Dao Companion Crippled, Coveters Move

Chapter 241 239: So-called Pure Love

Pei Xiaohan felt she couldn't let her master remain lost in that phantom from a hundred years ago. 'It will definitely impede her progress on the Great Dao!'

"Master, that man…"

Before Pei Xiaohan could finish, Lin Qianyan tapped her on the head with her duster, which was as white as misty clouds.

"Xiaohan, don't be so rude. When I adopted you, I gave you my husband's surname. You should call him 'Father'."

'Fa… Father?!'

'Why should I call a mortal who turned to dust a hundred years ago, and has probably been reincarnated countless times since, my father?'

Pei Xiaohan felt a pang of indignation in her heart, but she also understood the man's importance to her master. No matter how much her master doted on her, if she dared show even the slightest disrespect toward that man, her master would never let her off easy.

'But if I, the one closest to Master, don't say anything, am I supposed to just let that man hold the Jade Pool Saintess back for the rest of her life?'

The young woman's lively eyes flickered. Finally, she steeled her resolve and said tactfully, "Master, why are you so sure that that ma—… Father, is still alive?"

"Forgive your disciple for being blunt, but you've been pining for Father for so long… perhaps it's just a Heart Demon causing trouble. As the Jade Pool Saintess, a role model for all the Fairies, you should let go of the past and look to the future."

After speaking, Pei Xiaohan closed her eyes nervously, waiting for the duster in her master's hand to strike her head again.

But after a long moment, all Pei Xiaohan heard was a mournful sigh.

For the first time, Pei Xiaohan felt that her master was no longer the Jade Pool Saintess with heaven-reaching Cultivation, the pearl of the Sacred Land. Instead, she was just a simple woman, waiting for her man to come home…

"My husband… a hundred years ago, a great expert concealed his destiny from the heavens. It was so effective that even I have forgotten his full name. I only remember that my husband's surname is 'Pei'."

Lin Qianyan gently caressed the Silver Ring on her slender, pale finger. Thanks to her meticulous care, the ring still gleamed with a crystalline luster. A small character, "Pei," was engraved on it, causing the pink lips beneath Lin Qianyan's veil to curve into an irrepressible smile.

"I don't know why my husband would cause such a great expert to act and conceal his destiny, but it is precisely because of this that I know he must still be alive and well. Perhaps he has even become that expert's disciple and is now a Great Power in his own right."

Seeing her master's infatuated expression, Pei Xiaohan felt an inexplicable irritation well up inside her.

"Master, you're being a bit too idealistic. The rise of every Great Power is a legendary saga that spans centuries, if not millennia. How could it be so easy to become one?"

"In the Cultivation Realm, which is filled with geniuses, even the most dazzling mortal would likely be overshadowed… Besides, he was taken to the Yin Yang Sacred Land. Even if he had talent, it would have been drained dry long ago, exploited by countless Female Cultivators…"

As Pei Xiaohan said the word "exploited," a powerful fluctuation of Spiritual Qi erupted from Lin Qianyan. Pei Xiaohan felt like a small boat on a raging sea, in danger of being swallowed by the waves at any moment.

Her face turned deathly pale. She finally remembered that the person sitting before her was not just her gentle, mother-like master, but also a Void Refining Cultivator powerful enough to shatter the heavens with a wave of her hand!

"Master, please calm your anger! Your disciple has misspoken!"

Pei Xiaohan hurriedly knelt, but just then, the raging Spiritual Qi fluctuation vanished in an instant, replaced by a gentle stream of Spiritual Qi that lifted her back to her feet.

"Xiaohan, I know what you're thinking. I know… you look down on your master's husband. The tenet of the Jade Pool Sacred Land is purity above all else, so in your eyes, my husband is tainted and unclean for having been in the Yin Yang Sacred Land."

"But you haven't experienced love yet, so it's normal that you don't understand my devotion to my husband. True, pure love doesn't care about a person's past~"

"So-called pure love means loving someone without reason…"

Lin Qianyan stood up and stroked her disciple's hair. Even through her white veil, one could feel the madonna-like compassion in her eyes.

