Han glanced at the snail and shook his head.

  Honestly, sending a snail message wasn’t anything covert. Why would anyone be so nervous about being caught?

  He recognized the woman’s voice from earlier. It was someone he had met before—one of the deputy directors of the Ghost Spirit Bureau, a Day Wanderer expert, who had been trained by Lu Qingmo herself.

  The deputy director had lingered after reporting the situation, reluctant to leave.

  “Anything else?” Lu Qingmo raised an eyebrow.

  She hesitated for a moment before saying, “The situation is nearly over here. I’ll take care of things. You go back and rest, don’t keep your family waiting.”

  “If two people don’t have a proper night life, their relationship could hit a rough patch.”

  “...”

  What was she saying?

  Under Lu Qingmo’s intense gaze, the deputy director could no longer hold her ground and retreated.

  “I didn’t hear anything about the director having a partner,” she muttered to herself. “So they’ve reached the point of sharing a night together, huh? Lu Qingmo sure is secretive about her affairs.”

  “I wonder what kind of person that is…”

  The deputy director was quite curious about the man who had progressed so far with Lu Qingmo. She couldn’t imagine the usually cold Lu Qingmo reaching such a stage.

  Lu Qingmo gently rubbed her forehead, knowing her subordinate must have misunderstood.

  But luckily, her subordinate was tight-lipped. She knew what should and shouldn’t be said.

  She and Han… there was no such thing going on.

  No, wait—there wasn’t anything between her and Han, to begin with.

  Everything was open and aboveboard.

  Straightforward and pure!

  A clear conscience means no fear of shadows!

  When Lu Qingmo returned, Han was still in high spirits.

  The higher one’s cultivation, the more energetic they became, especially for cultivators.

  They practiced immortality.

  “You’ve completed the Night Wanderer realm?”

  Lu Qingmo immediately noticed, as Han was still in the Out-of-Body posture.

  “Yes, a little progress,” Han replied.

  Lu Qingmo couldn’t help but marvel, “Your cultivation speed is truly astonishing.”

  After counting the months, Han had only been cultivating for a little over three months and was already about to enter the fourth soul realm.

  Yun Duo had been cultivating for two and a half years, and she was still at the Night Wanderer realm.

  Clearly, Han was no ordinary person.

  Lu Qingmo thought for a moment and could understand why Han was progressing so quickly.

  That one technique, which could be used alongside both the Visualization Chart and the Taiyin Spirit Refining method, brought results that were nearly equivalent to having a day’s worth of practice in just half the time.

  Then, there was the mysterious Moon Seal that gathered moonlight, summoning the Moon Demon to offer up its essence willingly.

  With all these advantages, two months of training could easily compare to others’ four months of work.

  A slow breakthrough would have been more surprising.

  “Once the sun rises, you’ll be able to refine sunlight and start advancing to the Day Wanderer realm. Later, I’ll tell you about some key cultivation methods.”

  “That’s already the level of a deputy director in the Ghost Spirit Bureau. You’re growing quickly—within a few years, you might surpass me.”

  Lu Qingmo had a suspicion that Han’s recent breakthrough was linked to the power he’d obtained after transcending the ghosts on the mountain.

  “You’re still far from catching up to Aunt Mo,” Han humbly replied.

  Seeing that Lu Qingmo didn’t ask about some matters, Han decided to speak up himself.

  “Aunt Mo, aren’t you curious about the Taoist techniques I used in the Impermanence Yama domain?”

  Lu Qingmo said, “You must have awakened them during your cultivation, right?”

  “…”

  Well, since she had already said it, Han couldn’t offer any other response.

  After staying at the Ghost Spirit Bureau, Lu Qingmo thought carefully.

  It wasn’t a technique she had passed on, and Han had no access to other learning channels.

  The only possibility was that he had awakened the technique himself.

  Stolen story; please report.

  She was used to this. It wasn’t the first time Han had awakened a technique.

  Nothing to be surprised about.

