Yun Zhan still felt lingering fear.

Bai Fanlu was still struggling against the colorful ribbon. “Let me go! You bastard! How dare you show up after trapping me like this! I won’t wear your clothes!”

He was still fixated on the clothes.

Yun Zhan calmly pointed out, “Your clothes were burned earlier. Strictly speaking, aside from this one, you’re not wearing anything underneath.”

Bai Fanlu was furious, “You… you…”

Yun Zhan knew he needed to stop pushing it. The way Bai Fanlu was acting—stubborn and adorable—made it hard for him to hold back.

“I also remember that day when you were swallowed by the Chisel Toother. I carried you out the same way.”

Bai Fanlu looked puzzled, “What nonsense are you talking about?”

“Don’t get so worked up, Senior Brother. I’ll explain everything to you in a bit.”

Bai Fanlu glared at him, “I don’t want to hear your explanations. I want to kill you.”

Yun Zhan smiled nonchalantly, “Even if you want to kill me, wait until we land.”

They floated down from the highest point in the sky. Only when they spotted a distant mountaintop did Yun Zhan descend, finally landing on the peak of Lingjue Mountain. After his tribulation, Yun Zhan’s cultivation had greatly increased, making it easy for him to reach the peak.

Yun Zhan placed Bai Fanlu under the divine tree. Just as Bai Fanlu was about to speak, he felt a chill on his leg as Yun Zhan suddenly lifted his lower garment.

“What are you doing?”

Bai Fanlu tried to retract his leg, but Yun Zhan held his ankle. “You have many injuries.”

Yun Zhan could tell that these were self-inflicted by Cang Jin. He guessed that Bai Fanlu had hurt himself to stay rational while fighting against the Red Lotus Hellfire.

Seeing the numerous wounds on Bai Fanlu’s leg, Yun Zhan frowned, feeling even more guilty for not arriving sooner.

Bai Fanlu was already filled with resentment toward Yun Zhan. Hearing these concerned words only made him angrier. He lashed out, “What? Who do you think caused these injuries? Are you going to help me heal them now?”

“I’ll help you heal.”

As Yun Zhan spoke, he reached out, but Bai Fanlu quickly realized that Yun Zhan wasn’t trying to use healing magic; he was trying to pull at his clothes, which made Bai Fanlu panic.

“You! If you dare to take off my clothes…”

“This is wrong. These are my clothes. Didn’t Senior Brother say you didn’t want to wear my clothes? Then have it your way.”

As Yun Zhan spoke, the colorful ribbon had already bound Bai Fanlu’s hands to the divine tree.

“You…!”

Bai Fanlu was both shocked and furious. He lifted his other leg to kick at Yun Zhan, but Yun Zhan caught it as well.

With both legs now held, Bai Fanlu lost his balance and could only lean back against the divine tree.

Yun Zhan’s gaze swept over Bai Fanlu’s loosely hanging white robes, and he smirked, “This position… it’s quite pleasing to the eye. We could try it again sometime.”

Bai Fanlu was momentarily stunned, then his eyes widened in anger or embarrassment—his face flushed red as he snapped, “Watch your mouth!”

“My mouth is perfectly clean. It’s your thoughts that might not be so pure, right?”

Yun Zhan leaned closer to Bai Fanlu, breathing against his ear. “It seems Senior Brother remembers that we’ve already had some impure moments. Don’t think you can deny it; you slept with me and then tried to act like it didn’t happen.”

“How dare you bring that up! You’re the one who slept with me and then refused to admit it!” Bai Fanlu retorted in a heated moment.

But when did he ever sleep with Yun Zhan?

“…”

Yun Zhan laughed heartily.

Bai Fanlu, realizing he had fallen into another trap, grew even more enraged, his emotions surging—anger, shame, frustration, and sorrow all mingling together. He felt that Yun Zhan was intentionally toying with him. Overcome with fury, Bai Fanlu suddenly broke through several of his blocked acupoints and instantly freed himself from the colorful ribbon.

He struck at Yun Zhan with one hand, sending Yun Zhan flying several meters away. Yun Zhan nearly fell off the peak of Lingjue Mountain.

“Yun Zhan,” Bai Fanlu’s chest heaved with lingering anger, “if you still consider yourself a righteous person, stop playing these two-faced tricks. I’m tired of it.”

Bai Fanlu was seething with anger, and with a flick of his wrist, he tore the supposedly unbreakable colorful ribbon into two pieces.

Seeing this, Yun Zhan’s expression turned serious. “Senior Brother, I’ve never played games with you. I’ve always been sincere. What you remember now isn’t the truth…”

He hesitated, lacking confidence, “At least… it’s not as it appears on the surface.”

“Not as it appears on the surface?” Bai Fanlu sneered. “Then when you pushed me off the cliff just now, what was your real intention?”

Yun Zhan was utterly shocked, but before he could respond, Bai Fanlu continued, “Was it to push me down first and then pull me back up? Give me a slap and then offer a candy? Do you take me for a three-year-old?”

“Senior Brother, wait! You’re saying I pushed you off the cliff?” Yun Zhan exclaimed. “I didn’t do that! I swear by the heavens!”

Bai Fanlu scoffed, clearly not believing him.

Yun Zhan grew anxious. “I’m not a three-year-old either. If I really wanted to push you off, how could I have pulled you up so quickly?”

