Who Paints the Eyebrows of the Devoted Lovers - Hooves Tread the River of Stars, a Long Sword Seeks to Lean Beyond the Heavens

After Xing Yan brought True Person Zhao and Flowstep Immortal to the Four Rivers command tent on Wave-Subduing Island, the old Dragon Lord also found time amid his many duties to give them a grand welcome.

There was no need to recount every detail of their warm reception. Around early afternoon that day, True Person Zhao and Flowstep Immortal, their spirits high after drinking some fine Dragon Clan wine, disregarded the hardships of their journey and took their leave of the Dragon Lord. Without riding the black panther or the manman bird, they each employed their divine abilities and sped north to notify the Daoist disciples still waiting for news at the mouth of the Yu River.

With nothing to encumber them, these two accomplished adepts traveled swiftly indeed. By midnight, they had brought over every one of the Daoist disciples who had come to offer support. Though it was late, Wave-Subduing Island remained brilliantly lit. On the broad clearing outside the Dragon King's command tent, delicacies flowed onto the tables in an endless stream. Demons, Monster-Deities, and Spirit Generals filled the cushion seats, while the Four Rivers Dragon King personally presided over a welcoming feast for these disciples from the mortal lands of the Central Plains.

By the light of the tall torches surrounding the banquet, Xing Yan could see clearly that True Person Zhao had brought some thirty or forty Daoists, old and young. Looking more closely, he found several familiar faces among them: Hua Piaosanchen and Du Ziheng, the couple from his own order; Lin Xu and Zhang Yuner, husband and wife of the Celestial Master Order; and Zhuo Bihua of the Wondrous Radiance Palace and Nangong Qiuyu.

After months or even years apart, meeting these old Daoist friends again amid the roaring waves of the South