“The specific reason, huh.”
My voice trailed off, laden with melancholy.
Seeing their master engaged in conversation, the nearby maidservants reflexively moved to a distance where they could no longer overhear.
Si Zhizhuo tilted her head slightly, listening intently to the words that followed.
A breeze swept across the lake’s surface, seemingly intent on whisking away the winter chill.
My gaze gradually steadied as I looked at my daughter.
I had always understood my own intentions.
Claiming that I would bear everything alone was, in truth, no different from cowardice. Speaking out and facing it together was actually the best option.
This was perhaps my final bit of selfishness—wanting her to remain carefree for a few more years.
I recalled the complaints of many adults online, saying their mothers loved to “seek out hardship” for no reason.
‘Am I… like that?’
Certainly not.
Since she wanted to know now, then we would face it together.
I closed my eyes and pulled her into my chest, patting her back gently. The rhythmic sound of the light thuds gradually merged with the melody of my heartbeat.
“It was during a certain night…”
It happened one month after I gave birth to Zhizhi.
Late into the night.
Su Liumeng was fast asleep beside me. She slept exceptionally deeply that night, as if influenced by some invisible force that prevented her from waking up.
It was a very special day—the end of the first month.
Just after 12:00 AM.
A mark emerged on my daughter’s forehead as she lay in her crib. Its shape resembled a teardrop, pure white in color, emitting a faint glow in the darkness.
As if summoned, I jolted awake from my dream.
I slowly reached out my knuckles toward my daughter. The moment I touched that faint light, my body violently shuddered. Through the halo before my eyes, I suddenly saw a vision of a scene many years in the future.
It was a day 130 years later.
I had failed to break through to the Ego Realm and had finally reached the end of my life.
I saw Su Liumeng and Si Zhizhuo, still youthful, standing before a hospital bed. A figure covered by a white cloth made it impossible for me to see clearly.
But I knew—that person was me.
Si Zhizhuo was slumped over my body, weeping uncontrollably.
Even a person as strong as Su Liumeng had bloodshot eyes, her shoulders trembling incessantly.
My daughter’s appearance as an adult was somewhat blurred in the vision. Only Su Liumeng’s figure was clear.
I heard them calling my name with heart-wrenching voices.
I also saw Su Liumeng constantly pulling out elixirs, trying to pour them into the mouth of the figure on the bed, only for them to roll uselessly onto the floor. Elixirs that would normally be cherished by countless people were now scattered on the ground, ignored by everyone.
I was dead.
I died in the year I loved them most.
When I learned this truth, I fell into a state of collapse for a time.
Back then, I had just given birth to my daughter and was finally able to cultivate normally. I was still dreaming of the future, hoping to rise step-by-step in my cultivation.
As it turned out, reality struck me with a heavy blow.
At first, I truly did not believe in fate. I persisted in bitter cultivation day and night.
‘I refuse to believe that I can’t change my destiny.’
However, the increasingly restrictive boundaries of my realm and the energy that struggled to flow through my meridians served as constant reminders of the truth I needed to face.
If the 18-year-old version of me still had a trace of Innate Qi that hadn’t dispersed, it was completely gone by the time I gave birth to my daughter.
I was nothing more than a vase with good bone structure but no substance.
Therefore, after much deliberation one night, I made a preposterous decision.
Since I was destined to die 130 years later, who would accompany my daughter after those hundred years?
The Nine Origin Ladder was incredibly difficult to climb. Even with Su Liumeng’s immense talent, I couldn’t say for certain that she would succeed.
So, I had to add another bargaining chip to her talent. A chip that belonged to me.
I wanted her to be able to break through, to be able to take that final step alongside Si Zhizhuo.
In this world, she was the person I trusted most.
Because of this, I soon dropped out of school and finished planning my life.
The moment I became a mother, I finally understood how far a mother would go for her child.
That night, after I made my decision, I held my daughter’s small hand and wept silently for a long time.
No one wants to give up on themselves.
When I chose to give up my future—even my cultivation realm—it was equivalent to giving up my life.
In that moment, I was calm.
But I was also in pain.
However, looking at my daughter’s adorable sleeping face, I was also happy.
At the very least, I never regretted the decision I made.
