"Young Master, the Palace Mistress invites you. Please, come with us."
Several girls lifted their lanterns, the red light swirling out and flickering before Quinn Shepherd as their bodies dipped in a graceful salute.
The girls stepped back half a pace, left fists at their waists, right hands lowering the lanterns onto their left, bodies sinking as they offered a formal bow.
Quinn returned the salute, watching as the lanterns spun halfway and the girls turned, their figures elegant as they led the way ahead.
The lanterns’ red candlelight illuminated the path ahead, where the ground was spotless—no fallen leaves to be seen.
Quinn followed them forward, glancing around and trying to deduce the owner of this place from the architecture. Yet the buildings showed no carvings or patterns, giving him no clues about their era.
For Quinn, judging a building’s age by its style was never difficult—every era had its own distinct look, easy to tell apart.
Even in the same era, different races built in wildly different styles.
Yet the palaces in this peach grove had no ornamentation at all—just white walls, red bricks, and blue tiles—simple and unadorned, but with a unique beauty, especially under the starlight and lantern glow: minimalist, yet transcendent.
"Just now, the woman inside said an old friend had arrived. Did she mean me, or perhaps Heaven Duke and Earth Sovereign in my eyes? Or maybe someone the Red Empress knows?"
Quinn sent a ripple of divine sense into the Keane-Sigil Continent and said, "Heaven Duke, I have no idea who the woman in this peach grove is. Can you check from above for me?"
Heaven Duke’s ray-avatar shook his head, "I can't see what’s happening inside the palace. There’s a strange barrier here—when I look, all I see is a flurry of peach blossoms."
Quinn was surprised; Grandpa Blind had also said that when he tried to look at the palace in the peach grove, all he could see were peach blossoms.
"Heaven Duke, you just said I’m in a strange many-heavens. What is this place like?"
Heaven Duke’s voice faded: "The space in these many-heavens is twisted, forming all kinds of folded realms. With a single step, you might cross thousands or tens of thousands of li, or even walk from one world into another. I’ve never seen a place like this..."
His voice vanished, as if something had blocked him.
Quinn tried to sense the Keane-Sigil Continent, but found it had disappeared as well.
He tried to sense the Netherworld, but found he couldn’t reach it either!
He steadied himself, thinking, "If she calls me an old friend, she probably means no harm..."
Soon, he followed the girls into the main hall. Its furnishings were simple, with little decoration—just a few night-luminescent pearls hanging around, their glow making the place feel as warm as spring.
Ahead, a screen blocked the view. Behind it, Quinn could just make out a woman seated, seeming to pluck a zither—slowly, picking a string now and then, no melody but each note lingering.
The woman behind the screen sat sideways, a night-luminescent pearl behind her casting her graceful silhouette onto the screen itself.
The lantern-bearing girls bowed to the woman behind the screen, then turned to hang their lanterns outside the door. One girl brought over a cushion and invited Quinn to sit.
Quinn sat down facing the woman behind the screen, blinking his eyes—and occasionally his Vertical Demon Eye at his brow—but said nothing.
After a while, she plucked another string, and the zither’s tone lingered in the air.
"Heaven Duke is always meddling, bringing you here for no reason."
Her voice was pleasant, and as she turned her head slightly, a lock of hair slipped down her temple; beneath her ear, a pearl earring swayed gently, just visible.
"It’s been a long time since I’ve had a guest. I shouldn’t have met you, but Young Master Quinn once did me a kindness. Since you’ve come, I can’t refuse to see you."
The woman smiled, "It’s rare to see an old friend. I’m a poor hostess; please forgive my lack of welcome."
Quinn’s gaze flickered, trying to see through the screen. Yet whatever treasure it was, even his Ninefold Heaven Eye Art couldn’t pierce it, nor could his Vertical Demon Eye reveal the woman’s true face.