Not long after, Ji Hanyue took Xu Fan to a Sect called Taixu Immortal Mountain.
Within the many immortal Sects of the Yuntian Realm, Taixu Immortal Mountain's strength was neither high nor low, placing it in the middle tier.
The reason she chose Taixu Immortal Mountain was because the old emperor of the Cold Moon Dynasty had told Ji Hanyue before his death that the Sect Master, Lin Jie, was a trustworthy person, and the Sect she led was a quiet place suitable for focused cultivation.
Lin Jie, the Sect Master of Taixu Immortal Mountain, seemed somewhat surprised by Ji Hanyue's arrival, but she didn't say much and silently accepted them.
There were no cliché plots of brainless villains jumping out to mock them, nor were there any Elders or Disciples who deliberately made things difficult for Xu Fan and Ji Hanyue.
However, there was one thing that truly left everyone feeling incredibly shocked.
Ji Hanyue actually possessed a cultivation talent that could be called a Prodigy's. To put it bluntly, even Sect Master Lin Jie appeared like a firefly before the bright moon in comparison; the difference was simply like heaven and earth.
Consequently, Ji Hanyue naturally received the lion's share of resources within Taixu Immortal Mountain, something even she hadn't expected.
Of course, outside of her cultivation, her temperament gradually became more mature and indifferent, and she began to understand many things she couldn't figure out before.
For example, the matter of her former imperial brother, Ji Aotian, sending troops to hunt her down.
The imperial family is the most heartless; exterminating one's own kin is a common occurrence during a change of dynasties, and there was nothing to criticize about it.
However, since she was able to live peacefully through an entire winter in Yellow Sand Village, which was not far from the Cold Moon Dynasty's borders, it was likely that her imperial brother had felt a flicker of compassion after all and hadn't truly intended to wipe her out completely.
So, after thinking it over, she had no intention of causing further trouble and decided to let Ji Aotian continue being that mortal emperor.
As long as he didn't provoke her again, it would be best for them to sever their ties and leave each other alone.
Once she understood this, Ji Hanyue suddenly felt her state of mind broaden. Her Realm Breakthroughs became much smoother, and her obsessions faded by nearly half.
Naturally, Ji Hanyue's remaining obsessions were all tied to Xu Fan.
Unlike Ji Hanyue, Xu Fan's cultivation Aptitude was so poor it was detestable to gods and ghosts alike. By the time Ji Hanyue had broken through to the Nascent Soul Realm in just a few years, Xu Fan was still worrying about breaking through to the third stage of Qi Condensation.
With such a massive gap, no matter how peaceful the Elders of Taixu Immortal Mountain were, they couldn't help but have opinions.
Some Elders who spoke more subtly merely advised Ji Hanyue to focus more on herself.
But some more blunt Elders directly stated that Xu Fan was useless in every way and would only drag Ji Hanyue down. They claimed he was completely unfit to be her Disciple and suggested finding an excuse to expel him from the Sect to let him fend for himself.
Although these people were eventually "escorted" out by Ji Hanyue with a dark expression, when she looked at Xu Fan, those cold, enchanting, and ethereal eyes still couldn't help but show traces of worry.
People always change.
The higher the Realm, the more demanding the requirements for one's state of mind. The time Ji Hanyue spent thinking about Xu Fan gradually decreased as her Realm increased.
As time passed, Xu Fan's weight in Ji Hanyue's heart was no longer as heavy as it was in their youth.
Although there was still a hint of that inexplicable emotion in her heart, she could now control it easily. Ji Hanyue even felt that it wouldn't cause her even a ripple of emotional fluctuation.
Of course, Ji Hanyue hadn't forgotten her original promise. Whenever she found something good, she would still think of her Disciple, Xu Fan, first. Every year, she would take the time to accompany Xu Fan back to visit Xu Fan's parents.
Xu Fan was very moved by this, but also somewhat helpless.
After all, with his current weakling state, how could he possibly win over Ji Hanyue?
But considering this was the final life, Tongzi was very understanding and hadn't set any time limit. Thus, Xu Fan wasn't in a hurry. He just quietly accompanied Ji Hanyue in her cultivation, occasionally popping up in front of her to say a few witty words to build favorability... In the blink of an eye, ten years had passed since Ji Hanyue took Xu Fan away from Yellow Sand Village.
Many things happened during these ten years.
For Ji Hanyue, the biggest event was her suddenly becoming the Candidate Sect Master of Taixu Immortal Mountain.
As for the previous Sect Master, Lin Jie, she had suffered a Qi Deviation and unexpectedly perished while in secluded cultivation trying to break through from the Heavenly Human Realm to the Soul Transformation Stage.
