"I've certainly seen more of the world's romance than Swordmaster Ye," the gold-painted fan opened again, revealing the bustling red dust of the prosperous land on the front, "I think Lady Lu is just a teenage girl at heart, and should be easy to coax."

"Someone like Swordmaster Ye, heartless with a heart like frost and snow, is truly impossible to deal with."

"She is single-mindedly devoted to the Dao. This matter with Emperor Yan is a years-long obsession unrelated to romance."

"If you put it that way, it would be better to send the monk over to persuade her that the four elements are all empty," the young master's eyelashes drooped slightly, "Although it's unrelated to romance, once an obsession takes root, it can't be dissuaded. If she can't break free herself, it will be impossible to resolve. Even if Swordmaster Ye goes in, there will be no other way. Only I have a glimmer of hope."

"The Dharma originates from the mind and is extinguished by the mind," said the monk, his eyes kind, "Benefactor Ye, let him go."

Having received the master's approval, Chen Weichen smiled and picked up the Shattered Kunlun sword, slicing his wrist and dripping his own blood onto it.

The precious sword connects to its master's spirit. Using blood as a guide, it can lead others into an illusory realm.

"Swordmaster Ye, don't worry," Chen Weichen said to him.

"You deliberately disturbed Lord Canlong's state of mind to lure her into an illusion, and you want me not to worry?" Ye Jiuya said indifferently.

"It's just some unspeakable little schemes, Swordmaster Ye, please don't take offense. In any case, I won't do anything detrimental to you."

As Chen Weichen spoke, he released his spirit and entered the illusion.

Since ghosts are obsessed with a fleeting prosperous era, the illusions also reflect the most nostalgic and profound memories of those who enter.

However, the young lady's illusion was not the bustling prosperity, nor the tranquil peace.

There were no picturesque scenes, nor vast lands and rivers.

It was fire, endless and unceasing, with collapsing houses.

The screams and cries of pain had gradually faded, leaving only the howling sound of the wind fanning the flames.

The girl, still in her early teens, curled up in the room, stubbornly and unwillingly biting her lip, her eyes filled with despair and hatred.

Half of her face was burned, exposing the wound. She struggled to crawl out of the window. Unexpectedly, a beam caught fire, burning through the mortise and tenon connecting to the wall. The heavy beam crashed down in a shower of sparks, blocking the way to the window.

Another roof beam loosened, about to crush her.

She had nowhere to escape, desperately closing her eyes, trembling.

But then a sword energy split the burning beam, forcibly leaving her a small space to survive.

The girl looked up and saw a beautiful hand reaching out to her.

A spark of hope ignited in her eyes at this turn of events. She grabbed the hand and was pulled out of the sea of flames.

In the midst of her panic, she saw a handsome man in black clothes with dark gold patterns on his sleeves.

The man put her down under a large banyan tree, not saying a word, and turned to leave.

The man was like no one in the mortal world, as distant as the moon.

The girl stumbled after him, trying to grab the hem of his clothes, but couldn't reach no matter what.

"Who are you? Why did you save me?" She endured the pain, jogging with difficulty to keep up while asking.

The man did not answer her.

The girl didn't care. Like a drowning person grasping a life raft, she followed this man out of the burning village. When he climbed mountains, she climbed mountains. When he crossed rivers, she crossed rivers.

She was able to see that this man had a cold expression. No matter where he looked, his gaze held a cold and aloof stillness, as lofty as the moon on the horizon.

She was afraid to meet this man's eyes, because in them, she was like an ant or a speck of dust. In short, no different from a blade of grass or a stone by the roadside.

Who knows how long they walked. When they finally stopped to rest, she sat down against a tree, rubbing her bruised ankles, not daring to just take off her socks and shoes, afraid that the blisters rubbed by walking would turn into blood and stick to the fabric, impossible to peel off.

"You're a cultivator, right? My family also has cultivators, I can tell." She spoke to the man, even though she was always ignored.

Her voice half stubborn and half pleading, she said, "Immortal lord, can you take me to cultivate?"

The man's eyes, which had been calm and unperturbed, finally turned to her.

"Why cultivate?"

"To seek immortality, gain magical powers, and avenge the extermination of my Lu family!" The girl enunciated each word, resounding and firm.

"Your obsession is too heavy," the man said, his voice as indifferent as his demeanor. "You are not meant for the Dao."

The girl gritted her teeth and asked, "Then why did you save me -- if you won't guide me, why save me?"

"I saved you because I saved you."

The phrase "I saved you because I saved you" was said lightly, leaving the girl at a loss for words. She limped to the moonlit stream, took off her embroidered shoes, soaked her feet in the water, and carefully began to remove the bloodstained silk stockings.

She hissed in pain, while carefully glancing to the side under the tree, lest the man leave and abandon her in the wilderness with no way to catch up.

That man leaned against the tree with his eyes closed, illuminated by the moonlight. If not for the indifference surrounding him, he would look like a painting.

She stole glances at him. Unexpectedly, when she turned her head back, someone was sitting beside her. She was so startled that she almost cried out.

