Outside Of Time

1789  Leaving the Star Ring, Returning to Wanggu

Xu Qing and Grandmaster Bai walked side by side.

They traversed the starry sky, walked through the river of time.

Their figures were imperceptible to ordinary cultivators—only Summer Immortals could vaguely sense their presence.

Along the way, they spoke of many things.

Past memories, present stories, and visions of the future.

Until, when they reached the edge of the Fourth Star Ring, Grandmaster Bai departed.

Before leaving, Xu Qing's first teacher gave him two items.

The first was a seed.

"Xu Qing, when you return to Wanggu, if Chen Feiyuan and Ting Yu are still alive, ask them if they would like to come to me."

"If they agree, plant this seed for them. When the flower blooms, its fragrance will lead them to me."

"And if they have already passed away?" Xu Qing asked softly.

"Then plant this seed before their graves."

Grandmaster Bai's voice was hoarse.

The second item he gave Xu Qing was a lantern.

Its frame was crafted from a special type of baked clay, inscribed with intricate patterns that seemed naturally formed yet likewise resembled ancient runes, pulsing with mysterious power.

The material closely resembled Grandmaster Bai's medicine jar.

As for the lantern shade, it was woven from a mystical spiritual silk that emitted a faint, iridescent glow.

The shifting light was dreamlike, as though it had gathered all the resplendent colors of the myriad realms.

The weaving of the spiritual threads was extraordinarily delicate, forming faint, elusive images—sometimes depicting mist-shrouded immortal mountains, other times the vast starry river of the cosmos.

It was as though the lantern shade itself contained miniature universes, hiding endless mysteries.

But the most peculiar part was the wick inside the lantern.