Judging by the direction Princess Lana was flying, it had to be the end of the Heavenly River. Ian Song immediately thought of a certain legend—the tale of the Seventh Fairy and Don Young, said to be imprisoned together in a desolate, icy domain at the river’s end.
"So she’s going to see the Seventh Fairy!"
Ian was genuinely curious about the legendary Seventh Fairy and Don Young—he wanted to meet them both.
Princess Lana wasn’t flying very fast; she spent over three hours before finally arriving at the end of the Heavenly River.
"Greetings, Sixth Princess!"
Outside the icy domain stood a pair of Heaven Soldiers on guard.
"This is a token from the Queen Mother of the West!"
Princess Lana flashed a token, and the group of Heaven Soldiers immediately dropped to one knee.
"You may all rise. I’m just here to visit my Seventh Sister!"
With that, Princess Lana stepped into the frigid domain, instinctively shrinking her neck against the cold. She silently cursed, "This place is way too freezing. I need to rescue my Seventh Sister from here soon. Hmph, it’s all Don Young’s fault—if not for him, my sister wouldn’t have suffered so much!"
After flying another dozen or so li, a small courtyard made of ice and snow came into Princess Lana’s view.
"Seventh Sis, little Seven, I’ve come to see you!"
Princess Lana happily pushed open the gate and walked in. At that moment, the Seventh Fairy, dressed in purple, was spinning cloud-silk at a spinning wheel, weaving brocade from collected rainbow clouds. Don Young sat nearby, book in hand, swaying as he read—looking every bit the classic bookworm.
"Sixth Sister, you’re here."
The Seventh Fairy quickly stood up and greeted her with joy. Don Young, awkward and wooden, also rose to salute: "Don Young greets the Sixth Princess."
"Mm."
Princess Lana only nodded coldly at Don Young, then pulled her Seventh Sister aside for a private chat.
Left alone, Don Young felt embarrassed. He sat down again and tried to keep reading, but couldn’t focus; he kept sneaking glances at the two sisters, his gaze tinged with obsession.
Watching from his hidden spot, Ian was disappointed by the legendary Don Young: his looks were average, his temperament a bit sleazy, and if Ian wasn’t mistaken, the guy was actually peeping at Princess Lana.
Eating from one bowl while thinking about another pot!
Ian couldn’t help but feel a bit of contempt for Don Young—though, to be fair, he didn’t reflect much on himself, considering he had more than ten wives.
The Seventh Fairy, on the other hand, didn’t disappoint Ian. She radiated an ethereal aura, and her beauty was on par with Princess Lana.
Princess Lana said, "In three months, the Heavenly Court will hold another Peach Banquet. The other sisters and I have already discussed it—we’ll ask Mother to let you join us in performing a dance. That’s your chance to apologize, and Mother will definitely forgive you!"
"Will Mother really forgive me?" The Seventh Fairy looked worried, glancing over at Don Young.
Seeing her glance, Don Young quickly stopped peeping at Princess Lana and pretended to read his book seriously.
Princess Lana was very confident: "Don’t worry, it’s been so long—Mother’s anger must have faded by now. Besides, you’ve suffered here for years and received enough punishment. As long as you apologize sincerely, I’m sure she’ll forgive you!"
"Alright!"
The Seventh Fairy nodded and agreed.
Back then, she had defied Heaven’s rules to stay in the mortal world with Don Young.
Later, though the Queen Mother sent people to bring them back to the Heavenly Court, she didn’t make things hard for them. Instead, she imprisoned them together and even gave Don Young an Immortal Medicine pill so they could stay together forever.
So in her heart, she never blamed the Queen Mother—in fact, she was deeply grateful.
In the blink of an eye, nearly a thousand years had passed. She and Don Young had been together for a millennium, but their feelings had faded from passionate to almost indifferent. Don Young was a total bookworm, clueless about romance, and their life together had grown unbearably dull. Sometimes, waking up cold in the middle of the night, she couldn’t help but regret her choice.
What hurt her even more was that Don Young seemed to have feelings for her Sixth Sister...
She wasn’t blind—every time her Sixth Sister came to visit, Don Young would secretly ogle her. She knew, but didn’t want to call him out, so her dissatisfaction with Don Young only grew.
Apparently, her Sixth Sister had noticed too, and her attitude toward Don Young was getting colder and colder.
Princess Lana chatted with her Seventh Sister for a while longer before leaving.
"My lady, what did the Sixth Princess say to you?"
As soon as Princess Lana left, Don Young couldn’t wait to ask.
The Seventh Fairy looked at Don Young with a complicated expression, making him nervous.
After a long pause, the Seventh Fairy finally spoke: "Sixth Sister wants me to join the other sisters in performing at the Peach Banquet in three months, and use the chance to apologize to Mother."
"That’s not possible!" Don Young blurted out instinctively.
"Why not?" the Seventh Fairy countered.
Don Young asked anxiously, "If the Queen Mother lets you return to the Heavenly Court, what happens to me?"
Hearing this, the Seventh Fairy felt a sudden wave of irritation. She patiently replied, "Don’t worry—if Mother forgives me and lets me return, after some time I’ll plead for her to allow you into the Heavenly Court too!"
"No way! I don’t agree!" Don Young refused flatly.
"Why?" the Seventh Fairy asked reflexively.
"If we go back, we go together. If not, we both stay here." Don Young insisted, though he had his own selfish reasons—if the Seventh Fairy returned and forgot him, he’d be left alone in this frozen prison forever.
That’s why he demanded they either return together or stay together.
After all she’d been through, the Seventh Fairy was no longer the naïve girl she once was. She instantly guessed Don Young’s true motives and felt deeply disappointed. She hadn’t expected him to be so selfish.
Still, after a thousand years as husband and wife, even if their feelings had faded, the Seventh Fairy agreed.
Watching all this from the shadows, Ian shook his head again. Don Young was truly disgraceful—a scumbag willing to drag his wife down just so he wouldn’t suffer alone.
He’d originally thought about helping these so-called star-crossed lovers, but now Ian saw Don Young wasn’t worth any help.
With a flicker, Ian vanished and caught up with Princess Lana on her way back to the Heavenly Court.
"Hmph, that Don Young is really trash. Peeping at me again! If I’d exposed him back then, my Seventh Sister wouldn’t have had to suffer so much!"
Back then, the Seventh Fairy secretly descended to the mortal world to help Don Young escape the Ma Family—she had to weave a hundred bolts of fine cloth overnight, so she called her six elder sisters to help.
Unexpectedly, Don Young discovered their secret: all the sisters were celestial fairies, and he became infatuated with Princess Lana.
He made a move, secretly writing a love poem for Princess Lana, but she sternly rejected him. Knowing her Seventh Sister liked Don Young, she didn’t expose him.
Unable to win the Sixth Fairy, Don Young turned to pursue the Seventh Fairy, who had feelings for him.
With the Seventh Fairy’s help, Don Young managed to buy out his servitude and leave the Ma Family. When the other fairies tried to persuade the Seventh Fairy to return to Heaven, Don Young overheard and played the bitter-meat trick to guilt her into staying in the mortal world.
He knew that if he stuck to the Seventh Fairy, he’d have a shot at becoming immortal.