《Baby Invasion: Mummy, This Demon Lord Wants To Marry You》 Chapter 1 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios In a certain huge cave. Plink¡­. The moist water droplets on the damp rock wall slowly rolled down the edge of the wall along the engraving before finally falling into a light jade-green pool, creating ripples. Beside the jade pool lay a woman dressed in an elegant green silk dress. Her eyes were closed, but she was clearly breathing. The woman had a silver-white sword by her waist, and beside the sword was a pendant, which flickered with green light, making it stand out in the dark cave. Upon closer inspection, the silver sword and this jade pendant had the word ¡°Mu¡± carved on it. All of a sudden, the woman¡¯s eyes fluttered open. Because she had just woken up, Mu Yao was in a daze. Everything in front of her was unfamiliar and she could not tell what was going on. The only memory she had was of drinking Granny Meng¡¯s soup at the Bridge of Helplessness. Then, she had appeared here. An intense pain struck her head, and unfamiliar memories flooded into her brain! It turned out that she had reincarnated into a woman named Mu Yao. Mu Yao was the eldest daughter of the Imperial Consort of Tianlong. Unfortunately, the stars were not aligned in her favor. The sorcerers and priests of Tianlong came forward to persuade the emperor to sacrifice this child. She was a jinx to the country, and would bring disaster to the country and people. She had to be eliminated! The emperor was enraged! The officials all urged the emperor to eliminate the child. They feared that the country would decline over the next ten years if they didn¡¯t do so. However, when the emperor and his concubine saw the fruit of their love, they couldn¡¯t bear to give her up. Yet, neither could they withstand the protests of the ministers and the entire nation. He had no choice but to fake the death of Mu Yao, who was less than a year old, and hand her over to his trusted advisor to raise her. Mu Yao had been living peacefully in the Imperial Preceptor¡¯s residence for more than a decade. However, when she turned 18 years old, her father suddenly announced that she was the eldest daughter of the emperor, leading to an outcry from the public, who demanded she be executed on the spot! These people even included those whom she had always regarded as her biological siblings! Mu Yao had no way of knowing all of this. Before she died, she only knew that everyone thought of her as a jinx who would bring nothing but harm to the country. Her family, who had always loved her, also changed their stances. Not long after she was executed, the emperor passed away too. After the execution, Mu Yao was thrown into the cave in front of all the citizens. However, everything had been like a bolt out of the blue for Mu Yao before she died. She had always been living a peaceful life, yet she was inexplicably accused of being the daughter of the Emperor, and was even killed by her so-called parents. However, the country had been flourishing for the past 18 years. The only taint would be the country being defeated at war by the Shuiguo army. But what did that have to do with Mu Yao? Apart from this, Tianlong had always been fine. Why did everyone think of her as a jinx? She had been executed just because of someone else¡¯s baseless accusations! Before she died, she had begged her parents not to hand her over. She pleaded with the public, convincing them that she was not a jinx to the country. She was just an ordinary eighteen-year-old girl. She glanced at the familiar faces outside the execution stage with tears streaming down her face. But no one listened to her¡ªnot even her family who had always loved her! Because they were her parents, Mu Yao didn¡¯t dare to resist or run away before she died! At the same time, a wave of grief washed over the woman and tears welled up in her eyes. Her memories had merged with Mu Yao¡¯s, but she was no longer as cowardly as Mu Yao had been in her previous life. A cold glint flashed across the woman¡¯s eyes. ¡®I understand your pain. Don¡¯t worry, I will definitely ask them why they loved me so much before I turned eighteen before everything changed overnight. They even reported me as the daughter of the Emperor and killed me! But I have to get out of the cave first.¡¯ Mu Yao made a silent promise to herself and glanced around. The cave was in the shape of a square. It seemed that she had been thrown here after her death. ¡®But shouldn¡¯t a dead person be placed in a grave? Why am I in a cave?¡¯ Then, she saw someone in the distance! Mu Yao tensed up. In front of her was a man wrapped in white cloth. He was kneeling with his head slightly lowered as if he was unconscious, and his hands and legs were bound by long chains. Mu Yao rose to her feet and looked around with a frown. The long chains on the man¡¯s limbs were fixed to the stone statue in the four corners of this space. These so-called stone statues were four identical Bodhisattva statues. However, the expression on the Bodhisattva¡¯s face was not so kind and amiable. Instead, it had a ferocious look. A strange look flashed across Mu Yao¡¯s face and she felt a chill down her spine. ¡®Why is this Bodhisattva¡¯s expression like this?!¡¯ Following that, the woman looked at the stone wall beside the Guanyin Bodhisattva statue. Each stone statue had a stone door that was as tall as two people, and each door had different words written on it: Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter. But what lay behind the stone door was not light, but darkness. From the depths of that darkness, the roars of unknown animals could be heard from time to time. However, the strange thing was that these animals did not seem to be able to walk over. Perhaps, there was a wall behind this stone door, blocking this group of unknown animals. Another possibility was that these unknown animals and beasts would be able to walk over if one could reach the place where the animals were from the stone door. Yet, these animals did not come over. Mu Yao¡¯s conclusion was that she was currently safe. After all, there was a man who had been here for a long time. Mu Yao¡¯s gaze returned to the man. Little did she know that the man had woken up. At this moment, the man was looking at the woman with an ambiguous expression. Then, he realized that the woman¡¯s gaze was on him. His low and hoarse voice sounded, ¡°Woman, come and help me untie this.¡± Mu Yao stood up at that moment and subconsciously drew her sword from the sheath on her waist, and the silver blade of the sword flashed with light. She had not had the silver sword and pendant on her before she died, but somehow, they had turned up on her after death. Whatever the case, this was better than having nothing at all. She swung the tip of her sword at the man in front of her and demanded slowly, ¡°Who are you?¡± Mu Yao then raised her sword as she walked toward the man. As they got closer, Mu Yao finally saw that the stone wall behind the man was carved with countless images of two little people waving wooden swords. Each line was made up of more than 20 different groups of five martial arts diagrams. In each picture, the two tiny figures¡¯ sword techniques were different. On these tiny figures, there were the large words: ¡°Hehuan Swordsmanship.¡± More and more questions filled Mu Yao¡¯s mind. What was this Hehuan Swordsmanship? And who was this man? Where was she in the first place? As she drew closer to the man with her silver sword, the man¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡°How dare you talk to me like that, woman?!¡± the man questioned angrily. Mu Yao saw that the man didn¡¯t seem flustered at all when he saw the shining sword. In fact, he seemed a little arrogant. Mu Yao narrowed her eyes. Immediately afterward, a cold silver sword was pressed against the man¡¯s neck. Mu Yao said in a low voice with a smirk, ¡°Who are you? Don¡¯t blame me for blinding you if you don¡¯t answer my question!¡± The man casually glanced at the woman¡¯s vigilant actions. He saw that the silver sword and the woman¡¯s jade pendant were faintly engraved with the word ¡°Mu¡±. The jade pendant and the silver sword¡¯s handle seemed to be engraved with something too. The man smirked. ¡°You can go ahead and try it. You won¡¯t be able to get out even if you kill me!¡± Mu Yao moved her sword closer to the man¡¯s neck. A red mark had appeared on his neck. Blood would be shed if she were to move even the slightest bit closer! Still, the man was as arrogant as ever under such circumstances. Mu Yao smirked. ¡°Are you trying to scare me? Judging from the rust on the chains and your pale and dried lips, you must have been here for a long time.¡± The man merely smiled and raised his hands gently. As his hands moved, the sound of metal chains clashing could be heard in the cave. ¡°Yes, but so what about that?¡± The man was smug. ¡°That¡¯s why you should be more polite when you speak to me. Whether or not I¡¯ll undo this chain is entirely dependent on how I feel. Do you understand?¡± Mu Yao casually retorted him. The man¡¯s pupils instantly constricted. ¡°You! How could you?!¡± Mu Yao immediately replied, ¡°Is that how you should speak to me?¡± The exasperated man struggled moved his limbs, wanting to teach the woman a lesson. However, no matter how he tried, he could not break free from the chains! Although the man had no memories, he felt that he would definitely have killed the woman right then and there if he had the powers to do so. ¡°Don¡¯t waste your energy. Since I don¡¯t know how to get out and you need me to unlock the chains, you¡¯ll have to answer my next question,¡± Mu Yao said in a low voice. No matter what, the man was more familiar with this place than her. That set the gears in the man¡¯s mind turning too. He had no idea how long he had spent locked up in this cave. Besides, he no longer had any memories in his head, and the spiritual force in his body had also disappeared. If he wanted to recover his spiritual force, he would have to rely on this woman. No matter what, he had to suppress his temper and not make things difficult for himself. The man gritted his teeth and sighed helplessly. ¡°Ask away, woman.¡± At the same time, the sound of a huge creature trampling on the ground rang out from all four directions in the pitch-black cave. Following that, the roars of unknown wild beasts rang out. Mu Yao waved the silver sword in her hand in all directions. ¡°Who is it? Come out!¡± She yelled out. The huge vibration of the giant creature¡¯s feet on the ground grew closer and closer, and the sound grew louder. ¡°Woman, you weren¡¯t so fierce just now. Are you scared now? Don¡¯t worry, they won¡¯t dare to come in with me here.¡± The man then looked up at Mu Yao and said casually. Mu Yao didn¡¯t believe him. Instead, she continued to raise his sword and slowly approached the source of the sound. Mu Yao¡¯s heart trembled with each step. The sound was coming from behind the stone door with the word ¡°Spring¡± written on it. Seeing that Mu Yao was about to reach the door, the man widened his eyes and raised his voice. ¡°Woman, don¡¯t fool around! It¡¯s dangerous!¡± Of course, the man wasn¡¯t truly concerned about Mu Yao¡¯s safety. He was afraid that she would not be able to help him if she died! However, Mu Yao couldn¡¯t care less about the man. The sound on the other side of the door grew louder and louder, and even the roars of the giant creature could be heard. The roar was followed by the sound of something pounding its chest. Holding her silver sword tightly, Mu Yao raised her foot and was about to step across the door! The man immediately stood up and rushed over. This action caused a series of loud metal chains to clang throughout the cave. ¡°This woman! Why is she so disobedient?!¡± At the same time, Mu Yao had stepped one foot through the doorway! However, her foot was still hovering in the air. The man wanted to do something but his limbs were restrained. Hence, he roared, ¡°Scram! If you dare to come in, I¡¯ll definitely kill all of you!¡± Immediately, the loud noise behind the stone door grew smaller and smaller! The loud noise that had been so close just moments earlier gradually faded into the background. All of a sudden, Mu Yao retracted her foot that was about to touch the ground. She retreated in a daze, her face covered in sweat as she panted slowly with her back facing the man. Even though she had reincarnated with a sword in her hand, Mu Yao knew that she was just a mortal without any cultivation. She had only stepped out because of her courage, but the aftereffects were quite strong. The handle of the silver sword was covered in cold sweat. Mu Yao¡¯s breathing gradually calmed down. Slowly raising her sword, she stood up and turned around, her cold gaze piercing straight through the man. ¡°Who exactly are you? Why are they so afraid of you? What¡¯s behind this stone door?!¡± She gripped her sword tightly again. Seeing that Mu Yao was safe and sound, the man let out a sigh of relief. However, the woman¡¯s cold gaze pierced through his soul. ¡°Woman, I saved you but you want to kill me? Put yourself in my shoes and think about it. I¡¯ve been trapped here for so long and finally met a living person. Of course, I cherish you. I don¡¯t want you to go in and die!¡± At this moment, the man knew that he was at a disadvantage. He tried his best not to force himself on such a woman. It was obvious that danger lay behind those doors. Mu Yao smiled and a dark gleam flickered in her clear eyes. ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s that simple. If it was that dangerous, why did you stay here for so long?¡± The man then said slowly, ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know? It seems like you¡¯re not trustworthy. You stopped me from entering just now, saying that it was for my safety, but who knows if you¡¯re a human or a ghost?¡± With that said, she walked toward the ¡°Spring¡± stone door with her sword. Seeing that the woman was really about to walk in, the man became anxious. ¡°The exit isn¡¯t behind this stone door! Definitely not. Neither are the other three stone doors! If you want to leave this place, I can teach you swordsmanship! As long as you can learn the skills I¡¯ve drawn on this wall, we can leave together! ¡± Without any hesitation, Mu Yao trudged on with her sword. ¡°I gave you a chance to make me trust you. Besides, you¡¯re chained up. How do you know if the exit is behind this stone door?¡± Mu Yao questioned. The man was anxious because he really wasn¡¯t sure if there was an exit behind the four stone doors. If this woman left and never came back, he would lose his chance to escape for the rest of his life. Those skills were his last hope. Seeing that the woman was about to walk through the door again, the man shouted in a moment of desperation, ¡°Woman! I¡¯ll tell you everything, but don¡¯t be in a hurry to go in! That¡¯s definitely not the way out.. Besides, if you leave, you won¡¯t be able to go back the way you came!¡± Chapter 2 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Mu Yao stopped in her tracks and turned around slowly with a smile. ¡°It looks like you weren¡¯t going to say anything unless I force you.¡± When the man saw the smile on the woman¡¯s face, he instantly came to a realization: That woman had merely put on a show for him! The woman slowly walked closer, and the teasing smile from before instantly disappeared. She immediately regained her usual cold temperament. ¡°Tell me, what is behind this stone door, and who are you? Why are they so afraid of you?¡± Although the man was angry, he did not show it on his face. He raised his fair and well-defined face. A hint of sincerity flashed across his deep eyes. ¡°Sure. Firstly, I really don¡¯t remember who I am. I don¡¯t know how I got here. I don¡¯t know what¡¯s outside the stone door either, but I know that the place we¡¯re at now is safe. Moreover, I don¡¯t have any intention of harming you. I have lost all of my spiritual power. Even if I break the chains, I won¡¯t be able to do anything to you. You can rest assured.¡± The man continued, ¡°As for the roars of the animals and beasts, I have heard them countless times. However, every time they approach the door, they would leave on their own accord. I said that earlier because I was afraid that they would hurt you if you went in. They¡¯ve always loitered at the door and refused to come in. I think there might be something in this cave that they are afraid of.¡± Mu Yao glanced at him, then caught his sincere gaze. Stunned for a moment, she said, ¡°Alright, go on.¡± ¡°But I have another hypothesis. This stone door might be a one-way door. The door could be blocking them from entering,¡± the man suggested. A hint of gloominess flashed across Mu Yao¡¯s eyes. If that was the case, Mu Yao might never have made it back after walking through those doors. This stone door was very likely a one-way door. But there were no other doors in the cave to walk through other than these four. However, if the exit was outside doors, they would stay in this place forever if they refused to step through those doors. They would probably survive, but they would never be able to leave. Then, Mu Yao wouldn¡¯t be able to meet her parents! No matter what, she had to get out! However, Mu Yao wasn¡¯t sure if she could defeat the beasts outside. Besides, if she really couldn¡¯t come back, she would miss out on the swordsmanship this man had mentioned. As such, Mu Yao said slowly, ¡°You do have a point. What was that sword technique you were talking about?