At noon, when the yang energy is at its peak, the two caravans stopped at the foot of an unremarkable green mountain.

Qin Yao’s family thought that the Qingyun Temple, which Uncle Qi mentioned, serving vegetarian meals so good that it must be an imposing palace standing amidst the mountains.

However, in reality, there was no palace, only a few wooden huts.

There were no flat stone steps leading up the mountain, only a rugged mountain path.

Qin Feng jumped off his horse, strode to the front of Qin Yao’s family’s carriage, and pointed to the moss-covered stone tablet by the roadside, "The entrance to Qingyun Temple is here; we need to walk up the mountain, it’ll take about a quarter of an hour."

"I’ve sent word to the Daoists on the mountain ahead of time, you all can follow me up the mountain to the temple for a meal."

Qin Yao nodded, instructing Ah Wang to stay behind and watch the carriages and belongings, and later let Yin Le help him bring the meal down.

Liu Ji carried Si Niang off the carriage, and the father and his four sons approached the moss-covered stone tablet with interest. The tablet was half the height of a person, plain and unpolished at the corners, even more rugged than the paths on Liao Feng Mountain that day.

The five of them squinted to make out the three large characters ’Qingyun Temple’ inscribed on the stone tablet.

The characters were grand and carried a sense of transcendence, the five of them stared at it for a long time without moving, and Qin Yao curiously walked up and asked, "Have you gained any insight?"

The five of them shook their heads in unison.

Qin Yao’s smile disappeared instantly, and she roared angrily, "Then hurry up the mountain!"

The five of them immediately looked like chickens and ducks driven by a peasant woman, spreading their arms and flapping up the mountain.

Liu Ji almost stumbled and fell, and soon, the mountain was filled with the sound of children’s laughter and the father’s embarrassed but amused chiding, giving off that family trip vibe of visiting a tourist attraction.

Qin Feng led the way, listening to the laughter and banter behind him, only finding it noisy.

The joys and sorrows between people are not the same. His heart was full of tension and anticipation; the closer they got to the Daoist Temple, the more uneasy yet eager he became, who could understand?

Looking back, although the woman behind him maintained a blank expression, her eyes were full of gentleness, and Qin Feng reflexively called out in delight, "Ah Yao!"

The warmth in Qin Yao’s eyes instantly faded as she looked at the few Daoist-style wooden structures ahead and reminded, "We’re here."

"...Right." Qin Feng suppressed the emotions stirring within him, led them into the Daoist temple, burned incense, and paid respects before heading to the dining hall for the meal.

Halfway through the meal, just as Qin Yao was savoring the delicious vegetarian food, a young Daoist entered and politely said to her and Qin Feng, "Mr. Qin, madam, the temple master requests your presence."

Uncle Qi immediately chimed in with surprise, exclaiming that being personally met by the temple master was a tremendous honor.

Liu Ji immediately asked eagerly, "Little Daoist, isn’t there one more person the temple master wants you to invite?" For example, him!

The little Daoist, being honest, shook his head at Liu Ji, "Only Mr. Qin and the madam, there is no third person."

Saying this, he ignored Liu Ji’s disappointed face, raised his hand to gesture for Qin Yao and Qin Feng to follow him.

Raising her eyebrows, Qin Yao took another bite before standing up to follow.

"Darling!" Liu Ji suddenly called out to her with concern.

Qin Yao did not look back and walked straight on. She was telling them she could handle it just fine, there was nothing to worry about.

The young Daoist brought them to the door of a quiet room and then stepped aside.

The door was open, revealing a ritual altar in the center of the room, with a person in an Eight Diagrams Robe sitting cross-legged beneath the altar, with a Lotus Jade Crown on their head, meditating with their back to the door.

The two exchanged a glance, Qin Feng stepped forward, Qin Yao followed, and they came to the Daoist’s back, where Qin Feng politely greeted the Daoist.

The Daoist opened his eyes, picked up the horsetail whisk on his knee, and stood up.

He was an elderly Daoist with a long beard, looking about the same age as Old Liu, stern and hardly smiling, utterly serious.

His narrow eagle-like eyes first swept over Qin Yao, and finally settled on Qin Feng, as he motioned for the two to sit on the meditation mats inside.

Perhaps accustomed to interacting with Taoist figures, Qin Feng crossed his legs effortlessly, demonstrating to Qin Yao how to sit without being rude.

The Daoist spoke, "This morning, I cast a hexagram, which indicated that two distinguished guests of the same lineage would meet today, yet not recognize each other. I didn’t expect to see you two here, already acquainted?"

Qin Yao remained silent; Qin Feng responded, "The Daoist’s skills are profound, the hexagram was correct. Even though Miss Qin and I have met, we’re still not acquainted. I hope the Daoist can provide guidance on how I might help Miss Qin remember me."

The Daoist cast another glance at Qin Yao, who openly met his gaze with her big almond-shaped eyes, her lips curling into a faint smile.

The Daoist frowned slightly; that smile was full of provocation.

If so, let him delve into her background first!

The Daoist nodded to Qin Feng and spoke profoundly, "I have a Spell that disregards all illusory phenomena, revealing past and present lives. Since you two are not acquainted, let me perform this technique to see if it can awaken any memories."

Qin Feng excitedly bowed, "I entrust this matter to the Daoist!"

Qin Yao showed little reaction, but the Daoist didn’t mind. He glanced at Qin Feng, signaling him to calm down, and immediately pulled out a set of talisman papers, approaching Qin Yao; he circled her three times to the left, three times to the right, chanting softly.

After six circles, he suddenly halted in front of Qin Yao, lifted the talisman paper, and with a "whoosh," it burst into flames without any external ignition, startling Qin Feng, who felt even more reverence.

The Fire Talisman burned rapidly in the air, turning to ashes before hitting the ground, the ashes falling precisely in front of Qin Yao.

As she curiously leaned down to inspect, a loud command came from above, the Daoist glaring and shouting, "Appear!"

A copper mirror suddenly appeared from nowhere and was swiftly placed beneath Qin Yao’s lowered head, facing her face directly.

You could say, Qin Yao was slightly expectant because no one wanted more than she did to understand how she ended up here.

Unfortunately, it seemed the temple master’s Taoist Technique failed; the three of them gazed into the copper mirror, only to see a fair yet not overly pale, healthy and comely face.

It was the face Qin Yao had seen countless times in her mirror—her own. Not only did it reveal no past life visage, but she also remained unscathed by the Spell.

"How, how can this be?" the Daoist murmured, a trace of disbelief in his tone.

Qin Yao couldn’t help but ask curiously, "Does this thing truly reveal a person’s past life?"

Though deeply disappointed by the result, Qin Feng reminded Qin Yao not to be rude to the Daoist, "Such spells are not for mere mortals like us to question. Apologize to the Daoist promptly."

Seeing Qin Yao’s disobedience, he added in a low voice, "Be good, and I’ll buy you a golden hairpin once we’re in Wu City."

Like coaxing a little sister.

Qin Yao shot him a puzzled look, then glanced at the Daoist who was on the verge of a breakdown, reluctantly saying, "A slip of the tongue, please don’t take offense, Daoist."

The Daoist shook his head, not bothered by it, still studying the copper mirror, questioning which part went wrong?