Taoist Lingxu fluttered his sleeves and gracefully took a seat on the sandalwood couch. His gaze was like the moon reflected in an ancient well, its depth shimmering with a gentle, clear light. "Foolish child, this body is but a temporary dwelling in the mortal world. In this life, past and present, what I recognize is always the soul deep within your spirit."

Xie Qingli's figure swayed slightly, his inky black eyes filled with surprise. "Could it be that...in my previous life, when I first climbed Hopeless Mountain to seek a master, my master saw through me and realized that I was just a remnant soul occupying another's body?"

Taoist Lingxu nodded slowly, a mist forming in his eyes. "In my previous life, I observed the celestial phenomena at night and saw the Phoenix Star falling. After calculating for three days, I realized that the fate of the Lu family's child was compatible with your soul. So I led your soul to Xunzhou to return to life, and then led you to Wuwang Mountain to learn martial arts..."

He paused slightly and sighed softly, "In truth, before my master, Master Baopu, passed away, he predicted that the world would soon experience a great catastrophe, a calamity that would begin in Dongling. By then, there would be starvation everywhere, and people would eat their own children... He instructed me to restore order and prevent this catastrophe."

He laughed self-deprecatingly, his eyes thick with regret. "But in my previous life, I always believed that the laws of nature were fixed, and that those outside the mortal realm shouldn't get too involved in the mundane world. I naively believed that as long as I could slightly shift a few key pieces in the interlude of fate, I could sever the monstrous calamity..."

"So, seeing you die, I saw it as just another crack in the destiny waiting to be mended. So, I brought you back to life, taught you unparalleled martial arts, and passed on the art of medicine, then allowed you to return to the mortal world. I believed that in this chess game of heaven and earth, it would ultimately be up to you, the players, to take control of the pieces yourself, to challenge fate with your mortal bodies, and to secure a clear and peaceful world for all."

"But, ultimately, I was wrong. After three years of wandering, I returned to see loyal souls weeping blood, treacherous officials manipulating power, and you perished again. The hexagrams of the Heavenly Secrets foretold the coming of troubled times. Just when I was completely hopeless, I suddenly realized that your soul had not entered the cycle of reincarnation, but was still wandering between heaven and earth..."

"I happened to glimpse a glimpse of an opportunity to reverse yin and yang in the 'Heavenly Strategy' left behind by my master. Using your soul as a lamp and your obsession as a flame, I burned away fifty years of my lifespan and forcibly reversed time and space."

Xie Qingli felt as if struck by lightning, and her blood seemed to freeze instantly. She stared blankly at Taoist Lingxu's frosty hair and beard, and finally understood that her rebirth was the price of her master's life!

She knelt heavily on the ground, tears rolling down her cheeks like pearls breaking off a string. With trembling hands, she grasped the sleeves of Taoist Lingxu and choked out, "Master, you..."

Taoist Lingxu reached out and gently stroked the top of Xie Qingli's head, his voice tinged with shame. "Master, I have defied Heaven and am using your soul to reverse time and space. When this world ends, your three souls will be annihilated, your seven spirits will be scattered, and you will never again be reincarnated. Do you... resent me?"

Xie Qingli raised his tear-filled eyes, a brilliant smile spreading across his lips: "I don't complain. To be able to have this life, to be at my mother's knees, to protect my loved ones, to see the flowers of Shengjing and the moon of Jiangnan, is a gift from heaven, better than a thousand reincarnations."

Taoist Lingxu twirled his silver beard and sighed softly, "While small affections are heartwarming, you shouldn't indulge in them completely. In this life, if you wish to avoid repeating the mistakes of your past life and save the common people from danger, you must tread carefully at every step and carefully calculate every move. This is the karma that those destined to be born should bear."

Xie Qingli's eyebrows curved, and his voice was as soft as honey: "With Master here, I feel more at ease."

Before she finished speaking, her expression suddenly froze, her fingers clenching her sleeves. "But Master, I heard that you are going to perform a ritual tomorrow to ward off the snow disaster. This is against the will of heaven. Are you in any danger?"

