"Does this place... resemble what you saw in your dreams?"

Gu Shen stood beneath the Susu tree.

"Nearly identical, only slightly rougher around the edges."

Li Qingci frowned slightly. "And what I saw in my dreams... seemed to be midsummer."

Midsummer?

The Art of Prayer is a bit too heaven-defying... Gu Shen narrowed his eyes.

When he first met Qingci, he hadn't even officially begun cultivating the Breath of Spring, and the seed of the Susu tree hadn't even sprouted... Could it be that the "Scales of Fate" had already known that he would cultivate the Four Seasons in reverse, from spring to winter, and only reach Blazing Summer at the end?

The scene Li Qingci saw should be the final "Perfected Pure Land."

"Slightly rougher is because this place... has only just formed its embryo."

Gu Shen shifted his gaze into the distance.

Li Qingci saw it too... at the end of the snowy plain, there seemed to be a group of figures, busy at work.

She seemed thoughtful.

The scene quickly retreated from the Pure Land, and countless long leaves fluttered as snowflakes dissipated.

They returned to the Divine Shrine Mountain.

Li Qingci sat on the rattan chair, the eaves of the roof shielding her face. She was lost in thought...

"So, this isn't a dream..."

After a moment, Li Qingci looked at Gu Shen. "It's real."

"It could also be a dream."

Gu Shen smiled. "The iron laws of the real world might be impossible to overturn, but in a dream, anything is possible. If you die one day, I promise you, you'll come to this dream."

"Someone will tell you..."

"Death is also a new beginning."

...

...

After this conversation, the two on Divine Shrine Mountain reached a strange understanding.

Regarding the dream of "Pure Land."

Gu Shen didn't mention it again, and Li Qingci didn't ask any more questions.

In the days that followed.

Gu Shen buried himself in cultivation on Divine Shrine Mountain, constantly absorbing Source Energy to replenish the "Flame of Life."

And Qingci returned to her previous life of "dissecting and interpreting words."

She pruned the black flowers and tended the flowerbeds at the Divine Shrine, while also studying ancient texts... She had given up the Art of Longevity, but there was still the Art of Divination. Her lifespan was decreasing day by day, but her state of mind became increasingly peaceful.

She was welcoming her end.

Li Qingsui came to the mountain more and more often. The little girl initially ran here two or three times with the intention of dissuading her sister.

The Li Clan had found many "suitable candidates" in other continents.

Everything for the Art of Longevity was ready.

As long as Qingci nodded.

She could extend her life—

However, Li Qingci's heart did not waver in the slightest. Even without Gu Shen taking her into the dream, she would have firmly chosen her initial decision... She wanted to gamble with fate, betting on whether the "new life" she saw with the Art of Prayer would descend after death.

Later on.

Li Qingsui gradually understood that her sister's mind was made up.

There was nothing she could do.

She could only accept it.

The two sisters had also quarreled, but in the end, it all came to nothing.

Suddenly, one day... Li Qingsui came to the mountain again, and she was completely different. She acted as if nothing had happened, never mentioning the "Art of Longevity" or "the end of her life" again.

This little girl seemed to have figured things out overnight, and then grown up.

In just over ten days, Qingsui's green hair, which had grown to her waist, had sprouted white strands. She had a bright and beautiful childhood, but the experiences after the beautiful dream were often not so pleasant.

Qingsui had experienced too much over the years.

The merger of Nagano and Central City, the changes in the situation in the two continents, the redefinition of "authority" by the Five Great Clans, and many trivial matters diverted her attention and energy. Her shoulders bore the pressure of the Li Clan.

After the Mausoleum incident, she had regained control of the Council of Elders.

One purge after another.

Today, every transcendent in the Council of Elders bows to her in reverence.

Although she is still nominally the "temporary" head of the family—

What she can do is no longer as simple as "temporary."

But.

What if she has immense power?

Li Quhu died of illness, and Li Qingci was short-lived. When all the old friends were gone, she would only have Uncle Gao by her side.

A girl who hasn't come of age is in the most radiant and beautiful years, but her back often gives people a lonely and desolate feeling.

After that day.

What Li Qingsui did when she came to Divine Shrine Mountain was very simple.

Most of the time, she just watched her sister dissect and interpret words at the desk, without having to say much. When she finally left, she sent some interesting things carefully selected by the Li Clan's Council of Elders.

Occasionally, she would say a few words to her sister.

But the outside world is full of deceit and intrigue, and it is impossible to explain clearly in just a few words.

So she only said good things and didn't say bad things.

The smile on this little girl's face was still there, but it became less "from the heart"... She came to Divine Shrine Mountain many times, but she never spoke to Gu Shen even once.

Li Qingsui never looked at Gu Shen again.

Every time she came, the young man who sat in the mountain of black flowers, cultivating the Flame of Life, would be surrounded by countless streams of fire. This was the scene she had wanted to see the most before, with black flowers flying and burning into snow-white in the midst of swirling flames.

But all of this became meaningless.

The reason why she cheered and rejoiced back then.

It was because every time one less black flower was here.

It was one step closer to her sister's birth.

But now, her sister is about to pass away...

If she dies.

