Morning.
A streak of cyan figure landed on the peak of Xueyu Tianchi Mountain, right in front of Tianran Ju. With a stumble, she almost fell off her flying sword. It was none other than Xu Shuo, returning to the Human race's realm from the Ghost Realm. The reason Xu Shuo came to Xueyu Tianchi was that it was actually the safest place, guarded by thousands of military cultivators and nine Town Sword Towers. Conversely, if he had gone elsewhere, he might have been conveniently dealt with by a twelfth-realm great demon seeking an easy kill.
Lin Zhao rushed out from his study and steadied the tottering Xu Shuo, his brows furrowed. "How is it?"
"Not good..."
Xu Shuo's expression was one of utter exhaustion. "Give me something to eat, and after that, I want to sleep for a very long time."
"Alright!"
Lin Zhao immediately asked Dong Cang to prepare some food. Once Xu Shuo finished eating, he was directly escorted to a guest room in a small building nearby to rest. Xu Shuo didn't even go into detail about what happened in the Ghost Realm; he was simply too exhausted, his spiritual energy completely depleted, and he had suffered a backlash from the Great Dao, even falling a realm. Therefore, Lin Zhao didn't press him.
Not long after, Lin Wanhua arrived.
However, the current Lin Wanhua was no longer the woman dressed in pure white like snow. Her long skirt was stained with blood, some from demon cultivators, and some her own. She bore numerous injuries.
"Miss Lin!"
Lin Zhao frowned. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine."
Lin Wanhua pursed her red lips, looking at Lin Zhao, then at Xueyu Tianchi. "The reason I came here first was to check on the situation at Xueyu Tianchi. Since it's fine, that's good."
"Little Jiu'er, she..."
"She's fine."
Although Lin Wanhua had returned first, she knew that Su Qingjiu's aura had also entered the Human race's realm. She looked at Lin Zhao and said, "Su Qingjiu should be back soon too. How about you make us two bowls of noodles? After eating, I'll rest for a bit here on the mountain peak before returning to Fusu Great Wall. Oh right, have Cao Ying and Huang Qingning been here?"
"No."
Lin Zhao shook his head. "Xu Shuo has already returned and is sleeping soundly in the guest room. Cao Ying and Huang Qingning haven't come at all."
"Got it."
Lin Wanhua smiled faintly. "After all, a great cultivator holding a first-rank official position in the Great Shang Dynasty would hardly be willing to associate with us who are practically rogue cultivators."
Lin Zhao began to light the fire and cook the noodles, asking as he did, "Tell me specifically what happened in the west. My cultivation is low, and I can't perceive things so far away. I have no idea of the specific circumstances."
"Mhm."
Lin Wanhua gathered her skirt and sat down on the threshold of the kitchen. Her beautiful eyes glanced at Lin Zhao, and she chuckled, "Actually, it was a brutal fight. We were pursued by over a dozen great demons above the fifth realm not long after entering the scope of Kusong River. The weakest was twelfth realm. Huang Qingning was the first to be injured and leave. Then it was me. The thirteenth realm Ning Yuansheng personally oversaw it, and I was almost surrounded and killed. It was Su Qingjiu who saved me. Afterward, the two of us still couldn't break the deadlock, and it was Senior Xu Zhan who saved us."
Lin Zhao's nose twitched. "Senior Xu Zhan, he..."
"Mhm."
Lin Wanhua nodded gently. "To save us, Senior Xu Zhan self-detonated his sword heart and sacrificed himself to the world, killing three twelfth-realm demon cultivators in one fell swoop."
Her expression was somewhat weary. "By the way, have you seen the old sword immortal Han Fang from Fusu Great Wall?"
"No, he didn't return to Xueyu Tianchi."
"..."
...
Kusong River.
Man Yuan was bathed in flames, while Liu Bai was enveloped by the aura of the Great Dao's water transport. The two, one of water and one of fire, had a feeling of merging and coexisting. They strode side-by-side along Kusong River towards the Human realm.
