Phoenix Behind a Veil.

After that day, Wenli and her friends—XiMei and LuPeng—found themselves standing in front of the towering gates of Wangshou Academy.

They looked around, puzzled.

None of them could understand how they got there.

Well… except Wenli.

She knew exactly what had happened.

But she said nothing.

Fear sealed her lips. Fear of losing her friends—the only people in this strange world who made her feel anything close to home.

Because she wasn't from this world.

Wenli was just a modern woman with no place in this land of cultivation and spirit beasts. And yet, these were the people she had come to call her own.

There was Hualia, her personal maid. Loyal to a fault. Even after Wenli had freed her—on the night her parents were massacred—Hualia had stayed. She had insisted. To her, Wenli and her late parents were the only ones who ever treated her like a human being.

Then there was Rong Wu. Her brother—not by blood, but something deeper. Though born in this cultivation world, he had her real brother's face. His clingy behavior, his warmth… it all made her heart ache with a sense of déjà vu. The only difference between them was their surnames.

And finally, her companions on the last mission—XiMei and LuPeng.

The ones she had betrayed.

At the Volcanic Pier, she had struck a bargain with the Immortal Demon Dragon King.

And now… she had sold them all.

Later that evening, as the moon cast long shadows over the academy's towers, Wenli was summoned.

"Wu'er, I think you need a break," her master said gently. "You've been distracted ever since returning from the Dead-Alive Desert. What's wrong?"

Wenli lowered her head in shame.

"Master Wu… I've done something terrible. I betrayed my companions."

Master Wu studied her for a long moment. Then she sighed.

"I'm not going to ask what it was. Not tonight. I may push your training harder than anyone else—but I will always tell you this: Speak your truth. Let them hate you, if they must. But don't let silence rot your bond."

She paused again, eyes softening.

"Hiding it will only lead to mistrust."

Then she waved her hand. "Go rest. I imagine your troublesome roommates are already waiting."

They lived in a realm apart from others—Master Wu's spiritual domain, accessible only through a hidden portal. Only two people could open it:

Master Wu, at will.

Wenli, only after perfecting a cultivation level.

The portal shimmered with a purple halo, cloaked in thick violet fog that blinded all but the strong-willed. Inside, it was a place of silence and song. Towering silver-rooted trees whispered ancient hymns through their leaves. Spiritual pressure hung in the air like unseen chains—humbling and strengthening those who dared to train there.

Wenli stepped through the mist into her quarters.

It was a space carved in ancient elegance: lacquered beams, hanging scrolls of celestial beasts, soft glowstones casting serene light, and the faint scent of sandalwood lingering in the air. The silence here didn't feel empty—it felt powerful.

Just as she arrived, Hualia entered, balancing a tray stacked with exotic treats:

Hawthorn cakes, sesame balls, almond jelly, lotus buns, and green bean pastries.

Master Wu ignored the meal entirely and soundlessly exited the room.

At the door, she almost collided with Rong Wu.

"Li-jie, why does Master Wu never eat with us?" Hualia asked curiously.

"How should I know? Go ask her," Wenli muttered with a snort.

"Jie…" Rong Wu began, but his voice caught.

Wenli turned to him sharply. Something about his posture, the tremble in his fingers—he was hiding something. But she didn't expose him.

"What is it?" she asked.

"Could Hualia draw your bath today? I'll serve the dishes… just for tonight?" he asked, nervously avoiding her gaze.

Wenli's brows knit. That was odd. The bathwater was fetched from the well outside every quarter—easy, private. But the kitchen was shared by all students. She had designed it this way for a reason: to protect him.

She had suspected from the start that Rong Wu was being bullied. And so, she assigned him tasks that kept him away from the worst of it. But now…

"But that would be a lot of work," she said softly.

"I don't mind," he replied, forcing a smile.

Wenli stared at him for a long moment before moving to her bag. From it, she drew three delicate hairpins—each adorned with embroidered phoenixes:

Red.

