Yan Ran and the others raised their heads and looked up at the sky, their gaze fixed on the black clouds above the third mountain peak. From their perspective, they saw nothing there.

However, Gu Qinghe’s cultivation eyes worked differently from theirs. Clearly, in his vision, he saw a monstrous red phoenix, blazing like raging fire.

With the surge of qi aura radiating from it, the creature’s strength was at least comparable to Mid Core Formation.

"I don’t see anything. Are you sure, Senior?" Yan Ran asked. Gu Qinghe responded with a brief nod.

"Yes. Just prepare yourselves."

They nodded in understanding. Gu Qinghe summoned his flying sword and drifted forward, with Yan Ran and the others following behind.

They moved at a steady pace above the forest valley, where snow piled on top of the leaves.

From Qinghe’s sight, the snow continuously emitted Yin energy, indicating that this area was once again dominated by the Yin element.

Gu Qinghe’s attention shifted to the side when he heard an explosion followed by the clashing sound of metal. He activated his cultivation eyes and observed the area.

There, he saw a young cultivator at the Peak Foundation Establishment stage fighting against a snow-white feathered bird monster.

Wait? Isn’t that—

His vision sharpened, and he realized the young cultivator was not a stranger. Her face and posture reminded Gu Qinghe of Lin Xia’s younger sister.

The qi aura emanating from her wasn’t very strong, almost like it was unstable. Gu Qinghe narrowed his eyes, sensing something strange about the girl.

Without saying anything, Gu Qinghe shifted his flight path away from the forest and toward the open plain where Lin Xia’s sister was fighting the white-feathered bird.

Yan Ran and the others were startled, following wherever Gu Qinghe went. Lin Xia was the most shocked.

"Lin Ru?!" Lin Xia called out, her face filled with emotion.

Lin Ru, Lin Xia’s younger sister, turned to the side and saw her sister approaching. Her face lit up with joy, even as she endured the pain from her internal injuries.

The white-feathered bird attacked when Lin Ru lost focus. Lin Xia shouted for her to stay alert.

Gu Qinghe acted quickly. He raised one hand and formed a hand seal. A golden sword shot out from his bag of holding and pierced through the bird monster’s body.

The golden sword struck cleanly, killing the white-feathered bird in a single blow. Lin Ru collapsed weakly in fear, the monster’s blood splattering onto her already torn sect robes.

"Sister Lin Xia?" Lin Ru called out.

Lin Xia sped up and landed on the snow-covered ground. She reached out and pulled her sister into a tight embrace. They buried their faces into each other’s shoulders, crying from longing.

Yan Ran and the others felt moved. Gu Qinghe landed right in front of the bird monster’s corpse.

His right hand extended forward, absorbing the qi energy stored within the monster’s core. The threat was gone.

"Sister... I missed you so much," Lin Ru said while hugging her.

"I missed you too. I really did," Lin Xia replied, crying.

Gu Qinghe remained silent and turned his gaze toward them. The two women slowly let go of each other and looked at him.

Lin Xia extended her hand, introducing Gu Qinghe to her sister.

"This is Senior Gu Qinghe. He’s the one who found you. If I had gone alone, I might never have been able to find you," Lin Xia said. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

Lin Ru was startled when she heard that. She stepped forward firmly, cupped her hands, and knelt in front of Gu Qinghe.

"Junior is deeply grateful for Senior’s help. Junior Lin Ru will do her best to repay this debt," the girl said.

Gu Qinghe didn’t say anything. He simply raised his hand and shot a golden orb straight into Lin Ru’s forehead without warning.

Lin Ru gasped in shock. Her body stiffened, unable to move, her eyes wide as she stared at the sky. There was no pain, no discomfort.

Lin Xia saw what Gu Qinghe did. "What are you doing?"

"Checking her," Gu Qinghe replied briefly.

In less than five minutes, he finished examining Lin Ru’s condition. He clenched his hand, causing the golden orb inside her body to burst, yet it didn’t harm her.

Lin Ru regained consciousness. Her body felt light, and she could move again. She stood up and walked toward her sister, confused.

"Her cultivation base dropped because the Yin element here affected her meridians. Some of them are frozen," Gu Qinghe explained.

"Not only that, her internal injuries disrupted the flow of qi. As a result, her strength is unbalanced and weaker than what you’d expect from a Peak Foundation Establishment cultivator."

Lin Ru had felt all of this, but she didn’t expect that Gu Qinghe, a man she had just met, could see everything so clearly.

Watching his ability, Lin Ru concluded that the man before her was no ordinary cultivator.

"That’s correct, Senior Gu."

"It’s fine. I’ll have the Taiyin Sect figure out a way to restore her," Lin Xia said.

Lin Xia stepped closer to Lin Ru with a smile, then shifted her gaze forward. Both women looked at Gu Qinghe attentively.

"Junior apologizes for the poor first impression, Senior. But Junior is truly grateful and fortunate that Senior was willing to help me," Lin Xia said.

Gu Qinghe turned around, looking once more at the black clouds above the third mountain peak.

"I’ve fulfilled my promise. Now it’s your turn to fulfill yours," Gu Qinghe said firmly.

"Promise?" Lin Ru asked.

Lin Xia glanced at Lin Ru and gave a brief nod. A worried expression appeared in Lin Ru’s eyes when she heard about an agreement and a promise.

Her thoughts immediately drifted to the possibility of dual cultivation.

Without hesitation, Lin Ru stepped forward and cupped her hands. "Let this Junior Lin Ru take my sister’s place."

"What do you mean?" Gu Qinghe asked, turning around.

"I know my sister is going to be married soon. So I can’t let her engage in dual cultivation with you," Lin Ru explained.

"Dual cultivation?"

Gu Qinghe raised his head and looked at Lin Xia. The woman gave a small smile and tapped her forehead, then pulled Lin Ru aside to explain everything.

Yan Ran walked over to Gu Qinghe. "Since Senior is a Young Master, she probably assumed your agreement with Lin Xia was that kind of arrangement."

"Do I look like a typical Young Master to you?"

They looked toward Lin Xia and Lin Ru, who were talking some distance away.

Gradually, Lin Ru showed an awkward and embarrassed expression, glancing at Gu Qinghe several times as her pale face flushed red.

Clearly, she was extremely embarrassed about it.

Their conversation ended, and Lin Xia and Lin Ru returned to stand before Gu Qinghe.

Lin Ru raised both hands, cupping them tightly as she lowered her head.

"Junior... apologizes for her ignorance," she said softly.

I figured as much.

"Forget it. I don’t mind," Gu Qinghe said, looking back at the black clouds.

"What happened to you? Why are you injured and your meridians frozen?" he asked.

"The Yin-Yang Sect attacked me and sealed some of my meridians with their Yin meridian seals," Lin Ru said.

The Yin-Yang Sect? They’re here?

Gu Qinghe immediately turned around and looked at Lin Ru again. One hand rose, and a golden orb of light appeared at his fingertip.

"Do you mind if I look at your memories?" Gu Qinghe asked. Lin Ru shook her head.

He released the golden orb into her forehead, then began forming hand seals. Gu Qinghe closed his eyes tightly, viewing the fragments of Lin Ru’s memories.

She had solved the puzzle on the altar floor of the second peak, but that was what trapped her here.

The Yin-Yang Sect arrived and attacked Lin Ru. Gu Qinghe could clearly see who the culprit was.

Gu Qinghe’s eyes snapped open, ending the memory exploration technique. Lin Ru opened her eyes as well, witnessing a powerful golden qi aura radiating from his body.

His hand clenched into a fist, his eyes sharpening as his focus shifted upward again.

"Li... Xiaoman!"