Wait for Me

Above Mount Lao.

Su Yao and Zilin stood facing each other, with the verdant Mount Lao mountain range stretching out beneath their feet, and the upturned eaves of Purple Yang Temple faintly visible in the distance, appearing and disappearing amidst the sea of clouds.

A mountain breeze swept by, causing Zilin's clothes to flutter gently and bringing a few stray hairs from her temples to her eyes.

She raised her hand to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear, turned her face away, and gazed at the churning sea of clouds in the distance, whispering:

You should go now.

Su Yao looked at the light and shadow on her profile, remained silent for a moment, and then said:

"Even after seeing you off for a thousand miles, we must eventually part ways."

Upon hearing this, Zilin's lips twitched slightly, a look that was neither a smile nor annoyance.

"You're quite the talker."

She paused, turned around, and looked directly at Su Yao. Her usually cool eyes now held an indescribable gentleness, like the last vestiges of unmelted ice in spring, shimmering slightly warm in the sunlight.

"Regarding the matter in Mount Lao, my sister..." She carefully chose her words, "You don't need to worry about it."

Su Yao nodded. "I know."

"I will speak to my sister about the Five Fires Seven Fowl Fan, even if she is estranged from me," Zilin added. "After all, the fan belongs to Mount Lao. Whether she lends it or not is up to my sister."

Upon hearing this, Su Yao's gaze shifted slightly.

He naturally understood that Zilin's words were meant to "share his burdens"—she didn't want him to lose face in front of Zique because of the "borrowing treasure" matter.

"Zilin," he said.

Zilin looked up at him.

Su Yao hesitated for a moment before saying, "What your sister said earlier in Mount Jing was that I should come to Mount Lao when I have time, as there are some things that need to be discussed in person. Now that I've come, and you know what we discussed, I should go."

Zilin nodded but did not reply.

The mountain wind rose again, making the silence between the two seem even more desolate.

Su Yao took a deep breath and bowed respectfully:

"Take care of yourself."

Zilin also curtsied in return, uttering only two words:

"Take care of yourself."

Su Yao said no more. With a swift movement, golden light appeared Golden Light Across the Land, transforming it into a beam of light that shot towards the southern horizon.

After fleeing for several miles, he couldn't help but look back.

Zilin remained standing in the same spot, her purple robes billowing like smoke in the wind, as if she were about to ride the wind, or as if something had tripped her up.

She didn't wave or say anything; she simply watched quietly in the direction he had left.

Su Yao withdrew his gaze and increased his speed.

But after traveling several more miles, he couldn't resist turning back again. He used his Law Power to project a message into the increasingly smaller purple shadow:

"Wait for me."

The sound pierced through layers of clouds and mist, crossed thousands of mountains and rivers, and landed in Zilin's ears.

Zilin stood there, her body trembling slightly.

She gazed at the pure white light that gradually disappeared into the depths of the Great Void, remaining silent for a long time.

After a long while, she lowered her eyelashes, and the corners of her lips curved almost imperceptibly.

"Um."

She spoke very softly, so softly that she could barely hear herself.

But she knew in her heart that he had heard her.

Su Yao traveled an unknown distance, the Great Void stretching out before him, Mount Lao behind him had long since vanished into the clouds.

Just as he was about to speed up his journey south, a surge of Purple Qi suddenly erupted from the depths of the Great Void ahead.

The Purple Qi was like incense boiling for the first time, with purple smoke rising and dyeing half the sky a brilliant purple.

Su Yao paused and stopped.

Within the Purple Qi, a figure slowly materialized.

He wore purple robes and a purple crown, with a deep, dark mark between his brows. His face resembled Zilin's by seven or eight points, but he possessed a more mature and aloof air, a quality honed by the passage of time.

It was none other than the abbot of Purple Yang Temple, Zique.

Su Yao's eyes flickered slightly, and he clasped his hands in a respectful greeting:

"Greetings, Abbot. I didn't see you in Mount Lao before, and I heard that you had gone to the Purple Mansion Continent. I didn't expect to meet you here."

Zique did not speak immediately.

She simply gazed at Su Yao, her eyes, which resembled Zilin's yet were entirely different, swirling with something Su Yao couldn't decipher.

Su Yao felt a chill run down his spine from her gaze.

In that gaze, there was scrutiny, hesitation, a complex mix of emotions that were hard to define, and even a faint trace of resentment.

Just as Su Yao was about to speak, Zique suddenly said:

"I've never been to Nanzhao, and I don't know what happened between you and Zilin."

