But compared to Little Seven, the Great Fairy was undoubtedly more troublesome—careful and commanding many followers, not to be underestimated.
Quickly composing herself, Su Fu calmly approached the group.
Yuqing respectfully stepped aside, the others forming a guard on both sides.
Su Fu’s peripheral vision caught the number of them: eight.
A direct confrontation would surely cause a big scene.
Qingluo stood at the back, shoulders trembling, unable to meet the “Seven Fairy’s” gaze.
This was the fairy who had just killed an examinee in the courtyard.
And left no trace at the scene, as if nothing had happened.
To be able to kill so cleanly indicated the Seven Fairy was immensely powerful, essentially overwhelming.
Qingluo turned her head slightly, her eyes flickering to the small house.
Through the door crack loomed a dark shadow, even more eerie.
Her throat tightened, ‘What was hidden in there? Had the examinee already been thrown into that room?’
Most importantly, would she be next?
She fought to control her breathing, hiding her fear.
“Absolutely must not be discovered… absolutely must not…”
At that moment, the flowing purple gown appeared before her eyes.
“You…” the Seven Fairy’s enchanting voice sounded.
Qingluo’s heart nearly stopped.
Cold sweat broke out as terrifying thoughts flashed through her mind.
The Seven Fairy spoke calmly, “Go close the door properly.”
Qingluo felt as if granted a reprieve, hastily bowing with trembling voice, “Yes.”
She turned and, mustering courage, walked to the small house and shakily closed the door.
Su Fu watched her thoughtfully from behind—this was an examinee.
Qingluo returned quickly, and Su Fu said calmly, “Let’s go. Don’t keep Big Sister waiting.”
As she finished, a maidservant stepped forward to lead the way; the others flanked her protectively.
Not long after leaving the courtyard, Yuqing drew close to the Seven Fairy, clearly afraid to anger her but forced to speak.
“Seven Fairy, the Great Fairy specially instructed that with the Peach Banquet imminent and guests gathering, we must showcase the elegance of Yaochi. I’m afraid… our procession will need to be more grand.”
After speaking, she nervously watched Su Fu’s reaction, worried she’d be displeased.
Su Fu met her gaze blankly, making Yuqing’s scalp tingle.
She lowered her head slightly, softly explaining, “Please understand, Seven Fairy… This is by the Great Fairy’s special instruction…”
Su Fu raised an eyebrow; she could tell these people, while respectful and fearful toward her, obeyed the Great Fairy’s orders above all else.
In this map, the Great Fairy’s status was probably far greater than imagined.
So Su Fu gave a slight “hmm,” consenting.
Yuqing breathed a sigh of relief, quickly signaling the others.
Two maidservants raised their hands, releasing several melodious-singing Crested Mynas, circling above the group as ethereal music filled the air.
Then, others scattered petals—not ordinary ones, but shimmering light condensed from spiritual energy, fluttering in the wind without ever falling.
The petals attracted several Magpies, which flew around above the group or perched on nearby peach branches.
The remaining maidservants held ornate feather fans, respectfully trailing behind Su Fu.
Su Fu: “???”
She was dumbfounded, ‘What was going on? What was all this?’
“Isn’t this… a bit too grand?”
Surrounded by flying petals, followed by a full entourage of maidservants, overhead swirling magpies, and the sound of ethereal music and bird songs—
She walked at the center of the procession, her purple gown swaying gently in the breeze, surrounded by an aura of immortality.
The grandeur was maxed out.
Originally, she planned to act discreetly, but now she was the center of attention.
Wherever she passed, every guard and attendant bowed respectfully.
Some even stopped to watch, their faces full of admiration.
Especially after entering Yaochi, the effect was even more pronounced.
Yaochi’s blue waves rippled, lotus flowers bloomed.
Towering palaces stacked in layers, wrapped in mist.
Cranes flew, colorful birds and phoenixes strolled leisurely.
Their group blended with the beautiful scenery, creating a truly otherworldly atmosphere.
