The Fairy in the Celestial Script

"Who are you? Why are you inside my mirror?"

After several exchanged looks, the woman parted her crimson lips and spoke first.

She seemed unable to make sense of it either. After probing for a while, she said, "Are you the artifact spirit within my mirror?"

Ji You froze for a moment.

When he had first seen someone here, he had nearly had the same thought. He had assumed this woman was an artifact spirit, thinking it was no wonder so many people risked their lives trying to sense the Celestial Script—there really was a beauty like jade within the book.

But now, it seemed this woman had entered for the first time as well, and had mistaken him for the artifact spirit instead.

"You aren't the artifact spirit?"

Seeing his bewildered expression, the woman's gaze instantly turned wary.

Ji You opened his mouth. "I only just arrived too."

"Where did you come from?"

"I was meditating in the mountains when I suddenly saw a flash of spiritual light. I followed it over to take a look, and eventually arrived here."

Ji You did not know this woman's identity either, so he remained cautious and did not reveal much.

The reason was simple: this woman was far too beautiful.

Fang Ruoyao could only be called a pretty girl from a humble household. Her features were exquisite, but lacked grandeur—perhaps because of the background she had grown up in.

Lu Qingqiu, on the other hand, was every inch a wealthy young lady, bright-eyed and white-toothed, though there was a faintly seductive air to her brows and eyes.

But the woman before him was flawless to the point of perfection, her temperament even more otherworldly and refined.

Yet Zhang Wuji's mother had said that beautiful women like this were the best at deceiving people, and one had to be on guard.

Sure enough, seeing that he knew nothing when questioned, the woman narrowed her eyes slightly. "I was merely testing you just now. In truth, I am a Fairy who has already ascended, and this place is a world under my control."

"I see. Then may I ask the Fairy's great name?"

"How could a Fairy's name be casually disclosed to you?"

"Since this is a world controlled by the Fairy, then I must have stumbled in by accident. Please, Fairy, release me from your world."

"Do not tell a Fairy how to do things."

The woman's brows arched faintly. Knowing the man before her did not believe her, she walked barefoot toward the mountain on a pair of snowy jade feet, curiously surveying the light of the heavens here.

Sure enough, beautiful women were the best liars.

Ji You muttered to himself. He watched her step onto a black stone, then stopped paying attention and instead raised his head toward those profound mysteries constantly intertwining above.

Yet with only that instant of staring, an immense pressure descended upon him.

Under that will of heaven, which left him dizzy and disoriented, he instantly collapsed into a seated position.

Only then did he realize that he was now using Divine Sense to observe the heavens. Though his cultivation speed was extremely fast, his Divine Sense remained very weak.

Compared to Chu He and Lu Qingqiu, who could swallow pills every day to replenish their Divine Sense, he held no advantage at all in this regard.

"Comprehending Mysteries..."

"As the name implies, the key should lie in comprehension—understanding and grasping."

"One must see clearly how the Heavenly Dao evolves, then experience it, understand it, and wield it with ease."

Ji You recalled what Instructor Cao had told him before. Then he sat down on the ground and began quietly observing the Heavenly Dao.

But after only a few glances, he found his Divine Sense wracked with agonizing pain, as though flesh were being carved away and bones scraped clean.

His approach was correct, but the might of the Heavenly Dao was no empty phrase. With the current strength of his Divine Sense, he simply could not endure much of it.

Thus, he could only observe the Dao in intervals, gritting his teeth to persist.

It felt like sweet rain falling upon a desert, yet he had no vessel to hold the water. He was utterly powerless, able to retain and remember only precious little.

"Three breaths..."

"At the limit, I can only hold on for three breaths at a time..."

"This level of consumption is even greater than sending Divine Sense flying through the sky..."

After the fourth attempt, Ji You was panting heavily, kneeling beneath the barren Void Mountain. The feeling of depletion could no longer be eased.

If he forced himself onward, he suspected his Divine Sense might shatter.

Ji You could not help slumping against a stone. After resting for a long while, his gaze inadvertently shifted toward his rear right.

The barefoot girl in the flowing immortal dress seemed to have gained some insight as well. She sat upon a smooth black boulder with her back to Void Mountain, already deep in meditation.

Since she was not an artifact spirit...

Could she be an Inner Court senior sister?

No, she did not seem like one either.

Her accent carried a trace of the south, somewhat similar to that innkeeper at Chunhua Post Station.

And as far as he knew, the Seven Great Immortal Sects placed great importance on selecting new disciples near their own gates.

Take the Chu brothers, for example. They could go to Xuan Yuan Immortal Mansion, the Chen Clan Immortal Family, or the Celestial Academy, because all of those were northern immortal sects.

But they could never go to Mountain Sea Pavilion, Dao Seeking Sect, or Spirit Sword Mountain.

Ji You stared at her for a long time, then unconsciously moved closer.

Her eyes were far too beautiful. Only now did he notice that the girl's eyelashes were so long and curled.

Her meditative state, like a false slumber, made her appear pure, beautiful, and innocent. Her skin was so delicate it seemed as though it might break at the touch of a breath.

Up close, her exquisite little nose appeared even more sculpted and perky. Even with a runny nose, she would still look beautiful.

