"Jingliu… Jingliu, wake up!"
Jingliu only felt her head spinning, and a familiar voice drifted into her mind just like that.
After her consciousness returned, she paused for a moment. When the dizziness in her mind gradually faded, Jingliu slowly opened her eyes.
She shouldn't have been this relaxed, but that voice calling her was so familiar, as if she hadn't heard it in a very long time.
As she opened her eyes, the pitch-black darkness in front of her suddenly cleared, gradually becoming sharp and distinct. Then a face she missed deeply came into view.
A beautiful foxian woman was looking at her. Her sky-blue eyes carried a trace of concern, and her upright ears twitched lightly.
Her fur was extremely smooth, pale bluish-white with hints of white, incredibly beautiful.
"What's wrong with you? Why did you sleep for so long?"
The foxian complained a little, sounding slightly dissatisfied. Jingliu, meanwhile, widened her eyes in disbelief.
"Baiheng…?" Jingliu called out softly.
"It's me~" The foxian woman showed a smile that seemed capable of melting ice and snow, then reached out and grabbed Jingliu's hand.
"What's wrong? Still groggy from sleep?"
Feeling the soft touch and warmth coming from her hand, Jingliu sat up. She heard a series of dull thumps coming from her chest... her heart was beating like war drums. How long had it been since she felt her body so alive?
'This… isn't a dream?'
Jingliu asked herself, but got no answer.
Because a dream shouldn't be this clear.
She could hear her own heartbeat, feel her breathing, and even sense the faint smell of alcohol coming from the foxian beside her.
From outside came rustling sounds, along with the voices of two people arguing.
It felt like she had returned to some night long ago... Yingxing and that kid Jing Yuan were arguing about something again?
Raising her head, Jingliu saw Dan Feng leaning against the doorway.
The High Elder had his arms crossed over his chest. He glanced over here, then looked back outside again.
He was still as taciturn as ever.
Looking at the scene before her, Jingliu slowly inhaled, then exhaled deeply.
'What a nightmare…', That was what she thought.
The invasion of Shuhu, Baiheng's death, the chaos of Imbibitor Lunae, her own fall into mara… and in the end, being slapped to death by a child not even that old…
Speaking of which, what was that kid's background?
"Are you really okay?" Baiheng's concerned voice came again.
Jingliu shook her head and said, "I had a nightmare."
"A nightmare… then just find a way to forget it!" Baiheng said as she pulled Jingliu off the bed.
"Yingxing made something interesting for me. Come on, I'll take you to see it!"
"Something interesting?" Jingliu was a bit puzzled.
"Mm!" Baiheng nodded, walking ahead with her hands behind her back, her tail swaying lightly. "A new weapon. If I use it, I might even be able to beat you!"
Hearing this, Jingliu blinked, even more curious. "Did he turn your star skiff into a weapon?"
As soon as Jingliu said that, before Baiheng could respond, Jing Yuan walked over and teased, "What are you talking about? A star skiff is a star skiff. How would our Master Craftsman have the skill to stuff a star skiff into a weapon?"
Then a cold laugh came from behind, followed by the unrestrained voice of the craftsman, "Ha, then I'll make one tomorrow and slap you in the face with it!"
Immediately after, Yingxing with white hair appeared at the doorway. This guy was clearly a short-lived species, already quite old now, yet he was still so full of energy?
Jingliu narrowed her eyes and didn't say much, only feeling that it had been a long time since she was this relaxed.
At this moment, she heard the Dragon High Elder beside her sigh and say calmly, "You should just go take a look yourself. It's quite an unexpected thing."
Even Dan Feng said that, which made Jingliu even more curious.
What exactly had Yingxing made for Baiheng?
At this time, Baiheng grabbed Jingliu with both hands. "Let's go, let's go. Oh right, you have to spar with me. I want to see just how much this thing improved me!"
Jingliu hesitated for a moment, but still nodded in agreement.
She only thought that she would go easy on Baiheng later.
If Baiheng was piloting a star skiff and shooting with a bow, it would indeed be troublesome for her.
But if it was purely a contest of martial skill, Jingliu was far stronger than Baiheng.
As Baiheng pulled her along, when they passed Jing Yuan, Jingliu inexplicably said, "You've taught a good disciple. Just too talkative."
The next moment, Jing Yuan showed a puzzled expression as he looked at Jingliu.
