Chapter 215: The Unseen Fate

What Ruan Xing did not know was that the brilliant light, bright as day, did not appear only within the borders of Nanzhou.

Central Province, Xuanbing Sect.

Qingmeng Daojun, who was observing the stars at night, was suddenly dazzled by the white light; he hissed, turned his head slightly, and shielded his eyes with the back of his hand.

This brilliant light did not cause harm to any person or thing; it merely persisted for a hundred breaths before vanishing.

The cultivators fortunate enough to see it were engaged in heated discussion.

"What is this? What a formidable display!"

"This seems to be a Heavenly Dao phenomenon, right? Could a senior have ascended to Return to Ruins?"

"How would you know? Have you seen one before?"

"I don't have that kind of experience; the last recorded Heavenly Dao phenomenon was over eight hundred years ago, I wasn't even born yet!"

"I've read the records you're talking about, but they weren't on such a large scale. I noticed that the light just now came from the direction of Nanzhou, yet it managed to cover the entire Central Province!"

"Could it be that a supreme treasure of the immortal path has appeared in the world?!"

"Forget it, go wash up and sleep; with our cultivation, we certainly have no chance of seeing such a treasure."

On Tianyan Peak, Qingmeng Daojun narrowed his eyes. A Bagua Disk shining with a purple ring suddenly appeared in the hand he held behind his back. He extended his hand, his indifferent gaze lowered to watch the Bagua Disk, and a few strands of golden light leaked from his pupils.

Suddenly, he spat out a mouthful of fresh blood onto the Bagua Disk. The Bagua Disk instantly dimmed, and his face turned as pale as gold paper.

"How could it be..." he muttered, his face deathly pale, in disbelief, "Everything is in chaos... how could it be, I can't see anything..."

He seemed so struck that he began to doubt himself.

A hand supported him from behind. Qingmeng Daojun turned to look and saw a gentle woman looking at him with concern, asking, "Peak Master Lin, are you alright?"

Qingmeng Daojun turned back, dazed.

It was Peak Master Li of Xiaochi Peak.

The Sect Master was also standing beside her; both of them had come to Tianyan Peak immediately after seeing the phenomenon.

"I am fine." Qingmeng Daojun shook his head, distractedly trying to wipe the blood off the Bagua Disk, but he could not wipe it clean, and his complexion grew increasingly unsightly.

"Stop wiping it." The Sect Master stopped him, "Since you cannot see, do not force yourself to look. Recovering from your injuries is the priority. Perhaps the person you were looking at has a realm far exceeding your own, causing a backlash."

Although Qingmeng Daojun could predict the fate of a person or an event, what he saw was never complete; there were only blurry images and cryptic remarks, which ultimately still required them to guess and interpret.

It had its uses, but not enough to make Qingmeng Daojun lose his life just to divine someone else's fate.

Therefore, the Sect Master spoke in a gentle, soothing voice, urging Qingmeng Daojun not to take it to heart.

"This is different!" Qingmeng Daojun suddenly became agitated, "My Fate Observation and Spirit Divination Technique is not affected by cultivation realms at all, nor does it alert the other party. What I see is merely the fate that person might have in the future! I cannot see it not because that person has ascended to the Return to Ruins Stage, but because they have obscured the heavenly secrets and changed their own fate!"

Peak Master Li frowned and asked in confusion, "Calm down. That person might practice a technique of the same origin as yours, which is why they could obscure the past. If they are skilled in divination, we would actually feel more at ease."

This kind of technique for peeking at heavenly secrets was basically dancing on the lightning points of the Heavenly Dao. Apart from those cultivators obsessed with this path, no one would risk their own life to practice a technique that neither improves one's cultivation realm nor enhances combat power.

If one were to suffer a backlash, it would be no laughing matter.

They only assumed that Qingmeng Daojun had lived a smooth life in the first half of his life and had never made a mistake in his divinations, which was why he could not accept this failure.

"It's different..." Qingmeng Daojun shook his head dejectedly.

He could not even describe what he had seen.

In the past, if he said he could not see, it was at most a lack of clarity, too blurry, without directed images or cryptic remarks.

But this time, when he tried to use the Bagua Disk to observe fate, he felt as if his entire being had fallen into a pool of viscous, stagnant water.

Unable to move forward, unable to move backward, unable to float up, unable to dive down.

Although he was already at the Transformation Stage and had no need for normal breathing, he still felt a suffocating pain.

In that pool of stagnant water, before his eyes was a void of white. When he finally struggled free from the viscous pool and looked back, he saw only a towering tree.

The tree was so tall that its top could not be seen.

It filled him with an instinctive sense of awe.

He could not even take another look before he had already suffered a severe backlash, spitting out foul blood that stained the Bagua Disk.

