Gu Changge glanced at Ling Yuxian with slight surprise, then asked with interest, "What? Does Senior Sister Yuxian even want to control who I go to meet?"
Ling Yuxian had only blurted out her words subconsciously. Now that she had regained her composure, her expression became somewhat unnatural.
However, she still forced herself to remain calm and said, "I was just curious. If Senior Brother Gu doesn't wish to speak of it, then forget it."
"Oh, is that so?" Gu Changge swept his gaze over her face and smiled. "Back in the Southern Wilderness Ancient Domain, I happened to save an old friend from the Immortal Chu Dynasty. Now I'm just paying a visit."
"Of course, it's not a woman, but an elderly man past his seventies."
Ling Yuxian felt that there was a hint of teasing in his smile, and why did he specifically emphasize that it wasn't a woman?
However, the fact that Gu Changge actually explained this to her gave Ling Yuxian an indescribable feeling.
In any case, she felt somewhat comforted, while a strange emotion began to rise within her.
"So that's how it is. By the way, tomorrow morning, I plan to visit Saintess Xiyuan. I heard she has also arrived in the capital of the Immortal Chu Dynasty. I wonder if Senior Brother Gu has time to accompany me?" Ling Yuxian brought up the main matter.
Gu Changge hadn't expected that she had been waiting here specifically for him just for this matter.
In truth, he also wanted to meet the current Saintess of the Xiyuan Sacred Hall, especially since one of the Six Supreme Treasures of the First Civilization, the Mirror of Reincarnation, was now in her possession.
However, with so many things currently on his plate, Gu Changge didn't have the extra energy to deal with such matters.
But why would Ling Yuxian specifically seek him out to accompany her?
Was it because the Xiyuan Sacred Hall, like the Imperial Immortal Palace, had connections to the Black Calamity Era, and she wanted the Saintess to investigate and confirm his identity?
"Did your sister, Ling Yuling, ask you to come find me?" Thinking of this, Gu Changge smiled and asked.
Ling Yuxian's expression froze, unsure how Gu Changge had figured it out.
But she couldn't lie about such a matter, so she nodded and let out a soft "Mm."
"Since Sister Yuxian has sincerely invited me, how could I refuse? Tomorrow morning, we'll go together," Gu Changge nodded, not refusing. After speaking, he didn't wait for Ling Yuxian's reply and walked past her, heading straight back into the courtyard.
Ling Yuxian stood at the entrance of the courtyard, stunned for a moment, then frowned tightly. She felt as though her sister and Gu Changge were sharing some kind of inside joke.
Why did Gu Changge think it was her sister who sent her here?
With so many elders from the Imperial Immortal Palace available, why did it have to be Gu Changge accompanying her to visit Saintess Xiyuan?
Could it be that Gu Changge's background had something to do with the Xiyuan Sacred Hall?
With such doubts, Ling Yuxian glanced once more at the tightly closed courtyard door before turning to leave.
"Though, he didn't even invite me in for a cup of tea?" she couldn't help but grumble inwardly. The strange emotion that had just risen within her suddenly dissipated.
---
The next morning, in a quiet pavilion by the water, a jade-green lake surrounded the area, with lush bamboo groves and ancient vines winding around. Mist rose, and the air was filled with the fragrance of immortal dew, making it seem like a sacred land of immortals.
Saintess Xiyuan sat cross-legged on a large square green stone, her eyes closed as she absorbed the morning mist. Strands of divine light swirled around her, and her black hair floated gently. Her flawless jade-like face, partially veiled, exuded a soft glow, ethereal and transcendent.
"Saintess, there are visitors outside. They're from the Imperial Immortal Palace, and they seem quite young," a maid-like figure hurried over to report.
Saintess Xiyuan didn't even open her eyes, her tone calm and indifferent. "During this time, no matter who comes, I will not see them."
Her status in the Xiyuan Civilization was extremely lofty and revered. Ever since she had appeared in public yesterday, countless people had come to visit, including representatives from the Brahma Sound Hall, the Temple of Light and Darkness, and other civilizations.
Saintess Xiyuan found it tedious to receive them all, so she could only refuse.
As for other cultivators and beings, knowing the gap in status, they wouldn't dare disturb her.
"But that woman said she has something very important to discuss with you. She insists on meeting you personally," the maid quickly explained.
"Something important?"
Saintess Xiyuan opened her eyes, showing a hint of thought. She began to perform a divination, her slender fingers like peeled green onions, yet seemingly containing the rules of the universe.
"I can't deduce the origins of these two people. How interesting."
"People from the Imperial Immortal Palace?"
She recalled the recent uproar in the Endless Yang True World caused by the Jing Clan, which had deep ties to the Imperial Immortal Palace. Could it be related to that?
Her expression became serious, and she said directly, "Let them in."
"Yes, Saintess." The maid respectfully left, her figure quickly disappearing from the pavilion.
Saintess Xiyuan gazed in the direction where the maid had vanished, her eyes filled with contemplation. Then she stood up and left the green stone.
"Speaking of which, after leaving the Xiyuan Sacred Hall, I used the Mirror of Reincarnation to perform divination for the Immortal Chu Dynasty. The results were quite different from before, as if some force was subtly influencing the fate of the Immortal Chu Dynasty."
