The rain gradually ceased, and the humid air was filled with the scent of scorched earth.
In the distance, Mang Mountain was a charred black, with wisps of smoke rising and merging into the leaden-gray clouds.
Lin Wan and Ji Hongli stood suspended in the air, their sleeves fluttering gently in the breeze.
Lin Wan's gaze fell upon the wretched figure at the foot of the mountain—Peony Immortal's clothes were tattered, her spiritual energy scattered, and she was struggling to keep herself from collapsing.
A hint of compassion flashed in her eyes as she turned to look at Ji Hongli beside her.
"Why not make a move?"
Lin Wan's voice was somewhat low, unusually carrying a trace of doubt.
Ji Hongli's expression remained calm as her gaze drifted toward Mang Mountain in the distance.
"Because if we act now, everything we've done before would be for nothing."
Lin Wan frowned, her fists clenched, then slowly relaxed.
She sighed deeply and said, "Then you can tell me now, what's going on?"
Ji Hongli turned her head, glanced at her, and the corner of her lips lifted into a complex smile.
"I was planning to tell you. However, at first, I couldn't be certain..."
She paused, her gaze returning to the distance, her voice light yet carrying a fateful weight.
"Only after seeing this scene could I be certain—what we are experiencing now is indeed a legend from the primordial era."
"A legend from the primordial era?" Lin Wan was stunned.
Ji Hongli nodded, her eyes filled with reminiscence.
"This is a story my master told me many years ago. I never thought... I would actually witness it with my own eyes."
The wind swept across the barren mountains, stirring up fine ashes. The two figures appeared particularly small under the vast sky, yet as if they had merged with this heaven and earth.
Ji Hongli began to tell the story, her voice gentle yet carrying the weight of ages, flowing slowly in the cool air.
"This Peony Immortal is actually the youngest daughter of the Zhulong Great God."
Her gaze seemed to pierce through the scorched earth before her, looking toward a more distant past.
"Her mother died for some reason, so she transferred this hatred to her own father. To escape Zhulong, she even defected to the Heavenly Court, securing the divine position of the Peony Immortal."
Lin Wan frowned slightly.
"Why would she do that? Does having a divine position mean Zhulong can no longer interfere?"
Ji Hongli nodded.
"Exactly. Even a low-ranking flower fairy is considered part of the Heavenly Court system. However, precisely because of this, what you witnessed later happened—the Empress summoned all the flowers at night, but the Peony Immortal disobeyed the decree and was eventually banished to Mang Mountain."
In the distance, the lingering smoke from Mang Mountain had yet to dissipate. Below the charred land, it seemed as if the former prosperity could still be heard weeping among the ashes.
Ji Hongli continued.
"After being banished to Mang Mountain, Lu Ziming, the City God of Luoyang, was a lecher who naturally didn't want to miss such a peerless beauty. So he disguised himself as a young nobleman and went up the mountain to pester her relentlessly."
"But the Peony Immortal was, after all, the daughter of Zhulong, with divine blood flowing in her veins. Her nature was inherently fierce—she dared to defy the Empress, so how could she possibly be moved by a mere City God?"
She sneered.
"So, Lu Ziming devised a scheme."
"What scheme?" Lin Wan asked.
"He deliberately exaggerated the splendor of Mang Mountain's peonies, even spreading rumors that the common people were bewitched by the peonies and regarded the Peony Immortal's defiance of the decree as a matter of pride."
Ji Hongli's voice grew colder.
"When the Empress heard this, she had already held a grudge against the Peony Immortal. Now she was enraged and finally issued an order—to burn Mang Mountain."
Lin Wan's heart trembled as her gaze swept across the withered mountains below, finally understanding why this place had become such a desolate state.
The wind blew, lifting a few remnants of ash like black butterflies, silently scattering.
Lin Wan's brow furrowed as she suddenly remembered something.
"Then what about that man we captured yesterday? What role did he play in all this?"
Ji Hongli's gaze was calm as she continued.
"That man's name is Li Buping. According to the original timeline, he was supposed to ascend Mang Mountain that night and meet the Peony Immortal."
She paused.
"In truth, he meant no harm. He had been obsessed with flowers since childhood, especially peonies. Hearing that the Peony Immortal had been banished to Mang Mountain, he traveled thousands of miles just to see her once."
"This sincerity happened to coincide with the Peony Immortal's discovery of Lu Ziming's scheme and her inner unease."
