CHAPTER 152: CHAPTER 149: COMPLETELY OBLIVIOUS TO ROMANCE

At that moment, the moonlight was enchanting, the long wind vast and endless. The two stood amidst the wind in mid-air, their garments fluttering, exuding an ethereal grace, as if immortals were dueling, an exceptionally pleasing sight.

Yun Ran simply found a good spot, sat cross-legged, propped her chin, and leisurely and contentedly watched the two fight.

Feeling excited, she glanced at the Seven-stringed Zither placed beside Li Ye and couldn’t help but reach out and pluck the strings aimlessly a few times.

After all, she couldn’t truly touch the strings...

However, a jarring cacophony suddenly echoed in the dark, causing the two figures fighting in the sky to abruptly pause and sharply look at the Seven-stringed Zither on the ground.

Yun Ran was stunned.

She stared blankly at her fingers, somewhat incredulous.

She could actually... touch the strings?

"Little Qi?"

After a moment of silence, Chonghua suddenly looked into the void, his eyes flashing with a light that was joyful, hopeful, tense, and myriad of emotions that were so complex and indescribable.

Although Li Ye did not speak, his gaze searched around.

However, the void before his eyes was ethereal; only the cold moon and long wind accompanied him, not the figure he wished to see.

Yet that sound of the zither was distinctly reminiscent of the exclusive tune of their junior sister, could it be hallucination?

Yun Ran gazed at the Seven-stringed Zither in front of her, a bit troubled.

They couldn’t see her or hear her speak, but they could hear her zither sound. Should she try playing some more? Could they communicate through the sound of the zither, like a ghostly message?

"What are you two up to again?"

Suddenly, a cold female voice came, and Yun Ran looked up with some delight.

The woman arrived riding the wind and stepping on the moon, dressed in a long black gown.

Her posture was fiery and charming, her appearance cold and enchanting, yet her expression was an icy demeanor that kept people at a great distance, with a trace of arrogance in her brows, as if no man in the world could catch her eye.

Yun Ran called out ’Fifth Senior Sister’ in her heart and floated over to her, following her every step.

The woman paused slightly, glanced at the empty void beside her, and lightly furrowed her brows.

Yun Ran blinked and wildly waved her claws at her, "Xihe, look at me."

Chonghua lazily stretched, leisurely glanced at Xihe, "Fifth Junior Sister, you came just in time, quickly take this kid away."

Xihe didn’t look at him and disdainfully said, "Both of you scram."

Chonghua: "Is that how you talk to your senior brother? No respect at all."

Li Ye picked up his zither and calmly added, "You hardly look like a senior brother yourself."

A red lotus drifted through the endless long wind, carrying a wisp of cold fragrance towards Li Ye’s handsome face.

Li Ye remained composed, flicking his finger, causing the red lotus to shatter in the wind into petal pieces, floating downwards.

Chonghua sighed lightly, "Truly unappreciative!"

Xihe walked straight over the petals, heading to the lakeshore.

Chonghua held his forehead, shook his head with a melancholy face, "Alas... another destructive beauty."

Xihe suddenly turned to him, "The master once said, Little Junior Sister’s life soul is not extinguished, so there’s no need for you to become so despondent, better preserve your life."

Chonghua’s eyes flickered, a dim shadow passed through his peach blossom eyes.

"Her life soul not extinguished? Then where is she now? Is it reincarnation? Or awakening? Even Master probably doesn’t know."

"If it were that simple, would the Master have secluded himself for so long and not emerged yet?"

After the incident that day, he brought Little Junior Sister back to the sect. The Master took seven days to deduce that Little Junior Sister’s life soul was not extinguished, but as for the solution, he only said that a conclusion could be reached after seclusion.

Why did he seek that Jiuli Mystic Mirror back then?

If it wasn’t for that, Little Junior Sister wouldn’t have encountered any trouble!

Suddenly, Chonghua emanated a dense aura of death, almost engulfing his entire being.

Yun Ran was surprised and instinctively floated forward, trying to grab his arm, but her hand passed through his sleeve.

"Third Senior Brother! It’s not your fault!"

Xihe flashed and pressed a palm against Chonghua’s back.

The icy blue True Qi poured continuously into his body, only dispersing the black aura engulfing him after a moment.

"Chonghua, if you let this incident control you, falling into the Heart Demon’s trap, how could you face Little Junior Sister when she awakens?"

Chonghua’s eyes slightly moved, a touch of unnoticed fragility hidden deep within them, "Little Qi... will she really awaken?"

Xihe nodded emphatically.

"Yes!"

"For now, just take care of yourself, look after Little Junior Sister, and wait patiently for Master’s return."

Yun Ran blinked in confusion, "Take care of me? I’m right here! But how are you going to take care of me?"

Of course, nobody paid her any attention.

Xihe walked straight through her, heading towards the lake and leaped into the water.

Yun Ran, curious, followed her down.

Under the lake was a different world. The water seemed to be separated by a barrier, revealing a separate space inside.

In that space, it was as if a world existed unto itself, with swirling snow and piercing cold at that moment.

Yun Ran shivered from the cold, her head shrinking into her collar, feeling puzzled.

"What’s Xihe doing in the small world at the bottom of the lake? Meditating in seclusion? That’s too diligent!"

Xihe, lightly dressed, traversed through the endless snow, seemingly unfazed by the cold, finally halting before a Condensed Water Pearl.

The pearl, entirely icy blue and about the size of a bedroom, floated in the air, its inside shimmering with rippling water, as if endless streams flowed within.

Crystal clear, it was strikingly beautiful.

In those streams, a young girl lay quietly.

Dressed in a fiery red garment like a phoenix blossom blooming amidst the snow, she shone with beauty.

The girl’s skin was white as snow, born enchanting and graceful.

Her eyes were gently closed, like a begonia slumbering in spring, with a lazy touch imbued with charm.

She was like an elf mistakenly falling into the world, possessing an incomparable beauty, captivatingly spiritual, sublime beyond description.

Xihe looked at her, her cold gaze softened.

"Little Junior Sister, though none of us know where you are now, I believe you will surely return."

"Master said your life soul is not extinguished, you must be somewhere right now, isn’t that so?"

"No matter where you are, we will find and bring you back."

"You must wait for us."

Yun Ran stood behind Xihe, slightly tilting her face to look at the young girl suspended in mid-air, her starry eyes wide with shock and confusion.

She, she was still here?!

She thought she had been shattered to pieces, leaving not even a trace behind!

How could this be...

After a brief shock, Yun Ran floated into the air to face her own self at close range, a strange feeling suddenly rising in her heart.

Though she was looking at herself, this feeling was entirely different from when she looked in a mirror...

Yun Ran reached towards the barrier.

In her current state, she was probably just a wisp of a ghost spirit, and still looked like her true form.

She should be able to penetrate this barrier, perhaps she could return to her body?

Why not give it a try?