Chapter 38: So You’re Her Real Mother!

Whoosh, whoosh! A few leaves grazed Ling Jiancheng’s cheek, leaving several gashes.

He flipped backward, landing several yards away. Due to the gap in their cultivation, he was gradually being suppressed by Jiang Ying.

“Why did you stop?” Jiang Ying approached gracefully, a playful smile on her face. “Not going to keep fighting? Thinking of running?”

Ling Jiancheng ground his teeth in rage. These Devil Cultivators were shameless, favoring crooked and sinister paths, which naturally allowed them to cultivate much faster than Immortal Sect disciples.

Moreover, the Devil Venerable’s Left and Right Protectors were of the same generation as his own Master—Bu Donghou, the Sect Master of Fuyun Sect. It was perfectly understandable that he couldn’t contend with her alone.

A true man knows when to yield and when to stand firm. He was outmatched today, but he would train bitterly in the future. Once his realm had advanced, he would have his rematch with this woman.

Having convinced himself, Ling Jiancheng immediately glared with furious eyes. “Bring it on!”

As he spoke, he swung his sword backhandedly, unleashing several streams of Sword Qi.

These Sword Qi streams were more show than substance. Jiang Ying casually dispersed them.

She had thought this proud child of heaven from Fuyun Sect had some backbone. But in the blink of an eye, Ling Jiancheng turned tail and ran.

Jiang Ying: “…”

Tsk. The typical conduct of Immortal Sect disciples, as always.

Withdrawing her gaze from Ling Jiancheng’s fleeing back, Jiang Ying cupped her chin and pondered. If she went after Ren Qingyue now, she should have already run far enough, right?

·

“Roar!”

A Jade Beast roared as it lunged at Feng Jin.

Feng Jin held the Qingshuang Arrow, steadily drew her bow, and blew its head off with one shot.

The Jade Beast’s ruined body plummeted heavily from the air, crashing to the ground and shattering into pieces.

But more and more Jade Beasts were gathering, forming the Eight Trigrams Array to surround her. With only a bow in hand, she couldn’t eliminate them all at once.

The situation was becoming perilous, and that bastard Lei Shuang had run off to who-knows-where.

Feng Jin silently noted this debt in her heart. Once they left the Cave Abode, she would definitely teach Lei Shuang a lesson.

She loosed another arrow. This one shattered the head of one Jade Beast and, with its momentum undiminished, struck another one behind it.

Of the eight Jade Beasts, three were now destroyed. The remaining five suddenly burst into action, charging from different directions.

Feng Jin steadied her shoulder and drew her bow. Every shot was stable. She fired four arrows in succession, none missing their mark.

For the last arrow, the bowstring was just drawn back, the power not yet fully accumulated, when a Jade Beast was already upon her, its bloody maw gaping wide, almost large enough to swallow half her body.

The arrow was on the string, but there was no time to release it. The Jade Beast’s razor-sharp teeth were right in front of her face.

Her heart sank. In that lightning-fast moment, she made a choice. She moved to protect her two arms first, turning her body to take the hit on her back.

The sensation of a beast’s fangs tearing into her never came. Instead, a fierce wind whipped up, followed by a muffled thud.

Feng Jin looked back to see the Jade Beast cut into several pieces by Wind Blades, falling to the ground and shattering.

At the same time, an unfamiliar young man in azure robes appeared outside the array.

The young master clasped his Jade Fan shut with a poised flourish and greeted Feng Jin. “Is the young lady alright?”

“I’m fine,” Feng Jin replied.

Her gaze swept past the azure-robed young master’s face and fixed directly on the folded fan in his hand.

Her pupils constricted. Qingqiu Fox Clan, the Tushan Clan.

Tushan Yu cupped his hands and introduced himself. “I am Tushan Yu. May I ask the young lady’s name?”

Feng Jin released the bowstring and used the moment to rest. She replied flatly, “Feng Jin.”

