Chapter 12: Chapter 477: Entrance to the Three Great Sacred Lands, the White-Bearded Old Man

Clouds drifted continuously past their sides, and the surroundings were enveloped in silence, broken only by the occasional cry of a bird.

When Xiaobaihe woke from her slumber, this was the quiet scene she encountered: a gentle breeze brushing against her face, refreshing and calm, as if the entire world had been frozen in time.

Except...

They were flying rapidly through mid-air; how could there be a gentle breeze?

Xiaobaihe thought for a moment and reasoned that Murong Lingye must have specially opened the barrier, allowing only a slight breeze to blow through so that she could enjoy the comfortable sensation of sleeping on a grassy field...

Doing this was extremely taxing on spiritual power, which might leave them at a disadvantage in the challenges they might face shortly. However, a faint sweetness still stirred in Xiaobaihe's heart.

"You're awake?"

Murong Lingye looked down at the woman in his arms, his voice very soft, as if afraid of startling the young girl who had just woken up.

"Mm." Xiaobaihe nodded. "Where are we?"

Murong Lingye's narrow eyes gazed at the girl as he spoke softly, "We will arrive in half an hour."

Xiaobaihe looked up at him, her clear, bright eyes exceptionally moving. "Can you hold out?"

What she was asking about, naturally, was his spiritual power.

The corners of Murong Lingye's mouth curled into a faint smile, making his handsome face look as beautiful as a blooming flower. "Of course."

Receiving this affirmative answer, whether it was true or not, Xiaobaihe felt an extraordinary sense of stability in her heart.

She smiled slightly. "The road ahead will likely be fraught with difficulties and constant setbacks. Perhaps... we will become enemies of the world's cultivators. Would you be willing..."

*Would you be willing to go with me?*

She had intended to ask this, but as the words were about to leave her lips, Xiaobaihe realized how selfish she was being. Setting aside the fact that he didn't know how dangerous the road ahead truly was—he might even lose his life there—she actually held a sliver of expectation. Did she hope he would accompany her?

"I am willing."

Just as Xiaobaihe was struggling with her thoughts, Murong Lingye gave a definitive answer.

Xiaobaihe froze, looking up at him.

Murong Lingye took a deep breath. "You should understand my feelings."

After saying this, he smiled again. "It seems that even though my actions have been obvious for so long, I have never truly said them aloud. It wasn't that I disdained saying such tender words, but rather... I feared I wasn't worthy."

Hearing those last few words, Xiaobaihe's heart suddenly felt a sharp, stinging pain.

Murong Lingye looked ahead somewhat evasively and continued, "I feared that someone like me would not be worthy of you. I am a coward; I feared hearing a clear rejection from you, so I refused to speak. However..."

Hearing this, Xiaobaihe's heartbeat involuntarily quickened.

"I love a woman. I do not know her true name, but none of that matters. I love her, and her name is Xiaobaihe. When I learned she had left, and when I learned from my Imperial Brother that she was in danger, I suddenly realized something. Regardless of whether she loves me, as long as she is the woman I have chosen, I will not allow it—if Heaven will not protect her, then if I refuse, even the Earth shall not hold her!"

Every word struck deeply into Xiaobaihe's heart. She stared blankly at the high-spirited man before her. Yes, a man; he was no longer the child he had been six years ago...

To be able to say these words, one could only wonder how much courage Murong Lingye had exhausted in his lifetime. But having finally voiced the words held in his heart, he felt a sense of lightness, an unprecedented boldness filling his entire body.

He did not ask Xiaobaihe to promise him anything; he only wanted to stay by her side and ensure that no one could harm her!

However...

"Okay."

A light, airy voice drifted into Murong Lingye's ears along with the wind. He was momentarily stunned. Was he hallucinating?

Murong Lingye looked down. The coldness in his narrow eyes was gone, replaced only by surprise and a joy he dared not confirm. "I... what did you just say?"

*Pfft...*

Seeing Murong Lingye's rare, foolish expression, Xiaobaihe burst into laughter. "I didn't say anything."

Did she or did she not say it?

Murong Lingye's heart immediately raced. He suddenly felt that the girl in his arms made his entire face burn.

Looking at this man who seemed to have become shy, Xiaobaihe's heart bloomed with joy. He was clearly confused, yet he stubbornly refused to ask again, a stark contrast to his usual decisive and ruthless self.

"You... what exactly is your relationship with Bu Feichen?"

Murong Lingye could not help but ask again. This question was a hundred times more important than whether Xiaobaihe had said "okay" just now.

"Are you really that concerned?" Xiaobaihe looked at Murong Lingye with innocent eyes.

"Yes."

"Our relationship could be described as very close, but we haven't had much contact." Xiaobaihe thought for a moment before answering.

"What? Could it be that the man who abandoned you back then was him?" Murong Lingye fell into a fit of rage.

*Slap!*

Xiaobaihe tapped the back of the foolish man's hand. "What are you thinking? Of course it wasn't him."

"Oh..."

Xiaobaihe turned back to look at the dazed Murong Lingye, only to see the foolish man staring blankly at the back of his own hand. Thinking about how she had unconsciously tapped his hand just now, Xiaobaihe's face flushed slightly beneath her veil.

...

At the border between the Kingdom of Xiliang and the Xiongnu Kingdom lay a desolate desert.

