After rounding a rockery, Su Yu found the path to the Worship Hall's side courtyard ahead.
He was about to take the shortcut when a group approached from the opposite direction.
At their head was Bibi Dong, dressed in magnificent papal robes. A purple-gold crown held back her long violet hair, framing a face of striking, icy beauty.
Two attendants followed her, apparently also headed for the Worship Hall.
Su Yu stopped.
So did Bibi Dong.
Her gaze first settled on Su Yu's face, and her lips curved into a habitual half-smile. It seemed she still remembered him calling her "teacher" yesterday.
But in the next instant, her gaze passed over his shoulder and landed on the woman in green behind him.
Bibi Dong's smile froze.
Her pupils contracted. Deep shock surged through her violet eyes, as though she had seen something that should never have appeared here.
Her fingers clenched around her sleeve until her knuckles turned white, and her breath caught.
"Ah Yin..."
The name slipped through her teeth, almost too quiet to hear, yet trembling with shock that reached her very bones.
She recognized that face, that gentleness woven into her every movement, those clear blue eyes like a stream.
Years ago, when she was still Spirit Hall's Holy Maiden, she had caught a glimpse of this woman from afar.
She had remembered that brief encounter for years, because it marked the beginning of everything between Qian Xunji and Tang Hao.
Ah Yin raised her head and met Bibi Dong's gaze.
She gave a slight, polite but distant nod without speaking.
Bibi Dong's chest rose and fell sharply beneath her papal robes.
She stared hard at Ah Yin, then whipped around to Su Yu. Her voice was cold.
"Su Yu, where did you find her?"
Su Yu