¡± A trace of darkness flashed past the man¡¯s deep eyes. Just as he expected, he still had to rely on his swordsmanship! The man then said indifferently, ¡°I need two people to complete it together. When the time comes, I can directly break open the cave from above.¡± ¡°So, do you mean that your swordsmanship can help you recover your spiritual power?¡± Mu Yao asked. ¡°Yes, two people need to practice it together. Only after completing the 100 moves above will it be considered complete.¡± Then, an indescribable feeling flashed across the man¡¯s deep eyes. Mu Yao had only glanced at the images casually and hadn¡¯t yet seen every move. For some reason, Mu Yao calmed down and walked to the man¡¯s side to once again look at the images of his swordsmanship. The man watched as Mu Yao concentrated on the techniques, the strange look in his eyes became more obvious. However, the man didn¡¯t stop her. Instead, he raised his wrist and stood beside Mu Yao, saying slowly, ¡°Woman, if you¡¯re done looking at this set of sword techniques and believe me, why don¡¯t you give it a try? I only have one request, and that is to use your silver sword to help me cut these four chains. Only then can I teach you properly. However, if you don¡¯t believe me and are afraid that I will hurt you, I won¡¯t be able to help you. You¡¯ll have to fend for yourself.¡± Mu Yao thought to herself, ¡°What a way to goad me..¡± Chapter 3 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Mu Yao looked at the first twenty moves. The two little figures could be said to be at each other¡¯s throats in the painting, but they were using sneak attacks. It seemed as though they were testing the grounds but they each looked ready to kill the other. After about 20 moves, the two of them slowly changed from a sneak attack to a frontal attack. The murderous look on their faces did not diminish. After another move, the two of them slowly familiarized themselves with each other and no longer moved so obviously. However, there was still a wooden sword hidden behind them. They had still not completely let down their guard. After another 20 moves, both of their moves were no longer filled with killing intent. Instead, they were in a state of mutual hostility and even started to wield their swords. The distance between the two of them grew closer and closer, and Mu Yao could tell from their expressions that they were very happy. Mu Yao was shocked and furious when she saw the last group of images! When she scanned the last move, Mu Yao raised her sword again and placed it on the man¡¯s neck. She fiercely looked at the man¡¯s sincere and slightly gentlemanly eyes and said in a deep voice, ¡°Don¡¯t even think about it. You¡¯re really not a good person!¡± Mu Yao glanced at the man¡¯s wrist and the chain on it. She then raised her silver sword and the sound of chains and silver swords colliding resounded through the cave! Suddenly, the two chains on the man¡¯s hands broke one after another. The man was shocked and his face was filled with disbelief! Firstly, he was shocked by what Mu Yao had just done. Didn¡¯t she say she would never do it? Why was she using her sword for him now?! Secondly, he was surprised by the sharpness of this silver sword! Back then, he had tried to collide the chains against each other, and even tried to rub the chains forcefully against hard rocks! Before Mu Yao appeared in the cave, the man had been trying all kinds of ways to break the chains almost every day. That way, it would be easier to move around in the cave even without spiritual power. However, they had all been to no avail! It was because these chains were incomparably sturdy. However, today, a woman appeared, casually brandishing the silver sword in her hand, and shattering the chains just like that. Because of the proximity between them, the man could clearly see the word ¡°Mu¡± engraved on the silver sword. There was also an engraving of a silver dragon flying freely in the sky on the handle of the sword. Then, the man turned his gaze from the silver sword to the woman¡¯s expressionless face that revealed determination and coldness. An undetectable look flashed across the man¡¯s deep eyes. This woman¡¯s background was definitely not simple. ¡°Woman, what is the meaning of this?¡± the man shouted loudly. Before he could finish speaking, the chains around the man¡¯s ankles were cut off by the sword. How Mu Yao wished she could cut off his limbs and make him bleed! However, those sword skills gave her no chance of accidentally injuring the man¡¯s limbs. Even Mu Yao was stunned. Even though she couldn¡¯t sense a trace of cultivation or internal energy in her body, Mu Yao¡¯s blood vessels seemed to have opened up from within when she swung the silver sword just now, and she could swing the sword with ease! ¡®Could it be that I¡¯ve learned swordsmanship before? But I don¡¯t have any memory of that in my mind!¡¯ ¡°Woman, are you agreeing to practice Hehua Swordsmanship with me? Then let¡¯s begin!¡± The man immediately began to teach Mu Yao. Mu Yao turned to look at the man¡¯s handsome face, took half a step back, and said in a low voice, ¡°When did I agree to that?¡± The man was furious when he realized that the woman was teasing him! Now that he was without any restraints, the man went up to Mu Yao and grabbed her by the neck. With bloodshot eyes, he said, ¡°Woman, I¡¯m not bound anymore. How dare you talk to me like that? Do you want me to strangle you to death?¡± Mu Yao¡¯s face was pinched so hard by the man that she couldn¡¯t breathe. However, she didn¡¯t lose her composure at all. She said right away, ¡°I¡¯m scared, but I¡¯m more scared that you won¡¯t be able to get out for the rest of your life!¡± The man understood what she meant and let go of her hand with a snort. ¡°I¡¯ll let you go first. Don¡¯t play any more tricks or I¡¯ll teach you a lesson!¡± Mu Yao thought to herself: ¡®As expected, this man must have been trapped here on purpose. It was good enough that he didn¡¯t get tortured to death. The fact that I risked her life to cut off the chains just now proves one thing: It¡¯s true that Hehuan Swordsmanship will be helpful.¡¯ Mu Yao immediately tidied up her clothes, her expression indifferent as she said, ¡°You¡­ Can you remember the hundred moves and engrave them again even if you don¡¯t look at them?¡± The man was in a daze and said with slight hesitation, ¡°It¡¯s hard to say, but it should be possible. But isn¡¯t it already there? There¡¯s no need to draw it again.¡± Mu Yao smiled and glanced at the man from head to toe. The man looked refined now that the chains were off. The set of white cotton clothing neatly wrapped around the man¡¯s body, outlining his decent figure. She then glanced at the man¡¯s hair. Even though he had been tied up for a long time, it still did not seem to be in a mess. The man was rendered speechless by Mu Yao¡¯s intense stare. His handsome and chiseled face blushed. He hadn¡¯t paid attention to the woman¡¯s face earlier, but now that he looked at her, she was actually quite pretty. However, she was still not worthy of him. He immediately shouted, ¡°Woman, what are you looking at?! You¡¯d better not be interested in me!¡± Mu Yao didn¡¯t expect the man to say something like that. He had just wanted to kill her, and now he was blushing. She was a little speechless. ¡°Interested in you? Don¡¯t worry. I won¡¯t like you even if I die.¡± That made the man even more furious. ¡°How dare you!¡± The woman continued, ¡°But you¡¯re right. Your spiritual energy has indeed lost its effectiveness. If you really had any spiritual energy and it was as I imagined, you would have already used it to kill me.¡± The man finally came to his senses. The lady wasn¡¯t looking at his handsome figure, but was testing him! In an instant, the man¡¯s face darkened. No other woman had ever dared to treat him like this. Even if he had lost his memory, he would still feel this way. He couldn¡¯t help but think that this woman was quite interesting. The man clenched his fists and coughed. ¡°Miss, since that¡¯s the case, I still have to thank you. So, are you agreeable to let me teach you sword techniques now?¡± Mu Yao stopped smiling and tightened her grip on the silver sword. She took the man¡¯s wrist and dragged him toward the stone door. ¡°What do you think?¡± She¡¯d never agree to it! Mu Yao had never practiced martial arts before, but she wasn¡¯t so stupid that she couldn¡¯t figure out what the two people in the drawing were doing! She wouldn¡¯t think about that for now. Since it was dangerous outside the stone door, then she would drag someone down with her too! As Mu Yao grabbed the man¡¯s wrist, he was at a loss for what to do. ¡°Woman, just talk me through it! Why are you dragging me along?! Also, why are you pulling me to this stone door?!¡± ¡°In case it¡¯s dangerous,¡± Mu Yao replied. The man instantly understood her intentions. He then shook off the hand that was holding him. He said fiercely, ¡°Are you trying to drag me down with you? I have a plan but you don¡¯t want to follow and instead, you want to go into the unknown?¡± ¡°Yes, so what?¡± Mu Yao countered. ¡°¡±If you want to die, you can die alone!¡± The man was sure she would never dare to go alone. He did not expect her to be so bold! Mu Yao replied, ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll go alone.¡± Then, without turning back, she headed directly towards the unknown behind the stone door. To Mu Yao, she¡¯d rather die right then and there than to practice those sword techniques! Just as the man thought that Mu Yao was lying to him again, she walked into the darkness with the silver sword in hand. Then, the darkness fused into Mu Yao and there was a sudden burst of light! The man stood rooted to the ground, stunned! He did not expect the woman to really enter the unknown just like that! Was she not afraid of being eaten up by wild beasts?! She was the most daring woman as well as the most threatening woman he had ever seen! The man gritted his teeth. So what if he had lost his spiritual power? If a woman wasn¡¯t even afraid, what did he have to fear? The ball of light that was about to merge into darkness once again merged with the man¡¯s body. It glowed brightly again before returning to a ball of darkness.. Chapter 4 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Mu Yao slowly got used to the blinding light and gradually opened her eyes. She thought that the other side of the stone door would open up to another side of the cave, which would have the same structure as the cave she¡¯d been in. In fact, she even thought that she would encounter a giant ape or beast that would bare its fangs to swallow her! Never had she imagined that a lush forest awaited her behind the stone door! At a glance, the fluffy white clouds overlapped with the lawn at the horizon. There were several rabbits running wantonly through the grass. On the other side were several furry flocks of sheep lazily grazing under the sunlight. Warm sunlight hit the ground as the sun moved slowly through the sky. Behind the lawn was a lush forest, and from the depths of the forest came the occasional chirping of birds. ¡®Could this be the exit? Have I found the exit to the outside world?¡¯ Subconsciously, Mu Yao turned around and saw that the stone door she had passed through was actually a black shadow that had appeared out of thin air. It wasn¡¯t a door that led to the cave, but a shadow that looked like a door. Mu Yao crouched down, picked up a small stone, and threw it at the door-like shadow. She wanted to see if it was indeed a one-way door. ¡°Ah!¡± The stone flew in a perfect trajectory and hit the forehead of the man who walked out of the shadow right then. Mu Yao was surprised. ¡°Why are you here?¡± The man stroked the spot where he was hit and said slowly, still in pain, ¡°Hey, woman! Why are you hitting me? How else will I get the chance to watch you die if I didn¡¯t come?¡± The corners of Mu Yao¡¯s mouth turned up slightly, and she put away the silver sword in her hand. She put it back on her waist, crossed her arms, and looked at the man with an unclear expression. She seemed a little smug. ¡°Young lady, why are you looking at me like that?¡± the man couldn¡¯t help but ask. Mu Yao glanced behind her. The man followed her gaze. His handsome face was instantly filled with disbelief! The scene before the man¡¯s eyes dumbfounded him. The blue sky, white clouds, the plains, and the huge forest behind them. ¡°That¡¯s impossible. It¡¯s just a fluke,¡± the man said with a smirk. Suddenly, the sun rose in the sky. From the looks of it, it was no longer morning but noon. Seeing this, Mu Yao bowed to the man with her back facing the scenery behind her. ¡°It¡¯s fate that we met. We¡¯re lucky to have escaped from the cave together. Farewell then! I hope we don¡¯t meet again in the future.¡± ¡°Woman! Stop right there!¡± The man¡¯s surprised expression instantly turned into fear. ¡°Since we¡¯ve already escaped, stop thinking about your sword techniques!¡± Mu Yao replied. At the same time, she felt a chill run down her spine when she saw the man¡¯s terrified face. That was because the sun in the sky that had originally been emitting a warm yellow light had turned blood-red! The entire land and plains, and even the forest were now blood-red, and it was extremely terrifying! Mu Yao slowly turned around to meet the man¡¯s terrified eyes! Suddenly, Mu Yao felt nauseous. The beautiful grasslands had turned into a sea of blood! All the animals on the grassland, including the rabbits, the sheep, and a few other animals, vomited blood as they lay on the blood-red lawn. Not far away, a giant beast appeared, its entire body burning! Immediately after, the forest in the distance, which was originally lush and verdant, turned bare in an instant. Then, the forest started to burn for no reason, and a gust of cold wind suddenly blew past. The entire forest was now on fire! One tree after another was set on fire. Somehow, the small fire had slowly become a medium-sized fire. Picking up her sword, Mu Yao took off her sheath and was about to fight the fire. However, no sooner had she stepped forward was she shocked by the changes in the sun! A black line had suddenly appeared in the center of the blood-red sun, and the line slowly spread across to the ends of the sphere. Terror filled Mu Yao¡¯s eyes! It wasn¡¯t a sun, but a bloody eye! The blood-red eyeball scanned the forest. Following that, the fire spread toward Mu Yao at an inexplicable speed! ¡°Run!¡± Mu Yao grabbed the man¡¯s hand and ran in the opposite direction! The two of them started to run frantically. The man was at a loss. ¡°Why are you pulling me?! I¡¯m a grown man. Why would I be afraid of this kind of fire! Let go of me!¡± Mu Yao ignored him. She pulled him along and ran not because she didn¡¯t want him to die, but because he was still useful to her. Although the man was still in a daze, he was touched by the woman¡¯s actions. Then, Muyao realized that something was wrong! While they were running, they were making no progress! The black shadow door remained in the distance as far as it had originally been. At the same time, the fire behind them was getting closer and more ferocious. In another ten meters, it would reach them! Seeing the situation, the man said, ¡°We can¡¯t keep running like this!¡± However, Mu Yao was still holding his hand and didn¡¯t dare to look back. ¡°We have no choice! We have to run or we¡¯ll be burned to death! Don¡¯t you realize that we have been stagnant?¡± ¡°That¡¯s impossible?!¡± The man couldn¡¯t believe what the woman had just said. ¡°Look to the side. When we first arrived here, there was a stone beside us. It was the one I threw at you. But look down now. No matter how much we run, this stone is still always under our feet. More importantly, the black shadow door has been following us everywhere. There can only be two reasons for this. Firstly, we could be running on the spot. Secondly, the lawn beneath our feet could be moving!¡± ¡°So, what do you mean?¡± the man asked with a pale face. ¡°What I mean is that we will be burned to death if it is the first reason. If it is the second, we will encounter a sea of fire if we continue running! It¡¯s sure death either way!¡± Mu Yao was even more confused now. Why did the beautiful spring scenery behind the stone door suddenly become so terrifying?! Was this an illusory world connected to a cave? Then why did sorcerers of Tianlong leave her here? But Mu Yao didn¡¯t have time to think about that now. She had to survive! Only by becoming stronger while remaining alive would she be able to stand before her parents and ask them why they were so ruthless! But Mu Yao wasn¡¯t someone who had been cultivated before. She was even dragging a seven foot tall man. By now, she had already exhausted all her energy. She was panting heavily, and her footsteps gradually slowed down! All of a sudden, Mu Yao was stunned! The situation in front of him was exactly as she had guessed. What greeted her was indeed a sea of fire! It was the burning forest they had been trying to escape. Now, Mu Yao was certain that she was standing on a moving piece of land. The fire was about twenty meters away from Mu Yao. She turned around at the same time as the man, and the pair saw the sea of fire behind them getting closer and closer! With the fire inching closer from both sides, they had nearly no hope of surviving. All of a sudden, Mu Yao remembered the shadow door that was always there. Without any hesitation, she tried to rush in! Even if it was a one-way door, she had to risk his life to try it! In the heat of the moment, she had not been able to tell if this black shadow was a one-way door before the fire erupted. ¡°Hey, woman! Are you really trying to run through the black shadow door that we came from?