The living beings of the Five Continents began to stir back to life. Sunlight poured down, warm and bright, dispelling the gloom that had lingered for so long.
Bailu lay on Chihong’s back, too drained to even check how the other provinces were recovering. Her black hair was disheveled, her white dress stained with blood, her face pale. Her dragon eyes were fixed on the direction of the Outer Domain.
Chihong’s scales unfurled, flames trailing behind her tail as she carried Bailu through the air, fast as a shooting star.
Such earth-shattering events had occurred in the Five Continents. Qin Qingyue finally stopped crying. She wiped her face with her sleeve, her eyes red-rimmed, and let Su Yingman support her. Her voice was hoarse. “Summon the Xianzhou. I want to see Jiang Huai.”
Su Yingman nodded and channeled her lingli.
The Xianzhou flew out from her sleeve, grew large in the wind, and hovered in midair. The boat’s hull was engraved with runes, emitting a faint spiritual light.
Su Yingman helped Qin Qingyue steady herself, then waved toward Chihuang, Zhu Siyao, and the others. “Everyone from the Nine Heavens Palace, get on board.”
Seeing Zhu Siyao, Ao Yao, Chihuang, and the others all board the ship, Jianjia also quietly slipped on, shrinking behind the crowd. Her blue eyes darted around.
Other Dragon Clan chiefs and several human experts followed closely behind, turning into streaks of light, guarding both sides of the Xianzhou.
The Xianzhou rumbled into motion, tearing through the air. Qin Qingyue sat at the bow, her robes flapping violently.
Suddenly, she turned her head, her gaze piercing through the crowd, landing on Xiao Jianjia, who was hiding in the very back.
The small figure, with a pair of tiny white dragon horns on her head and a timid, delicate face, was craning her neck and shrinking backward.
A powerful divine sense locked onto her. Jianjia trembled violently, turned her head, and met Qin Qingyue’s crimson dragon eyes.
The look was too fierce. Frightened, Jianjia dared not move and planted her feet firmly.
“Come here.” Qin Qingyue’s eyes were red, her dragon tail gently swaying behind her. Her voice was hoarse.
Jianjia looked left and right, then glanced back at the ship’s railing behind her. Finally, she dumbly raised a hand, pointed at herself, and spoke in a voice faint as a mosquito’s buzz. “Me… me?”
For a moment, all the women turned their heads in unison.
Su Yingman, Zhu Siyao, Chihuang, Ao Yao, Tang Zhaoxue, and the others all turned, their gazes falling squarely on Jianjia.
The numerous stares made Jianjia feel uncomfortable all over. She blinked.
Jianjia shrank her head, steeled herself, and shuffled forward. She felt a strange sensation in her heart.
The person before her didn’t seem like Qin Xuange. Auntie Qin Xuange would never look at her with such eyes, would never make her feel like she couldn’t breathe.
She inched her way to Qin Qingyue, looked up with her small face, and asked timidly, “You… you are Xuange Niang? Yes?”
Qin Qingyue did not answer. She reached out and rubbed Jianjia’s head, her palm pressed against the soft hair. She stared intently at that small face, at those blue eyes that were the spitting image of Bailu’s.
“What is your name?” she asked.
“Jiang Jianjia.” Jianjia answered softly.
Hearing that “Jiang” surname, Qin Qingyue choked up.
She reached out and touched Jianjia’s cheek, then suddenly pulled her into a tight embrace. She burst into tears again, weeping uncontrollably. Tears streamed down her face, dripping onto Jianjia’s hair.
“How come I didn’t even have a child with him?! Why is it Bailu’s?!” She sobbed brokenly, her whole body trembling, her voice shrill.
The only bloodline of Jiang Zhun was still someone else’s child.
This thought cut into her heart like a knife, making Qin Qingyue feel even more miserable.
Su Yingman, Tang Zhaoxue, and the others came forward to console her, speaking words of comfort one after another.
Jianjia was forced to stay nestled in Qin Qingyue’s embrace, completely bewildered, not knowing what to do.
She secretly glanced at Su Yingman, then at Zhu Siyao, and thought to herself,
‘Is Xuange Niang crazy?’
—
Void of the Outer Domain.
Yin-Yang Sword Qi crisscrossed and raged, shattering large swaths of the void into pieces.
Jiang Huai was locked in combat with the three demons. The battle was brutal.
Ji, Jue, and Wu—three humanoid black shadows, their forms towering, thick demonic qi swirling around them like three lumps of solidified darkness. They attacked together in perfect coordination, each strike carrying the power to annihilate heaven and earth.
Jiang Huai’s black robe was already torn, his long hair disheveled, a trace of blood at the corner of his mouth. His right hand held the Yin-Yang Longsword, its blade flowing with black and white energy. His left hand clutched empty space, condensing the Two Energies of Yin and Yang.
Every swing of his sword brought a beam of light several dozen feet long, leaving deep sword marks in the void.
The void trembled, stars shook precariously. Yin-Yang Sword Qi clashed with demonic qi, erupting in blinding light that illuminated the dark void like daylight. The spiritual power was astonishing, as if the world were being born anew, or as if the apocalypse had arrived.
