The odds of Luan Ling running into Gua had reached a frequency even greater than a celestial being’s ascension. Today, from the little Fishing Fairy’s own words, she learned the truth about what had happened.

It turned out that the little Fishing Fairy had originally been cultivating in the residence of that Divine Lord. Being playful, she had wandered off mid-practice, and when she returned, a multicolored spirit fish had appeared in her cultivation pond. Since the little Fishing Fairy was herself a water-element spirit beast in humanoid form, she immediately noticed that the spirit fish was near death. She had intended to consult the Divine Lord on what to do, but before she could, the spirit fish vanished. Soon after, both the Divine Lord and the Fairy came to her, angry. They had traced the residual aura of the spirit fish in her pond and didn’t believe her story that the fish had appeared while she was away playing.

For a spirit beast, a multicolored spirit fish was immensely nourishing for cultivation, and consuming a fellow of its kind could dramatically increase one’s power.

The aura lingering in the pond left the little Fishing Fairy at a loss for words, so they took her to report her transgression. She could say nothing at the time, and no one believed her. However, she had heard Luan Ling mention that if there were a spell capable of revealing the truth, they would believe her.

“I see…”

Luan Ling nodded thoughtfully. “No problem. Tomorrow, I’ll go with you. Don’t worry. If you truly didn’t do it, the Tracing Origin Technique will restore everything that happened and ensure you aren’t falsely accused.”

These were gods, after all—a simple monitoring spell was nothing.

The little Fishing Fairy gratefully grabbed her hand. “Divine Lord, I owe you a great debt. I have nothing of value to offer, but these are some treasures I’ve collected from the Celestial Realm. If you’re interested, you may take them all.”

With a flourish of her hand, a pile of… well, let’s just say rare trinkets appeared—items that one would struggle to collect without wandering the Celestial Realm extensively.

“Where did you even find these? I’ve never seen such wild-looking Purple Jade Flowers.”

Luan Ling looked at the chaotic cluster of purple jade flowers, then at the other items that clearly didn’t match the style. She said to the fairy, “These were given to you by the Divine Lord, right? You should keep them.”

“No, no, no! If you like them, you can take everything—right now!”

The little Fishing Fairy said, “Otherwise, I might forget about them over time.”

Could this be the legendary memory of fish? Luan Ling, worried the fairy wouldn’t trust her if she didn’t watch her take something, casually selected one inconspicuous… well, still quite eye-catching purple jade flower.

“Dingjin, you go back first. Tomorrow, when everyone is present, I’ll make sure justice is done,” Luan Ling said.

But she didn’t expect that the next day, she couldn’t even enter the Divine Lord’s residence.

“This matter doesn’t concern you. The Celestial Realm has its own procedures. As a student of the Celestial Academy, you shouldn’t interfere in matters of celestial law,” the attendants of the Divine Lord told her when they turned her away.

Luan Ling felt inexplicably frustrated, but they weren’t entirely wrong. Taking the spirit fish without authorization had already violated celestial law. Even investigating the truth was the responsibility of celestial enforcers, not a well-meaning bystander like her. After all, she hadn’t witnessed the incident herself; the investigation would primarily rely on the Tracing Origin Technique.

Still, having promised to help and then being barred left Luan Ling with a sense of unease.

“Then let’s just sneak in and take a look,” Si Zhuo said, leaning against a tree. “After all, it’s not like we haven’t done it before.”

Li Xiao disagreed. “You two were recently punished with confinement. If caught again, it could be more than just that. Trespassing into the Divine Lord’s residence could even get you expelled from the academy.”

Zhu Yin struck a cymbal sharply, making Luan Ling even more anxious. Being expelled from the Celestial Academy didn’t hold much weight for her personally—her studies were mostly self-directed—but she dreaded the reaction of the Empress of Heaven. The mere thought pressed heavily on her.

The Empress disliked her, yet publicly disciplined her strictly. If it were only her, Luan Ling might resist, but her attitude towards all gods was the same. Even the seasoned celestial beings feared her, so one young godling like Luan Ling had little room for defiance.

Si Tu spoke up. “Or… we could try appealing to the Divine Lord? Even if Luan Ling can’t use the Tracing Origin Technique, at least we could see the situation firsthand.”

“It won’t work,” Luan Ling shook her head. “If appealing got you in, I would’ve done it already. Face or promises aside, I should have gone with her last night to use the Tracing Origin Technique instead of waiting for daylight.”

Zhu Yin remained silent, beating a series of strong drum rhythms.

At this moment, Si Zhuo seemed to remember something. Suddenly standing, he said to Luan Ling, “If you want to uncover the truth, the Tracing Origin Technique isn’t the only method.”

Luan Ling looked at him hopefully.