Noticing his expression, Jingliu was also startled. What was she saying?
She knew Jing Yuan well. Unless he deliberately concealed or guided it, it wasn't hard to read his thoughts from his expression.
Jing Yuan was clearly stunned at first, then narrowed his eyes, looking over with a bit of disdain and helplessness.
From this, it could be inferred that he first thought he didn't have any disciple and was confused by her words, then felt that she was secretly praising him…
Jingliu shook her head and said to herself inwardly, "Really… how can you take things from a dream as real?"
Jingliu followed Baiheng for who knows how long, passing through a courtyard where yellowed maple leaves were falling, and arrived at a training ground.
"Come on! I'm starting!"
From the other side of the training ground, Baiheng shouted at her.
Jingliu nodded and also summoned the Shattered Blade that had not yet been broken.
This sword… it felt like she hadn't seen it for a long time as well… Looking at the intact blade, Jingliu's body trembled slightly, and some indescribable emotion rose in her heart.
"I'm coming!"
Baiheng shouted, instantly pulling Jingliu back to reality, and she began to seriously face this friend.
However…
Baiheng suddenly leapt up, and from behind her, she inexplicably pulled out a massive shadow.
Seeing Baiheng's movement and that weapon, Jingliu's heart jolted.
Before her eyes, Baiheng lifted a pitch-black, ancient greatsword onto her shoulder. The sword didn't look special, it could even be called plain, like a chunk of black iron.
But from that very blade surged a powerful aura. It had no distinct features, emphasizing only one thing... weight.
And the most crucial point was that this sword… wasn't it exactly the one used by that strange kid?
This scene made Jingliu panic. Sweat appeared on her forehead, yet she couldn't figure out what was going on.
With a loud boom, the greatsword slammed into the ground, and Jingliu dodged.
But immediately after, she saw a slender hand flash before her eyes, and then Baiheng slapped her across the face.
Smack!
The sound of the slap was incredibly crisp.
Jingliu shot upright from the ground. Her red eyes were wide open as she gasped heavily, beads of sweat sliding down her neck.
"Why would Baiheng turn into a double-door-sized woman and use that kind of greatsword to spar with me, only to slap me at the end?!", Almost instinctively, Jingliu blurted it out, roaring.
Then she suddenly realized something was wrong. This place wasn't the training ground she had been in with Baiheng, nor was it the street where she had sparred with her young disciple's disciple.
Jingliu raised her head and looked around. The surroundings were dim, and felt somewhat familiar…
The Shackling Prison...
'They really threw me in here?'
'But why don't I see any Cloud Knights guarding this place…?'
Suddenly, Jingliu's thoughts froze, and her gaze landed on a familiar figure.
That white hair, those golden eyes, that familiar face…
This disciple, whose talent in martial arts was somewhat lacking but who had now become the general of the Luofu, was looking at her with an extremely complex and subtle expression.
Jingliu could even observe the changes in Jing Yuan's expression... shock, helplessness, astonishment, subtlety, suspicion, and even a trace of disdain... all appearing on his face, completing an extremely complex series of changes within a single second.
To be honest, Jing Yuan's mood right now was incredibly complicated.
As complicated as the changes on his face.
Of course, he had already regained his composure, but still felt a subtle unease.
The real shock had come when Nero and Yanqing came to find him…
Nero was as usual... no greeting at all, directly stepping on Black Cutter and charging into the Divine Foresight Palace.
Then, before Jing Yuan could even say anything, he casually tossed a woman down and said, "Jing Yuan, this person openly attacked the Cloud Knights. Lock her in the Shackling Prison!"
After that, Nero stepped down from Black Cutter, and Yanqing came down with him.
Nero patted Yanqing's back and said righteously, "Look at how badly your disciple got beaten!"
Faced with such a sudden situation, even Jing Yuan was a bit stunned.
He looked at Yanqing. Aside from looking a bit exhausted and tired, he didn't seem injured anywhere?
Then he looked down. On the contrary, this white-haired woman was seriously injured. Her face was so swollen... how much force was used? Wasn't this close to disfigurement?
Jing Yuan was about to ask Nero and Yanqing what exactly had happened.
But before he could speak, his brows suddenly furrowed.
Looking at the woman on the ground, he felt she looked very familiar, as if he had seen her somewhere before.
So Jing Yuan didn't rush to speak. Instead, he quickly stepped forward and stared carefully at Jingliu's swollen face for a moment.