¡± The man finally reacted. By now, the fire was already closing in and was merely a meter away. Mu Yao grabbed the man and jumped into the shadow door. Unexpectedly, Mu Yao was unable to enter and bounced back to the ground. Even the man was thrown back onto the ground! Because of the force, the two of them were still holding hands. Then, the corner of the man¡¯s white cloth suddenly caught fire and a burning sensation suddenly hit him. The man thought: ¡®It¡¯s no big deal for a man like me to die, but since the woman took the initiative to save me just now, I should return the favor!¡¯ The man gritted his teeth and in a moment of desperation, he jumped toward the black shadow door again without thinking. This time, the man was the first to touch the shadow door.. Unexpectedly, the pair made it through the door! Chapter 5 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios After passing through the shadow door, the man held Mu Yao¡¯s hand and the two of them bounced out of the ¡°Spring¡± stone door. The two of them slid on the ground for a distance with their swords. The flames on the man¡¯s body naturally extinguished as he stepped into the cave. Then, both of them fell unconscious. About two hours later, Mu Yao opened her eyes again and found herself sleeping in the man¡¯s arms. The man was still unconscious. Mu Yao blushed all of a sudden, her eyes reflecting his handsome sleeping face. This was the first time Mu Yao had blushed. She suddenly recalled that the man had saved her at the last moment. For a moment, she felt less repulsed by the man. At the same time, the man¡¯s eyelids fluttered sleepily. It seemed as though he would be waking up soon. Mu Yao jumped away from the man and quickly stood up, glancing at the pendant and the silver sword on her. Fortunately, they were still there. She dusted herself off and turned around to look down at the man. ¡°Hey, wake up.¡± ¡°Mm¡­¡± The man slowly opened his blurry eyes. ¡°Woman! You¡¯re still alive?¡± The man immediately relaxed when he saw the familiar cave and the woman¡¯s slim back. ¡°What do you think?¡± As she spoke, she bent her knees and stretched out her right hand in front of the man. The man in front of him suddenly understood what he meant. He stretched out his left hand. With Mu Yao¡¯s help, the man struggled to get up. ¡°Can I call you Xiaohuo?¡± Mu Yao suddenly asked, dumbfounding the man. Why did she suddenly give him a name? Didn¡¯t she always just address him as ¡°hey¡±? The man patted the dust off his body, coughed, and said, ¡°This name isn¡¯t cool. It doesn¡¯t suit me.¡± For some reason, Xiaohuo felt that this cold and hostile lady seemed to have let her guard down against him. ¡°Thanks, Xiaohuo.¡± Mu Yao¡¯s lips curled up slightly, and she actually smiled naturally at him. With this smile, Xiaohuo suddenly felt a slightly different feeling in its heart because of the lady¡¯s smile. It was a pretty smile, and he wanted to see it again. The man coughed, his face turning red. ¡°Woman! I said I don¡¯t like this name! But you¡¯re welcome. If I didn¡¯t save you, I might not have the chance to recover my spiritual power. I saved you to save myself. Do you understand, woman?¡± Immediately, the smile on Mu Yao¡¯s face faded. Just as she had expected, this man would not help her for no reason! ¡°But what¡¯s your name, woman?¡± ¡°Why should I tell you!¡± Mu Yao retorted. Mu Yao didn¡¯t care if she told him her name, but she was now feeling a little irritated. She calmed herself down and went straight to the point. ¡°The world behind the stone door, I think¡­¡± Mu Yao rested a hand on her chin and said thoughtfully. ¡°It¡¯s not the real world,¡± Xiaohuo and Mu Yao said in unison. Both of them were surprised by their tacit understanding and looked at each other subconsciously. The moment their eyes met, both of them tacitly moved away. The cave fell into silence. However, this silence did not last long. Mu Yao was the first to break the silence. ¡°Xiaohuo, why didn¡¯t the shadow door reject you when you brought me in? It pulled me in with it. However, when I first attempted to enter, I was repelled by a very powerful force.¡± The man was a little angry, but he didn¡¯t dislike this name as much as before. He fell into deep thought. He had never thought that this would happen. At first, he had thought that they could only enter black shadow door but not return. That was what he thought when Mu Yao pulled him into the shadow door! However, he decided to give it a shot in a moment of desperation. Unexpectedly, they had managed to enter when he pulled Miss Mu in. Mu Yao gave the man another cold look. ¡°Are you hiding something from me?¡± All of a sudden, Mu Yao recalled the image she had first seen. At that time, the huge object behind the door of the black Shadow door of ¡°Spring¡± began to rumble and shout as it gradually faded away. When she pulled the man in just now, she was unable to enter. However, the man had somehow pulled her in! Could it be that the monster in that illusory world was actually afraid of Xiaohuo? At first, Mu Yao thought the beast was a stone statue. But now, she was looking at the man in front of her whom she thought was handsome but could not remember anything. He claimed to be a difficult man to cultivate. Perhaps those giant creatures and unknown demons were really afraid of Xiaohuo. Otherwise, he would not have been able to return to this cave. What was his background!? Also, which sect did the Hehuan Swordsmanship belong to? The man instantly felt uncomfortable being stared at by the woman. He subconsciously took a step back. ¡°Hey, woman, I told you not to look at me like that. What are your plans now? Since you have entered this door, you should understand that my words are true. I think the other three options are definitely the same. There¡¯s no way out. I think the only solution now is to quickly practice swordsmanship.¡± Mu Yao then picked up the sword at her waist. With an expressionless face, she said in a low voice, ¡°Don¡¯t think that I will consider it just because you saved me once.¡± ¡°Woman, you have to accept my kindness. How else will you get out now?¡± The man crossed his arms and said impolitely. Seeing this, Mu Yao smirked. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you the same thing. You have to accept my kindness. Otherwise, who else is going to practice swordsmanship with you?¡± ¡°You¡¯re the most unreasonable woman I¡¯ve ever met!¡± ¡°Forget it, you¡¯ve already lost your memory. What memories do you still have? But since we¡¯re already in this situation, why don¡¯t we set up an alliance agreement and we can each achieve our own goals?¡± Mu Yao knew that Xiaohuo was extraordinary, but even if he was a dangerous person, she had to make him work for her at this moment. These demons, ghosts, and unknown giant creatures were afraid of Xiaohuo, and he was the only one who had the ability to return through the shadow door. Then¡­ ¡°What agreement?¡± the man asked. ¡°We have the same goal¡ªleaving this cave. Since that is the case, accompany me into the other three gates!¡± Before Mu Yao could finish, the man¡¯s face immediately darkened, and he said in a low voice, ¡°Woman, do you want to die here? Do you really want to waste time here? I have a solution but you refuse to use it. Why are you risking your life to go into the unknown?¡± Mu Yao rolled her eyes inwardly. ¡®Is your method even humane?¡¯ Of course, Mu Yao didn¡¯t want to die. It was just that the scene in the first illusory world in the cave was alluring. Mu Yao had a feeling that everything in the cave had something to do with her death, including the blood-red eye. Somehow, Mu Yao had a feeling that her tragic death wasn¡¯t that simple. Besides, Mu Yao believed that the sword technique should only be used as a last resort. All she had done was enter an illusory door. No matter what, she had to see what was behind the other black shadow doors. If she ran into dangerous monsters inside, she would have no choice but to get the man to bring her back through the black shadow door. Mu Yao remained expressionless and said coldly, ¡°I will consider your swordsmanship, but not now. We are just doing what we need to. Think about it carefully. I won¡¯t force you.¡± The man pondered for a while. It seemed that this woman had already made up her mind. Even if he had only known this woman for a short period of time, the man knew that the woman was not as cowardly and timid as ordinary women, who needed to survive on men. She had her own thoughts and plans, and she was even very brave. She was clearly afraid, but she still dared to rush into the unknown door. In any case, the man felt that he could no longer control this woman. Although he found it interesting, she was also a little angry. After all, although this woman was different from other women, she was very stubborn. It would be almost impossible to make her practice swordsmanship with him instead of going in. Thinking about that, the man raised his handsome and fair face, crossed his arms, and raised his burly and majestic upper body slightly. He stared at the woman¡¯s eyes with a hint of coercion and said lightly, ¡°I can accompany you in, but I will only enter one. Woman, my patience is limited, and I can¡¯t play house with you here. As long as the other one doesn¡¯t work, I must immediately return to practice my sword skills!¡± Mu Yao understood him too. Besides, her greatest goal was to leave the cave. She would sacrifice herself if they had to lose something to get out. Mu Yao then walked up to the sword art paintings on the wall and stood still for a while. With her back facing the man, she looked at the sword techniques and said blandly, ¡°Okay.¡± At the same time, Blood Pupil in one of the mirrors received a video message from his clone in the ¡°Spring¡± mystery realm. Instantly, Blood Pupil¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Damn it! She actually dared to barge into my sacrificial mystery realm! Isn¡¯t this woman long dead? Also, isn¡¯t the Netherworld Demon Lord bound by my chains?! That¡¯s something that no one without spirit energy can break free from!¡± Suddenly, the entire cave started shaking violently! Behind the black shadow stone door that had the word ¡°Summer¡± written on it, there was a series of earth-shattering tremors! Following this violent quake, the four stone statues in the entire cave were shattered to pieces by this quake, and gravel fell down. Mu Yao was caught off guard and fell to the ground due to the sudden vibration. As she did not hold the silver sword properly, it was flung into the air and fell to the ground, almost slicing Mu Yao¡¯s legs! Without the silver sword on her, Mu Yao suddenly felt as if there was nothing on her body. She even felt as though her strength had run dry, and she couldn¡¯t get up at all. As soon as she got up, she felt as if she had lost all its strength in her wrist. The Blood Pupil in the mirror activated its spiritual power and remotely controlled the mystic realm. As he struggled, the entire cave shook even more violently! In a moment of desperation, Mu Yao held her breath as she fell to the ground, paralyzed. The man immediately eased his posture. Although he did not have any spiritual power, he still had common martial arts skills and balance! Rocks were falling from above the woman¡¯s head due to the intense vibration. All of a sudden, a rock the size of a person fell! Seeing this, the man rushed forward without thinking. Cleverly dodging the falling debris, he gritted his teeth and ran behind Mu Yao. He subconsciously hooked his arm around Mu Yao¡¯s upper body from behind the woman¡¯s frail body, and the two of them fell to the side. Mu Yao felt the warmth coming from his chest. It seemed like no one had ever hugged her like this except her parents. ¡°Ouch!¡± The man cried out in pain as his broad back hit the ground. Mu Yao fell into the man¡¯s arms again. This was the second time she had such close contact with the man, and this was also the second time the man had saved her. Mu Yao felt the world fall silent. All that remained were her five senses that sensed everything around her. The man breathed slowly and warmly. It was a strong and reliable embrace. Suddenly, Mu Yao¡¯s pupils contracted! She could feel the man¡¯s lower body pressing against her! Mu Yao immediately gave up on those warm thoughts and pushed the man beneath her with all her might as her face turned red. Within the vibrating caves, a slender hand waved. A resounding slap sounded in the cave and a red mark appeared on the man¡¯s face. ¡°You!¡± This time, Mu Yao was at a loss. She even started to stutter! ¡°Ah! Woman! How dare you hit me!¡± The man roared, a trace of anger flashing across his eyes! Meanwhile, a loud explosion was heard from the palace outside the cave.. Chapter 6 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°Ahhh! Guards!!¡± The imperial study of the Tianlong Imperial Palace. A glimmer of light appeared in front of a round mirror in a secret chamber. The mirror reflected the furnishings in the secret room. In an instant, the mirror turned black. Then, a bloody eye appeared in the darkness as it slowly opened. The entire mirror began to vibrate! The guards outside the study glanced at each other nervously when they heard the scream. ¡°Hurry and call for the sorcerer!¡± With that, the guards at the door started running. Finally, they ran into the sorcerer, Cheng Ming, and the priest of the Tianlong Temple, Xu Wen. The two men were chatting and laughing as they walked along a small path in the palace. The sorcerer smirked. ¡°Well, Brother Xu, we¡¯ve done a good job with this setup. We got rid of a useless emperor and his jinx of a daughter. Now, Tianlong will definitely prosper once again. We¡¯ll win every battle, and our people will live in peace and comfort.¡± Xu Wen reached out his hand and made a gesture of worshipping Buddha. However, the priest¡¯s eyes weren¡¯t as clear as expected of a priest. ¡°Amitabha. I should have done it. The previous Emperor Mu Feng succeeded the throne fifty years ago. In the early years, we were always a peaceful and prosperous country. Who knew that a woman would turn our entire country upside down? Why did the former Emperor refuse to listen to us and insist on keeping this child? Thankfully, we found out about it and managed to avoid this calamity. If we had gotten rid of her earlier, we wouldn¡¯t have lost so many innocent citizens in vain. They had to go! I will never be able to express my love for the people of Tianlong no matter what I do, even if I were to commit a heinous crime.¡± The sorcerer rolled his eyes and cleared his throat. ¡°So, we¡¯ve done something very important and achieved what we wanted. Next, we need to discuss who will succeed the former Emperor.¡± As soon as these words were spoken, the two of them seemed to be able to read each other¡¯s minds, and they tacitly looked at each other before simultaneously laughing loudly. ¡°You¡¯ve always been the one who knows me best.¡± The sorcerer¡¯s right hand clenched into a fist as he laughed, while his left hand circled the old priest¡¯s back. ¡°Oh, Sorcerer Cheng, after all these years of being partners, the chemistry between you and me is something that no one in this world can match.¡± The two of them burst into laughter again. Immediately, the royal guard¡¯s roar came from the front. ¡°Sorcerer! Priest! Something¡¯s wrong!¡± At that, the sorcerer, Cheng Ming, stopped smiling and looked in the direction of the sound. ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± The guard had run too quickly and was panting to catch his breath. The sorcerer smiled kindly again and said in a gentle voice, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, speak slowly.¡± The priest once again assumed a praying posture and nodded at the guard. ¡°Please speak, Sir. Why are you in such a hurry?¡± The guard came forward and kneeled before he nodded and said, ¡°We suddenly heard a child-like roar from the secret room in the imperial study. I was so scared that I came to find you quickly!¡± eImmediately, the cheerful atmosphere disappeared. The sorcerer looked at the old priest and said nervously, ¡°Something¡¯s wrong!¡± The priest started to panic too. His forehead was even covered in cold sweat. He had already subconsciously retracted his hand and was already running toward the imperial study! The old priest thought to himself, ¡®The Heavenly God must be angry!¡¯ The imperial study had been set in the center of the palace when the former Emperor was still in power. After the former Emperor died, the sorcerer and priest ordered the servants to set imperial study up in a place where there were few people. The group arrived at the imperial study. The sorcerer stopped the guard at the door as he ran inside nervously with the priest. At the same time, a series of human-like screams came from the room. With a panicked expression, the sorcerer came to a certain scroll hanging in the room and chanted an unknown incantation. With a boom, the scroll instantly turned into a stone door, and then the door slowly opened. The screams in the room grew louder as the door opened. ¡°Calm down, Heavenly God! Calm down!