天空社区

Immortal Yearning Sect.

Located atop a group of peaks, this place seems like a completely different world compared to the mortal realm.

The deep, resonant chime of the bell rang, echoing through the entire sect.

Atop one of the Immortal Peaks.

Spiritual fog surrounded the area, with rainbows arching everywhere and Fairy Cranes dancing in the air.

An elder with white hair and a white beard stood with his hands behind his back, looking up at the sky.

His turbid eyes seemed calm, yet filled with an ancient, vicissitudinous aura.

One could not tell his age just by looking, but there was an unfathomable depth to him.

“Master Lord, you’ve been standing here for half a day, what are you looking

Lu Wanqiu, dressed in a lotus-green skirt, walked gently up to him, bowed gracefully, and curiously asked.

“I’m looking at the stars.”

The elder stroked his beard and gave a faint smile.

Lu Wanqiu was perplexed and asked with some confusion, “Stars? Is there anything special about today’s stars?”

“Among the multitude of stars, what is different about the one in the center?” The elder pointed to the sky and spoke with a gentle smile.

“I see. Why do the rest of the stars revolve around such a dim star?” Lu Wanqiu furrowed her brows.

The elder explained, “That is Emperor Star, and the other stars of the Big Dipper revolve around it.”

“Now the Emperor Star has fallen, and naturally, it has become dim.”

“The Emperor Star has fallen?”

Lu Wanqiu muttered, about to ask about the specifics, but her Master Lord had already vanished from sight.

Only a faint echo reached her ears.

“Call your Senior Brothers and Sisters out of seclusion. The Mortal World will fall into chaos. Demons will lurk in danger, so take precautions before it rains.”

Evening.

Huai’s pawnshop was unexpectedly still open late, with Zhao Huai grabbing a stool and a handful of melon seeds as he sat outside for the entire afternoon.

He cracked seeds and pondered.

His wife hasn’t returned this late, did she get lost in the market?

Could something have happened? But after a careful thought.

That’s not right; within hundreds of miles, he didn’t believe anyone could match her.

“Idiot! Idiot!”

The myna bird flapped its wings and flew past Zhao Huai’s face.

“Hey, looking for a beating, right? Tomorrow, I’ll buy you a cage and let you experience being a caged bird!”

Zhao Huai scolded, pointing at the myna bird. This silly bird was lazy and gluttonous, not venturing out to find treasure; instead, it lazed around at home and ate a lot.

Who was serving whom?

Who was the master, and who was the pet? The roles have become unclear, it seems.

That’s why pets should never be spoiled. If you raised a pet with a willful attitude, the pet becomes the master.

“Boss Zhao, I brought your stuff over.”

A shout came from outside the door, and an attendant carried a bag of items, throwing it to Zhao Huai.

Zhao Huai took a look, smiling with satisfaction, “Thank you.”

“Eh, don’t mention it. Next time, just give me a little more money when I sell something. I’m off!”

“Fine. ”

Zhao Huai chuckled at the words, watching the attendant leave.

“Did they really make it? These stockings are quite elastic.” He opened the cloth wrapping to find a bundle of black silk stockings.

Although the material was different, they both felt and looked quite authentic on touch.

“Not bad. I’ll have a treat for my eyes tonight.” Zhao Huai couldn’t help but laugh.

His mind had already begun filling in the visuals.

Soon after.

At this time, in the dusk, a slender figure finally emerged.

“Madam has returned.”

Zhao Huai finally saw Yu Qinghan, so he immediately stood up to greet her and adjusted his clothes.

“Nothing happened today, right?”

He paused for a moment and asked: “What’s wrong, is there a problem?”

Yu Qinghan shook her head gently, her emotions surprisingly indifferent. Usually, she would be smiling, but now she seemed much more subdued than usual.

She no longer teased the bird when she entered the room, and wouldn’t talk about the rare and interesting things she saw that day. Instead, she sat in a chair, her face expressionless as she stared blankly.

Zhao Huai’s brow furrowed even deeper, just as he was about to speak.

“There is indeed something.”

Yu Qinghan finally spoke, but her tone was very calm, so calm it seemed unlike her.

