Bai Ke shook his head with a serious expression: "You're not."

Bai Ke saw Bai Zixu rubbing his knees and palms while crying out, "Ouch," and immediately forgot his initial surprise. Unable to help himself, he wanted to step forward to support him. However, just as he moved, Junxiao extended an arm to stop him.

"What is it?" Bai Ke was momentarily stunned by the block but quickly understood Junxiao's concern.

By all rights, Bai Zixu should be safely staying in Junxiao's secret realm with Aunt Pang and the others. Although he constantly fancied himself possessing exceptional potential and believed his failure to ascend was a cosmic oversight, everyone knew he had no foundation in cultivation. The only unusual thing about him was his somewhat peculiar spiritual energy.

Still, no matter how peculiar, Aunt Pang, Zongzi, and Iron Fan should have no problem keeping an eye on him. Even if he did suddenly act out and try to escape, they would have stopped him.

Moreover, since moving into the secret realm, Bai Zixu had spent most of his time daydreaming, with almost no episodes of erratic behavior. Unless something had influenced him, it made no sense for him to suddenly act out.

So, Bai Zixu's sudden appearance in the dense forest was suspicious in every way. It felt off no matter how you looked at it or thought about it.

It was probably another trick from the Hengtian Sect.

But then again... Bai Ke looked at Bai Zixu in front of him and couldn't help but feel confused. If Hengtian Sect was up to something, their target should logically be the disciples undergoing trials in this forest. Why create a Bai Zixu lookalike to target them instead? Hengtian Sect had no way of knowing about their plans, and they certainly didn't know Bai Zixu well enough to conjure an identical double out of nowhere.

As Bai Ke hesitated, Junxiao, perhaps having figured out the same point or sensing Bai Ke's thoughts, withdrew his blocking arm after a moment of hesitation. Before Bai Ke could move, Junxiao stepped forward and helped Bai Zixu up.

"Thanks! Ouch, my poor back!" Bai Zixu groaned as he leaned on Junxiao, rubbing his waist. He then complained, "Why are you so rough when pulling someone up? I'm not made of iron, you know. Do you really need that much strength?"

Among everyone present, Bai Zixu was probably the only one besides Yu Xian who dared speak to Junxiao that way.

Even Bai Ke couldn't help twitching at the corner of his mouth as he listened.

Fortunately, Junxiao didn’t seem to mind his tone at all. In fact, over their days together, Junxiao had shown a mix of respectful distance and reluctant closeness toward Bai Zixu. On one hand, Bai Zixu was Bai Ke's father in this lifetime. On the other hand, Bai Zixu likely carried the missing fragment of Bai Lingchen’s soul within him.

As a result, no matter how outrageous Bai Zixu's words were, Junxiao always endured them without showing a hint of displeasure.

"Dad, you still haven't said how you got here." Seeing Junxiao lower his guard, Bai Ke quickly stepped forward to check if Bai Zixu had been injured when pulled up.

As usual, Bai Zixu's answer was unreliable: "I don’t know!" He spread both hands, palms up, and thrust them toward Junxiao and Yu Xian without the slightest sense of propriety. "My hands are scraped. Can you fix them?"

The Xuanwei and Changling disciples nearby stared in bewilderment.

Junxiao and Yu Xian, however, didn’t hesitate. Each grabbed one of Bai Zixu’s hands, pinched his middle finger, and lightly traced over the scraped palms. In an instant, the skin that had been painful and bleeding healed completely, leaving no trace of injury.

"Other than your hands, do you have any other injuries?" Bai Ke asked, pulling Bai Zixu aside.

"Nope." Bai Zixu shook his head.

Bai Ke glanced behind him and, not seeing anyone else, asked, "Where are Aunt Pang and the others?"

"Oh—" Bai Zixu drew out the syllable, rolling his eyes as if recalling something. After a moment, he said, "When I left, they were chasing after me, but after a couple of turns, they disappeared."

Bai Ke: "…Since when did you have this kind of ability?"

"What's with that tone, young man? Show some respect!" Bai Zixu lightly smacked Bai Ke on the head and said indignantly, "I’m not making this up. Anyway, when I stepped into the forest, they didn’t follow, and then I lost sight of them."

Bai Ke: "…" His dad seemed way too pleased with himself for having ditched his babysitters.

"It’s not easy to get from the secret realm to this place. How did you manage to step in here?" Yu Xian scratched his jaw, looking puzzled.

Actually, Junxiao also wanted to ask, but every time he spoke to Bai Zixu, he hesitated because he truly didn't know how to address him. If he followed Bai Ke's way of calling, Bai Zixu would become his elder—how could a thousand-year-old Chinese tortoise spirit refer to a man who was several decades old as an elder? It would make even Bai Ke uncomfortable, not to mention Junxiao. He wasn't sure whether addressing him that way would shorten his lifespan or cause the one being addressed to age prematurely. On the other hand, if Junxiao just spoke without calling him anything, it might seem disrespectful, especially since Bai Zixu likely carried Bai Lingchen’s lost soul within him.