“…” Bai Fanlu had considered that, but he simply couldn’t bring himself to believe it. He was too afraid to trust.

Seeing that Bai Fanlu was still unmoved, Yun Zhan hurriedly added, “After we parted, I went to get the colorful ribbon. When I returned to find you, you were already down there… I… Wait, the old Wine Immortal can testify for me!”

“You immortals are all in cahoots. You expect me to believe his testimony?” Bai Fanlu shook his head, finding it laughable. “I’d rather trust what I saw with my own eyes.”

“You saw me push you off with your own eyes?”

Bai Fanlu looked at Yun Zhan as if he were a fool, clearly unwilling to answer such a question.

If he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, would he be in so much pain?

Suddenly, Yun Zhan had a revelation. “I know! It must have been Bai Junming! He impersonated me before; it must have been him!”

In his rush to save Bai Fanlu earlier, Yun Zhan hadn’t paid attention to his surroundings. Bai Junming must have been nearby at that time.

“…Impersonated?” It was clear that Bai Fanlu had no memory of what had happened at the Hundred Flowers Pavilion.

Yun Zhan grew increasingly desperate, and then he thought of something, summoning a green bird. “I have the green bird! Master gave us this pair of birds as a sign. I’m the real one!”

Bai Fanlu shook his head, finding it even more amusing. “You may be real, but how can you prove the other person was fake?”

“…” Yun Zhan hesitated, clearly unprepared for that question.

This frantic grasping at straws only served to confirm to Bai Fanlu that Yun Zhan wasn’t lying.

It was actually quite simple—just ask Bai Junming.

“I can confront Bai Junming!” Yun Zhan declared loudly.

He was on the right track, but of course, Bai Fanlu wasn’t going to bring Yun Zhan along to find Bai Junming. Without agreeing or disagreeing, he took a step back and turned as if to leave.

“Senior Brother!” Yun Zhan blocked his path. “Where are you going?”

“It’s none of your business.”

“Do you still not believe what I’m saying? I told you I never wronged you, I never pushed you off the cliff, and those memories in your head—they’re all because of that damned heavenly tribulation. Those things never actually happened to us. Do you believe me when I say that?”

Bai Fanlu raised an eyebrow. “If those things didn’t happen to us, then why are they in my head?”

“…” Yun Zhan gritted his teeth. That was a question he truly couldn’t answer—or rather, one he couldn’t answer yet.

“Moreover…” The hatred in Bai Fanlu’s eyes had faded at some point, and he said, “Does it even matter if I believe you or not? I’m a demon, and you’re an immortal. We’ve already come to this point.”

Yun Zhan stared deeply into his eyes. “What do you mean by ‘this point’?”

Those eyes were as deep as a pool, now even more suffused with a rich purple hue, making them harder to read than ever before.

And the mark on Bai Fanlu’s forehead was also glaringly bright, stabbing at Yun Zhan.

“What do you mean by ‘this point’?” Yun Zhan asked again.

Bai Fanlu felt a deep sense of exhaustion. Why did this person always have to press for answers?

“Immortals and demons walk different paths. Haven’t you ever…”

Heard that before.

Before he could finish, Yun Zhan had already moved, pinning him against the divine tree.

Without giving him a chance to resist, Yun Zhan pressed his lips down onto Bai Fanlu’s.

Bai Fanlu hadn’t expected this at all. For a moment, he was stunned. It wasn’t until Yun Zhan pried his mouth open and began to ravage him with the kiss that Bai Fanlu realized the absurdity of it.

But Yun Zhan held him too tightly, even tighter than the colorful ribbon had. Bai Fanlu had been able to tear apart the ribbon, but he couldn’t break free from this embrace. And, damn it, he found himself somewhat…

Bai Fanlu snapped back to his senses and bit down on Yun Zhan’s tongue.

The taste of blood instantly filled the space between them, but Yun Zhan didn’t let go. Instead, he tried to deepen the kiss, his hand even slipping inside Bai Fanlu’s clothes.

“!” Bai Fanlu had no choice but to release his bite and turn his head away.

Yun Zhan whispered in his ear, “Trying to leave me again? I won’t allow it…”

But before he could deliver another kiss, Bai Fanlu summoned his sword, Cang Jin, transforming it into a dagger and pressing it against Yun Zhan’s neck.

The blade rested against his throbbing artery.

“Yun Zhan, I’ve already told you—we’ve severed all ties.”

“Severed all ties?” Yun Zhan repeated softly. “Alright, then give me a slash right here. Go deep. Only then can we truly sever our ties. Otherwise, don’t even think about me letting you go for the rest of your life.”

Bai Fanlu’s hand trembled slightly, but Yun Zhan didn’t flinch. He just silently gazed into Bai Fanlu’s eyes.

His gaze was dark and heavy, reflecting Bai Fanlu’s own image back at him. Bai Fanlu’s hand shook ever so slightly.

But in truth, his grip on the blade was steady; it was his heart, controlling the blade, that was truly trembling.

The immortal wind blew across Lingjue Peak, lifting the edges of their intertwined robes. They remained locked in this stalemate, neither willing to give in, neither willing to retreat.

After an indeterminate period of silence, a sound from the distance finally broke through.

Yun Zhan reacted first, quickly gathering Bai Fanlu’s clothes to cover him.

Peering over Yun Zhan’s shoulder, Bai Fanlu saw that it was Ling Qingzi and Wang Chongyu approaching.