Even if this Divine Shrine becomes a sea of flowers, who will want to see it?

...

...

"Li Qingsui... seems to have developed resentment towards you."

Among the mountains and fields, the breeze swirls.

White flowers flutter.

Chu Ling asked, "Don't you need to go and see her and explain?"

"No need."

Gu Shen didn't open his eyes. He sat quietly, listening to the voice in his heart, and then said softly, "It's right for her to resent me."

Li Qingsui hoped that Qingci would accept the Art of Longevity.

But...

She alone couldn't persuade her.

During the initial quarrel, Li Qingsui repeatedly cast pleading glances in Gu Shen's direction... She hoped that Gu Shen could stand up and help her persuade her sister.

But on this matter, Gu Shen chose to be a "neutral party."

"I promised Li Qingsui that I would bring her sister out of the Divine Shrine... I didn't do that."

Gu Shen said, "She doesn't know about the existence of 'Pure Land,' so she naturally hates me."

The reason why things have developed into what they are now, there is also a very important reason: Li Qingci has remained tight-lipped after seeing "Pure Land."

In fact, Gu Shen did not ask her to keep it a secret.

When he took her into the dream, he gave all the choices to her. If Qingci hoped that her sister would be at ease, even if she told her about "Pure Land," he would not say anything more.

If it really came to that point, he would ask Mr. Bai Su to come forward for this matter... In the identity of Dou Zhan, he would enlighten Qingsui. The King of the Underworld would take action to give Li Qingci a "new life."

It's just that Li Qingci didn't tell her sister about this.

And Gu Shen, just chose to remain silent naturally.

"She is a shadow willing to dedicate her life to the Divine Shrine."

"She is also the smartest person... in the Li Clan."

Gu Shen said calmly, "Perhaps she has already guessed my 'identity.' The fact that she doesn't talk about 'Pure Land' is the greatest kindness to the Li Clan before her departure."

Gu Shen's biggest secret is "King of the Underworld."

Leaking even a little bit of news.

Would be enough to shake the entire East Continent—

As the possessor of the "Art of Prayer," Li Qingci is very clear that there are ethereal "lines of fate" in this world, which can sweep away obstacles even across countless years... The reason why she can form a relationship with Gu Shen is because of the effect of forbidden techniques.

She has the answer in her heart. It doesn't matter whether she asks or not, whether she says it or not.

As long as she doesn't ask.

Gu Shen doesn't say.

Let everything be left unsaid, this is the best ending!

If she tells her sister about the existence of "Pure Land" in order to reassure her... then it would not be a good thing for the Li Clan or for Gu Shen.

At this time, the truth is not so important.

...

...

This is the coldest autumn in Nagano.

The fallen leaves of the Divine Shrine are crushed by the wind.

Although many white flowers have bloomed, it is still a desolate scene.

Gu Shen's "Flame of Life" is progressing very smoothly in his cultivation. He is like a dry leaf, desperately absorbing nutrients in the deep pool. The Source Energy of the eighth layer of the Deep Sea has long been filled, but the transformation takes time.

The first layer of the domain embryo has been completed.

He ended his closed-door cultivation at the Divine Shrine, stood up, and walked towards the top of the mountain. None of those white flowers that should have been blooming at the top of the mountain drifted out in the wind today. The entire mountain seemed particularly deserted and withered.

An ominous premonition vaguely emerged in Gu Shen's heart.

He suddenly remembered the scene he saw in the "Calamity Bracelet" before the final annihilation of the Frozen Lake mission... The Divine Shrine was full of darkness, with only one white flower left.

At this moment, it was very fitting.

He quickened his pace.

After climbing the mountain, he stood still and silently watched the scene before him... The white flowers in the flowerbed, which should have been growing vigorously and bursting with vitality, had become withered and shriveled. At this moment, they all drooped their petals, facing in one direction, in front of the old Divine Shrine hut, on the creaking rattan chair, lay a young girl in white clothes like porcelain.

The girl had her eyes closed, as if she was asleep.

She was still holding a thin ancient book in her arms. The autumn wind blew the pages, revealing the ancient texts she had meticulously depicted.

Rustling.

It sounded extremely beautiful.

It's just that the girl's eyes will never open again.

She was like those white flowers in the flowerbed. In the years when she should have been the most energetic, she ushered in the last day of "withering" without any warning.

It's just that she had expected it.

So on this day of departure, she was very quiet and didn't disturb anyone.

"Rustling, rustling..."

The pages turned.

The wind suddenly picked up.

The petals of those white flowers in the flowerbed also fluttered in the wind.

They withered and fell.

Behind Gu Shen, he suddenly heard the sound of footsteps accelerating as someone climbed the mountain, and a laughter that had been practiced many times, as light as a silver bell, also sounded.

"Sister, I've selected the most beautiful new porcelain from Snow Forbidden City..."

"Look..."

The sound of climbing the mountain and the laughter like a silver bell stopped abruptly at this moment.

The wind blew up the white flowers, setting off a pure white flower tide on the top of Divine Shrine Mountain.

"Rustling, rustling..."

The thin book fell to the ground, still turning.

The porcelain fell to the ground and shattered into petals.

...

...

(ps: There's more tonight.)