At the same time.
Su Liumeng, who was currently giving orders in the Elders’ Hall, suddenly shivered.
It had not even started snowing yet.
So why was she feeling cold?
She abruptly threw down the brush in her hand.
That was not right. She was already close to breaking through to the Origin level. What did a drop in temperature have to do with her?
Suddenly—
A completely black little figure appeared out of thin air in front of her.
Si Zhiruo was wearing a miniature ruqun.
Barefoot.
Her cute little face carried no expression at all.
Terrifying black energy spread around her.
This was a sign that she was about to lose control of her emotions.
The overwhelming power seemed ready to burst forth like an unbridled beast at any moment.
Si Zhiruo had never felt so wronged before.
Especially since Su Liumeng was supposed to be her temporary ally, yet had secretly instigated her mother against her.
She—
She had not even seriously targeted Su Liumeng yet.
She had always listened to her mother and tried to be a good child.
“Was it you who told Mom to wean me early?”
Si Zhiruo maintained the last trace of her composure, remembering her mother’s words—never wrongly accuse an innocent person.
So she suppressed her anger and questioned Su Liumeng.
Su Liumeng froze for a moment. The flames had reached her this quickly?
She had indeed said something like that.
But whatever Si Xinyan decided to do was not something others could interfere with.
At most, her suggestion had only pushed Si Xinyan to make up her mind.
After a brief silence, Su Liumeng replied in a low voice, “I did say something similar.”
Right was right. She never made excuses.
“Good. At least you have some courage to admit it.”
Si Zhiruo let out a cold laugh.
Her fists slowly tightened.
The sky outside began to darken.
Black clouds gathered, thunder roared, as if the end of the world had arrived.
“As long as you admit it, that’s enough. I was worried you’d deny it.”
If Su Liumeng had refused to admit it, there would not have been much Si Zhiruo could do.
After all, she was her mother’s partner.
She could not force an answer, nor could she easily investigate the truth.
One was the most talented cultivator of the current era.
The other was a supreme ghost cultivator who had lived for thousands of years and now possessed a physical body.
A clash between the two was about to occur.
It might be a fierce battle, or it might be completely one-sided.
Either way, one of those outcomes was about to happen.
“I misspoke.” Su Liumeng genuinely reflected on herself.
Her pride could not drag others into the matter.
This was a matter of principle.
Zhizhi had done nothing to provoke her.
She was indeed in the wrong.
Since she had admitted it, Si Zhiruo smiled in anger. “Then today, I will beat you to death. Mom taught me—if there is a grievance, repay it.”
Su Liumeng lowered her gaze.
Si Zhiruo slowly raised her small hand. Endless energy gathered around her tiny body. Pitch-black mist spread outward, making her delicate face appear and disappear within it. The once soft and harmless child now carried a faint gloom. Within the mist, countless tiny flashes of lightning were constantly forming and fading.
A violent wind rose.
Countless trees were uprooted.
Many cultivators were swept into the air. Even using all their strength, they could not resist the sudden storm.
And this was only the result of a small portion of the leaked energy.
Since they were not at the center of the battlefield, they were merely blown away and did not suffer real harm.
At this moment.
A graceful young woman was struggling forward against the fierce wind.
The moment I noticed my usually clingy daughter had disappeared, I immediately guessed where she had gone and rushed out, abandoning everything at hand.
“Baby.”
I looked toward a corner of the palace that had been torn open.
A pitch-black figure stood in the air, confronting a calm-eyed young woman ahead.
Countless golden dragon phantoms appeared.
Solidified fortune surged around her, forming a protective barrier.
For Su Liumeng to reach her current level, her origins might be very different from what people imagined.
At this moment, facing a life-and-death crisis, I saw her vast sea of fortune actively protecting her.
I even glimpsed a fragment of the Heavenly Dao’s shadow.
Favored by destiny.
The chosen one.
These words were now truly fitting.
So many things had happened that I had almost forgotten her origins, despite her being my partner.
She was a primordial spirit formed from the remnant essence of the fallen Creator God.
And among all primordial spirits, she was the most special one.
Because she was the last.
From the moment of her birth, it was as if she carried a mission.
This world was created by the Creator God.
How could the laws of heaven not protect her?
From behind, a weary call from her mother brought Zhizhi back to her senses.
The raging wind weakened slightly.
The two people she loved most were about to collide at the center of the battlefield.
No matter the outcome, it was the one thing I least wanted to see.
Even so—
Su Liumeng had no intention of making a move.
She had not moved a single step from the beginning. All the phenomena protecting her were passive defenses.
From fusing with nine True Dragon bloodlines to inheriting the position of Great Elder, the uniqueness of her fate was gradually revealing itself.
Si Zhiruo’s raised arm still did not fall. Her gaze remained fixed on the girl before her, as if the next moment she would unleash an attack capable of shattering heaven and earth.
I rushed forward without hesitation and pulled my daughter down from the air.
Endless ghostly energy wrapped around me. I felt a cold I had never experienced before, yet I did not loosen my grip on her.
Si Zhiruo’s eyes were blank.
She stared at me in a daze, allowing me to carry her down.
The energy gathered in her hand slowly dissipated.
But the ghostly aura around her still lingered.
Her small body was ice-cold. I held her tighter than ever before.
“Why did you stop Zhizhi?”
She looked at me blankly.
“She… provoked me first.”
I slowly closed my eyes and explained with difficulty, “This was my idea from the beginning. It has little to do with Su Liumeng. Even without her words, I would have talked to you about it in a few days.”
“After all, I had already promised you. I would not make a decision without discussing it with you.”
The black energy around Si Zhiruo faded.
Her small body went limp, collapsing completely into my arms. The ghostly energy that made her so cold was gradually being reabsorbed by her.
“That still means it’s not completely unrelated to her. Zhizhi scolding her once isn’t unfair.”
She rested her head on my shoulder, not lifting her face, only staring ahead.
Since it was her mother’s decision—
Then it had nothing to do with anyone else.
Si Zhiruo’s favoritism had always been this obvious.
She would never blame her mother.
After all, she was her mother’s only good child. Her mother had the right to decide anything for her.
She muttered quietly in her heart.
Seeing that the storm had finally passed, I let out a sigh of relief and looked toward the girl standing nearby.
I had been worried that Zhizhi’s sudden outburst would make Su Liumeng feel terrible.
But the reality was completely different.
Her gaze remained calm.
She only stared blankly at her own palm, at the endless golden fortune.
Su Liumeng was not someone who would avoid responsibility.
Why would she be angry at Si Zhiruo? Whatever responsibility was hers, she had never once avoided it.
But—
As she looked at the golden light around her, confusion appeared in her eyes for the first time.
What… was this?