Chapter 523 519: The Dove Occupies the Magpie's Nest

Ji Yuyan said flatly, "If it were only that, I wouldn't have much to say. It wouldn't have even been a big deal if she had also married my father. Just because my father never took a second wife didn't mean he couldn't. Although this is a harsh and desolate land, the population isn't small. It's nothing unusual for a man to take several wives. In fact, having many children and grandchildren is something to be envied. The real problem is that my aunt... she was never in love with my father!"

Her voice filled with grief and anger, Ji Yuyan continued, "Even the child she was carrying wasn't my father's. Her only purpose in coming to our family was to tear my parents apart!"

"Why?"

Qin Li couldn't quite wrap his head around it, and he asked with a frown.

'Normally, even if blood sisters don't get along, things wouldn't go this far, would they?'

"My aunt has been jealous of my mother since they were children! My mother was more beautiful and more talented than her. And while her cultivation wasn't overwhelmingly powerful, she was at least in the Shattered Void realm! She was considered a genius. Most importantly, my father was the legitimate son of the Ji Family, with an incredibly high status! These were all reasons for my aunt's jealousy. They were always competing, but my mother constantly gave in to her. When it was time for the engagement, they both fell in love with my father. However, my maternal grandfather felt my mother was a better fit for the Ji Family, so he arranged the marriage for her. My aunt was never happy about it, and that's what led to everything that happened later."

At that moment, a question suddenly occurred to Qin Li. Ji Yuyan's parents weren't exceptionally strong, but they certainly weren't weak, either. 'How could they already be dead?'

"How did your parents die?" Since it was just the two of them on the snowy plain, Qin Li didn't hold back and asked directly.

"They... they said they died of illness, but I've always felt there was something more to it. That's the real reason I've never dared or wanted to return to the family all these years. I don't know how to face it all!"

The rims of Ji Yuyan's eyes reddened as she said softly, "By rights, this all belongs to the previous generation and has nothing to do with me, but I can't forget any of it! After my parents died, my 'dear' aunt took over my home. Since she was already married to my father and my parents were both gone, she naturally became the woman of the house. But before my parents were even cold in their graves, she brazenly brought another man into our home. And... and she had her child—my so-called sister—call that man... 'Father'!"

As she said this, tears began to stream down her cheeks.

Qin Li fell silent. He had no idea how to comfort her in a situation like this, so he simply walked alongside her in silence.

Ji Yuyan composed herself and said, "I must be making a fool of myself."

"Not at all," Qin Li said softly. "You've had a difficult life."

Ji Yuyan said, "I was lucky. When I was young, I was there when a batch of Tree Lotuses blossomed and bore fruit. The next time that happens will be countless years from now. So, after my parents died, I had nothing left to long for in that home, and I left immediately. Thinking about it now, it's been almost a hundred years!"

As she spoke, she snuck a glance at Qin Li, wondering if he would frown upon hearing how old she was.

But Qin Li had no reaction to her age. In the world he came from before he transmigrated, there were many myths about Fairies and mortals falling in love. Though the stories deliberately avoided the issue of age, in truth, how could anyone called a Fairy be truly young? A mortal's entire life, after all, was barely a hundred years.

Moreover, as Qin Li's own power had grown, he understood clearly that for the Martial Artists who stood at the pinnacle of this world, age meant very little.

But Qin Li also gleaned another startling piece of information from her: Ji Yuyan was only just over a hundred years old, yet she had already reached the Thunder Tribulation realm!

This was an incredible thing!

In other words, Ji Yuyan's fortuitous encounters were in no way inferior to his own! And he was supposed to be the fabled person of destiny!

'So what did that make Ji Yuyan? Even if she isn't a person of destiny, she must at least be blessed with incredible fortune!'

"You should try to forget the unpleasant things of the past. People have to look forward. If the grudges of the previous generation don't have to be carried on, then let them go. Hatred can certainly make a person stronger, but dwelling on it too much can also blind you," Qin Li said softly, as if comforting Ji Yuyan, but also as if trying to convince himself.

Ji Yuyan nodded, wiped her eyes, and said with a smile, "Thank you, Qin Li! You're a good person. I'm lucky to be your friend!"

Qin Li smiled. "The feeling is mutual. I'm happy to be your friend, too!"

A blush crept onto Ji Yuyan's cheeks. She darted a quick glance at Qin Li before looking away. "Tell me about your female confidantes," she said. "I hear you have a lot of women in your life."

"Well..." Qin Li gave a wry smile. "It's nothing, really. I have two wives whom I've officially married, and I love them very much. I also have a few female confidantes who are currently training in other Sects. My life has been one of constant toil and travel, so we're apart more often than we're together. I feel terrible about it."