The impact doubled instantly.
Many onlookers’ eyes lit up, drawn by the grand procession, stopping to gaze.
“Look, that’s the Seven Fairy!”
“So beautiful—this is a true immortal!”
“The Queen Mother’s banquet is about to start; the Seven Fairy has appeared.”
“Wait, look at those birds! Aren’t they stunning?”
Someone pointed to a group of slender, long-tailed birds swirling above the procession in awe.
Those birds had long trailing tail feathers flowing like ribbons, their tips glowing with golden light.
“You don’t know? Those are Birds of Paradise, symbols of longevity and good fortune. The Seven Fairy is truly blessed!”
Not far from the lakeside stood a pair of siblings—examinees Lin Yaowei and Lin Xuanye.
Lin Yaowei gazed at the grand procession with envy, “Is that really the Seven Fairy? She’s just too beautiful.”
The grand procession enhanced every bit of her beauty, making her breathtaking at a glance.
Lin Xuanye remained composed, but a flicker of shock passed through his eyes.
This kind of grandeur… was definitely beyond ordinary immortals.
Who exactly were these so-called Seven Fairies?
He looked at a celestial official watching the spectacle nearby and tentatively asked, “Where is the Seven Fairy headed? Why such a grand procession?”
The celestial official glanced at Lin Xuanye, noting his distinguished manner, then kindly replied, “Grand procession? Actually, this isn’t even very grand. You should know she’s the Queen Mother of the West’s favorite.”
“The Peaches at this banquet are picked by the Seven Fairy and her sisters. Only they can freely enter the Peachtree Garden—it’s the Queen Mother’s utmost trust. You think this scene is grand?”
The Lin siblings exchanged glances, eyes full of shock.
The instance was called the Peach Banquet; the peaches had to be a key clue, and the Seven Fairy could directly access them?
If they could obtain this character…
Lin Yaowei sighed with envy, ‘Why hadn’t I become one of the Seven Fairies?’
Watching the Seven Fairy’s procession fade from view around a corner of Yaochi, the lingering melody still floated in the air.
A few magpies chirped as they flew up to nearby peach tree branches, preening or softly calling.
The fluttering petals gradually turned into golden light, dissipating into the sky.
As the Lin siblings still absorbed the shock, a voice sounded beside them.
“Don’t tell me the Orion Star Lord is interested in the Seven Fairy?”
Lin Xuanye turned to see a man in blue silk robes smiling at him, his eyes teasing.
“The Seven Fairy is the Queen Mother’s favorite. You’d better get in line,” the man chuckled.
Lin Xuanye smiled faintly, offering no reply.
The man then shifted his gaze to Lin Yaowei, bowing slightly, “You must be one of the Twelve Merciful Envoys under Guanyin? I’ve heard much about you. Pleased to meet you. When the Peach Banquet begins, we must have a drink together.”
“The honor is mine,” Lin Yaowei replied with a smile.
After some polite conversation, the man took his leave.
In truth, as the Seven Fairy left, most of the crowd dispersed, leaving only the Lin siblings standing by Yaochi.
Lin Yaowei glanced at the time and said “Brother, Yuelun Yuan is about to change shifts.”
“Mm, let’s wait a little longer.”
They were not here to sightsee but to meet Yuelun Yuan.
At that moment, drums sounded—
“Dong—dong—dong—”
Above Yaochi, clouds roiled as squads of soldiers clad in silver armor appeared from the clouds—these were the changing shift of the Heavenly River Navy.
They held long spears, descending in perfect formation, without making a sound.
After the new team completed the handover with the current guards, Yuelun Yuan finally detached himself and approached the Lin siblings.
He removed his helmet, revealing a handsome, sharply defined face.
Lin Xuanye sized him up and smiled, “So this is the character you chose even instead of going to the Moon Palace?”
Yuelun Yuan replied with an explanation, “The Heavenly River Navy can go anywhere in the Heavenly Court.”
