Gu Qingfeng felt the red-haired woman looked somewhat familiar, as if he had seen her somewhere before. The more he looked, the more familiar she seemed. As he kept watching, he realized something was off and immediately released his Divine Sense to sweep over her. The feeling of endless vitality emanating from her was extremely pronounced.
Well, well!
This really was Ouyang Ye!
He truly hadn't expected to encounter Ouyang Ye here. What surprised Gu Qingfeng even more was that in the mere span of three years, this little girl had changed so drastically. If he hadn't used his Divine Sense to investigate, Gu Qingfeng might not have dared to recognize her.
To this day, Gu Qingfeng still clearly remembered his first encounter with Ouyang Ye years ago in his own mausoleum. Back then, she was just a mischievous and adorable young girl. Now, she had completely grown into a great beauty with a charming and delicate aura—her tall stature, her perfect figure, her stunningly beautiful face, that eye-catching red hair. Gu Qingfeng couldn't help but sigh with emotion: a girl truly changes beyond recognition as she grows up, becoming more and more beautiful.
What surprised Gu Qingfeng even more was that the little girl seemed very popular. When she appeared, many people in the area greeted her one after another, addressing her as the Princess of the Natural Order.
"Brother, what's the deal with this 'Princess of the Natural Order'?"
Gu Qingfeng casually found someone to ask. It was a young man who seemed somewhat infatuated with Ouyang Ye. Hearing Gu Qingfeng's question, he couldn't help but cast a look of ignorance at him and asked, "You don't even know about the Princess of the Natural Order?"
Gu Qingfeng shook his head, indicating he didn't know, and replied with a smile, "I'm an outsider, just arrived in the Great Northwest."
"No wonder you don't know about the Princess of the Natural Order. So you're an outsider. Let me tell you, Miss Ouyang is the most famous prodigy in our Great Northwest Frontier these past two years."
"Oh? Is that so?"
"'Is that so?' What do you mean 'is that so'? Do you know how miraculous Miss Ouyang is?"
"How miraculous?"
"If I tell you, it'll scare you to death!"
"Then tell me, so I can broaden my horizons too."
"Miss Ouyang is the daughter of the Great Natural Order! When she's happy, the sun shines brightly and flowers bloom; when she's angry, storms rage and grass withers, leaves fall. Miss Ouyang was born with the ability to communicate with all things in the Great Natural Order. With just a wave of her hand, she can summon countless butterflies. A year ago, a spiritual upheaval occurred in the Great Natural Order of the Ten Thousand Flowers Great Domain in our Great Northwest Frontier. If Miss Ouyang hadn't intervened back then, many people might have died in that Great Natural Order spiritual upheaval."
Ouyang Ye's appearance seemed to make the young man forget about the ancient cave dwelling about to emerge nearby. All his attention was focused on Ouyang Ye, and he gazed at her with a look of intoxication, as if recalling the events of a year ago. He said, "That time was truly earth-shattering and soul-stirring. Rolling heavenly thunder struck fear into hearts, millions of lightning bolts threatened to annihilate all living beings, shaking the earth until it cracked and trembled. Miss Ouyang soared into the sky, dancing gracefully in the air, trailing rainbows of all colors. That Life Rainbow seemed to envelop heaven and earth, even more like it was pacifying the angry Great Natural Order. It was so beautiful, so magnificent, truly unforgettable..."
Gu Qingfeng listened beside him, nodding along. To say Ouyang Ye was the daughter of the Great Natural Order was pure nonsense. However, he knew that after Yun Nizang buried a soul within Ouyang Ye's body, a mysterious totem had appeared on the little girl. That mysterious totem must also be related to the Great Natural Order.
Since the little girl's emotions could cause changes in the Great Natural Order, naturally she could also pacify those changes.
"Truly remarkable!" Gu Qingfeng murmured thoughtfully.