“I may have to go back to my parents’ home for a while. It shouldn’t be long, I’ll be back soon.’

Yu Qinghan stood up, looked at the goldfish in front of the counter, and gently touched the myna bird on the table, her expression unchanging.

It was a strangely eerie sight, as if she were trying to carefully take in every detail of everything she had used, touched, and stayed before her departure.

Her tone was also completely different from usual.

“What happened at home?”

Under normal circumstances, Zhao Huai would never ask such a question because he supported whatever she did, but today was different. His wife was acting very unusual.

“Another conflict has erupted at home. I need to go back and deal with it.”

Yu Qinghan seemed to have noticed something and revealed a reassuring smile.

However, to Zhao Huai, that smile seemed forced.

He wasn’t a fool; didn’t he have the ability to read between the lines in such situations?

“Is it a big problem? Can you handle it? Do you need my help?”

Zhao Huai asked gently.

Yu Qinghan shook her head, lowered her gaze, and remained silent for a moment before softly saying: “No need, I can solve it, it’s a small matter. I won’t speak of it. I’ll pack up now and prepare to leave tomorrow.”

After finishing, she went straight into the room.

Zhao Huai didn’t speak either, just watching Yu Qinghan pack. However, she was clearly avoiding looking at him, obviously hiding something from him.

Finally, he broke the silence and added, “You’re lying to me. You’re not planning to come back.”

Yu Qinghan’s movements stopped, her hands trembled for a moment, but then she resumed packing.

Zhao Huai tried to keep his voice friendly, “What could be so serious that we can’t talk about it? We promised each other before.”

He felt a strange sense of unfamiliarity towards the Yu Qinghan in front of him, as if she were a different person.

Yu Qinghan picked up her bundle, feeling guilt and sadness in her heart.

But thinking how she could never let her husband get involved in the world’s chaos made her believe that doing so would put him in inescapable danger.

She turned around, holding back tears, and said forcefully, “I’m sorry, I lied to you. I was born a daughter of a military family, my duty should be to restore the nation, not to live in peace.”

“It was all my fault before; I was too sentimental and didn’t think it through.

Are you satisfied now?”

After saying these harsh words, Yu Qinghan got up, left and walked out of Huai’s pawnshop.

Zhao Huai stood still in silence, not attempting to stop her, simply watching her walk out of the street and disappear into the night.

This was the first time they had ever argued.

At the gate of Jinzhou City.

Pei Xiangyun watched Yu Qinghan leap onto the fiery flying horse with concern, “Sister, are you sure what you said won’t hurt brother-in-law’s feelings?”

Yu Qinghan’s expression was calm, “I’m doing this for his own good. In the chaos of this Great Epoch, everyone is at risk. One misstep can lead to a bottomless abyss.”

Pei Xiangyun sighed, “Brother-in-law must be doing it for your sake as well.” The one who is in the game is blind; the bystanders see it clearly.

In her eyes, her sister and brother-in-law cared too much for each other, loved each other too much.

Qing Han didn’t want her husband to be involved in the chaos, so she chose to face everything alone to protect his safety.

Zhao Huai, on the other hand, was incredibly respectful of Qinghan’s decision, not even trying to stop her or help when she refused him.

Both wanted to do everything for each other, helping each other succeed. “You stay here in Jinzhou; your brother-in-law will take good care of you.”

With a neighing sound, the fiery flying horse galloped away, soon vanished from sight.

Riding on the horse, as the night grew darker.

Yu Qinghan could no longer hold back the sadness and grievances she felt when parting from Zhao Huai. Her eyes reddened and tears uncontrollably streamed down her face.

“Husband, I’m sorry…”

How she wished she could have stayed!

Compared to the responsibility of national affairs, the bloody battles, she loved the worry-free haven of their life together even more!

However, some things cannot be chosen, just as when she began practicing martial arts at eight and joined the sect’s army at thirteen.

The more people grow up, the more they become like the person they hated when they were young, because there are too many constraints in this world, making it nearly impossible to seek solely their happiness.

Just like her now, she couldn’t help but act when she saw the kingdom she had built with her own hands was about to be destroyed.