Before long, Clara Heart left South Heaven Gate, with Nathan Young—who wore a thoroughly baffled expression—at her side.
The two headed toward the mortal realm, but not along the westward journey where the Monkey King was; instead, they flew southeast.
"Where exactly are you trying to go?"
Nathan Young asked this more than once along the way. Yet Clara Heart never answered, only occasionally lowering her head to ponder the Silver-White Pearl in her hand, as if deep in thought.
For centuries, she had always stayed close to her two masters—never straying more than a hundred feet from either. Even on the rare occasions she snuck out, if anything happened, one of them would appear instantly. Sometimes it was Master Sage Subhuti, sometimes Lord Lao, and sometimes a fellow disciple who had reached a certain level of cultivation. No matter the time or place, someone was always watching over her.
In the past, she simply thought her masters were strict and cared for her deeply, which was why they watched over her so closely.
Of course, Clara Heart had once questioned the reason behind all this. After all, she wasn’t particularly gifted, and aside from her two masters, she had no remarkable background. How could an ordinary girl, from birth, attract the favor of two great powers and be accepted as an inner-door disciple by both?
It was an unprecedented thing—almost every immortal who first heard of it found it unbelievable and even questioned it to some extent. But such doubts were never answered, not even by Clara Heart herself.
As time passed, it simply became the norm.
But just now, she suddenly realized something—the situation seemed to be changing.
When did it start?
It seemed to begin when Master Sage Subhuti asked her to deliver something to the Ancestor of the Earth-Immortals.
Just now, she realized that no one was following her anymore—not even the disciples from Crescent Star Cave or Tusita Palace who used to accompany her.
She hadn’t tried to avoid anyone, yet they had all gone their own ways. This felt very different from before. And just then, this strange Silver-White Pearl appeared...
Vaguely, she already knew who had given her the Silver-White Pearl.
But why did he choose to give her this Pearl now? Just as she was determined to investigate the events of six hundred years ago, and just when she felt lost about where to begin, he handed her this Pearl—one she hadn’t even known existed—in such a deliberate way.
What had seemed hazy and impossible to approach suddenly became traceable.
Was this meant to urge her to keep moving forward?
Was there something at the end of this path she had to know, something her two masters couldn’t tell her directly?
Clara Heart couldn’t figure it out, so all she could do was follow the path set before her.
Subtly, she could already sense it clearly: her two masters were quietly guiding her, leading her toward a buried truth. Unfortunately, once she became conscious of this, that initial feeling of curiosity and excitement faded away completely, leaving only a sense of vast emptiness.
Soon enough, the two of them had crossed ten thousand miles and arrived in Eastrealm.
Watching Clara Heart forge ahead, Nathan Young suddenly realized where they were headed. He stopped in alarm and asked, "Are you trying to go to Blossom Mountain?"
Clara Heart paused and glanced back at Nathan, countering calmly, "Is there a problem?"
"The Heavenly Court hasn’t set foot on Blossom Mountain in centuries. It’s forbidden territory."
"Who made that rule?"
"Well..." Nathan scratched his head and frowned. "There isn’t an explicit rule, but the demon clans treat it as sacred ground. If you trespass on Blossom Mountain, you might invite unnecessary disaster. Everyone in Heaven knows that much."
Clara Heart lifted her head, thinking for a moment. "Have you ever been to Blossom Mountain before?"
"I have."
"Did you go with an army, or did you sneak in alone?"
"I’ve tried both ways."
"Did you ever meet that monkey on Blossom Mountain?"
"Of course. Why else would I go there?"
"That settles it. General Lee didn’t send the wrong person."
With that, Clara Heart turned and continued on her way.
Seeing Clara Heart heading southeast without a glance back, Nathan Young hesitated for a moment, then had no choice but to follow.
Soon, the two of them landed on the outskirts of Blossom Mountain.
Standing atop a hanging cliff, Clara Heart faced the wind, gazing at the scene before her with a sense of unfamiliarity.
With the lifting of the Rain Ban Decree, the land finally welcomed long-awaited dew, and the once-tormenting yellow sandstorms eased considerably. Yet, this did not make the landscape any more beautiful.
The previously oppressive dust had vanished, and everything once buried beneath it was now exposed, like a scar that had long been concealed finally revealed to the world.
Endless ruins buried under yellow sand and red earth, toppled stone pillars, shattered walls, mountains smashed to pieces in ancient battles, and massive boulders half-buried in the ground, jutting out above the surface...
The wounds inflicted on this land by the war six hundred years ago have still not fully healed, even to this day.
“Is this really Blossom Mountain?”
“Mm.”
“It hardly matches its name,” Clara Heart sighed softly.
“It wasn’t always like this,” Nathan Young replied coolly. “In the earliest days, this was a forested mountain, spring all year round, teeming with birds and beasts. Later, the demon clans rose here and turned it into a demon kingdom. After that... the great war struck, Heaven imposed the Rain Ban Decree, the demons scattered, and only then did it become like this. The Rain Ban was only lifted recently; a year or two ago, you wouldn’t have seen even a trace of green here.”
Two sparrows cried out as they flew overhead.
Lowering her gaze, Clara Heart noticed tiny patches of green stubbornly sprouting in the cracks between the rocks. Time was still short, and in this land saturated with the aura of death, such greenery was barely noticeable.
After a brief pause, Nathan Young continued, “There are still some demons here. If we want to go in, our identities aren’t exactly suitable. It’s best if we disguise ourselves as demons.”
As he spoke, Nathan Young turned to look at Clara Heart, only to find that she was already rising into the air, descending toward the cliff below.
Nathan Young was startled and quickly transformed himself into a rat demon to follow her.
No sooner had he landed than Nathan Young urgently shouted at Clara Heart, “You’ll really get yourself into trouble like this!”
“What kind of trouble?” Clara Heart kept walking forward, unconcerned.
Nathan Young felt a chill run down his scalp.
What on earth is this Honored Aunt planning?
He couldn't figure it out, but he couldn't just leave her alone either. Raising his guard, he kept close behind her, maintaining his rat demon disguise.
A gentle wind swept through the ruins, producing all manner of eerie sounds as it passed.
Within the ruins, one of them strolled as if through a peaceful garden, while the other crept along like a spy in enemy territory, glancing nervously in all directions.
Seeing Nathan Young’s tense expression, Clara Heart commented languidly, “Don’t be so nervous. In the past, Heaven dared not set foot here because of the situation at the time. Although the demon kings have all left, and even fight amongst themselves now and then, none have ever dared to declare a complete break from Blossom Mountain. Blossom Mountain is the banner of the demon race. In other words, Heaven avoids this place because it doesn’t want to give them an excuse to unite again. Now that the Monkey King has returned, such worries are meaningless.”
“How do you know all this? Have you researched it?”