Emerging from Dao Lord Jinghe's seclusion chamber, Mo Tiange and Qin Xi both felt heavy-hearted.
Walking a distance away, the two of them stopped simultaneously by the carved railing.
"Tian Ge..." Qin Xi called out, then hesitated, words left unsaid.
Mo Tiange smiled, sighed, leaned closer to wrap her arms around his waist, and said softly, "I know what you want to say. Don't worry. If there's anything in the Void Heaven Realm that Master can use, I won't be stingy."
Hearing this, Qin Xi was deeply moved and said gratefully, "Thank you for saying that."
"Why thank me?" Mo Tiange chuckled lightly. "He is your master, and also my master. In this world, besides you, no one has treated me better than him."
Qin Xi said nothing more, just held her tighter.
He knew that although she possessed the cold decisiveness a cultivator should have, she was also deeply sentimental. She always remembered those who treated her well, and if an opportunity arose in the future, she would repay them manifold.
They both knew Master's injuries were extremely severe, but not without hope. With the spiritual herbs from the Void Heaven Realm and Qin Xi's knowledge of many pill formulas, those elixirs might be ones even Supreme Elder Zhenyang had never seen.
"Later, let's study what pills could help Master recover," Mo Tiange said quietly.
"Mm," Qin Xi agreed. This was the only thing they could currently do for their master.
In their divine sense, a Foundation Establishment cultivator was approaching. Neither of them moved.
The Shangqing Palace only had maidservants, and these maidservants, upon seeing them, wouldn't dare disturb them.
However, this person, upon seeing them, called out, "Aunt! Master!" His voice was filled with surprise and joy.
Hearing this voice, the two hurriedly separated, only to see Ye Zhenji standing not far away, looking at them, tears almost falling.
"Zhenji!"
Ye Zhenji wiped the moisture from the corner of his eye and murmured, "You've finally returned... I knew it, I knew you would definitely come back..."
Mo Tiange thought of what Wu De and Li Yang had said about his experiences these past years. Seeing his haggard face, pity welled up in her heart. Although Zhenji wasn't her disciple, she had practically raised him herself; calling him her own child wouldn't be an exaggeration.
"Zhenji, why have you lost so much weight?" She grasped Ye Zhenji's pulse point, channeled in Spiritual Qi, but found no injuries on his body. Moreover, the Spiritual Qi within him was stable; he had already reached the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment.
Hearing her question, Ye Zhenji actually lowered his head and wept.
In the past, when he lacked experience and his character was somewhat weak, he would never cry. His appearance today startled both Mo Tiange and Qin Xi.
Mo Tiange's first thought was of the imprisonment mentioned by Wu De and Li Yang. During those dozen or so years, had he suffered inhuman torment? Seeing them now, was he overwhelmed with grievance?
Qin Xi sighed and asked, "What has made you so sorrowful?"
Ye Zhenji wiped away his tears, looked up, and said, "Master, Aunt, please save Linbo! Help me save Linbo!"
Mo Tiange and Qin Xi exchanged a glance, both puzzled. "Linbo?" Then they both remembered: wasn't Ye Zhenji trapped by Loose Immortal Baiyu precisely because of a woman? Could it be this Linbo?
Thinking this, both of them privately pondered: Could it be that Zhenji had some relationship with this woman?
Ye Zhenji said, "Linbo... Come with me, I'll explain slowly."
Leading them, Ye Zhenji first asked if the two of them were alright these past ten years. Learning they had become husband and wife, he was quite happy, having apparently come to terms with things over the years. Then, he recounted his general experiences these years, which matched what Wu De and Li Yang had said. He had indeed been imprisoned by that Loose Immortal Baiyu. Before he left, Qin Xi, worried, had given him several magic treasure talismans for protection. During those dozen or so years, he pretended to be incompetent, endured much hardship, lulled Loose Immortal Baiyu into complacency, and finally, catching him off guard, used the magic treasure talismans to kill him.
Hearing this account, Mo Tiange and Qin Xi were both quite surprised. Although they both doted on Ye Zhenji, they had always felt his character was somewhat weak and not yet capable of great achievements. They never expected that in times of crisis, he would possess such cunning and perseverance. It seemed sending him out to gain experience back then was absolutely correct; otherwise, his potential might never have been ignited.
The Linbo he spoke of was named Shui Linbo. Originally from the East Sea, during the decades of great turmoil there, she was fortunate enough to inadvertently find a path through Tianmo Mountain to Kunwu. Her aptitude wasn't good, preventing her from entering any immortal cultivation sects. As a woman, she struggled bitterly to cultivate in Kunwu, but later gained a fortuitous encounter and advanced to Foundation Establishment.
A Foundation Establishment female cultivator without backing, despite her poor aptitude, was a coveted Cauldron for many cultivators. In Kunzhong City, she caught the eye of Loose Immortal Baiyu. Coincidentally, on the day Baiyu moved to capture her, Ye Zhenji happened to pass by. Through a strange twist of fate, he was mistaken for Shui Linbo's accomplice and was abducted along with her.
Later, discovering Ye Zhenji's identity, Loose Immortal Baiyu, though knowing he had captured the wrong person, dared not release him for fear of future vengeance. But he also dared not actually kill him, worried he might have something like a Life-Soul Lamp; if an investigation ensued, he'd be in deep trouble. So he imprisoned him in a location, trapping him with layer upon layer of restrictions to prevent others from tracking him down.
