright then, go, Little Master. I'll stay here and cultivate for a while longer. If you finish your task early, come find me."

"Alright," Lu Fang replied, bid farewell, and walked toward the temple's exit. He sensed carefully, then frowned slightly—he felt no movement from the Bloodline Bai Yu.

It must be because this place is too far from the underground palace.

Even though every corner of the trial ground was dangerous, he still had to try his best to reach them.

The trial ground was vast. Lu Fang searched in a circular pattern, rapidly scanning for the underground palace. After two days, he found nothing—though he did encounter several hostile monks. Fortunately, their strength was weak, and he easily evaded them.

It wasn't that he lacked the power to fight—he simply didn't want to waste energy here.

Most of the trial ground was desert; only a small portion consisted of oases and mountain ranges. Places like abandoned, ruined temples were extremely rare.

At least, during his two days of wandering, he hadn't encountered a single one.

"Is this Bloodline Bai Yu even useful?"

Lu Fang tossed the Bloodline Bai Yu irritably, wondering if Fourth Sister had tampered with it—after all, she'd never wanted him to take risks.

Someone with Fourth Sister's character wouldn't do something like that.

After thinking for a while, Lu Fang chose to trust her. After brief contact, he didn't believe someone so heartless would do such a thing.

They had been together the whole time—she knew his determination.

"Let fate take its course."

Lu Fang sighed and headed east. At dusk, he rested at the foot of a mountain. After eating something to fill his stomach, he sat in meditation.

This kind of cultivation couldn't fully replace sleep, but over a month, he could use it instead.

Listening to the chirping birds, Lu Fang fell asleep without realizing it—an almost impossible occurrence, yet it happened here.

Half-asleep, Lu Fang suddenly opened his eyes. To his shock, he now stood on a grassland, surrounded by utter darkness. Not far away loomed a pitch-black ancient castle.

"What's going on?"

A bad premonition stirred in Lu Fang's heart. He clearly remembered he had been meditating—how had he suddenly fallen asleep?

But soon he understood. He stared in delight at the castle before him—if he wasn't mistaken, this was exactly the place he sought.

At that moment, the environment twisted. Lu Fang felt as if he were trapped in darkness, the blackness closing in around him.

A beam of light descended, revealing a woman within it.

Upon seeing her face, Lu Fang blurted: "Ling'er." But after closer inspection, he noticed subtle differences between her and Lu Ling—only their resemblance made him mistake her at first glance.

He realized suddenly: "Rita?"

The woman looked surprised, then her eyes lit up with joy. "You know me?"

Lu Fang laughed. He'd finally found someone. He remembered the ascetic monk had said he met Rita in a dream—and that was how he found the underground palace's entrance.

He immediately told her about Lu Ling.

Rita covered her face and wept. She tried to speak several times, but each time choked on sobs—clearly, her emotions were overwhelming.

Lu Fang felt uneasy. "How should I address you?"

Rita composed herself, thought for a moment, then said: "I have another name—Zhao Qingzhu. You may call me whichever you like."

Lu Fang nodded and pressed: "The ascetic monk I met said you're trapped in an underground palace. Do you know where its entrance is?"

To Lu Fang's surprise, Zhao Qingzhu shook her head. "I didn't realize how dangerous it was before. Now I do. I can't tell you where the entrance is."

Lu Fang grew anxious. "Why? Don't you want to get out and see Ling'er? She truly longs to meet you."

Zhao Qingzhu burst into tears but still shook her head. "I only want you to leave safely. You must not come—otherwise, I'll doom you."

"Tell Ling'er for me—I didn't abandon her on purpose. I have my reasons. I'm trapped here, unable to go anywhere."

"When you leave, take care of her well. In my next life, I'll serve you as a beast of burden!"

"No way," Lu Fang shook his head. "Just tell me where the entrance is. I came here to find you—I'm confident I can rescue you."

Zhao Qingzhu still shook her head. "You have no idea how terrifying that place is. Leave now. Go tell Ling'er—I miss her so much."

Lu Fang was about to speak again when the space twisted once more.

Zhao Qingzhu's voice was urgent: "Time is running out. Don't stay here. Go and take care of Ling'er for me."

The moment she finished speaking, everything vanished.

Lu Fang snapped his eyes open. He was still seated at the foot of the mountain. The chirping birds now sounded irritating.

"Was that a dream? Did I dream it because I thought about it too much?"

He wasn't sure.

Unlike the ascetic monk, who had learned the entrance's location from Zhao Qingzhu, Lu Fang now knew nothing. He couldn't prove whether it was a dream or a real encounter.

Zhao Qingzhu?

It didn't feel like a dream at all!

Lu Fang thought for a while, leaning toward the belief that he had truly met Rita. After all, the name Zhao Qingzhu couldn't have come from his own dream.

Yet he was surprised—Shen family's intelligence had never recorded the name "Zhao Qingzhu." Was it because she was too remote?