"South… You said it was south, Celestia."
The elf looked at the rocky mountain and the dwarven city hidden within its tunnels.
"I said we should ask the locals, but you didn't listen…"
"We've passed through ten civilizations and none of them were human. I doubt talking to the creatures there would have helped at all," Xingyue replied, refusing to admit that the nagas might actually have been useful.
Either way, they couldn't keep wandering in circles.
Xingyue turned her head toward a group of dwarves emerging from one of the upper tunnels. They looked like they were heading to work, carrying large pickaxes and mining carts.
Seizing the moment, the woman of unimaginable beauty levitated and suddenly appeared right in front of them.
The dwarves stopped dead in their tracks and stared at her with absolute disbelief.
There was a woman floating before their eyes, someone whom the dust and strong mountain winds seemed to avoid completely.
Xingyue observed them somewhat awkwardly, unsure how to start the conversation—especially after being deceived by the elves on her previous encounter.
Celestia, who had been watching the scene from a short distance, let out a sigh and shook her head, as if she weren't just as clueless about those kinds of matters.
She approached the group to make her presence known as well.
The dwarves looked at her pointed ears with suspicion. They had known of the existence of elves for a long time, but direct contact with one… it had been many years since that last happened.
Finally, one of them—who appeared to be the leader of the mining group—stepped forward and spoke.
"An elf…" He then turned to look at Xingyue. "And a human. I don't know what you two expect to find in this humble place, but Skardos is very far from the dwarven capital or any civilization you fine ladies might be accustomed to," he said with a friendly smile, casually resting his pickaxe on his shoulder.
"We're lost," Xingyue said suddenly, getting straight to the point. "I was wondering if you could tell us which direction the nearest human kingdom is."
The dwarf reacted with surprise, but didn't let it show too much.
"I'd have to ask… While we know this mountain like the back of our hands, things beyond its borders aren't so clear. If you want, I can take you to where we keep the maps and records. There should be an old map that covers such distant territories."
At that moment, one of the dwarves from the back interrupted abruptly:
"Thrain! I don't think old Gloin will let anyone bother him with his maps and scrolls."
"Come on, Gimli," the short leader replied. "These ladies need help. Besides, the impure ones are coming to collect soon. It wouldn't be good if they ran into them on the road."
Gimli didn't seem to agree, and considering he also knew the old man's personality...
Xingyue, despite having clearly heard the murmur the two dwarves shared in a failed attempt to keep it from them, showed no reaction and simply waited to be guided.
…
Millions of light-years away.
Lanying entered Ruolan's alchemy room.
The latter was busy experimenting with some herbs to create pills. However, upon seeing her sister enter, she stopped what she was doing and calmly approached to greet her.
Ruolan was extremely serene—a trait she shared with Lanying—though the latter tended to be softer and less reserved, something Ruolan—with her alchemy level—could not be further from.
"Do you need help with a pill?" asked the woman with soft pink eyes, carrying a subtle aroma of the plants she had been handling.
Although Lanying presided over the sect's medicinal garden, Ruolan had always been an icon there due to her unique ability to refine rare pills when needed.
Lanying gently shook her head.
"It's not that… I was just bored. Now that Xingyue isn't here to visit me from time to time and there's nothing that requires my help, I really feel the master's absence."
Ruolan looked at her with deep understanding.
Although Xingyue had usually been the one who depended on Lanying, many times it seemed like it was Lanying who needed her presence the most.
"Liwei and Luowei should be back soon," Ruolan commented. "I'm sure those two will bring trouble, so enjoy this calm while you can."
Lanying sighed as a vivid memory began to surface in her mind.
In her memory, a woman with a blindfold over her eyes and snow-white hair entered Ruolan's room.
At that time, Ruolan was working concentratedly with Lanying on a special medicine, maintaining the fire in the alchemy furnace with absolute precision while Lanying threw in the ingredients.
"Snow lotus, dragon root, purple dream berry…" Lanying listed aloud, looking around as if searching for something else. "And flower of death."
She smiled satisfied once her task was complete, watching with full attention as her sister transformed the elements inside the furnace into a perfect-grade pill.
The woman who had just entered watched them in silence, a smile on her lips so as not to interrupt the process.
When Ruolan finished refining the pills completely, Lanying finally noticed her presence.
"Sister!" she exclaimed excitedly, approaching Xuehua with enthusiasm to give her a gentle hug.
"I came to complain that Liwei and Luowei did it again," Xuehua said in a playful tone. "Jinghua was there egging them on, while the master just spoils them."
Ruolan burst out laughing, knowing perfectly well that Xuehua was only joking—though she wasn't entirely wrong. Those two sisters of hers tended to be far too free-spirited and troublesome.
Xuehua approached the furnace to look curiously at what they were working on.
Upon seeing the pills inside, her expression of surprise was evident, even with the blindfold covering her eyes.
"Immortal Reversion Pill!" she exclaimed. "I thought you were still missing some ingredients."
Lanying puffed out her chest with pride.
"My girls got the missing flower."
As if that detail reminded her of something urgent, Lanying stored some of the pills in a crystal vial and ran out of the room, leaving only one sentence echoing in the air:
"I have to tell them they're ready! See you later, sisters!"
The memory faded, bringing her back to the present.
In the current alchemy room, only Ruolan and Lanying remained. There was no other sister in the room—nor in the entire sect, if we are talking about the exact same one from the memory.
Lanying lowered her head, visibly depressed by nostalgia. Ruolan looked at her with confusion, internally debating what to say to lift her sister's spirits.
However, they soon heard a thunderous shout that made both of them focus on something much more entertaining.
"JING-HUA! You can't hide forever!"
Siyin's furious cry echoed through all the walls of the sect.
Ruolan and Lanying immediately looked at each other with a mix of amusement and complicity, knowing exactly what prank their younger sister had pulled to make the eldest lose her composure like that.
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Author's Note
Ruolan and Xuehua's looks are now live on Patreon! Go check them out!
/gghostk