Half a day earlier, inside the Vast Sea Residence of the Longyin Hall in the Nine Heavens Palace.
Jiang Huai sat on a lotus seat, brows tightly furrowed, his palms clenched on his knees.
After a moment, he opened his eyes and let out a long sigh, tightening his fists until his knuckles cracked. His voice was low:
“Senior, I still can’t break through to the Great Ascension stage. I always feel like I’m missing something.”
Ever since he had gathered the five dragon marks, his cultivation had been like sailing with the current, advancing a thousand li a day.
But now, at this final doorstep, he simply couldn’t cross over.
That threshold seemed right before him, within reach, yet every time he tried to step over, an invisible force pushed him back.
He had wanted to leave seclusion and fight, but White Dew had sent word that the Extraterrestrial Demons were nothing to worry about and that she could hold them off.
She told him to cultivate in peace and not to worry.
The message jade slip had only a few words—typical of White Dew’s style.
At first, Jiang Huai believed her.
White Dew never spoke rashly. If she said she could hold them off, then she could.
But Jiang Huai was no longer the naive Qi Refining stage cultivator he used to be.
He closed his eyes and slightly sensed the external qi.
The overwhelming demonic qi surged like a tidal wave, nearly swallowing the sky over the Northern Plains.
The enemy was already at their doorstep.
Ji Xi lay in Jiang Huai’s inner world, having chosen a sunny hillside. Beneath her was soft grass.
She had a blade of grass between her lips, one leg crossed over the other, her embroidered shoe half-hanging off her foot, revealing a pale ankle.
She gazed at the sky—the newborn blue sky of Jiang Huai’s inner world.
A few white clouds drifted by, birds flew past, and many small animals gathered around her.
The scene was serene, as if the conflict outside had nothing to do with her.
Jiang Huai’s voice descended from above, filled with anxiety:
“Senior, what should I do?”
Ji Xi spat out the grass and spoke lazily: “You’re too impatient now, like your eyebrows are on fire. How can you break through to the Great Ascension stage like this?”
“Besides, your cultivation is still lacking. It will take some more time to advance to Great Ascension.”
Jiang Huai clenched his fists, his chest heaving violently.
He thought of White Dew—standing at the entrance of the secret realm, her white dress stained with blood, facing the sky full of demons.
He thought of Su Yingman, of Chi Hong, of Chihuang, of Qin Xuange, of Ao Yao—each of them fighting desperately outside while he sat here, unable to do anything.
He thought of Jianjia—that little face, those tiny white dragon horns, those blue eyes so much like White Dew’s.
She was still so young, had never experienced anything.
“Senior, is there any other way? Even if I have to pay a price, I won’t hesitate.”
Hearing this, Ji Xi suddenly sat up, crossing her legs. Her green robe fell and spread over the grass. She reached up to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear, her phoenix eyes staring straight at the sky, as if she could see Jiang Huai’s face through it.
“Then are you afraid of death?” she asked. “What resolve do you have?”
Jiang Huai sat up straight, his back rigid, hands on his knees in a respectful posture:
“Senior, please explain in detail.”
If there was any way, he had to try.
Ji Xi extended a finger and lightly tapped her chin, speaking slowly:
“If you fear death and want to save yourself, then it’s simple.”
“You leave seclusion now, give me some of your essence blood. Our essence blood will merge and be infused into my remains. My remnant soul has been warming inside you all this time, and it has recovered a bit.”
“Then summon your daughter. Though she is young and her cultivation is weak, she is still a Yin-Yang body. Extract her Yin-Yang primordial source while she’s still alive and inject it into my remains.”
“This way, I can recover a fraction of my former strength and join forces with White Dew, Chi Hong, Su Yingman, and the others to hold off those three Heavenly Demons.”
She shook her head, her tone tinged with emotion: “Then we’ll fight with our lives to protect you and send you to the Jade Bracelet Realm.”
“I’ll use my broken body to set up another formation, sealing the entrance to the Jade Bracelet Realm. That will give you enough time to break through to the Great Ascension stage in the Jade Ai Realm.”