She paused, her voice clear as a spring, yet with a very faint hoarseness:

"Ke Su Yao."

Su Yao looked up.

Zique stared directly at him, her gaze sharp as a knife:

"Do you and Zilin have genuine feelings for each other? Or is it just for the Five Fires Seven Fowl Fan?"

After he finished speaking, the Great Void fell silent.

Su Yao was taken aback.

He gazed into Zique's eyes, which resembled Zilin's, and into those eyes where there was no concealment of defensiveness and questioning. He suddenly recalled what Zilin had said at the foot of Mount Lao: "You don't need to overthink it."

I see.

He remained silent for a moment before slowly speaking.

"Senior," his voice wasn't loud, but it was steady, "When I broke through to the Purple Mansion, in my Boundless Illusion, as a mortal, I always felt a purple figure..."

Before he could finish speaking, Zique suddenly interrupted him:

"When your elders repeatedly mentioned this matter in their letters, I was against it."

She turned her face away, gazing at the surging Purple Qi deep within the Great Void, her voice lowered:

"I don't want to force Zilin. But I can't stop the elders in the temple. Danqiuzi Supreme True Person persuaded me, saying that this matter would be good for Zilin."

Su Yao remained silent.

Zique paused, a complex emotion creeping into her voice:

"But I refused. I only have one younger sister, and I hope she can attain enlightenment."

She said this very softly, as if she were talking to herself.

Su Yao looked at her and remained silent for a moment.

He suddenly remembered that Zilin had once said that she and her sister "would eventually grow estranged." At the time, he only thought it was a competition on the Dao Path, but now, listening to Zique's words, he understood that behind that "estrangement" there was something unknown to others.

Zique continued:

Later, Danqiuzi Supreme True Person advised me that Zilin, in his youth, had the Terminal Yin Dao Lineage of Jade Jasper and wished to take him as a disciple.

Upon hearing this, Su Yao's brows twitched slightly.

Terminal Yin Dao Lineage.

He was naturally aware of this.

Terminal Yin is the end of the Three Yins channels. Greater Yin is the opening, Lesser Yin is the pivot, Terminal Yin is the closing.

Of the Three Yins, Terminal Yin is the most profound and complex.

"But because she has the bloodline of Purple Qi flowing through her veins, we decided against it," Zique said slowly. "Zilin has good aptitude, but her destiny carries some Terminal Yin Qi, so cultivating Purple Qi will ultimately be a Lower Vehicle for her. The temple originally wanted to arrange for her to cultivate other paths as well, but in the end, it didn't work out."

She turned her head and looked at Su Yao again, her gaze carrying a hint of something indescribable:

"Danqiuzi Supreme True Person said that if I were with you, and with the help of the magical Rainbow Clouds, there might be a chance to achieve enlightenment."

After he finished speaking, the Great Void fell silent.

Su Yao gazed at Zique, remaining silent for a long time.

He finally understood.

Zique stood there, not to question, nor to stop him.

She is "entrusting".

She used "questioning" as a facade, but her true intention was "entrustment." She needed to know if Su Yao's feelings for Zilin were genuine before she could confidently hand her sister over to him. She began with "opposition," but her heart was set on "wishing her happiness." She refused, she tried to stop her, but in the end, she chose to "let her go."

Su Yao took a deep breath and bowed solemnly towards Zique:

"Don't worry, senior."

He spoke very slowly:

"My feelings for Zilin are genuine."

Zique gazed at him for a long time.

After a long while, she suddenly chuckled softly.

"That's good," she said.

As soon as she finished speaking, she turned around, and with a surge of Purple Qi, she fled towards the Purple Mansion Continent.

After fleeing for several miles, she suddenly stopped, without looking back, leaving only one sentence:

"The gates of Mount Lao are always open for you."

As soon as he finished speaking, the Purple Qi dissipated, and his figure completely disappeared into the depths of the Great Void.

Su Yao stood there, gazing in the direction where the Purple Qi had dissipated, remaining silent for a long time.

A moment later, he withdrew his gaze, and a golden light flashed beneath his feet as he soared into the southern sky.

Behind us, Mount Lao was far away, and the Great Void emptiness stretched out before us.

There is a word cloud:

Where the purple smoke billows, the sisters go their separate ways.

Only by asking if it's true can you know that you're family.

A guest at the gate of Mount Lao turns back to gaze at the Yunzhong.

With a promise from you, what need is there for the raging winds and flames?