The three of them sat in silence, in a different inn—far from the one where she had lost everything. The rain continued to pour, as if the sky were grieving with them.
A while later, Lin Qian broke the silence.
"Why are you here?"
Xu Yun, tears still in her eyes, replied, "Whatever it is you want to do, we'll help."
Zhao Zhi nodded.
Lin Qian's expression didn't change. "Whatever it is? Are you sure?"
Both Xu Yun and Zhao Zhi nodded.
"I want to destroy Lingxu. I want revenge!" Lin Qian's expression turned fierce and contorted.
"I want them to suffer! I want them to pay!" She was shaking.
"Do you still want to help me?"
Zhao Zhi was a bit taken aback. He had known Lei Wen for a long time. When his best friend announced he was marrying Lin Qian, Zhao Zhi had felt a twinge of envy. Lin Qian was one of the most beautiful doctors in the Celestial Realm – inside out.
Zhao Zhi had never thought Lin Qian capable of harboring hatred this strong.
She had always been their moral compass. Whenever Lei Wen or Zhao Zhi strayed from their calling as doctors, it was Lin Qian who reminded them why they chose to heal, not harm.
But now, she was ready—and it sounded almost like a vow—to destroy not just a person, but an entire sect. And not just any sect—Lingxu was a human sect. That Lin Qian, a Celestial doctor devoted to saving lives, could vow to destroy a group of humans... it spoke volumes about the depth of her hatred.
Xu Yun, on the other hand, wasn't as surprised as Zhao Zhi. She understood perfectly. But she couldn't bear to see her friend make a decision she might regret later.
"Lin Jie," Xu Yun began gently, "I will help you. But I hope your decision isn't born from hatred. I hope it's not something driven by blind grief."
Lin Qian stared at her in silence.
"I agree with you—Lingxu needs to be stopped. But not all of them deserve to die. What we need to do is find the mastermind. Stop him."
"Please," Xu Yun pleaded softly. "I know how much pain you're in. I feel it too. But if you let that pain turn into vengeance, it will eat you alive. You'll lose the part of yourself your husband loved most."
She reached out, gently placing her hand over Lin Qian's. "Please, Lin Jie. You can't go on a rampage and kill blindly. You'll suffer for it too. And I don't want to lose you as well."
Lin Qian continued to stare at Xu Yun. The she inhaled. She patted Xu Yun's hands over hers.
"Thank you for reminding me." Lin Qian smiled gently thru tears.
"Right now, I do want revenge. I can feel that hatred eating at me. Back at the Celestial Realm, I couldn't do anything. I couldn't concentrate on my work. I've made many mistakes I don't normally made. You must've heard about it too."
Lin Qian continued, "Don't worry, Xu Yun. I promise, before I do something, I'll consult with both of you."
Xu Yun and Zhao Zhi nodded. Both visibly relieved to see Lin Qian's senses returned.
-------------------------
Back in the present, Lin Qian looked at Xuan Tian and said quietly, "At that time, I only said that because I didn't want them to stop me and bring me back to the Celestial Realm."
She looked down, her voice trembling. "If only I had listened to Xu Yun, she and Zhao Zhi wouldn't be missing now."
Xuan Tian could hear her quiet sobbing. He didn't know what to do—he had never been known for his ability to comfort others.
"I'm sorry, General," Lin Qian sniffled, pulling herself together. "I got caught up in the past. I'll continue."
She resumed her tale.
Back then, she had explained to her two friends that her first step was to find Bai Xunli of the ICEB—an idea both Xu Yun and Zhao Zhi agreed with.
Since ICEB didn't have an official office in Baishan City, they decided to travel toward the capital. They decided to travel by foot. That way, they could conduct their own investigation into core extractions or clues related to Lingxu while searching for ICEB—without drawing unnecessary attention. They figured they might pass through other cities where ICEB had offices or encounter Enforcers stationed along the route.
Xuan Tian couldn't help thinking, Impressive, doctors. I could definitely assign her to a field mission, he thought dryly.
He sobered back into focus, listening to Lin Qian recount her journey in the Human Realm.
"It was strange, General. We'd travelled for a few days, asked around, but no one seemed to have seen any Enforcers doing their jobs."
Lin Qian continued, "Even in one of the cities we passed, there was an altercation between two cultivators from two small sects. Their fight destroyed a part of the city, and ICEB didn't show up."
"At first we thought they were delayed. So we waited. But nothing, General." She paused briefly.
"When we asked around in that city," Lin Qian went on, "the locals told us that ICEB had rarely showed up anymore. It started about three months before."
Xuan Tian frowned. He knew ICEB was currently struggling to maintain its authority, but he hadn't expected things to have already started deteriorating three and a half years ago.
"And that altercation, just went unchecked?"
Lin Qian shook her head.
"ICEB didn't come, but another group came. I didn't know who they were. It wasn't a big group—just three cultivators. But they handled the situation quickly and efficiently."
Xuan Tian exhaled, "Let me guess, these three cultivators, they didn't really belong to one particular sect, but from at least two different sects."
Lin Qian looked at Xuan Tian, curious, "How did you know, General?"
Xuan Tian didn't answer her. He remembered now—One had reported that the Crown Prince had fallen mysteriously ill around that time. The Emperor had shifted all focus to his son. He ordered ICEB to pull back and concentrate on finding a cure for the Crown Prince. It all lined up.
He muttered to himself, "So that's how it started."
This was when the Alliance started to form. Xuan Tian was certain that Lingxu was behind the Crown Prince falling ill. They had orchestrated it to force the Emperor to pull back ICEB, which was exactly what happened. This was when ICEB began losing their authority—and they had been struggling to regain it ever since.