He turned and left the peak, looking utterly soul-lost.

Qinghong Zhenjun, who had arrived late, landed, bowed hurriedly to the Sect Master, and chased after him.

"Peak Master Jiang, I'll trouble you to look after Peak Master Lin."

"Mm." Qinghong Zhenjun nodded slightly.

Peak Master Li turned to look at the Sect Master again, "It seems Peak Master Lin cannot provide us with any useful information. Sect Master, what should we do next?"

"Let's summon Peak Master Cheng and the others first." The Sect Master thought for a moment and said, "The scope of this phenomenon is so vast that it has never been heard of since records began. Besides, didn't Wanbao Tower in Dongzhou send invitations a few days ago for us to attend their final auction? I suspect that over eighty percent of the sects will send representatives. We can take this opportunity to communicate with other sects. By then, the sect that produced the peerless Gui Xu Xianjun will certainly not be content to remain unknown."

"Isn't the Wanbao Tower auction still more than half a year away?" Peak Master Li asked in surprise.

"It's only half a year; we can afford to wait." The Sect Master smiled, "What does giving them time matter?"

Peak Master Li lowered her eyes and remained silent.

At the same time, similar situations were playing out in other different places.

Ruan Xing woke up feeling refreshed, with not a single trace of discomfort in her body.

She asked the Little Seed, who had been watching her, "How long did I sleep?"

"Three full days." The Little Seed sounded somewhat resentful.

"Ah, three days." Ruan Xing was stunned; no wonder she felt that the fatigue in her spirit had been swept away.

As expected, people still need to sleep. If cultivation evolves sleep away, life loses a kind of pleasure. Hearing the Little Seed's somewhat gloomy mood, Ruan Xing asked, "What happened in these three days? What's wrong with you?"

"After you fell asleep, I brought you back to the underground water bubble," the Little Seed said, "But the phenomenon outside couldn't be brushed off. They all knew you had returned. If your Vice Sect Master hadn't come out to say you were in seclusion, they would have broken into my home."

Who? So reckless? Ruan Xing soothed the Little Seed, who continued to complain, "That little white follower of yours, the one called Sword Lai, was obediently listening to the Vice Sect Master outside at first, but later, when he found out your Spirit Tool was always by your side, he couldn't stay put. He came in several times a day, and my barrier couldn't stop him; it was like he was visiting a neighbor."

"Once he came in, it was a disaster; he set a bad precedent, and anyone could get in. That fairy of yours, the Demon Lord, and those Ghost Cultivators, they all came in for a stroll. I really had no choice; my barrier can only stop the living, I truly can't keep out the dead."

This... Sword Lai must be jealous of Cai Jiao.

Ruan Xing flicked her finger with some amusement, and the White Jade Sword flew out, circling around Ruan Xing, appearing very happy and proud.

"What did you say to Jianlai?" Ruan Xing asked.

"I didn't say anything, Big Sister. I'm just here keeping you company. I am your Spirit Tool, so of course I should protect you closely; being with you is the most important thing," Cai Jiao said innocently. "Unlike Brother Jianlai, who was called away by Brother Hu San in an instant. Such a dangerous thing as undergoing a tribulation, and he let Big Sister face it all by herself."

"Where did you learn such glib talk? Didn't I say that the Heart Demon Tribulation and the Heavenly Dao anomalies are things that cannot be forcibly resisted with brute force? That is why there was no need for you and Jianlai to stay by my side. You aren't listening, yet you're blaming Jianlai." Ruan Xing helplessly poked the sword body with her fingertip. "Jianlai is honest and simple; you are not allowed to bully Jianlai in the future, do you understand?"

Cai Jiao gave a coquettish promise, and the sword body turned into a stream of light and vanished.

Ruan Xing coughed lightly and continued to ask: "What did the Fairy and the Demon Lord come in here for?"

It was possible that Jianlai and Cui Yurong were out of concern.

But Xie Feng and Shen Lingyun... she did not feel they had a particularly deep friendship. Although she admired the Fairy's character, in reality, the deal they made in the Golden Terrace Secret Realm was carried out by Xie Feng, and it was also Xie Feng who insisted she take them both out; the Fairy had only been persuaded by them and reluctantly agreed.

Afterward, it was also Xie Feng who wanted to stay in the Xumi Realm, so the Fairy stayed behind as well.

During this time, there were many occasions where the Fairy could have had the chance to perish together with Xie Feng, but every time she moved to discipline Xie Feng, she never used a lethal strike.

Xie Feng also did not seem to really want to fight Shen Lingyun, but rather was teasing her for fun.

Later, after Shen Lingyun had stayed in the Xumi Realm for a period of time, she had seen the suffering of the mortal world and had also taken on a disciple and formed other attachments, only then making a slight change, and she also agreed to help Ruan Xing with the request to re-plan the Xumi Realm.