To act without regret is a very important lesson in life. Every decision I made was the result of careful consideration. Therefore, I would never regret it.
On that night, a young mother decided the fate of her own life with ease.
By her daughter’s bedside, watching her sleep, she sentenced her own future to death without notifying a single soul.
I am the Heavenly Destiny Stone.
The future I saw was the inevitable result presented to me by the rules.
The reason a Postnatal Spirit is a Postnatal Spirit is because of the Heavenly Destiny Stone’s unique ability to defy the heavens.
The Heavenly Dao would favor me slightly, but it would also guard against me.
This was the final rule written by the Creator God, and it was the inevitable result driven by the Primordial Rules—just as I was a fated tribulation for Him.
I dragged out His life until it ended.
And He, in the final moment of His life, left me with an unsolvable proposition.
In this life, I have an Extreme Yin Constitution, yet I am male.
I possess talent, yet I precisely cannot cultivate.
This was the result of the contest between the Heavenly Destiny Stone and the Creator God.
The Heavenly Destiny Stone is destined to be extraordinary. In its second life, its talent would defy the heavens; it is a fundamental rule deeper than the standard rules.
The fact that I was a male who happened to be unable to cultivate was the backup plan left by the Creator God.
I had once left a single teardrop that happened to land on Si Zhizhuo’s forehead, allowing her to meet me countless years later. This allowed me to complete the true miracle of becoming a girl—this was my own backup plan for resistance.
At this moment, I finally understood.
My transformation into a girl was not a self-correction of the Heavenly Dao’s rules at all. It was the final, unwilling scream of the Heavenly Destiny Stone.
It was the last miracle I had left behind myself.
The Heavenly Destiny Stone and the Creator God were both born from chaos; they were supreme substances born at the same time.
The Heavenly Destiny Stone was the Creator God’s fated tribulation. He had always wanted to completely erase the traces of the Stone. The contest between the two has existed since the beginning of creation, stemming from the descriptions of the rules themselves.
Neither was destined to win, and neither was destined to lose.
Because it was destined that there would be no winner.
The Creator God should not exist in this world, and the Heavenly Destiny Stone should have a perfect curtain call after completing its mission.
The contest between the Heavenly Destiny Stone and the Creator God has always continued with each side winning a small, temporary round. My ability to become a girl was the result of the Stone’s temporary victory.
This would not change the final outcome.
Because the Heavenly Destiny Stone defied the heavens too much.
My end had already been written countless years ago.
At this moment, I saw through my life completely. I saw through my destiny and my future. These were the Primordial Rules that transcended the standard rules. They were the eternal essence within the chaos.
No one could change them.
And I was destined to die in my 148th year.
Which was 130 years from now.
I held my daughter’s small hand and wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes.
“To be able to see you grow up healthy, Mom is already satisfied.”
“Knowing my future beforehand, and knowing that no matter how I struggle, I cannot escape my set destiny… how could I possibly be interested in anything else?”
“This—is the answer you wanted.”
“I am destined to die in 129 years.”
“As the so-called Heavenly Destiny Stone, my own fate was written long ago. Doesn’t that sound ridiculous?”
“I struggled, and I left behind backup plans. But now, I’m a bit tired…”
“Or rather, seeing that I have a daughter like you, I have no regrets left. Death is also a form of release.”
Si Zhizhuo suddenly stood up, roaring at me with a face covered in tears.
“To hell with ‘predetermined fate’!” She used profanity for the first time in her life.
“They want my mom to die?”
“Even if it’s the Primordial Rules, I just want to say—”
“YOU ARE NOT WORTHY.”
The little girl clenched her fists tightly, and countless bolts of black lightning suddenly appeared in the sky. With just one punch, she cleared the sky and calmed the earth.
The world fell into silence.
She opened her bloodshot eyes, her voice almost seeping through her gritted teeth. “The Primordial Rules are nothing. Things I don’t allow simply cannot happen…”
“Just wait. Sooner or later, I’ll punch through chaos itself.”
“I’ll smash any ‘origin’ into pieces with one punch.”
“No one can take my mother away.”
“NO ONE!!”
The little girl’s black hair fluttered wildly; it was the first time she had been this angry.
I picked her up and held her. “Alright, cheer up.”
