Qi Yunshu and Mu Yunxue

Golden Light Peak, the main peak.

Mu Yunxue's cave abode dwelling is located deep in a bamboo forest halfway up the main peak.

The cave abode was small, but extremely quiet and secluded. Several old bamboo stalks leaned over the door, filtering the intense afternoon sunlight into patches of fine, golden light.

The bamboo leaves rustled softly in the wind, their sound mingling with the distant roar of the waterfall, further enhancing the serene and secluded atmosphere of this secluded paradise.

The maid Mu Tian tiptoed through the corridor and stopped in front of the stone door of the cultivation room.

She activated the sound transmission array on the side of the door, leaned closer to the stone door, and whispered, "Miss, the Sect True Lord is waiting for you outside."

A moment later, the stone door slid open silently.

Mu Yunxue walked out of the cultivation room.

She wore a plain white long dress, the hem of which only reached her ankles, without any extra embellishments.

Her long, jet-black hair was loosely tied back with a sky-blue silk ribbon, hanging down her waist.

Her face was no bigger than the palm of a hand, and her features were so exquisite that they seemed unreal.

Her eyebrows resembled distant mountains, her eyes were like cold pools, her nose was small and straight, and her lips were thin and naturally red.

His face was expressionless, as calm as a frozen lake, reflecting everything yet revealing nothing.

She stood there, like an exquisitely beautiful doll.

Even though Mu Tian had been serving Mu Yunxue for several years, she couldn't help but be slightly dazed for a moment when she saw this peerless face.

Mu Yunxue glanced at Mu Tian, her voice cool and indifferent. "Xiao Tian, what does Master want to see me about?"

"I don't know. The True Lord Leader only said there was something important, but didn't specify what it was."

Mu Yunxue asked no more questions and turned to walk towards the hall.

She soon saw Qi Yunshu in the hall.

Qi Yunshu sat on the wood chair, holding a celadon teacup in her hand.

The cups were filled with the finest Xue Ling tea, its liquor clear and bright with a pale turquoise hue, and a delicate, lingering aroma slowly permeated the hall.

Qi Yunshu has always loved tea. In the past, a cup of Xue Ling tea like this would have been enough to make him relax and feel happy.

But today, his fingers tapped unconsciously on the rim of the cup, his gaze fixed on the tea, but he was clearly distracted.

Mu Yunxue's gaze swept lightly across the hall.

Master came alone; Senior Brother Qi Fang was not present.

This surprised Mu Yunxue slightly.

Almost every time her master came to visit her, he would bring Senior Brother Qi Fang with him.

She was incredibly intelligent and naturally understood her master's intention: to bring her and her Senior Brother Qi Fang together.

But she was devoted to the Tao and never had any thoughts about these things.

Mu Yunxue knew from a young age that she was very beautiful.

The male cultivators of her generation in the sect, and even some elders, looked at her with expressions that were either overt or covertly suggestive of romantic feelings.

But she still couldn't understand what was so good about romantic love between men and women.

For her, wandering freely in the Great Dao and comprehending the infinite mysteries of heaven and earth is far more appealing than these inexplicable things.

Mu Yunxue didn't speculate on why Qi Fang wasn't there.

For her, this is actually a good thing.

At least I don't have to chat with Qi Fang anymore, which saves me a lot of time for cultivation.

"Master."

Mu Yunxue's clear and calm voice rang out in the hall, like a mountain spring dripping on jade, melodious and pleasant to the ear.

Qi Yunshu snapped out of her daze and looked at Mu Yunxue.

Qi Yunshu snapped out of his reverie, looked at Mu Yunxue, and a smile appeared on his handsome face, "Yunxue, I'm sorry to have disturbed your cultivation."

He had originally planned to bring Qi Fang along.

But before notifying Qi Fang, Lu Yang's face suddenly flashed through his mind.

Qi Yunshu then silently put the thought out of her mind.

Mu Yunxue shook her head slightly. "What does Master want with me?"

Qi Yunshu smiled mysteriously and said, "Of course it's a good thing. It will greatly increase your cultivation speed!"

A rare ripple appeared in Mu Yunxue's eyes, which were as calm and still as a deep spring.

To anyone else, this would be considered a very subtle change in expression, but to her, it was a fairly obvious outpouring of emotion.

"... Cultivation speed has increased significantly?"

As Transcendent-Grade Spirit Root, Mu Yunxue's cultivation speed far exceeded the imagination of ordinary cultivators.

In less than five years, she broke through from the Early Qi Refinement Refining to the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage!

Moreover, after breaking through to the Foundation Establishment Realm, she spent a lot of time comprehending the Metal Dao!

Mu Yunxue couldn't even imagine what kind of fortuitous opportunity could have enabled her to so drastically increase her cultivation speed.

