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

The border of the Northern Sea.

The waist-high, withered yellow grass undulated like waves in the wind, and the damp scent of soil and plants mingled with a faint, almost imperceptible, animalistic smell. The yellow-green grassland stretched as far as the eye could see.

The grassland is sparsely wooded, and winding rivers flow through the wilderness. On the riverbanks, a group of enormous monsters are drinking water.

As the scattered lights drew near, the monsters were startled and scattered in all directions.

At midnight, only a lonely little tavern still had a dim lantern hanging on it. The door creaked open, and two figures wearing straw hats and looking travel-worn walked in.

The tavern owner, wiping the wine bowls, came over and greeted us with a smile:

"Where are you two from?"

They were ostensibly exchanging pleasantries, but in reality, they were probing. After all, the border region was desolate and sparsely populated, and all sorts of people could be found there. Generally speaking, those who came here to stay were either herders or merchants, and occasionally a few desperate fugitives of unknown origin.

Furthermore, the aura of these two individuals does not belong to the demon race.

"From the Southern Cang Continent."

Goodness, it's a woman.

The boss rubbed his hands together. "What would you like to eat or drink?"

Although relations between the two races are currently tense, and there are frequent skirmishes on the border, the demon race doesn't necessarily attack humans on sight. After all, the Demon King Ming Si even absorbs the power of half-demons, and he is eager to recruit strong individuals, so he naturally wouldn't resist humans who voluntarily surrender.

Even the Demon King doesn't mind, so why would anyone in these businesses turn down money?

The woman said, "Please bring me two bowls of hot wine."

The voice was calm, gentle, and soothing, infusing this desolate borderland with a touch of fragrance. The tavern owner's mind wandered; he licked his lips and squinted, eager to catch a glimpse of her face—

"Keep your eyes on!"

The other man slammed his sword on the table, his voice low and menacing.

"Cough cough cough."

These two were hiding their cultivation levels, the extent of which was unknown. The tavern owner didn't dare to provoke them and slunk back to the kitchen to serve more wine.

Just then, the tavern door was kicked open again. Several burly demons huffed and puffed as they sat down, making such a commotion that it was impossible to ignore them.

"It's so annoying! Those human cultivators are always causing trouble at the mine. We just want to mine in peace and quiet. If this keeps going on, when will we ever be able to go back to normal life?" a one-eyed demon cursed angrily.

The tiger demon who was traveling with him pulled up a stool and sat down. "You still want to go back to normal? I doubt it."

"Ever since the Demon King declared his intention to accept half-demons, there have been constant rumors of war. How could the human race not be worried? They want the Thousand-Frost Iron, but this thing is a treasure that only our Northern Underworld possesses... If they can't get it openly, then they can only steal it secretly."

During this period, a group of unaffiliated but organized and disciplined independent cultivators arrived at the border, turning the mine into a chaotic mess.

The one-eyed demon roared, "Everyone says the Southern Cang royal family is highly respected, but when it comes to these underhanded and treacherous tricks, they don't hold back at all!"

Upon hearing this, the two people in the corner shifted slightly and exchanged a glance.

The tiger demon sneered, "Heh, you know what, there are rumors that the human palace is in complete chaos right now."

"How so?"

The demons immediately perked up.

Who can resist royal secrets?

It's so pleasant to chat about gossip about your arch-rivals while drinking.

"The eldest princess, Ji Fuyao, plotted rebellion and murdered the emperor, and the fourth prince, Ji Cheng'an, helped her flee to escape punishment. The emperor is dead, and her son and daughter have all run away. A few people put on a show and completely destroyed this family! When the news spread, it must have shocked half of the cultivation world. It's much more exciting than here."

"What?!"

"That's quite a big game. What about that sickly crown prince?"

"He's all alone, guarding the palace."

"That's not right. The emperor is dead, shouldn't he be able to ascend the throne and become the new emperor?"

"I'm not sure about that; maybe the rules are different."

"By the way, where did Ji Fuyao and Ji Cheng'an run off to?"

"Who knows. But..." The tiger demon chuckled, "I heard that the eldest princess has a beautiful face, tsk tsk, who would have guessed that she's actually a venomous beauty, daring to do something as audacious as patricide..."

The next second, screams of agony echoed through the tavern.

"What happened? What happened!" The tavern owner rushed out from the kitchen and saw several tall and strong demons lying on the ground, some clutching their heads and others unconscious, as if they had been severely beaten by someone.

The boss had a bad feeling and turned around shakily.

The man and woman in the corner have disappeared.

They drifted away, leaving the spot where they had just sat empty, with a few spirit stones on the table.

In a secluded spot outside the tavern, Ji Fuyao removed her bamboo hat, glanced sideways, and sighed, "Cheng'an."