  If Bai Ruoyue were to awaken a martial art technique, that would be shocking.

  But it’s impossible. I’ve seen her grow up; I know her limits.

  Could she suddenly awaken martial powers?

  Not likely.

  “It’s true. I suddenly gained control of that technique,” Han answered honestly.

  “But since it’s happened so many times before, I didn’t think it was a big deal, so I never mentioned it.”

  Lu Qingmo nodded, unfazed by the explanation. She had heard it all before.

  She had long grown accustomed to Han’s extraordinary nature.

  “Aunt Mo, you…”

  “I…”

  “What do you want to ask?”

  Han’s soul returned to his body as he asked, “So, what happened fifteen years ago, according to those from Impermanence Hall?”

  "Why do they say your cultivation has stagnated? What happened to you?"

  Lu Qingmo remained silent, her gaze shifting, and then she nodded.

  "They're right. My cultivation has indeed come to a standstill. I suffered an accident years ago, and that's how I ended up this way."

  "You should know by now that I'm in the Manifestation Realm."

  "Yes," Han nodded.

  The waves from the recent battle in the sky were terrifying, enough to make him hesitant to probe further. It was clear that the power behind it was far beyond what a typical Daytime Immortal could unleash.

  "I reached the Manifestation Realm fifteen years ago. And here I am, still stuck at the same level."

  "I haven't progressed even a single step, and breaking through is something that feels out of reach for me now."

  Her words carried a hint of melancholy.

  Having entered the Xuandu Sect and gained the rare Thunderfire Seal, she was undoubtedly a prodigy. But for a genius like her, to stagnate for fifteen years, trapped in one realm, was an unbearable torment.

  "Is this because of that old man from the Hall of Impermanence?" Han pressed further.

  "Yes, it's because of him." Lu Qingmo's eyes darkened with a tinge of recollection.

  "Before the incident, I wasn't the brightest disciple of the Xuandu Sect, but I did have some talent."

  "I was also fortunate enough to obtain the Thunderfire Seal, a rare and powerful technique. The entire Xuandu Sect saw great potential in me, believing I could become a strong protector of the sect in the future."

  Han understood. She was clearly being modest. She must have been one of the top disciples, second only to the very best.

  Such opportunities, like the Thunderfire Seal, couldn't be grasped without solid strength.

  "As I gained the Sect's favor, I also became a target for their enemies. Too many tried to eliminate me, to destroy me."

  Lu Qingmo continued, "Especially since I had always been ruthless toward the dark sects, loathing them with all my being. Any evil practitioner I encountered, I killed without hesitation, which only made the dark sects despise me even more."

  Han agreed, "Dark forces and evil practitioners deserve to be eradicated. You were just doing the right thing, Aunt Mo."

  "No," Lu Qingmo's tone hardened, "I hate them because I have a deep personal grudge against them."

  Her voice, though calm, betrayed a powerful surge of emotions beneath the surface.

  "When I was six, my parents were killed by evil cultivators, used as sacrifices to practice dark arts. If my master hadn't happened to pass by and killed the dark cultivators, I would have been dead long ago."

  "I've never forgotten that day, that scene. That's why, as I grew stronger, I became more determined to eradicate all dark practitioners. Among my peers, I was the most extreme in my views."

  Han fell silent. He had no idea that Lu Qingmo had such a tragic past.

  To witness her parents' death at the hands of dark cultivators at such a young age—such a traumatic experience would likely haunt her for the rest of her life.

  "Then, fifteen years, seven months, and three days ago, I encountered a day I will never forget."

  "As a Manifestation Realm cultivator, I traveled to Jiaozhou and met an elder from the Hall of Impermanence—an elder in the Ghost Realm."

  "He attacked me. The Ghost Realm is incredibly strong. It is a realm where gods are born, and I was no match for him. To protect myself, I resorted to a forbidden technique."

  "I exchanged my future for power in the present. I drove the Ghost Realm elder back, even nearly killed him, but in the process, I fell victim to his method."