Jiang Huai’s face darkened as he stared at Ji Xi in his inner world. His voice was icy:
“Senior, what do you mean by this? You want me to abandon my wife and daughter and live like a coward in the Jade Bracelet Realm?!”
Ji Xi shook her head repeatedly, her tone turning “panicked”: “Little Jiang Huai, I never said anything about abandoning wife and daughter. Don’t pin that on me.”
“Is it really so hard to part with Su Yingman, Chi Hong, White Dew, Chi Lian, and Ao Yao?”
“When you break through to the Great Ascension stage, guarding the Jade Bracelet Realm with the strength of a male Yin-Yang body will be much easier than guarding the Five Provinces. How big is the Jade Bracelet Realm anyway?”
She stood up, brushed the grass clippings off her green robe, and looked up with a laugh: “Then, if you successfully repel the enemy and manage to endure until ascension, you can go to the Immortal Realm and meet Qin Qingyue, Wu Zhaohua, and Zhuxin. Wouldn’t they still be your wives? How can you call that abandonment?”
“After little Jianjia dies, the primordial source of this generation’s Yin-Yang body will dissipate. The child you have with Qin Qingyue or another woman will still be a Yin-Yang body. How can you call that abandoning a daughter?”
She sighed deeply, her tone sympathetic: “I believe that even if little Jianjia has her primordial source forcibly extracted, she won’t blame you, her father, on the Yellow Springs Road. She will bless you and your new daughter.”
Crunch.
The lotus seat beneath Jiang Huai suddenly burst apart.
Shards flew everywhere, and a gust of wind echoed.
The integration-stage Yin-Yang spiritual qi rampaged within the secret chamber, causing the runes on the walls to flicker unsteadily.
His black hair whipped wildly, his robes fluttered, and black and white swirled frantically in his eyes.
“Senior, if you have something to say, just say it directly. There’s no need to provoke me like this!” Jiang Huai tried to suppress his tone, but his voice still carried anger. “I, Jiang Huai, am not that kind of person. I hope Senior will never speak such words again.”
Ji Xi looked at him, her eyes full of admiration. She gave a dry laugh and softened her tone:
“Didn’t you ask me to speak? I haven’t even finished, and you’re already this agitated.”
“Don’t be angry, don’t be angry, little Jiang Huai.”
She cleared her throat, put away her joking expression, and turned serious: “If you have a sense of righteous virtue, then bury my remains in the soil of your inner world.”
“You can command my remnant soul to help you burn your inner world, temporarily raising your realm to the Great Ascension stage or even higher.”
“Then you can repel the enemy, completely drive the Extraterrestrial Demons out of the Five Provinces, and even restore some of the worlds they have occupied.”
Jiang Huai fell silent, staring blankly. After a long while, he asked:
“Can we completely annihilate the Extraterrestrial Demons?”
Ji Xi shook her head regretfully and sighed: “Probably not. As for what comes after, that will have to be left to little Jianjia.”
Jiang Huai understood.
There were two paths: one was to sacrifice his wife and daughter and escape with his life; the other was to burn himself and pave the way for his daughter.
No matter which he chose, Ji Xi would die.
“It seems that no matter which path, Senior…” Jiang Huai hesitated, his expression complicated.
Ji Xi smiled openly, spreading her arms. Her green robe swayed in the wind: “I am nothing more than a remnant soul. Why fear death? I have lingered for countless ages, and meeting you, meeting little Jianjia, seeing this newborn world—that is already an unexpected joy.”
She paused, her phoenix eyes fixed on Jiang Huai, her voice clear:
“So, my little Jiang Huai, which path do you choose?”
Jiang Huai raised his hand and swept away the lotus fragments on the ground.
He sat down on the spot, crossing his legs, closing his eyes, and took a deep breath. His life flashed before his eyes like a revolving lantern.
When he opened his eyes again, there was no hesitation in them.
“The latter,” he said.
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