The singing was ethereal and distant, melodious and touching, with a strange layered resonance.

It floated gently, as if descending from the clouds.

Just hearing that voice made people feel as though they were seeing a Celestial maiden stepping down from the sky, dancing gracefully in the mountains and forests.

«Raise the mallets and beat the drums,»
«Loosen the rhythm and sing gently, the panpipes and zithers begin the grand performance.»
«The spirit in splendid dress, fills the hall with fragrance;»
«The five tones intertwine in harmony, and the Celestial delights in joy and peace.»

The Daoists on Purple Mountain, the officials and commoners at the foot of the mountain, and the mountain people who had rushed there—all stood frozen, staring in awe at the summit of Purple Mountain.

Among them, courtesans from Xiangyang’s brothels gazed dreamily, the celestial  tune and accompanying celestial music—sounds they had never heard before—opening the door to a whole new world.

They tried their best to distinguish the instruments making up that celestial music. There seemed to be pipa, guqin, bianzhong, war drums, and many others they couldn’t identify at all.

Pei Xiu, as a scholar, and the shamans who had served the Eastern Celestial Emperor for generations, clearly recognized that this was one of the Nine Songs, passed down from antiquity, written to delight Taiyi—the opening song specifically dedicated to Him.

People trembled all over, their scalps tingling as they looked up at the mountain. In the end, they saw countless beams of sunlight suddenly cascade from the sky’s blazing sun.

Those beams gathered upon Purple Mountain and lingered there.

At last, a shaman cried out, hoarse and on the verge of sobbing:

«Celestial master—ahhhhhh—!!!»

That one scream snapped everyone back to reality. The commoners at the foot of the mountain all knelt down, prostrating themselves before Purple Mountain.

Over and over again.

Among the crowd, Pei Xiu looked up at the radiant light streaming from the sky, trembling all over, mind shaken.

«It truly… is the descent of an ancient Celestial!»

Pulled by Xuan Yuan  , Huang Rong—so nervous she had closed her eyes—stepped through the celestial gate formed by the Xuanguang Pendant as it blazed at its peak.

At that very moment, she heard Nuwa’s voice—a voice that pierced straight to the soul.

It was the final verse of the prayer hymn.

After the final line, «the Celestial delights in joy and peace,» came the lingering and melancholic hum of a woman’s voice—twisting, turning, soulful.

The voice was otherworldly. Just hearing it made one feel as though their spirit had left their body, floating into the vast void.

Only after the humming ceased and the celestial music faded did she hear Xuan Yuan   chuckle softly: «Such a dramatic display. How’d you know I’d be back just now?»

The girl opened her eyes—and saw a red-dressed girl with a half-transparent body, like a ghost, standing playfully before them, her teasing gaze falling on Huang Rong.

Nuwa’s eyes flicked toward Xuan Yuan   and met his gaze: «I didn’t know. It just so happened that today, those people came to the Taiyi Shrine at the foot of the mountain to hold a ritual, so I decided to give them a little push.»

«After analyzing the data, I determined that people’s recognition and worship of you as the Celestial Taiyi may help recharge the Xuanguang Pendant. I think it’s worth following up with more experiments.»

Xuan Yuan   glanced at the slowly fading “radiance” covering all of Purple Mountain and let out a helpless laugh: «So you even set up a bunch of lighting effects in advance? And audio equipment too? Are you Qiao Feng now? Carrying a sound system into battle?»

Nuwa giggled: «It’s the Celestial Taiyi who enters with sound effects—not Nuwa herself.»

«Brother Xing…»

Huang Rong spoke up hesitantly. Xuan Yuan   gently patted her hand and said to Nuwa, «I probably don’t need to introduce her, right? Rong’er, this is Nuwa, the one I mentioned to you before.»

«Nuwa… Lady Nuwa…» Huang Rong stood dazed. The red-robed girl before her looked nothing like the great Celestial she had imagined.

Nuwa, smiling with narrowed eyes, gently floated down in front of Huang Rong. Her half-transparent form was something Huang Rong had seen before in Xuan Yuan  ’s holographic projections, so she wasn’t afraid.

«That’s right, that’s right. I’m Lady Nuwa! Should I give you a celestial  title too? How about making you the Spirit Maiden of Mount Wu? Or Grand Fate Officer? Lesser Fate Officer?»

«Don’t be ridiculous,» Xuan Yuan   gave her a look. «How long has it been since I left Purple Mountain?»

«Not more, not less. Exactly five days.»

«That big of a time difference?» Xuan Yuan   ran his thumb over the Xuanguang Pendant thoughtfully. «I spent a few months in Rong’er’s world, but it’s only been five days here.»

It was Huang Rong’s first time hearing something like this. Covering her mouth, she exclaimed: «One day in celestial is a year on Earth?»

Her face suddenly changed.

Xuan Yuan  , of course, knew what she was worried about, and comforted her: «Don’t worry. Although we still don’t understand the principle, I can sense from the Xuanguang Pendant that once a round trip is made between your world and Purple Mountain, time between the two becomes synchronized. You don’t need to fear that spending a few days here means returning to find everything changed, like in that story of the rotten axe handle.»

«If you want to go back, we can do it anytime.»

As he finished speaking, Xuan Yuan   once again poured inner energy into the Xuanguang Pendant. But this time, the pendant didn’t greedily devour his Nine Yang internal energy like before—after just a brief moment, a multicolored, shimmering celestial gate appeared before them.

He brought Huang Rong through it again—this time even Nuwa followed—and when they reappeared in the wilderness outside Xiangyang, Huang Rong, back from Purple Mountain, threw herself into Xuan Yuan  ’s arms, jumping up and down with excitement.

«This is wonderful! Brother Xing! Rong’er can stay with you forever now!»

«Tut tut tut, tut tut tut!» Nuwa clicked her tongue like a cheeky rogue, narrowing her eyes at Xuan Yuan  . «So the Celestial master is finally planning to expand his harem? In that case, I guess there’s no need for me to set up a separate production line to manufacture android companions for you, huh?»

But Huang Rong, after all, was the daughter of Huang Yaoshi who cared nothing for propriety. She wasn’t shy in the slightest. During their stay in that nameless little village, she and Xuan Yuan   had already been seen by the simple villagers as newlyweds.

The girl covered her mouth and laughed softly, her brows arched as she looked at Xuan Yuan   and called sweetly, «Taiyi gege~»

«Yes, yes! That ‘Taiyi gege’ sounded just right.» Nuwa nodded repeatedly. «We’ve got to get the Celestial Emperor used to being called Taiyi. Best if he even forgets his old name.»

«Don’t.» Xuan Yuan  , unable to hit Nuwa’s projected form, lightly knocked Huang Rong on the head instead. «Even mortal emperors get cocky if they’re called ‘Ten Thousand Years’ long enough. I don’t want to fall like that over a title.»

Nuwa clapped and laughed loudly: «See? You’re already in character—you said ‘mortal’ without even thinking.»

«Let’s keep going. Those mountain folks are just about to hold a spirit-summoning ritual at the Taiyi Shrine to help you choose a bride—no wait, a Spirit Maiden. Hurry and manifest yourself to the public, pick someone you like!»

«I was going to choose one for you myself, but now that our Celestial Taiyi is back, this job is yours again~»