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

Pei Fang'an took a sip of tea and looked up at the person opposite him.

Yi Chen held the teacup in his hand, his gaze fixed on the swirling snow outside the window, and didn't pick it up to drink a sip for a long time.

"Junior brother, junior brother."

Pei Fang'an asked with concern, "What's wrong? You seem a little distracted."

"It's nothing. Please continue, senior brother."

"Oh," Pei Fang'an nodded, "Didn't you ask me about Xie Qingying's whereabouts before? Medicine King Valley finally replied with a message, saying that their valley is also in chaos right now."

"Xie Qingying has been missing since last month. The elders of Medicine King Valley are frantically searching for her. After all, the Tianyuan Gathering is coming soon, and the Valley Master has not yet returned. It's really strange."

Pei Fang'an waved his fan, expressing his confusion. "But he's the head of a sect, after all. Logically speaking, he shouldn't just abandon the entire sect and run away, right? Where did he go? How could he just vanish into thin air... Sigh, let's not talk about that. Master has disappeared again, traveling somewhere. He'll definitely miss the Tianyuan Gathering again. Speaking of which, why has Xianlan been in seclusion for so long this time? I hope she hasn't run into any trouble..."

"—Yi Chen! Your disciple has emerged from seclusion!"

Just as Pei Fang'an started his rambling again, Hua Ling's clear and loud voice came from outside.

Pei Fang'an and Yi Chen both looked out the window at the same time.

In the distance, a dazzling golden pillar of light shot into the sky, its initial momentum like the rising sun breaking through the clouds before gradually dissipating amidst the tremors of spiritual energy.

Chu Xianlan stepped out of the entrance to the Mirror Spirit Realm's secret realm, squinted to adjust to the sunlight for a moment, and then stretched vigorously.

The soft cracking of bones stretching, accompanied by abundant spiritual energy flowing through the body, brought an unprecedented sense of exhilaration.

I didn't expect this retreat to be so effective.

Perhaps it was because of the nourishment from the two kinds of spiritual energy of heaven and earth that he not only successfully broke through from the early stage of Golden Core to the middle stage of Golden Core, but his cultivation level also exceeded expectations by a large margin.

Xiao Huandu arrived first, exclaiming in exaggerated amazement, "Brother, do you know how long you've been in seclusion this time?"

"About half a month..."

He was actually a little guilty about saying that, because there was no concept of time in the secret realm.

"A month and a half!"

Xiao Huandu slapped his good brother on the shoulder, "You've been in seclusion for forty-five days! If you'd come out any later, you wouldn't even need to go to the Tianyuan Society; you might as well have waited another ten years!"

Chu Xianlan was extremely surprised: "What?"

He didn't feel anything at all!

He couldn't help but turn around and look around, only to find that the Taiyi Sect was bustling with activity in a way that was different from usual.

Disciples flew overhead on their swords from time to time, while fellow disciples hurried along the mountain path. Some were carrying boxes and some were checking magical artifacts and goods, clearly making preparations for their long journey, a scene of being fully prepared to set off.

Really... that long has passed?

Remembering the date she had agreed upon with her master, Chu Xianlan subconsciously looked in the direction of Yujing Pavilion. Suddenly, a large group of disciples surrounded her, chattering about things like "Congratulations on your advancement, Senior Brother!" and "Senior Brother Chu has broken through to a higher realm!"

Many disciples looked at Chu Xianlan with amazement in their eyes.

After a cultivator breaks through a cultivation level, they often undergo a complete transformation.

Spiritual energy tempers the body, cleanses the marrow and strengthens the tendons, and one's appearance and temperament will become closer to one's own spiritual root attributes and the essence of one's Dao heart.

Chu Xianlan was in that state at that moment.

The boy was like a finely polished jade, warm and translucent, with a natural radiance. His pupils were a bit darker than usual, gleaming with a faint blackish-blue luster in the sunlight.

Having finally managed to deal with her enthusiastic fellow disciples, Chu Xianlan was about to return to Yujing Pavilion to report the news to her master when she was suddenly grabbed by someone as soon as she turned around.

Xiao Huandu's weary voice rang in my ears, "Why are you leaving? There's still work to be done."