He asked, “Are Zhou Tianhao and Chu Mingyuan still unable to come out?”
Lin Xuanye shrugged helplessly, “One is in the Fire God Palace, the other in the Sun God Palace. Neither can move about freely.”
“Seems your identity does have advantages.”
Lin Yaowei sighed, “I still think the Seven Fairy’s identity was the best. Too bad I wasn’t assigned that. Otherwise, wouldn’t the test papers be a walk in the park?”
Yuelun Yuan smiled meaningfully, reminding them, “I saw with my own eyes just now—she left with an examinee, but now only she has returned.”
The meaning behind these words was obvious.
Lin Yaowei’s expression changed sharply, shocked: “Are you saying… she took out that examinee?”
“The speed at which that exam paper was tampered with is just way too fast, isn’t it?”
The test had just begun, they had only recently confirmed their identities, and already someone was dead?
The beautiful faces of the Seven Fairies suddenly became terrifying in Lin Yaowei’s mind.
Fairies may be beautiful, but their hearts were truly dark.
“Too ruthless.”
Yuelun Yuan leisurely adjusted the armor on his wrist, his voice calm: “It’s not just her.”
He glanced at Lin Xuanye, eyes gleaming with a hint of mockery: “Just now, there was also a Lou Gold Dog Star Lord who was dragged into the Heavenly River for trespassing into Yaochi.”
He paused for a moment, then spat out three chilling words: “Eaten.”
“Eaten?” Lin Xuanye’s expression turned grave as he instinctively repeated, “Eaten…”
Of course, he had investigated the character he was playing—one of the Twenty-Eight Mansions, a righteous deity, not a low-ranking role in the hierarchy.
Yet, the Lou Gold Dog Star Lord, also one of the Twenty-Eight Mansions, was killed just like that?
Clearly, he had knowledge only known to some aristocratic families, his face darkened as he said, “This test is far too difficult.”
Yuelun Yuan glanced at him nonchalantly and said, “Let’s go, Mengmeng should be arriving soon.”
The three turned and left Yaochi.
Behind them, a magpie perched on a peach tree tilted its head, its glossy black eyes watching them depart.
The magpie ruffled its feathers softly, let out a faint chirp, then spread its wings and soared into the sky.
Meanwhile, in the direction of the Peachtree Orchard.
As the Seven Fairies’ group moved farther away, the number of people around visibly thinned out.
Yuqing and the others also ceased their grand display.
The celestial music stopped, the swirling petals dispersed, and the thrushes and ribbon birds scattered in all directions.
Su Fu’s expression shifted subtly; just now, through the magpie standing on the peach tree, she had seen everything happening inside Yaochi.
As a key location on the map, Yaochi naturally had many examinees.
With so many magpies and thrushes around, she had long activated the Hundred Birds’ Eyes monitoring.
Before entering the exam scenario, she had also preemptively collected basic information on the Second Star Ring examinees.
Unexpectedly, she gained a pleasant surprise: the initial identities of those Second Star Ring examinees.
“The Lord of the Moon is Yuelun Yuan, yet instead of choosing the Moon Palace, he opted for the Heavenly River Navy?”
Still, this was undoubtedly a clever move.
Here, the role mattered more than rank.
Though the Heavenly River Navy seemed low in status, it could freely access various parts of the Heavenly Court and even many secret places.
If he was smart, the possibilities for maneuvering were endless.
As for the Lin siblings from the Divine Pantheon, the elder brother Lin Xuanye’s main god was Yahweh, assigned the role of Canopus Star Lord under the Purple Tenuity Palace of the North Pole, in charge of law and order.
His sister Lin Yaowei’s main god was the Virgin Mary, so she was given the role of one of the Twelve Merciful Envoys under Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva.
Regarding others mentioned, Zhou Tianhao, whose main god was Apollo of the Greek Pantheon, went to the Divine Palace, while Chu Mingyuan, whose main god was the Fire God of the Norse Pantheon, was assigned to the Fire God Palace.
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