Lu Yang frowned, replaying the previous day’s events in his mind: concluding his seclusion, solidifying his foundation, and stepping outside and encountering Yun Mengmeng and Gan Tian...

“What happened? Why do I appear to have just broken through, but without consolidating my cultivation yet?”

Lu Yang was certain his memory wasn’t faulty, but his cultivation realm couldn’t lie.

“Immortal Fairy, wake up.” He entered his mental space and nudged the Everlasting Immortal Fairy.

This was another discrepancy.

According to his memories, the Everlasting Immortal Fairy had been awake after his breakthrough to the Intermediate Divine Transfiguration Stage.

“Yawn... Why are you waking this immortal up so early? I haven’t had enough sleep. Without enough sleep, how can I defeat Lass Yun...” The Everlasting Immortal Fairy rose groggily, mumbling a long string of complaints before promptly falling back to sleep.

“Immortal Fairy, I think I’ve run into something uncanny. Everything that happened yesterday is happening again today.” Lu Yang persevered in waking the Everlasting Immortal Fairy.

“Ran into something uncanny? You must not be fully awake either. Come, sleep with this immortal.” The Everlasting Immortal Fairy pulled him into her arms, treating him as a pillow as she resumed sleeping.

Given the Everlasting Immortal Fairy’s cultivation, Lu Yang naturally had no possibility of breaking free. Seeing that he couldn’t count on her for the time being, he had no choice but to go out and investigate the matter himself.

Lu Yang opened his cave abode. The Yun Mengmeng and Gan Tian from his memory were not there.

“What’s going on? Right, after breaking through yesterday, I spent another two hours consolidating before encountering Sister Mengmeng and Third Senior Sister playing their first chess game. This means they haven’t arrived yet.”

However, it wasn’t the time to consolidate his cultivation realm now. Lu Yang extended his spiritual consciousness, locating Yun Mengmeng swinging on a maple tree at the ridge. He flew over hastily.

Yun Mengmeng was surprised to see Lu Yang. With a forceful push, she swung to the highest arc and jumped down. “Second-in-Command, you’re out of seclusion so soon?”

“Sister Mengmeng, are you planning to play Five in a Row with Third Senior Sister outside my cave abode, hoping to borrow my luck to win?”

“Ah, how did you know that? Have you mastered mind-reading?”

Lu Yang mused, Even Sister Mengmeng lacks memories of yesterday?

“It’s nothing. I guessed it.” With some tentative conjectures forming, Lu Yang bid goodbye to Yun Mengmeng and turned to leave.

Yun Mengmeng called after him. “Hey, Second-in-Command, since you’ve broken through, how about we go to the Hundred Fragrance Restaurant tonight to celebrate?”

“No, it’s fine. I have something on tonight and may not be back.”

Watching him speed off into the distance, Yun Mengmeng was perplexed. “Strange. Why is the Second-in-Command in such a hurry? It seems he hasn’t even consolidated his cultivation realm yet.”

Skipping visits to Meng Jingzhou and Man Gu, Lu Yang rushed to Li Haoran’s cave abode.

“Junior Brother Li, open the door. I need to speak with you.”

The cave abode’s door opened. Lu Yang strode in, greeted Su Yiren, and went directly to Li Haoran. “Greetings, Senior Su.”

Su Yiren was taken aback. Why didn’t Lu Yang look at all surprised to see me? Could he have detected my presence earlier with his spiritual consciousness?

That doesn’t make sense. I would have sensed it if someone’s spiritual consciousness scanned me.

“Senior Brother Lu, what do you need from me?” Li Haoran noticed Lu Yang’s urgency.

Lu Yang gripped Li Haoran’s shoulder, staring into his eyes. “Have you awakened your past-life memories?”

Li Haoran was befuddled. “Haven’t I always had my past-life memories?”

“I meant to say, how many lifetimes of memories have you recalled?”

“Still up to the fourth.”

“Nothing of the first three?”

“No. I’ve never been able to remember my first three lives.”

Lu Yang furrowed his brows. This shouldn’t be. Could this not be a time regression? Is Junior Brother Li not the source?

Suddenly, something struck Lu Yang, and he asked, “Do you plan to break through soon?”

“I plan to go into seclusion in a month to break through,” Li Haoran replied truthfully. There was nothing to hide.

Li Haoran gave Lu Yang an odd look. Is Lu Yang here to flaunt his cultivation again?

“These blueprints covering your walls—are they for an automatic wok?”

“You can even tell that?” Li Haoran was astonished, looking at Lu Yang in a new light. Only a grandmaster of artifact refinement can interpret such designs. How did Senior Brother Lu Yang discern it at a glance?

“Strange. There’s nothing wrong with my memory...” Lu Yang mumbled.

Unable to make sense of it, he decided to shake the Everlasting Immortal Fairy awake again. I have been at this for half a day; surely she has slept enough by now.

“Immortal Fairy, wake up. I think we’re caught in a time loop.”

“A time loop?” The Everlasting Immortal Fairy yawned, then noticed she was hugging Lu Yang. Startled, she kicked him off the bed.

“Why are you on this immortal’s bed?”

“Weren’t you the one who hugged me just now?” Lu Yang looked aggrieved. That kick from the Everlasting Immortal Fairy had packed quite a punch.

“Let’s set that aside for now. I’ve encountered something strange.”

Lu Yang recounted yesterday’s events and today’s in detail. At the end, he added uncertainly, “I haven’t somehow cultivated the ability of clairvoyance, have I?”

Now fully awake, the Everlasting Immortal Fairy rolled her eyes. “What are you dreaming about? I remember yesterday’s events too.

“From what you’ve described, it does sound like a time loop, with time rewinding one day. That’s something only possible with the Epoch Dao Fruit. Its incipient form isn’t that capable.

“You are unaffected due to this immortal’s protection. The Third-in-Command and the Fourth-in-Command are lacking in their cultivation, so they are completely trapped in the time loop.

“Has the Epoch Immortal revived?”

“Immortal Fairy, could you examine Junior Brother Li? Is he the cause?”

“Let me take a look.” The Everlasting Immortal Fairy extended her immortal consciousness, scanning Li Haoran inside and out, even checking for artifacts like the black ancient ring. Neither Li Haoran nor Su Yiren noticed a thing.

“Strange. If the Epoch Immortal had awakened, he would have reacted to my immortal consciousness.

“Stay near this boy tonight. I’ll observe him closely.”

“Alright.”

In the real world, Lu Yang said earnestly, “Junior Brother Li, it’s been a while since we’ve properly chatted with each other. How about we exchange cultivation insights tonight? It’s perfect timing that Senior Su is here as well.”

Li Haoran nodded hesitantly. He couldn’t help but feel that something was off about Lu Yang today.

The three of them did discuss cultivation insights in Li Haoran’s cave abode. They talked late into the night and were in high spirits, each gaining something from the exchange.

Suddenly, Lu Yang’s vision went black. He found himself back in his cave abode, again in that state of having just broken through to the Intermediate Divine Transfiguration Stage, but without consolidating his cultivation yet.

“Immortal Fairy, any discoveries?”

Steam rose from Lu Yang. Across from him, the steam coalesced into the Everlasting Immortal Fairy’s appearance.

The Everlasting Immortal Fairy crossed her arms, head tilted in puzzlement. “It is indeed time reversal, and it is not limited to our sect—it extends throughout the world.

“But it doesn’t seem to be caused by that Li boy. Could it be that he is only the Epoch Immortal’s reincarnation, and the Epoch Dao Fruit didn’t reincarnate along with him?

“Then, where has the Epoch Dao Fruit gone?”