Finally, the figure before him overlapped with a certain woman in his memory.
In the next instant, Jing Yuan's eyes suddenly widened.
'Damn, isn't this my master?!'
'How did she get beaten into a pig's head like this?!'
Jing Yuan had never imagined that he would meet Jingliu again in such a way. His shock overwhelmed all other emotions.
Thinking about it, it was truly rare to see someone beat Jingliu into this state. Even through life-and-death battles on the battlefield, he had never seen her injured this "badly."
Jing Yuan raised his head and glanced at the two kids in front of him.
Yanqing slightly lowered his head, fists clenched, with a bit of unwillingness and irritation in his eyes.
It was clear that this kid was holding it in, pushing himself. After this, his strength would probably grow rapidly again.
However, Yanqing definitely couldn't be the one who beat Jingliu like this.
Looking at Nero again, his expression was calm, full of confidence.
No need to think... this had to be his doing.
This surprised Jing Yuan. Even if Nero was a fragment of Aoen of Beauty, there was no reason for him to be this strong at such a young age.
Jing Yuan let out a long sigh, his mood extremely subtle, not knowing what to say.
So he first asked Nero and Yanqing to explain what exactly had happened.
The two kids didn't hide anything and told everything in detail.
After listening, Jing Yuan took a deep breath. His mood became even more complicated.
Looking at Yanqing, the kid was now staring at him with an extremely expectant gaze. The last time he had seen such sparkling, childlike eyes from Yanqing was when he didn't have money to buy a flying sword.
But this time, it clearly wasn't about buying a flying sword. It was about hoping his master would stand up for him.
Just like how some children on the Xianzhou, after losing a fight, go home to find their parents.
This kind of expression and mentality from Yanqing was quite rare. But… the relationships here were a bit complicated.
And Jing Yuan strongly suspected that Yanqing had learned this from Nero. In the past, Yanqing would never act like this. He would only grit his teeth, work hard in secret, and surpass his opponent through training.
However, when his gaze shifted to Nero, all he saw was an innocent expression, even more disarming than Yanqing's.
This was getting the benefit and still acting innocent.
Clearly you were the one who beat her, and now you're here adding insult to injury.
As expected of a fragment of Aoen of Beauty. Jing Yuan thought about it and chose to shift his gaze away.
To be honest, this child had a natural advantage in this regard. It was hard to deal with.
For some reason, as the dignified Divine Foresight General, this was the first time Jing Yuan felt like he was being schemed against, and even felt a bit at a loss because of it.
Under the expectant gazes of Yanqing and Nero, Jing Yuan took a deep breath. Two seconds later, he slowly spoke,
"This person… is actually my master."
"Ah?" Hearing this, Yanqing froze on the spot.
Jing Yuan felt a bit better. He couldn't find a way to deal with Nero, but Yanqing, who was relatively honest, was easier to handle.
"So, you'll lock her in the Shackling Prison, right?" Nero asked.
"Uh…" Jing Yuan inhaled sharply. "Given her identity, that is indeed the case. I will, of course, lock her in the Shackling Prison."
"So, she's been locked in the Shackling Prison, making her a major criminal. Then Yanqing and I captured a major criminal. Shouldn't you give us some reward?" Nero asked again.
Jing Yuan, "..."
'This feels so familiar… I knew it, this was definitely going to end with asking for money.'
Jing Yuan didn't say anything. Instead, he very skillfully took out his "wallet."
"Sigh…" Jing Yuan sighed and gathered his thoughts again.
He looked down at Jingliu once more. In the end, she had still been brought to the Shackling Prison. For the sake of the Xianzhou, there was nothing wrong with that.
Moreover, Jingliu's sudden appearance had surprised him. There were still some things he needed to ask her.
———
Nero and Yanqing were sitting on Black Cutter, flying.
The ports connecting the various realms were now sealed, but with Black Cutter, it was very convenient for Nero to move around.
After handing Jingliu over to Jing Yuan, they still needed to find Blade... or rather, to find Teacher Dan Heng.
Yanqing's earlier investigation had already found some clues.
As they flew, Nero suddenly said, "How does it feel? Looks like this month we won't need to ask Jing Yuan for money again, right?"
Yanqing sat behind Nero, looking at the incoming funds information, the corners of his mouth curling up.
"Hehe…"
'As for any grandmaster?'
'Long forgotten!'