¡± He shouted. ¡°Honorable Heavenly God, why are you so angry? Have we done something to make you angry?¡± With another loud boom, the old priest and the sorcerer knelt in front of the round mirror and kowtowed. Following that, the violent shaking of the Blood Pupil in the arc mirror eased a little, and the child-like screams stopped. A normal child¡¯s voice came from the mirror. ¡°Cheng Ming, Xu Wen, I trusted you so much and gave you two powers. Is this how you repay me?¡± The sorcerer and priest looked at each other in puzzlement, but neither knew what was wrong. The sorcerer swallowed his saliva, cupped his hands, and said carefully, ¡°I would definitely not dare to slack off. You¡¯ve granted me great kindness. Please let me know what has made you so angry!¡± The bloody eye in the arc mirror then disappeared, revealing a man and woman running hand in hand within the arc. The man and the woman had their backs to the sorcerer and the old priest, so the latter two couldn¡¯t see them very well. Then, the camera zoomed in. The faces of the man and woman appeared in front of the sorcerer and the old priest. ¡°Take a good look at what you¡¯ve done? Isn¡¯t this woman supposed to be dead? If she hadn¡¯t intruded into my mystic realm, I wouldn¡¯t have discovered that she was still alive! I originally wanted to capture her in one fell swoop, but who knew that the Netherworld Demon Lord would actually have his divine chains undone and escape from my sacrificial mystic realm with this woman? Why did you let her carry a sword?! Didn¡¯t you even consider that this sword could cut through the divine chains?! I can¡¯t interfere with the situation inside the cave. Think about what to do! You¡¯re bunch of stupid pigs!¡± Right now, the two men were filled with disbelief and fear. ¡°This is impossible. I personally saw this woman die in front of us, so we sacrificed her to you! That silver sword was also left to be buried with her by the former Emperor in front of all the citizens of the country. We really had no reason to stop it,¡± the sorcerer said carefully. The old priest was terrified by the sorcerer¡¯s explanation. As expected, the sorcerer spat out a mouthful of blood and was knocked to the ground by a force from the mirror! The sorcerer immediately understood what the figure in the mirror meant. He hurriedly sat up and kowtowed repeatedly. ¡°I was wrong! I was wrong!¡± At this moment, the priest softly spoke up, ¡°Heavenly God, this was our mistake. However, you¡¯re omnipotent. If this woman managed to enter the mystic realm alive, it¡¯s only proof that this woman is a jinx to the country and our people. She actually survived. If she isn¡¯t a demonic woman, then what is she? She died in front of me! And this Netherworld Demon Lord¡­ He is the defeated opponent of our Heavenly God. You definitely have a way to deal with them!¡± Seeing this, the sorcerer immediately echoed, ¡°That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right! There¡¯s nothing you can¡¯t do! No one can ever match up to you!¡± Hearing this, the Heavenly God immediately became elated. ¡°Of course! I am just not too happy with the way things are going. He was so powerful before, but now, he is trapped within my territory! Hahahaha! I can¡¯t even be bothered to mention this woman. She¡¯s just a mere mortal!¡± The child¡¯s voice in the mirror was clearly filled with joy. The sorcerer immediately echoed, ¡°That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right! With how omnipotent you are, they definitely wouldn¡¯t come out alive! Even the most powerful cultivator in this world wouldn¡¯t be able to break through the four mystic realms of you, Heavenly God, let alone this mortal or the defeated Netherworld Demon Lord! Besides, we drugged him. He has almost no spiritual power and he¡¯s lost all his memories. He¡¯s no different from a mortal.. Even if these four chains are removed, what extraordinary abilities do they have to escape from your mystic realm?¡± Chapter 7 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°Hahaha, that¡¯s right. It¡¯s impossible for anyone to break through my mystical realm. The people I¡¯ve trapped inside haven¡¯t even made it out alive yet.¡± The Heavenly God had already calmed down in the blink of an eye, and was now beaming. The wizard thought to himself, ¡®The Heavenly God is really unpredictable. He has a temper like a child.¡¯ Seeing this, the priest also brought up his own matters in a low voice, ¡°Heavenly God, Tianlong is currently developing according to our arrangements. Everything is going well, but¡­¡± The Blood Pupil in the mirror was pleased to hear the sorcerer¡¯s words. ¡°But what?¡± The old priest exchanged a look with the sorcerer and coughed. ¡°Now that the former Emperor is gone, we need to choose a new emperor. The new Emperor¡­¡± The Heavenly God¡¯s tone became slightly irritated. ¡°You need me to help you with this matter?! Are you pigs? I don¡¯t care if your emperor is a human or a ghost. I only care about one thing: The citizens¡¯ offerings and sacrifices to me must not be lacking in anything! All of them must be sent to my mystical realm!¡± ¡°Yes, yes! I understand!¡± The old priest knelt down and cupped his hands. ¡°However, if we want to convince the masses, we need to vastly increase our powers. Otherwise, the citizens will definitely not trust the new Emperor. This will affect the memorial sand offerings!¡± The Blood Pupil in the arc mirror blinked and immediately said, ¡°Yes, that makes sense. If anything happens, my ascension will be delayed! Old Priest, haven¡¯t you been in the middle stage of the Foundation Building realm for a long time?¡± That was exactly what the priest was waiting for. Ever since the day he had met the Heavenly God, he had directly advanced through the seven levels of the Aura Refining realm. Following that, he had slowly received the Heavenly God¡¯s spiritual power to get to where he was today. It was just that it had suddenly become very difficult for him to advance his skills and powers. He had already been stuck at the middle Foundation Building realm for a long time. However, even so, he was still the most powerful cultivator in all of Tianlong. The old priest¡¯s turbid eyes were even slightly bloodshot. He choked on his words and said, ¡°Yes, Heavenly God. I have many disciples. The most powerful among them is the Second Miss of the Imperial Preceptor¡¯s family, Xia He. She recently advanced to the third level of Aura Refinement. It took less than three months for her to advance to the third level of the Aura Refining Realm. That¡¯s much shorter than what I took to get there. I think it won¡¯t be long before she catches up to me. I really can¡¯t stand my ground anymore, so I¡¯m requesting your help.¡± The priest continued, ¡°As long as I have greater powers and my cultivation level improves, I will be able to better convince the masses, be it in Tianlong Temple or Tianlong Kingdom. I will be able to make all the citizens serve you, Heavenly God!¡± The sorcerer at the side also spoke up, ¡°That¡¯s right, Heavenly God, it¡¯s been a long time since you gave us spiritual force. Can you give us a little more? This way, we can better choose a suitable soul to offer as a sacrifice to you!¡± The Heavenly God blinked its blood-red eyes and said, ¡°I won¡¯t treat you unfairly since you two have been working for me. However, I¡¯ve been working hard on my ascension recently. I¡¯ll bestow spirit energy to you after my ascension.¡± The sorcerer and the old priest looked at each other subconsciously, at a loss for words. After all, they would only end up dead if they dared to argue against the decisions the Heavenly God had made. They then stood up and cupped their hands. ¡°Alright, Heavenly God, we¡¯ll take our leave first.¡± ¡°Alright, you may leave.¡± ¡°Oh right, what should we do about the people in the mystical realm?¡± The Heavenly God¡¯s blood-red eyes instantly widened. ¡°I¡¯ve said before that no one shall be able to leave my mystical realm alive unless they stay in the Four-Walled Hell where I have no authority over. I can¡¯t observe them there. However, even if they remain there, they will only be waiting for death. There are no other doors there, only entrances to the mystical realm. If they want to leave the cave, their only way is to leave the mystical realm. ¡± ¡°I understand. In that case, we will take our leave to handle the matter of choosing the next Emperor.¡± ¡°Alright, don¡¯t forget the sacrifice next month,¡± the Heavenly God commanded. Following which, the imperial study fell into silence, and the arc mirror returned to being an ordinary mirror. The two men left the study, each lost in their own thoughts. The moment they closed the door to the imperial study, they glanced around to see if there was anything that looked like a mirror. Only then did they let out a sigh. The sorcerer¡¯s face was filled with murderous intent. ¡°What kind of Heavenly King is he? We¡¯re working for him, yet he doesn¡¯t even want to give us spiritual power! Yet, we can¡¯t do anything to him! In these past few years, we¡¯ve sacrificed so many fresh livestock for him in the mystical realm. There¡¯s even a thousand-year-old giant ape. We only managed to get that in exchange for the lives of many of your disciples! But livestock wasn¡¯t enough for that b*stard and he even absorbed humans. We even had to create that battle so that the souls of the Tianlong warriors could be used for his cultivation!¡± The old priest¡¯s face was dark, and his voice slightly hoarse. ¡°Bear with it for a while more. After all, we only managed to get to where we are today after absorbing his spirit energy several times. Only if we are stronger than him can we have a way to become a Heavenly God ourselves.¡± The sorcerer scowled. ¡°Hmph! Let¡¯s go. Let¡¯s choose a puppet emperor from the Imperial Preceptor¡¯s family first.¡± In the Grand Tutor¡¯s residence. The Grand Tutor, Xia Guoyong, wore a white headscarf and white mourning clothes. He was standing in front of the mourning hall with a tired expression. Behind him stood dozens of beloved wives and their children. They were also wearing white mourning clothes. However, the expressions on their faces were unexpectedly relaxed and happy, without the slightest bit of sadness. Xia Guoyong folded his hands and held onto the incense as he looked at his ancestors¡¯ plaques with a worried expression. ¡°Your Majesty, please accept the bow of a loyal subject! If not for anything else, I just hope for a ceremony to speak to you. I hope that you¡¯ll forgive me for sacrificing myself for the greater good. For the safety of the people of the country and the prosperity of the kingdom, sacrificing the life of a child doesn¡¯t mean much! Even though she is your biological daughter, she lived with me for 18 years. I treated her as my own daughter. Her death pained me very much too! I hope that you¡¯ll forgive me for my decision, Your Majesty. Thank you for your kindness!¡± Xia Guoyong then knelt down and bowed three times with incense in his hands. The woman closest to Xia Guoyong was Lady Wang. She was thin and turned her gaze to a memorial tablet in the mourning hall with a sad expression. Following that, the countless wives, concubines, and children also paid their respects absent-mindedly. The voices of the concubines and children spread throughout the entire mourning hall. Lady Wang felt a pang in her heart. She was already sobbing uncontrollably. Scenes of Mu Yao¡¯s chubby face and big eyes when she was three years old flashed through her mind. As the young girl had become sensible, she had constantly questioned her, ¡°Mother, Father¡¯s surname is Xia, but why is my surname ¡®Mu¡¯?¡± She would always tell Mu Yao, ¡°Because you¡¯re unique.¡± Mu Yao, who was young and naive, had believed those words since she was little and never questioned her. Unexpectedly, the unique Mu Yao had died miserably at the hands of the Xia family.. Chapter 8 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios At the same time, the tremors in the mystical realm¡¯s cave eased a little. Mu Yao steadied herself and pointed at the man indignantly. ¡°You! B*stard!¡± Before the man could react to what was happening to his lower body, he got up, only to see his¡­ In an instant, the man was petrified! When had he ever suffered such humiliation? He had repeatedly embarrassed himself in front of a woman! He coughed and immediately stood up. With his back facing the woman, he said coldly, ¡°What¡¯s wrong with that?! Maybe it¡¯s just a physiological reaction after not having sex for a long time. It¡¯s impossible for me to be interested in you. Besides, even if there is, it¡¯d be your honor. Do you understand?¡± Mu Yao coldly snorted and indifferently said, ¡°My honor? I think you¡¯ll have to beg me to practice that Hehuan Swordsmanship with you! I think your clan is too thirsty for women. To think that you guys even created such despicable sword techniques! ¡± The man¡¯s lower body was now relaxed. When he heard this, he flew into a rage. ¡°Woman, do you know what you¡¯re saying?! Do you believe that I¡¯ll¡­¡± At the same time, the Blood Pupil¡¯s clone behind the ¡°Summer¡± door was waiting for them to enter and die. Who would have thought that they would be so slow in doing so? Before the man could finish his sentence, the black shadow door of ¡°Summer¡± started to pull him in. Mu Yao and the man were then sucked in by a powerful force! Mu Yao was so light that she was immediately sucked to the door. She quickly grabbed the edge of the door. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± she screamed. On the other hand, the man relied on his heavy body to nimbly squat down and grab onto the soil on the ground. As a result, blue veins popped out on his hands, and a long scratch mark appeared on the soil. ¡°I-I don¡¯t know either. I¡¯ve been here for so long, but I¡¯ve never seen a door apart from the ¡®Spring¡¯ door making a loud noise. Today is the first time this has happened!¡± The man immediately let go of his anger and said. Suddenly, the attraction from the door became even more intense, causing the temperature to rise way higher than normal. Mu Yao felt like she had been surrounded by hot air. Even though she was indeed trying to find the exit, she was being now forced into a corner and she didn¡¯t want to go in! ¡°What should we do now? I think we have to go in now!¡± Mu Yao had run out of energy. She was going to collapse any second now! ¡°Woman, do you still want to rely on me now? Am I still a pervert?¡± The man snorted coldly. Mu Yao¡¯s face darkened. ¡°Yes, you are!¡± ¡°You! You¡¯re really the most ungrateful woman I¡¯ve ever met!¡± the man retorted. Mu Yao glared at the man, then let go of her hands without hesitation. A complicated expression flashed across the man¡¯s deep eyes when he saw the woman being sucked into the shadow door. He then sighed and let go of his grip too. One after another, the pair landed on the ground. At the same time, a certain blood eye was watching this scene from a certain spot. It let out peals of laughter. ¡°Hahaha, Netherworld Demon Lord, just destroy yourself here!¡± After some time, Mu Yao woke up from the scorching heat. A man shouted from nearby, ¡°Woman! Wake up! If you die, I¡¯ll beat you to death!¡± When she opened her eyes again, she discovered that the scene behind the ¡°Summer¡± shadow door was as terrifying as the legendary hell! The pair was now standing on a cliff made of lava that had accumulated over hundreds of millions of years. She was standing alone on one side of the cliff. She had come to this conclusion because the man was standing on the cliff opposite her. Between the two of them, there was a magma river that was surging and flowing with sparks. It looked as though it was about to flow over and reach the shore from time to time! The passage connecting the two banks wasn¡¯t made up of chains or bridges. Instead, there were wooden blocks about 20 meters long. The size of the wooden blocks was only the size of a footprint. The strange thing was that these wooden blocks were not burned by the boiling lava. Not only that, but there was also not a single exit in this entire space. The only door was that same old black shadow door. However, this time, the shadow door wasn¡¯t following Mu Yao. Instead, it was faintly discernible next to the man opposite Mu Yao. Mu Yao looked up and saw that there was still an endless cliff wall above her head. Worse still, it was entirely blood-red. However, there was a huge and familiar Guan Yin Bodhisattva statue carved on the cliff, its face as disgusting as the one in the cave. Mu Yao observed her surroundings and panted as she looked at the man opposite her and said disdainfully, ¡°I¡¯m alive. I won¡¯t die.¡± The distance between them was too great. Even if Mu Yao wanted to go back, she would have to step on the wooden blocks and cross the magma river to reach the other side before she could return to the cave. The man snorted and looked at the scene before him. ¡°It¡¯s not too late for you to regret now. It¡¯s just a few pieces of wood. I think you can do it.