Qi Yunshu smiled and nodded, then said, "This time, it's related to Young Master Lu."

Mu Yunxue tilted her head slightly, her expression remaining calm. "Young Master Lu?"

Qi Yunshu then realized that her disciple had gone into seclusion in the cultivation room after the New Year.

I've been in seclusion ever since!

She probably knew nothing about the uproar caused by Lu Yang's return to the sect after the New Year!

Mu Tian, who was standing to the side, knew everything perfectly well.

She covered her mouth slightly, her eyes wide with shock.

After the New Year, that Young Master Lu entered the Golden Sun Mountain Range in a hundred-foot-long flying boat and, with absolute power, took the Li Household's Golden Core as his servant.

This matter caused a huge commotion throughout the entire sect; how could she not know about it?

However, Mu Tian didn't dare to speak.

She dared not be presumptuous in front of the sect True Lord.

Qi Yunshu chuckled, "This Young Master Lu, you've met him once before, actually."

Mu Yunxue frowned almost imperceptibly.

This subtle movement was already a source of considerable confusion for her.

"His surname is Lu..."

Then, as if she had thought of something, a subtle change appeared on her fair and aloof face, and her usually calm eyes stirred with emotion.

"It's him... Lu Yang?"

Qi Yunshu took in Mu Yunxue's changing expressions, and the corner of her mouth twitched involuntarily.

For Mu Yunxue, this emotional fluctuation was enormous.

At the very least, he had never seen Fang'er elicit such a change in his disciple's expression.

Qi Fang had been dangling in front of Mu Yunxue for four years, but all he ever got in return was the same unmoving, icy face.

Qi Yunshu Qi Fang a pang of sympathy for Qi Fang.

Four years of getting to know each other couldn't compare to just one meeting...

Who can I complain to about this?

You're so disappointing!

He has absolutely no knack for pursuing girls!

Qi Yunshu inwardly grumbled, but outwardly remained completely composed, still wearing a warm smile as she nodded, "That's right, it's Lu Yang. You and that kid Changli met him last time. You should know how extraordinary he is."

Mu Yunxue nodded slightly. "Yes, he has the aura of Metal Dao. Very strong..."

Her tone remained calm, but among her peers, only Lu Yang could elicit such a comment from her.

Qi Yunshu shook her head and sighed, "More than just strong... his identity is probably quite extraordinary; he might even come from the Upper Realm."

"Huh?" Mu Tian's eyes widened, and she couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

She immediately covered her mouth as soon as she spoke, her face turning deathly pale.

If she finds out this secret, won't she be killed to silence her?

Mu Tian trembled.

A ripple of emotion stirred in Mu Yunxue's eyes once more.

Clearly, this news from the upper realm was enough to shock even Mu Yunxue.

Qi Yunshu straightened her Orthodox God and steered the conversation back on track. "He did some good things for our sect. That's why I came to see you today. However, before that, you need to swear Great Heavenly Dao Oath, guaranteeing with your own soul and Dao Path that you will not tell anyone about this, not even your mother."

Mu Yunxue nodded slightly without hesitation. "Okay."

She naturally didn't want to miss such fortuitous opportunity that could improve her cultivation speed.

After listening to Qi Yunshu recite the oath, she confirmed that there was no danger; he only asked her to promise not to reveal the secrets of the sect's forbidden area.

She decisively made Great Heavenly Dao Oath.

The vow is fulfilled.

A very faint fluctuation of the Principle of heaven and earth swept over her, and then disappeared.

Qi Yunshu then turned to look at Mu Tian.

Mu Tian dared not delay and quickly followed suit, making a vow as if she were afraid that if she was even a second late, she would be eliminated.

Qi Yunshu stood up from his chair, his gold and white sect leader robe fluttering slightly with his movement. He chuckled and said, "Let's go, I'll take you to the sect's forbidden area!"

Mu Yunxue nodded slightly.

Although she had never heard of any forbidden areas within the sect before.

But she guessed it was related to fortuitous opportunity and Lu Yang.

Since a forbidden area has been designated, this fortuitous opportunity might be related to the cultivation environment in that region.

Perhaps the concentration of Spiritual Qi in that area has increased?

Mu Yunxue didn't speculate too much.

Now that she has made a vow that her master will take her to the forbidden area, the answer will be revealed soon.

The two left the cave abode, transforming into rainbow light, and flew one after the other towards the depths of the sect.

The afternoon mountain breeze carried a refreshing scent of pine resin and spring water.

The outlines of the mountains below appeared and disappeared in the sea of clouds.

On the way, Qi Yunshu suddenly thought of something, looked at Mu Yunxue, and asked, "By the way, would you like to meet Young Master Lu? Young Master Lu's understanding of the Metal Dao of Metal is very profound, not much worse than my own. Perhaps you two could exchange ideas?"