Dao Companion Crippled, Coveters Move

Chapter 74 - 73: Xiaohan, I Finally Moved You

High above the clouds.

After listening to Qing Yueqiu's account, the illusion of Pei Yuhang smiled, relieved, as if waking from a long dream.

"So that's how it is. It seems it wasn't that you didn't belong in this world, but that this world was never meant to be yours."

"Palace Master Pei, I'm so sorry to tell you such a cruel truth. You are all just phantoms fabricated by the Illusion Realm, not living, breathing people…" Qing Yueqiu said apologetically.

Pei Yuhang shook his head, looking at the silver-haired girl before him and smiling. "That's where you're wrong. As the saying goes, 'If I can hear the Dao in the morning, I can die in the evening without regret.' Compared to being immersed in a false world, I would much rather be awake."

"Besides, I'm very glad you didn't become lost in this world.

Yueqiu, you truly are exceptional. After all, this timeline is far more beautiful than the real world you came from.

If you had held on to even a shred of attachment to this world, that feeling would have grown infinitely within your Dao Heart over the long years. Eventually, you would have been completely lost, unable to distinguish the line between illusion and reality."

As Pei Yuhang spoke, Qing Yueqiu heard a strange, droning rumble of collapse emanating from the void.

She looked up and saw that the entire sky above the Dao Sect was shattering. The blue firmament cracked with hideous fissures, like glazed tiles. The fractured pieces then disintegrated further, turning into brilliant, sand-like golden particles that dissipated into nothingness.

Now that its anchor point had achieved enlightenment, the entire Illusion Realm could no longer sustain itself.

Qing Yueqiu was finally leaving.

'But once this world vanishes, Palace Master Pei, who taught me for decades, will probably turn to smoke and scatter, won't he?'

At this thought, a touch of sadness tinged Qing Yueqiu's excitement.

Pei Yuhang seemed to see through her thoughts. The smile on his face was as gentle as ever, as if he had serenely accepted the fact that he was about to disappear.

"There's no need for you to be sad. I was never truly alive to begin with, so how could I fear death?

I know that in your heart, I never replaced the real him or made you truly accept me as your master. But to me, you are my one and only first disciple. I am proud that you've progressed so far on your Dao path, and that you weren't trapped by a mere beautiful dream that lasted a few decades."

The Illusion Realm's collapse accelerated, and the boundless horizon rapidly contracted toward the epicenter where Qing Yueqiu stood.

In the blink of an eye, only a hundred-meter radius around Qing Yueqiu and Pei Yuhang remained intact. Beyond that was a vast, pitch-black nothingness.

Pei Yuhang's figure began to turn illusory, but his gaze remained calm, as if he had peacefully accepted the fact that he was about to disappear.

As a final act, he wanted to offer his first disciple a word of warning.

"Yueqiu, your feelings for the real Pei Yuhang run too deep. This will hold you back, and may even cause you to pay a more painful price.

If one day, you can personally use your sword to sever the tangled threads of karma between you and him, you will be able to achieve the Dao of Heartlessness. I believe that then, you will surely be able to leave your name on the path of the Great Dao."

Upon hearing this, Qing Yueqiu revealed a smile he had never seen before, like a meteor streaking across the cold, silent night sky—solitary and dazzling.

"Palace Master Pei, I have never cared how far I can walk on the path of the Dao. I only want to be by Master's side.

As for making a name for myself… I just got a taste of that at the Sect's Grand Tournament. Without him there to witness it, it's truly meaningless."

Pei Yuhang froze for a moment, then let out a chuckle of sudden understanding.

"So that's how it is. I suppose I was the one being too narrow-minded…"

As he finished speaking, his figure vanished like a bubble in summer. Then, with a sharp CRACK, the entire world shattered like a glass sphere, and all fell silent.

An unknown amount of time passed before Qing Yueqiu blankly opened her crimson eyes.

The first thing she saw was a soft white light. She seemed to be in a completely white space.

But Qing Yueqiu didn't have time to think about why she was here.

Right now, her head felt heavy and groggy, as if she were waking from a long, elaborate dream with a bad hangover.

