Three days later, the Mortal Realm, in the north.
There was a tea shop by the side of a major street. Its storefront wasn’t big, a small operation, but what was good about it was the scenery. There were mountains and waters, people and the city. It had it all, but not much; not much, but just right. If one was to have a chance meeting here in this landscape, it would definitely become a beautiful memory.
The tea master inside the shop was extremely idle. When there weren’t any customers, he’d bring a stool out to sit by the entrance to watch the mountains and the waters, the people and the city, quite jolly as he looked on. Today, he saw a white-clad cultivator who had come down the road from a distance. The cultivator was travel-worn, as if he had walked for a long time.
When the man came close, he brushed past the small shop at first, but suddenly, he halted. Then, very slowly, he backed up. Lifting the tip of his bamboo hat, he looked up, glanced at the shop sign, and smiled. “‘Little Shop of Chance Encounters,’ what an interesting name.”
While this man appeared somewhat tired, his expression was a cheerful one, so much so that the one watching him couldn’t help but lift the corners of his lips too. The man then asked, “Excuse me, is Mount Yujun nearby?”
The tea master pointed in a direction for him. “It is indeed around here.”
The man let out a sigh, managing not to let his entire soul out while he was at it. He thought to himself, I’ve finally made it.
This was indeed Xie Lian.
When he left the Heavenly Capital that day, he had originally set the desired landing location in the Mortal Realm to be somewhere nearby Mount Yujun. Yet who knew when he left in such a dashing manner, and jumped down dashingly, that his sleeve would be caught by a dashing cloud. Yes, it was caught by a cloud. He didn’t know how his sleeve got caught, but either way, he tumbled across the million-meter-high sky, and by the time he tumbled down, he no longer knew where he was. After walking on foot for three days, he finally made it to the first intended landing point, and he sighed deeply with emotion.
Xie Lian entered the shop and picked a table next to the window, ordering tea and snacks. After he finally settled, there was suddenly the sound of weeping and gongs being played outside.
He gazed toward the main street and saw a group of men and women, both young and old, escorting a bright-red marriage sedan as it passed by.
The air surrounding this procession was downright odd. At first glance, it seemed like a marriage procession, but upon a closer look, there was solemnity, grief, fury, and terror on those faces. The only emotion missing was joy. It didn’t look like they were festive at all, yet still they all wore red with flowers and made an ostentatious show. Such a scene truly was exceedingly peculiar. The tea master raised the copper teapot in his hand high and tipped it to pour tea. He also saw this scene play out, but he only shook his head before moving on.
Xie Lian watched as the bizarre procession disappeared into the distance, and he grew deep in thought for a moment. Just as he was about to take out the scroll Ling Wen had given him to read it over once more, he suddenly sensed something dazzling flit by.
When he looked up, a silver butterfly flew past his eyes.
That silver butterfly was glittering and translucent, and as it fluttered through the air, it left a sparkling bright trail in its wake. Xie Lian reached out toward it in spite of himself. This silver butterfly was incredibly intelligent; instead of being alarmed by the movement, it stopped on the tip of his finger. Its wings shimmered, beautiful and serene, and beneath the sunlight, it felt like the illusion of a dream that would shatter with a single touch. A moment later, it flew away.
Xie Lian waved at it as a farewell, and when he turned his head back around, there were two more people sitting at his table.
There were four sides to this table, and those two each took a side, one left, one right. They were both young men of eighteen or nineteen years of age. The one on the left side was taller, with deep brows and handsome features, and his eyes carried a sort of unbridled wildness. The one on the right was extremely fair, elegant, and poised. His expression was a bit overly distant and cold, making him look as if he was extremely displeased. Actually, neither of them looked pleasant.
Xie Lian blinked. “You two are?”
The one on the left replied, “Nan Feng.”
The one on the right said, “Fu Yao.”
I wasn’t asking for your names… Xie Lian thought.
Just then, Ling Wen suddenly transmitted a message. “Your Highness, there are two junior martial officials from the Middle Court who have volunteered to go assist you. They’ve already descended to find you and should be there by now.”
This Middle Court was naturally the opposite of the Upper Court. The heavenly officials of the Heavenly Realm could be crassly divided into two groups: those who had ascended and those who hadn’t. The Upper Court consisted of heavenly officials who ascended on their own abilities. There were only about a hundred of them in the entire Heavenly Realm; extremely eminent. As for the ones in the Middle Court, they were brought up as “appointed generals.” Strictly speaking, they should be addressed as “Peer Heavenly Officials,” but when everyone addressed each other, they’d often take out “Peer” in the name.