The fifteenth day of the second month, the Flower Festival.
Beneath the night sky, flower lanterns already hung along Long Street in Beiya Mountain City.
Mortals climbed bamboo ladders onto vine bridges, decorating the lanterns with flowers and grasses, while cultivators gathered firefly lights and sent them into the wicks.
A soft blue-green glow enveloped all of Long Street.
The Flower Festival proceeded as scheduled, without a ripple.
Song Yan and Yan Xun were sitting in a roadside restaurant, chatting.
"It really is lively..."
Song Yan sighed. "Peace and quiet have their merits, and bustle has its charms."
"This visit to your Beiya Mountain has certainly broadened my horizons."
He looked out at the street beyond the window.
Tiny petals scattered into the crowd on the wind, drawing giggles from basket-carrying mortal girls as they chased after them.
Yan Xun took a sip of the spirit wine on the table and smiled with considerable pride. "Brother Yan, whenever you're in the mood for a leisurely visit, you're always welcome here..."
The two had grown quite familiar over the past few days, and their conversation was no longer so formal.
Yan Xun had brought this pot of green plum spirit wine from home himself.
Yesterday's affairs had mostly been dealt with.
To avoid disrupting today's festival, Liang Feng had been temporarily imprisoned. Song Yan had returned the Moon-Bearing Lotus Seed to its rightful owner, handing it over to Senior Cong Yuzhen to deal with.
The others merely assumed the senior had anticipated everything and asked no further questions.
When facing Cong Yuzhen, he had only said that he had been unwilling to let the stalemate continue and allow the Devil Cultivator to escape.
Treating a dead horse as though it could still be saved, he had taken out a precious spirit