Si Zhuo continued, “As the kings of water-element spirits, the Eastern Sea Dragon Clan can communicate freely with awakened water-element beings. For those not yet awakened, we can use Dragon Breath to awaken their consciousness and guide them.”

Luan Ling’s eyes lit up. “This sounds like your specialty.”

Si Zhuo smirked at her expectant expression. “Do you want my help?”

Luan Ling nodded vigorously.

Si Zhuo smiled even wider. “Then beg me.”

Luan Ling froze.

Si Zhuo raised an eyebrow. “So what now? You don’t want to beg, don’t want to invite me, but still want me to help…”

It was clear he still held a grudge about the band incident. Luan Ling pursed her lips into a downward curve and turned to leave.

If necessary, she could let the celestial guards catch her!

A few seconds later—

Luan Ling teleported in front of Si Zhuo and hissed, “I beg you, but don’t get smug. Mainly, I’ve never seen a spirit fish talk.”

Si Zhuo shook his head. “That’s not the way to beg.”

Li Xiao intervened. “Junior Brother… we’re colleagues in the future. Don’t make our Senior Sister angry.”

Luan Ling raised her hand. “Senior Brother, don’t worry. I can throw modesty aside for this.”

She then grabbed Si Zhuo’s arm and spoke in a sticky, exaggerated tone:

“Greatest True Dragon of the Eastern Sea, fearless in front of Heaven itself, most formidable of the Tiangui, Si Zhuo—please, for the sake of celestial peace, help your powerless classmate uphold justice~~~”

Li Xiao and Si Tu couldn’t bear to watch, while Zhu Yin beat a series of explosive rhythms. Si Zhuo, apparently amused, said gently, “Since the most righteous of the Celestial Realm has no authority and invites me to act, I shall reluctantly oppose this foolish celestial order and let the fish speak for itself.”

What were they even saying…

Watching their departing figures, Li Xiao muttered a silent complaint.

True to his word, though this didn’t technically break celestial law, Luan Ling still felt a bit guilty. She casually wandered toward the fairy pond, while Si Zhuo, unfazed, swaggered and prepared to transform—after all, having burned the Celestial Realm before, arrogance came easily to him.

Dragon Breath wasn’t as simple as Luan Ling thought. Si Zhuo needed to channel his power carefully. Curious, she asked, “I thought you’d just wave your hand and instantly awaken it like those Divine Lords.”

Si Zhuo gave her a sidelong glance. “If I could do that, would I be teaching at the Celestial Academy? I’d already have a position managing the Celestial Realm…”

“No way, no way!”

Luan Ling quickly covered her mouth. “If any gods hear this, we’d be struck by lightning.”

“Think they can strike through here?”

Si Zhuo wasn’t worried, joking casually, though his expression grew serious as he began imparting Dragon Breath to the spirit fish.

The breath dispersed into the pond like food for fish, and the scattered fish suddenly swam toward it as if summoned, eager to absorb the energy.

Si Zhuo had previously encased the multicolored spirit fish in a water ball, so he quickly located it. Soon, a fish radiating multicolored light floated midair, fins and tail moving.

The commotion drew nearby gods, but before they could react, Si Zhuo transformed into his true form, hovering above the pond.

Luan Ling hadn’t expected such a scene. As more gods gathered, she felt embarrassed, though Si Zhuo paid no attention. After circling, he prepared to exhale Dragon Breath when suddenly a figure appeared in front of the spirit fish, shielding it.

“Stop! Don’t continue!”

Si Zhuo almost choked. Luan Ling frowned. She immediately recognized the figure—it was one of the fairies who had accompanied the Divine Lord from earlier, pleading for the little Fishing Fairy’s forgiveness.

“The fairy pond is a blessed place, and the multicolored spirit fish is a guardian. The Divine Lord is a descendant of the Dragon Clan. Surely you understand restraint. Why transform here and disrupt the order?”

Si Zhuo, holding back his Dragon Breath, tried to sweep her away with a tail, when suddenly the Divine Lord Wei Sheng descended, supporting the fairy who had almost been hit, and prepared to strike Si Zhuo.

Luan Ling quickly positioned herself in front of Si Zhuo, blocking the Divine Lord’s move.

“Divine Lord, I have always memorized celestial laws. Nowhere does it state that one cannot transform at the fairy pond. The spirit fish approached voluntarily, drawn to the Dragon Breath, with other gods present. How does this disrupt order? Yet you, as a Divine Lord, attack two inexperienced minor gods without verifying the facts. Even if this reaches the Empress of Heaven, the Divine Lord will have little justification.”

Wei Sheng felt a strange force restraining his divine senses, and his intention to strike grew heavier. Luan Ling’s presence was no secret, yet no one in the Celestial Realm took this “Divine Lord” seriously—an awkward position, unknown abilities, even the source of the Divine Lord title a mystery, and still young. Who would truly believe Luan Ling could oppose a legitimate Divine Lord?

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