After listening to Chu Xinghui’s account, Xie Liufeng thought for a moment and roughly understood what was going on.

Chu Xinghui tugged on his sleeve and directly asked the question he currently cared about the most: “Do you know how I’m supposed to solve your problem?”

Xie Liufeng shook his head and said, with a tone hard to read: “I’ve never studied demonic or crooked techniques, so of course I don’t know.”

Chu Xinghui stared at him.

Xie Liufeng said: “Don’t think about this anymore. Everything comes at a price. Even if you really can solve my problem, what if it harms you in the process?”

Chu Xinghui shook his head: “I’m not afraid.”

Xie Liufeng poked his forehead and said helplessly: “But I am.”

Chu Xinghui kept staring at him.

Xie Liufeng couldn’t stand the gaze and quickly explained in more detail: “My problem is probably different from Qin Yuwen’s. His is a flaw. Mine… is a kind of shackle.”

He asked Chu Xinghui: “Do you still remember what I told you last time in Yongning City?”

Chu Xinghui knew which thing he was talking about: “Wasn’t it something you lied to me about?”

Xie Liufeng pondered for a moment and nodded: “…Yeah, I lied to you.”

Chu Xinghui: “…”

The two stared at each other for a while.

Xie Liufeng couldn’t hold it in and burst out laughing.

Chu Xinghui looked at him expressionlessly: “You’re still laughing.”

Xie Liufeng rubbed his nose and stopped laughing.

Chu Xinghui confirmed with him: “This time, are you still lying to me?”

Xie Liufeng immediately surrendered: “Absolutely not. I wouldn’t dare lie now.”

He looked at him, eyes filled with a smile: “And I wouldn’t want to lie to you anymore.”

Chu Xinghui keenly noticed the flaw in his words and continued to press him: “So you were willing to lie to me before?”

Xie Liufeng tried hard to defend his innocence: “Don’t wrong me. My feelings for you could be testified by the sun and moon.”

At most… he just occasionally liked to talk nonsense.

It was purely his personality—he definitely didn’t mean to deceive or harm anyone.

He reflected for a moment, then patted Chu Xinghui on the head and said gently: “How about I apologize to you?”

Chu Xinghui thought about it, then nodded: “Alright, I forgive you.”

That sounded way too easygoing—Xie Liufeng couldn’t resist teasing him again: “You forgive me this easily? What if I lie to you again next time?”

Chu Xinghui seriously considered this and replied: “Then… I’ll forgive you again.”

He looked at Xie Liufeng: “I’ll believe everything you say first. Anyway, you know what you can lie to me about and what you can’t.”

Xie Liufeng sighed and laughed with a bit of complaint: “You’re really putting a lot of pressure on me here…”

After finishing the conversation about lying, Chu Xinghui returned to the original topic: “You once told me that you ascended—was that where your problem came from?”

Xie Liufeng recalled for a moment: “It should be.”

Chu Xinghui kept asking: “Then how did you fail?”

Xie Liufeng chuckled: “Fail… how should I put it? In my life, aside from fishing, I’ve never failed at anything.”

Chu Xinghui frowned: “Then you…”

Xie Liufeng squinted, looking very relaxed: “You already saw it, didn’t you? I killed a ‘god’ who descended to the mortal realm in violation of the rules. According to the laws of heaven, killing a god is a great sin. So I didn’t fail to ascend—I was forbidden from ascending.”

Chu Xinghui recalled something: “Your divine soul…”

Xie Liufeng nodded: “Right, those were the ‘chains’ the Heavenly Dao left on me. Once the chains were placed on my body, I could only remain in this realm and couldn’t go to the upper realm.”

Seeing that Chu Xinghui looked like he was about to explode again, Xie Liufeng quickly tried to soothe him: “But so far, I haven’t noticed what exactly Yue Yao meant by ‘it’s not a good thing,’ so you really don’t need to worry.”

Chu Xinghui was silent for a moment, forcibly pulling his attention away from Xie Liufeng’s situation and continued to analyze: “So, Qin Suyun actually came from the Upper Realm?”

Xie Liufeng nodded: “More or less.”

Chu Xinghui kept speculating: “Then he kept pestering me… because I’m the one destined to ascend and become a god?”

“What, feeling a lot of pressure?” Xie Liufeng looked at him with a gentle smile and a soft voice: “This kind of prophecy-like thing is essentially a deduction based on the current state, representing ‘the most likely future’—but before someone actually reaches that future, no one can say for sure what it will look like. So just take it as something to hear. The future can’t be described in just a few words.”

Chu Xinghui was actually not very interested in titles like “Heavenly Dao Child.” He frowned slightly and doubted: “Gods… are they that weak?”

Aside from the last time Qin Suyun directly pulled him into an illusion and this time’s strange resurrection, Qin Suyun seemed completely like an ordinary and unremarkable cultivator.

If someone like that could be called a “god,” then what in the world had happened in the Upper Realm?

Xie Liufeng spread his hands: “Honestly… I’ve never seen someone this weak from the Upper Realm. He doesn’t seem to be walking the same path as his unlucky predecessor.”

He hadn’t ruled out this possibility from the start, but this person’s behavior really didn’t match the suspicion.

Chu Xinghui asked Xie Liufeng: “Then what about the one you killed?”

Xie Liufeng explained: “The one I killed descended in his true body, didn’t hide his power, and wasn’t possessing any other body.”

