Half a month later, outside Heaven Dou City.
Under the slanting glow of the cold moon, the tangled shadows of branches twisted and spread across the ground like clawing ghosts.
Tang Yuehua wore a plain white gown, her eyes hollow and numb, like a walking corpse.
Barefoot, she stepped on the slightly cool dead leaves, mechanically wandering through the woods. Every step carried an eerie stiffness.
It was as if her soul had long since left her body, leaving only an empty shell under someone's control to drift aimlessly.
A moment later, Tang Yuehua abruptly stopped, and her unfocused pupils suddenly contracted.
"Why am I here?"
"Wasn't I making tea with rainwater at Moonlight Pavilion? The purple clay teapot was still warming over the coals..."
Tang Yuehua frowned, her voice full of confusion.
"Making tea with rainwater?"
A cold voice suddenly came from behind her at an angle, carrying a faintly teasing smile.
"I wonder if I might have the honor of tasting the tea personally brewed by the mistress of Moonlight Pavilion?"
"Who?!"
Tang Yuehua shuddered and whirled around.
Moonlight happened to pass through the gaps between the trees, illuminating the two figures standing nearby.
One wore a dark brocade robe that trailed along the ground, his ink-black hair bound beneath a jade crown. His face was as handsome as ice carved from snow, yet an almost suffocating pressure radiated from his body.
Beside the black-haired youth stood an elderly man of average build and utterly ordinary appearance.
The newcomers were none other than Qian Cheng and Salas!
"Qian Cheng?! Why are you here?"
Tang Yuehua's pupils shrank sharply. She staggered half a step back, only steadying herself after the small of her back struck a rough tree trunk.
"What you should be asking is..."
Qian Cheng slowly stepped