The next moment.
After a brief dizziness, my mind reappeared deep within that familiar Sea of Consciousness.
Unlike the last time, which was calm and harmonious, this time the sea was engulfed in chaos, filled with a violent urge to destroy in every direction.
Countless streaks of red lightning descended from the sky.
Not a single ray of light broke through the heavens; the grayish hues seemed to be the eternal main theme.
Staring at all this, I suddenly froze in place.
Until—
A tiny hand gently tugged at the hem of my skirt, pulling my shattered thoughts back together.
“Mommy.”
The little bundle of energy stood just beside me, looking up at me with eyes full of grievance. “Why aren’t you holding me…?”
I lifted her into my arms.
Motherly instinct kicked in without hesitation, and I quickly found the most comfortable position for my baby, letting her settle into my embrace. “Zhizhi, are you upset?”
I leaned my head closer, pressing it against her chubby little face.
In this, Sizhizhi was very much like me.
Her body temperature was different from normal people’s—exactly the same slightly cool feeling as mine.
The temperature was just right pressed against her, even a little comforting, as if seeking warmth.
Sizhizhi clutched my collar and, following suit, pressed her cheek to mine. “I just had a nightmare…”
“I dreamed of things from the past.”
“There’s no related memory in my mind at all.”
“It felt like a completely unfamiliar scene was forcibly stuffed into my brain—it was painful and something I didn’t want to recall.”
For the first time, Sizhizhi showed her vulnerable side.
Before her mother, she laid down all her defenses.
I gently patted her back.
At this moment, I didn’t see her as an invincible Ghost King.
She was just my only daughter—a pure baby who needed love and care. That was all.
“Were there many images in your dream? Or just a few scattered memories?”
Sizhizhi lightly nodded her little head. “Some fragmented memory pieces, but no complete memory network.”
“Mommy, I think I must have had amnesia once.”
“I can also see your past life scenes, and then there’s that man in black…”
“Though it was only a glance, I still felt an extremely familiar feeling.”
“She’s the person I hate most in this life.”
I stared into the anger in the little bundle’s eyes, mingled with a faint, flickering fear. “Hmm… baby, what do you plan to do now?”
Sizhizhi’s brows drooped slightly. “I—I want to kill her.”
“I feel she’s not dead yet.”
“She definitely isn’t my match right now.” The little girl emphasized seriously, “In the history of this world, there should never have been a single Emperor Realm powerhouse born.”
“As I stepped closer to the next level, I got a very strong intuition.”
“That is—I seem to be truly invincible now.”
“My strength is far more complex than it appears. When I was still only in the True Self Realm, I could crush a peer realm enemy with one slap. That’s incredibly difficult.”
“I even believe that without completing my breakthrough, I could still hold my own in battle against that Azure Dragon. Mommy, do you think such power is normal for a fierce ghost?”
“In the long river of history, it seems there has never been anyone like me who could casually challenge higher levels.”
“My uniqueness and strength come from my past experiences, definitely related to that fleeting man in black from the visions.”
“In my lost memories—or rather, during the time when my consciousness was not yet awakened—many things must have happened.”
Sizhizhi hesitated a moment, then, encouraged by my gaze, spoke out her next words.
“Mommy, I’ve found a specific coordinate. It should be a place I used to live in the past.”
“Will you come with me to find my lost memories?”
Her eyes shone with hope.
I smiled warmly and kissed her little face. “Of course. You’re my daughter. If I don’t accompany you, who else would?”
Sizhizhi beamed brilliantly, the little one laughing happily. “Mommy, you’re so good to me.”
“Let me grow up a little more first.”
“At least wait until I’m three years old; my body will be more suited for high-intensity battles.”
She pouted and said, “It’s like a simple mechanical component with a powerful core. Without a body that can truly act freely, no matter how strong the power is, it will still be affected.”
“I hope this journey goes smoothly, and I especially hope Mommy won’t get hurt even a little bit. Of course, I have to stay in my prime condition.”
She fiddled with her tiny hands and added, “By then, I should have completed my breakthrough. Even if I can’t fully finish the last step, I’ll at least be very close to becoming an invincible being.”
“But that’s the worst-case scenario. Anyway, I’m at least fifty percent sure I can break into the Emperor Realm.”
I listened quietly and attentively.
When I heard this, I suddenly said, “Baby, you’re amazing.”
The little girl smiled foolishly. “This is a memory I just recalled.”
“That’s also why I’m so certain that no one else has ever broken into the Emperor Realm.”
“The Emperor Realm is, in a sense, no different from a minor Heavenly Dao. The gap between it and the True Self Realm—Mommy, you should be able to sense it—is as vast as heaven and earth.”
“So, between these two realms, there’s still quite a distance.”
“This gap isn’t exactly a realm on its own, but more like the process of gradually forming your own Dao fruit step by step.”
“According to traditional terminology, forming your own Dao fruit is called becoming an Emperor Realm powerhouse. Before that, there are nine steps—these nine steps are called the Nine-Source Heavenly Ladder by others.”
