Heavenly South, Star-Magnetic Peak, Zi Ling Hall.
Three years slipped by amid painstaking preparations and brief periods of secluded cultivation. On this day, deep within Zi Ling Hall, in a quiet chamber covered in soundproofing and protective restrictions, Zi Ling slowly opened her eyes. The perfectly rounded, full spiritual pressure surrounding her, already at the limit of the Nascent Soul stage, slowly receded like a tide, settling at last into the stillness of a deep pool. Compared with three years ago, her aura had gained a measure of depth and restraint, losing some of the restlessness born of being trapped at a bottleneck.
"It is time." Murmuring to herself, she rose to her feet.
Today was the day she and Han Li had agreed she would set out on her travels.
The chamber door opened soundlessly. At some point, Han Li had appeared beneath the corridor outside, standing quietly. He still wore his usual blue robes, his expression calm, but when his deep, dark-gold eyes turned toward Zi Ling, they held a barely perceptible softness and anticipation.
"How are your preparations?" Han Li asked.
"My magic power and spiritual sense are both in peak condition, and I have gained an initial grasp of the cultivation art and secret techniques you bestowed upon me, Palace Master." Zi Ling approached him and dipped in a slight bow, her respectful tone carrying a touch of intimacy.
Han Li nodded slightly. With a turn of his hand, several streaks of light flew toward Zi Ling.
The first was an unusual jade pendant, pale purple throughout, shaped like a phoenix feather and thin as a cicada's wing. "The Purple Void Pendant. I personally refined it using ten-thousand-year-old void sky feather as the main material, supplemented with several spiritual materials possessing spatial attributes. Wearing it will