In the distance, on the mountainside of a peak, Han Fang suppressed all his aura, watching the distant scene with a solemn expression. His body was crisscrossed with scars. He had previously fought with two twelfth-realm great demons, severely wounding one of them. He had narrowly escaped from another into this place. He thought he was close to returning to the Human realm, but who would have thought these two terrifying demon kings would appear before him!
He couldn't leave, so he had to wait, to avoid their sharp edge.
"Huh?"
Han Fang frowned, suddenly feeling a bit confused. Everyone's aura had disappeared from the Ghost Realm. It was impossible for them all to have died. At least Lin Wanhua, Su Qingjiu, and Xu Shuo had returned alive to the Human realm. So what was going on? Why didn't they call for him when they left? Did they really not consider him one of their own?
Everyone had forgotten him...
He touched his nose, suddenly feeling a pang of sadness.
...
Not long after, a stunning figure in a red dress and white shirt descended upon Xueyu Tianchi. It was Su Qingjiu. The current Little Jiu'er was also quite disheveled, her clothes speckled with blood. However, her condition was better than Lin Wanhua and Xu Shuo. After all, Man Yuan's fatal blow had actually been blocked by the peach wood hairpin Lin Zhao had given her.
"Brother Lin Zhao..."
Su Qingjiu stood outside the kitchen door, looking at Lin Zhao, who was serving noodles. Suddenly, she dropped the Lingxi sword she was holding, her delicate shoulders trembling slightly. She felt an overwhelming sense of grievance. She had almost never seen Lin Zhao again. In fact, Little Jiu'er wasn't afraid of death; she was afraid of never seeing Brother Lin Zhao again. What would be the point then?
"Little Jiu'er?"
Lin Zhao put down the bowl, wiped his hands, and walked out, smiling. "You're back. The noodles are just ready; we're about to eat."
Su Qingjiu, however, was in tears and rushed directly into his embrace.
"Forgotten again..."
Lin Zhao dotingly stroked her hair and said, "Did you forget what I told you? Men and women should not touch. Little Jiu'er is an adult now; you can't do this anymore..."
"Just this once, just this once!"
Su Qingjiu held him even tighter.
"..."
Lin Wanhua watched this unfold with a hint of speechlessness. She picked up a bowl of noodles and walked past them. "I'll eat first then?"
Su Qingjiu's pretty face immediately flushed. She hastily pulled away from Lin Zhao's embrace, then also picked up a bowl of noodles and sat down in the living room with Lin Wanhua, slurping them up. Green onion and chicken broth noodles; she had almost thought she would never eat them again. Tasting the flavor of these noodles now, it felt like a reunion after a long separation; they were so fragrant.
"Brother Lin Zhao, aren't you eating?"
"I've already eaten; I'm not hungry."
Lin Zhao sat in front of them, smiling. "You two eat more."
"Brother Lin Zhao..."
Su Qingjiu took out the peach hairpin from her hair and placed it on the table. "The words 'peace and safety'... are gone?"
Immediately, Lin Zhao understood. He had carved the words on the peach hairpin with the tip of his Han Niu sword. It was likely that the carving had triggered the divine ability within Han Niu Sword. This act, which seemed like Lin Zhao saving Little Jiu'er once, was not the case. The one who truly saved Little Jiu'er was Mr. Qin.
"Mhm..."
Lin Zhao nodded. "It's alright if they're gone. In the future, you must be more careful when you fight. Little Jiu'er, the words I'm about to say are very important. I hope you will remember them in your heart for your entire life. These eight characters carry more weight than the four characters 'peace and safety'."
"Mhm."
Su Qingjiu said, "What are the eight characters?"
"'If you can fight, fight; if you can't, run.' Lin Zhao said earnestly.
"Pfft..."
Lin Wanhua almost spat out her noodles.