The Nine-Source Heavenly Ladder? I had never heard of that term before.
I was momentarily stunned, then asked, “Baby, which source are you at now?”
Sizhizhi counted on her fingers, her voice clear and bright. “Seven Source.”
“This source means ‘yuanqi’—the origin qi, the true power that belongs to oneself. When you gather nine strands of yuanqi, you can form your own Dao fruit.”
“Mommy, do you see this tree? This tree is the concrete manifestation of my origin qi and also the crystallization of my cultivation in this lifetime. The process of climbing the Nine-Source Heavenly Ladder is like nurturing a tender sapling with your own cultivated yuanqi until it grows into a towering tree bearing fruit.”
“I feel like… I originally had quite a bit of yuanqi, but it was sealed by others. That’s why when I advanced further, I could jump straight to the Seventh Source Realm.”
“Also, even among Seventh Source powerhouses, their strength varies greatly. How tall your Dao tree is, and how many leaves it has—that’s the difference in strength. This depends on how solid your foundation was in the past and how powerful your cultivated yuanqi is.”
At this point, Sizhizhi suddenly stammered, afraid I would think she wasn’t strong enough. “Mommy, I’m already very strong. There are very few powerhouses with yuanqi in this world. Take the Azure Dragon, who’s nearly invincible in this world—he’s so powerful he can guard a powerful clan for hundreds of years. But even he is only a Third Source powerhouse.”
“One strand of yuanqi can extend life by a hundred years. He’s currently five hundred and ninety-nine years old. Maybe he’ll die next month.”
I secretly gasped, deeply shocked.
I reached out and pinched the little bundle’s cheek. She didn’t dodge but closed her eyes comfortably. “So, by that logic, our baby isn’t just a little powerful, but very powerful, right?”
“Of course! You didn’t even ask whose daughter I am.” Sizhizhi was overjoyed, like she had eaten honey, standing a bit straighter as she said, “I also owe it to Mommy’s influence. I get stronger every moment. It feels like soon I’ll become an Eight-Source powerhouse, and even have a huge breakthrough after I’m born.”
I carefully processed this new information and after a long moment asked a crucial question, “Zhizhi, after you’re born, will you be able to punch a hole in the sky with one blow?” I wanted a concrete comparison of her strength.
Sizhizhi’s eyes blanked out for a moment, as if she hadn’t expected Mommy to ask such a question. She tentatively replied, “I can do that now. This isn’t the Origin World. Besides, the Origin World no longer exists; it has fragmented into many smaller worlds. So punching a hole in the sky isn’t very difficult.”
“If Mommy means a punch that creates a hole which cannot be repaired by the rules, then I think at least a Nine-Source powerhouse would be needed. Nine Source is basically the peak of strength imagined by mortals. They no longer need to worry about the Heavenly Dao’s interference. They just haven’t completely taken the final step to become a transcendent realm like a minor Heavenly Dao.”
I pondered for a moment.
That means the old man I saw in the past life vision…
He should be the final transcendent realm.
In my previous life, I didn’t have a specific punch, but just a massive body pushing upward could punch a hole in the sky. I imagine he must have been at least a Nine-Source powerhouse.
As far as I remember, I couldn’t beat that guy. My body was indestructible, but my fighting style was a bit underhanded.
I just kept pinning him under a mountain peak to drive him crazy.
When he finally completely defeated me, he used the power of reopening the heavens, consuming all his origin, to shatter most of the Destiny Stone’s body.
I’m still not certain about the exact realms.
This is just my personal guess, which might not be close to the truth.
Mainly because…
The Heavenly Dao only stops others from breaking through; it doesn’t completely block the path to the Emperor Realm.
Take Zhizhi for example—she has a good chance of breaking through to the Emperor Realm.
The Emperor Realm is theoretically just a minor Heavenly Dao, not the true Grand Heavenly Dao. It probably isn’t the old man’s original realm.
Otherwise, if he broke through, wouldn’t he be equivalent to a Creator?
A Creator-level powerhouse can casually rewrite the Heavenly Dao’s rules. The current Heavenly Dao wouldn’t allow such a being to exist, no matter how tolerant the rules are.
Besides, Zhizhi keeps emphasizing the Emperor Realm is a minor Heavenly Dao that can ignore the Heavenly Dao in their own domain. It doesn’t mean they can directly crush the Heavenly Dao.
That’s just ridiculous—it’s easy to see it’s unrealistic.
Sizhizhi lay quietly in my arms for a long time without speaking.
In the warm breath of her mother, her eyelids began to flutter, as if about to fall asleep.
I looked at her rosy little face and smiled with a motherly tenderness, my eyes full of adoration, almost melting like water.
I gently patted her back. “Sleep now, sleep.”
“Mm.” Sizhizhi mumbled faintly.
I originally wanted to ask if there were any Nine-Source powerhouses in this world.
But thinking carefully, the answer was already in my heart.
A Nine-Source powerhouse can extend their life by nine hundred years, so they live about one thousand one hundred years in total.
