Hemei and Henuan couldn’t come along either.
At first, the temperature was quite warm, but as they traveled, it gradually became colder. Elder Jin had someone pass a cloak into the palanquin, and Yun Jinnian wrapped both herself and Han Tianci inside it.
"Following sister is really fun!"
Yun Jinnian ruffled Han Tianci’s hair and held him in her arms, "Sister will protect you!"
"I will protect Sister too!"
The siblings exchanged a smile.
The further they went into the mountains, the more it began to snow. Elder Jin felt sorry for Yun Jinnian being cold, but at this point, there was nothing he could do.
Not until they reached a valley, where it was full of green pines, each covered in icicles—an incredibly beautiful sight to behold.
Han Tianci exclaimed in amazement.
"It’s so beautiful!" He couldn’t help but exclaim, turning his head to look at Yun Jinnian, "Sister, isn’t it beautiful?"
Yun Jinnian nodded, "Indeed, it is beautiful, clear and pure, almost unreal!"
The palanquin stopped, and Elder Jin invited Yun Jinnian to disembark, "Saintess, let’s go inside!"
"Please have my brother and Chu Yu come with me. They won’t say anything!" Yun Jinnian spoke out.
She was afraid of encountering danger herself, and she also wanted Han Tianci to see more.
Elder Jin remained silent.
Han Tianci was of the former Saintess’s bloodline, so it made sense for him to enter, but Chu Yu...
However, seeing Yun Jinnian’s insistence, and after consulting with the four Elders, he reluctantly agreed.
Originally, Yun Jinnian was supposed to walk by herself, but since she had injured her leg, walking a few steps was fine, but walking more would be painful.
Elder Jin had a chair prepared for Yun Jinnian to be carried in, while Han Tianci and Chu Yu walked beside her.
They were supposed to be on either side of her, but Yun Jinnian insisted that Han Tianci be in the middle, with Chu Yu beside him.
Inside the cave, rows of oil lamps lit up a narrow path, winding its way further and further in, and the colder it got.
And they were descending.
Chu Yu was keeping track of the number of steps they took and what they saw along the way, tightly holding Han Tianci’s hand.
At this moment, Chu Yu was acutely aware that if anything happened, he had to take Han Tianci and leave.
If anything happened to Han Tianci, he and Yun Jinnian would have no chance at all.
Yun Jinnian was the Saintess of the Moon Worshiping Sect; the five Elders wouldn’t harm her or abandon her.
Not until they walked three thousand nine hundred steps did a fork in the path appear.
Elder Jin led them left, then at another fork, they also took the left. After that came one fork after another: right, left, right, left, right, left, right, right—a total of ten forks.
All together, that was left, left, right, left, right, left, right, left, right, right.
Chu Yu was certain the other pathways must be riddled with traps—entering alive didn’t necessarily mean exiting alive.
They came to a dead end.
Elder Jin touched the stone wall, and after the sound of clicking, a stone door slid open to both sides.
An icy expanse; it was another valley. A serene fragrance wafted through the air.
The scent of the Snow Lotus!
Yun Jinnian and Chu Yu immediately realized, this was where the Moon Worshiping Sect cultivated the Snow Lotus.
The forbidden area behind the mountain, where the Snow Lotus was planted, and where the Law Patriarch once again guarded the Snow Lotus.
"Saintess, we have arrived!" said Elder Jin as he led the way.
Snowflakes drifted from the sky; Yun Jinnian looked up to see a vast expanse of white, unable to see the sky, but feeling exceptionally awed.
Was it nature’s own marvelous handiwork, or the unparalleled ingenuity of the ancestors of the Moon Worshiping Sect, to have found such a place?
"Ah... there’s something moving below..." Han Tianci cried out in surprise.
Chu Yu and Yun Jinnian both looked down at the same time.
Indeed, something was moving beneath their feet.
What exactly was this place?