When I woke up, the entire cultivation world was talking about my master.

Yi Chen carried Chu Xianlan away, and the witch doctor followed.

Wei Jin stared at Yi Chen's back as he walked steadily.

This scene overlaps with footage from a few days ago.

At that moment, Wei Jin also saw Yi Chen rushing towards him, tightly holding Chu Xianlan, who was covered in blood, his steps unsteady.

Even now, thinking back on that scene still makes my heart pound.

Half of it was because of Chu Xianlan's rapidly deteriorating condition, which seemed like she might be on the verge of her soul being scattered at any moment; the other half was because of Yi Chen's expression, which could be described as being on the verge of collapse.

The panic and pain in his eyes were so intense that they almost swallowed everything.

This person is clearly Yi Chen, but he doesn't feel like Yi Chen at all.

After all, Yi Chen is a person who is cold and ruthless to the core, and has no will to live. Even when his half-demon identity was exposed in public, he was able to quickly and calmly make a decision and harden his heart to make the best solution of severing the master-disciple contract. He has never had such a moment of helplessness.

But this panic seemed endless. For five whole days and nights, a continuous stream of spiritual energy was poured into the boy's body. Even Wei Jin was alarmed. If this continued, Yi Chen himself would surely collapse first.

Fortunately, Chu Xianlan finally woke up.

When the boy awoke, Yi Chen transformed back into the unmoving and serene Immortal Lord Jixue.

He was too anxious before and hadn't had time to think about anything else.

At this point, more and more doubts arose, and something felt off.

Wei Jin recalled that when Chu Xianlan was captured by the mechanical puppet last time, it was a similar situation... But could a master who cares about his disciple lose his composure to such an extent repeatedly?

Xiao Shengsheng buried her head in Xiao Huandu's arms and sobbed, "Brother, Brother Chu will get better, right?"

"Hmm." Xiao Huandu also felt bad and gently rubbed his sister's head.

"Brother Chu repaired the Frost Heaven Harp, he's a great benefactor to us half-demons, the whole Peach Blossom Spring is waiting to thank him," Xiao Shengsheng said earnestly, blowing her nose with Xiao Huandu's sleeve as she stood up.

"I'm going to the Temple of the Gods to pray for Brother Chu, to bless him with peace and safety, and to bless him and Immortal Lord Jixue to stay together forever and never be separated."

Wei Jin's eyes widened. "What??"

Xiao Shengsheng: "Sister-in-law, is there a problem?"

Wei Jin's expression was complex and hard to describe: "..."

His temples were throbbing with veins as he suppressed the urge to swear in front of the young girl.

"I'm not your sister-in-law. What did you mean by... staying together forever, never to be separated?"

"Okay, sister-in-law," Xiao Shengsheng readily agreed, pressing her two thumbs together. "Because those two handsome brothers are a good match, just like you and my brother, that kind of relationship."

Wei Jin took a deep breath: "..."

"Say less," Xiao Huandu quickly covered his sister's mouth.

"Xiao Huandu, what is our relationship?" Wei Jin suddenly asked.

Meeting those beautiful, upturned eyes, Xiao Huandu blushed inexplicably.

His voice was barely audible, completely devoid of his usual boisterous and unrestrained manner. He murmured like a puppy, "Master, actually, if you're willing... any kind of relationship is fine."

Wei Jin: "..."

A sudden surge of anger welled up inside him, and he strode out.

"How did you manage to make your sister-in-law leave again?" Xiao Shengsheng asked, dumbfounded.

Xiao Huandu pursed his lips.

Since that night, the two maintained this lukewarm relationship, even more strained than before. In fact, when Xiao Huandu learned that Wei Jin had ventured deep into the forbidden area to rescue him, he was quite overjoyed and moved. Unfortunately, Wei Jin's attitude remained unchanged, which was like a bucket of cold water being poured on him.

"He...has still not forgiven me," Xiao Huandu said to his sister.

Xiao Shengsheng pinched her brother's ear. "Did you apologize, brother?"

Xiao Huandu's eyes dimmed slightly as he thought to himself that after leaving the Taiyi Sect, the words he had said most often to his master were, "I'm sorry."

I'm sorry, I'm so sorry.

He kept apologizing, and kept making mistakes. He felt guilty all the time, yet he kept clinging to a sliver of hope.

He was so afraid of Wei Jin's cold expression that he would always show his fear, shrinking into a small ball even if he had the courage of his life. He always thought that as long as he apologized enough and humbled himself enough, there would still be room for maneuver.

"Brother, do you... really like sister-in-law?" Xiao Shengsheng paused, her heart now filled with uncertainty.

There is a wall between Chu Xianlan and Yi Chen that outsiders cannot cross. It is a bond formed by the utmost mutual trust, with no secrets from each other, and a willingness to follow each other through life and death.

But she couldn't feel the same way with her brother and Wei Jin.

Xiao Huandu was taken aback and remained silent, not immediately answering Xiao Shengsheng's question.

So Xiao Shengsheng cupped Xiao Huandu's face in her hands again and said, "Brother, Shengsheng likes you the most. Do you like me?"

"...What do you think? Of course I like it."

Suddenly, Xiao Shengsheng's expression turned quite angry. She jumped up and started yelling like a spoiled brat, "Brother! You super stupid, invincible wolf!"

-

"This is my medicinal herb pool. No outsiders are allowed in normally. You can soak in it for about two hours each day," the witch doctor Linlang said, leading the master and apprentice toward the medicine hut deep inside the bamboo house. "If you need anything, you can call my medicine boy for help."

Yi Chen said, "No need."

Linlang opened her mouth, her gaze falling on the magic seal on Yichen's wrist. She sighed inwardly and said nothing more.

Chu Xianlan was really not in good spirits. After only a short distance, she huddled in Yi Chen's wide sleeves and closed her eyes again in a daze.

Seeing this, Linlang said in a deep voice, "I believe that this matter is ultimately related to his spiritual root."

In the past, we have seen cultivators whose spiritual roots have been dug out. Compared to others, Chu Xianlan's situation is the strangest. Not only does the spirit of heaven and earth actively gather to fill the gap for him, but he can also perfectly accommodate the spiritual energy of heaven and earth that does not belong to him.

The spiritual energy of heaven and earth...

Linlang suddenly had a bold idea.

Because the probability was so extremely low, she had never considered this possibility before. The sudden appearance of this idea sent chills down her spine.

Linlang slowly asked, "Immortal Lord Jixue, have you ever heard of the Heavenly Spiritual Root?"

Yi Chen paused slightly. "I know."

Linlang said, word by word, "It is against common sense that Fellow Daoist Chu cultivates without spiritual roots in his body. And the five elements of heaven and earth gathered around him are exactly the characteristics of a heavenly spiritual root."

"I had always thought that Fellow Daoist Chu must have suffered something terrible in his childhood, which caused his spiritual root to be maliciously damaged. It is truly heartbreaking."

At this point, Linlang's tone shifted, her eyes flickering slightly, "Now, I have another guess—what if his spiritual root wasn't destroyed, but instead replaced and has been residing in another person's body?"