As the three flew through the sky towards the Invincible Cloud sect, someone suddenly flew by very closely and almost crashed into them before flying away.
Jiang Yun didn’t think much of it until the figure came flying back in their direction. Unsure why this person was coming back, the three stopped to see who was coming.
Once the figure arrived, it was a woman with long dark blue hair tied into a braid behind her.
The woman was tall and had a well-proportioned figure and a mature face. She wore a black and white robe that didn’t seem to be affiliated with any sects.
Bai Yue and Bai Yanfei were quite surprised at how beautiful and well-proportioned the woman was. It was the kind of figure you wouldn’t see very commonly.
"What business do you have with us?" Jiang Yun asked, unbothered by the woman’s beauty.
"Are you Jiang Yun?" the woman asked as she looked closer at Jiang Yun’s face. "It really is you. You haven’t changed at all, with the same appearance and voice."
"Who are you?" Jiang Yun asked, trying to take a closer look too.
"Do you not remember me?" the woman asked. "Though we haven’t met in over a hundred years, we still knew each other for decades."
"I don’t remember," Jiang Yun replied, still not recognizing the woman’s appearance.
"You probably can’t recognize me from my current appearance, right?"
"That’s right. I don’t remember ever meeting someone like you."
"Well, I have changed quite a bit after all these years. How about I jog your memory and tell you I am Han Xiyue?"
Jiang Yun began pondering the name as he searched through his memories. The name soon popped into his head with an image, but it didn’t match the woman in front of him.
The woman in Jiang Yun’s memory was more boyish, with shoulder-length hair and darker skin. It was very different from the current woman in front of him.
"Are you the boyish Han Xiyue that I used to know?" Jiang Yun tried asking.
"That’s right, I am indeed that Han Xiyue, though it’s kind of embarrassing to remember my past when I was like that. I have changed a lot since then."
"I can tell with how different you look, that I couldn’t recognize you."
"Who’s this?" Bai Yue asked after deciding to interject. "Do you know this person?"
"I used to know her," Jiang Yun explained. "Soon after reaching the Immortal Emperor realm, I wandered around everywhere to find cultivation resources. Along the way, when I was going through a secret realm, I ran into her."
"And then what happened?" Bai Yanfei asked, also wanting to know.
"I ran into her in a very strange way," Jiang Yun expanded. "When I claimed the treasure, she came along and was very angry."
"Then did she try to attack and rob you?" Bai Yue questioned.
"No," Jiang Yun replied. "Instead, she just lamented being bested by someone else and declared me as her rival."
"A rival?" both Bai Yanfei and Bai Yue asked.
"Yes, a rival. After that day, she would appear at several other secret realms I was at and always tried to beat me in getting the treasures inside. We became familiar with each other as the years passed by like this."
"Did you view her as a rival too?" Bai Yue inquired.
"No, I viewed her as a menace at the time, as she slowed down my search for cultivation resources."
"What?" Han Xiyue asked dejectedly. "Did you view me that badly? I thought we had a good relationship after all we’ve been through."
"You always tried to compete with me and followed close behind whenever we traveled through a secret realm. Whenever I asked what you were doing, you would just say you were going to the same destination as me."
"Oh right, I do remember that," Han Xiyue reminisced. "I’m sorry for being that way. Back then, I was shy and just wanted to follow along with you since I took an interest in how strong you were. I can admit now that I wanted to take advantage of you leading the way."
"But why me specifically?"
"During the first few times, I just so happened to follow behind you, but every time I did, I would be led straight to the treasure. When this happened, you would share some of what you found. After that, I just followed along when I saw you."
"That’s it? That’s the whole reason you followed me?"
"I’m very grateful for what you did back then, so please forgive me."
"It’s all in the past," Jiang Yun sighed, as it didn’t matter anymore. "So why have you come to see us? I saw that you were in a rush somewhere."
"I was, but it’s less urgent than seeing you again. It’s been so long, and if I don’t come for you now, who knows when I’ll see you again."
"Why do you need to come find me? I don’t think we were that close."
"But we are that close. You probably don’t remember, but we share a special connection."
"What would that be to require you to seek me out so urgently?"
Han Xiyue looked back at the two women behind Jiang Yun, not wanting them to overhear the explanation.
"Can I speak with you privately about this? It’s very important to the both of us, and it will be of great interest for you to know. I don’t want this secret getting out in the open at the moment."
"Is it that important?" Jiang Yun asked, curious about the mystery.
"It’s very important," Han Xiyue replied. "If you don’t hear this, then you will regret it in the future if you ever find out."
Jiang Yun thought about it for a moment, as he wasn’t sure if he should listen or not. In the end, Jiang Yun decided it wouldn’t hurt to hear it and turned back towards Bai Yue and Bai Yanfei.
"You two can go back first and wait for me to return. I have something urgent I need to talk about, and I need to do so in private."
"Then we’ll wait for you to come back," Bai Yue replied.
"Come back soon," Bai Yanfei continued. "We’ll go first so as not to interrupt your discussion."
After waving goodbye, Bai Yanfei and Bai Yue went ahead and flew back toward the Invincible Cloud sect first.
Once the two women were out of view, Han Xiyue gestured for Jiang Yun to come along and began descending to the ground.
Having already decided to go along with the decision, Jiang Yun followed along without any complaints.
Once the two were on the ground, Han Xiyue began looking around frantically to see if anybody was around to listen to the conversation.
After confirming nobody was around, Han Xiyue breathed a sigh of relief.
Han Xiyue then took a deep breath and prepared herself to explain.
"Our connection is that we have a daughter together," Han Xiyue explained.
Jiang Yun was dumbstruck by what Han Xiyue just said. It was so far out of his expectations that Jiang Yun showed a surprised look momentarily before calming down.
Having calmed down enough to think, Jiang Yun searched his memory to see if Han Xiyue was speaking the truth. Jiang Yun didn’t remember ever having a deep enough connection to have a daughter.
Not finding anything in his memories, Jiang Yun gave up and decided to ask.
"What daughter are you talking about? I don’t remember ever being intimate with you, despite us knowing each other for decades."
"Of course you don’t remember," Han Xiyue explained. "Back then, a Dao realm treasure appeared in the void and fell onto you, causing you to fall unconscious. Do you remember that much?"
Jiang Yun began to think and soon pulled up the memory, confirming it to be true. A strong Dao realm treasure fell from the sky and caused a heavy enough injury for him to fall unconscious.
"What about it?" Jiang Yun asked after remembering. "I don’t remember you being around at the time."
"You may not have seen me, but I was nearby by sheer coincidence," Han Xiyue rebutted. "I had business nearby and saw the treasure falling from the sky, so I followed along to try and take it for myself."
"And then what happened? Did you assault me or something while I was unconscious?"
"Something like that."
"What? You actually did?"
"The treasure emitted an aphrodisiac effect the instant I got close and made me unable to control my body. By the time I came to my senses, I was already defiled and embarrassed. This led me to run away quickly after putting both our clothes back on to keep it a secret."
"Is that how you had my child?" Jiang Yun asked, still unsure about how the situation went.
"That’s right. After that, I became pregnant with your child and birthed a daughter. As for the Dao realm treasure that knocked you unconscious, I took it with me as a memento of my first time."
"I see, so I truly have a daughter that I never knew about. What’s the name you gave her?"
"I named her Han Yuxi," Han Xiyue introduced.