Yun Lintian’s divine sense exploded outward, scanning the ruins. His brows furrowed deeper with each discovery.
"This... isn’t the Ruins of Forgotten Time."
The geography had changed beyond recognition.
On the eastern side, where the lush Garden of Lost Souls once stood—now a barren wasteland of cracked earth.
The Mirror Lake that reflected countless realms—reduced to a dry basin.
The bottomless Abyssal Canyon—filled in, leaving only small hills.
Such transformations didn’t happen in mere centuries. This spoke of millennia passing—of continents shifting, climates changing, entire ecosystems vanishing.
"Linlin... Qingqing... Long Qingxuan..."
Their names burned in his chest. Had they survived? Were they searching for him?
Without hesitation, Yun Lintian summoned the Gate of Beyond Heaven—
The spatial artifact that had always obeyed him remained dormant. He tried again, pouring more power—
A fracture appeared in reality... then sealed instantly, as if some greater force denied passage.
Yun Lintian’s eyes narrowed. This wasn’t normal suppression—this felt like deliberate interference.
Closing his eyes, he reached for Qingqing through their wind spirit connection. The Storm element within his Divine Core pulsed, sending tendrils of awareness northward.
A faint flicker. Weak. Distant. But alive.
Yun Lintian’s body blurred into motion, crossing mountains in single strides. The land rushed beneath him in a blur—
What should have been a short journey took hours. The very fabric of space seemed thicker here, resisting his movements.
When he finally reached the signal’s origin, his heart sank.
A crumbling temple stood amidst the hills, its once-golden pillars blackened by time. At its entrance slumped a familiar figure—
But not the vibrant wind spirit he remembered.
Her translucent form flickered like a dying candle. The ribbons of energy that once danced around her now hung limp, her eyes dull with exhaustion.
She stirred at his voice, her gaze focusing slowly. When recognition dawned, her lips trembled.
Her whisper was barely audible. Yun Lintian knelt, gently gathering her into his arms. The Storm element within him surged instinctively, feeding her depleted energy.
"Hold on. I’m here now."
Qingqing’s hand clutched his sleeve weakly. "Too late... He took them... All of them..."
Ice flooded Yun Lintian’s veins. "Who? Took who?"
The wind spirit’s breath hitched. "The Abyssal Ghost Knight... They came after... after you vanished..."
"The Abysal Ghost Knight?" Yun Lintian’s eyes turned cold. Who exactly was this person?
Yun Lintian’s arms tightened around Qingqing’s fragile form. His voice came out harsher than intended.
Qingqing’s translucent fingers clutched his robe weakly. "Five... thousand years..."
The number hit Yun Lintian like a physical blow. Five millennia. The Temporal Palace’s collapse, his trial in the darkness—what felt like months to him had been ages for the outside world.
"The Abyssal Ghost Knight," Yun Lintian pressed, forcing calm into his tone. "Who is he? How did he take them?"
Qingqing shuddered, her form flickering. "He came... three centuries after you vanished. Wreathed in grey flames... riding a skeletal dragon..." Her voice grew fainter. "Said he was collecting... ’the lost pieces’..."
Yun Lintian’s jaw clenched. Pieces? What pieces?
"How did you escape?"
A ghost of Qingqing’s old mischievous smile flickered across her face. "Stupid knight... forgot wind can slip through fingers..." She coughed, her essence dimming further. "I hid... in the storm currents... waited..."
Her hand pressed against his chest where the Storm element pulsed. "For you... waking up..."
The simple trust in her words cut deeper than any blade. Five thousand years. Five thousand years of hiding, of waiting, of surviving alone—
Yun Lintian’s throat tightened. The Qingqing who once danced on breezes and teased him mercilessly now lay broken in his arms.
"Rest," he murmured, pouring more energy into her. "I’ll handle the rest."
Yun Lintian cradled Qingqing carefully as he stepped through space itself. The ruins of the Temporal Palace vanished behind them, replaced by endless ocean waves crashing against what had become an isolated island.
Without summoning any artifact, Yun Lintian took a single step—
The world blurred. Space folded.
They appeared directly above Celestial City, its towering spires gleaming under the sun. The bustling streets below continued unaware of the primordial being now observing them.
Qingqing stirred weakly in his arms. "Big Brother Yun... your power..."
Yun Lintian didn’t respond. His eyes were fixed on the Celestial Pavilion’s grand entrance. Another step—
They materialized inside the pavilion’s main hall.
Six guards in silver armor immediately surrounded them, spears leveled. The lead guard’s eyes narrowed. "Who dares invade the Celestial Pavilion?"
Yun Lintian ignored the weapons pressing against him. "I’m here to see Lan Huiqian."
The guards exchanged confused glances. One snorted. "Elder Lan hasn’t appeared in public for three thousand years. She—"
Yun Lintian’s patience snapped.
His divine sense exploded outward, scanning every corner of the massive pavilion in an instant. Countless auras registered—but two stood out sharply.
Jian Kun and Jian Feng.
The brothers who had once entered the ruins with him. They were alive and unharmed, clearly they had left the ruins directly the momen the Temporal Palace disappeared.
A cold smile touched Yun Lintian’s lips.
At that moment, a powerful aura approached rapidly. Jian Kun burst into the hall, hisface paling when he saw Yun Lintian.
"You...!" Jian Kun’s voice caught. "How are you alive?"
Yun Lintian’s gaze could have frozen hell itself. "Oh? You’d expected me to die?"
Jian Feng arrived seconds later, his trademark arrogance replaced by sheer terror. He stumbled back. "Impossible! The Abyssal Ghost Knight said you were—"
"What?" Yun Lintian’s voice cracked like thunder.
The hall shook. The guards collapsed, unconscious. Only the Jian brothers remained standing—barely.
Jian Kun swallowed hard. "Yun Lintian, listen—"
"Five thousand years," Yun Lintian interrupted softly. "Five thousand years I was gone. It seemed a lot of things happened. For example... you made a deal with the Abyssal Ghost Knight."
Jian Feng suddenly drew his sword. "Brother, he’s—"
Yun Lintian didn’t even move. Jian Feng’s sword shattered mid-swing, the fragments embedding in the walls.
"Last chance," Yun Lintian said. "Where. Is. Lan Huiqian?"
Jian Kun’s shoulders slumped. "The secret chambers below. She... she’s been in stasis since the Ghost Knight’s last attack." His voice dropped to a whisper. "She was the only one who resisted."
Qingqing stirred in Yun Lintian’s arms, her weak fingers clutching his sleeve. "It’s true, Big Brother Yun... She tried to help us."
Yun Lintian nodded slightly. Although he knew that Lan Huiqian probably helped Qingqing and the others out because she wanted to express a goodwill to him in case he returned later, at least, she didn’t make a disgusting move like these Jian Kun and Jian Feng.
Just as Yun Lintian was about to speak, a female voice suddenly resounded from the inside of the building.
"A rare guest has visited... Please come in."