Ruan Xing did not want to understand how complicated their relationship truly was, but the one thing she confirmed was that Xie Feng could not be easily trusted.

"I don't know. That Demon Lord, he seemed to want to steal something from you, but he was stopped by the Fairy. They didn't say anything, just glared at each other for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, and then they left."

Stealing something? Ruan Xing lowered her eyes in thought.

What did she have on her worth Xie Feng stealing? Could it be that he still hadn't given up on obtaining the method to control Puppets from the Nether Ghost Record through her?

He had always been wary of her holding the lifeline of his Puppet.

Wait... she wasn't the only one who had the Nether Ghost Record.

She suddenly remembered something and hurriedly pressed: "When did Cui Yurong come?"

"Just shortly after the Demon Lord and the others left," the little seed replied.

Ruan Xing could not help but frown.

Time rewound to one day ago.

"Why are you following me again?" Xie Feng flashed a roguish smile at Shen Lingyun. "Could it be that you can't bear to part with me?"

Shen Lingyun seemed to have grown accustomed to Xie Feng's loose-lipped mouth; she only frowned slightly and said with a calm expression: "Stop talking nonsense, it's impolite."

"Ha, suit yourself. I'm going to visit our Sect Master who is in secluded cultivation; are you coming along?"

"The Sect Master said you are not allowed to enter or leave the Xumi Realm at will. It is one thing for you to break the rules and taboos on ordinary days, but do not stir up trouble while the Sect Master is in secluded cultivation," Shen Lingyun said coldly.

Xie Feng's eyes widened slightly, and he laughed in disbelief. "The way you are now, calling her 'Sect Master' every other word, so sweetly—don't tell me you've forgotten that you are a member of the Mysterious Grade Sect? Have you forgotten how your master raised and taught you? Forgotten how you spent your days and nights in the Cave Abode in pain and guilt when you first died, without having repaid your master's deep kindness?"

She had not expected Xie Feng to peel back her scars so easily.

Shen Lingyun pursed her lips and said with difficulty: "I have not forgotten. But I am already a Puppet Body, a creation of an Evil Cultivator; it is impossible for me to return to the Mysterious Grade Sect in this lifetime. Sect Master Ruan helped me and trusted me, so naturally, I cannot let her down. Besides..."

She paused, a trace of bitterness appearing on her cold, clear face. "It is you who forgot the root of my pain and guilt. If I had died immediately at that time, I would not have felt I had failed my master. It was you—it was you who forced my Divine Soul to remain and not dissipate, who shared your power with me, and made me bear the sins of all the fellow Cultivators you devoured along with you!"

"Then why didn't you kill me immediately after you came out? Is it because you've grown fond of me over time and can't bring yourself to do it?" Xie Feng laughed.

"I wanted to die but could not, wanted to live but could not. You watched me struggle and sink with a smile. I was in pain from such heavy sin, yet I secretly rejoiced that I was still alive... I longed for death every moment, yet I told myself: you are still alive, I haven't killed you yet, how can I die? Day after day, year after year in this contradiction—only when I truly entered this Puppet Body did I understand: you were tempting me to fall into the demonic path, and I..."

Shen Lingyun closed her eyes in pain, yet could not shed a single tear. "I had already fallen into the demonic path long ago."

How ridiculous, the thing she had always refused to face.

She had been taught by her master since she was small to eliminate demons and defend the Dao, yet she herself had fallen into the demonic path.

Xie Feng could not help but laugh out loud. "That's right, I was tempting you to fall into the demonic path; you're finally willing to admit it."

"But so what?" Shen Lingyun took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down. "What if I have fallen into the demonic path? I am admitting this in front of you today not to collude with you; I will only do what I believe is right."

It could only be said that it was Ruan Xing's actions that gave her the courage to perceive this world anew.

Even as a demon, she could still be intolerant of evil.

Ruan Xing had killed so many Cultivators and used Evil Methods to create Puppets for her own use; in the eyes of the person she was several thousand years ago, what she did was the work of a heinous demon lord.

But now, she saw that there were reasons for everyone Ruan Xing had killed.

She saw the flourishing scene within the Xumi Realm today.

She would not consider Ruan Xing a demon lord, and likewise, she would not despise herself. She had fallen into the demonic path, but she was not a demon lord.

Xie Feng immediately lost interest. "Tch, boring."

He turned to leave, but it was not in the direction of departure.

Shen Lingyun chased after him. "I will not let you harm the Sect Master while she is in secluded cultivation."

"Why would I harm her?" Xie Feng said speechlessly. "I am her Puppet; if she had a single thought, I would have my soul scattered. Where would I get the guts to harm her?"

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