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Amidst her busy preparations, Shi Luoyi still remembered to instruct Hui Xiang: “The wedding customs of the immortal race and the mortal race are different. Since Bian Lingyu is a mortal, we’ll follow the traditions of mortals. Given his physical limitations, many of the rituals should be simplified as much as possible. Make sure he doesn’t overexert himself on that day.”
Hui Xiang sighed inwardly: “Yes.”
These were things Shi Luoyi could have personally discussed with Bian Lingyu, but according to mortal marriage customs, the bride was not allowed to meet the groom before the wedding.
Since she had decided to make everything comfortable for Bian Lingyu, she resolved to follow the process meticulously.
While crafting spiritual cranes, Shi Luoyi added: “Don’t neglect him either. Check what’s left in Bu Ye Immortal Mountain—my parents left me quite a few things. Move them all to Bian Lingyu. He has no parents now, so having these things will give him some peace of mind.”
Hui Xiang nodded.
“Also,” Shi Luoyi continued, “tell the uglier spirit creatures not to disturb him. They should stay quietly in their caves during this time. No disrespectful words, no gossiping about his legs. If anyone maliciously bullies him, throw them into the Chaos Cliff for fifty years.”
“…” Hui Xiang knew Shi Luoyi was fiercely protective of those she cared for, but she never imagined such protectiveness would extend to Bian Lingyu. Shi Luoyi hadn’t slept for days, yet she ensured Bian Lingyu wasn’t overworked and even arranged for things to suit his preferences.
That same day, Hui Xiang diligently carried out Shi Luoyi’s instructions. Though they didn’t fully understand mortal wedding customs, they even sought out a matchmaker from the foot of the mountain. Shi Luoyi specifically instructed her to ask A-Xiu if she wanted to attend.
Upon hearing about the wedding, A-Xiu felt a faint pang of bittersweetness but was genuinely happy for them. She realized that the person had finally gotten what they desired. Recalling how Shi Luoyi had draped the raincoat over her shoulders that day, she felt at ease.
The fairy was kind, and surely she would treat him well.
A-Xiu smiled: “I’d rather not go. Please convey my blessings on behalf of the immortals.”
After completing these tasks, Hui Xiang went to the storerooms of Bu Ye Mountain to retrieve the items Princess Wan Xun had prepared for Shi Luoyi’s future husband and handed them to Bian Lingyu.
Bian Lingyu was in the rear mountain, continuing to craft bamboo figurines. Seeing the storeroom keys, he coldly told Hui Xiang: “You keep them. I have no use for them.”
Hui Xiang sighed, understanding that what he truly wanted wasn’t material possessions—but anything beyond that was merely wishful thinking.
Bian Lingyu gazed toward the horizon, where storm clouds gathered.
Shi Luoyi only saw the sect leader as an obstacle, but there were others who didn’t want her to return to Bu Ye Mountain or see her married.
He lowered his eyes indifferently, dripping blood into countless bamboo figurines, and commanded softly: “Go.”
In his arms, he still held the last Soul Purification Pill—it would come in handy.
On the eve of Awakening of Insects, Bu Ye Mountain exuded an aura of serene tranquility, while a spring rain fell upon the mortal realm.
Unaware of the chaos caused by her spiritual cranes outside, Shi Luoyi continued to send them out in droves.
In front of a tavern at the foot of Ming You Mountain, a crimson-clad girl had been drinking for two days straight. Large and small wine jars littered the ground, causing the shopkeeper great distress—he feared the girl might drink herself to death here.
He timidly tried to dissuade her several times, only to receive the same icy response: “Get lost.” Seeing the murderous intent in her eyes, the shopkeeper dared not utter another word.
Wei Changyuan walked in through the storm, immediately spotting Bian Qingxuan.
She drank the mortal wine as if it were water, coldly watching an ant nest collapse under the weight of the rain.
The ants struggled desperately against fate, yet their efforts were futile.