"Master…"

Pei Xiaohan was momentarily mesmerized. Her jealousy for the "father" she had never met grew even stronger. She couldn't understand what charm he possessed to make a woman as favored by the heavens as her master pine for him for so long!

'If only that longing and devotion were directed at me…'

"It's opening."

Lin Qianyan's voice pulled Pei Xiaohan back from her increasingly dangerous thoughts.

She seemed to have sensed something, her sharp gaze turning toward the sky.

The once-azure sky was now obscured by black clouds as thick as a coffin, and a faint seam, like a door, was slowly opening within this black Cloud Sea.

"The Kunlun Mountain Secret Realm is about to open. Xiaohan, you must be careful after you go inside."

"I understand, Master."

Pei Xiaohan gave Lin Qianyan one last, reluctant look, then unleashed her Riding the Clouds and Mist technique, following the other Fairies of the Jade Pool Sacred Land toward the Kunlun Mountain Secret Realm.

As the disciples of the Jade Pool Sacred Land flew toward the horizon, disciples from other sects also rushed over using Sword Control. Among them were Loose Cultivators and Demonic Cultivators with hidden identities—a motley crew of all sorts.

After all, the Kunlun Mountain Range was within the territory of several major Righteous Sects. Aside from the Yin Yang Sacred Land, which had been invited by the Dao Sect and could enter openly, any other Demonic Sects trespassing would be seen as a declaration of war.

But the Demonic Cultivators, who excelled at underhanded methods, would not be so easily deterred. They would infiltrate various small and medium-sized sects or disguise themselves as Loose Cultivators, swarming in like a school of fish when the Secret Realm opened.

This would add another layer of uncertainty to the already perilous journey into the Secret Realm.

With a Magical Treasure in her possession, Pei Xiaohan was among the first group of Cultivators to fly into the rift of the Secret Realm.

After an intense sensation of being pulled through space, she opened her eyes to find herself in a cave filled with the smell of gunpowder and sulfur.

Just as she was about to walk out of the cave, a Magical Treasure on her person, designed to sense danger, issued a warning. Pei Xiaohan deployed a defensive Magic almost instantly.

But even so, she was too slow.

The chilling edge of a sword, glinting like Moonlight, was pressed against Pei Xiaohan's snow-white neck. If the blade moved forward by even half an inch, it would slice through her delicate skin.

"You're from the Xuanyuan Dao Sect?"

Pei Xiaohan was first shocked by the speed and decisiveness of the person's sword strike. Then, she calmed down and recognized the sect the person belonged to by the pattern on their sleeve.

"The Xuanyuan Dao Sect and the Jade Pool Sacred Land have a non-aggression pact. Aren't you afraid your rudeness will cause an incident between our two sects, fellow Daoist?"

Hearing this, the person behind her spoke in a hoarse voice, "This Secret Realm is filled with all sorts. I can't be sure if you're a disciple of the Jade Pool Sacred Land or a disguised Demon Cultivator. Swear an oath on your Divine Soul right now, and I'll let you go."

Pei Xiaohan had no choice but to comply.

Although the process was a bit troublesome, thankfully, this disciple of the Dao Sect kept her word and actually lowered her sword, not making things any more difficult for her.

When Pei Xiaohan saw the other person's rare, long silver hair and their cold, stunningly beautiful face, a flash of surprise crossed her eyes.

Her gaze seemed to provoke the other person, who pointed her sword at her again and said warily:

"You're into women?"

Pei Xiaohan's throat tightened. She quickly raised her hands in a gesture of surrender.

"No, that's not it… I've just never seen silver hair before. I was just surprised, that's all."

Hearing this, the silver-haired girl's wariness did not fade, but she no longer had her sword aimed at her.

Pei Xiaohan breathed a sigh of relief and took the initiative to introduce herself. "Fellow Daoist, my name is Pei Xiaohan. What's yours?"

Hearing the name "Pei," the silver-haired girl's body trembled visibly. Perhaps out of a sense of goodwill and trust toward this surname, she said softly:

"Qing Yueqiu."