Ji Cheng'an's thoughts were written all over his face. He crossed his arms and muttered, "Their mouths are so foul. They dared to call my elder sister a snake... I can't swallow this."

Ji Fuyao didn't care much about what others said. She shook her head, amused.

Having evaded pursuers all the way from the palace to the northern border, he had become numb to all sorts of rumors he had heard.

In the past few days, the siblings have been searching for Chu Xianlan's whereabouts while also investigating Ji Ran's actions over the years.

The more we investigated, the more shocking the findings became.

There have been several tragic cases of children in small villages having their spiritual roots dug out. Since all the blame was obviously placed on the half-demon, they have believed for many years that it was the half-demon who committed the evil deeds. However, upon further investigation, they discovered that every clue pointed to the imperial palace.

The first person to discover this was Ji Cheng'an's shadow guard, Wei Yi.

Wei Yi investigated secretly for a long time and confirmed the information repeatedly before handing it over to Ji Cheng'an.

Ji Cheng'an initially found it unbelievable.

The Crown Prince is kind and benevolent. After our father fell seriously ill, he single-handedly shouldered the responsibility of leading the Southern Cang royal family, working tirelessly day and night without complaint. How could he possibly do such a thing?

It's actually quite simple to verify Wei Yi's statement.

Ji Ran was frail from childhood, so a large number of spiritual plants and pills were sent to the Eastern Palace every month. After much deliberation, Ji Cheng'an, even though he was unwilling to believe it, still ordered Wei Yi to secretly replace one of the cartloads of medicinal herbs.

It was that truckload of "medicinal herbs" that extinguished the last glimmer of hope in Ji Cheng'an's heart.

But he didn't understand why his elder brother, the Crown Prince, would do this.

Looking back now, there's nothing I don't understand. There's an old saying that you are what you eat. If a cultivator's spiritual root doesn't match their body, they can only refine and absorb the spiritual roots of others to make up for their own deficiencies.

This act goes against natural law and can be described as the method of a heretical cultivator. No matter how arrogant and domineering Ji Cheng'an is, he cannot support Ji Ran's actions.

Therefore, he helped Ji Fuyao escape from the palace without hesitation.

But there's one thing that even though Ji Cheng'an already knows the truth... it still feels like a dream.

"...That Chu Xianlan...was he really the Third Prince who died young?"

Ji Fuyao was so tired of hearing this question that she finally replied helplessly, "You should call him elder brother, or royal brother."

Upon hearing this, Ji Cheng'an reacted as if struck by lightning, just like every time before.

His face changed drastically, goosebumps appeared on his skin, and he felt nauseous and uncomfortable all over!

Elder brother?! Brother?! Imperial brother?!?

The past grievances were still vivid in his mind, and the shameful hatred was irreconcilable. Just imagining what it would be like to be a brother with that annoying guy made Ji Cheng'an feel a tingling sensation in his head, as if he had been electrocuted.

He doesn't want that!

Suddenly, a dark shadow landed at their feet.

Wei Yi returned from scouting and bowed to the two, saying, "Your Highness, Your Highness, a large demon tribe's army is approaching from the southeast. Should we...?"

Ji Fuyao nodded. "Just avoid it."

This was their usual prudent approach to travel, but Wei Yi quickly looked up at Ji Cheng'an, appearing hesitant, as if he wanted to say something.

Ji Cheng'an noticed immediately and raised his voice, saying, "Just say what you want to say. Why are you stammering?"

His tone was really unpleasant, which made Ji Fuyao frown.

The royal guards always remain hidden in the shadows, waiting silently for orders. Most of them don't even have names, after all, they are death warriors who may die at any time and are easy to sacrifice. Investing emotions in them would only create unnecessary entanglements.

Therefore, a relationship like that between Ji Cheng'an and Wei Yi is actually quite rare.

From the day the fourth prince was born, Wei Yi was assigned by his mother to Ji Cheng'an's side. Nearly eighteen years have passed in the blink of an eye, and the two have never been separated for a single day.

Ji Fuyao vaguely remembered that Ji Cheng'an was particularly attached to Wei Yi when he was young. When he was learning to walk, he needed Wei Yi to hold his hand. When he fell, he needed Wei Yi to pick him up. Even when he was sleeping, he needed Wei Yi to stay by his bedside before he would obediently close his eyes.

Even the name "Wei Yi" was given to him by Ji Cheng'an.

But from some point onwards, Ji Cheng'an's attitude towards Wei Yi became increasingly hostile.

From affection and dependence, they became indifferent and impatient, and later they would scold and beat each other at the slightest provocation.

Why?

Ji Fuyao still couldn't understand it.

I also blame myself for being too busy with the affairs of the Xuan Yang Sect all year round, neglecting to spend time with Ji Cheng'an.