¡± Of course, the man wouldn¡¯t let Mu Yao cross the river just like this. There was magma below! If the woman accidentally fell, then the Hehuan Swordsmanship would be useless. If that happened, he wouldn¡¯t have the chance to recover his spiritual power and leave this hell! Of course, Mu Yao wasn¡¯t stupid enough to go there directly. Instead, she turned around and walked toward a stone tablet behind her. To be honest, she was worried about the man entering the black shadow door without her. Yet, there was nothing she could do about that. However, she was confident that the man would not leave her alone. She was still useful to him after all. While observing her surroundings, Mu Yao discovered something amiss. She squatted down and turned around to look at the stone tablet. There were indeed some strange words written on it, but Mu Yao was able to understand them with her memories from before she reincarnated. The first line was written in red cinnabar. The font was also the largest. There were six words written on it: ¡°Tomb of the Warriors of Tianlong¡±. There was a line below in a smaller font, basically telling the story of how the warriors fought bravely and sacrificed themselves for the country. But then, Mu Yao¡¯s pupils contracted! Her story had been written on the tombstone too! However, there was only one line: ¡°The war between the Tianlong and Shuiguo was lost because the jinx was still alive! Fear not for this woman has been eliminated! May the soldiers of Tianlong rest in peace!¡± Mu Yao suddenly felt her heart ache. Had she really died because of this battle? Was she really a jinx who had brought disaster upon the country? If that was the case, why had Tianlong been so prosperous for the past ten years? Why did they let her die in front of her family just because of a defeat?! ¡®How ridiculous! Tianlong, what have I done wrong for you to treat me like this? Father, did you do this to me because of this absurdity?!¡¯ At the same time, in the Imperial Preceptor¡¯s residence. The ceremony continued and everyone knelt before the mourning hall. At this moment, a horse¡¯s cry was heard outside the Imperial Preceptor¡¯s residence. ¡°Imperial Preceptor, please come out and receive the imperial decree!¡± A priest, who was wearing a cultivator¡¯s robe and had his hair combed into a bun, called out as he dismounted from his horse. Xia Guoyong walked out of the mourning hall with a worried expression. When he heard the sound of horse hooves, the worry on his face disappeared. He smiled and looked at the servant beside him. The servants understood what the Imperial Preceptor meant. They quickly headed to the entrance to welcome the disciples of the Tianlong Temple. ¡°Sir, please come in!¡± ¡°Alright.¡± The priest held the imperial edict and headed into the Imperial Preceptor¡¯s residence. Following that, the priest arrived at the mourning hall and saw everyone dressed in white with white headscarves on their heads as they paid their respects. ¡°How has your family been doing, Imperial Preceptor? What is that?¡± the priest asked after seeing the white cloth hanging on the gate of the courtyard, and the scene in the memorial hall. The Imperial Preceptor then made a gesture of worshiping Buddha. ¡°Amitabha. Sir, the emperor has just passed away not long ago. I was worried, so I specially performed some ritual rites in the residence so that the Emperor can reincarnate in the netherworld. Furthermore, with the death of that demoness, I also wish to perform a ritual in the residence to remove some bad luck.¡± The priest immediately smiled and nodded. ¡°You¡¯re indeed the former Emperor¡¯s loyal subject, and a great loyal subject of Tianlong. Your heart¡¯s always for the country. This imperial edict was written by me and the great sorcerer together on behalf of the former Emperor. If you accept this imperial edict, Tianlong will be yours. Will you accept the decree, Imperial Preceptor?¡± The Imperial Preceptor let out a bright smile and put down his hands. He knelt down in front of his wife and child, and the priests before extending both his arms, crying out, ¡°Your humble servant accepts the decree!¡± Everyone in the Imperial Preceptor¡¯s residence beamed with joy. ¡°Mother, is Father going to be the Emperor?!¡± The third son of the Imperial Preceptor turned around and tugged at his mother¡¯s skirt as he asked in disbelief. The smile on Second Madam¡¯s face could not be described with words. She had been married to the Imperial Preceptor¡¯s since she was young. She was already fortunate enough to give birth to a son for the Imperial Preceptor. Although this child didn¡¯t have any spiritual roots and could not cultivate in the Tianlong Temple, she was still very content. Who would have thought that she could be part of the imperial family again? In this case, her child might even become the future Crown Prince! She turned to her son and said in a serious tone, ¡°Yes, son. But first, lower your voice. You must act with the dignity of a son of the royal family.¡± ¡°I understand,¡± the fourteen-year-old Xia Ming said obediently. Qin Yu, the Imperial Preceptor¡¯s first wife, was upset when she saw this. She had two daughters whom she doted on. One had eventually died after Xia Guoyong reported her to the rest of the country, while the other had become the disciple of the pries from Tianlong Temple. However, she had been suppressed by the Second Madam all these years because the doctor had said that she could not have a son. Thankfully, her daughter had spiritual roots and not long ago, her daughter had managed to draw aura into her body and entered the Aura Refining stage. Only then had her life improved slightly. She knew very well that Xia Guoyong thought of children as nothing more than commodities. Although he looked sanctimonious on the surface, he had been marrying concubines one after another after marrying her and had even lectured her for not being able to give birth to a boy. Apart from his second wife¡¯s family, some of the children who had spiritual roots but were not gifted had been directly sent to be sacrificed by the sorcerer. Only those without spiritual roots were kept alive. She was worried about the safety of her daughter, Xia He. Now that her other daughter was gone, she only had Xia He. What would happen to her after she became part of the royal family? The Imperial Preceptor received the imperial decree and was immediately invited back to the Imperial Palace by the priest to accept the throne. At the same time, in the secret realm behind the ¡°Summer¡± door. Standing on the other side of the cliff behind Mu Yao, the man shouted, ¡°Woman, what are you looking at? Why are you staring at me?¡± Then, black shadows suddenly emerged from the boiling lava in front of him. The man immediately sensed something amiss and shouted, ¡°Woman, stop looking at me. Look behind you!¡± There was danger lurking behind Mu Yao! Mu Yao looked at the words on the stone tablet and didn¡¯t know what to do. Then, the man¡¯s shout pulled her out of her thoughts. She turned around and saw black shadows everywhere! One after another, black shadows emerged from the magma and began to scatter in all directions. Mu Yao had just come out of her daze and had forgotten to draw her sword. The man instantly shouted, ¡°Damn it! This woman is always stupid at the most critical moments!¡± Subconsciously, he picked up a rock at the side and prepared to fight it out even if it meant risking his life. Although he had lost his spiritual power, he still remembered some of his martial arts skills. These black shadows didn¡¯t immediately attack either side, as if they were trying to figure out who was attacking them. Mu Yao gradually came to her senses. Suddenly, she pulled out her sword. A silver light flashed and ripples spread toward the black shadows. At the same time, the black shadows were pushed back a few meters by the power of the silver light. To both Mu Yao and the man¡¯s surprise, the shadows arranged themselves into a neat line, like a troop of soldiers! Chapter 9 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios The black shadows that had lined up stopped running around. Then, a slightly larger black shadow floated in front of them alone. Seeing this, the man and Mu Yao looked at each other across the boiling magma river. They both held their weapons tightly. From a distance, Mu Yao could make out what the man was saying. Mu Yao¡¯s heart warmed when she saw it. He had mouthed, ¡°Be careful.¡± ¡®You too,¡¯ Mu Yao thought. Mu Yao was surprised that the man cared about her and hadn¡¯t left her to fend for herself. After a slight nod, the tense atmosphere came to a climax. The moment the leader of the black shadows flew into the sky, Mu Yao knew that the war had begun. At this moment, her palms were already sweating. With a boom, the rows of black shadows awoke and split into two teams like soldiers on the battlefield, as though they had heard a general blowing a horn. One team rushed towards Mu Yao and the other towards the man. The magma was crackling and surging, and the temperature of the entire mystical realm was rising by the second. Mu Yao and the man were naturally forced to quicken their breathing to avoid oxygen deprivation. ¡°Charge!¡± the group of black shadows let out a collective shout. Mu Yao was greeted by the sight of a huge shadow charging at her! She immediately ducked and waved her silver sword, scattering several black shadows. However, this was not enough. She was fighting one against a hundred. There was no way to win. On the other side, a large group of black shadows attacked the man. The man subconsciously waved the stone in his hand. He was unarmed, but he still had his martial arts skills to fall back on. He immediately dodged to the side. He stepped onto the rock wall and after somersaulting, he landed perfectly on one knee. Without decent weapons, his first move would naturally be to dodge. At the same time, the Blood Pupil behind the stone statue above their heads was watching this scene with satisfaction, and it closed its eyes in satisfaction. Just as he expected, no one could leave his mystical realm! On the other side, Mu Yao was doing her best to brandish her silver sword. With the support of this sword, Mu Yao, who did not have any martial arts or cultivation foundations, actually felt a trace of strength run through her entire body. She was naturally carried by the silver sword. Even so, the situation was not optimistic because there were too many black shadows. Even though some of them had been dispersed, another wave quickly came toward her. At the same time, the man who was constantly dodging suddenly raised his head. An invisible force seemed to have sprung out from his body. To his surprise, the large black shadow that had just approached him suddenly retreated for no reason. Before he could attack and disperse that large group of black shadows, they retreated on their own accord. Following that, the black figures began to discuss amongst themselves, ¡°Who is he? Why is there such a strong resistance around him that we can¡¯t approach him at all?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right! I feel like my remaining soul will dissipate as long as I get close!¡± another piped up. ¡°That¡¯s right! You guys are right. Although this person doesn¡¯t have any spiritual power at all, it¡¯s terrifying to approach him!¡± another black shadow spoke up. ¡°That shouldn¡¯t be the case. How could this be? We¡¯ve been in this mystical realm for so long, but we¡¯ve never met anyone we can¡¯t beat! Has there been anyone who wasn¡¯t beaten up by us? In the end, they would always fall into this magma river and be sacrificed to our Heavenly God,¡± a black shadow lamented. Mu Yao, who was brandishing her silver sword, also heard these discussions. She frowned and thought to herself, ¡®The man still has the ability to resist them! No wonder those wild beasts don¡¯t dare to enter the black hole! However, this group of black shadows are actually souls! But who was the Heavenly God they were talking about just now?¡¯ Mu Yao had lost most of her stamina, but she still fought on bravely with her silver sword. The discussion continued. ¡°Yeah! What should we do? If we don¡¯t beat them to death, then we¡¯ll be the ones to die! You have to know that our souls are the only traces left in this world. If even this soul is sucked into that Heavenly God¡¯s body, then we will never be able to reincarnate!¡± The man and Mu Yao both gave each other a look at the two sides of the lava stream. It seemed like this cave was the territory of that so-called Heavenly God. ¡°Yes, we will disappear from this world forever!¡± another shadow called out. Mu Yao continued to swing her sword with all her might. However, the man could tell from the opposite shore that the woman was almost exhausted and about to die. At the same time, the shadows shouted, ¡°General! What should we do?¡± The leader of the group flew back from above, jumping as he shouted, ¡°Everyone, listen to my command. Attack that woman first!¡± When the man heard this, his heart skipped a beat! The woman was exhausted and would not be able to resist them at all! On the other side of the cliff, Mu Yao was struggling to even swing her sword. The black shadows were destroyed by the silver sword one after another. However, she was not a martial artist and did not have any spiritual power. It was only because of an unknown silver sword that she had pressed on until now. However, the silver sword seemed to be consuming all of her energy. Her vision was getting blurry and she was about to faint. Mu Yao couldn¡¯t focus at all because she had been drained of all energy. Taking advantage of that, several black shadows ambushed her, even drawing blood. Seeing this, the man¡¯s pupils constricted and he shouted subconsciously, ¡°You bunch of useless soldiers, come at me if you dare!¡± The group of black shadows immediately gathered with their counterparts on Mu Yao¡¯s side, and then flew toward Mu Yao. ¡°Ah!¡± Mu Yao¡¯s silver sword was suddenly flung away by a large wave of black shadows. The young lady fell to her knees as if she had lost all her strength! When the man saw her in this state, he immediately felt his chest fill with anger, and his entire body began to tremble violently. His eyes suddenly turned red, and his low voice instantly reverberated throughout the entire cliff. ¡°I said to come at me.¡± The mass of black shadows that was attacking Mu Yao felt a cold and soul-stirring force coming from the man opposite her. That was the power of resistance. It was even stronger than before. ¡°General! This man seems to be coming over. His resistance is stronger than before!¡± a black shadow warned. ¡°That¡¯s impossible! How can a person without spiritual power do that!¡± the general replied in a frenzy. ¡°Quick! Kill this woman first! If we delay any longer, we won¡¯t be able to kill both of them!¡± By now, Mu Yao had already collapsed to the ground. The silver sword was a few meters away, and the green dress on her body was almost completely stained with blood. The temperature in the entire space kept rising as the magma flowed upwards silently. The distance of more than twenty meters had been shortened by almost half! At the same time, Mu Yao was surrounded by a large group of black shadows as she spat out a mouthful of blood. The man let out a roar and a huge invisible force bounced off his body, repelling the countless black shadows surrounding women! Mu Yao had absolutely no energy to look at what was happening around her. She felt as though she was going to die again. Was she going to die soon? Suddenly, she felt a wave of heart-wrenching pain in her heart, but this was unlike the pain she had felt the first time she had died.. Chapter 10 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Mu Yao slowly closed her eyes. Right before she closed her eyes, she seemed to see a blurry figure walking toward her.