Pei Yuhang stood atop a Flying Sword forged from Spiritual Qi. His elegant white robes billowed in the wind as he soared through the clouds, perfectly matching the popular image of a handsome Sword Immortal.
A passing Fairy caught sight of Pei Yuhang's Sword Flight and was completely mesmerized, her gaze lingering on his departing figure.
"What a pity. Such a divinely handsome Sword Immortal, dragged down by his Dao Companion. He fell straight from the Divinity Transformation Realm to the Nascent Soul Realm..." The Fairy sighed and shook her head as she came back to her senses.
Along the way, Pei Yuhang could faintly hear many such comments. It seemed numerous Female Cultivators lamented his fall in cultivation and his loss of the chance to compete for the position of Saint Son of the Xuanyuan Dao Sect.
But his expression remained unchanged; he did not regret his decision.
The Xuanyuan Dao Sect was home to thousands of mountain peaks, each corresponding to a Cave Celestial Mansion. The higher the peak, the higher the status of its owner within the sect.
Pei Yuhang guided his sword to a remote and secluded mountain peak. As he drew near, he felt biting gusts of wind mixed with snowflakes. The entire peak was shrouded in snow that had not melted for a hundred years.
The reason for this unique environment was the Cold Spring that gushed from the earth's ley lines on the peak, filling the air with an extreme Cold Attribute Spiritual Energy.
This also meant that it was the perfect place to neutralize the terrifying Giant Sun Fire within him.
This was Pei Yuhang's Cave Celestial Mansion, the Cold Palace Sword Mansion.
Atop the peak stood a cluster of palace buildings, simple and understated in their design.
A petite, beautiful young woman in a pale green dress was practicing her swordplay on a training platform in front of the palace. In this cold, silent world of swirling snow, she was like the only living creature, adding a touch of vitality to the desolation.
It was unclear how long she had been practicing. She was now drenched in fragrant sweat, and the silken fabric of her dress had slipped slightly from her shoulder, revealing a hint of tender, pinkish-white skin.
The whistle of a Flying Sword cutting through the air caught the young woman's attention. She turned her head slightly, and her eyes lit up when she saw Pei Yuhang arriving on his sword.
"Master!"
Yu Xiaoyan happily trotted over to Pei Yuhang, her slender calves wrapped in white, over-the-knee silk stockings.
"Xiaoxiao, practicing your sword again?"
Exhausted in both body and mind, Pei Yuhang forced a smile as he looked at his youngest disciple.
"Yes. Master, did you go to borrow Spirit Stones and Elixirs for Mistress again?" Yu Xiaoyan asked, her voice laced with pity.
"Ahem, it's not as bad as you make it sound... The Great Elder of the Dan Yun Pavilion is your Mistress's and my own senior martial sister. She will help your Mistress."
Pei Yuhang didn't want his upright image in his little disciple's heart to be tarnished, so he tried to show off the strength of his connections.
But the mention of his senior-most sister, Lu Ruoxi, cast a shadow over his heart.
Not wanting to dwell on such unhappy thoughts, Pei Yuhang changed the subject. "Where is your senior sister?"
"Senior Sister is taking care of Mistress."
Pei Yuhang nodded and quickly walked past Yu Xiaoyan, heading toward the palace building.
Yu Xiaoyan watched Pei Yuhang's departing figure, the brightness in her eyes fading to a dull, lifeless look.
'I've been cultivating so hard, but Master still won't give me a second glance... He only has eyes for Mistress.'
'Mistress is such an annoying woman. If she weren't around, would Master finally be able to look at me all the time?'
...
Meanwhile, after Pei Yuhang entered the Cold Palace, a cold figure appeared before him.
"Master."
This solitary and cold Female Sword Cultivator, with her long silver hair, ruby-like pupils, and an exquisite beauty like a phantom from a dream, seemed to have been waiting here for a long time. She immediately bowed upon seeing Pei Yuhang approach.
"Yueqiu, how is your Mistress?"
"Thanks to the large supply of precious Elixirs you brought, Master, she is much better... Although most of Mistress's Nascent Soul has dissipated, one-third of her constantly shattering Golden Core has been saved. There are no signs of it continuing to break apart for now."
Qing Yueqiu's voice was like a cold spring in the mountains, but it did nothing to calm Pei Yuhang's anxious heart for his Dao Companion.
