Divine Phoenix Peak, Bright Moon Cliff.
The full moon was high in the sky, the night captivating, and everything between heaven and earth was still and peaceful.
At the edge of the cliff, a handsome young man, dressed in snow-white clothing, lay lazily on the grass.
To his left and right sat two breathtakingly beautiful young women, each with her own unique charm.
Behind the trio, rows of emptied jars of Immortal Brew were stacked.
In the absolute silence, a beautiful and mesmerizing female voice began to sing, echoing through the night:
"When will the full moon appear? I raise my wine to question the sky. I do not know what era it is in the celestial palace tonight."
"I want to ride the wind and return there, but I am afraid of ruby pavilions, jade buildings. The cold is too strong high up there, dancing to celebrate clear shadows."
The singer, surprisingly, was the cool-eyed girl in the red dress.
As her song arose, the girl in the moon-white dress beside her also took the ancient zither from her back, gently humming along as she played.
The sound of the zither was ethereal and pleasing to the ear. Paired with the red-dressed girl's soft and emotionally rich singing, it was like heavenly music from the Upper Realm, making one feel completely carefree and joyful.
"Who knew that Second Junior Sister is not only a prodigy in the Sword Dao, but her singing is also so extraordinary, like listening to immortal music that clears the mind."
"And Third Junior Sister's zither skills are, as always, exceptionally masterful!"
"Excellent! Keep playing, keep dancing!"
Lin Xiao squinted, a tipsy expression on his face, as he grabbed a jug of fine wine and drained it in one go.
The strong alcohol coursed through him, and for a moment, he actually felt a bit drunk. However, he had no intention of using his True Yuan to dispel the intoxication.
That "beautiful wine immortal" on Fairy Cliff once said: "Thirty thousand years of dull sitting in the Immortal Palace cannot compare to a single night of drunkenness in the secular world!"
Why not just let loose tonight!
According to the original story's plotline, after Ye Chen's victory in the Five Branches Martial Competition, my role as a villainous minion would soon reach its end! Therefore, before achieving immortality and returning to Earth, why not use this time to be with my junior sisters with my true personality and leave them with more beautiful memories?
Thinking of this, perhaps because of the alcohol, my heart grew a little bitter. Some past events also uncontrollably fluttered into my mind.
Originally, when my junior sisters had just entered the Sect as young girls, I wasn't in a hurry to play the role of a villain. On the contrary, as someone who had been an older brother before, I was filled with affection for these three girls who had endured many hardships. Therefore, to give them a complete childhood, I often found excuses to take the three little girls down the mountain for fun and to skip the lessons of the Imparting Elder. And this song, adapted from Su Dongpo's "Prelude to Water Melody," was what I used to sing to my junior sisters back then.
However, what I hadn't expected was that even after more than a decade, these two junior sisters not only remembered every line of the song, but even the tune was perfectly accurate!
If I remember correctly, when I first hummed this song, Yurong was only seven, and Youwei was just five and a half, right? They remembered things from their childhood so clearly?
This won't do! Youwei has already decided to sever her ties with Ye Chen, but Yurong must be saved! In the original story, after Master punished me and sent me to the Cliff of Reflection, it was because of this Second Junior Sister's cold words that I fell into despair and committed suicide!
Lin Xiao's heart jolted. His expression gradually became serious, and the alcoholic daze abated somewhat.
At this point, the song ended abruptly.
"Huh? Why have you stopped singing?" Lin Xiao looked over in surprise.
He saw his Second Junior Sister, Guo Yourong, standing at the edge of the cliff, her proud and graceful figure suddenly turning to gaze at him. Under her striking sword-like eyebrows, her beautiful eyes were faintly wet and red!
Oh no. Why... why is she crying?
Lin Xiao noticed something was wrong and quickly rushed over.
Nearby, Chu Youwei had also put down her zither. Her red lips were downturned, her small face etched with sadness, and tears welled in her eyes.
Seeing this, Lin Xiao was worried, but he didn't forget his villain persona. He curled his lip, feigning annoyance, "Honestly, Junior Sisters, how old are you? Still crying like this? Aren't you afraid of becoming a laughingstock?"
"Eldest Senior Brother, Yurong is just... remembering so many things from our childhood... It's made me a little melancholic," Guo Yourong said, turning her face away, trying her best to keep her voice calm.
