Chapter Sixty-Three: Striving to Live, Awaiting Reunion

Shi Qingxiang paid no attention to his companions. He recognized at once what Hong Jian was trying to hand him so furtively, and was immediately startled.

“…What happened?” Shi Qingxiang instinctively lowered his voice as he asked.

Hong Jian opened her mouth, eyes full of anxiety, and said, “It’s for you. Just take it.” She emphasized her words, “You need it more.”

Shi Qingxiang was taken aback. He quickly realized that this girl, who was usually so calculating about even something as trivial as a Peiyuan Herb, was suddenly being so generous. The look she gave him was as if she were bidding farewell to a corpse, sending a chill through his heart.

He lowered his head and gently turned the “Fujiang” over in his hands, then said solemnly, “Thank you, but I can’t accept this.” He raised his head, and it seemed as if stars were reflected in his eyes. “It’s useful to you as well. Don’t worry.” With so many people around, Shi Qingxiang could not say more. He handed “Fujiang” back to Hong Jian, and as he repeated “Don’t worry,” he gently patted the back of her hand twice, disregarding the usual proprieties between men and women.

Ah, the gift from the young girl had been returned. Leng Yu, Xie Yaofei, and the others who were watching nearly had their eyes pop out; their amusement was instantly stifled.

Hong Jian did not feel embarrassed. She simply tightened her grip on the returned “Fujiang,” still and thoughtful. She wondered whether Shi Qingxiang had understood her meaning when he said “Don’t worry,” and what he might do next.

Shi Qingxiang looked at her kindly and said softly, “Junior Sister Fang, we have to leave now. Who knows when we’ll meet again? Take care.”

Hong Jian snapped back to herself, realizing she was still on their boat. She quickly nodded, “You must take care as well!”

Their eyes met, and Shi Qingxiang gave her a gentle smile.

Hong Jian hesitated for a moment, then said no more. She turned and leapt back onto the Brocade-Sailed Flying Boat. Shi Qingxiang’s gaze followed her as she stood beside Ding Chunxue. He turned to Leng Yu and the others and said, “Let’s go.”

To the rest, this brief encounter was just a minor interlude in their cultivation journey, but to Hong Jian, it felt like a profound and silent understanding had passed between her and Shi Qingxiang. She watched in silence as their boat grew distant, truly experiencing for the first time at her young age a sense of longing and helplessness she should not yet have known. She thought, “No matter what, I must strive to live on. Perhaps one day, we will meet again.”

In the days of cultivation that followed, Ding Chunxue clearly noticed that both young ones were absent-minded, especially Hong Jian. Though she made no obvious mistakes, the flashes of brilliance that usually appeared in her training were gone.

Ding Chunxue said nothing, but ended the journey to the glaciers early. Upon returning to Snowdrift Cliff, she sent Hong Jian and Chen Zaizhi to the Valley of Return for reflection—three months for Chen Zaizhi, half a year for Hong Jian.

Hong Jian had already anticipated that, with her eldest senior brother’s strictness, he would not simply let things slide; punishment was inevitable upon their return. Yet she had not expected to be thrown straight into the Valley of Return; she even thought Chen Zaizhi was implicated because of her, and stuck her tongue out in embarrassment.

The Valley of Return was a harsh place, not far from the entrance to the sect’s secret realm. Every four years, as the secret realm opened and the laws of heaven and earth shifted, this valley suffered great damage and its spiritual energy dried up a millennium ago. Since then, disciples who made mistakes were sent there to reflect. Though it was not as absolutely barren for cultivation as the legendary Demonic Prison, it was still highly inefficient—the elders’ intent was not to punish, but to make the disciples set aside their cultivation for a while and confront their own hearts. Thus, the place was named the Valley of Return.

Yan Changqing, upon hearing from his chief disciple that the two juniors had been sent there, nodded approvingly. “Good. The two of them have been progressing too fast. If they can truly quiet their minds and reflect, your efforts will not have been in vain.”

But Sun Yougong, upon hearing the news, only laughed heartily. Ding Chunxue, noticing her grandmaster’s indifferent attitude, explained, “Junior brother and junior sister are both easily influenced by others, especially Hong Jian, who is emotional and quick-witted, and her advancement is so rapid I fear she’ll reach Foundation Establishment before truly experiencing anything. That could only lead to disaster later.”

Sun Yougong shook his head with a smile. “Perhaps that will work for Zaizhi, who is more straightforward. Hong Jian is still young, and besides, no one can guess what turns in her mind. Don’t worry, let time take its course.”

As Sun Yougong predicted, Hong Jian, sent to reflect, merely felt misunderstood by her senior brother. Now confined for half a year and unable to cultivate properly, she felt stifled almost to death and could hardly calm herself enough for reflection.

Three months passed, and Chen Zaizhi came to bid farewell. Hong Jian was sitting with her knees hugged on a bare rock, counting stars in the sky. She wanted to ask Chen Zaizhi to plead for her with their senior brother, but then thought better of it—her senior brother’s resolve was ironclad, and nothing would change his mind. There was no need to trouble Chen Zaizhi.

So she waved him off, signaling him to go quickly so she wouldn’t be further irritated by his presence.

Once Chen Zaizhi left, the entire valley was silent, so lonely it was enough to drive her mad. Hong Jian passed the days in utter boredom, feeling deep sympathy for those cultivators imprisoned in the Demonic Prison. If there were no stars to see, no wind to feel, only endless darkness and no hope, it would be too terrifying to bear.

How long had that person spent inside? How did he endure, and how did he escape?… Was he still alive?

Later, growing tired of her own wandering thoughts, Hong Jian would rather train for two or three hours, then meditate for days to recover her energy. If Ding Chunxue knew that she had not forgotten cultivation even under such hardship, who knows what expression she would wear. In any case, as Sun Yougong had said, her master’s kind intentions were entirely wasted.

Hong Jian counted the days to her release as eagerly as one waits for stars or the moon, but what she never expected was that with seven days still left before the end of her half-year term, Grandmaster Sun Yougong would personally come to take her out.

She had not minded the punishment much before, but her grandmaster’s personal attention now filled her with unease.

Sun Yougong smiled kindly. “Come, let me take you somewhere.”

Puzzled, Hong Jian followed him onto his flying treasure. With a whistling sound, it soared high into the air and streaked toward the endless depths of the sea.

They flew at breakneck speed for nearly half an hour, crossing thousands of miles before Sun Yougong finally brought the treasure to a halt, hovering in midair.

From this height, Hong Jian looked around in curiosity. All she could see was the vast, rolling sea. Her heart stirred. “We must be close to the ‘Celestial Veil’ now!”

Then Sun Yougong spoke: “Elder Jin has already arrived ahead of us. Soon, he and Sect Leader Dai, along with Xing Wuyai, will attempt to break open the ‘Celestial Veil’ together. Let’s wait here and see if they succeed.”