Adepti usually lived in seclusion, far removed from worldly affairs.
Even among themselves, they rarely visited one another.
The last time five adepti had gathered inside the Serenitea Pot had been centuries ago—
back when they came together to celebrate Morax's six-thousandth birthday.
Though the Geo Archon himself did not attend, the adepti had celebrated all the same, lively and unrestrained.
Today, old friends reunited once more, exchanging polite greetings.
To Madame Ping, however, their words sounded oddly cold.
But she understood them well.
Their emotional awareness might be lacking—but their wisdom and strength were not.
"Fellow Daoists, please calm yourselves," Madame Ping said slowly.
"I summoned you here today for one reason only—to learn the True Immortal Path…"
She carefully relayed everything Severin had said.
The moment she finished, the five adepti erupted in anger.
"Outrageous! He dares call us false immortals?!"
"We followed the Geo Archon through the Archon War, fought in the calamity five hundred years ago, and survived countless battles! Our titles were earned with blood and merit!"
"Defy the Heavenly Principles? Arrogant nonsense!"
"I don't know this Snezhnayan Prince, but judging from his words alone, he is conceited beyond measure. Even the Archon's title was granted by the heavens—how dare he rebel against them!"
"Using so-called 'True Immortal arts' to bewitch us—his intentions are clearly sinister!"
The five had lived in isolation for far too long.
They knew nothing of Snezhnaya's stance against the Heavenly Principles, nor of Severin's rise.
Madame Ping listened patiently, then calmly revealed a single fact.
"Before the Geo Archon entered seclusion, the Snezhnayan Prince was personally received by him."
"And after that seclusion began, the Geo Archon appointed him as Acting Regent of Liyue, equal in authority to himself."
The reaction was immediate.
"So that's the case…" said Moonlit Cloud Retainer. "I can scarcely remember the last time I saw the Geo Archon. If he met this man personally, then he must possess real ability."
"An Acting Regent wields the Archon's governing authority," said Vermillion Reckoning. "The Geo Archon clearly values him."
"To earn the Archon's approval is no small thing," added Moon Carver.
"I trust the Geo Archon's judgment," said Mountain Shaper.
"Since he holds such status," concluded Cloud Retainer, "I have no objection to observing this so-called True Immortal Path."
Madame Ping then added, calmly,
"He was offered the position of Acting Regent at the Jade Chamber… and he refused it."
The room exploded once more.
"He refused the Geo Archon's arrangement?! That is blatant disrespect!"
"Now I truly want to see what kind of 'immortal art' he possesses."
"I'll be there tomorrow. I'll judge for myself whether he's a fraud or the real deal."
"So will I."
"Agreed."
With the decision made, Madame Ping smiled faintly.
"Then why not stay the night? The Serenitea Pot is no worse than your abodes in Jueyun Karst. Coincidentally, I've recently comprehended a new technique and require sufficiently strong opponents to… test it."
At the word test, every adeptus stiffened.
"I suddenly remembered I have urgent matters."
"I must study mechanisms—time is tight."
"I'm not suited for sparring."
"I… haven't had dinner yet."
"I have an appointment to instruct my disciples tonight."
One by one, excuses flew out as the five adepti hurried to flee.
Among all the adepti, Madame Ping's strength was the greatest.
After the Archon War, Morax had tasked her with overseeing the adepti and yaksha.
Her so-called "testing new techniques" sessions were infamous—
she never held back, and her sparring partners were often beaten to the brink of collapse.
Over time, the mere mention of her "testing" struck fear into their hearts.
"Hmph. None of you give me any face at all," Madame Ping said coldly.
Before she could say more—
"Master! Second Master! Third Master! Fourth Master! Fifth Master!"
A childish voice rang out.
Everyone turned to see Yaoyao waving from a window.
"It's Yaoyao!"
The five adepti instantly swarmed toward her room, seizing the chance to escape the "ferocious" Madame Ping.
Yaoyao was Liyue's beloved darling—
with her involved, Madame Ping could only snort softly and let them go.
She returned alone to the table, once again lost in memories of the past.
The Next Day
At dawn, when the eastern sky had just begun to pale, Severin entered the Serenitea Pot on the dot.
Waiting for him was Yaoyao.
"Your Highness, Grandmaster sent me to receive you."
Her "Grandmaster," of course, was Madame Ping.
"And where is your Senior Sister Yanfei?" Severin asked.
"Grandmaster said Senior Sister is busy with work, so she sent me instead."
"If Your Highness is displeased, I can go fetch her right away… but first I must ask Grandmaster."
Yaoyao's tone was clever—deliberate.
Severin immediately understood.
Madame Ping had intentionally kept Yanfei away.
He could guess the reason.
She likely wished to prevent Yanfei from growing too entangled with him.
Severin spoke softly, as if to himself:
"Bodhi was never a tree,
Nor is the bright mirror a stand.
Originally there is not a single thing—
Where could dust ever gather?"
"Your Highness… is that a poem?" Yaoyao asked, blinking.
Severin merely smiled. "Lead the way."
"Heehee!" Yaoyao nodded enthusiastically.
Behind them, the Mirror Maiden quietly wrote the verse down.
Every word Severin spoke in passing was worthy of record, destined for future historians.
Halfway there, Yaoyao suddenly looked up.
"Your Highness, can you hold my hand?"
Before Severin could answer, the Mirror Maiden intervened sharply.
"Your Highness—absolutely not."
She quickly explained.
Two years earlier in Snezhnaya, during an inspection tour, Severin had once held a newborn at the desperate request of fanatic admirers, merely out of compassion.
The next day, after he departed, the parents murdered the child and turned her into a shrine idol.
The perpetrators were executed by law—but the incident left a permanent scar.
Severin learned then that overwhelming prestige was a double-edged blade.
A single careless kindness could cost innocent lives.
"Your Highness," the Mirror Maiden said solemnly,
"Even though this is not Snezhnaya, we must remain vigilant."
Severin stopped walking.
His gaze fell on Yaoyao—pure, trusting, utterly untainted.
After a brief silence, he gently placed his cloak between them instead.
"Walk close," he said calmly.
"But do not touch."
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