With Lin Jie's death, Ji Hanyue, who had reached the Late Stage of the Nascent Soul Realm in just ten years, naturally became the focus of the Elders' attention.
Among the Twelve Realms of Cultivation, all who do not enter the Immortal Path are but ants.
Therefore, the Heavenly Human Realm could be considered a major watershed in cultivation. All the Elders and Disciples desperately hoped that Ji Hanyue would Cultivate against the clock, striving to break through to the Heavenly Human Realm as soon as possible to take up the mantle left by Sect Master Lin Jie.
Even though many things in the world had changed, and even though Ji Hanyue thought so too, the weight of one person in her heart remained indelible.
In the tenth year, she did not continue her seclusion but instead accompanied Xu Fan to the grave of Xu Fan's parents to pay their respects.
Kneeling before the grave of Xu Fan's parents, tears flowed from the corners of Xu Fan's eyes as he silently offered incense and kowtowed.
Looking at the cold stone tablet before him, Xu Fan's expression couldn't help but turn dazed.
He missed home—the home where his parents from this life were, and his true home on Blue Star, which he had always regarded as his inner harbor.
But one thing was separate from another.
Although the System had been urging Xu Fan to win over Ji Hanyue as quickly as possible to return to Blue Star, he hadn't done so.
Firstly, his cultivation was truly too weak, making it difficult to move Ji Hanyue's heart like before.
Secondly, his own state of mind had undergone some changes.
In the previous six lives, he had always occupied a proactive position. Whether in terms of cultivation or status, he had almost always held a superior stance. Thus, he didn't feel he owed his Ex-Girlfriends anything and was quite carefree when he left, without many attachments.
But in this life...
Regardless of whether it was his intention, Ji Hanyue had truly raised him for ten years, providing him with the best food and clothing, and had even cared for his cultivation with meticulous attention, just like a true Master.
This left Xu Fan somewhat confused, unsure if he should still follow the System's instructions to win over Ji Hanyue.
In his previous lives, he could comfort himself by saying that even though he left, he had helped his Ex-Girlfriends a lot, so at most, they were even.
But in this life, he fell into unprecedented hesitation, not knowing where to go from here.
Unable to untangle his thoughts, Xu Fan could only murmur softly before the parents' gravestone, "Please rest assured, both of you. In this life, I will risk my life to take care of Master and will never fail her kindness."
Hearing this, Ji Hanyue only smiled with gratification, but she didn't really take it to heart.
After all, anyone could say such things.
Over the years, Ji Hanyue believed she had seen the fickleness of human nature, and the intrigues reflecting the ugliness of humanity were everywhere.
Although hearing her good Disciple Xu Fan say such words still inevitably touched her, she had actually long since stopped believing in such honeyed words.
Soon, the second decade arrived.
Ji Hanyue officially stepped into the Heavenly Human Realm and became the Sect Master of Taixu Immortal Mountain.
She began to take over some Sect affairs, but correspondingly, the time her Disciple Xu Fan spent lingering in her mind decreased once more.
To compensate, she intentionally directed quite a lot of cultivation resources toward Xu Fan.
Xu Fan was somewhat happy, yet also somewhat unhappy.
In the third decade, Ji Hanyue became a Soul Transformation Realm Cultivator, leaping to become the most powerful immortal Sect Master within a radius of ten million miles.
This was naturally a good thing for the Taixu Immortal Sect, but for the people of other Sects, it was exactly the opposite.
Entering the Soul Transformation Realm meant having the power to dominate the life of any Heavenly Human Realm Cultivator at will, a sight that other Sect Masters—trapped at the Heavenly Human Realm level—were unwilling to see.
Thus, under a series of schemes and plots, Ji Hanyue, while out on business, was attacked by several Heavenly Human Realm Sect Masters. In a moment of carelessness, she suffered a fatal wound and could only flee ten million miles to a place called the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains.
With its beautiful mountains, clear waters, and the fragrance of birds and flowers, it somewhat resembled the scenery outside Yellow Sand Village years ago.
This was also the burial ground Ji Hanyue had chosen for herself.
As the saying goes, "Why must one's bones be buried in their hometown? Life offers green mountains everywhere." Ji Hanyue was very satisfied with this place.
However, at the final moment of her life, the only thing she couldn't let go of was the Disciple she had taken in her youth, Xu Fan, whose cultivation Aptitude was extremely poor.
She sat powerlessly in the shade of a Phoenix Tree and used the last of her strength to summon Xu Fan to the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains, intending to pass her entire cultivation Legacy to him through Empowerment at the final moment of her life.
This was also the last and only thing she could do as a Master...