She felt as though the River of Fortune above the Immortal Chu Dynasty was shrouded in an invisible mist, sometimes clear, sometimes hazy.
However, this couldn't affect the glimpse of the future she had seen through the Mirror of Reincarnation.
No matter how she replayed the cycles, she couldn't change the fate of the Immortal Chu Dynasty. The only variable was the length of time.
As these thoughts swirled in Saintess Xiyuan's mind, Gu Changge and Ling Yuxian, following the maid, arrived at her pavilion.
"It seems meeting Saintess Xiyuan isn't an easy task," Ling Yuxian snorted lightly, her tone tinged with dissatisfaction.
She was, after all, a figure from the same era as the founder of the Xiyuan Sacred Hall. Yet, to meet Saintess Xiyuan, she had to go through the maid and wait for permission.
This feeling was somewhat uncomfortable for her.
Gu Changge, however, didn't say much. He wasn't one to dwell on such trivial details.
His main purpose for meeting Saintess Xiyuan was to confirm something.
Even before arriving in the Xiyuan Civilization, he had often felt as though someone was divining his fate. There was an inexplicable karmic connection pulling at him.
Through this connection, he could occasionally catch glimpses of unexpected fragments of the future.
Each time, the fragments he saw were different, as if someone was constantly revising and optimizing the future.
The ability to simulate and replay the future in such a way could only belong to the Mirror of Reincarnation, one of the Six Supreme Treasures of the First Civilization.
Gu Changge's gaze fell on the stunning woman standing by the pavilion, looking into the distance.
"Hmm?"
Saintess Xiyuan, standing on the pavilion, also noticed the two of them at the same time.
She completely ignored Ling Yuxian, who was walking beside Gu Changge. Her gaze was almost glued to Gu Changge.
In that instant, an indescribable sense of familiarity washed over her.
The scenes from the Mirror of Reincarnation, where she had simulated and replayed countless futures, flashed through her mind like fleeting shadows.
"How is this possible?"
Saintess Xiyuan's previously casual expression turned to one of shock and disbelief.
Although she had never seen Gu Changge's true face in the Mirror of Reincarnation, his silhouette and aura were all too familiar to her.
This left Saintess Xiyuan stunned and incredulous.
How could this be? She had simulated hundreds of possibilities, so why was she meeting Gu Changge in this way, at this time?
The mastermind behind the fall of the Immortal Chu Dynasty was standing right before her?
Her gaze met Gu Changge's in the air, and she noticed the faint interest in his expression.
Saintess Xiyuan quickly composed herself, recovering from her shock and forcing herself to remain calm.
Although this was her first time meeting Gu Changge, after hundreds of future simulations, she knew all too well how terrifying and mysterious this man was. She couldn't afford to show even the slightest hint of weakness in front of him.
"Huh? Senior Brother Gu, do you and Saintess Xiyuan know each other from before?" Ling Yuxian also noticed the flicker of surprise on Saintess Xiyuan's face and couldn't help but ask Gu Changge.
"Not from before. Today is only the second time I've seen Saintess Xiyuan. But this sense of familiarity feels as though we've met in a dream," Gu Changge replied with a faint smile, his lips curling with a hint of mystery.
He didn't lower his voice when speaking to Ling Yuxian, so Saintess Xiyuan heard everything clearly.
She distinctly caught Ling Yuxian's address to Gu Changge: "Senior Brother Gu?"
In the future simulations of the Mirror of Reincarnation, the only clue she had about Gu Changge's identity was that he shared the surname "Gu" and had established a force called the Heaven-Slaying Alliance.
Now, it seemed almost certain that it was him.
"Met in a dream?" Ling Yuxian frowned slightly, feeling somewhat uncomfortable with this statement. Was this some kind of unconventional way of flirting?
She also took a closer look at the Saintess, who was renowned throughout the Xiyuan Civilization. In terms of beauty and figure, she was no less stunning than Ling Yuxian or her sister.
Moreover, according to rumors, Saintess Xiyuan was transcendent, not just detached from worldly affairs but truly above them, exuding an unparalleled purity and coldness that even ice and snow couldn't match.
"This gentleman does indeed feel like someone I've met in a dream. At first glance, it's as if we're old friends reuniting," Saintess Xiyuan's red lips beneath her veil parted as she spoke, her tone soft and carrying a hint of amusement.
Ling Yuxian was taken aback by her words, unsure whether Saintess Xiyuan was teasing or being serious.
How could someone who appeared so cold and saintly say something so suggestive upon their first meeting?
Could it be that she and Gu Changge had known each other all along?
"Like old friends reuniting? That's a nice way to put it. I feel the same way," Gu Changge also smiled.
Saintess Xiyuan's face showed a faint smile as she extended her slender jade-like hand, gesturing for the two to enter the pavilion. At the same time, she instructed the maid, "Prepare tea."
Though she appeared calm, her heart was in turmoil.
She had only learned of Gu Changge through the simulations of the Mirror of Reincarnation. But how could he also speak as though he had seen her before?