Ji Hongli's voice carried a hint of a sigh.
"So, the two drank under the moon and became friends. But this was also the beginning of the tragedy."
Lin Wan was silent for a moment before asking.
"What happened next?"
Ji Hongli looked at the gradually dissipating clouds in the sky and continued.
"To extinguish the fire on Mang Mountain, the Peony Immortal secretly caused rain, violating heavenly laws. According to the rules, she should have been stripped of her immortality and banished to the mortal realm."
"But the Heavenly Emperor knew she was Zhulong's daughter and dared not be too harsh, so he secretly showed mercy—he had the Empress supervise the execution in a dream to show fairness."
"And knowing that Li Buping was infatuated with the Peony Immortal, he ordered the Six Ding Six Jia to appear in Li Buping's dream, telling him to be sure to sleep during the hour of Yin on the day of the execution."
"At that time, an official would take him to the execution ground to personally accuse the Empress of acting unjustly."
"Li Buping had readily agreed at first."
Ji Hongli sneered.
"But unexpectedly, the City God Lu Ziming was on good terms with one of the Six Ding Six Jia. When he learned of this, he immediately went to persuade Li Buping."
Her voice lowered, carrying a hint of sarcasm.
"Lu Ziming told him—if the Peony Immortal is not banished to the mortal realm, you are immortal and mortal, with no possibility. But if she becomes a mortal, you will have the opportunity to marry her."
Lin Wan's pupils contracted slightly.
"So... Li Buping wavered?"
Ji Hongli nodded.
"Of course he was tempted. On the day of the execution, he fought off sleepiness and did not fall asleep. In the end, the Peony Immortal was stripped of her immortal body by the Empress and banished to the mortal realm."
The wind swept across the scorched earth, carrying a chill.
Lin Wan gazed at the ruined Mang Mountain in the distance, and a complex emotion suddenly surged in her heart.
"So that's how it was..."
She murmured softly.
"So when we stopped Li Buping yesterday, it was to change this ending?"
Ji Hongli did not answer, only gazing quietly at the horizon, her eyes deep as an abyss.
Lin Wan was silent for a moment before asking in a low voice.
"Then what? Did Li Buping eventually... marry the Peony Immortal?"
A cold smile appeared on Ji Hongli's lips.
"The Peony Immortal's beauty was entirely due to her innate immortal body and the enhancement of her flower fairy divine position. Now that her immortal body was stripped and her divine position revoked, although she was still more beautiful than mortals, she was merely a beauty of the mortal realm."
Her tone was mocking.
"Li Buping was greatly disappointed and left with a flick of his sleeve."
Lin Wan's heart sank, vaguely guessing what came next.
Ji Hongli's eyes turned cold as she continued.
"Afterward, to take revenge on the Peony Immortal, the City God Lu Ziming sent her to the Dream Immortal Pavilion—"
She didn't say more, but Lin Wan already understood.
With the Peony Immortal's proud and fierce nature, being banished to the mortal realm was already a great humiliation. To be sent to a brothel... how could she possibly survive?
Lin Wan took a deep breath, her voice slightly hoarse.
"So... this is the regret Zhulong left behind here?"
Ji Hongli nodded slightly.
"It may not be the entire story, but it shouldn't be far off."
Lin Wan frowned, puzzled.
"Then why not save her from the beginning? Why wait until now?"
Ji Hongli sighed, turned to look at her.
"Sometimes I really wonder if you're a half-hearted practitioner."
Her tone carried a hint of helplessness.
"Everything the Peony Immortal experienced was her tribulation, and it has already become a settled matter. All of this seems to be Zhulong's dream, but Zhulong Great God himself possesses the power to reverse time and space. Truth and falsehood are difficult to distinguish."
Her gaze deepened as she continued.
"If we interfere directly, even if we succeed in saving the Peony Immortal, it would be against fate. In the end, it would only turn everything into a great dream that vanishes into smoke."
Lin Wan was stunned, as if she had understood something.
Ji Hongli's voice was low.
"But if we can 'substitute heaven for earth,' quietly changing the outcome under destined fate... perhaps Zhulong can also deceive heaven and turn the illusory into reality."
Lin Wan finally understood, murmuring.
"So that's it... this is the true test of the Zhulong Secret Realm."
In the distance, the lingering smoke from Mang Mountain gradually dispersed, and daylight enveloped everything, as if heralding that new variables were about to arrive.
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