Chu Youwei, with teary eyes that evoked pity, looked up at the night sky. "Me too... I suddenly remembered when we were little. The three of us sisters, following Eldest Senior Brother around, playing and messing about all day with the strange new things Eldest Senior Brother brought back from the Secular World—things so novel they were unimaginable to the disciples from other branches..."
"We were so happy then!"
"Weiwei often fantasized... if there's even the slightest chance in this life to Prove the Dao to the highest level and master the Dao of Time, I would wish for time to freeze forever at that moment!"
"Indeed." Listening to her junior sister, Guo Yourong was deeply moved. With a lump in her throat, she said, "I still remember your eighth birthday, Youwei. Little Sister Yingying and I went to Master's Lotus Cave Mansion and stole a jar of fine wine to celebrate with you. That day, we had our first drink ever, and we had so much fun!"
"Hahahaha! It's hard to believe you still remember that," Chu Youwei laughed, tears in her eyes. "But the very next day, the three of us little thieves were found out by Master. Thankfully, Eldest Senior Brother took the fall for us. He claimed he was the one who deliberately tricked us, forcing us three little girls to steal it! And Master actually believed him! Hahaha!"
Guo Yourong chuckled softly. "Speaking of which, Master has always favored Eldest Senior Brother. We escaped punishment, and Eldest Senior Brother was only mildly reprimanded."
The two sisters chatted back and forth, their relationship seemingly returning to its former intimacy.
Lin Xiao listened quietly from the side, a mix of emotions welling up inside him.
At the same time, some questions that had been bothering me for years began to find answers!
So... the sisters had cherished these trivial childhood matters deep in their hearts all along! No wonder, no matter how outrageously I flirted or took advantage of them after they grew up, they never once rebuked me! Moreover, those Photo Stones I placed in the women's bathhouse—which, according to the original storyline, Chu Youwei should have discovered and removed long ago—had actually remained there until the very end! Does that mean... they knew I, their Eldest Senior Brother, was spying on them, yet they tacitly pretended not to know and even posed naturally for the 'camera'?
Thinking of this, Lin Xiao, who had diligently played the villain for over a decade and whose heart was usually as steady as an old dog's, felt a storm rage within him! I suddenly recalled the Disciple Acceptance Ceremony, how my junior sisters had stood up for me time and again during my confrontation with Ye Chen... Their actions were all to protect me, their Eldest Senior Brother, and to protect Divine Phoenix Peak, our big family, from being destroyed by that outsider, Ye Chen!
At this thought, my steadfast Dao heart began to tremble once more. Even on the day Ye Chen knelt and begged me for mercy, when the plot first deviated significantly, I hadn't been this shaken!
...
...
「Qinglan Immortal Sect, Phoenix Caw Peak, Enforcement Hall.」
Deep within the damp and gloomy dungeon...
"Lin Xiao! You bloody scumbag! You had Chu Youwei intentionally set a trap for me! I, Ye Chen, swear to repay this a thousand times over!"
"Those who deceive me will be sliced into a thousand pieces! Those who humiliate me will have their bodies destroyed and souls obliterated!"
"You, an insignificant little insect, have no idea what kind of existence you're up against!"
"Just wait for death!"
In the prison cell, a young man in black robes howled at the sky. His eyes were blood-red, and his body seethed with a murderous aura so intense it seemed he wanted to slaughter everything between heaven and earth!
"Young friend! Young friend, stop yelling! Someone's coming!"
"This person's cultivation level is at least at the peak of Nascent Soul! Half-step to Divine Transformation! It might be the Supreme Elder from the Enforcement Hall, coming to execute you!"
As an aged voice echoed from the ring...
The young man's heart jolted, and he abruptly calmed down! Trembling all over, his dark eyes vigilantly watched the cell door.
TAP. TAP. TAP. The footsteps drew closer.
The person who came into view...
Was a stunning, mature woman wearing a Fairy Crown and a crimson Daoist robe. Her figure was full and curvaceous yet gracefully slender, and her beauty was breathtaking!
He had been awestruck by this woman once before, at the Disciple Acceptance Ceremony!
She was none other than... Su Mei, the Chairman of Phoenix Eye Peak!
Su Mei glided to the cell door on her long, snow-white legs and stopped.
Looking at the young man in black, she felt a surge of inexplicable disgust. Her willow-like eyebrows arched, and a viper-like, resolute killing intent flashed in her enchanting peach-blossom eyes!
"Prince Ye, you've finally fallen into my hands."
"Tell me, how do you wish to die?"