It seemed like a lot had happened, but her memories were hazy.

However, after inspecting her body with her Divine Sense, Qing Yueqiu's eyes widened in delight.

'My Dao Foundation… it's become more perfect and stable! It's as if I've rebuilt it from scratch. My Sword Dao cultivation has reached an even higher level of perfection!'

'This time, I estimate I can control at least thirty Flying Swords at once, and that's not even my limit…'

'Perhaps deploying the Thirty-Six Celestial Spirit Sword Array all by myself is no longer just a fantasy!'

HUMMM—

A crisp sword hum interrupted Qing Yueqiu's thoughts. At some point, a butterfly with a semi-transparent, crystalline body had flown in front of her.

Qing Yueqiu recognized at a glance that the butterfly was formed from exceptionally pure Sword Qi. Its purity was nearly on par with her Master's own when he was at the Peak of Divinity Transformation Stage.

The Sword Qi butterfly danced around Qing Yueqiu, then flew off in a certain direction, as if signaling for her to hurry up and follow.

Qing Yueqiu understood. The place where the butterfly finally landed was most likely where she would find the sword she was meant to claim.

This trial was finally about to end.

'I wonder if I've made Master wait too long outside. I'm so useless, staying in the Illusion Realm for decades and only getting out by a fluke.'

'But the flow of time inside and outside the Divine Sword Pavilion should be drastically different… I hope Master isn't too worried about me.'

......

"Xiaohan, now it's finally just the two of us here~"

After the recent disturbance from Bai Jingjing, much of the killing intent in Shang Miaoyan's eyes had dissipated.

Her voice settled, losing its chilling ferocity.

Because… she had suddenly thought of another method, one even more effective than a life-or-death threat.

She was certain Pei Yuhang would fall for this trick.

A smile touched Shang Miaoyan's lips as she pressed them to Pei Yuhang's ear once more.

With the friction of her lips, a warm, moist whisper slipped into Pei Yuhang's ear.

But this time, the voice was not her own intoxicatingly seductive tone. Instead, it was as fresh and gentle as a lingering rain—it was Ye Liyuan's voice!

"Ah Han, why won't you open your eyes and look at Liyuan? Liyuan… I miss you so much~"

Pei Yuhang's face, which had been as still and impassive as a stone statue, finally quivered.

The corners of Shang Miaoyan's lips curled up. Although she hated having to disguise herself as another woman to earn Pei Yuhang's affection, seeing this cold, hard stone of a man finally show signs of warming up still made her feel immensely proud.

'Besides…'

'Pretending to be Ye Liyuan is actually kind of fun~'

A strange emotion rippled through Shang Miaoyan's heart. It was a thrilling sensation she had never experienced before, like a soft brush gently sweeping across her heart.

'It feels amazing…'

"Ah Han, why are you ignoring Liyuan?"

"Ah Han, open your eyes and look at me. I'm your Dao Companion. We promised we would never leave each other on the path to eternal life…"

"Don't tell me… Ah Han, are you going to abandon me just because I can't cultivate anymore~!"

Pei Yuhang's cold, handsome face kept twitching, and his once-steady breathing became ragged, as if he were having a nightmare.

He murmured, "No, impossible… Liyuan, how could I ever abandon you?"

"You are abandoning me! You faithless bastard! Then again, a man like you can have any Fairy he wants, can't he?

A cripple like me who can't cultivate no longer has any right to accompany you on the Great Dao… so just let me go."

Ye Liyuan's voice was like a hook that finally snagged the softest part of Pei Yuhang's heart.

Pei Yuhang's eyes flew open and he cried out, "Don't go!"

But the only answer he received was Shang Miaoyan's intoxicating smile, her face flushed with a crimson blush.

"Tee-hee~ Xiaohan, so your Dao Heart isn't so unshakable after all. You can't even recognize the voice of your own Dao Companion!

You lose! I got to you~!"

With that, Shang Miaoyan could no longer contain her surging joy. She threw her arms around Pei Yuhang's neck, kissed him, and plunged downwards with him…