Wei Changyuan had never seen her like this before, nor had he ever witnessed such an expression in her eyes. For a moment, he almost didn’t recognize her. Frowning, he approached her: “Junior Sister, stop drinking. Why have you consumed so much alcohol?”
Bian Qingxuan turned to him, her eyes carrying a coldness unfamiliar to Wei Changyuan: “Did you know? Shi Luoyi is getting married.”
Wei Changyuan paused briefly, then nodded.
In truth, the Wei family—as the leading clan of cultivation families—had long received the spiritual crane invitation from Bu Ye Mountain. However, Sect Leader Wei had only sent congratulatory gifts, choosing not to attend. On one hand, the Wei family had once arranged an engagement with Shi Luoyi, which made things awkward. On the other hand, Lady Wei had recently passed away, making it inappropriate for them to attend a joyous occasion.
Bian Qingxuan scrutinized his expression, then sneered after a moment: “So, does it pain you, Wei Changyuan? Or shall I give you a chance? Set a true fire to burn down Bu Ye Mountain—they won’t be able to marry tomorrow.”
Wei Changyuan’s frown deepened.
It was as though he no longer recognized the Bian Qingxuan before him. In his memory, she was gentle and considerate, always understanding. She endured countless grievances without complaint, showed kindness to her fellow disciples, and had even nearly lost an arm saving a junior sister.
The Bian Qingxuan he knew was nothing like the mocking, coldly furious woman before him now!
Despite her strange behavior, Wei Changyuan still attempted to explain: “Junior Sister, you’re drunk. Since I promised to marry you and care for you, my heart naturally no longer belongs to Luo Yi.”
Bian Qingxuan slammed her palm onto the table, cutting him off. Her eyes reddened with rage: “Who cares! Wei Changyuan, you pathetic excuse for a man—you can’t even hold onto a woman’s heart!”
She burst into laughter: “And you still think you love me? Save it. Don’t tell me you’ve conveniently forgotten what you saw in the hallucination from the Untransformed Toad. You knelt before your parents begging for permission to marry Shi Luoyi—I saw it all!”
Wei Changyuan looked at her, a chill rising within him, his lips pale: “What are you talking about?”
“Let me tell you the truth,” she said mockingly. “Nothing happened between us that day—it was all just an illusion. I don’t like you, I never did.”
Bian Qingxuan leaned closer, her smile malicious: “Shi Luoyi never lied. Every single time these past three years, it was me who wronged her. I deliberately plucked her flowers, I deliberately provoked her anger—and good senior brother that you are, you never failed to side with me.”
She watched with satisfaction as Wei Changyuan’s expression froze, his eyes reddening, his fingers trembling.
“What, regretting it now?” She stood up, folding her arms as she appraised him coldly. “You still have a chance. Tomorrow is the Awakening of Insects. She used to adore you so much—it shouldn’t be hard for you to ruin her wedding.”
“Junior Sister, what exactly do you intend to do?”
“What I intend to do is none of your concern. Think carefully—everything can still be done before dawn.”
With that, she waited for Wei Changyuan to strike her, but his fists clenched so tightly his knuckles turned white, yet he didn’t draw his sword, Qing Hong, to attack her. She laughed bitterly, tossed a spirit stone onto the table, and walked out of the tavern into the storm.
Bian Qingxuan found a tree beneath Bu Ye Mountain. While gazing at Bu Ye Mountain, she waited for Wei Changyuan to make his decision.
She lay atop the tree, her mind in turmoil, her scattered spiritual energy mirroring her collapsing state of mind. Every step Shi Luoyi took now filled her with seething hatred.
If not for this, she wouldn’t have been forced to confront Wei Changyuan and push him to act against Shi Luoyi’s wedding.
She had expected Wei Changyuan to stab her with the truth unveiled, but he did nothing. His gaze remained silent, and after a long while, he closed his eyes, not uttering a single curse.
For a fleeting moment, she may have felt a pang of guilt toward Wei Changyuan.
But even now, Bian Qingxuan still didn’t believe she had done anything wrong.
