Spring thunder rumbled throughout the entire night. Even cultivators who were not particularly sensitive to the changing seasons understood that spring had arrived when the chilly spring rain began to fall. Indeed, the Devil Lord was about to depart! Was that not the arrival of a new spring for the Flying Swallow Archipelago?

Although he had declared he would leave after three months, no grand farewell ceremony ever took place. This left the various families uneasy. Could it be that the Devil Lord had changed his mind again? Each day, cultivators gazed toward the center of the archipelago, hoping to see a streak of light rise into the sky. Yet day after day, nothing appeared.

Only the Cheng family was an exception. The small estate where the former patriarch Cheng Dou once lived had long since lost its former liveliness. Now, only the woman whom outsiders respectfully addressed as the Moon-Inviting Fairy resided there.

Slow footsteps sounded outside the estate and finally stopped before a waterside pavilion. The pavilion's owner seemed to hear the footsteps and spoke in a soft voice, "Uncle Ji, is that you? Please come in!"

The white-haired Cheng Ji slowly pushed open the door, and the figure of a woman combing her hair before a bronze mirror came into view. Cheng Ji looked at her and gave a light cough. "You should know why I came, Little Seven. My time is nearly up. I can feel my life slipping away. The position of family head should now go to you."

At this, the woman paused briefly and replied, "Let Haichang take the position of family head."

"What? But..."

"He hasn't gone out to sea much these past years. He's been staying in and teaching the younger generation how to cultivate. As for whether he can manage the family well, that's nothing to worry about. The family has neither internal nor external enemies right now. All we need is to keep things running steadily."

Cheng Ji still felt somewhat dissatisfied. In his view, Cheng Haixin was the most suitable candidate to become the family head. Although she was young, her relationship with the Devil Lord was extremely close. If she took the position, anyone who encountered her would have to give a measure of respect. In that case...

Just as he was about to say something to persuade her, his gaze fell upon her hair, and his expression suddenly stiffened. Her long hair was arranged in a high bun, with a jade hairpin set across it.[1] As the dangling ornaments swayed gently, the bronze mirror revealed the youthful yet mature charm of a newlywed woman.

The old man was startled. "Little Seven, you..."

Cheng Haixin looked at herself in the bronze mirror from side to side. At last, she stood and turned toward the old man. "From now on, I'll remain on Moon-Inviting Island and focus on cultivation toward the Golden Core Realm. Unless the family faces an existential threat, I won't come out. Uncle Ji... I'm sorry to disappoint you."

After speaking, the woman walked past the old man and left the waterside pavilion. The old man watched her departing figure. His lips parted as if he wished to speak, yet in the end he only sighed and remained silent. Perhaps this was the best outcome. She was right: The family faced neither internal strife nor external threats, and Cheng Haichang was capable enough to manage it under normal circumstances.

Cheng Haixin could cultivate diligently. If one day she advanced to the Golden Core Realm, she would become the Cheng family's greatest support, and they would become the undisputed foremost family of the Flying Swallow Archipelago. With this vision in mind, trivial family matters were no longer so important.

Leaving behind the old man's sigh, the woman flew toward Moon-Inviting Island. Along the way, many gazes turned toward her, yet she showed no sign of noticing them. When she arrived at the shore of the lake, she flicked her sleeve. "Go!"

At once, five thick blue-and-white figures shot out from the spirit beast pouch at her waist and plunged into the lake. As soon as they entered the water, they stretched to their full length and released powerful demonic energy. They were the five Blue-Ringed Great Fang Sea Serpents that Luo Chen had subdued years ago! All of them were at the second tier, and the largest had already reached the late stage. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

The five serpents circled through the water as the woman stepped lightly onto the palace in the middle. Layers of white mist slowly parted at her arrival and revealed a path. Before long, she arrived at the grand hall, and her gaze fell upon the side hall. She released her spirit consciousness and felt a powerful aura fluctuating slowly, as if in slumber, within the side hall. With a shift of mind, the aura responded to her and emitted a low hum.

