"This is the elixir of life that everyone seeks."
"Yes."
Shen Yue said it so lightly, as if what she held in her hands was not an elixir of life, but a simple blade of grass or a flower.
Yet, it was enough to shock Rong Hua's heart. He seemed to have many things to say, but when the words reached his lips, he couldn't utter a sound.
A gust of wind blew, scattering petals like a crimson rain of prosperity.
Rong Hua gazed at the white-robed immortal. Her eyes were covered with white cloth, her attire was snow-white, her brows and eyes noble, and her soft lips curved into a subtle arc, as if she were smiling, or perhaps it was just an illusion.
An inexplicable emotion, like wisps of fog, surged into his heart. It felt as though an ineffable, unspoken stir of affection was crashing against his chest like an unstoppable flood.
At this moment, Rong Hua felt there was no longer any need to dwell on who Shen Yue mistook him for. No matter who she thought Shen Yue was, he was the only one who could stand by her side now.
What harm was there in longing and thinking? He might as well sever Shen Yue's heart and let time heal the wound.
It was only now that he finally understood after all his twists and turns.
The man's dark, deep eyes, gazing at Shen Yue, seemed to flicker with a dense, heavy, obsessive emotion, as if it were about to spill over.
He restrained himself, suppressed it, his heart burning, and involuntarily cried out, "Master..."
Rong Hua reached out to touch Shen Yue's brow, but she subtly dodged his touch.
Pressing her lips together, Shen Yue's expression remained unchanged. "Pluck this fruit. Once Miss Yin has recovered, you will escort her down the mountain and she is never to ascend Qingyun Sect again. Otherwise, next time it won't be this simple."
Rong Hua, still displeased by Shen Yue's evasive movement, retracted his fingers that were frozen in mid-air. He tightened his jaw and called out again, "Master..."
The white-robed immortal's long hair was like spilled ink, her form like a bamboo shoot, and her exposed skin as cold and delicate as frost on a glacier.
She repeated, "Pluck this fruit."
She had already said it two or three times. Rong Hua couldn't tell if it was his imagination, but he felt Shen Yue was somewhat impatient, as if… she were going to keep an appointment.
This was just a guess, of course, but it made Rong Hua incredibly agitated. He finally fell silent for a moment and plucked the fruit. As soon as the fruit was removed, the green leaf, as if having reached its peak bloom and begun to rot, slowly withered and turned yellow.
Shen Yue did not see this. She sensed Rong Hua had plucked the fruit. Without saying a word, without asking anything, she flickered and transformed into a beam of light, disappearing as suddenly as she had appeared.
Rong Hua's face turned ashen. His dark, deep eyes twisted into black ink, and a red glint flashed within them.
Shen Yue gave the fruit to Rong Hua and then, riding her sword, arrived at Fengyan Valley.
Entering Fengyan Valley was easy. Shen Yue could even sense a trace of her spiritual power to feel her way forward.
Arriving at the familiar little wooden house, Shen Yue thought that Chang Sheng should be gathering herbs on the mountain at this time, leaving only Yao'er alone at home.
Standing respectfully at the door, Shen Yue knocked with her fingers.
She had expected a child to run over and open the door, but after waiting for a long time, there was no movement.
Could Yao'er still be asleep and not yet up?
Shen Yue found it unlikely, as she knew Yao'er was a very boisterous child who disliked sleeping the most. He shouldn't be sleeping in so late.
Perhaps he had run off to play somewhere else?
Shen Yue knocked a few more times, but there was still no response. The little wooden house was empty and silent, devoid of any sign of life.
The familiar chirping of cicadas filled the air. Shen Yue thought for a moment and decided to wait at the door.
She waited from daylight until the afterglow of dawn.
The white figure stood rooted to the spot from the beginning, unmoving, like a piece of wood.
It wasn't until night fell and the cold wind blew on her face that Shen Yue reacted. It was dark, and the people... had not yet returned.
Could Chang Sheng have encountered danger on the mountain again? And Yao'er, playing outside, had lost track of time and not returned home.
Shen Yue used half of her spiritual power to search the entire mountain but sensed no trace of anyone.
Uncertain, she tried to search again, her throat itched, and a hint of blood filled her mouth. Her chest ached with a sharp pain from the backlash.
Not a trace of anyone...
Shen Yue could no longer stand at the door. She pushed open the unlatched wooden door and fumbled around like a headless fly, searching.
"Chang Sheng?"
"...Yao'er?"
"Is anyone there?"
The wooden house, usually filled with the cheerful laughter of children, was now in deathly silence. Even the slightest movement echoed, and the icy atmosphere suggested no one had ever lived there.
Her knee bumped against a corner, but Shen Yue paid it no mind. She fumbled in every corner, calling out their names.
But there was no reply.
After an unknown amount of time, as if finally realizing no one was in the wooden house, Shen Yue stopped her futile efforts.
She stood bewildered in the center. Her hand accidentally touched a table, covered in a layer of dust.
This made her even more confused. She remembered Yao'er had promised her, they had made a pinky swear; he would wait here for Shen Yue to find them.
But why, when she had returned to find them, were they nowhere to be seen?
Shen Yue had always believed the two of them would wait for her here, never imagining such a scene.
The dust settled on the objects indicated that the owners had left long ago.
It was also the first time she found the wooden house terrifyingly quiet.
Her snow-white clothes were now smudged with dust, and a fine red scratch adorned her fair, jade-like face from an earlier stumble.
At this moment, she looked like a lost child, standing alone, her dark shadow stretched long by the moonlight.
When she had come to Fengyan Valley, Shen Yue had already removed the white cloth, revealing her captivating, soul-stirring eyes. They were beautiful but vacant, now tinged with fragility.
Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck Shen Yue.
Chang Sheng, Chang Sheng...
The name of the fruit was also Chang Sheng.
An absurd thought formed in her mind. Shen Yue's fingertips trembled. Her face turned deathly pale. As she turned to leave, she accidentally stepped on something, her foot slipped, and she fell to the ground with a thud.
But Shen Yue could no longer care about the pain. She had already asked Rong Hua to pluck the fruit before she came. All she could do was pray that Rong Hua would not boil the fruit into a medicinal decoction too soon.
As Shen Yue picked herself up from the ground, cold sweat broke out on her forehead from her urgency, her fingers trembling uncontrollably.
"Ying."