Day and Night

"The jade! The one for leaving Second Heaven!"

Mu Yu supposed Qiao Xue didn't hear clear, thus the repeat. The bait strategy with Xiaoshuai wasn't viable because there was only one Xiaoshuai. Plus, he couldn't even be sure if Xiaoshuai could kill them.

"I can't leave yet."

"Xiaoshuai, a level five fiend beast can't kill you, can it? How about we finish one?"

The banishing falcon sent Mu Yu off with another lightning bolt.

Xiaoshuai sniffed the air and narrowed his eyes. "Fly left!"

"Why?" asked Mu Yu, doing as told simultaneously.

"Because I smell a familiar scent."

"Please don't tell me it's the smell of fried yellow beans!" exclaimed Mu Yu, accelerating Qiao Xue along using his spiritual energy.

The banishing falcon and desolate wolf returned to trading blows whilst hunting down their prey.

"They're competing to see who will kill us first," notified Qiao Xue.

"Morons. Thank god for their bizarre fetish, though."

"We're almost there, hurry!" commanded Xiaoshuai.

"I'm going as fast as I can! Whoa!"

Mu Yu dodged a yellow lightning bolt and circled around a mountain to reach a large forest.

"Eh?"

"What?"

Qiao Xue stopped in her tracks and pivoted back around. "They're not following us."

The two fiend beasts strolled back and forth, shouting and glaring at the trio, but neither advanced toward the trio. Strangely, they didn't engage each other, either.

"Does it have something to do with the forest?" questioned Mu Yu, peering at the forest underneath the dark ocean. He didn't discern anything odd. It was as plain as the other forests he had gone by at Second Heaven. Qiao Xue landed without waiting. They couldn't return the direction they came for sure. Mu Yu, therefore, followed suit.

The sound of leaves crunching underfoot sent eerie tingles up Mu Yu's spine. He tried controlling the trees to no avail. They illuminated their path using their magic items. The fiend beasts there were friendly – relatively speaking – only groaning out of irritation due to the trio waking them up. Thankfully, that was the extent of their hostility as they stayed away from the lights emitted.

"Strange, they're all weak combatants," stated Qiao Xue.

Mu Yu couldn't name the fiend beasts he saw, but he recognised them. They were easier to tame than other fiend beasts at Second Heaven. That begged the question, what did the two level five fiend beasts fear in the forest?

The further in they went, the more animals they came across. In addition, it grew brighter and brighter. A river cut off their path, but it was easy to fly across. The light source was the sun! There were definitely clouds, and there was a gentle breeze. Looking across the river they crossed, it was dark. The only light on the other side were the luminous pearls in the sky or fires. In other words, on one side of the river was day time. On the other side was night time.

"How does this work?"

"Finally something you don't know. I thought you knew everything there was to know, hehe."

Qiao Xue kept going. The fiend beasts that spotted her didn't retreat. As a matter of fact, they looked innocent.

"Xiaoshuai, what about this place is familiar to you?"

"Mm…" Xiaoshuai scratched his head. "I don't know, either. I just picked up a peculiar scent."

"It better not be food again."

The number of oddities continued to pile up the further they walked. If the other side of the river was a war-torn world, this side was paradise. They came to a gorge. The sunlight reflected off the waterfall, painting a rainbow across the sky. Rocks surfaced from underneath the water. The water flowed into the reservoir and toward the trees. It was a serene scene rarely found in Second Heaven.

Qiao Xue stirred the water with her hand. Seeing her surprise paint her face, Mu Yu inquired, "What's the matter?"

Qiao Xue stood up and turned to face Mu Yu: "Now that we're safe, let's go our own ways."

"Where are you going? Isn't it better if we stick together?"

"I have my own business."

"It can await until we find our way out of this forest, can't it?" suggested Mu Yu, trying to keep his reliable navigator around.

"Don't you have anything to do here?"

Mu Yu pointed to the sun and then turned to face the direction they came from. "Of course I do. It just so happens to be that two level five fiend beasts have volunteered for sentry duty there."

"Your problem, not mine."

Qiao Xue strolled over to the waterfall and examined it. He joined her and let his mind drift off to Dustfallen Sect. Xiaoshuai pointed to the waterfall and said, "Behind the waterfall."

"How do you know so much?" Qiaoxue questioned.

Xiaoshuai climbed up to Mu Yu's head and stood proud. "I know plenty more. You're as pretty as Sister Tian Ran."

Mu Yu pulled Xiaoshuai off his head and jabbed the little fellow with his finger. He looked back up to catch a glimpse of Qiao Xue smiling.

Qiao Xue gave Mu Yu the cold shoulder and flew over to the waterfall. She created an opening using her ribbon and dove in.

"Is there a cave behind the waterfall?"

Mu Yu parted the water with his sword and followed after Qiao Xue.