Cheng Haixin showed a satisfied expression. "Heh. Hubby left behind a third-tier puppet and the five serpents. As long as an Adept doesn't show up, I can do whatever I want here. Besides, I also control the island's formation core. Even if an ordinary Adept arrives, I can stall them for a while and escape."

Murmuring to herself, she walked into the hall. She looked toward the place where the spirit energy was most concentrated and shook her head with a trace of regret. A third-tier spirit vein was not something she could use just now. However, Luo Chen had arranged a suitable cultivation place for her before he left. Therefore, Cheng Haixin walked deeper and entered a simple cave residence. The dense spirit energy caused her pores to open as she immersed herself within it—it was a top-grade second-tier cave residence! Once she reached the ninth stage of Foundation Establishment, she could use the formation token to raise its grade to the lesser third tier. Then, she could cultivate smoothly all the way to Perfected Mastery and glimpse the Golden Core Realm.

As for the method of forming the Golden Core? Cheng Haixin flipped her wrist, and a jade scroll appeared in her hand. She sent her spirit consciousness into it, and several characters immediately appeared in her mind. Simplified Fine Dust Primordial Art—Luo Chen.

"So his true name is Luo Chen...."

The woman gripped the jade scroll and pressed her lips together. Her eyes shone brightly, as if she could see that figure far across the sea, walking calmly upon the boundless waters thousands of li away.

***

The spring rain fell without end. As it landed upon the sea, countless ripples spread across the surface.

A mass of red clouds drifted across the horizon at a leisurely but quick pace. Upon the clouds stood a man and a woman—one standing, the other seated.

Suddenly, a voice reached the man's ears. "Just a fleeting feeling, yet you were willing to give her so much. You even had me personally refine a third-tier puppet."

The man chuckled softly. "Don't make it sound so unpleasant. Whatever else, the feeling was mutual."

From within the Myriad Soul Banner behind him, Han Zhan let out a scoff. "Do you think I have no idea about love? My bloodline has already passed down several generations in the Falling Cloud Sect. Yet none of them ever followed your idea of 'mutual affection.' No proper status, no matchmaker, no formal ceremony."

Luo Chen's smile faded and his expression turned serious. "Whatever Cheng Haixin thinks, to me it was simply a fair exchange. She is borrowing my name to stabilize her family's situation and gain resources for cultivation. As for me, I simply left myself a way out."

"You're worried this trip might go wrong?" Han Zhan asked in surprise.

Luo Chen shrugged. "Who knows? If things don't go well, or if the outside world turns out to be too chaotic, I might just turn back. Moon-Inviting Island is still a quiet place. With Cheng Haixin keeping watch there for me, at least I won't end up homeless."

"Is your home truly on Moon-Inviting Island?" Han Zhan asked.

Luo Chen fell silent. People and memories from the Eastern Wilderness passed through his mind. Among them were the two figures who always waited in the mountains whenever he departed. At last, he lowered his gaze and spoke in a low voice, "Where my heart finds peace, there is my home."

Inside the Myriad Soul Banner, Han Zhan paused for a moment. He turned the words over in his mind and pondered their deeper meaning. In the end, he cast a long look at Luo Chen's back. What a selfish man!

Suddenly, the red cloud descended toward a stretch of land below. Figures moved across the ground, and streaks of light rose and fell from time to time. As the red cloud lowered, a streak of light flew up to meet it. "This is White Sand Island, the private territory of the Bai family.[2] Outsiders may not enter. Please leave at once!"

A bitter laugh came from the red cloud. "Fellow Daoist, please make an exception. I've traveled a long way and my spirit power is nearly spent. I heard there's a merchant caravan passing through White Sand Island that runs between north and south. I only ask to travel with them. I'm willing to pay a generous fare."

As he spoke, the spirit radiance around the red cloud flickered and showed signs of instability. Bai Xiang frowned when he saw this. He released a strand of spirit power, and a gust of wind swept across the cloud and steadied it. Only then did he notice the two figures standing upon it.

1. This is a traditional hairstyle for a married woman. ☜

2. Bai (白) means "white," hence the name of the island. ☜