Purple.

Blue.

She wore the red one in her own hair.

She handed the purple one to Hualia.

And the blue to Rong Wu.

"XiMei made them for me. She asked me to give these to you."

Rong Wu looked confused, but Hualia beamed with excitement.

"They're phoenixes! You have red. I have purple. Rong Wu gets blue. What does it mean?"

Wenli smiled faintly. "Guess we'll find out."

Of course, she already knew.

XiMei had once confided in her.

"I saw them—phoenixes. Not in a dream. In a vision. I made the red one for you, Wenli. The others… they came on their own."

She had also made one for LuPeng—a nine-tailed fox.

"Why a fox?" LuPeng had asked.

"I don't know. I just… saw it."

Each hairpin was a spiritual conduit—alive with power. They were bound to the soul of the bearer. When used properly, the pins could:

Connect spiritual energies

Sense emotional distress

Track the location of others

And even amplify core strength in battle

But there was a warning.

"They'll only work as long as the bond remains pure. Break trust, and the hairpins will break too."

Minutes passed.

Still no sign of Rong Wu.

Hualia paced restlessly. "Li-jie, where could he have gone?"

"He's being bullied."

"What?! How do you know?"

"Didn't you listen to him? His tone. His words. He was manipulated."

"I didn't notice…"

"If you weren't such a chatterbox, you might have."

Hualia pouted. "So what do we do now?"

"Let him suffer a little," Wenli said calmly, sipping her tea. "Then we go save him."

Behind the pupil's quarters, where shadows grew thick and distant, Rong Wu lay bloodied and broken. The ground was stained red. Laughter echoed in the trees.

"Jie…" he whispered faintly.

"Cry louder," sneered a girl.

Her name: Mei Yurou.

"You think she'll come? She's nothing but a weak Blue Phoenix. No one even knows this place exists. It's abandoned."

But their laughter was cut short by a sharp whistle—a pebble flying straight into one of their heads.

"Let him go!" Hualia shouted.

More laughter.

"Oh, how cute. The maid."

But then another voice rang out, calm and cold:

"You won't like what happens if you don't."

Wenli.

Mei Yurou smirked. "You really came for him?"

"What's your name?"

"Mei Yurou. You'll remember it when you fall."

Wenli's eyes gleamed faintly. "I let you play long enough. I'm taking him back."

"You can't… unless you defeat us."

"Fight?" Wenli raised an eyebrow, amused. "Is that what you want?"

"Don't bother," another girl scoffed. "She's just a phoenix without a real spirit animal."

But Hualia stepped forward, voice ringing clear:

"You fools don't even understand. My mistress has more power in her breath than you've cultivated in your entire lives!"

"Oh? Let her prove it."

A blast of black spiritual energy shot toward Wenli.

She dodged effortlessly, raising one hand. A shimmering wall of icy blue fire rose before her.

More attacks came.

She countered with swift sigils, light trails, and a circle of phoenix glyphs.

And then, she struck.

A surge of power erupted behind her as the phantom of a Blue Phoenix rose into the air, shrieking in fury. In a blink, she crossed the field, appearing before Mei Yurou, her hand around the girl's neck—gentle, but inescapable.

"Never mistake serenity for weakness," she whispered.

"I don't even have my spirit beast yet. And still… you can't match me."

She dropped Mei Yurou.

Turning, she called softly, "Hualia."

"Yes, Li-jie?"

"Carry him. Let's go."

"Yes!"

"You can't—!"

Wenli glanced back once more.

"I know your type," she said to Mei Yurou. "The innocent demon. Sugar outside. Venom within. I've seen you before. And I'm not impressed."

Without another word, she walked away—her scent of roses and lilies lingering in the air.

Would you like the next chapter to continue into Wenli's emotional confrontation with her friends, or explore her inner cultivation path with the Blue Phoenix?