That night, after Shi Jinghong left.
You returned to the Moon Laurel Palace and found the Moon Venerable standing on steps strewn with osmanthus blossoms. She had changed into a pale lotus-pink feathered robe, its flowing sleeves studded with starlike glimmers, as though she wore the moonlight itself.
Her face was as luminous as fresh snow atop Kunlun Mountain after the clouds had cleared, yet her brows and eyes held the faint, perennial mists of Mount Gushe.
She was breathtakingly beautiful, but hers was no mortal beauty. She seemed more like a goddess who had strayed down from beyond the nine heavens.
You turned to her with a smile. "Moon Venerable, you invited me here especially. What guidance do you have for me?"
Her eyes shifted slightly. Her voice was like a cool spring beneath the moon. "You... aren't Chen Xuanzi, are you?"
Moonlight fell soundlessly. The shadows of the osmanthus blossoms stirred across the steps.
Your expression did not change. You slowly clasped your hands behind your back. If she had meant to expose you, why wait until the dead of night, when everyone else had gone?
Besides, you were confident that, with your current cultivation, the Dao Embryo Dharma Aspect you had formed, and your Pure Yang Art, even a Supreme Grandmaster could not see through your disguise.
You replied calmly, "What makes you say that, Moon Venerable?"
Yue Lingxiao stepped forward, starlight flowing across her robe as she moved.
Her voice was like a hidden spring beneath the moon. "Years ago, Chen Xuanzi of the Taihua Sect competed with Sect Master Ma for leadership. After losing, he came to the Supreme Dharma Sect to seek an audience with me."
"He wanted my help returning to Taihua and taking the sect master's seat. I did not agree, but