"Yueqiu, take me to her, quickly."
"Yes."
Qing Yueqiu led her master toward the depths of the Cold Palace.
Watching Qing Yueqiu's solitary and cold back, Pei Yuhang suddenly asked, "Yueqiu, do you blame me?"
"Yueqiu was just a worthless weed who should have died of illness on a cold night. It was you, Master, who saved me and set me on the path of cultivation."
"With such a great debt of gratitude... what reason would Yueqiu have to blame you, Master?"
Qing Yueqiu's voice remained calm, betraying no emotional change. This was because the Sword Dao she cultivated was the Supreme Heartless Sword, which would only make her colder in the future.
"Because of my selfishness. I've taken all the cultivation resources of the Cold Palace Sword Mansion to save your Mistress, even though the Sect Grand Competition is only half a year away."
"Yueqiu, I am the one holding back your cultivation. I know you possess top-tier comprehension of the Sword Dao. If you stay in the Cold Palace Sword Mansion, you might just waste the next hundred years and squander your talent..."
"Master, please stop."
"By saying this... are you trying to send Yueqiu to another Cave Mansion?"
Qing Yueqiu finally stopped walking. Though her voice remained as calm as the still water of an ancient well, faint ripples of sadness could be heard within it.
"I just want you to have a better future."
"Does Master want Yueqiu to have a better future... or do you want to save all the resources for Mistress?"
"If it's the latter, you don't need to worry, Master. Yueqiu's Sword Dao cultivation is sufficient to complete ninety percent of the sect's missions. Yueqiu can provide for her own cultivation resources. There's no need for you to drive me away."
Pei Yuhang looked at Qing Yueqiu, who resembled an abandoned kitten, and couldn't help but cover his face.
"That's not what I meant... You've been with me since you were a child. You should know what kind of person I am, right? No matter how dire the situation at the Cold Palace Sword Mansion becomes, I would never think of kicking you out because there aren't enough resources to go around."
"Then why do you want me to go to another Cave Mansion, Master?"
"So as not to hinder your path. You're at a critical stage, trying to break through from the Golden Core to the Nascent Soul Realm. A lack of sufficient resources at this time will greatly affect your..."
"You don't need to worry about me, Master."
Qing Yueqiu turned back, her ruby-like eyes fixed earnestly on Pei Yuhang.
"I've already said it. I can provide for my own cultivation resources. You have no need to worry at all, Master."
"Staying at the Cold Palace Cave Mansion is the best choice for me."
As Qing Yueqiu spoke, a rare blush appeared on her fair, delicate face.
"Besides, not every master is a gentleman like you... I've heard rumors about things happening between masters and their female disciples in other Cave Mansions..."
Pei Yuhang hadn't expected this to be Qing Yueqiu's concern. He didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
"Yueqiu, where did you hear all this gossip?"
"My junior sister told me."
'That pure and adorable little girl, Yu Xiaoyan, actually knows so many inappropriate things!'
Pei Yuhang was shocked. He felt that in the future, besides guiding his disciples' cultivation, he would also need to pay attention to their mental well-being.
However, now that Qing Yueqiu had brought up these "unspoken rules" between masters and female disciples, Pei Yuhang actually started to worry.
Although the Xuanyuan Dao Sect was one of the Renowned and Righteous Sects, it takes all sorts to make a world. Pei Yuhang had occasionally heard of the things Qing Yueqiu mentioned before.
Thinking about it, he really couldn't rest easy sending Qing Yueqiu, who was like a daughter to him, to cultivate in another Cave Mansion.
"Alright, I was being inconsiderate. I won't bring it up again."
Hearing this, a smile graced Qing Yueqiu's thin lips, which were as delicate and alluring as plum blossoms on her cold face.
"Yes. And Yueqiu will never leave you, Master."
'Even if Mistress is no longer by Master's side, Yueqiu will not leave. The only one who will stay with Master until the very end can only be me, Qing Yueqiu.'
The master and disciple pair continued walking as they talked, finally arriving before a secret chamber constructed entirely from Spirit Bricks.
Spirit Bricks were solid crystals formed by highly compressing Pure Spiritual Qi—an act of extreme luxury.
In a place as dirt-poor as the Cold Palace Cave Mansion, who else could be staying in a secret chamber built entirely of Spirit Bricks, other than Pei Yuhang's Dao Companion, Ye Liyuan?