But Jiang Huai was clearly at a disadvantage. The three demons attacked together, their demonic power ceaseless, their assault rolling in wave after wave.
He struggled to parry and dodge, retreating step by step, his wounds growing more numerous, the blood pouring thicker.
Bailu stared blankly at this scene, standing on Chihong’s back. For a moment, she felt dazed, her head spinning, darkness swimming before her eyes. She nearly fell off the dragon’s back.
Was this scene any different from the Primordial Era? It was even more brutal than that time.
She had frozen herself until now precisely to contribute to the Five Continents again, to fight against the Heavenly Demon from beyond.
But what difference was there between this sight and the past?
Back then, her best sister Ji Xi had died. This time, was it to be her husband?
Bailu lay on Chihong’s back, her fingers gripping the dragon scales tightly. She murmured to herself,
‘What do I do? What can I do?’
The battle grew more intense. Jiang Huai fought faster and more fiercely, his sword techniques becoming more aggressive, as if he were racing against time.
The three demons and he seemed to be competing over who had deeper reserves. Jiang Huai was burning his Small World and Ji Xi’s remnant soul, consuming his life with every moment. Behind the three demons, countless Heavenly Demons and the Mother Tree supported them, supplying an endless stream of demonic power.
Jiang Zhun kept swinging his blade, enduring scorching pain. Every sword stroke came with heart-wrenching agony.
He knew in his heart that he couldn’t outlast the Heavenly Demon’s foundation. But for now, he could only exhaust his last ounce of strength, weakening the three demons to a level that Bailu and Chihong could handle.
Out of the three demons, he had to kill at least two.
Sword light interweaved, demonic qi surged. The battle was deadlocked, neither side able to gain the upper hand.
Jiang Huai suddenly turned his head and looked in the direction of the Xianzhou. His gaze landed on Ao Yao. He slowly reached out his hand, his five fingers spread open.
“Ao Yao!”
The short sword in Ao Yao’s embrace shook violently, clanging loudly. The blade trembled, a brilliant blue light flared, and the sword shot out of its sheath like a streak of cyan light, flying straight into Jiang Huai’s hand.
“This sword… really came in handy. I should have maintained it more often.” Ao Yao hugged the empty scabbard, muttering to herself, her green eyes full of complicated emotions.
Jiang Zhun held the long sword in his right hand and the short sword in his left. With both swords in hand, his momentum surged. His long hair whipped wildly, his black robe fluttered, and black and white qi swirled around him like dragons.
He charged forward and launched into a frenzied melee. The Yin-Yang Sword Qi from his right sword swept across, temporarily blocking Jue and Wu. The sword light formed a wall, sealing off the two demons, leaving only a single gap that they could not break through.
The Azure Dragon Short Sword in his left hand blazed with cyan light. The blade hummed loudly as it struck straight at the Heavenly Demon Ji.
Sword after sword, fast as lightning. The Heavenly Demon Ji struggled to parry and dodge, retreating step by step. In one-on-one combat, it was no match for Jiang Huai.
He seized an opportunity. His left sword struck with a fierce slash, piercing straight into Ji’s body.
The power of Yin and Yang exploded. Black and white light burst from within Ji’s body, tearing it into pieces.
Ji let out a piercing shriek, dissipating into black smoke. Only one last message remained, echoing faintly:
“Yin-Yang Body, you won’t live long either.”
“My nature is to return to Nirvanic Extinction. What about you living beings?”
—
On the Xianzhou, outside the void, cheers erupted.
Jiang Huai had slain one of the great demons!
Chihuang excitedly shook Cang Ling’s shoulders, laughing and shouting at the same time. Ao Yao hugged her empty scabbard, the corners of her mouth lifting. Everyone was overjoyed.
Only Qin Qingyue and Bailu remained worried.
Qin Qingyue sat at the bow of the ship, gazing at the bloodstained figure in the void. She whispered softly,
“It’s over… It’s finished.”
Jiang Huai killed the Heavenly Demon Ji. His aura was wilted. He gasped for breath, his chest heaving violently. The blood seeping from his wounds had already soaked through his black robe.
He suddenly turned, facing Jue and Wu. His mind was already made up.
One for one. Trade himself for the last demon.
He turned his head to look at the Xianzhou behind him, took one last, deep look at Qin Qingyue, and murmured,
“I’m sorry.”
That face, those eyes, that expression—he would carve them into his heart. This would be his last sight of the human world.
His promise to reunite with Qin Qingyue in the Immortal Realm—he would have to break it.
Jiang Huai turned his head back. In his left hand, the Yin-Yang Longsword; in his right, the Azure Dragon Short Sword. He merged both swords, attacking without any defense, charging straight at the Heavenly Demon Jue.
His figure was resolute and tragic, like a burning meteor of Yin and Yang, charging forward without hesitation.
The Heavenly Demon Jue sensed that desperate, death-defying aura and scrambled to meet the attack.
Dual swords pierced through its skull. Black-white and cyan light exploded simultaneously. At the same instant, Jue’s arm also pierced through Jiang Huai’s heart.
Thud. Thud.
Two dull sounds rang out at the same time.
Inside Jiang Huai’s Inner World, it was almost completely burned out, only a last wisp of residual warmth remained. His pupils began to dilate, gradually losing their light.