Several hundred li outside the mountain gate of Qingxu Temple, there was a mortal town called "Sunset Glow Town." Although not as bustling as a cultivation market, it benefited somewhat from being near Qingxu Temple and occasionally had low-level cultivators staying or trading some worldly goods.
At the rear wing of a silk and satin shop with a modest storefront but exceptionally clean and tidy decor in the east of the town, a woman in plain elegant cyan clothing, her face partially covered by a thin veil, stood by the window. Her figure was graceful, her aura cool and aloof. Although her full features couldn't be seen, those exposed eyes were like autumn water in a cold pool, deep and carrying an inexorable melancholy and vicissitudes. This was Aunt Su, who had changed her identity and concealed herself here.
In her hand, she held an unremarkable gray jade slip, her spiritual consciousness immersed within it, carefully reading the information transmitted through special channels. This jade slip detailed recent rumors about the Qingxu Temple disciple Tang Xiaoqi's performances in the Misty Secret Realm, and the various disturbances this had caused in the outside world.
When she read about Xiaoqi using purification techniques in the secret realm to dispel demonic qi vines, save his fellow disciples, and receive commendation from Qingxu Temple's high-level officials, those cool eyes of Aunt Su could not help but flash with a trace of relief and excitement. Her fingers gripping the jade slip tightened slightly.
"Sister... do you see it? Xiaoqi... he has grown up and become stronger." She silently called out in her heart, and the face of Xiaoqi's mother—gentle yet resolute—seemed to appear before her eyes. "He has not let down the Xu family's bloodline, nor your and brother-in-law's sacrifice... He inherited the Purification Source and has walked even further than we imagined."
A pride and joy originating from blood kinship flowed through her heart. That child who had narrowly escaped the massacre, whom she had secretly sent under Qingxu Temple's protection, had now grown into a Foundation Establishment cultivator, and had even obtained an ancient inheritance that would make the entire cultivation world sit up and take notice. This gave her, who had been drowning in endless guilt and self-blame, a faint glimmer of dawn and comfort at last.
However, this relief did not last long before being replaced by deeper worry.
The latter half of the jade slip described in detail the disturbances the "ancient purification inheritance" had stirred up in the outside world—various forces' attention, friendly overtures, covert probing, and... the increasingly dense malice and spying hidden beneath the calm surface.
Aunt Su's heart sank little by little.
She knew better than anyone what the "Purification Source" meant to the Shadow Snake Pavilion, and to the demonic soul remnant hidden behind the Shadow Snake Pavilion. It was their natural nemesis, the key target they must eliminate or seize in their plans. The root cause of Xu Lan Villa's destruction lay precisely here.
Now, Xiaoqi not only survived but also displayed this power before the world. This was no different from lighting a lamp in the darkness—it could indeed illuminate the path, but it would also inevitably attract all the moths hidden in the darkness, especially this venomous snake, the Shadow Snake Pavilion!
"They will never let him go..." Aunt Su murmured, her voice carrying a slight, hard-to-detect tremor. She had once been a Silver-Faced Envoy of the Shadow Snake Pavilion and knew deeply this organization's style and ruthless methods. Open retaliation might be somewhat deterred by Qingxu Temple's protection, but covert bounties, assassinations, schemes, and intrigues would certainly follow one after another, making it impossible to guard against everything.
She could almost foresee: an invisible, deadly net was being drawn toward Xiaoqi. And to some extent, all this was triggered by her decision years ago to send Xiaoqi into Qingxu Temple. If... if back then she had taken Xiaoqi far away and changed their names, would this situation not have occurred?
This thought, like a venomous snake, gnawed at her heart again. Endless regret and self-reproach surged, nearly suffocating her.
But soon, she vigorously shook her head, shaking away that cowardly thought. There were no "ifs" in worldly affairs. Back then, sending Xiaoqi to Qingxu Temple, which had a decent reputation, was the best option she could think of. At the very least, Xiaoqi had grown up safely and gained strength.
The question now was how to respond.
She walked to the desk, slowly sat down, and her fingertips unconsciously traced patterns on the tabletop. Could Qingxu Temple protect Xiaoqi for a while, but could it protect him for a lifetime? Faced with the malice toward him driven by the Shadow Snake Pavilion from the entire cultivation world's dark side, how long could Qingxu Temple withstand?
She desperately wanted to go immediately to Qingxu Temple, to see Xiaoqi, to warn him, to protect him. But reason told her she could not. Her identity was sensitive; once exposed, it would not only bring her own death but might also drag Xiaoqi and Qingxu Temple into even bigger troubles. The Shadow Snake Pavilion would never let go of this "traitor."
Moreover, based on the heart and potential Xiaoqi had displayed, what he might need was not unconditional protection but rather being honed in storms and growing amid crises. Excessive protection might instead smother his future.
"He must become strong enough himself to face all this..." Aunt Su murmured. But just thinking about Xiaoqi having to face those countless visible and hidden spears and arrows alone made her heart feel as if gripped by an invisible hand, painful and powerless.
This torment of knowing her blood relative was in danger, yet being able only to watch from afar and unable to directly help, nearly drove her mad.
She took a few deep breaths, forcing herself to remain calm. Being unable to act directly did not mean there was nothing she could do.
She picked up the gray jade slip again, her spiritual consciousness once more immersed, analyzing each piece of information within even more carefully. Which forces might have ulterior motives? Which rogue cultivators or killer organizations were most likely to take the Shadow Snake Pavilion's covert bounty? How detailed had the intelligence about Xiaoqi on the black market become?
She needed more accurate, timely intelligence. Although she had left the Shadow Snake Pavilion, some of her extremely covert connections and intelligence networks might still be usable. Even at the risk of exposure, she had to do her best to provide early warnings for Xiaoqi and buy him more time to react.
At the same time, she was considering whether she could, through some indirect means, give Qingxu Temple some reminders? Or whether she could, at a critical moment, provide Xiaoqi with some resources or information he needed?
Thoughts tangled like disordered silk; worry, relief, guilt, determination... various complex emotions intertwined and collided in her heart. Outside the window, the sunset of Sunset Glow Town dyed the sky a gorgeous orange-red, warm and peaceful, yet it could not in the slightest dispel the increasingly dense gloom and chill in her heart.
She stood up, walked to the dressing table, and looked at her own blurred face, hidden by the veil, in the bronze mirror. Her gaze gradually became sharp and firm.
"Sister, brother-in-law... I will protect Xiaoqi in my own way. Even if I exhaust everything, I will never allow that tragedy from years ago to happen to him again."
Night descended quietly. Aunt Su blew out the lamp in her room, her figure merging into the darkness, like a vigilant night owl beginning to weave an invisible, protective net for her only concern—her blood relative. Although the road ahead was unpredictable and fraught with danger, that protective heart originating from blood kinship and guilt became incomparably clear and firm at this moment.