Ji Yuyan asked softly, "Why don't you settle down?"

"The tree wishes for calm, but the wind will not subside," Qin Li sighed. 'It's not that I don't want to truly settle down,' he thought. 'It's just that too many people won't let me. What choice do I have?'

As if reading his mind, Ji Yuyan said softly, "Look, those Purple-eyed Emperors have given up their pursuit. I deliberately took us on a few detours along the way just to see if they were still following, and they weren't. So, if you really wanted to, there's nothing stopping you from letting it all go."

"Perhaps," Qin Li said with a faint smile. His gaze grew distant as he looked at the massive glacier in the distance, and he murmured to himself, "To live in a place like this for years on end, cut off from the rest of the world... that wouldn't be a bad kind of happiness."

Ji Yuyan whispered, "You could, if you wanted to."

After she spoke, the two fell into a long silence. In the days that followed, they continued their journey onward. Qin Li intermittently told Ji Yuyan stories about the Land of the Far West, including some of his own experiences.

Ji Yuyan, in turn, told Qin Li about a sworn enemy of the Ice and Snow Sect. The other party had taken a fancy to her beauty and repeatedly proposed marriage. After being rejected each time, they became bitter enemies. Occasional conflicts would break out between them, but none had resulted in death or injury.

This was clearly the result of both sides remaining rational and exercising restraint. In recent years, however, the other party had become increasingly unreasonable, and the conflicts that broke out, though still occasional, were much more intense.

Ji Yuyan didn't know how many more years these clashes would continue, or when it would all end. She yearned for the Land of the Far West and was also fascinated by the world of the Central Plains. But when Qin Li invited her to visit the Central Plains, Ji Yuyan fell silent. She couldn't abandon this vast, jade-white ice plain, nor could she abandon her Sect and its many disciples.

It was as if her own nature, pure as ice and jade, was suited only for a simple, uncomplicated life.

After walking for more than half a month straight across the ice plain, the two finally arrived at a vast, seemingly endless canyon.

Within the canyon, mountain flowers bloomed in a riot of color, lush green grass carpeted the ground, and countless Tree Lotus trees filled the entire valley.

Seeing it all, Qin Li could hardly believe his eyes. Only now did he realize just how modest Ji Yuyan had been. Only now did he understand what she had given up by leaving home.

The Blessed Land of her Ice and Snow Sect paled in comparison to this place. A massive glacier lay at their feet, while a verdant valley stretched out before them. Two completely different worlds, merged perfectly together.

They had only just appeared when they were immediately spotted. Someone shouted, "Who dares trespass in the Ji Family Valley? Leave at once!"

"It is I, Ji Yuyan!"

Her voice was calm and light, almost ethereal.

There was a moment of silence from the other side, followed by a trembling, incredulous voice. "Young Mistress? Is it really you, Young Mistress? Have you returned?"

As the voice spoke, a figure shot toward them from the distance, arriving in a flash. It was an old man, looking well past his seventieth year. He wore somewhat worn-out Xuan robes, but he was in high spirits. His hair and beard were completely white, and he had a kind, gentle face.

Seeing the old man, Ji Yuyan's eyes reddened. "Changgeng," she said softly. "Are you still well?"

"Young Mistress, it really is you! You've really come back!" Tears suddenly streamed down the old man's weathered face. "It's been so many years. I thought I would never see you again."

The old man then glanced at Qin Li, who stood beside Ji Yuyan, and broke into a wide grin. "This must be the Young Mistress's husband, yes? A fine young man! As expected of the Young Mistress of our Ji Family Valley, you have excellent taste!"

Qin Li was taken aback but didn't offer an explanation. Ji Yuyan's face turned scarlet, but she too, surprisingly, said nothing to correct him. She looked at the white-haired old man and said, "Changgeng, I've returned this time for two reasons. First, to pay my respects to my parents. Second, I want to retrieve some things I left behind."

"Of course, of course! You should pay your respects to the Master and Madam. It's just..." The old man's expression grew troubled as he continued slowly, "Your old room, Young Mistress... it's being used by the Second Young Mistress now."

"Her?"

Ji Yuyan's mind went back to the little girl who had only been about ten years old when she left, yet was already shockingly malicious. She had the exact same temperament as her aunt and bore a strong resemblance to that other man.

'So,' she thought, 'this 'sister' of mine is simply my aunt's child. We're related by blood, but we definitely don't share a father!'

With this in mind, Ji Yuyan said, "I don't intend to touch any of her things. I'm just here for an iron box I buried in the courtyard. It doesn't contain anything valuable, just some small trinkets from my childhood."

"In that case, very well. I will take you!" The Ji Family's servant, Ji Changgeng, said with some uncertainty. "I believe the Second Young Mistress will grant me that much face... won't she?"