The courtyard of Moon Perching Pavilion.
"Sister... Lingyue?"
Having reached the Bamboo Grove in the courtyard, Xu Taiping looked at the figure among the bamboo in puzzlement.
This figure was not the Sister Lingyue he knew, but a Young Girl in plain clothes, her hair tied in a bun, who looked like a porcelain doll.
"Did I frighten you?"
The Young Girl spoke in a voice and tone utterly at odds with her age.
"No, I just wasn't expecting this."
Xu Taiping smiled and shook his head.
That voice, that way of speaking—he could now confirm that the Young Girl before him was Fairy Lingyue.
"The Earth Fruit hasn't ripened yet, and this body of mine isn't fully formed, so what you're seeing now, Taiping, is how I looked as a child."
Fairy Lingyue sounded somewhat helpless.
"But you, Taiping, have suffered during this time. I'll make that Blade Ghost pay."
After looking Xu Taiping up and down, intense killing intent suddenly surfaced in her previously clear, flawless eyes.
Compared to before she fell asleep, Xu Taiping was not only much thinner, but his blood qi was also frighteningly weak, so she concluded at a glance that Blade Ghost had tortured him into this state.
"Give me the hand with the Ghost-Sealing Talisman."
Fairy Lingyue held out her hand to Xu Taiping, seemingly about to go in and settle accounts with Blade Ghost right then.
"Sister Lingyue, let's discuss Blade Ghost tonight. There's no hurry."
Xu Taiping shook his head.
"Why?"
Fairy Lingyue looked at Xu Taiping in some confusion.
"It's not just Blade Ghost. While you were asleep, I also fought demon cultivators from Nine Nether. There are many things I'd like to confirm with you, Sister Lingyue."
Xu Taiping spoke with a serious expression.
"Nine Nether? Demon cultivators?"