Since the Zhu Xie Immortal Sect relocated, Zheng Nuanxiu’s cultivation had advanced by leaps and bounds. Not long ago, she had once again broken through, rising into the mid Earth Immortal Realm.
When she emerged from seclusion this time, Zheng Nuanxiu noticed that the transplanted celestial fruits within the sect had ripened, so she gathered some to send as gifts to the people of the Wuwei Tower. After all, without Ye Yu’s help, the Zhu Xie Immortal Sect might long ago have been unable to hold on.
What Zheng Nuanxiu did not expect was to see a woman clad in dragon robes here. From behind, the figure felt very familiar—and when Zheng Nuanxiu saw her face, the words simply slipped out: “Shijie.”
Li Ruowang turned her head at the sound, her gaze puzzled. After a moment, she ventured, “Sect Master’s junior sister, why have you suddenly changed your hairstyle?”
Hearing their exchange, Ye Yu’s curiosity was piqued. “Did you two know each other before? No—that can’t be. You only just ascended to the Celestial Realm, so how could you know Zheng Nuanxiu?”
Zheng Nuanxiu’s eyes clouded with confusion. Suddenly, a sharp headache struck; her body staggered twice, and she fainted on the spot.
Seeing this, everyone present wore the same bewildered expression. What did this mean? A few words of conversation and she collapses? That seemed quite out of character. One must remember: she was no ordinary woman powerless against a chicken; she was an immortal capable of moving mountains and shifting seas. And yet she simply lay down on the auspicious clouds—did she really mean it?
“Junior sister!” Li Ruowang was the first to hurry over and catch Zheng Nuanxiu. Feeling the faint undulation of her immortal power, Li Ruowang looked up in confusion. “What’s happened? Why does my junior sister look like this?”
Ye Yu spread his hands in bewilderment—he understood nothing.
A moment later, within the main hall of the Wuwei Tower, after hearing Li Ruowang’s account, Ye Yu massaged his brow. He was silent for a long while before speaking slowly: “So you’re saying you were also once an immortal of the Zhu Xie Immortal Sect, descended to the mortal world in pursuit of the Dao, and Zheng Nuanxiu was your junior sister and the sect’s leader?”
“That’s right,” Li Ruowang replied, “only I don’t understand why she suddenly changed her hairstyle, and why her face looks younger. She used to look around twenty-five or six—definitely the mature ‘royal sister’ of the sect!” Li Ruowang sighed nostalgically for those days long past. Tens of thousands of years had slipped away in the blink of an eye. The once-mighty Zhu Xie Immortal Sect now rested on her junior sister’s shoulders alone—and the entire sect had even been brought here to the Wuwei Tower. If the sect’s founder could see this from beyond the clouds, she’d surely be furious enough to resurrect on the spot.
Ye Yu pondered seriously, then tentatively asked, “Could it be possible that your junior sister was reincarnated? After all, tens of thousands of years have passed—another cycle of transmigration isn’t impossible.”
“That might be possible,” Li Ruowang said gravely, “but something feels off.” Her expression grew more solemn. Zheng Nuanxiu definitely had a problem—but where did it lie? Li Ruowang truly could not figure it out.
Just then, Feng Yingzhi—the one responsible for tending to Zheng Nuanxiu—stepped forward. Holding up a celestial–artifact bandage in one hand, she announced seriously, “This is my latest healing artifact: apply it wherever it hurts. It works wonders!”
Ban Xia waved her hands awkwardly. “Now’s not the time to advertise. Is she awake yet?”
“She’s awake! Remember, if there’s anything ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ you need, come to me anytime. If you can imagine it, I can make it!” Feng Yingzhi’s lips curled with pride. Ever since repairing the Boundary Bead, it felt as if she’d discovered an entirely new field of invention. From demonic–energy catchers to these bandage artifacts—each idea wilder than the last—but all equally applicable in countless situations. Isn’t that the very essence of innovation? Ye Yu certainly approved. Who could dislike a great inventor who always delivered something new?
Shortly thereafter, everyone entered the guest chamber, where they found Zheng Nuanxiu already awake, a circle of bandages wrapped around her head looking somewhat incongruous. Li Ruowang, prone to mild obsessive–compulsive tendencies, wanted to tear the bandages off—but she feared Zheng Nuanxiu might faint again, so she forced herself to hold back. Softly she asked, “Junior sister, how do you feel?”
“I... I don’t know. I feel so confused, as if my memories have gone haywire. I remember you’re my senior sister—but nothing else comes to mind.” Zheng Nuanxiu’s expression twisted with complexity.
Ye Yu raised an eyebrow, then asked Li Ruowang to stay behind with Zheng Nuanxiu while he led the other wives out of the chamber. Outside, Zhuo Lanqing hurried up. “Husband, do you have something to say? You brought us out so you wouldn’t say it in front of Zheng Nuanxiu, right?”
Her question spoke for all the sisters—they watched Ye Yu eagerly, awaiting his next words. But sometimes, too much expectation only leads to disappointment.
“I brought you out because there are too many of you—there’s barely room to stand in the guest chamber, and all this noise doesn’t befit the place. Better that Li Ruowang stays with her alone.” Ye Yu’s expression grew complicated as he looked at the circle of celestial consorts.
“Well, is there something wrong with having many people? Why blame the room for being too small? Zhuo Lanqing, come out and admit your fault—who told you to build such a tiny guest chamber?” Ye Yu teased.
Zhuo Lanqing stared back in confusion. “What? Getting criticized while lying down now?” Surely this was a bit unfair, was it not?
The sisters bantered among themselves, and when Li Ruowang didn’t emerge for a long while, they busied themselves with other matters. Not one stayed behind for Ye Yu—clearly they still harbored resentments over that “too many people” remark.
It goes to show: regardless of one’s status or power—even ghosts, demons, or monsters still throw little tantrums. Only his darling daughter, Ye Nian, remained steadfast at his side. Indeed, the term “little cotton jacket” is no idle nickname.
Night fell before Li Ruowang finally walked out, her face lined with exhaustion. She shared her theory: Zheng Nuanxiu was probably not a reincarnation, but had suffered catastrophic bodily damage, causing her strength to plummet to rock bottom. Even her memories were almost completely shattered. She could recall being part of the Zhu Xie Immortal Sect and that Li Ruowang was her senior sister—but only from ten years before she joined the sect. All the decades and hundreds of thousands of years since then had vanished. One must recall: when Li Ruowang left the Zhu Xie Immortal Sect to send her soul to the mortal realm for reincarnation, Zheng Nuanxiu was already the sect’s leader, standing at the brink of the Imperial Realm.
