That's right then! I've heard of it!

Earlier, when Yu Xian had noted the similarity between Bai Zixu's and Bai Lingchen's soul qis, he and Junxiao exchanged a silent glance, then quickly averted their gazes without a word. While no one else noticed, Bai Ke, sharp-eyed as always, caught this exchange.

He glanced at the two of them, only to see that they were completely composed, eyes lowered as if unwilling to discuss anything openly. A spark of curiosity ignited in Bai Ke’s heart. He trusted these two were anything but careless or tactless, so their reactions suggested they had some ideas about the situation but, for some reason, didn’t want to or couldn’t speak up right now. Since this matter concerned Bai Zixu, Bai Ke couldn’t simply ignore it.

Was it because there were too many people here? Or because Bai Zixu himself was present, making it awkward to discuss in his presence?

After mulling it over, Bai Ke decided that once the crowd dispersed, he’d talk to Yu Xian and Junxiao privately to get to the bottom of things.

"Well, if even you don’t know, maybe it’s just my eyes acting up. Becoming brighter and clearer doesn’t seem like a bad thing; maybe staying in this spirit-rich realm has had some effect..." With this plan in mind, Bai Ke pretended he hadn’t noticed anything and changed the subject. “By the way, what exactly were those spirit entities over at the Hengtian Gate?”

He directed this question at Junxiao. “Did you bring me back?”

Junxiao nodded, his gaze downcast, concealing his deep, dark eyes. After a pause, he tightened his grip on Bai Ke’s hand and murmured, “I should have noticed sooner.”

“Not like you could control it,” Bai Ke shook his head. “We're both here, safe and sound. Given what happened, it’s a miracle we survived at all.”

“But, Xiao Bai,” Lin Jie interrupted, “how did you know they were spirit entities? To us, they were just big clouds of black fog, darting around at a speed I could barely process. Scared me half to death... thank goodness Master pulled us out in time.”

Hearing his disciple’s timid confession, Huo Junxiao shot Lin Jie a disdainful glare.

"...I mean, have you ever seen something bound together and twisted up like that? If they weren’t spirit entities, what could they be?” Bai Ke answered, adding thoughtfully, “Plus… I feel like I’ve seen something like this before.”

Junxiao, picking up on this, suddenly lifted his gaze. “Did you remember anything?”

“Not exactly, it just looked kind of familiar. What’s got you so worked up?” Bai Ke seemed amused by Junxiao’s intense interest, and teased him lightly, drawing out his answer with a slight smirk.

Watching from the side, Lin Jie was genuinely in awe of Bai Ke. Huo Junxiao’s cold and proud demeanor often gave off an imposing air, especially with his slight frown that had left a faint line on his brow, making him look even harder to approach. His customary black robe, contrasting with the elegant, celestial attire of other cultivators, made him appear solemn and forbidding. That sort of presence created a tangible pressure, especially on those with less cultivation than him.

To Lin Jie, Junxiao, Yu Xian, and the others were legendary figures straight out of a book, revered from a distance even now that he was Junxiao’s disciple. One look from Junxiao had Lin Jie’s knees knocking; if he were fixed in that piercing gaze, he’d be on the floor shouting his undying loyalty. But Bai Ke remained unaffected, even daring to tease Junxiao back with casual ease!

Junxiao, momentarily rendered speechless by Bai Ke’s teasing, looked at him with a faintly helpless expression: “...”

Bai Ke paused his playful tone and, recalling carefully, said, "Now that I think of it, I vaguely heard someone chanting something when I was barely conscious…"

“Oh? Chanting what?” Junxiao asked.

Bai Ke thought for a moment, then replied confidently, “Forgot.”

“…,”

Junxiao felt a silent stab of frustration.

But he didn’t press the matter and instead waved it off, “No matter, if you can’t recall, then let it be. As for those spirit entities from that day, if I’m not mistaken, they were likely ones trapped within the ‘Ice Soul.’ Luckily, it was only a very small fraction. If more had escaped, the entire Hengtian Sect would have been in jeopardy. The sect masters and elders wouldn’t have been able to handle them all.”

Lin Jie repeated quietly to himself, “A…small…fraction…” Internally, he lamented: The world is way too dangerous! Can I leave, please?!

“Ice Soul?” Hearing these words, Bai Ke sat up straighter. “Isn’t the Ice Soul kept at the Sanqing Pond, surrounded by a barrier to keep spirits from escaping? Does this mean that when the Hengtian Sect Master said there was ‘trouble,’ he meant they could no longer contain the Ice Soul?”

“But…” Bai Ke frowned in thought as he recalled the scene at the Ice Soul, “The people I saw there were hungry-looking, like they wanted to devour me whole, but they didn’t have the same ominous aura as those on the platform. The ones on the platform seemed… much darker, somehow.”

