A Pawn's Passage

Qi Xuansu would always dream every time he lost consciousness. So dreaming had already become routine for him.

This time was no exception.

He had an exceedingly long and deep dream.

People usually would not notice they were within a dream, no matter how illogical it was, because everything seemed natural.

In that hazy, drifting state between sleep and consciousness, Qi Xuansu faintly heard someone calling out to him.

Qi Xuansu slowly opened his eyes. The first thing that entered his view was the canopy of an eight-post bed. A woman leaned half-seated by the bedside, gently pushing his shoulder while calling out to him.

This was clearly a bedroom, so there were no bookshelves or desks, nor any tables or chairs meant for receiving guests. Instead, there was a dressing table and a carved ebony chest. There was also a small round table with two embroidered stools, and atop the table sat a set of purple-clay teaware.

The woman by the bed had loosely scattered long black hair. She wore casual robes and looked relaxed.

This woman was none other than Zhang Yuelu. But compared to the Zhang Yuelu in his memory, the one before him looked more mature, similar to Sage Cihang and Madam Qi’s age.

“Hurry and get dressed.” Seeing that Qi Xuansu was awake, Zhang Yuelu turned toward the dressing table and began combing her hair.

Qi Xuansu rose from the bed and pushed open the window.

Outside was not the pitch-black Lingshan Mountain, but a beautiful mountainous scenery of the Western Region. The foothills were lush and green, and the mountaintops were blanketed in snow, with white clouds hovering high above.

Verdant plains stretched endlessly, rising and falling like waves. At the foot of the mountain sat a small village that looked tranquil, completely isolated from the world.

This was where Qi Xuansu resided.

Qi Xuansu was momentarily stunned.

He was at the peak of his youth and vigor, full of ambition and drive and eager for achievements. He was not someone who liked idyllic retirement.

But recently, Qi Xuansu had been utterly exhausted. Ever since arriving in Poluo, he had barely had a moment of rest, and the pressure had been immense, especially after Great Sage Lan’s incident when he had to shoulder everything alone.

The mental strain had been immense, and on top of that, he had used two pages of the Scripture of Zuriel in a short span of time. If it weren’t for the Longevity Stone Heart, he would have collapsed long ago.

Now that the most critical moment had passed, Qi Xuansu could finally relax. Seeing the scene before him, a genuine and heartfelt joy unexpectedly rose within him.

“What are you looking at?” Zhang Yuelu’s voice came from behind him.

Qi Xuansu returned to his senses. “Nothing. Where are we going today?”

“Didn’t I tell you? It’s graduation day at the Wanxiang Daoist Palace,” Zhang Yuelu replied.

Qi Xuansu turned around and studied Zhang Yuelu’s mature features. He then glanced at himself in the mirror, noticing his beard that resembled Sage Donghua’s. He said cautiously, “Do we really need to return to the Wanxiang Daoist Palace to retrain at our age?”

In that short moment, Zhang Yuelu had already put her hair up, fixing a jade hairpin into her bun. “Are you still dreaming? It’s our daughter’s graduation from the Wanxiang Daoist Palace!”

Qi Xuansu was startled. “Our daughter?!”

Suddenly, it all came back to him.

He had a daughter who was already 20 years old. He himself was already in his fifties.

A few years ago, he had stepped down from his post as an Omniscient Sage and retired into a reclusive life with the status of a Great Sage. Life had been peaceful and pleasant, but a child could not grow up in such remote seclusion, so they had sent their daughter to the Wanxiang Daoist Palace.

Today was their daughter’s graduation. She had passed the major exam and officially entered the Daoist Order as a ninth-rank Daoist priest.

It was a day worth celebrating.

As parents, Zhang Yuelu and Qi Xuansu were expected to attend the graduation ceremony. Qi Xuansu, as the former Great Sage of the Wanxiang Daoist Palace, was expected to give a speech. The Wanxiang Daoist Palace had already prepared the manuscript; he simply needed to show up and recite it.

Since Zhang Yuelu was not an alumnus, she did not have to deliver any speech.

Qi Xuansu began to dress himself, putting on the hechang he had not worn in years and donning the white-gold lotus crown of an ordinary Great Sage. Purple-gold lotus crowns were reserved for Virtuous Great Sages.

Once the two finished preparing, they left the small village and headed to the Daxue Mountain Palace and boarded a flying ship from the Jade Pond bound for the Wanxiang Daoist Palace in Longmen Prefecture.

The journey this time was completely relaxed, without any urgency or the slightest danger of the flying ship crashing.

Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu enjoyed the scenery along the way and even savored some of this year’s new tea.

It was truly wonderful and pleasant.

