Floating Mist Immortal Pavilion is located east of the Firmament Vault Heavenly Palace, at the end of the Fifth Realm.
This extraordinary palace is neither a divine tower nor a palace built by the Non-Realm Sect, but an ancient Nameless white jade pavilion, hanging alone where the swirling currents of the Three Thousand Realms converge, like a drop of clear dew settling in the center of a storm, solitary yet not cold, silent yet carefree.
Qin Yu stepped into the Immortal Pavilion.
He felt no pressure or scrutiny, and even the rhythm of the boundary force quietly receded, as if he had stepped into a quiet realm gently enveloped by the passage of time.
And she, Ling Jingxi, was already waiting in the pavilion.
Today, she was not wearing the formal robes for the imperial procession, but rather a flowing, misty dress, the light gauze slightly sheer, her hair styled in a cloud-like bun. She sat gracefully before a crescent-shaped white jade table, pouring a pot of Biliuhun tea. Her elegant posture resembled the first snow under the moon; and when she turned her head and smiled, it was as if she were a Daoist master plucking a flower, shaking the stars and frost.
As soon as Qin Yu stepped inside, she slowly stood up, a smile playing on her lips:
I thought you weren't coming.
Qin Yu nodded slightly. "You said you weren't afraid of trouble."
Ling Jingxi didn't reply, but instead pointed to both sides of the jade table, her voice Wenwan:
"Please sit down. I brewed this tea myself."
He sat down, and the moment he sat down, the aroma of tea permeated his Soul Sea. It was an extremely gentle spiritual Spiritual Qi that brought him back to his senses. It was neither a pill nor a technique, yet it could make his soul flow as clear and refreshing as a spring.
But he remained unmoved, his gaze calm, fixed solely on the woman before him.
Ling Jingxi did not ask the questions he expected. She did not ask "Who are you?", "Where did you come from?", or "Who taught you the formula for that elixir?"
She didn't ask anything.
She simply smiled faintly at him.
It was as if what she valued was not the pills he refined, but rather—himself.
"As you probably guessed, I'm actually not interested in that 'Yuan Fire Soul-Returning Pill'."
She spoke softly, her fingers lightly tracing the rim of the teacup, her knuckles like jade, and a faint fragrance slowly wafted from her sleeve.
"Since you Non-Self sect's register Boundless Realm soul number, if I were someone else, I would have become suspicious long ago."
"But I didn't."
Qin Yu raised an eyebrow slightly, his tone calm:
Why not ask?
Ling Jingxi picked up her teacup, took a small sip, and then slowly said:
Because I don't care where you come from. I only care about you as a person.
She paused slightly, gently set down her teacup, her tone still calm, yet carrying an undisguised hint of amusement:
Do you know how old I am?
Qin Yu shook his head.
"Nine hundred and ninety-nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-two years old."
"But I remained in this 'physical state' when I was twenty-eight years old."
"From then on, this body stopped aging."
She looked directly at Qin Yu, speaking each word clearly:
"Therefore, don't treat me like an elder, nor like Immortal King."
"Treat me as a woman who wants to get to know you..."
Qin Yu remained silent.
He wasn't unaware.
Rather, they understood it too quickly.
At this moment, he finally realized:
This Ling Jingxi is not someone who "approaches you for personal gain," nor someone who "sets a trap to investigate your identity," nor someone who "borrows your elixir to seek your techniques."
She just wanted to get to know him.
In the Spirit Firmament Great Realm, there is almost never a "person" who can stir the heart of a female ruler who has reached the Perfection of Realm Master.
Ling Jingxi didn't press further, but suddenly changed the subject:
Would you be willing to come with me on this trip?
Where to?
She gazed out the window at the flowing light, her eyes seeming to hold a surge of starlight and thunder:
"An abandoned secret realm of origin."
"There exists a unique 'Source Fire Spirit Apex' that can help cultivators below the Initial Yuan Realm quickly 'Refine Origin and Condense Meridians' to break through to a higher level."
"I can take you there."
Qin Yu did not immediately agree, but instead asked a question that concerned his life and death:
"How powerful a cultivator can that secret realm accommodate?"
Ling Jingxi softly uttered a sentence:
"Limited to the Initial Yuan Realm Fifth Stage."
"Above the True Soul Realm, the formation will automatically disintegrate."
Qin Yu remained silent for a moment, then nodded. "Okay, I'll go."
He wasn't unaware of the danger; rather, he was aware of it:
In a cultivation world like Spirit Firmament, where "only those in the hundreds of millions can be considered outer sect practitioners," one who doesn't take risks, seize opportunities, or venture into secret realms will forever be trapped at the very bottom.
For the first time, a genuine smile appeared in Ling Jingxi's eyes.
She stood up, her long black hair trailing on the ground, and whispered:
Now that you've come, I will not let this first encounter go to waste.
"Meet me three days later at the Realm Hidden Valley, Heavenfall Bridge."
I will prepare your entry permit.
Qin Yu rose to take his leave, his steps slow.