Seven or eight minutes later, the fight ended.

Gu Zhiqi rapidly descended from midair, finally landing with a sword poised above the grassy lake shore.

Immediately after, a figure slowly emerged, half-reclining on the ground, with an elbow propped on the grass, slightly tilting his head to look at Gu Zhiqi.

And the sword in Gu Zhiqi’s hand was pointed directly at the person’s neck.

Looking at the person lying on the grass, Gu Zhiqi furrowed her brows.

The person on the ground was not Gu Tianyin, whom she had just sketched, but a man... specifically, a male spirit.

Faced with Gu Zhiqi’s sword at his throat, the man looked somewhat frightened, his voice trembled as he looked at Gu Zhiqi and asked, "Who, who are you?"

Gu Zhiqi didn’t answer him, instead, she asked, "Who are you?"

"Chang Qing!"

Just as Gu Zhiqi finished her question, a cool and soft voice sounded in her ear.

Upon hearing this voice, the spirit under Gu Zhiqi’s sword stiffened slightly, then suddenly turned his head to look at the person who spoke.

Since Ling Zhiyu’s sudden intervention, Gu Zhiqi and Tang Yichen both looked towards Ling Zhiyu.

Chang Qing?

The Chang Qing that Yang Siran mentioned?

Unexpectedly, the name they had just heard not long ago was now quickly linked to a spirit.

"Chang Qing... Is, is it really you?" Ling Zhiyu approached Xu Changqing with reddened eyes, taking heavy steps one at a time.

However, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t speed up her pace.

Xu Changqing just looked at Ling Zhiyu steadily, his eyes filled with affection, but more so with confusion.

Gu Zhiqi glanced at Xu Changqing, then at Ling Zhiyu, finally sheathed her sword, and silently moved aside.

It seemed this was some unresolved matter between a human and a ghost, so she chose not to disturb them.

"Is it really you?" Ling Zhiyu finally stood in front of Xu Changqing, her eyes red as she looked at him steadily, tears already welling up.

Xu Changqing’s eyes remained clouded with confusion, as he gazed back at Ling Zhiyu, "Do you... know me?"

As soon as Xu Changqing spoke, the tears in Ling Zhiyu’s eyes began to fall instantly, "You don’t recognize me?"

"Don’t you recognize me anymore? I am Zhiyu, Ling Zhiyu." 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

Looking at the person weeping, Xu Changqing felt inexplicably pained.

He gently raised his hand, wanting to wipe away her tears, only to find he couldn’t even touch her.

Seeing this, Xu Changqing paused in surprise.

Oh right, it seemed he was already dead.

Clearly, Ling Zhiyu also noticed that Xu Changqing couldn’t touch her, and her tears flowed even more fiercely.

Seeing this, Xu Changqing panicked immediately, clumsily trying to wipe away her tears, "Don’t cry."

But he couldn’t reach her at all.

Witnessing this, Xu Changqing grew even more flustered.

Standing aside, Gu Zhiqi clicked her tongue silently, casting a hand spell into Xu Changqing’s body.

Then, Xu Changqing realized he could touch Ling Zhiyu.

Gu Zhiqi glanced at the pair embracing each other, then stepped to the side and walked away.

Tang Yichen saw this, and immediately stepped forward to follow, "Xiao Qi, where are you going? I’ll go with you."

Gu Zhiqi didn’t reply, instead she walked straight to the lakeside, standing at the lake’s edge, gazing distantly at the water.

Tang Yichen happily trotted over, but as he got close to the lake, Gu Zhiqi stopped him with her sword, "Don’t get too close."

"Huh? Why?" Tang Yichen looked puzzled.

Gu Zhiqi: "This lake is filled with heavy malicious aura, getting too close will allow it to invade you."

Tang Yichen: ?

Heavy malicious aura? Why didn’t he feel anything?

Thinking this, he swept a glance across the lake, unable to discern anything.