His gaze moved downward. The girl sat cross-legged, her snowy jade feet crystalline and translucent, her rounded toes faintly pink like peach blossoms—small and exquisite, as though they could be clasped in one hand.

Before Ji the Fierce Bandit came to Qingyun World, he had seen many beautiful young girls, but none had been so vivid and utterly flawless.

"Beauty capable of toppling a kingdom and fragrance that fills the heavens—perhaps this is what it means."

At that moment, the girl who called herself a Fairy suddenly opened her eyes, her gaze lifting slightly.

Ji You paused, only then realizing that he had become too absorbed, and the words in his heart had turned into a murmur aloud.

As their eyes met, her gaze remained proud and cold, yet a blush quietly spread over her expressionless face.

Before he could react, Ji You saw the Fairy before him suddenly sweep her sleeve, directly sending him flying.

Divine Sense had no weight; a light sweep of the breeze could carry it a thousand miles.

When he regained his senses, he found that the five senses of reality had returned, while his ears were filled with clamor.

Ji You opened his eyes, and the heavenly light around him faded away. Yet two streaks of Mystic Light appeared before his forehead. Though one had yet to solidify, its outline had already emerged.

At this sight, the watching disciples could not help drawing sharp breaths in shock.

One had to know that it had taken Chu He a full ten days to condense Mystic Light. Even then, he had swallowed countless pills as aid and labored day and night without stopping.

But Ji You had nearly caught up to Chu He in less than an hour of comprehending the Dao, and the crowd grew even more restless.

"Young Master Ji, what did you see?"

"Yes, Junior Brother Ji. Was there a Great Dao within the Celestial Script? Could you tell us about it?"

"I heard Inner Court disciples say before that in the beginning of everlasting nothingness, ancient times had no form. The book contains the first opening of the vast void after existence emerged from nothing, where things surged and spread, hollow and boundless, and ten thousand Daos evolved. Is that true?"

After a long silence, Ji You gently opened his mouth. "I saw a Fairy within it."

At those words, an uproar erupted all around.

To mortals, immortals were cultivators. But to cultivators, immortals naturally meant true immortals who had ascended.

What they did not know was that in a certain era, a Fairy was also called a pretty girl.

But Ban Yangshu, who had once observed the Celestial Script, did not believe it at all. After entering the Inner Court, he had discussed the Dao with many senior and junior brothers.

Within the Celestial Script was a world still shrouded in ignorance, the beginning of the Great Dao taking form, a vast expanse of nothingness. That was why one could comprehend the Dao through it; there was nothing else within.

This Ji You was likely concealing things before everyone, unwilling to tell the truth.

At the same time, news of the strange phenomenon of waves upon waves of heavenly light began to spread like wildfire through word of mouth.

"Your Highness, someone has just sensed the Celestial Script..."

Within Prince Chong's Mansion in Shengjing City, candle shadows glowed red. Prince Chong sat before his desk, holding a Daoist canon and reading it carefully.

He was a cultivator as well, but his aptitude was ordinary, and he had remained at the Middle Stage of Condensing Illumination for many years.

In truth, cultivation truly depended on talent. One in ten thousand was no exaggeration, and even kings, nobles, generals, and ministers were no exception.

Still, any amount of cultivation could extend one's lifespan somewhat and ward off evil and illness, so many imperial clansmen in the capital flocked to it like ducks to water.

Just then, the cry of surprise from a servant in the manor instantly set his nerves on edge.

"Oh?"

Prince Chong raised his eyes at the sound and passed through the screen into the front hall. "Someone sensed the Celestial Script so quickly? The Chu family truly is no ordinary lot."

The servant of the manor froze slightly. "How can Your Highness be certain it was Young Master Chu?"

"A few days ago, I sent people to inquire. The only person still attempting to sense the Celestial Script at the Celestial Academy was him. Those surnamed Chu indeed live up to their reputation—this prince is truly astonished!"

"Chu He was merely born into a good family, but Your Highness is the one with true discerning eyes!"

Prince Chong beamed at the flattery. He instructed his servants to prepare a banquet for the next day, then picked up a brush, ready to write the invitation personally.

But just as he set brush to paper, Ban Yangshu hurried over from Nishan and arrived at Prince Chong's Mansion.

"Your Highness, someone has sensed the Celestial Script."

"I already know. It was Chu He?"

"It was... Ji You."

"?"

"Who is Ji You?"

Prince Chong froze, then his eyes gradually widened. "That uncultured wild independent cultivator...?"

Meanwhile, on Yong'an Street directly opposite Nishan Heavenly Script Academy, countless cultivators gathered in the city had also seen the waves of heavenly light just now.

Because the Chu family was very famous in the cultivation world, many knew that Chu He had refused Xuan Yuan Immortal Mansion and entered the Celestial Academy.

Seeing the heavenly light so vast tonight, quite a few people guessed that Chu He had sensed the Celestial Script.

But soon, news emerged from the Celestial Academy that ran completely contrary to their guesses.

"I heard the one who sensed the Celestial Script was not Chu He."

"If it was not Chu He, then who else could it be?"

"It was an... uncultured wild independent cultivator called Ji You."