Chapter 111: Where Love Runs Deep, Sorrows Remain Unspoken

“What does all that amount to?” Landor said with a disdainful look. “The palaces within the Infinite Palace number only eighty-one. Compared to the mansions and palaces in my family estate, they are but a drop in the ocean, utterly insignificant.”

In truth, I felt the urge to shout back: You are merely a fairy’s daughter, at most a fairy maiden, while I am a princess of a realm! Compared to my family estate, your palaces are the truly insignificant ones. But I kept these words to myself, fearing she might possess some extraordinary power that could hear my inner thoughts. If that were the case, I would be in trouble.

The three of us proceeded deeper into the palace grounds, when we encountered a slender woman in white robes, her long hair flowing bare to her feet. Throughout the walk, she kept her head bowed, not looking ahead, her steps hurried. Her hands were pallid, almost bone-like, yet she gripped a long sword tightly. The blade looked aged and worn, as if it bore a long history. Hanging from the hilt was a shattered jade butterfly—such a peculiar ornament caught my curiosity, and I intended to approach and speak with her. But just as I lifted my foot to move forward, someone seized my arm firmly.

“Don’t go over there.”

Landor glanced at the woman in white with contempt. “That kind of person is unlucky. Little junior brother, don’t mind her.”

With that, she tugged my arm, pulling me toward the palace interior.

Unlucky? I thought to myself. Could anyone on Spirit Cloud Mountain be unluckier than this little demon fish? I asked her, “She looks upset, and her face seems injured, as if she has been wronged. Sister Landor, you go on ahead. I’ll just take a quick look and come back.”

Turning to go, Landor grabbed me again, clearly unwilling to let me approach the woman.

She seemed uneasy and whispered to me, “That woman’s name is Feng Shiliu Ying. She was the disciple of Fengqiao Yexue, a former sect leader of Spirit Cloud Mountain.”

“Former sect leader?”

“Exactly,” Landor nodded. “He was the Second Senior Uncle, Fengqiao Yexue, who was ultimately consumed by the demonic path due to emotional entanglements.”

For some reason, when Landor spoke those words, I sensed an inexplicable hostility in her tone toward both Feng Shiliu Ying and Fengqiao Yexue.

“Consumed by the demonic path?”

I was taken aback and couldn’t help but exclaim sharply, drawing the attention of nearby disciples who turned to look.

Landor tugged my arm, pulling me aside. After a moment’s hesitation, she spoke quietly, “That’s just what I’ve heard. You shouldn’t take it too seriously.”

“Mm-hmm!” I nodded eagerly, sensing some earth-shattering secret behind her words and eager to learn more.

Landor lowered her voice further. “Back when her master Fengqiao Yexue was on Spirit Cloud Mountain, I hadn’t yet come to apprentice here. It’s said that Fengqiao Yexue fell in love with a mortal woman. Later, the woman fell gravely ill and bedridden. Fengqiao Yexue was powerless to save her and returned to Spirit Cloud Mountain to seek help from Third Senior Uncle. Third Senior Uncle divined that her life was at its end and refused to give him the life-prolonging pill. Soon after, the woman died.”

“Died?” I felt a pang of sorrow. “Third Senior Uncle was too stingy. Why not give them the medicine? That woman’s death must have shattered Second Senior Uncle.”

Unexpectedly, Landor’s lips curled into a cold sneer. “Fengqiao Yexue would never have allowed himself and that woman to fall so low. Later, to bring her back to life, he made a pact with beings from the Demon Realm, exchanging his own life to revive her.”

“What happened then?” I pressed eagerly. “Did she come back to life? Did she stay with Second Senior Uncle?”

“Hmph!” Landor scoffed. “That wretched woman did come back, but she never stayed with Fengqiao Yexue.”

“Why not?” I asked, puzzled.

Her expression darkened with anger. “After she was resurrected, she claimed she had never loved Fengqiao Yexue. Their relationship was merely a ploy to use him to cure her illness and prolong her life. She openly told everyone to send him back to Spirit Cloud Mountain and to stop interfering in her life.”