She waited coldly—for Wei Changyuan to shatter with regret upon learning the truth, for him to go mad and destroy Shi Luoyi’s wedding. She absolutely would not allow Shi Luoyi and Bian Lingyu to marry! She refused to let them ruin the situation she had sacrificed everything to create.
She waited until the sky began to lighten, the Awakening of Insects drawing near—but Wei Changyuan still hadn’t acted.
Bian Qingxuan’s face darkened.
“Stupid fool!” Bian Qingxuan was livid. Even now, Wei Changyuan still refused to harm his own sister, choosing to let the opportunity slip by rather than follow her suggestion to disrupt the wedding at Bu Ye Mountain.
She had underestimated the righteousness in Wei Changyuan’s heart and the integrity instilled in him by his noble family upbringing.
She swiftly flew to the base of Bu Ye Mountain and pulled out a jade flute from within her body, pressing it to her lips.
Bian Qingxuan knew that Shi Huan had sealed countless demonic beasts within Bu Ye Mountain. Since Wei Changyuan refused to act, she would take matters into her own hands.
If all the mountain’s demonic beasts were unleashed, Shi Luoyi would be overwhelmed just trying to protect Bu Ye Mountain—there would be no way for the wedding to proceed.
The ethereal notes of the jade flute drifted into Bu Ye Mountain.
This was the second time Bian Qingxuan had used a divine artifact in the mortal realm. Her crimson-gold eyes flickered faintly in the night, and under the constraints of heavenly law, she could vaguely see lightning gathering on the horizon. But she didn’t care! The heavens couldn’t kill her yet—if they dared, let the thunder strike down Bu Ye Mountain along with her!
Just as she was about to drive the demonic beasts to break through the mountain, countless bamboo figurines erupted from the ground, swiftly forming a barrier. A golden cage rose from the earth, trapping her inside.
Bian Qingxuan was shocked and tried to escape, but a bone spike shot through the air, piercing her abdomen and pinning her firmly to the ground.
Enraged beyond measure, cold fury spreading across her eyes, she sent her jade flute flying out of her hand. It shattered the golden cage and shot toward the figure atop the mountain.
Bian Lingyu could have dodged, but if he moved, the bone spike would return to defend him, and he wouldn’t be able to keep Bian Qingxuan restrained. He stood coldly, unmoving, allowing the bone spike to pierce through his heart as blood gushed from his mouth.
At the same time, within the cage, Bian Qingxuan was firmly sealed by the bamboo figurines.
Lying trapped within the formation, Bian Qingxuan watched as Bian Lingyu descended from the mountaintop. Her voice was icy: “You knew I would come?”
“Yes,” Bian Lingyu looked down at her from above. “Stop this, Qingxuan. Don’t forget—you owe her your life. She was the one who picked you up back then.”
“I never asked her to save me! Never!” she trembled. “I’d rather die than endure such hopelessness. Brother, listen to me—let’s go home, alright? She’s just a lowly cultivator. How could she possibly be worthy of your divine pearl? You’re the last true god—return and fuse your soul, reclaim your power, and you’ll become the ruler of the six realms. Whatever you desire will be yours! Don’t you hate our mother and brother? Don’t you want revenge? Please—I beg you. Heaven doesn’t allow gods to remain in the mortal realm forever. I don’t want to die here; I want to go back.”
Bian Lingyu’s eyes remained utterly impassive.
“She owes you nothing. If you want to return home, so does she. Leave her alone. When I die, I’ll give you my remains. Refining them will be enough to shatter the heavens. Then you can go back.”
As Bian Lingyu’s figure grew more distant, Bian Qingxuan stared after him, tears of blood streaming from the corners of her eyes.
Long ago, she had thought Bian Lingyu laughable.
A young god, betrayed by his mother and brother, imprisoned as a child, cast down to the mortal realm shortly after reaching adulthood—all while dragging his battered body to slay fallen beasts and uphold the mission of the gods, protecting all living beings.
He felt no hatred, bore no resentment. Most gods were similarly cold-hearted.