< "Xiaohuo, did you come to save me?" When the general of the black shadow army saw that the man was daring enough to step on the wooden planks, he ordered. "Brothers, if we knock down the wooden planks, we can throw this man into the sea of lava!" "You''re the best, General! This way, we won''t be afraid of not being able to complete our mission!" a soldier gladly said. "Thank you for your advice, General. I really want to be reincarnated even if I become a pig. I want to go back and see my poor wife and children!" another piped up. "Yes, thank you, General. Brothers, for the sake of reincarnation and not suffering the pain of the flames forever, let''s charge!" one of the black shadows encouraged his compatriots. "Charge!" The large group of black shadows that had initially been rushing toward Mu Yao all left her and rushed in another direction. The moment the man saw Mu Yao fall to the ground with her eyes closed, he could no longer suppress the rage in his heart. Then, his eyes turned even redder and the resistance force around him grew stronger! He looked at the woman who had fallen to the ground. Her fair body was drenched in crimson-red blood and she clearly could not care about anything anymore! Scenes of his first meeting with the woman appeared in his mind. Then, they were out on the prairie, where she pulled him to escape from the burning flames. In the cave, she broke the chains on his limbs. Then, he thought of the times when the woman fell into his arms, looking angry and at a loss. "All of you! How dare you hurt one of my people? All of you deserve to die!" He did not feel any fear when he stepped on the first wooden plank. Just as he was about to lose his balance, he raised his other foot and stepped on the next wooden plank in front of him. At the same time, a large group of black shadows appeared in his line of sight. However, to everyone''s surprise, the black shadows could not even get half a meter away from him! The man''s body seemed to have formed an invisible protective shield around him, which was the so-called resistance. Following that, the flaming stars in the lava beneath his feet seemed to be sucked into this invisible shield, causing the entire shield to double in size! At that moment, the large group of black figures began to panic as they were forced to retreat by the pressure! Now, they were even running around aimlessly! Whether it was an attack from the top or the bottom, they just couldn''t get close to the man. "General! This man''s resistance has gotten even stronger!" a soldier cried out for help. "What should we do? General, come up with an idea. If the Heavenly God finds out that we didn''t execute them, we''ll be the ones who will have to die! Just what is the background of this man? He clearly doesn''t have any spiritual power to speak of, yet he actually has such a strong resistance. My soul feels so oppressed once I get close to him!" "It''s over, it''s over. This man has reached the last wooden plank! This is the first time I''ve seen someone who dares to walk across the wooden planks like this. I''ve been in this mystical realm for so long, but no one has dared to walk across this lava stream!" the commander lamented . It seemed as though even the gods were on the man''s side, and he actually managed to walk steadily over the magma that was flowing higher and higher. Seeing the situation, the commander of the shadows shouted, "Everyone, retreat!" As soon as he said so, the entire group of black shadows panicked and retreated! "We''re done for. Even the general said so. We''re going to be executed by the Heavenly God! I really don''t want to die! We''ve already died once in vain. For the sake of Tianlong, we gave up everything. Are we going to die again this time? Besides, this is such a dishonorable way to die! Once we die, we won''t be able to enter the cycle of reincarnation. We will all become food for that Heavenly God!" a soldier wailed out. "That''s right! What should we do? The Heavenly God should be resting right now. If he wakes up and realizes that we''re not doing our job well, we will meet sure death! I really don''t want to die again. Did you see what was written on the tombstone? It said that we lost the war because of the Emperor''s daughter! However, I don''t believe him at all! I was a spy sent to Shuiguo and I heard that the general of Shuiguo had interacted with the sorcerer of Tianlong! Without any evidence, I suddenly died from poisoning the next day! Now that I''m dead, I''m no longer afraid of anything. This secret has been kept in my heart for a long time!" The soldier continued, "I don''t care even if I were to be reduced to ashes again. I just have to reveal this secret! The sorcerer threw us here to be the Heavenly God''s lackeys. It''s obvious that the sorcerer is definitely not a good person! Think about it, everyone. We could have entered the cycle of reincarnation, but we were taken here by the sorcerer to serve the Heavenly God. How many of our brothers'' souls have already been sucked into the Heavenly God and can no longer enter the cycle of reincarnation? Tell me!" "What?! I always thought that we were defeated because of the the Emperor''s daughter! I always thought that we died in glory! I didn''t think that we were killed on purpose!" Someone expressed their disbelief. "What! That''s impossible! General, tell us if it''s true!" another demanded. At the same time, a group of dead souls watched the devilish man walk to the opposite shore. The man watched as the woman''s breathing gradually slowed down. He carefully picked her up and shouted, "All of you! All of you will die with her!" As the man gently picked Mu Yao up, her pendant fell to the side of her waist due to her center of gravity being lowered. Amidst the flames, there was a faint green glow. "General, this man''s resistance is increasing again! We''re doomed!" "General!" The shadows jumped up and down uneasily and began to struggle, calling out to their leader. However, the general could not hear any sound at all. The only thing that caught his eye was a shimmering pendant. Instantly, his entire soul trembled! Then, he shouted loudly, "The daughter of the Emperor! Your Highness!" That shocked the shadows that were running around, and they immediately stopped moving. They then approached the general. "General, what did you say? The emperor''s daughter? The princess? Where is she?" The large group of black shadows turned to look at the woman covered in blood. Because they had been busy fighting earlier, no one had noticed the jade pendant on the woman''s waist. Now that the woman was being carried by the man and the jade pendant hung down from her waist, it was clear as day. "Isn''t that the jade pendant that the Emperor used to wear every day?" someone asked. "Yes, that''s absolutely right. Every time before the battle, the Emperor would always come to boost our morale. He would wear this jade pendant every time. Just before our last battle, the Emperor wore it to our camp to boost our morale too! I can''t be wrong. This is definitely the Emperor''s jade pendant! The Emperor''s jade pendant will only be passed down to his children, so this is really¡­" "What? In other words, this is really Her Highness! Did we really hurt Her Highness so badly just now?!" a soldier cried out. The general of the black shadow army immediately fell to the ground, shouting, "Your Highness, I''ve let you down! I didn''t recognize you at first glance and even hurt you!" Chapter 11 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°What? General, what should we do now? We¡¯ve been filial to His Majesty the Heavenly Emperor for our entire lives, and now we¡¯ve accidentally hurt Her Highness. Do you have a way to help Her Highness recover?¡± a soldier cried out in despair. At this moment, the man¡¯s lips curled up and his eyes were dark. He said fiercely, ¡°It¡¯s too late. All of you will be buried with her.¡± The man gently put Mu Yao down. Then, he stood up and waved his hands! The general of the black shadow army was ruthlessly thrown back by the man¡¯s resistance. The force was so strong that it almost scared the general out of his wits. Immediately after, the general was ruthlessly smashed onto the rock wall. A loud rumble came from the entire cliff. A large part of the cliff wall caved in, and the scattered stones fell into the magma below. ¡°General!¡± the soldiers behind him shouted as they rushed up to their leader. The general¡¯s soul instantly became only faintly discernible, as if it was about to disappear! ¡°General! Are you alright? Your soul seems to be disappearing!¡± one of the men shouted. But just then, the man rushed over to release his resistance force, throwing the countless black figures into danger! Seeing this, the general¡¯s shadow struggled to speak in a weak voice, ¡°Your Excellency! I was the one who ordered them to do this. If you want to punish us, let me bear it alone. These soldiers are innocent! Besides, we have a way to help Her Highness recover from her injuries and wake her up. Please just treat your attack as my apology to Her Highness! Please be merciful!¡± The soldiers didn¡¯t know who this man was, but since he was protecting the princess, he wasn¡¯t considered an enemy. However, they had to make this man stop now. Otherwise, these soldiers would never be able to enter the cycle of reincarnation again! The general was one of the stronger ones among all the soldiers. He was almost unable to withstand the resistance. If it had been those soldiers, they probably would not even have been able to withstand a single blow! Meanwhile, the man¡¯s eyes had already turned red. It was only natural for him to ignore the general. His mind was filled with the tragic scene of the woman spitting out blood just now. One strike was not enough to resolve his hatred! Suddenly, a weak voice came from behind the man. ¡°Xiaohuo.¡± The man¡¯s red eyes gradually regained clarity. He slowly retracted her hands. He then turned around and ran back to help Mu Yao up anxiously. ¡°Woman, you¡¯re awake!¡± ¡°Your Highness! You¡¯re awake!¡± All the black shadows ran around excitedly! Mu Yao had a dream when she fell. In her dream, she was running freely around the Imperial Preceptor¡¯s residence while holding a white windmill.Behind her, her mother was carrying a newborn baby. Her mother looked at her lovingly and called out softly, ¡°Be careful, Yao¡¯er.¡± Mu Yao ran off with the pinwheel in hand and her laughter filled the yard. Just then, Mu Yao slammed into someone. She widened her eyes at the person in front of her before breaking out into a grin. ¡°Father! You¡¯re back!¡± Xia Guoyong looked at Mu Yao and smiled. He picked her up with one hand. ¡°Mu Yao, don¡¯t be so naughty!¡± Holding the pinwheel in her right hand, Muyao even tugged at her father¡¯s beard playfully with her left. ¡°Heehee, Daddy, I¡¯m not afraid of you abandoning me!¡± Then, she turned around and glanced at her mother, revealing a few front teeth that hadn¡¯t grown out yet. She smiled at her mother. ¡°Isn¡¯t that right, Mother?¡± At this moment, her mother no longer had the happy expression from before. Instead, she lowered her head with a worried expression and greeted Xia Guoyong. ¡°Old Master, you¡¯re back.¡± Xia Guoyong immediately put Mu Yao down and the smile on his face disappeared. He then glanced at Qin Yu and walked to her ear. His expression changed and he said to her with a dark expression, ¡°Teach Mu Yao well and don¡¯t get hurt. If the Emperor sees this, you will suffer! Do you hear me?¡± Mu Yao, on the other hand, could only see her father and mother whispering to each other. Then, the scene changed. It was still in the courtyard of the Imperial Preceptor¡¯s residence. At this moment, she was already a graceful and generous 18-year-old girl. As usual, she was playing leisurely in the courtyard. Suddenly, a group of priests and soldiers wearing white cultivator robes entered the courtyard. All of them glared at her angrily. ¡°Jinx! You¡¯re still alive!¡± one of them yelled. ¡°Arrest her! Choose an auspicious day and execute her in public!¡± Immediately, they went up to Mu Yao. Dumbfounded, Mu Yao struggled and cried out, ¡°Father! Mother! Help me!¡± However, what happened the next second was the most unbearable and painful thing Mu Yao had ever experienced in her life! Xia Guoyong walked out from behind the group of people and looked at Mu Yao with a worried expression. He said coldly, ¡°Jinx, I¡¯ve raised you for so many years in vain. I didn¡¯t realize that you were such an omen. Your existence is the reason our Tianlong soldiers were completely annihilated in this battle!¡± ¡°Father! What are you talking about? I don¡¯t know anything about the battle! I¡¯m Mu Yao! I¡¯m not some witch! Mother! Mother!¡± Behind a pillar not far away, Qin Yu watched this scene with tears in her eyes. When she saw her second daughter, Xia He, studying in the room, she cried out in pain. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Mu Yao! That¡¯s right, I couldn¡¯t protect you! I¡¯m sorry! If I tried, my Xia He might¡­¡± The image flashed again. In the prison cell, Mu Yao was dressed in a prisoner¡¯s uniform and covered in scars, and was then dragged unceremoniously from the cell to the execution platform by the soldiers. Bang! Mu Yao was thrown onto the execution platform with a loud thud as the citizens of Tianlong gathered round. Then, leaves, eggs, and even stones were thrown at Mu Yao! That woke her up. Mu Yao opened her eyes and warm blood flowed into her eyes. In her blurry vision, Mu Yao saw the citizens of Tianlong. She could even make out a few familiar figures among them. They were her parents and younger siblings. Then, as her five senses gradually eased, the insults became increasingly clearer. ¡°Jinx! Your existence brought disaster to the country! Why didn¡¯t you die earlier? It¡¯s all because of you that our soldiers died tragically!¡± one shouted. ¡°My son was such a smart boy, yet he died in vain! My poor child! Jinx! Return my son to me!¡± another yelled out. ¡°There are elders and children in our family waiting for my husband to come back. Now, he has suffered a tragic death! What should we do?¡± ¡°My younger brother died tragically¡­ Die!¡± ¡°My brother died tragically and sacrificed himself for Tianlong!¡± ¡°My husband died so tragically¡­ You should die too!¡± ¡°My child died tragically and sacrificed himself for Tianlong!¡± Waves of insults, grievances, and wails could be heard. However, Mu Yao had no idea what was going on. She lay collapsed on the execution platform and slowly crawled toward the blurry and familiar figures. She felt as though she was about to die, but she refused to believe it. Could her own parents really bear to watch her die so heartlessly? She crawled slowly in their direction. Every time she moved, the floor of the execution platform would be covered in bloody marks. She tried to speak, but she had not eaten for days and she could barely make a sound. ¡®Father¡­ Is it really you? Are you really my father? Father, don¡¯t you want me anymore? Mother, don¡¯t you love me anymore? Do you not want me too? Why? What happened? Why don¡¯t you tell me? I don¡¯t understand what they are talking about! Tell me, Father, Mother! Sister! Brother!¡¯ But Mu Yao couldn¡¯t make a sound. Then, she heard the sound of a horn blowing behind her. Following which, the sound of gongs and drums could be heard. A man shouted, ¡°The time has come! We will offer sacrifices to the Heavenly God right now to ensure the prosperity of Tianlong! To ensure the safety of the citizens of Tialong, we have to eliminate the jinx who has harmed our people!¡± The citizens below the stage also shouted in agreement, ¡°Get rid of the demoness who has ruined our country!¡± A series of voices rang in Mu Yao¡¯s ears. Her heart ached as she used her last bit of strength to turn toward her parents, only to see that they too were raising their hands and cheering. A sharp pain pierced through Mu Yao¡¯s heart. ¡°Execute her!¡± On the cliff wall, Mu Yao suddenly opened her eyes and heard the conversation between the man and the general. From what she could hear, they were talking about her being a princess. The man then said, ¡°All of you will die with her!¡± Mu Yao realized what was going on right away. Perhaps, these shadows had something to do with her death. She called out, ¡°Xiaohuo!¡± The man immediately ran back and carefully helped her up. He no longer cared about his nasty nickname. He had not expected himself to be so happy about the woman coming to. ¡°Her Highness! Her Highness is awake!¡± The black shadow general struggled to get up before flying over, followed by his soldiers. Seeing this, the ruthlessness in the man¡¯s eyes gradually appeared again. Mu Yao gently covered his wrist and shook her head, reassuring him, ¡°Don¡¯t worry..¡± Chapter 12 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios The fierceness in the man¡¯s eyes eased a little. Then, all the black shadows flew over. This time, they landed slowly on the ground. The moment they landed, they said in unison, ¡°Greetings, Your Highness.¡± Although Mu Yao had woken up, the wounds on her body were still there. She hadn¡¯t recovered all of a sudden. Therefore, it was very likely that she would pass out or even die. Mu Yao opened her eyes blearily and frowned. ¡°Your Highness?¡± Could it be that she was really the daughter of the Emperor? If so, why did they call her a jinx? Mu Yao had a lot of questions in her head, but she didn¡¯t have the energy to say anything. In fact, she nearly passed out yet again. The general of the black shadow army immediately replied, ¡°Yes!¡± Seeing Mu Yao¡¯s reaction, he immediately shouted, ¡°Soldiers, listen up! Release your soul power and gather it into a pill for Her Highness to consume!¡± However, the tens of thousands of black shadows behind him did not move immediately. Instead, they hesitated slightly, not daring to move nor refuse. The man and Mu Yao exchanged looks but remained silent. The black shadow general was immediately enraged. He raised his voice and shouted, ¡°Are you trying to rebel?¡± One of the black shadows spoke first in a soft voice, ¡°General, we¡¯re not trying to rebel against you. It¡¯s just that our souls will scatter at any moment if we don¡¯t control our soul power well.¡± Each black shadow could spare a bit of their own soul power, and if thousands of soul power converged into one pill, Mu Yao would immediately recover if she consumed it. However, because every black shadow¡¯s soul was too weak, they were almost unable to control the expenditure of their soul power. Therefore, there was a high possibility that they would overdraw their soul power, resulting in their soul disappearing. With the first person speaking up, tens of thousands of black shadows rushed to voice their concerns. ¡°General, our souls are too weak. Once we lose control, we will¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Once our souls are scattered and we can¡¯t enter the cycle of reincarnation, our last traces in this world will cease to exist!¡± ¡°It¡¯s such a huge risk. What if we¡­ What¡¯s the point of living so carefully in the Heavenly God¡¯s territory then?¡± The soldiers expressed their displeasure. The black shadow general was choked with emotions and said, ¡°But we ought to stay true to our mission as soldiers of Tianlong. Don¡¯t you know how well the Emperor treated us? How could our powerful army have existed without him! We should do our best to save Her Highness for his sake, and the sake of Tianlong!