Before the ritual altar, Lü Xianyun remained prostrate in prayer, begging Li Ling to descend here and save his Dao companion.
As time passed and the sun gradually sank westward, his face grew ever paler, and disappointment slowly surfaced in his eyes.
"Did Senior Li not hear?"
"Fellow Daoist Lü, let us go back."
A trace of regret crossed Yao Lingxian's mind. Had he known, he would never have let compassion move him to bring Lü Xianyun here.
Although he, too, believed disciples of reputable orthodox sects would listen to reason, human hearts were fickle. There was no telling when someone might repay kindness with malice and turn resentful instead.
In the end, he had handled this poorly.
Lü Xianyun rose in disappointment and walked back numbly.
Just then, however, both men suddenly caught a delicate fragrance filling the valley. An indescribable aura flowed through the air, seemingly conjuring a sky full of radiant light.
Lü Xianyun looked up in astonishment, unsure what was happening, but Yao Lingxian rejoiced. "Grandmaster's soul has returned to his body!"
He led Lü Xianyun farther inside. Sure enough, deep in the valley, a handsome man in white walked gracefully toward them. It was Li Ling.
"Greetings, Grandmaster. I had no choice but to summon you so presumptuously. For the sake of our fellowship in the Immortal Sects, please treat Fellow Daoist Yang."
Yao Lingxian hurried forward and bowed in greeting.
Lü Xianyun also hurried forward and dropped to his knees with a thud. "Senior True Lord, please show mercy and save my Dao companion."
Li Ling said, "I already know what happened here. Rise. Let us go and take a look."
Lü Xianyun wept with gratitude. "Senior, I have no way to repay your great kindness. In the future, I will brave boiling water