At first, he hadn’t understood love—it had been easy to deceive him. Falling in love with a mortal cultivator, he foolishly gave her his divine pearl, causing him to lose the ability to maintain his divine form and turn into a monster.
And then Bian Qingxuan found herself laughable.
She should have killed Shi Luoyi back in the Delusion Sea when she noticed Bian Lingyu developing feelings for her—none of what followed would have happened. She wouldn’t have needed to resort to desperate measures to force Shi Luoyi into becoming a demon just to reclaim the divine pearl.
But ten years ago, the little red snake nestled in the girl’s arms, several times feeling murderous intent rise within her, ready to coldly bite Shi Luoyi. Yet every time her fangs touched Shi Luoyi’s hand, the girl would gently flick her forehead with a smile, and the snake would retreat.
The three of them traveled together through the Delusion Sea and the desert. Shi Luoyi cradled the injured little red snake, followed by a dirty silver-white spirit beast.
The injuries of the silver-white spirit beast weren’t visible from the outside—it could only walk behind them in silence, unable to express its pain or show weakness despite being in agony.
Back then, Bian Qingxuan had inwardly mocked the young god for his naivety.
Only now did she realize that the one who repeatedly hesitated to act, clinging to Shi Luoyi’s embrace, was the stupidest person of all.
From afar, she gazed at the immortal mountain as celestial music began to play.
Bian Qingxuan knew she had ultimately lost. Perhaps she had already lost the moment she hesitated and withdrew her fangs from Shi Luoyi’s hand.
The spirits of Bu Ye Mountain were unaware that a battle between two divine beings had already taken place at the foot of the mountain.
When Ding Bai saw Bian Lingyu return pale-faced, he was startled. Earlier, after consuming the last Soul Purification Pill, Bian Lingyu had risen from his wheelchair, and Ding Bai had sensed something ominous.
Bian Lingyu glanced at him and frowned: “Silence.”
He went ahead to change his clothes. Today was the Awakening of Insects—the day of his marriage to Shi Luoyi.
For days, Bian Lingyu had stayed in the rear mountain. Now, as he opened the door, the fresh morning air greeted him.
The mountains were awash with red, like the heartfelt efforts of a maiden.
Bian Lingyu remained silent, fully aware that Shi Luoyi only wanted to reclaim Bu Ye Mountain and wouldn’t put much thought into this sham of a wedding. Yet even his ceremonial robes fit perfectly. Within her capabilities, she had given him the best and most unforgettable experience possible.
Outside the house, the spirits dared not approach the immortal palace. Only Shi Huan had ever been willing to tolerate so many spirits—they crowded anxiously in the backyard, parroting sweet words taught by the matchmaker: “Congratulations to Master on your wedding. May you and Miss live happily ever after and bear noble children soon.”
Most of them were still unintelligent and naive.
The squirrels chattered excitedly: “Master, I want a little miss!”
“A little master would be nice too!”
“You must work hard tonight, Master!”
Ding Bai blushed furiously: “Shoo, shoo! Spirits are shameless indeed—how dare you speak of such things aloud!”
He quickly looked up at Bian Lingyu, fearing he might be angered, only to find a rare trace of a smile on his pale face.
It was faint and fleeting, like a gentle breeze under a clear moon.
This was the first time Ding Bai had seen him smile. Not just him—even the entire courtyard of spirits was stunned, their eyes wide with amazement.
The fox spirit stood nervously behind the crowd of spirits. Seeing his good mood, it concluded that he wouldn’t blame them for not changing those items—and certainly wouldn’t report them.
Earlier, the fox had spoken to Miss Shi, describing how it had merely arranged some common mortal items. Hearing the fox grumble about Bian Lingyu being picky, Shi Luoyi briefly turned away from crafting spiritual cranes, looking confused: “What’s wrong with that? But if Bian Lingyu really dislikes the arrangements, just change them.”
Yes, yes, yes—there was nothing wrong in the first place!
But why change something that wasn’t broken? The fox spirit thought smugly to itself: You mortals just don’t understand the finer points of these arrangements. Once you do, you’ll thank the great Fox Spirit endlessly!