¡± Hearing this, Mu Yao couldn¡¯t help but get choked up with emotions, clearly tasting the blood in her mouth. Then, she thought of her death on the execution platform in her dream, and the sounds of the people¡¯s cries. She then thought about the stone monoliths that recorded the stories of the warriors before their deaths. If she was really the princess who had ruined the country, why did this person who claimed to be a general not hate her but try to save her after knowing her identity? Wasn¡¯t this a paradox? Mu Yao moistened her dry throat and asked doubtfully, ¡°Am I not known as a jinx by the people of the country? Why do you want to save me? Just because I¡¯m the Emperor¡¯s daughter?¡± The general was stunned. Even the black shadows behind him held their breaths. They suddenly realized why the princess was here. The general then sighed and said slowly, ¡°18 years ago, when you were born, strange astronomical signs were seen. Not long after, the sorcerer came to tell the Emperor that he had to get rid of you. The reason was that you were an ominous omen who would bring misfortune to Tianlong. Of course, the Emperor did not agree to it. You were the fruit of his love with his Imperial Concubine and their only daughter. He loved you so much that he could not bear to put you to death. Hence, he rejected the sorcerer¡¯s demands.¡± ¡°However, not long after, the sorcerer used his own powers to let the citizens know that the princess was a bad omen. For the sake of their own safety and Tianlong¡¯s, the citizens even went to court to testify about all the unfortunate happenings that had taken place after your birth. It¡¯s only natural that you don¡¯t know anything about this because you were still young at that time,¡± the general explained. She opened her dry mouth with difficulty. ¡°General, what happened after that? Why wasn¡¯t I executed?¡± The general continued, ¡°Your Highness, you were executed soon after. However, the Emperor ordered me to find a servant to replace you. The Emperor really loved you. I know that because I know how much he loved Tianlong. He actually took such a huge risk to save you. Princess, think about it. Who would dare to risk the safety of the citizens to do such a risky thing? After all, the commoners were all saying that you were someone who would bring disaster to our country and its people. Even the Emperor was worried and didn¡¯t dare to not believe it.¡± Mu Yao then asked, ¡°Then why didn¡¯t you kill me secretly? Because of the Emperor¡¯s order?¡± The general was silent for a moment. ¡°Partly,¡± he said slowly. ¡°But not entirely.¡± Mu Yao looked at the general with determination and clarity. ¡°Because I didn¡¯t believe it. Every time I want to make a move, your young and innocent smile will appear in front of me. I still remember that when you smile, your eyes are like crescent moons, and your eyes are as clean and clear. How could such a child bring disaster to the country and its people? That was why I followed the Emperor¡¯s orders and sent you to the Imperial Preceptor¡¯s residence to be raised by Xia Guoyong. From then on, you were no longer the Emperor¡¯s child but the Imperial Preceptor¡¯s eldest daughter.¡± The general continued, ¡°Not long after, the Emperor and I continued to live each day in fear. We were constantly worried that we would really bring harm to Tianlong. However, the Emperor and I were surprised. Because the commoners thought that you had been executed, everyone led a good life. No one ever went to court to report any misfortunes anymore. Hence, the Emperor suspected that the sorcerer was up to no good and ordered his men to investigate in secret. From there, the Emperor discovered that there were more people coming and going from the sorcerer¡¯s residence than usual. Not long after that, the sorcerer even bought himself a newer and more magnificent mansion!¡± ¡°At that time, the emperor understood that the sorcerer had simply deceived people. After all, the princess was still alive, yet Tianlong was prospering! In fact, the sorcerer¡¯s life was getting better by the day too. The Emperor wanted to take action against the sorcerer, but unexpectedly¡­¡± He stopped mid-way through his sentence. Mu Yao¡¯s stomach lurched and she coughed.. ¡°What?¡± Chapter 13 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios The general swallowed his saliva. At this moment, the thousands of black shadows around him also held their breaths and looked around, as if they were trying to protect something. Seeing that, the man frowned and demanded impatiently, ¡°What do you have to say?¡± The man had somehow released his resistance earlier on, but now, it had faded away. It was not a power that he could control at will. Even the general was also trembling in fear, and he said carefully, ¡°I didn¡¯t expect the sorcerer to have someone supporting him. The sorcerer calls him ¡®Heavenly God¡¯. Some citizens and priests of Tianlong even regard him as their guardian deity. The sorcerer claimed that they had to sacrifice some animals every month, and even human lives. Supposedly, this was the only way to make Tianlong even more prosperous. For some reason, the commoners all obeyed the sorcerer to serve this heavenly deity.¡± The general explained, ¡°However, there were definitely sober ones among the common people. They could tolerate sacrificing livestock, but later on, they actually had to sacrifice human lives. Sometimes, they sacrificed priests, and sometimes, even children who were born with spiritual roots. Of course, there were definitely those who did not obey. However, those who did not obey would usually end up dying unexpectedly. For this reason, the Emperor could only swallow his anger. Although he was still the Emperor of Tianlong, almost half of the country was not under his jurisdiction. For the past 18 years, the Emperor had always turned a blind eye to the sorcerer¡¯s actions because not only would he have to face the rebellion of the priests from Tianlong Temple, but he might also have to face the wrath of the Heavenly God if he executed the sorcerer.¡± ¡°Your Highness, I¡¯m sure you¡¯re here now because of them. I¡¯ve let you down. I failed to protect you and made you suffer here. However, Your Highness, why are you still alive? I am not cursing Your Highness, but this place is the altar of the Heavenly God. It¡¯s divided into four mystical realms. That¡¯s what we learned after we died.¡± The general continued, ¡°Each mystical realm is filled with dead souls from sacrifices. Some belong to livestock, while some belong to soldiers like us. Others belong to priests or children. This is where dead souls should be. No living people have ever appeared here apart from intruders. However, they have always been executed by the Heavenly God. That¡¯s why I¡¯m really curious as to why both of you appeared here alive!¡± Mu Yao didn¡¯t know what to say. She couldn¡¯t say that she had reincarnated. That explanation sounded outrageous. Besides, the man¡¯s appearance was a mystery even to her. However, that wasn¡¯t important for now. What was important was that Mu Yao had a rough idea of what had happened to her. However, one question remained. Only those who were sacrificed would appear here. Did that mean that these defeated soldiers had been sacrificed instead of being defeated in battle? As such, Mu Yao asked, ¡°If this is a sacrificial altar, why are all of you here? Before I came here, I remember hearing all the citizens saying that you were defeated, and that it was because of me that it happened. You guys weren¡¯t sacrificed!¡± At this moment, the thousands of black shadows were all trembling. ¡°Your Highness! Please keep your voice down!¡± ¡°Your Highness, there¡¯s more to our deaths!¡± At the same time, the black shadow general was silent. He was incensed. It turned out that the princess had been sacrificed after all! All of this was because of the Heavenly God¡¯s greed! When the soldiers first arrived, everyone thought that they had died gloriously for their country and would be praised by their descendants. However, later on, the Heavenly God appeared in this mystical realm. It was then that they found out that their deaths were not simply because they had been defeated! Although the stone tablet also said that they had lost gloriously, that was merely a pretense! After all, the souls of the defeated would not have appeared here. They were only here because the sorcerer and priests had sacrificed them to the Heavenly God! They would forever be trapped here, unable to enter the cycle of reincarnation! In addition, if they ever angered the heavenly deities, their souls might even be destroyed. However, the citizens of Tianlong knew nothing about this secret of theirs. They had been kept in the dark because of a selfish sorcerer who pretended to be merciful and kind. Yet, even though the soldiers now knew what was going on, they did not dare to discuss this matter loudly in this mystical realm. Therefore, these thousands of black shadows had lived here with hatred for so long. They looked at each other, wanting to speak, but not daring to do so. Who knew when that terrifying Heavenly God would show up? At the same time, the black shadow who said that he had gone to Shuiguo to be a spy at the start stepped out. ¡°If you don¡¯t dare to say it, I¡¯ll say it! Anyway, I¡¯m not afraid of my soul disappearing! If I continue to live here, I might have a wisp of my soul left, but I¡¯ll never be able to enter reincarnation. I¡¯ll still be suppressed under this idiotic Heavenly God. I might as well have my soul scattered!¡± ¡°Li Dan! Do you want to die? Do you know what you¡¯re saying?!¡± one of his compatriots warned. ¡°That¡¯s right, Old Li. We shouldn¡¯t lose hope!¡± another encouraged. Beside the black figure called Li Dan, the general sighed without any intention of stopping them. Li Dan then said to Mu Yao, ¡°Your Highness, the reason we¡¯re here is that we were sacrificed. Being defeated in battle was only a cover. This way, the people wouldn¡¯t be thrown into chaos nor would the hearts of the sorcerers and priests be shaken. Therefore, Your Highness, you may have been sacrificed for an unknown reason too. I don¡¯t know why you¡¯re still alive. No matter, can you help us return and reincarnate if you manage to leave this mystical realm? Otherwise, we only hope that the citizens of Tianlong and our relatives will know that the people they respect are not good people! They need to realize that!¡± When the other black shadows saw that nothing was happening around them, they also began to speak, ¡°Your Highness! Please help us!¡± ¡°Your Highness! You¡¯re our only hope now!¡± ¡°It¡¯s not just about us, but Tianlong and the Emperor too! We¡¯ve been bullied for long enough!¡± The soldiers had no idea that the Emperor was dead. Even Mu Yao herself had no idea about that. Mu Yao heard the cries of the black shadows, making her feel very conflicted. It turned out that the Emperor had allowed her to live 18 years in peace and comfort. She really thought that her parents had only done this because of the Emperor¡¯s orders. She wasn¡¯t the cause of the soldier¡¯s defeat in battle. She was merely a scapegoat to appease the hearts of the people because of the greed of the sorcerers and priests! Hearing this, tears naturally flowed out of her eyes. ¡®Heavenly God, that sorcerer and priest, just you wait! Father, Mother, did you know that I was a scapegoat? Did you choose to let me be executed? And the Emperor, my dear father, are you well?¡¯ She took a deep breath, her hazy eyes flashing with a hint of coldness and determination! She had to prove her innocence! She gathered her strength and said, ¡°I promise you..¡± Chapter 14 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Li Dan immediately choked on his own tears. ¡°Thank you, Your Highness! If I¡¯m lucky enough to enter the cycle of reincarnation, I will definitely work hard for you in my next life!¡± ¡°Your Highness! We¡¯re so grateful!¡± The general¡¯s black shadow said, ¡°So now, we have to save Her Highness first. Only when Her Highness¡¯s injuries improve will there be a chance to turn things around! Do you have any objections?¡± Li Dan spoke first, ¡°No! I¡¯m even willing to offer 90% of my soul power to Her Highness!¡± Meanwhile, the souls of those black shadows who were still worried about their soul powers earlier had been stirred up too. ¡°General! We are willing! We are willing to offer our soul power as a form of respect! We beg you to let us do so!¡± The millions of black shadows shouted in unison, ¡°We beg you to let us do so!¡± The roars of millions of black shadows could be heard throughout the valley! Tears welled up in Mu Yao¡¯s eyes. Seeing this and hearing the black shadow army, the man finally understood the woman¡¯s identity. He felt an inexplicable sense of love for the woman in his heart. The waves of soldiers¡¯ shouts shook the valley. The man watched as the woman¡¯s tears fell. He made a silent promise to her in his heart: ¡®Don¡¯t worry, I will definitely let you leave this cave safely. You¡¯ll leave righteously!¡¯ At the same time, the general¡¯s semi-transparent shadow floated into the air. Then, with a flash of light, the general¡¯s shadow slowly expanded. The black silhouette of the general shouted, ¡°All of you, listen to my command. Get in formation!¡± The thousands of black shadows then floated into the air in groups and formed a circle around the general. ¡°We¡¯re in formation! General, please give your orders!¡± ¡°Disperse your souls!¡± The millions of black shadows shouted in unison, ¡°Disperse your souls!¡± As the boiling lava flew below, the voices of the patriotic and beloved soldiers could be heard over the entire cliff. Each group of the black shadows was arranged in a circle, emitting a white light that converged toward the general. The shadow of the general then merged with the white light and grew larger and larger. At that moment, the Blood Pupil, who had his eyes closed, was unaware of the situation. All of a sudden, the couple came to his mind, and he opened his eyes, wanting to see how they were doing. As the black shadow of the general grew larger and larger, a cold and terrifying scream suddenly spread throughout the valley. ¡°Your Heavenly God has come to visit you.¡± Immediately after, the Blood Pupil opened his eyes. Mu Yao and the man looked up toward the sound warily. Mu Yao held her breath. The Blood Pupil existed in this mystical realm too! It was exactly the same as the mystical realm behind the ¡°Spring¡± door! Instinctively, the man rose to his feet and stood in front of Mu Yao, shouting, ¡°Who¡¯s that?¡± The scream scared the black shadows that were about to finish their work out of their wits. ¡°General! The Heavenly God is here. What should we do?¡± one of them cried out. ¡°General, stop! We¡¯ll die if you don¡¯t stop!¡±another wailed. ¡°General!¡± Then, another soldier retorted them, ¡°What are you talking about? Do you still want to be cowards?! Don¡¯t forget that Her Highness is our only hope! Don¡¯t forget our mission! Don¡¯t forget our identities as Tianlong¡¯s soldiers! The soldiers of Tianlong only die gloriously in battle! They should never retreat because they are afraid of death!¡± The general declared loudly, ¡°Well said! Don¡¯t stop. Let¡¯s go on! We¡¯re almost done making the Soul Elixir.¡± Just then, Mu Yao shouted, ¡°Soldiers!¡± Seeing this, the Blood Pupil was enraged, and the entire valley shook violently! The lava in the center of the valley began to surge violently! Following which, the Blood Pupil screamed, ¡°How dare you bunch of stupid humans cause trouble right under my nose? You must be tired of living! Very well, I¡¯ll deal with you properly then. How dare you act so rashly in my territory?¡± Gathering the last of her strength, Mu Yao stood up and shouted at the terrifying Blood Pupil, ¡°Are you the Heavenly God? Come at me then!¡± The man had not expected the woman to say that. He quickly hid the woman behind him and scolded her angrily with a dark expression, ¡°Woman! It¡¯s not that easy for you to die. How are you going to save them in your half-dead state?! Why are you always so silly at such crucial moments?¡± Of course, Mu Yao knew that, but she was going crazy. She had to do something! At the same time, the Blood Pupil emitted a red light that swept across the black shadows. With a mocking tone, he said, ¡°Going for you. Do you think so highly of yourself? You bunch of souls don¡¯t even know the difference between life and death, yet you still don¡¯t know what¡¯s good for you. I¡¯ll shatter your souls right now!¡± ¡°No!¡± Seeing this, Mu Yao dashed toward the lava stream! She didn¡¯t care about the danger. The man pulled her back fiercely and ordered her, ¡°Woman, do you want their efforts to go to waste? If you die, you¡¯ll be wasting all their efforts.¡± The thousands of black shadows were swept away by the Blood Pupil¡¯s red light, instantly scaring countless black shadows out of their wits! ¡°Ah! General!¡± ¡°General, a large group of black shadows has already been struck down by the Heavenly God!¡± The general sounded like he was on the verge of death, but he still shouted at the top of his lungs, ¡°Hold on as long as you¡¯re alive!¡± The Blood Pupil guffawed. ¡°What a touching scene. It¡¯s a pity that you¡¯re all going to die!