The Three Southern Passes, Hundred-Blossom Immortal's residence.
She had long since transformed the place into a valley of dazzling flowers. Spiritual energy hung thick in the air, and it was spring all year round.
At that moment, Hundred-Blossom Immortal sat at the head of a table in a retreat built from thousand-year-old spiritwood at the valley's center. Dressed in a plain white gown, she calmly regarded her two uninvited guests.
Dan Xuzi and Jian Wuchen sat below her. They exchanged a glance, both looking as though they had something to say but could only sigh.
"Surely you two haven't come merely to show me your long faces?" Hundred-Blossom Immortal tapped slender fingers against the table, her voice cool as a spring. "If this concerns 'Hundred Flowers Maiden' again, I've already told you I don't know the person you mean."
She lifted her teacup and took a small sip of spirit tea. Her movements were unhurried, though she was already on guard.
"You misunderstand, Immortal." Dan Xuzi stroked his graying beard and waved a hand. "We haven't come about the past."
Jian Wuchen took over. This Nascent Soul Middle Stage cultivator, renowned for his swordsmanship, fixed Hundred-Blossom Immortal with a gaze sharp as a blade. "The Ten-Thousand Poisons Valley Master mentioned that someone had found traces of Xu Beimu in the southern seas. Taiyi Immortal Sect has issued an execution order and is hunting him with all its strength."
Click.
The teacup in Hundred-Blossom Immortal's hand paused, its base making a faint sound against the table.
Her heart clenched as though an invisible hand had seized it, but her expression did not change. She merely raised her eyes. "Oh? They finally found that traitor?"
She set down her cup, her fingertips faintly cold, while her tone carried just the right edge