Dawn Lake was quiet beneath the night sky.
Only the Star-Catching Tower kept spilling filthy language too foul to hear and curses that bordered on hexes.
The disciples of the Hanging Bell Sect hid far away, not daring to listen, though they had long since grown used to it.
Since the former sect master's death, the Old Madam had often cursed people like this in the tower.
The person she cursed was always her own daughter-in-law.
"This is my home."
Standing at the cliff's edge, Se Se listened to the filthy language coming from over there and sighed.
He Zhan looked at her and said, "Things will get better."
Se Se turned toward him and said, "Thank you for coming."
He Zhan said, "By the time I heard the news, it was already late."
Se Se smiled. "If you could come, it wasn't too late."
He Zhan said nothing.
"With things as they are now, I can't leave."
Se Se hugged him, resting her face against his chest, and said softly, "Go back to White City. I'll wait for you here."
He Zhan thought for a moment, agreed, then took a few sheets of paper from his sleeve and handed them to her.
Thinking of a certain possibility, Se Se's expression became rather interesting. "I'm a girl... I can't practice this, can I?"
"What are you thinking?" He Zhan said helplessly. "This is my secret recipe for grilled fish."
At this answer, Se Se's eyes immediately lit up, and she unconsciously licked her lips.
He Zhan continued, "The recipe I wrote for Tong Yan last time was missing two seasonings. This one tastes good."
He Zhan and Se Se thought Tong Yan was in secluded cultivation on Yunmeng Mountain. Many others thought so too. Very few people knew