  "It was a poison, a unique poison from the Hall of Impermanence that targets the soul."

  Lu Qingmo's hand trembled as she spoke.

  "Those poisoned by it will experience the agony of being devoured by ten thousand ghosts, and their essence will be tainted by the power of the Underworld. They will never be able to reach the Ghost Realm in their lifetime."

  "Human essence, the power of the Underworld, the conflict of Yin and Yang—everything about the soul is in chaos, and the path to cultivation is severed."

  Han's heart sank.

  The agony of being devoured by ten thousand ghosts... to never break through... He could only imagine the torment and suffering Lu Qingmo had endured.

  No wonder she said the Hall of Impermanence was her mortal enemy.

  With both the personal grudge of seeing her parents murdered by dark cultivators and the deep enmity of having her path to cultivation severed, this vendetta would likely never end, lingering eternally.

  The Hall of Impermanence, and the Ghost Realm elder...

  Han burned with an unquenchable rage, silently vowing to bring an end to this dark chapter.

  He reached out and gently held Lu Qingmo's hand, offering some comfort.

  "I went to a large sect in Jiaozhou to recover, and after that, I returned to the Xuandu Sect, escorted by my fellow disciples."

  "But the sect leaders couldn't help me. The combination of the forbidden technique and the poison from the Hall of Impermanence had completely severed my path."

  Lu Qingmo sighed. "Even the Sect Master tried to help. He was able to alleviate some of the poison’s effects and spared me from the agony of the ten thousand ghosts, but he couldn't do more."

  "The Sect Master couldn't save me, which means my path is truly closed."

  The Xuandu Sect’s brightest disciple, ruined by dark forces.

  After the incident, the entire Xuandu Sect mourned and was filled with anger and hatred.

  But the Hall of Impermanence was a mysterious sect. No one knew where they were located, and their disciples came and went like ghosts, making it impossible to take revenge.

  This was a sect that had survived for hundreds, even thousands of years. Its ability to conceal itself was unmatched.

  Otherwise, it would have been eradicated long ago.

  Throughout history, any evil sect whose location was exposed had been destroyed immediately.

  Those that remained were the strongest of their kind.

  "After my path was severed, I tried to keep training for a while, but the results were minimal. Eventually, for various reasons, I chose to leave the Xuandu Sect and came to Black Cloud Town, where I’ve been living ever since, while taking care of Ruoyue."

  "If I were still the shining genius of Xuandu, I would be conquering the world now, not stuck here."

  "Fifteen years... that's more than enough time for me to have reached a higher realm. But since there's no future left, it doesn't matter where I am."

  Han squeezed Lu Qingmo's hand, and she didn't pull away.

  "Aunt Mo, is the Ghost Realm elder from the Hall of Impermanence still alive?"

  "Yes, he's still alive. Not long ago, I contacted my junior disciple because of something involving the Gao family. He told me that the old ghost had been seen in South Jin five years ago."

  "He's still in the Ghost Realm. He survived, so it wouldn't be hard for him to recover from his injuries."

  "I will bring his head back to you, I swear."

  Han's voice was firm, his promise resolute.

  Lu Qingmo gazed at Han, her eyes softening.

  "Your determination is all I need, but the Ghost Realm cultivators are not ordinary beings. Their strength is terrifying. If you encounter one before you have grown strong enough, you must flee."

  "Ghost Realm cultivators are called 'Honored Ones.' Their souls undergo a fundamental transformation. They are no longer ghosts but gods."

  "The minimum requirement for reaching the realm of a god is to enter the Ghost Realm."

  "Even a prodigy fighting above their level will meet their end in the face of a Ghost Realm cultivator. At that level, the possibility of defeating them is nearly nonexistent. You must never underestimate them."

  Lu Qingmo's warning was grave, her tone serious as she spoke to Han.

  The path of the soul—each realm, each breakthrough, brought an overwhelming transformation that was almost impossible to understand.