Unexpectedly, Tushan Yu asked another question. “And what is your relationship with the Tianqing Arrow Devil—the one who, three hundred years ago, shot and wounded our clan’s Fox Emperor and stole our clan’s Sacred Medicine?”

Feng Jin: “…”

She didn’t answer, but Tushan Yu pressed closer step by step.

The atmosphere instantly became tense.

As the standoff continued, Feng Jin rapidly considered her options. This young master of the Tushan Clan had an unfathomably deep cultivation base. She had absolutely no chance of victory in a fight.

But she was already targeted by Tushan Yu. How could she escape today?

Multiple plans intertwined in Feng Jin’s mind, none clearly superior to the others.

Just as Tushan Yu was about to make his move, the ground suddenly shook violently. An immense power erupted in the distance, shaking the entire Floating Island.

What’s going on?

Feng Jin and Tushan Yu both looked back toward the source of the power.

This power felt somewhat familiar. Feng Jin thought hard, and a moment later, her pupils constricted sharply.

The Xuanhuang Secret Key!

·

The Floating Island trembled intensely. Bi Lan stopped what she was doing.

Luo Qi, suspended in mid-air, was already at the brink of death.

She turned her head toward the direction the power had just come from and thought: A great opportunity must be emerging. I shouldn’t delay any longer.

With a casual wave, she withdrew her spell, and Luo Qi fell to the ground with a thud.

Perhaps the lashes from the whip had been too painful earlier, for he felt absolutely nothing when he hit the ground.

His first instinct was to run.

Bi Lan couldn’t be bothered to deal with him and immediately set off toward where the opportunity lay.

·

Lei Shuang was playing hide-and-seek with the cultivators among the palaces. Whenever she spotted some Rogue Cultivators engaged in petty thievery, she would secretly activate the Jade Beasts at the hall entrance, then gleefully watch as they were chased all over the place by the Jade Lion Beasts.

At a certain moment, the earth shook violently. Leaves rustled down from the trees, and water in the courtyard pools sloshed from side to side.

That mysterious force spread outward and was accurately picked up by her.

The Xuanhuang Secret Key!

It really is in Immortal Venerable Yuanqing’s Cave Abode!

“I’m done playing with you all,” Lei Shuang waved, stood up, and brushed the dust from her clothes. “This Protector has other business to attend to.”

·

Ren Qingyue walked and asked for directions along the way. Guided by the Jade Beasts of the Protective Array, she quickly arrived deep within the Cave Abode.

A large Main Hall appeared before her. Guarding it were two Jade Crane Statues.

She was very close now.

Without a moment’s pause, Ren Qingyue moved deeper inside. Just as her foot landed on the steps in front of the hall, the ground beneath her suddenly shook violently.

The source of the energy eruption was very close to her, right in the depths of this very hall.

Yan Zhao!

Anxious, Ren Qingyue sped up and dashed into the Main Hall.

·

“Just what is going on? Are you going to tell me or not?” Nangong Yin issued her final ultimatum.

Utterly dejected, Yan Yuanqing had no choice but to spill everything she had discovered.

Even if she wanted to hide this, she simply couldn’t. The evidence was irrefutable. Nangong Yin only needed to check Yan Zhao’s pulse herself to understand.

After hearing this, Nangong Yin found it unbelievable. “You set the Seal?”

Yan Yuanqing hung her head, poking her fingers together sheepishly. “I… I really don’t remember anything at all.”

Nangong Yin stepped back two paces and looked at Yan Zhao, who was sleeping soundly on the bed like a little piglet. A wave of utter despair washed over her. “She really is your child?”

Now Yan Yuanqing herself wasn’t sure, unable to voice any rebuttal.

When too many coincidences occurred together, they ceased to be coincidences.

This child was surrounded by too many strange signs, yet Yan Zhao was undeniably a mere Mortal.