But Yu Xian had no such reservations. Whether Bai Zixu or Bai Lingchen, to him they were both juniors, so he had no scruple about how to address them.

"Actually, I'm a bit dizzy too," Bai Zixu said as he looked around, his gaze scanning the area. "What's going on with this forest? I just heard someone calling me earlier, and they sounded really urgent, kind of like your voice, Xiao Ke. I got worried, so I hurried toward the voice. In the end, I accidentally wandered out of your... secret realm. I can’t really remember what happened on the way, but I just felt like sleeping and my limbs didn’t feel like my own. It was like someone was pulling me along with sticks and ropes. Tsk—now that I think about it, I’m still a bit scared. But at the time, I wasn’t afraid. I was just focused on catching up to that voice. At first, I could hear your Aunt Pang and the others calling me, but they couldn’t keep up. I think I got further and further ahead of them. When I came to my senses, I was standing outside this forest, and I couldn’t see anyone else. So, I just came in."

As he spoke, he glanced sideways at Junxiao, rubbing his elbow. "As soon as I stepped into the forest, it felt like someone grabbed my collar and threw me here."

After hearing his explanation, Bai Ke wanted to make a few sarcastic remarks, but couldn’t help but frown because there were too many strange things about this—

Who was calling Bai Zixu? Why did it sound like Bai Ke's voice?

Also, from Bai Zixu’s description, it seemed he didn’t enter by choice but was likely manipulated, crossing multiple barriers to reach here. The person controlling him probably had quite a bit of power, even more than many others, because not even Aunt Pang, Zongzi, and the others could catch up. In fact, they had been completely left behind, causing them to lose track of Bai Zixu.

But who could it be?

Who could be considered a powerful figure, someone who would know Bai Zixu was in the secret realm, know Bai Ke and the others were in this forest, and bring Bai Zixu here... Not to mention any specific motives, whether good or evil, it was difficult to even guess who could have met all these conditions.

Though it was a problem, it wasn't the most pressing one at the moment.

So, Bai Ke and the others decided to put their suspicions aside for now and continued on their way with Bai Zixu.

However, not long after, the same bitter fragrance that had filled the air before seemed to reappear, faint but noticeable.

After their previous experience with an illusion, Bai Ke immediately tensed up the moment he smelled it. He tugged at Junxiao's sleeve and looked up. "That smell is here again."

"Is it the bitter fragrance you mentioned earlier?" Junxiao tightened his hold on Bai Ke as he asked. He frowned and sniffed, then slowly shook his head. "I can't smell it."

Yu Xian, who was walking alongside them with Lin Jie and Meng Xi, also sniffed the air. "I can't smell it either. Try to figure out which direction it's coming from. We should be extra cautious and avoid it."

Bai Ke nodded, then sniffed the air carefully again, trying to pinpoint the source of the scent.

But the fragrance was too faint, and it appeared intermittently, making it very difficult to track.

Bai Ke frowned as the images from the earlier illusion flashed through his mind, making him feel anxious and uneasy. He grew even more eager to find the source of the smell.

Perhaps the heavens finally heard his thoughts and decided to grant his wish, because just as his impatience grew, the bitter fragrance suddenly became stronger.

Once the smell intensified, it became much easier to locate its source. Bai Ke turned his head, trying to gauge the direction, and found that the fragrance was strongest when he faced to the left.

But... on his left was none other than Bai Zixu, who had wandered into the forest earlier.

In that instant, Bai Ke's heart skipped a beat, then dropped heavily, as though his entire chest had been struck.

He went pale and remained silent for a moment. Then, with some awareness, he leaned in closer to Bai Zixu, and indeed, the bitter fragrance grew stronger.

In that moment, Bai Ke wasn’t sure how to address this with Junxiao and Yu Xian. But given how well Junxiao knew him, he didn’t need to say anything.

As expected, when Bai Ke stiffened, his face pale, Junxiao glanced at him curiously and then called to Yu Xian. He stopped walking.

"Hm? Why did we stop?" Bai Zixu still had a confused expression, looking completely unchanged from usual.

But Bai Ke, who had spent so many years with him, noticed something off. Just as everyone halted, Bai Zixu instinctively pulled his hand out of Bai Ke's grasp.

If this was truly Bai Zixu, he would have been too busy clinging to Bai Ke to free himself before Bai Ke released him.

Seeing his expression and the direction of his gaze, Junxiao and Yu Xian seemed to immediately understand, and they both spoke up, asking Bai Zixu, "Who exactly are you?"

"Me?" Bai Zixu pointed to his own nose, seemingly confused. "I'm Xiao Ke's father, who else could I be? What are you two talking about?"

Bai Ke, however, shook his head with a serious expression. "You're not."

 

Translator : DarNan