“Then something must have happened that made them more malicious,” Lin Jie interjected. “But come to think of it… weren’t you the only one permitted to enter Sanqing Pond around that time, Xiao Bai?”

Bai Ke: “…”

Yu Xian stroked his beard and looked up thoughtfully, “That sounds about right. That Qin kid did mutter something about it being a ‘blessing cultivated over a hundred lifetimes,’ and no one’s been granted access to Sanqing Pond these past two years. You were the first… not that it stopped that kid from rambling. I had to be patient just to hear him out. After he was done, I made sure to knock him out. Funny thing is, he forgot all about it and started up the same monologue again the next day. Couldn’t stand it.”

Bai Ke sighed, “Well, my thanks to him…”

Junxiao frowned, “So…are you saying that these recent changes in the Ice Soul might actually be connected to you?”

“I’m just an ordinary person with zero cultivation when I entered Sanqing Pond—how could I influence that thing?” Bai Ke protested his innocence.

But…

“The only thing even remotely unusual about me back then,” Bai Ke admitted, after a pause to think, “was probably the Seven Stars Pill Hengtian secretly planted in me.”

"Seven Stars Pill?" Lin Jie scratched his head in confusion, "Isn’t that something Hengtian Sect made up themselves? How could it have such a big impact on the 'Ice Soul' in Sanqing Pond? Are they just setting themselves up for disaster, or is the Sect Master the biggest undercover agent? "

Bai Ke: "…"

"It seems they only know part of the Seven Stars Pill's purpose," Junxiao replied, frowning. "As far as they understand, it’s something they can use to achieve their goals. They seem unaware of the side effects, or perhaps, without the presence of the 'Ice Soul,' these unexpected side effects wouldn’t even exist."

“Seven… Stars Pill? Why does that sound familiar? Xiao Ke, what on earth did these Hengtian people plant inside you?” Aunt Pang’s enormous petals shook as she suddenly spoke up.

Since they arrived in this secret realm, she had only heard a rough recounting from Lin Jie and the others, followed by the current incident. So, Aunt Pang hadn’t fully grasped Bai Ke’s situation yet and had kept silent until she heard "Seven Stars Pill."

"Sounds familiar?" Junxiao turned to her. "The Hengtian Sect Master claimed they got this formula from the ‘Medicine Demon.’ Could you have heard of it before?”

"The Medicine Demon?!" Aunt Pang exclaimed, her leaves trembling. "Then it makes sense! I've heard of him!"

Everyone immediately turned their gaze toward her.

Aunt Pang, now a peony plant significantly shorter than the rest, felt a bit overwhelmed by all the intense looks aimed down at her. She shuddered and said, "Stop staring at me like that! I’m not used to it. I once spent some time with the Medicine Demon, about a hundred years ago. Back then, I was injured and reverted to my original form, and he took me in, planting me outside his medicinal herb garden. I remember people coming to negotiate with him a few times, quite unpleasantly, but my awareness was fuzzy the first couple of times, so I only remember the noise. The last time, I came to as I heard an unfamiliar voice inside the house saying, ‘Just this once, never again. Water can carry a boat and overturn it too. My sect was created by him, and if he ever loses control, he could also destroy it. This Seven Stars Pill formula could very well save the lives of our disciples…’ That’s roughly what he said. I don’t remember everything, but I recall the Medicine Demon sounded agitated. He didn’t want to hand it over and was probably being forced, so in the end, he reluctantly said, ‘It’s just a pill recipe; take it and go. From now on, we owe each other nothing. Good riddance…’”

Aunt Pang thought for a moment and continued, "After they left, I remember the Medicine Demon sitting by the herb garden, tending to his plants and muttering about ‘sins.’"

Everyone, piecing this story together, guessed that those who had come for the pill recipe were from the Hengtian Sect.

“In that case, did the Medicine Demon ever mention how to counteract the Seven Stars Pill?” Junxiao asked.

“That was so long ago, let me think—” Aunt Pang obviously remembered only bits and pieces and probably hadn’t anticipated that those fragments would be relevant today. “The Medicine Demon said the Seven Stars Pill must be refined in a furnace for a full hundred years to produce the pill core, and after that, a suitable person should be found within a few days to serve as the ‘pill guide.’ I can’t recall the exact number of days, but it was best to use an additional spirit-enhancing pill alongside it, and then nourish it for eighty-one days before it can be completed.”

Junxiao listened, a hint of disappointment flashing in his eyes, as this was nearly identical to what the Hengtian Sect Master had already explained. “Is that all?”

 

Translator : DarNan