In Yu Xuanji's eyes, Cheng Xiaofan was surely fabricating excuses. He had destroyed her four avatars, and then, using her master Chen Zhen's name, he'd conjured up a heap of justifications.
This kind of man was the most shameless in the world!
How could he possess such a striking, even heart-stoppingly handsome, appearance?
Was heaven blind? Why bestow upon him such an intoxicating visage?
Truth be told, even Yu Xuanji had to admit that she was indeed captivated by his image and aura.
If Cheng Xiaofan hadn't killed her four avatars, the very first moment she saw him, she would have been kneeling at his side.
"You think I'm making up stories for you?"
Cheng Xiaofan smiled faintly. "In both official histories and unofficial records, there isn't a single word about your duel with that young man surnamed Wen. So, how did I come to know about it?"
"This..."
Yu Xuanji stammered, "Perhaps you deceived me!"
Cheng Xiaofan burst into laughter. "Would the coincidence be this perfect if I were deceiving you?"
"I can tell you, the blank tombstone erected before your grave might have seemed devoid of any inscriptions, but after it shattered, the words appeared."
As he said this, he lightly waved his right hand. With a whoosh, the shattered stone tablet immediately reassembled itself.
When Yu Xuanji reached the reassembled tombstone, she saw lines of carved text appearing: "Xuan Ya'er, when you discover these words on the stone tablet, you must have already met a man named Cheng Xiaofan from a thousand years in the future!"
"The destruction of your four avatars was actually prearranged by this master. It was all waiting for Cheng Xiaofan to resolve."
"Xuan Ya'er..."
Xuan Ya'er!
This was how Chen Zhen privately addressed Yu Xuanji back then!
Apart from Chen Zhen, no one else called Yu Xuanji by this name.
After reading the contents of the tombstone, Yu Xuanji was utterly stunned.
Just as Cheng Xiaofan had said, the formation her master Chen Zhen had set up, and the four avatars separated from her, were all intended to await his arrival.
Because in this world, only Cheng Xiaofan could save her.
"Yu Xuanji, do you believe what I'm telling you now?" Cheng Xiaofan glanced at Yu Xuanji, a smile on his face, and asked.
Yu Xuanji choked back a sob. "I believe what you're saying. After seeing the contents of this tombstone, I have no reason not to."
"Furthermore, the writing here bears a striking resemblance to my master's tone. No one else could imitate it!"
*Thump!*
Yu Xuanji knelt before the shattered tombstone and wept uncontrollably.
"Master—"
She cried, tears streaming down her face, "I failed your expectations in my life. I have wronged you. You imparted all your Daoist arts to me, yet I did not cherish them!"
"I don't deserve to live in this world. I don't deserve it!"
The reason Yu Xuanji had planned for her four avatars to raise enough funds to establish a temple, and to use incense and popular devotion to allow her soul to be reborn into flesh and appear in the mortal world, had another purpose.
That was to evade the heavenly tribulation.
Because after she was executed, she had never entered the cycle of reincarnation.
This violation of the natural cycle of life was bound to incur heavenly lightning strikes.
With the protection of a temple and the reverence of incense and devotees, she would be able to escape this ordeal.
Listening to Yu Xuanji's lament, Cheng Xiaofan smiled slightly. "Yu Xuanji, since your master Chen Zhen entrusted you to me back then, I naturally have a way to protect you."
"After a period of cultivation, you too can live in the mortal world like a normal person. Without my consent, heaven would not dare to punish you!"
Upon hearing this, Yu Xuanji looked up at Cheng Xiaofan in astonishment.
"Cheng Xiaofan, you dare to defy heaven's will?" she couldn't help but ask.
Cheng Xiaofan shook his head. "It's not that I defy heaven's will, but the people I wish to protect, heaven cannot harm at will!"
"If anyone dares to harm those I protect, I will make heaven suffer too!"
With that, he waved his hand, and a bolt of lightning shot from his fingertips into the night sky.
*Boom!* A thunderous roar shook the heavens and earth, and the wind and clouds churned.
Cheng Xiaofan looked at Yu Xuanji and said word by word, "Yu Xuanji, please believe in my ability. I will absolutely be able to protect you!"
Yu Xuanji asked, "Cheng Xiaofan, why are you so good to me?"
Cheng Xiaofan chuckled. "Since your master Chen Zhen could rely on me so much, I naturally will not fail her earnest intentions and will accept her entrustment!"
To be able to accept the trust of an ancient figure was also a form of pride!
Think about it, from ancient times to the present, who else could achieve this?
It must be Cheng Xiaofan!
Cheng Xiaofan added, "Yu Xuanji, from the faint aura emanating from you now, I can tell that the Daoist arts you learned from Chen Zhen are incredibly powerful."
"You are also someone I need!"
Hearing this, Yu Xuanji said excitedly, "Mr. Cheng, if that's truly the case, I will dedicate my life to your service!"
"However, what appears before you now is merely a wisp of condensed soul, wavering uncertainly. I fear I cannot do much for you."
At this moment, Yu Xuanji's address for Cheng Xiaofan had even changed.
Because she understood very clearly that if her master Chen Zhen could entrust her to this young man back then, then he must be her lifelong reliance.
The person her master could rely on was also a man worthy of her lifelong respect.
Cheng Xiaofan chuckled. "I have a space, filled with abundant spiritual energy. If you recuperate there, I believe that bathed in spiritual energy, you will surely regenerate flesh and blood and become a normal person!"
"Ah, there's such a miraculous place?" Yu Xuanji exclaimed in surprise.
Cheng Xiaofan replied, "Yes, you will absolutely love it when I take you inside!"
Yu Xuanji immediately became impatient. "Mr. Cheng, can you take me to that space now?"
Cheng Xiaofan smiled. "Of course!"
"Follow me now!"
Yu Xuanji responded, "Alright, I'll follow you!"
As soon as she finished speaking, her vision blurred, and she found herself in a brand-new location.
In this space, there were ponds, various colorful flowers and plants, and the air was exceptionally fresh, filling one with a sense of vitality.
"Ah, Mr. Cheng, I feel like a living person!" Yu Xuanji said, her face filled with shock.
Cheng Xiaofan's gaze fell upon Yu Xuanji.
"Ah, you—" He couldn't help but shudder and hastily averted his eyes.
In the cave, although Yu Xuanji had appeared before Cheng Xiaofan as a condensed soul, she had at least been wearing clothes.
Now, after entering the space and under the influence of spiritual energy, she had manifested in her true form before Cheng Xiaofan.
The problem was, Yu Xuanji's clothes had vanished.
Yu Xuanji's exquisitely graceful figure, like a white eel, sent a powerful tremor through Cheng Xiaofan's soul.
"Mr. Cheng, why aren't you looking at me?" Yu Xuanji asked urgently.
Cheng Xiaofan replied with some embarrassment, "I don't dare to look at you!"