As Qi Xuansu drank his tea, he recalled all the little memories of his daughter.

But no matter how hard he tried, he could not recall his daughter’s face or name. Only a hazy silhouette lingered in his mind. This showed how incompetent he was as a father.

In the blink of an eye, the flying ship landed on Xingye Lake of the Wanxiang Daoist Palace. Rows of young Daoist attendants stood on the shore to welcome them.

Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu walked down the ramp, smiling and waving at the waiting crowd.

Then came the usual procedures. The attendants led them to a guest hall to rest

while waiting for the ceremony to begin.

During this free time, Qi Xuansu said, “Qing Xiao, I want to test you on something.”

“What do you want to test me on?” Zhang Yuelu perked up with interest. “Go ahead—I won’t refuse any question.”

Qi Xuansu pretended to ponder for a moment before asking, “What is our daughter’s name?”

Zhang Yuelu’s first reaction was that he must be setting some kind of riddle within this question. But on second thought, Qi Xuansu might have actually forgotten their daughter’s name. But the idea of a father forgetting their daughter’s name was too absurd, so she chose to believe that it was a riddle. “Are you trying to play tricks on me?”

Qi Xuansu dared not admit that he had truly forgotten everything about their daughter. So he merely smiled silently, pretending to be deep and mysterious.

Zhang Yuelu saw Qi Xuansu’s mysterious smirk but also could not think of any deeper meaning behind the question, so she simply answered, “Our daughter’s name is Qi Miaobai. Don’t tell me you’ve actually forgotten?”

“Qi Miaobai?” This name felt familiar to him, as if he had heard it somewhere before. But no matter how he tried, he could not recall its origins.

Zhang Yuelu explained, “Yes. You were the one who named her.”

“Is that so?” Qi Xuansu hesitated. The name sounded absurd and rather nonsensical to him.

But Zhang Yuelu was absolutely certain. “Of course!”

Qi Xuansu did not continue doubting it, so he changed the topic. “Where’s Miaobai?”

Zhang Yuelu said, “She should’ve been here by now.”

As she spoke, Zhang Yuelu swept her gaze around the room in search of her daughter.

Right at that moment, a cheerful voice rang out. “Old Qi! Mother!”

Qi Xuansu was instantly displeased, thinking, This child has such poor manners! How dare she call me Old Qi? Mother...? Does she mean Qing Xiao? Don’t tell me she’s our daughter?! No, wait...why is she so flippant and casual with me but so respectful toward her mother?!

A sudden, terrible premonition rose in Qi Xuansu’s heart.

He slowly turned toward the source of the voice.

A young woman was standing not far away, wearing the robes of a ninth-rank Daoist.

Zhang Yuelu had already beckoned her over. “Miaobai.”

The young woman was none other than Qi Miaobai.

Qi Xuansu stared at her face. He finally understood where the name “Qi Miaobai” actually came from.

The name was clearly taken from Yin Wanmiao and Madam Bai. This young woman, though fully grown, still carried traces of her childlike features. She was unmistakably

Little Yin!

Qi Xuansu’s vision turned dark, and his breath caught in his chest. He fainted on the spot.

He had no idea how much time passed before the darkness gradually receded and the illusion slowly dissolved into reality.

When Qi Xuansu slowly opened his eyes again, what entered his sight was not the idyllic mountain village nor the Wanxiang Daoist Palace, but his bedroom in the Water Palace.

It turned out everything was just a dream.

Qi Xuansu let out a long breath of relief.

Qi Miaobai was truly terrifying.

The idea of having that little imp as his daughter was more terrifying than meeting the Eleven Great Witches atop Lingshan.

But there was one thing he couldn’t figure out. What exactly was the meaning of this dream?

Qi Xuansu now understood very clearly that all his dreams had meaning to them. The dreams he had of Lingshan had foreshadowed the secret of the Longevity Stone Heart. So what did dreaming of Little Yin this time foretell? Was it related to him choosing the Ghost Kingdom as his divine domain? After all, Little Yin was born in the Ghost Kingdom, so she could be considered a spirit of the Ghost Kingdom. Was there truly a connection between the two? Had Little Yin become his daughter by default because he had merged with the Ghost Kingdom?

He thought, But that seems a little too far-fetched...

Just then, a familiar voice suddenly rang beside his ear. “Old Qi!”

Qi Xuansu jolted in shock and turned toward the voice.

A small head and a pair of bright, round black eyes greeted him. The little girl was as short as the bed. Who else could it be but Little Yin?

Qi Xuansu’s expression froze completely. He then forced out a stiff smile. “Oh, it’s you, Miaobai.”