Nangong Yin’s mind began to wander. “Could it be… she is a child you left behind in the mortal world when you were reincarnated to undergo a mortal tribulation?”

Yan Yuanqing was frantic. “That still doesn’t explain how she suddenly appeared here!”

Nangong Yin’s focus had completely veered off track. “So you really do have a child left in the mortal world?”

“No!” Yan Yuanqing was gradually going crazy. “How can I explain so you’ll believe me? I really don’t!”

Nangong Yin pointed at Yan Zhao. “You tell me, how am I supposed to believe you?”

Yan Yuanqing: “…”

A moment later, Yan Yuanqing raised her hands in surrender and tried to persuade Nangong Yin. “Ah Yin, let’s not fight. Let’s calm down first and think carefully. There must be another possibility.”

Nangong Yin cupped her chin, deep in thought.

Of course, she believed Yan Yuanqing. But this child’s appearance was far too strange. All the evidence presented a single reality before their eyes, causing her heart to waver uncontrollably.

Yan Zhao was indeed Yan Yuanqing’s child.

“Doesn’t she have a Seal inside her body?” Nangong Yin regained her composure, though her tone still carried a trace of lingering anger. “Take a look and see what exactly is sealed inside?”

What reason could there be that forced Yan Yuanqing to set a Seal within this child’s body?

Yan Yuanqing was somewhat hesitant. Although she was firmly convinced she had never wronged Nangong Yin, one strange event after another happened right before her eyes, and she began to fear the unknown.

Who knew what other secrets this child was hiding?

Her intuition told her that this child was, indeed, deeply connected to her.

Nangong Yin saw through Yan Yuanqing’s emotions and sighed. “Are you afraid?”

Yan Yuanqing pursed her lips, remaining silent.

“Then I’ll do it.” Nangong Yin walked to the bedside and reached out her hand, placing it over Yan Zhao’s forehead.

Yan Yuanqing wanted to say something but hesitated, ultimately not speaking.

Nangong Yin concentrated and observed the Seal within Yan Zhao’s body. A faint golden light emanated from inside it.

Although Yan Zhao’s physical body had blocked meridians, preventing her from refining the Spirit Fruit she’d just eaten, the Spiritual Qi had subtly and imperceptibly tempered her flesh and blood. In other words, though she looked thin and weak, she possessed an incredibly robust constitution.

And the Seal within her body absorbed the excess Spiritual Qi, maintaining a delicate balance for her body—preventing her from dying due to a lack of Spiritual Qi, while also stopping the Spiritual Qi within her from growing.

Nangong Yin gradually furrowed her brow. The Seal Yan Yuanqing had set was far too complex. Even though Nangong Yin believed she understood Yan Yuanqing, she had never seen her perform such a complicated Sealing Technique.

Her heart sank. Her Divine Sense probed into the Seal.

Thump.

Something inside the Seal resonated with her Bloodline.

In just an instant, her Divine Sense was expelled.

Nangong Yin went blank, frozen like an idiot beside the bed, not moving a muscle.

A little concerned, Yan Yuanqing called softly, “Ah Yin?”

Nangong Yin looked back at Yan Yuanqing, opened her mouth, but no sound came out.

In the next instant, under Yan Yuanqing’s shocked gaze, she flipped Yan Zhao’s body over and tore open the clothes on her back.

Yan Yuanqing was stunned, then instantly enraged. “What are you doing?!”

Had Nangong Yin gone mad? How could she so roughly strip the clothes off a strange young girl?

But the next moment, upon seeing Yan Zhao’s exposed back, Yan Yuanqing was struck dumb.

On Yan Zhao’s smooth, clean back, just below her right shoulder blade, a small butterfly-shaped birthmark was clearly visible.

“Ah…” Yan Yuanqing couldn’t help exclaiming, “How come this birthmark is just like your…”

Mid-sentence, understanding dawned, and she immediately turned the tables. “Well, well, well! So you’re her real mother!”

Nangong Yin: “…”