I reign supreme in the Western fantasy world for eternity.

The forest outside the village appeared particularly deep in the night, and the campfire flickered in the open space, casting long shadows of the two men.

Xiao Hua's enormous body was perched on the other side of the fire, but Mia wasn't there, and she and the other members of the hero's team didn't have much in common to talk about, so she could only pretend to sleep.

Elena sat on a broken piece of wood by the campfire, a copy of "The Geography of the North" open on her lap, but her eyes were fixed on the flames.

Ophelia sat opposite her, brewing tea, and observed Elena for a while. Seeing that Elena hadn't turned a page, she said softly:

"Sister Elena, are you thinking about the Sect Master?"

Elena's eyelashes fluttered slightly as she looked at Ophelia, a habitual smile appearing on her lips.

"I'm thinking about something interesting."

"What is it?"

Elena closed the book, placed it on her lap, and folded her hands over the cover.

"I was thinking, if it hadn't been me who first met Ji Tian, ​​but Lilith, given her personality, we probably wouldn't have even existed."

Ophelia sighed and placed the remaining tea set she had just taken out on the ground.

"I feel the same way. I thought many things should proceed gradually. Even considering the hundreds of reincarnations within the World Tree, I never expected Junior Sister Lilith to be so fast..."

They both fell silent.

Elena waited until the water in the teapot started bubbling before speaking again:

"What do you think they're doing over there? Lilith's so 'proactive,' and Ji Tian always goes along with her, they're probably doing something weird right now."

Ophelia was silent for a moment, her ears turning slightly red as if recalling some scene, before she shook her head.

"The sect leader is sensible; he won't be distracted during the mission."

Are you sure?

No, I'm not sure.

Elena finally snapped out of her slight slump, her shoulders trembling slightly as she laughed.

……

Deep in the village, in a small hut lit by an oil lamp, Lilith was experiencing the most "humiliating" night of her life.

She was originally sitting in Ji Tian's lap, with her arms around his neck, having just set the mood and preparing to do something "popular".

But just as her lips were about to touch hers, Ji Tian's hand was already on her forehead.

A vast and intricate torrent of memories flooded into her mind.

The amount of information is not large, but it is extremely complex, like a net woven from countless fine threads. Each node has a specific function, and each thread needs to be precisely controlled.

A complete, simplified version of the Soul Searching Technique.

"How about it? Did you see it?"

Lilith froze completely, slowly opening her eyes, her purple pupils still tinged with the bewilderment brought on by the shock of that memory.

She blinked twice, then twice more, and then slowly looked at Ji Tian's face, somewhat incredulous.

"Soul-searching technique...? You, you, you—you implanted this stuff into my brain, and now you want me to learn it at a time like this?"

"At a time like this? When else, if not now? By the time you clear this dungeon, will you still be in the mood to learn?"

Lilith thought about it and realized that she really wouldn't bother learning these strange spells for no reason.

but--

Lilith broke free from his embrace, stood by the bed, and pointed at him, trembling.

"Then at least pick a time when the atmosphere is better! I was all ready! The atmosphere was all set! What's with you suddenly throwing a soul-searching spell at me?!"

Ji Tian dodged her finger and said innocently:

"Didn't you ask me what I wanted to do before? This is what I want to do. Hurry up and learn it. This is a simplified version of the Soul Searching Technique that I specially modified for you."

"You're doing this on purpose to annoy me, aren't you?!"

Lilith stomped her feet in anger, but she quickly realized a more crucial issue and suddenly fell silent.

She pointed to her head, looking at her suspiciously, and asked, "You just said that you modified that spell specifically for me?"

"right."

"Simplified version?"

"right."

"What about the original version? What is the original version like?"

Ji Tian sat on the edge of the bed and thought for a moment before answering truthfully:

"I figured out the original version when I was in the Nascent Soul stage. At that time, I wasn't very skilled at it and it was easy to cause permanent damage to the person being searched. So I would use it in conjunction with time reversal."

"...That sounds dangerous."

"That's why I spent some time modifying it into the version you're learning now: as long as the other person's mental strength is weaker than yours, you can view their memories."

"I haven't taught you any magic since we severed our master-disciple relationship. I actually miss it quite a bit,"

"What's there to miss! Can't you miss something else?!"

"I miss other things too, like that fish you grilled before—"

"Is that what I wanted you to remember?!" Lilith stomped her foot in anger and frustration. "Can't you remember my good points for once?!"

"I miss it; that fish was really well grilled."

"So, you mean I have no other strengths?"

"I need to think about that carefully."

Seeing that Ji Tian was actually seriously thinking about it, Lilith was furious.

"I'm going to bite you to death!!!"

She lunged forward, opened her mouth and bit his wrist, but found it too hard, so she started biting other parts instead.

Ji Tian let her bite him until Lilith was panting heavily before he spoke:

"Are you calmed down?"

"…not yet."

"Then let's continue. Once you've calmed down, start learning. After dawn, we'll begin putting it into practice."

Lilith released her arms from his neck, looked up at him with a resentful expression.

"In real combat?"

"Yes, let's find a target and try it out when it gets light."

"...You're a devil."

"Thank you for the compliment."

I wasn't complimenting you!

"I know."

The carefully crafted atmosphere was completely ruined. Lilith sat back down on the edge of the bed, crossed her legs, closed her eyes, and began to sort through the soul-searching technique that had just been instilled into her mind.

Ji Tian looked at her profile as she calmed down, his gaze lingering on her slightly furrowed brows, protecting her as he did so.

The night outside the window was still thick.

The knocking stopped; the night in the village was still long.

……

As the first rays of gray-white dawn appeared on the horizon, Lilith finally opened her eyes.

Her eyes showed a hint of weariness from studying all night, and she hadn't expected that the simplified version that Ji Tian had tailored for her would be so simple.

"How does it feel?"

"It seems... it really works."

Ji Tian smiled and nodded, stood up, walked to the window, and pushed open the tightly closed wooden window a crack.

The morning breeze, carrying the scents of grass, trees, and earth, blew in and turned the oil lamp on the table that was about to go out.

"That's good. Now it's time to verify it."

Lilith followed closely behind him, stopping at the window. Gazing at the village gradually bathed in the morning light, and at Mia, who had just gotten up and was preparing to wash, she suddenly asked:

"Did you do that on purpose last night?"

"Yes, didn't you ask me what I wanted to do? I want you to be able to protect yourself when you're in danger."

"Hmph~ Well... I forgive you."