Chapter 64

Su Mengyao ultimately left, but unlike when she had first arrived, proudly displaying her space ring with a sense of pride, her face now wore an expression of existential doubt.

Even now, she could not understand why every time she came to Ye Xuan’s place, he would shock her.

Especially this time—she had just pulled out the space ring developed by the Science Research Institute, and Ye Xuan immediately showed her a space ring from the Celestial Treasures realm, one he had somehow produced from nowhere.

If she didn’t know Ye Xuan was incapable of such a thing, she would have thought he was deliberately targeting her.

After Su Mengyao left, Ye Xuan continued his cultivation—and, incidentally, manifested Xiao Yan to go alchemize.

Meanwhile, deep in the cosmos.

The void, silent for hundreds of millions of years, suddenly rippled.

At first, it was only a fine crack, like a scratch on glass, invisible against the dark universe; but as time passed, the crack twisted and expanded, as if torn by some invisible force, its edges blazing with blinding light.

“Boom—”

A silent explosion reverberated through the vacuum; though no sound traveled through air, the spacetime tremor made nearby stardust shiver—the crack shattered completely, becoming a wormhole over ten thousand meters in diameter.

A torrent of Qi surged forth like a tide, forming a dazzling vortex of spiritual energy across the cosmos.

But this was only the beginning.

The Qi spilling from the wormhole spread faster than light; wherever it passed, space rippled like water, and nearby drifting meteorites began to change.

The hard rock surfaces suddenly sprouted translucent veins, pulsing slowly as if infused with life; cold metallic ores transformed into crystalline structures never seen before.

Several nearby dead asteroids cracked open under the Qi’s wash, spewing forth glowing emerald-green life energy.

As the Qi spread, the spacetime structure around the wormhole grew unstable; one after another secondary wormholes bloomed in the void, carrying the Qi toward distant star systems.

One stream of spiritual energy crossed tens of thousands of light-years, reaching a barren planet.

Its crimson earth was cracked and parched, its atmosphere thick with toxic gases; the star’s light was blocked by dense dust clouds, leaving only faint glimmers to pierce through.

No water. No vegetation. No sign of life.

“Sssss—”

The torrent of vibrant Qi enveloped the entire planet like a celestial curtain; the murky gases began to decompose, the high-altitude dust clouds soaked through by Qi gradually transformed into energy-charged spiritual mist, forming a protective spiritual layer over the planet’s surface.

The cracked soil suddenly grew moist; countless glistening spiritual fluids seeped from fissures, converging into winding streams; wherever the streams flowed, the crimson earth faded, revealing fertile black-brown soil.

At the planet’s core, a translucent sapling burst from the ground, its leaves clear as blue crystal, its stem entwined with golden patterns.

It grew at visible speed, and in an instant became a towering giant tree; the moment its canopy unfurled, countless specks of light drifted down, landing on the surrounding land.

Wherever the specks touched, more plants sprouted—life bloomed everywhere.

The true spiritual revival was about to begin.

Blue Planet was merely one world in the vast cosmos, brushed by chance by the tidal wave of Qi.

Due to its remote star system, it had arrived later than many other planets to receive the spiritual baptism; while civilizations on other worlds had already evolved under the nourishment of Qi, Blue Planet’s spiritual energy might have just begun to awaken.

And that was precisely the most dangerous part.

Humans believed mutated beasts were the greatest threat, that awakened psychics would overthrow order, that the struggle for Celestial Treasures would decide the future; but the true crisis lay not merely on Blue Planet, but beyond the stars.

This was the universe’s selection: those civilizations that awakened first would inevitably turn their gaze toward other worlds in the distant future; Blue Planet was one of them.

Only no one knew then—who would be the hunter, and who the prey.

After all, what Blue Planet had experienced was more than just spiritual revival.

On Mount Kunlun, in the snowfields.

The biting wind was shredded by sword qi; on the snow, two figures flashed past each other.

“Clang!”

At the moment their blades clashed, snow within a hundred meters exploded outward, revealing the black frozen earth beneath.

Momo Hana stepped back half a step, a weak smile twisting her lips; her pale cheeks flushed crimson, her breath coming faster.

“Though not the first time I’ve seen it, this sharp sword pressure is truly delightful.”

She whispered, her figure instantly blurring—not with Shunpo, but pure killing technique; she dropped low, her blade slicing upward in a diagonal arc, aimed straight at Ye Xuan’s throat!

Ye Xuan tilted his head; the blade skimmed his neck, drawing a trail of blood, while his right hand’s sword thrust continued unimpeded, driving straight for Momo Hana’s heart!

“Pthsh!”

The sword pierced three inches into flesh, but her ribs halted it; Momo Hana did not retreat—she advanced, letting the blade pierce through her shoulder, while her Zanpakutō pressed against Ye Xuan’s abdomen, driving inward.

Ye Xuan’s face showed no expression; the instant his abdomen was pierced, his left hand seized the blade’s edge, blood gushing from his palm; he spun, using the force to hurl Momo Hana—blade and all—into the air, while his right hand withdrew the sword, unleashing a flash of golden light.

Wang Quan’s sword intent surged, and the Three Thousand Flame Flames repaired his pierced body.

Golden sword intent roared along the blade, slashing toward the airborne enemy; but as it reached her, Momo Hana smiled faintly, twisted her blade, and unleashed a torrent of spiritual pressure, transforming it into a slash.

The instant they collided, the golden sword intent pierced through.

Crimson blood bloomed in midair; her kimono soaked through, clinging to her sculpted figure; her eyes glazed and feverish, utterly indifferent to her wounds, completely lost in the fight.

“Again! Again!”

“Show me your limit!”

She charged forward once more, her blade light becoming a storm, cutting through everything in its path.

Ye Xuan raised his sword and advanced; their bodies clashed again.

Thus they fought for an unknown length of time, until they passed each other once more.

Ye Xuan’s sword pierced Momo Hana’s lung; her blade pressed against Ye Xuan’s heart.

Blood gushed simultaneously from both their mouths.

“Pity.”

Momo Hana sighed contentedly, her bloodied lips nearly brushing Ye Xuan’s ear.

“If this were my true body, right now I would have—”

Ye Xuan did not wait for her to finish—he canceled the Rat Talisman’s power; Momo Hana’s body reverted to its figurine form, and all the blood vanished.

(End of Chapter)