He paused, then slowly speculated: “…But based on this, possession might help them evade the Heavenly Dao’s sight, while also suppressing the powers they carry that don’t belong to this realm.”

Xie Liufeng looked at Chu Xinghui and asked for his opinion: “How about I handle this matter? People from the Upper Realm trying to steal this world’s fate isn’t just a personal issue. I’ll report it to the sect and bring in a few trustworthy people to handle it together.”

Chu Xinghui had no objection: “What about Yue Yao?”

Xie Liufeng blinked at him: “Today I happened to be hard of hearing and didn’t hear a single thing you told me.”

Though Bihai Taohua Island rarely interacted with the outside world, it was still a registered Immortal Sect. Now, not only did this Saintess from the island have dealings with people from the Upper Realm, she even helped Qin Suyun conceal her identity… If there wasn’t a proper explanation, it would look very questionable.

After finishing their discussion, Xie Liufeng noticed Chu Xinghui was still holding onto his sleeve tightly and asked: “What is it?”

Chu Xinghui stayed silent for a moment, then stated his decision: “I’ll try to find a way to solve your problem from Qin Suyun.”

Xie Liufeng frowned slightly and wanted to say something.

Chu Xinghui immediately cut him off: “If you can’t ascend, then even if I reach the stage of ascension one day, I won’t ascend either. So now, you’re not allowed to speak, and you’re not allowed to object.”

Xie Liufeng was helpless: “…Since when do two people need to ascend as a package deal?”

No other cultivator couples ever did that.

Chu Xinghui glared at him: “No talking.”

Xie Liufeng could only obediently shut his mouth and sigh inwardly.

Since Chu Xinghui had already made up his mind, he had no choice but to keep a closer eye on him.

*

The sect operated efficiently. By the next day, a discreet but strict surveillance had been placed around Qin Suyun.

Chu Xinghui secretly observed Qin Suyun’s daily life for several days.

On the first day, she stammered through the basic sword techniques and was kept after class until late at night. On the second day, she handled the spirit sword like a fire poker during a practical lesson and had to do extra training. On the third day, the elder in charge subtly hinted that she might not be cut out for this field…

Chu Xinghui: “…”

He truly didn’t know it was possible for someone to turn such basic courses—which should’ve been finished in half an hour—into something this difficult.

Even if Qin Suyun hadn’t originally been a sword cultivator, various cultivation paths were generally interchangeable. He found it hard to imagine that she had ever been the top disciple of Lingxiang Sect.

Chu Xinghui had to ask Xie Liufeng to speak to the elder overseeing her training to lower the difficulty of some of her coursework.

As expected, on the second day after Qin Suyun could finally breathe, she immediately sought out Chu Xinghui.

He exchanged a few perfunctory conversations with her.

Lately, Qin Suyun had been feeling quite proud of herself.

She was becoming more proficient in her studies, and even the Heavenly Son of Dao was showing her a softened attitude. Everything seemed to be moving in a positive direction.

One day, Chu Xinghui was at the marketplace and, unsurprisingly: “happened” to run into Qin Suyun.

Qin Suyun enthusiastically invited him to pick out some daily supplies together.

Chu Xinghui really wanted to refuse, but he didn’t.

Qin Suyun was secretly delighted.

The two of them had grown more familiar recently, and she felt it was time to test the waters regarding Chu Xinghui’s feelings.

While picking items, she looked shyly at him: “By the way, I didn’t get to ask before since we didn’t interact much… Does Senior Brother already have a Dao companion?”

Chu Xinghui answered casually: “No.”

Dao companion.

Suddenly, a lightbulb went off in his head.

Back when Qin Suyun was still Qin Yuwen, he had always thrown that term around. Even when he’d dragged Chu Xinghui into a secret realm, he was insistent on forMing a Dao partnership.

Now, it seemed like she was trying to do the same thing.

Chu Xinghui started to form a new hypothesis.

He found an excuse to part ways and returned to the sect.

Just as Chu Xinghui returned, he spotted a familiar figure sitting in a nearby pavilion and went over to sit down.

Ming Xiao was holding a formation diagram and scribbling on it. He looked up, surprised: “You actually left Qingjing Peak?”

Since Chu Xinghui had joined the sect, apart from scheduled classes and the sword-testing arena, he was rarely seen—most of the time, he just disappeared.

Chu Xinghui got straight to the point: “Do you know what Dao companions usually do together?”

Ming Xiao thought for a moment, then gave his answer based on his limited experience: “They often stay together—eat together, sleep together… seem more intimate than normal friends. That’s about it?”

That’s what he had observed.

Though he never really understood why people spent so much time with their Dao partners—didn’t that interrupt their cultivation?

Chu Xinghui frowned: “That’s it?”

That was no different from how he interacted with Xie Liufeng.

But despite all their time together, Xie Liufeng’s problem hadn’t improved—so that clearly wasn’t the key.

Ming Xiao felt like Chu Xinghui was challenging his knowledge, thought hard, and added: “Oh, right—they also dual cultivate.”

Apparently, compatible Dao companions could cultivate faster together than alone.

At least that somewhat compensated for the wasted time.

Chu Xinghui suddenly stood up.

Ming Xiao looked up at him: “Where are you going?”

Chu Xinghui said concisely: “To borrow some dual cultivation manuals from the library.”

Maybe they’d spark a new idea.

Ming Xiao: “…”

Something didn’t feel right.

 

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