Wei Yi, kneeling on the ground, didn't mind his master's harsh attitude. He had just recognized the leader of the demon tribe from afar and felt that the matter should be reported, but he was afraid that Ji Cheng'an would be upset if he heard Qionglan's name and recall unpleasant past events, so he hesitated.

"Speak up," Ji Cheng'an clicked his tongue in annoyance.

"Your Highness," Wei Yi whispered, "they are the Wanderer Tribe."

-

Hua Ling was very worried.

On her first day in the Wanderer Tribe, Chu Xianlan meditated and cultivated.

The next day, he meditated and cultivated himself day and night.

On the third day, which is today, there is great joy—the child has finally stopped meditating!

He switched to horse stance training.

In fact, Chu Xianlan had worked quite hard in her cultivation before, but she still managed to balance work and rest. Occasionally, she would be very affectionate with her master, which was good for Hua Ling's eyes.

He seems like a completely different person now, he talks less, and is often distracted... and most importantly!

Chu Xianlan isn't always sticking to Yi Chen's side anymore!

If a puppy isn't affectionate, is it still a puppy?!

Hua Ling sensed something was very wrong, extremely wrong, and urgently summoned the other three spirits of heaven and earth, briefly explaining the situation and initiating a tactical meeting.

"Don't you guys think the atmosphere between the two of them has been a bit strange these past few days?"

Yan Ling picked at her ear and casually said, "We broke up."

Hua Ling hadn't seen such a pure idiot in a long time. She felt that this guy was even worse than a mere earth spirit. Enraged, she swung her fist at him fiercely!

She roared, "Shut up! You don't know anything, don't talk nonsense, and don't break up this family!"

Yan Ling felt wronged and let out a strange cry as she ran away: "?? Didn't you tell me to say it?!"

Hua Ling shot a sharp look to the left. "Xue Ling'er, you speak."

"Xianlan is hiding from Yichen." Xue Ling blinked her beautiful eyes.

Hua Ling tilted her head and stared at her for several seconds.

Slowly opening its mouth and then closing it, this snow spirit has probably revealed the origin of all things and the true meaning of the world.

"I'll be right back." She suddenly realized something, cupped Xue Ling's face, and gave her a big kiss!

It was just before dawn, and the campfire in the camp was still burning. Hua Ling wandered over to Chu Xianlan's tent, took a deep breath, and prepared to rush in and give him a strong dose of medicine!

"Little Orchid, thank you so much for last night~"

A woman's alluring voice suddenly came from inside.

Hua Linghu's body trembled.

After a while, Chu Xianlan's slightly tired voice came through the tent, "Sister Qionglan, next time, don't ask me to do this so late at night."

"Oh, you're still young, you have great stamina."

Hua Ling's pupils dilated in shock, and she broke out in a cold sweat.

A lone man and woman alone in a tent late at night, what do they do? What kind of physical exertion is involved? What's the scene like inside?

No... Where is Yi Chen... If this continues, our base will be raided...

Hua Ling hurriedly turned to fetch help, only to be met with a pair of deep gray eyes, which nearly scared her to death.

Flower Spirit: OAO

Yi Chen: ⩌ - ⩌

"Yi—uh-uh!"

Good heavens, what are you doing here eavesdropping, you Nascent Soul stage cultivator?!

Silent and stealthy like a ghost, yet listening so intently?!

Hua Ling was forcibly gagged and unable to move, but she blinked desperately to signal him: Did you hear everything? Hurry up and go in and take it by force! It'll be too late if you wait any longer!

Yi Chen's expression remained unchanged, but his eyes were lowered.

The curtain was lifted the next moment, and Chu Xianlan walked out, rubbing her sore eyes. She subconsciously turned her head to look, but there was no one outside the tent.

A cool morning breeze swept by.

Feeling inexplicably disappointed, Chu Xianlan turned to the tent and said, "I'm an amateur after all, and the results of the rank assessment may not be accurate. It's best to find someone knowledgeable to take a look."

"Thanks, Your Highness the Third Prince." Qionglan held up a beautiful crystal to the sunlight and examined it carefully, a satisfied smile playing on her lips.

Caught off guard by this address, Chu Xianlan choked and coughed violently.

Qionglan patted his back cheerfully, flicked her long tail, and laughed heartily: "The world has changed. We must learn to accept new things and not be old-fashioned!"

On the other side of the tent, Hua Ling leaned on Yi Chen's shoulder, pressed her hand to her chest, and said, "Phew... it was just identifying the ore. I thought it was something else. Yi Chen, you and Xian Lan didn't have a fight, right?"

It's okay. The most important thing is for you two to live your lives well. Don't worry about me, really, just let me fend for myself...

and many more.

Hua Ling stared directly into Yi Chen's eyes until they ached, but Yi Chen's eyelids didn't even twitch. He really was a snake; he didn't need to blink at all.

Hua Ling slowly repeated, "You two didn't argue, right?"

Yi Chen looked away, "..."