This area was still a long distance from the Great Moha Desert, but because the Xiongnu Kingdom was constantly ravaged by desert storms, the entire nation was covered in a thick layer of sand. The border between Xiliang and Xiongnu was the same, with not a blade of grass in sight.

"Is it here?"

Ye Jinxi looked at Di Yi with a skeptical gaze.

Di Yi immediately jumped up and said, "My intuition is very accurate!"

"But, it seems only women use a sixth sense!" Ye Jinxi refused to miss an opportunity to strike at Di Yi.

Di Yi curled her lip and looked away. "Other sixth senses might be inaccurate, but my feeling for the entrances to the Three Great Sacred Lands is very precise."

"Is that so? Just because you've stayed in the Three Great Sacred Lands, you can feel their entrances?" Ye Jinxi asked dismissively.

"Hmm? How do you know I've stayed in the Three Great Sacred Lands!" Di Yi turned her head to look at Ye Jinxi in confusion.

Ye Jinxi curled her lips into a triumphant smile. "I know a lot of things about you!"

Without waiting for Di Yi to press further, she walked toward the so-called entrance of the Three Great Sacred Lands and circled around to inspect it. It was nothing more than a single tree!

And it was much smaller than the tree in the Great Moha Desert that had reappeared following the disappearance of the Pavilion Master's master...

At this thought, a flash of inspiration struck Ye Jinxi. She looked up at Bu Feichen in astonishment and said, "If this tree truly is the entrance to the Three Great Sacred Lands, then is the entrance to the Nine Heavens that large tree in the Moha Desert?"

As soon as Ye Jinxi spoke, Bu Feichen's eyes lit up as well. "It is very likely."

Ye Jinxi immediately laughed happily. "This is great! We've found the entrance to the Three Great Sacred Lands and the entrance to the Nine Heavens at the same time!"

Di Yi provided a timely reality check. "That's just a guess, okay? Whether it's true or not is still unknown. Besides, once you enter the Three Great Sacred Lands, getting out is no easy task."

Indeed! The Three Great Sacred Lands were for entering only. Over the years, only the Pavilion Master, the Temple Master, and the Buddha Master had entered and exited. Those three were incredibly powerful; it would likely take a long time for her to cultivate to such a level...

However...

Ye Jinxi quickly moved to Di Yi's side. "How did you get out of the Three Great Sacred Lands?"

Di Yi raised an eyebrow. "Don't you know everything about me?"

"Uh..." Ye Jinxi blinked. "Just a tiny bit!"

As she said this, Ye Jinxi felt like crying inwardly: *Why is this person exactly like Bu Feichen? Why is it so hard to trick him even a little bit!!*

"Ahem!" Di Yi cleared her throat lightly. Ye Jinxi immediately pricked up her ears, but then: "Let's first see how to get in, and then we can worry about how to get out!"

"Di Bastard—!"

A loud roar sent the birds in the tree flying.

Di Yi rubbed her ears and hurried to Bu Feichen's side. "Chenchen, can you figure out how to get in?"

Bu Feichen raised an eyebrow, took two steps forward, placed his hand on the large tree, and closed his eyes. The surrounding environment fell into a profound silence.

Ye Jinxi also became serious, her eyes fixed on Bu Feichen.

After a long while.

Bu Feichen opened his eyes, released his hand, and turned to look at Ye Jinxi and the others.

"How is it? Did you find a way in?" Ye Jinxi asked excitedly.

Bu Feichen looked at the three of them. "No."

*Uh...*

Ye Jinxi scanned the large tree from top to bottom before turning to look at Di Yi. "You don't know how to get in?"

"I don't know," Di Yi answered seriously.

Ye Jinxi rolled her eyes. "What about your sixth sense?"

Di Yi lifted her chin, turned her head away, and said proudly, "I used up all my sixth sense looking for the entrance!"

*Pfft...*

Ye Jinxi nearly coughed up blood, realizing that Di the Bastard wouldn't provide any useful information.

She drew her black sword, gripped the hilt with both hands, and swung it fiercely at the large tree!

"Ouch! Little girl, how can you be so heartless? Are you trying to chop this old man to death!"

Suddenly, an old man's voice drifted from the trunk of the tree!

Everyone was startled, retreating several steps and looking at the tree with trepidation. Could this tree actually talk?!

How was that possible?

Ye Jinxi's sword hadn't even hit the tree before it was swept aside by a gust of wind. She turned back in shock; she had truly struck gold—had she actually forced the tree to speak?

Only Bu Feichen's deep, amber eyes slowly shifted toward the dense foliage of the tree.

Upon hearing the old man's cry, the Black Sword suddenly manifested eyes, a mouth, a nose, and eyebrows. It looked at the large tree and suddenly shouted loudly, "Old man! This young master is here. Why haven't you come to pay your respects yet?"

As soon as the Black Sword spoke, the canopy of the tree began to rustle violently. Before long...

*Thud!*

A short old man dressed entirely in green silk fell clumsily from the tree...

"Ouch! Lord Sword Soul, can you please stop being so frightening? You could have just come out earlier. You made this old man watch you all from the top of the tree for so long; I nearly died trying to hold back my laughter!"

As he spoke, the short, white-bearded, white-haired old man scrambled up from the ground, rubbing his waist and grumbling with a raspy voice.