Taoist Lingxu shook his head slightly and said slowly, "The blizzard is raging, and the people are treating the Dao sect as a disaster. If we continue to sit idly by and watch, the Dao sect will be destroyed. Don't worry, disciple, it will only cost you some cultivation, but it's worth it."

Xie Qingli's long eyelashes drooped, and her eyes were misty. How could she not know that her master had to do this, but how could it be as easy as her master said?

In a trance, the memories of her past life surged up in her mind. She missed her handsome, cold and aloof master, who was not like in this life, trapped by the mundane world and burdened by the people of the world.

Taoist Lingxu's palm gently fell on Xie Qingli's hair, and he said in a warm voice: "My disciple, you must remember that martial arts are the foundation of your life, and medical skills are the way to save the world. Both are indispensable." After that, he flicked his wide sleeves, and two volumes of classics flew into the air.

Xie Qingli hurriedly caught it, and when he took a closer look, he found that it was the long-lost "Taixu Sword Manual" and "Qing Nang Secret".

Her heart was pounding. Just as she was about to ask, Taoist Lingxu waved his hand, looked up at the door, and urged, "Go quickly. The distinguished guest outside must be waiting anxiously."

Xie Qingli quickly stood up and bowed solemnly to Taoist Lingxu reluctantly. The moment he turned around, the door was gently pushed open.

Outside the door, Taoist Wuyou stepped aside half a step, revealing the tall figure behind him - Chu Yuncang, standing in the corridor in a dark brocade robe, with unmelted snow still on his shoulders.

The moment their eyes met, Xie Qingli clearly saw his cold star-like pupils suddenly light up. That gaze seemed to have substance, burning her heart.

She gave the two of them a slight bow, and when she looked up again, all her emotions had been suppressed, leaving only a cold expression, and she quickly left...

……

That night, the wind and snow were even more severe.

In the inn's wing, a dim green lamp cast a swaying shadow on the wall.

Taoist Lingxu sat cross-legged, his hands forming the Ziwu seal, but just as he was entering a state of meditation, he suddenly felt a throbbing in his heart. He suddenly opened his eyes, brushed his sleeves, stood up, and rushed out of the door like an arrow from a bow.

"Master!" Taoist Wuyou, who was guarding outside the door, hurriedly chased out, but saw only vast expanse of white snow and no trace.

About a cup of tea later, deep in the imperial garden of Dongling Palace, in a Taoist temple hidden among ancient trees, two figures faced each other silently.

Taoist Lingxuan squinted his eyes at the man before him, then suddenly clapped his hands and said, "Wonderful! Senior Brother, with your white hair and beard, you look three times older than our master did when he passed away. If he were still alive, he'd probably gouge out his own eyes to see if it was his left eye that was blinded, or his right eye that was possessed by evil, that made him think you were so gifted!"

After saying this, he suddenly looked up to the sky and laughed out loud. His laughter was as crazy as an owl crying blood at night, shrill and piercing. As the laughter died down, two lines of clear tears silently slid down his cheeks.

He stared at Taoist Lingxu intently, hatred surging in his eyes, and gnashed his teeth as he said, "Heh... I am the child raised by Master himself, and we are as close as father and son! But why..."

His voice suddenly rose, almost to a roar: "How come you, an outsider who showed up unexpectedly, got his true teachings first?! Ever since you came into his life, how could he even consider me?"

Taoist Lingxu stood still, as still as a pine tree, his expression unperturbed. He raised his eyes slightly, his gaze as clear as water, and spoke in a gentle, clear voice, "Junior Brother, ever since Master passed away on a crane, you've left without saying goodbye. I originally thought that since you've been cultivating in Hopeless Mountain since childhood, untouched by the mundane world, you've come down the mountain simply to see the world. But now..."

He glanced around and sighed softly, "I see you hiding alone in this deep courtyard of the imperial palace, like a caged beast. Why don't you return to Hopeless Mountain with my brother..."

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