It was a young master in brocade clothing, dressed in a worldly style. He placed his gold-adorned fan on the dark green grass by the autumn stream, and grasped her slender, fair ankle that was marred by bruises and burns. He peeled off the white silk, bloodstained stockings with gentle movements, causing her much less pain than when she did it herself.

"You..." she asked hesitantly.

The young master's eyebrows were tinged with a hint of a smile, "Come with me?"

She warily pulled away from his grasp, "Who are you?"

"A passerby," he replied. "Come home with me, be my little sister, and live a wealthy and peaceful life—doesn't that sound good?"

The girl bit her lower lip and shook her head, "I want to cultivate."

"Cultivation is arduous and bitter."

"Then I won't go back with you either!" The girl had a stubborn temperament, "He saved me, so I'll follow him. He's formidable, I want to learn from him, I want revenge."

"What's so good about following him," the young master's voice carried a faint sigh, "He is the most heartless person in the world."

"He saved me," the girl repeated.

"Although he saved you, he ignores you." The young master tidied the messy hair on the girl's forehead, "To him, everything looks like ants and insects, fleeting clouds and dust -- he just happened to lift his foot and save an ant on the road, but does he have to care about which nest the ant will return to after being saved?"

"I have no home anymore," the girl said. "He doesn't care if ants live or die, but he can't stop ants from following him - especially since he looks scary but is actually kind-hearted. Otherwise, he would have left long ago and abandoned me here!"

"Those cultivators love to talk about fate and fortune," the young man explained, his words like a bucket of cold water poured over her. "He was momentarily moved to rescue you, because it wasn't your fate to die. Your life is now tied to him. If he abandoned you and let you be devoured by vicious dogs and wolves in these mountains, he would incur karmic debt - that's why he allowed you to follow along."

He laughed, "But at his level of cultivation, he no longer fears the minor karmic consequences from a human life. Perhaps he's just too lazy to deal with you."

"I don't believe it," the girl said stubbornly. "If he ignores me, I'll pay attention to him. If he sees me as an ant, I'll train until I'm as powerful as him - I don't believe he'll still look at me that way then."

The girl looked at her reflection in the water, half her face completely ruined, and said bitterly, "I'm not some pampered daughter from a wealthy family. I just know a few characters and can embroider flowers. Without my parents, who would want me besides him? Even if sold to a brothel - I'm afraid I would scare the customers away!"

"Why not come with me?"

"My family does business and I need to be discerning. Although he's not affectionate, he has no ill intentions and is too lazy to harm me." The girl was sharp-tongued. "You have a nice smile but who knows what schemes you're hiding."

Chen Weichen was caught off guard, his intentions exposed, and was at a loss for how to deal with her.

He suddenly asked, "You're very happy?"

"Of course I'm happy - I was originally trapped in that house, waiting to be burned alive. But I was rescued by a passing immortal. Not only did I survive, I have hopes of cultivating immortality, uncovering the truth and avenging my family. Why wouldn't I be happy?"

"What if he never teaches you cultivation?"

"Then I'll follow him. He's bound to go to places related to cultivation. I'll remember his kindness in my heart and find another path. When I'm powerful enough, I'll naturally be able to repay his grace, find my brother, and avenge my family."

"Your brother?" Chen Weichen was quite surprised.

"He was taken away by an immortal when we were young. Who knows where he went. As long as I can cultivate immortality and he's not dead, we'll reunite someday."

"Lady Lu, your plan is thorough and meticulous - you are truly very clever." The young man fanned himself with that useless fan in the autumn night.

The girl was startled. "You know my surname is Lu?"

"Of course I know," the mysterious young man by the creek under the moonlight said. "I also know that man's surname is Chen, and he is an Emperor in the Immortal Dao."

"Are you an immortal too?"

"No."

"Then who are you?"

"I am someone outside the dream."

"Outside the dream?"

"Lady Lu, you had a dream, dreaming of your happiest and most cherished time. For a while, you couldn't wake up. We outsiders had no choice but to send me into your dream to bring you back."

"I don't believe it," the girl said. "The best thing in my life can't possibly be this arduous journey through the wilderness, can it? That man doesn't even give me a kind look. Why wouldn't I dream of when my parents and brother were still here?"

"Perhaps there is something you are unwilling to recall, or your obsession here is too deep - otherwise, why would you dare speak to him that way? Why would you dare follow him? That man is very unlikeable. Even those in the Immortal Dao wouldn't dare treat him or talk to him this way."

"I want to cultivate immortality, I want revenge. What's wrong with that?"

"If you're determined to cultivate, why didn't you enter Qingjing Temple when passing by during your trek over mountains and valleys?"

"That place is full of Daoist nuns and monks."

"If you're in a hurry for revenge, of course you wouldn't be picky about methods. Who cares about Immortals, Buddhas, Daoists or Demons? In the end, you just want to follow him. You're afraid of losing him. Why are you so worried - what happened to him that made you so obsessed?" The young man looked at her.

"He..." The girl opened her mouth, her eyes filled with confusion.