I treated what she just said as mere venting.
‘Let it out. You’ll feel much better once it’s out.’
If even the Creator God couldn’t do it, what could she change alone?
I didn’t say anything negative, though. At least she had a goal to strive for; it wouldn’t let the little girl become decadent like me.
As a creature born from chaos, I understood the Primordial Rules all too well.
Even the act of creation was written into its basic logic. No one in this world could violate them. Once the Creator God finished passing things down, He had to fall.
In fact, that is exactly what happened.
Only the final Primordial Rule remained. I, as the Heavenly Destiny Stone that had already fulfilled its purpose, should also complete my mission and have a perfect exit.
Si Zhizhuo’s eyes were still as red as a rabbit’s. She bit her lip and looked at me, making a serious vow. “Mom, do you believe in Zhizhi?”
“I can definitely change your destiny.”
Staring into the earnestness in her eyes, I was momentarily stunned.
Then, the corners of my lips slowly curled upward. “Okay, I believe you.”
How could I not believe her?
‘I’ll give it a try. Maybe there really is a chance.’
Even though the possibility was almost zero, I already knew the final result, yet I still chose to believe without hesitation. Simply because she was my daughter.
Si Zhizhuo hugged my body and didn’t let go for a long time.
Her emotional fluctuations today were too intense. Especially when she heard that story, the emotions in her heart surged out uncontrollably.
If she felt this way, she didn’t dare imagine how her mother had spent this past year.
No wonder she had been in a daze, uninterested in everything.
Zhizhi herself couldn’t accept it. Just thinking about the Primordial Rules felt like countless mountains were pressing down on her.
How much worse was it for a mother who was just an ordinary person?
Whenever she thought of her mother facing that endless despair alone, it felt like countless small knives were cutting at her heart.
It was agonizing.
If only she had thought of it sooner, asked sooner… how great that would have been. At least her mother wouldn’t have had to bear it alone.
With an extra person, there would be an extra solution.
Happiness can be shared, and pain can be divided as well.
It is said that three commoners can best a genius. She refused to believe that she and Su Liumeng combined wouldn’t be able to fight against the Primordial Rules.
Facing the infinite pressure of the Primordial Rules, Si Zhizhuo’s thoughts wavered for a moment before suddenly becoming even firmer.
She didn’t have the luxury to fail. She had no reason to fail. She could only succeed.
February 1, 2045.
Si Zhizhuo raised two fingers.
She did not respect heaven or earth. She only respected her kin.
So, she raised her two fingers toward her mother and made a serious vow in her heart. As long as she, Si Zhizhuo, lived, she would not let any of this happen.
**[She would definitely tear chaos to shreds.]**
“What are you muttering about alone?” Just as Si Zhizhuo finished her vow, I caught her two small fingers.
I looked at her with a smile, my tone doting.
The mountain that had been troubling me for so long felt many times lighter now that I had spoken about it. At least now, I could face my end quite calmly.
There were still 129 years left. Not a particularly short amount of time. I would just live this life to the fullest.
Regardless, I had already done what I needed to do. Su Liumeng was the person I chose to entrust my daughter to. I could be considered free of regrets and obsessions.
Si Zhizhuo suddenly pouted, her eyes still a bit red as she snuggled into my arms. “I’m still a baby too. I want Mom to hold me.”
“I’m very sad today. Only Mom’s hug can heal me.”
I chuckled.
‘How is this child getting better and better at acting spoiled?’
“Mhm, I’ll hold you,” I said succinctly.
I had originally intended to comfort my daughter, but I didn’t expect her to be even stronger than I thought. After hearing the truth I recounted, she didn’t fall into a collapse.
This allowed me to breathe a sigh of relief.
The things that needed to be said had been communicated. The barrier that had stood between mother and daughter had completely vanished now that they had spoken clearly.
Facing the problem together had become a consensus in their hearts.
As I soothed my daughter’s remaining emotions, Su Liumeng suddenly came to mind.
On my daughter’s side, I had managed to speak out.
But how should I tell Su Liumeng?
Could she accept it as calmly as I did?
Or would she fly into a rage like my daughter, shouting over-the-top and delusional words that sounded unrealistic to my ears?