Before the Tianyuan Gathering, it is usually the busiest time for the entire sect. When traveling, disciples not only need to lead a team on their own, but also have to handle various official duties and miscellaneous matters.

Chu Xianlan was in seclusion, and Pei Shibo's eldest disciple was away training for many years. Xiao Huandu was doing the work of three people. Four-legged oxen and horses were not common, but he was a two-legged ox and horse.

He hooked his arm around his good friend's shoulder and half-dragged, half-pulled him outside. "The inventory of supplies, the personnel list, the itinerary... they all need to be checked. Come on, come on, don't even think about sneaking away."

What can Chu Xianlan do?

Xiao Huandu was so tired that he had dark circles under his eyes, and he felt like he had to take some responsibility.

However, at Yujing Pavilion, Pei Fang'an had already drunk three cups of tea and was almost full.

I had planned to say a few encouraging words to Chu Xianlan when she returned, but even after I had drafted my lines, my nephew never came back.

"Hmm? Why hasn't Xianlan returned yet?" He couldn't help but look out the window. "This is so unlike him. Normally, he would have come to tell you the good news as soon as he broke through his cultivation level."

Yi Chen, sitting opposite him, remained silent, calmly turning the pages of a book.

However, upon closer inspection, one can see that his gaze lingers on the same page for a long time.

As the sun rose higher and it approached noon, Chu Xianlan finally escaped Xiao Huandu's clutches and stepped out of the deacon's courtyard, feeling that she was finally free. However, she was stopped by someone on the road.

Looking back, I saw an elderly man with a bald head and a mustache, wearing a brown robe.

"Elder? What brings you here?"

The elder crafting expert stroked his beard, looked him up and down, and nodded with satisfaction. "Your aura is solid, your spiritual power is abundant... You've advanced, haven't you? Not bad, not bad."

"Perfect timing! I've just come up with a few new gadgets and I need someone to test them out. Come on, come on, help this old man test them out."

Chu Xianlan: "..." Heavens!

Although he was not a disciple of the Thousand Refinement Hall, he had been there quite often and was very familiar with this weapon-refining elder. In addition, the elder had given him a lot of guidance and care, so he simply could not refuse him, both out of courtesy and reason.

Then, they were dragged away again, returning to the state before liberation.

At the same time, Yi Chen watched Pei Fang'an leave, silently sensing his disciple's location for the umpteenth time through the master-disciple contract.

Yi Chen frowned.

...Not only did it not move closer to the Jade Capital Pavilion, but it's even farther away than before?

What are you going to do at the Thousand Refinements Hall?

"Why aren't they back yet? It's almost dark," Hua Ling complained, though a smile of obvious amusement played on her lips. "Yi Chen, it's one thing if he doesn't miss us, but why doesn't he miss you at all?"

Yi Chen ignored her and went back inside.

They probably went to the Deacon's Office and the Thousand Refinement Hall because they had urgent business to attend to and couldn't get away for the time being. They'll likely be back once they've finished dealing with it.

By evening, Chu Xianlan had explored almost every corner of the Taiyi Sect, including the Deacon's Office, the Thousand Refinement Hall, the Hundred Herbs Hall, and even the Spirit Field.

They went everywhere, but never returned to Yujing Pavilion.

Hua Ling felt the aura surrounding Yi Chen growing increasingly heavy, and the surrounding temperature gradually dropping. Not daring to say anything more, she pulled Xue Ling, who had been quietly squatting in the corner, and slipped away silently.

The room fell silent again.

From the first light of dawn to the fall of dusk, a thick layer of unswept snow had accumulated by the window, the tea on the table had long since gone cold, the plates of pastries remained untouched, and not even a lamp had been lit.

After an unknown amount of time, Yi Chen finally used his spiritual power to light up all the lamps in the Jade Capital Pavilion.

The warm yellow flames lit up one after another, dispelling the darkness in the room and shining into the deep gray pupils.

Taoist practitioners are prone to losing their sense of time. Five years is but a blink of an eye for them, and a mere forty-five days of waiting is even less of a moment.

But is that really the case?

As he stroked the jade pendant at his waist, Yi Chen suddenly realized that he seemed to have never asked Chu Xianlan a single question.

What must it have felt like to be alone in the Jade Capital Pavilion during those five years of seclusion?