That means they are not immortal, and their numbers don’t increase over time.
From this angle, having even a few origin powerhouses from the same generation still alive is already very rare.
No wonder the Thirteenth Ancestor, who was only a Third Source powerhouse, could guard a powerful clan for hundreds of years.
Origin powerhouses are extremely rare, let alone Nine-Source powerhouses.
I believe such beings don’t exist in this world.
It’s simply impossible for anyone to be a Nine-Source powerhouse.
Though Zhizhi only gave me fragments, I could piece together a rough truth.
Under suppressed origin power, she fought a weakened man in black with her former True Self Realm strength and then escaped.
The result was, the man in black never defeated her.
If that imposing man in black couldn’t beat Zhizhi, doesn’t it prove she isn’t Nine Source at best—maybe five or six source level?
By extension, I can roughly infer the realms of others.
After all, if the man in black is so ruthless and no righteous person has come out to uphold justice, it means no one can beat him.
Therefore, the man in black is probably at the ceiling level.
Most likely, he isn’t from my living world.
From that, I can infer that five or six source levels are already the ceiling in the context of multiple great worlds.
Of course.
This is only speculation, not necessarily correct.
After all, the man in black might not be at full strength, perhaps in a rare weak state. But since he hasn’t sought Zhizhi out yet, it indirectly proves one thing.
That is— even if he regains full strength, he may still not be able to beat Zhizhi now.
Because knowing he can’t win, he never dared to show himself.
After I soothed the baby to sleep, I gently laid her under the big tree nearby, picked up a large leaf and observed it for a long time.
Finally, I guessed the leaf’s true purpose and placed it over the little bundle’s belly, just covering her navel.
Watching such a harmonious scene under the tree, a satisfied smile appeared in my eyes.
So adorable.
No wonder she’s my daughter, perfectly inheriting my genes.
Without a biological father, Zhizhi’s genes are very close to mine.
Therefore, she looks like a miniature version of myself, though with some subtle differences.
These two—big and small—if we walked out hand in hand, no one would need much explanation. Everyone’s first reaction would be that we’re biological mother and daughter.
Even asleep, Zhizhi still retained her last consciousness as my silhouette gradually dissipated deep in the Sea of Consciousness.
Outside.
Su Liumeng had been standing by my side, repeatedly checking if I was still breathing.
My long eyelashes trembled as I barely opened my eyes and saw a magnified face right in front of me, nearly scaring me into a fetal movement. “What are you doing?!”
I slapped her lightly, annoyed. “Don’t get so close or you’ll scare my soul away.”
“I really want to bite you.”
Su Liumeng raised her hands in surrender so many times it was natural now. “I’m just checking if you’re breathing.”
“Who’s not breathing? If you can’t talk, don’t.” I rolled my eyes. “Baby was a little upset just now, so I went to comfort her.”
“How is the baby now?” Su Liumeng’s eyes landed on my belly.
I gently stroked my lower abdomen. “She’s asleep.”
“Sleeping soundly?”
“Yes.”
“That’s good.” Su Liumeng breathed a sigh of relief. “I was really scared just now when you suddenly covered yourself with a blanket and then said nothing.”
I sat up a little straighter, leaning against the pillow behind me. “If nothing happens later, let’s leave the Su family.”
“Hm, we can go back to the capital and continue studying. After all, there are people we know there, so it won’t be too boring.”
“Staying at the Su family all the time, there’s nothing much to do.”
“Besides, there’s a love rival here. Living under the same roof with her always makes me feel a bit off. It’s just not a good experience; better to keep some distance.”
Su Liumeng’s eyes shifted, and she seriously emphasized, “She’s not your love rival. She’s… my love rival.”
“Alright, alright, your love rival.”
“That’s not important. Either way, it’s a rival.”
At this point.
I still found it hard to believe Su Luo had feelings for me.
I took Su Liumeng’s hand, my tone sounding more like a negotiation. “Look, my belly is getting bigger and bigger. It’s less than two months until I give birth. I need a quiet environment to rest.”
“After the baby’s born, I have to sit the month, which also takes a month.”
“Either way, staying at the Su family isn’t good.”
Su Liumeng smiled and rubbed my head. “I never said no. If you give me a few more reasons, you’ll have made the Su family sound like a useless place.”
I stuck out my tongue shyly, hugged her arm, and started to act cute. “Jiujiu, when can we leave?”
“I’m already itching to play on my phone.”
Su Liumeng truly couldn’t stand her wife acting cute; it was almost enough to crumble her bones. The expression in her eyes had already shifted to one of enjoyment.
Staying in the Su family together was not a big deal.
More importantly, without the help of internet channels…
Who knows how long it would take to slowly straighten out Sizhizhi’s old-fashioned mindset.
She always looked forward to the girl’s white silk gift. But whenever someone quietly uttered the word ‘dirty,’ she would somehow feel a small emotional breakdown.
Su Liumeng had already imagined countless beautiful scenes in her mind. Sizhizhi was naturally adorable; paired with white silk, it would be absolutely perfect.