A situation like Ouyang Ye's was something others couldn't envy. This thing was both an opportunity and a blessing, even more so a result cultivated through karma.
"You only realize it's remarkable now? Brother, let me tell you, being able to encounter the Princess of the Natural Order here this time is a fortune cultivated over three lifetimes! If the Princess of the Natural Order hadn't come this time, we probably wouldn't even get a single hair. Seeing as you seem like an honest fellow, I'll kindly give you a reminder."
As he spoke, the young man cautiously glanced at the people from Hunyuan Gate and Hei Feng Cave, and said in a low voice, "The people from Hei Feng Cave and Hunyuan Gate are no good birds, especially Hei Feng Cave—they're simply scum. Later, if we enter the cave dwelling, try to stay as far away from them as possible. If you can follow Miss Ouyang, that's best. If you can't keep up, at least stick close to these few Seniors from Five Colors Mountain. Otherwise, not only might you not get any treasures, you might even lose your life here."
Gu Qingfeng nodded, then sincerely thanked him. Watching the little girl conversing with a few Elders from Five Colors Mountain and Hunyuan Gate, her speech and demeanor exuded a dignified grace, making it hard to connect her with the mischievous, adorable young girl from a few years ago.
"I was wondering who it was, so it's the famous Princess of the Natural Order, Miss Ouyang Ye. An honor, an honor."
A black-robed Elder from Hei Feng Cave spoke with a sinister tone. Many people in the area knew him—he was a Hei Feng Cave Elder named Lie Tao, also a Daozun who had cultivated for many years, with quite a reputation in the Great Northwest Frontier. Of course, mostly a notorious one.
"This junior Ouyang Ye pays her respects to the Seniors of Hei Feng Cave."
Ouyang Ye nodded in acknowledgment, speaking softly, well-mannered and reasonable, gentle and moving, neither haughty nor humble, without the slightest trace of the arrogance typical of young people. Such a tremendous transformation truly left Gu Qingfeng astonished. He simply couldn't imagine what the little girl had experienced over these three years to undergo such a massive change.
In his impression, Ouyang Ye had a very unrestrained personality, doing things in a rough-and-tumble manner, not fussing over minor details, somewhat like a tomboy.
Personality is something innate, very difficult to change later in life. No matter how much it changes, it can't turn into that of a dignified, graceful lady.
Carefully recalling the little girl's personality, Gu Qingfeng couldn't help but chuckle to himself, wondering if this girl was just pretending to be a lady?
Don't say it... that really was possible.
"I've heard Miss Ouyang was born with the ability to communicate with the Great Natural Order, that her joy and anger can influence changes in the Great Natural Order, and that she even possesses the ability to pacify spiritual upheavals of the Great Natural Order."
That Daozun named Lie Tao stared at Ouyang Ye with eyes like a venomous snake, sneering coldly, "Now that the Great Natural Order within the Peach Blossom Secret Realm is in such chaos, why hasn't Miss Ouyang stepped forward to pacify it, instead coming here to compete with us old folks for the cave dwelling?"
"Senior Lie Tao, first, thank you for your praise. Second, this junior would like to tell you that those rumors are overly exaggerated. Although this junior can communicate with the Great Natural Order, it is merely communication. As for pacifying spiritual upheavals of the Great Natural Order, that was entirely just a coincidence."
As she spoke, Ouyang Ye gave a faint smile and added, "Moreover, the situation here in the Peach Blossom Secret Realm is not as simple as a spiritual upheaval of the Great Natural Order. Rather, the Natural Laws here have fallen into chaos, with Yin and Yang reversed and the Five Phases disordered. This junior admits she does not possess the ability to pacify such chaos."
"Furthermore, the Laws within any secret realm between heaven and earth are inherently unstable. Not to mention this junior lacks the ability to pacify them, even if she did, she wouldn't dare act rashly. If the chaotic Laws of a secret realm could be pacified so easily, then there wouldn't be so many people in this world dying in disasters..."