Having been captured together, that Shui Linbo somehow used a method to make Baiyu mistakenly believe she had already lost her Primordial Yin, and she was also imprisoned. She was a righteous person. Seeing she had implicated Ye Zhenji, over the years she often protected him, sparing him much suffering. Because of this, the torment she endured was worse than Ye Zhenji's. By the time they escaped, her injuries were already severe and difficult to heal.
Unfortunately, after Ye Zhenji brought her back, Mo Tiange and Qin Xi were absent, and Dao Lord Jinghe was severely injured and in seclusion, unable to even tend to himself. Although Shui Linbo's life was temporarily preserved, no one could cure her injuries.
Hearing all this, Mo Tiange and Qin Xi exchanged a look, both having an idea. Since the two of them had shared hardship, it seemed affection had grown between them, a mutual fondness, which was why Zhenji was so agitated. Mo Tiange inwardly sighed with emotion: So Zhenji had grown up too, and had someone in his heart.
"Zhenji," Mo Tiange asked, "Didn't you have the healing pills I gave you? Did she take them and still not improve?"
Ye Zhenji shook his head dejectedly. "After we were captured, my Qiankun Bag was searched and taken. Luckily, I was cautious and secretly hid some things. Later, after killing that Loose Immortal Baiyu, I couldn't recover it. I didn't even get back the magic tools Master and Aunt bestowed upon me..."
"Gone is gone," Qin Xi comforted. "Master can forge new magic tools for you."
Ye Zhenji smiled and said softly, "Thank you, Master." After a pause, he continued, "Later, I finally contacted the Senior Brothers at the Kunzhong City branch. They sent me and Linbo back... When Grandmaster heard, he specially summoned Uncle-Master Mingzhen. Uncle-Master Mingzhen then went to Kunzhong City and wiped out the Loose Cultivator Alliance..."
Mingzhen was Dao Lord Jinghe's third disciple, one of the first three disciples he accepted. He had been in the Core Formation stage for over two hundred years, now at the late Core Formation stage, with profound skill and formidable strength. Although the Loose Cultivator Alliance also had several Core Formation cultivators, their most powerful ones, Daoist Kumu and Tong Tianyun, had perished in Tianmo Mountain. Loose Immortal Baiyu had been killed by Ye Zhenji. The remaining few were certainly no match for Mingzhen.
However, although Dao Lord Jinghe was prone to killing, he rarely implicated others. Presumably, Zhenji had been tortured too cruelly, infuriating him to this extent.
"Grandmaster also bestowed pills upon Linbo, but Linbo's injuries were too severe; they only preserved her life. I know Grandmaster is also severely injured now, so I didn't dare disturb him further. But for Linbo's injuries, neither Uncle-Master Mingzhen nor Grandmaster Xuanyin had a solution. I didn't know what to do..."
Talking as they walked, they had already reached the entrance of Mingxin Abode. Seeing Zhenji open the restrictions of Mingxin Abode, Mo Tiange asked, "You live here now?"
Ye Zhenji affirmed and said, "Grandmaster took pity, admired Linbo's backbone, and let her stay. He said the Spiritual Qi in Mingxin Abode was gentle and suitable for recovery, so she should live here. To take care of Linbo, I usually live here too."
Looking at his expression—sorrowful yet composed, his originally cheerful baby face now bearing more steadiness—Mo Tiange felt gratified. "You've grown up, Zhenji."
Ye Zhenji smiled faintly. "Aunt, I'm almost eighty years old. I should have grown up long ago."
Mo Tiange also smiled. Zhenji was much taller than her now and appeared more mature than her. He truly wasn't the little child who always relied on her anymore.
Everything in Mingxin Abode remained unchanged. When Mo Tiange moved out back then, she only took her daily necessities. Even the furnishings hadn't changed.
Ye Zhenji led them all the way to the resting chamber, opened the restrictions, and called softly, "Linbo?"
Mo Tiange and Qin Xi followed him inside. In the small resting chamber, the original cold jade bed was covered with a layer of soft fur. A young woman with a withered appearance sat cross-legged on the bed, eyes closed, seemingly in meditation to heal.
As soon as Mo Tiange saw her condition, she knew her injuries involved her Dantian and meridians. Observing the faint, flickering Spiritual Qi around her body, often dissipating, she deduced her meridians were riddled with holes, fundamentally unable to retain Spiritual Qi.
She stepped forward, gently took the woman's hand, and carefully channeled in Spiritual Qi, indeed confirming her speculation. If she hadn't seen it with her own eyes, she could hardly believe a cultivator's meridians could be injured to this extent. The Dantian was also severely damaged. If not for a lingering medicinal power settled within her Dantian, she likely would have lost her life long ago.
"Aunt, how is she?" Ye Zhenji asked anxiously, yet afraid of disturbing Shui Linbo, his voice soft.
Mo Tiange sighed, but looked at Qin Xi. "Extremely severe. No wonder Uncle-Master Mingzhen and Grandmaster Xuanyin had no solution."
Hearing this, Qin Xi also stepped forward to probe the woman's meridians, similarly frowning.
Seeing their expressions, Ye Zhenji, disregarding all else, pleaded, "Aunt, Master, please think of a way, think of something!"
"Don't be anxious," Mo Tiange said. "If there's a way, Aunt will definitely help you. But you must also pull yourself together."
"Mm." Hearing her comfort, Ye Zhenji showed a resolute expression. "Aunt, don't worry. Regardless of the final outcome, I won't give up hope."
Mo Tiange showed a slight smile and nodded. With Zhenji pleading so earnestly, she would naturally do her utmost. Moreover, this woman was from the East Sea, possibly connected to the Bixuan Pavilion, which also gave her a bit of a connection.