Su Qingjiu, on the other hand, looked serious and nodded, saying, "I've noted it down. When I refine my new natal flying sword, I will engrave Brother Lin Zhao's words onto the sword body."
"Ah?"
Lin Zhao frowned. "Your natal flying sword was destroyed?"
"Mhm."
Su Qingjiu said softly, "The flying sword Bai Yu is gone."
Lin Wanhua's delicate eyebrows knitted together. "It's my fault. I was trying to save me... otherwise, Sword Immortal Su wouldn't have..."
"It's alright, Little Jiu'er did the right thing."
Lin Zhao smiled and nodded. "But next time, you must also take good care of yourself."
Then, he looked somewhat troubled, scratching his head. "Okay, facing that situation, perhaps my words sound a bit like I'm speaking from a position of privilege, don't they?"
Lin Wanhua chuckled. "A little bit."
Su Qingjiu said, "Brother Lin Zhao, I will stay at Tianran Ju for the next while. I need to refine a new natal flying sword here before I leave. Don't worry about Changming Mountain; it's far from the demon territory, and my senior sisters are very powerful there. It doesn't matter whether I'm there or not."
"Okay."
Lin Zhao nodded. "What about Miss Lin?"
Lin Wanhua pursed her red lips. "I'll stay in the guest room and sleep for a night. Tomorrow morning, after I give some guidance to Tong Yu's cultivation, I will return to Fusu Great Wall. The four tribes to the north are eyeing us covetously; Fusu Great Wall cannot be left unguarded for too long."
"Mhm, good!"
...
Deep into the night.
The entire Xijian River sparkled with golden light. The River God's Lady, Lin Xingchu, clad in golden armor, wearing a golden cloak of water transport Great Dao, and wielding a golden long sword, stood on Xijian River. Instantly, a small fourteen-realm world was formed. Within this small world, her divine form towered a thousand feet. What could make this River God's Lady so wary could only be a true formidable enemy.
On the river surface, two figures arrived together.
Thirteenth-realm peak demon king, Man Yuan, Great Dao close to fire!
Thirteenth-realm peak demon king, Liu Bai, Great Dao close to water!
Furthermore, the two had already formed a state of water and fire fusion.
"Lin Xingchu, die!"
Man Yuan roared, and his Sun-Moon Water-Fire Staff descended from the sky. Lin Xingchu raised her sword to block, while Liu Bai twisted his body and swung his Jade Wave Mace horizontally. However, it was blocked by a water screen from Lin Xingchu. At the same time, the water in the entire Xijian River seemed to boil, and countless water droplets converged into flying swords, "pfft, pfft, pfft," relentlessly bombarding the two great demons.
"Hmm?!"
At the peak villa, Su Qingjiu, Lin Wanhua, and Xu Shuo woke up almost simultaneously. At the same time, Lin Xingchu's voice echoed in their minds: "No need to come. Man Yuan and Liu Bai have formed a water-fire fusion. Whoever comes will die, even a fourteenth-realm cultivator would die. As long as I, Lin Xingchu, am in Xijian River, they cannot kill me."
The next second, the Sun-Moon Water-Fire Staff violently pierced through the rain of swords and struck Lin Xingchu heavily in the chest. Lin Xingchu, in turn, slashed a beam of sword light at Man Yuan's shoulder. Immediately, Liu Bai's Jade Wave Mace struck Lin Xingchu's back, smashing her fourteenth-realm divine body into pieces.
"Die for me!"
Man Yuan's body rapidly expanded as he activated his divine ability, Heaven and Earth Manifestation. The Sun-Moon Water-Fire Staff in his hand hummed incessantly, and with a single strike from above, it smashed Lin Xingchu's divine form into smithereens. Simultaneously, Liu Bai's Jade Wave Mace swept across, sending Lin Xingchu's body tumbling across the river surface.
"Go down!"
Man Yuan leaped up and stomped fiercely on Lin Xingchu's body, directly crushing her into the depths of the riverbed.