266: Chapter 266 Why is there another man here!

"No need to rush, Qingyue."

His voice was gentle and certain:

"When the time comes, I believe there will definitely be a way."

"Heaven always leaves a way out. Besides..."

A hint of a smile curled at the corners of his mouth:

"Your husband is no ordinary person."

Hearing this, Xia Qingyue's eyes grew slightly warm.

She nodded vigorously and buried her face back into the crook of his neck, letting out a muffled "mm."

That soft "mm," tinged with a nasal tone, was soft and sweet, making her seem like a completely different person from the usually frost-cold Fairy.

Ye Changge held her gently, his palm slowly stroking her back.

The two embraced like this, lingering affectionately in the Immortal Cave for a while longer.

They were just like a young couple in the throes of a new romance—even though they had said everything and done everything, they still couldn't bear to part.

Xia Qingyue leaned in his arms, her fingers unconsciously playing with the patterns on his lapel as she whispered about trivial things.

Ye Changge held her, responding from time to time and occasionally lowering his head to drop a light kiss on the top of her head.

Time slowed down at this moment.

So slow that they could almost hear each other's heartbeats.

A long time later—

Xia Qingyue finally straightened up from his embrace and tidied her somewhat messy hair.

"Changge, I should go."

Her voice returned to its usual coldness, yet it held a trace of softness that was harder to detect than before.

"As for Revered Master... if I'm out for too long, she will worry."

She paused and bit her lip:

"And... if she happens to run into you, I'm afraid it might not end well."

Hearing this, the corner of Ye Changge's mouth twitched slightly.

That Core Formation Female Cultivator...

But if that lady found out he had made off with her precious disciple...

Ye Changge shuddered.

"It would indeed be a bit bad."

He cleared his throat and said seriously:

"Qingyue, you go back first. When the time is right, I will go to the Lingxiao Sect to see you."

Xia Qingyue nodded.

She took out a Silver Veil as thin as a cicada's wing from her Storage Pouch and gently covered her face. The veil was clearly a high-grade Magical Artifact; as spiritual light flowed across it, her exquisite face was completely hidden, leaving only her eyes, clear as autumn waters, visible.

Ye Changge also raised a hand and wiped it across his face.

A spiritual light flashed, and his incomparably handsome face rippled like water, instantly transforming into an ordinary face that would be impossible to pick out in a crowd.

Not only that, he also circulated his Cultivation Technique to forcibly suppress his seventh level of Foundation Establishment aura down to the Late Stage of Qi Refining.

To an outsider, he would seem like nothing more than a Loose Cultivator with an ordinary appearance and low cultivation.

The two glanced at each other, both seeing a trace of mutual understanding in their eyes.

"Let's go."

Ye Changge turned around and waved his hand to remove the final Restriction of the Immortal Cave.

The stone door slid open to both sides with a rumble.

---

Outside the Immortal Cave

The sunlight was piercing.

Meng Zilang leaned against an old pine tree opposite the Immortal Cave, boredly counting ants on the ground.

He had been waiting here for... he couldn't remember how many days.

He only knew that after the Spiritual Qi vortex vanished, he had waited for a very, very long time.

So long that he had rehearsed the scene of Xia Qingyue's appearance in his mind countless times—

"Junior Sister Xia, congratulations on your Breakthrough! This Senior Brother has been waiting here for a long time!"

"Junior Sister Xia, this is a congratulatory gift I specially chose for you, just a small token of my regard..."

"Junior Sister Xia, we hit it off from the start, why don't we..."

He had practiced what he considered his most handsome smile in front of a Water Mirror countless times, ensuring every angle was perfect.

He had even taken the time to go to the market and buy a bouquet of Spiritual Flowers preserved with a special technique—reportedly snow lotuses brought from the Far North, pure white and flawlessly elegant in scent, perfectly matching Junior Sister Xia's cold and ethereal temperament.

But...

The door of the Immortal Cave remained closed.

Meng Zilang went from being full of anticipation to being anxious as if burning, and finally to being numb.

At this moment, leaning halfway against the tree trunk, although his robes were still meticulously groomed, the smile on his face had long since faded.

He stared at the tightly shut stone door, his eyes filled with confusion and resentment.

"What on earth... is going on?"

Just then—

Rumble...

The stone door finally opened slowly.

Meng Zilang's spirits lifted!

With lightning speed, he straightened up, a bouquet of snow-white Spiritual Flowers appearing in his hand at some point, and the smile he had practiced countless times appeared on his face—

"Junior Sister Xia—"

Halfway through his sentence, his voice got stuck in his throat.

He saw a slender and graceful figure walking out of the Immortal Cave.

The woman wore a moon-white long dress, the hem trailing on the ground like mist or smoke. Her jet-black hair fell to her waist like a waterfall. Although a Silver Veil covered her face, her exquisite figure, cold and ethereal temperament, and those eyes like autumn waters—

Who else could it be but Xia Qingyue?

Meng Zilang was overjoyed and hurriedly tidied his robes, preparing to step forward and offer his congratulations.

However—

He had just taken a step when his foot stopped abruptly.

Another figure walked out of the Immortal Cave!

Meng Zilang's pupils suddenly constricted.

He looked closely—

It was a young man with a face so ordinary it had no distinguishing features, the kind that would vanish once thrown into a crowd. He wore a simple green robe, and his aura wasn't very strong, appearing to be only at the Late Stage of Qi Refining.

Meng Zilang instinctively swept his Divine Sense over him—

It was indeed the Late Stage of Qi Refining. Average Aptitude, low cultivation.

But the problem was—

Why was this man walking out of Junior Sister Xia's Immortal Cave?!

Meng Zilang's brain buzzed, and his mind went blank.

He watched helplessly as the young man walked out of the cave unhurriedly, even stretching as if he had just woken up.

Then—

The young man turned his head and smiled at Xia Qingyue.

Xia Qingyue nodded slightly, seemingly responding to something.

Although no words were spoken between them, an indescribable mutual understanding flowed between them.

Meng Zilang's face instantly turned ashen.

A lone man and a lone woman.

Sharing an Immortal Cave.

For so many days.

Did he even need to wonder what had happened inside the Immortal Cave?!

"Impossible..."

Meng Zilang muttered to himself, his fingers gripping the Spiritual Flowers turning slightly white from the force.

"How is it possible... how could Junior Sister Xia take an interest in such trash?!"

He stared intently at the ordinary-looking, low-cultivation young man, his eyes full of disbelief and rage.

"A piece of trash at the Late Stage of Qi Refining, how could he be worthy—"

He wished he could rush up right now and slap this arrogant fellow into a pulp with a single palm!

But he held back.

Xia Qingyue was still there. He couldn't lose his composure in front of her.

Meng Zilang took a deep breath, suppressing the anger and jealousy in his heart, and put on a smile again—though it looked stiff no matter how one viewed it.

He stepped forward quickly and handed the Spiritual Flowers to Xia Qingyue, his tone eager:

"Junior Sister Xia, congratulations on your Breakthrough! This Senior Brother has been waiting here for many days. This small gift is just a token of my regard..."