A sigh sounded out of nowhere.
But in that sigh, there was a lazy undertone that couldn't quite be described.
"You're always like this."
Lily Zhao muttered softly to herself.
"Huh?"
Evan didn't quite catch it: "Did you say something?"
"No, I didn't say anything."
That mark I left on the Bai family, passed down for generations, already took a lot of time and effort. As for the places you mentioned, I've never even heard of them, so those Woman Statues weren't left by me, Lily Zhao.
"You came here hoping to find your master, Lily Zhao. I'm Lily Zhao too, but I'm not your master."
"Your answer isn't what I wanted, but it was within my expectations."
"I actually wanted to ask something."
"What do you want to ask?" Evan looked at her.
Lily Zhao reached out and tapped Evan's head. "How could I, Lily Zhao, just casually pick a dao‑partner?"
Lily Zhao blinked, her eyes sparkling with a bright light.
Evan sat there, frozen, his mind buzzing.
Evan was stunned for a moment, recalling that his master Lily Zhao once said she was waiting.
In front of Lily Zhao, he really couldn't muster any Immortal Lord aura.
At that thought, a wave of inexplicable sadness and discomfort welled up inside Evan.
"Isn't there anything else you want to know?"
Zhao Liuli straightened up and stretched lazily.
The candlelight flickered.
The light was dim.
"Where is my master?"
This was the answer Evan wanted most.
Even though the Lily Zhao in front of him wasn't his master, the fact that he met her meant his master was likely somewhere on Earth too.
Thinking this, Evan couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement.
"I don't know."
Lily Zhao shook her head decisively. "I don't even know how many years I've been here, so how could I know where your master is?"
"But I can sense that she's still alive, at least her body and dao haven't been destroyed."
"So does that mean my master has already ascended to the Immortal Realm?" Evan asked hesitantly.
Back then, he trained bitterly and fought hard, earning the name Immortal Lord Jiuxuan, finally climbing the Heaven‑Climbing Stairway and opening the Heaven Gate—just one step away from entering the Immortal Realm.
All of it was to find Lily Zhao.
"She hasn't ascended. Even if she had the strength, she wouldn't ascend alone. You can rest assured about that."
Lily Zhao continued to shake her head.
"She wouldn't ascend alone?"
Evan was stunned for a moment, recalling that his master Lily Zhao once said she was waiting.
Was she waiting for someone to ascend with her?
That mark I left on the Bai family, passed down for generations, already took a lot of time and effort. As for the places you mentioned, I've never even heard of them, so those Woman Statues weren't left by me, Lily Zhao.
Thinking that, Evan felt an inexplicable sadness and discomfort deep down.
The feeling came out of nowhere.
It was as if she saw right through Evan's thoughts.
"What's going on in that little brain of yours?"
Lily Zhao reached out and tapped Evan's head. "How could I, Lily Zhao, just casually pick a dao‑partner?"
"Asking for a beating."
She wrinkled her nose and tapped Evan's head again.
Evan scratched his head awkwardly.
In front of Lily Zhao, he really couldn't muster any Immortal Lord aura.
Even now, he still didn't fully understand the relationship between this Lily Zhao and his master.
"Just trust me. She's still alive, waiting for the one she's waiting for."
"You should still be able to meet her again."
Lily Zhao looked absolutely certain.
"What about the Immortal Martial Continent?"
Evan asked, "Where exactly is the Immortal Martial Continent? Can I ever go back?"
"As for the Immortal Martial Continent, I don't know how to explain it right now, but when the time comes, you'll naturally return."
Lily Zhao shook her head. "But don't be too anxious. 'Karma' is called 'karma' because it'll give you an answer at the right time."
The Woman Statue.
Listening to Lily Zhao, Evan nodded, closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and calmed himself.
He really had a head full of confusion that needed answers.
"Besides leaving the Woman Statue brand on the Bai family, did you ever leave it anywhere else?"
"For example, in Whitewood County, on Three Thousand Mountains, at the Southriver Sword Sect, or in the ancient tomb on Thornridge Mountain where you saw that emperor's puppet."
All of this was tied to a single woman.
This was the question Evan cared about most.
He saw Lily Zhao through the Woman Statue mark on Bai Luoshui's forehead.
But before that, those real, tangible Woman Statues that kept appearing in Evan's life and reality—almost everywhere—were what troubled him most.
"No."
Lily Zhao shook her head firmly.
"When I met the Bai family, time was tight. I didn't have much time to think about anything else."
That mark I left on the Bai family, passed down for generations, already took a lot of time and effort. As for the places you mentioned, I've never even heard of them, so those Woman Statues weren't left by me, Lily Zhao.
After finishing, she looked at Evan, then suddenly raised her head and stared above him for a moment.
"What's wrong?"
Evan noticed her expression change and thought she'd remembered something, so he quickly asked.
"It's nothing, I just spaced out for a bit."
Lily Zhao shook her head, then paused and said, "I can see the karma on you, but I didn't expect these things would still be following you."
Karma.
Hearing her words...
Evan instantly remembered the things that had appeared in the photos taken by Bella Xiao.
White clothes, black hair, red cord.
These things had always lingered in Evan's heart, an unsolvable mystery.
"Do you know the origin of this 'karma'?"
Even as an Immortal Lord, Evan couldn't understand that stuff, but he instinctively felt it was somehow connected to his fate.
Including how he was able to enter the Immortal Martial Continent.
Including how he returned to this world.
But he had no clues or leads, and it was impossible to figure it out.
"If I were at my peak, maybe I could deduce something, but right now, I can't."
Lily Zhao shook her head. "But don't be too anxious. 'Karma' is called 'karma' because it'll give you an answer at the right time."
"You don't even need to search for it on purpose. It'll come to you on its own."
Listening to Lily Zhao, Evan nodded, closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and calmed himself.
Then he opened his eyes.
"One last question I want to know."
Evan looked at Lily Zhao in front of him.