¡± Following that, a large wave of red light shot out from Blood Pupil¡¯s eye. The general shouted, ¡°We only have five seconds left! Hold on!¡± The red light was about to hit the general¡¯s shadow. Mu Yao screamed at the top of her lungs. ¡°No! No! Let them go!¡± Mu Yao was in agony. Yet, she could not do anything! There was absolutely nothing she could do! She had clearly promised to clear their names, but she couldn¡¯t even save them! She wasn¡¯t worthy of their sacrifice. The red light was about to attack the million soldiers who were in the midst of their refinement. The entire valley was trembling and the temperature in the valley was slowly rising as the lava flowed crazily over the cliff.. Chapter 15 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Boom! The red light that was shot out by Blood Pupil didn¡¯t hit the black shadows. Instead¡­ The Blood Pupil opened its eyes wide to see that the man had jumped onto the wooden plank and was standing on only one leg. Then, a huge white light barrier appeared around him. It was the man¡¯s resistance! The general shouted once again, ¡°Soldiers! Hold on for the last three seconds!¡± The red light in the Blood Pupil¡¯s eyes grew even brighter. Then, the entire cliff valley was filled with the Blood Pupil¡¯s sinister and terrifying cries. ¡°This is impossible! You clearly don¡¯t have any spiritual powers left! How can you still have such strength to resist my light?¡± The white light around the man continued to protect the black shadow soldiers behind him. The man¡¯s lips curled up. ¡°It looks like you¡¯re the one who caused me to lose my spiritual powers. You even have my memories. You should just wait to die under my hands.¡± The powers of white and red lights were evenly matched. The general shouted once again, ¡°Soldiers, two more seconds!¡± On the other side of the valley, Mu Yao was drenched in cold sweat. Her heart was in her throat as she looked at the men and soldiers. At the same time, the Blood Pupil screamed, ¡°Netherworld Demon Lord! You ungrateful fellow! Do you really think you have any chance of winning if this continues?!¡± The Blood Pupil increased the strength of his light once again. A flicker flashed past Mu Yao¡¯s eyes. ¡®Netherworld Demon Lord? What? Could it be that this Heavenly God knows Xiaohuo?¡¯ The man threw his head back and laughed, and the white light around him became even more powerful. ¡°It seems like you used to know me. But do you think you can win just like that?¡± As he finished his sentence, the white light around the man grew stronger. From the edge of the cliff, Mu Yao could see that the man was sweating profusely and his whole body was trembling. The wooden plank under his feet started to sway. Mu Yao¡¯s eyes widened and she panicked! She knew that Xiaohuo was forcing himself to his limits. On the other side, the black shadow soldiers shouted in unison, ¡°The Soul Elixir is complete! Your Highness! Quickly consume it!¡± In the center of the mass of black shadows hung a shining ball that was the size of half a finger. ¡®Is that the Soul Elixir they speak of?¡¯ Mu Yao thought to herself. All the soul powers of a million soldiers had been condensed into a tiny pill. At the same time, the man could no longer hold on. The red light from the Blood Pupil was clearly about to overcome the man¡¯s resistance to throw the latter into the lava stream! The Blood Pupil let out a loud shriek and cackled. ¡°Hahaha! Netherworld Demon Lord, I didn¡¯t expect you to be in such a sorry state today. This is really satisfying! However, I don¡¯t want to play with you anymore. What¡¯s the point of winning against you? You¡¯re immortal! The woman on the other side is more important. I never expected that you¡¯d actually fall for a woman after not seeing you for a few days. Even if I can¡¯t beat you to death, I can still make your heart die!¡± Then, the Blood Pupil changed the angle of its red light toward Mu Yao and the soldiers! The man thought to himself, ¡®This doesn¡¯t look good!¡¯ At the same time, the black shadows soldiers delivered the Soul Elixir to Mu Yao. She smiled, but she couldn¡¯t help but look worried. The general¡¯s almost transparent figure floated to Mu Yao with the Soul Elixir. With a smile on her face, Mu Yao accepted the pill. ¡°Thank you, General! But what will happen to you?¡± The general smiled. ¡°I¡¯m fine, Your Highness. I can die without regrets now that I¡¯ve done this for you!¡± Tears welled up in Mu Yao¡¯s eyes. The red light was about to reach them and the entire army was on their toes. ¡°Your Highness, don¡¯t forget our wish!¡± ¡°Yes, Your Highness! You must get out alive and fulfill our wish!¡± ¡°I hope Your Highness will be happy in Tianlong in the future and will no longer be ridiculed or hurt by others.¡± ¡°I hope that Your Highness will return and help us check on our families! Tell them that their children, husbands, and fathers are all thinking about them. Tell them not to forget us.¡± Mu Yao choked with sobs as she swallowed the soul elixir and screamed, ¡°Get out of the way! It¡¯s the Heavenly God¡¯s red light!¡± At the same time, the general¡¯s black shadow floated into the air. A sorrowful voice spread throughout the entire valley. ¡°Soldiers! Soldiers of Tianlong, listen up!¡± ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Waves of respectable and powerful voices of soldiers could be heard as they reverberated throughout the valley. Mu Yao knew at once what they were going to do. She screamed at the top of her lungs, ¡°No!¡± The man turned to run toward Mu Yao. ¡°Woman, watch out!¡± The Blood Pupil¡¯s scream rang out once more. The sound was so terrifying that it almost drowned out the shouts of millions of soldiers. A dazzling blood-red light shot toward the millions of black shadows at an unpredictable speed. The almost transparent shadow general shouted, ¡°Listen to my command! Get into formation! This is the last battle! For Tianlong! For Her Highness! For our dignity!¡± The millions of black shadows behind him shouted, ¡°For Tianlong! For Her Highness! For our dignity!¡± A series of solemn shouts could be heard throughout the entire valley. The general ordered, ¡°Charge! Soldiers!¡± ¡°Charge!¡± they echoed. At the same time, Mu Yao was on the verge of losing control of her emotions, and she cried out, ¡°No!¡± She had lost all rationality. She knew what would happen next. Could she really not do anything and only rely on the sacrifice of others to live like a good-for-nothing?No way! It didn¡¯t matter even if she was going to die. She couldn¡¯t possibly live like this! At this moment, she saw that the red light was about to strike the black shadow army that was blocking her path. At the very last moment, she lost all rationality. As she gradually regained the energy in her body after consuming the Soul Elixir, she subconsciously pulled out the sword beside her and charged forward. ¡°Heavenly God, my a*s! I¡¯ll fight you!¡± On the other side, the millions of soldiers were stunned by Mu Yao¡¯s declaration. ¡°Your Highness! No! You can¡¯t win!¡± ¡°You have to survive! Leave us alone!¡± ¡°We were already meant to die, but you¡¯re different. You have to live well and carry out our wishes for us.¡± the soldiers shouted. The man had already reached the cliff where Mu Yao was.. He shouted anxiously, ¡°Woman, no!¡± Chapter 16 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios The next moment, a huge wave of red light landed on Mu Yao. It wasn¡¯t because Mu Yao stopped running, nor was it because the man stopped her. Instead, it was because the soldiers knew that they could no longer persuade the princess not to send herself to her death. Therefore, the soldiers had a tacit understanding and approached the spot where the Blood Pupil was shooting out its red light. It should have taken a few seconds before the light hit them. However, they could not afford to wait any longer and flew toward that direction, sending themselves to sure death. A wave of red light swept across the group of black shadows and Mu Yao saw it happen right in front of her eyes. ¡°No! Don¡¯t die! If you die, you will never be able to enter the cycle of reincarnation again!¡± The large group of black shadows had used what little soul power they had left to give Mu Yao a chance to live. The next second, the general shouted, ¡°Your Highness, we can die without regrets!¡± ¡°We can die without regrets!¡± ¡°We can die without regrets!¡± The soldiers echoed until the voices ceased at last. The dark figures of the soldiers vanished before Mu Yao¡¯s eyes without leaving a single trace. In an instant, the black shadows disappeared from the valley. Mu Yao was dumbfounded. The next second, she felt the man hug her anxiously. ¡°Leave quickly!¡± The black shadow door was not far from the both of them and they could easily jump across the door. However, the Blood Pupil naturally wouldn¡¯t let them off. No matter how capable the Heavenly God was, he could not cause trouble once the pair left the mystical realm since it did not have a real body and could only rely on its phantom image. Even in Tianlong, it had to rely on parasites to survive. That was also why it was omnipresent. As long as it had a parasite, such as a mirror, it could use it as a carrier. However, it was impossible to manage with just a mirror in Tianlong. As such, the Blood Pupil had roped in the sorcerer and priest into his scheme. The Blood Pupil scoffed. ¡°What a bunch of idiotic souls who don¡¯t know what¡¯s good for them. How dare they fight me? They are simply courting death! Their souls were scattered by my attack so quickly! Muahaha! They¡¯re so useless! And you two, don¡¯t even dream about leaving my mystical realm!¡± The earlier scene replayed in Mu Yao¡¯s head. The thousands of black shadows had simply disappeared in front of her eyes! She had been meaning to save them! That was exactly what she wanted to do. She had even been holding a sword, yet she¡¯d let them die for her. They yearned to return to the human world and to enter the cycle of reincarnation again. They desperately desired to bring happiness to Tianlong as well! The words they said before they died echoed in her mind. ¡°Your Highness, we really want to reincarnate!¡± ¡°Your Highness, please save us! Bring us out! Even if we can¡¯t get out, we have to let the people of Tianlong know how we died and tell them the truth!¡± There was also the general¡¯s fearless shout, ¡°Your Highness! We can die without regrets!¡± Li Dan¡¯s voice rang out, ¡°Your Highness! I¡¯m not afraid of death! I just want the truth to be told to the entire world. I want them to know what kind of blood-sucking monster the heavenly deity they believe to be real and serve is!¡± ¡­ The voices echoed in her mind. However, she could no longer hear the shouts of the soldiers. Mu Yao tightened her grip on the silver sword. Veins popped up on her fair hands. At this moment, she felt all sorts of complicated emotions in her heart. She could feel the anger in her entire body rising up and flowing rapidly through her bloodstream. She even felt as though she was going to float up into the air. On a certain green vine on the cliff, tens of thousands of green glassy beads of light floated toward Mu Yao. As the lava flowed, thousands more red lights the size of glass beads floated toward Mu Yao. Mu Yao slowly closed her eyes as she gradually floated into the air. A few spots of light of different colors gathered together and floated toward Mu Yao before merging with her. All of a sudden, the Blood Pupil shouted, ¡°What? How is this possible? This little girl actually had an epiphany! Is she drawing their aura into her body?!¡± The man was thrown to the side by the blinding light surrounding Mu Yao. He watched worriedly as Mu Yao floated into the air and exclaimed worriedly, ¡°Woman, you¡¯re¡­ drawing aura into your body!¡± Absorbing aura into one¡¯s body was something that people with spiritual roots but no talent yearned for. Even if people were born with an enviable spiritual root, many would never even have the chance to have an epiphany because of the lack of talent. There were even some people who would only have the chance to have an epiphany in their twilight years. But by then, drawing aura into the body would be meaningless. After all, drawing aura into one¡¯s body meant that one had advanced in cultivation. With hard work, one would then be able to slowly advance through the Aura Refining stages. After an epiphany, one would then enter the Foundation Building stage. Then, another epiphany would bring one to the Nascent Soul stage. It was even possible for him to ascend to become an exalted immortal. However, all of this stemmed from one¡¯s spirit root and talent. If a person didn¡¯t have the opportunity to draw aura into his body, there was no possibility of ever advancing in the future. There were only a handful of people in Tianlong who were fortunate enough to draw aura into their bodies. Now that Mu Yao had drawn aura into her body, the Imperial Preceptor¡¯s residence had two such talents. In the entire Tianlong, there had never been a middle-stage Foundation Building Cultivator who could surpass the priest Tianxiang of the Tianlong Temple. The only exception was the so-called Blood Pupil or Heavenly God, who relied on everyone¡¯s soul power to advance his own cultivation. ¡°Hahaha! So what if you drew aura into your body! No matter what, you¡¯re just like an ant in my eyes. I can easily trample you to death!¡± Meanwhile, energy gathered around Mu Yao and she then entered a state of meditation as the energy surrounding her was transferred into her body. All of the blood in her body came alive, and immediately after, due to the effects of both the Soul Elixir and epiphany, Mu Yao felt a power she had never felt before surging through her body. It was almost as though her soul power was trying to break out of her body! She had never experienced such power before she reincarnated because she had been living in the Imperial Preceptor¡¯s residence for as long as she could remember. Although her life was ordinary and peaceful, she was often mocked by her siblings for having no talent and being a good-for-nothing with spiritual roots. She had never experienced the energy of an epiphany before she died.. Chapter 17 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios At that moment, in Tianlong¡¯s royal palace. Four thick black pillars stood in the four corners of the hall.Each pillar was engraved with the magnificent picture of a dragon soaring into the sky. The entire hall was dark and more than a hundred ministers stood on both sides of the palace in their black court attires and official hats. In the main hall, however, the golden throne, which had a dragon¡¯s carving on it, was empty. The path leading from the hall to the dragon throne was paved with a long red carpet. On both sides of the dragon throne stood two sorcerers in black satin robes and an old priest in white robes. The hundred or so ministers beneath the dragon throne all slightly leaned forward, not daring to raise their heads. Everyone¡¯ remained silent and the entire palace hall was so quiet that one could hear a pin drop. Just then, a eunuch reported from outside the hall, ¡°The Imperial Preceptor, Xia Guoyong, has arrived!¡± The hundreds of ministers, who had been tensed up just moments earlier, suddenly relaxed, and they started whispering amongst themselves. ¡°The Imperial Preceptor is here. It looks like it has already been decided who will take the throne.¡± ¡°Look at the sorcerer and the old priest. Could they have been chosen for the throne?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t spout nonsense. Be careful. Don¡¯t let them hear you. You might be executed for that!¡± ¡°W-what? That¡¯s impossible. The sorcerer and priest are guardians of Tianlong. It wouldn¡¯t be strange even if they become the Emperor!¡± ¡°You¡¯re being silly! The former Emperor had countless children, but have you seen any of them who dare to fight for the throne?¡± ¡°That¡¯s true. However, if they don¡¯t fight for it, won¡¯t the throne be passed down to His Highness, the Crown Prince based on our traditions?¡± ¡°His Highness the Crown Prince? Do you think the current Crown Prince is still the same Crown Prince who had the support of more than half of the nation when the Emperor was still in power?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Right now, the two of them hold most of the powers in the Imperial Court. Because of the Heavenly God, the citizens and even the officials of the city dare not disobey their orders. The remaining half of the powers are in the hands of the Imperial Preceptor. Now that the Imperial Preceptor is here, it means that the two factions will have to compete for the throne. The Imperial Preceptor swore to be filial to the Emperor before he died. Although the Imperial Preceptor was the one who suggested the death of the daughter of the Emperor, leaving the Emperor with no choice but to order the execution, the Imperial Preceptor did all of this for the sake of stabilizing the Emperor¡¯s position and ensuring the safety of Tianlong!¡± The minister continued, ¡°Furthermore, after the death of the Emperor, the Imperial Preceptor was heartbroken. Without the Emperor¡¯s protection, he even lost a daughter and spent an entire month doing the sacrificial rituals in his residence! This just goes to show how loyal and devoted the Imperial Preceptor is! As long as he¡¯s around, I believe that Tianlong will not be completely ruled by the sorcerer.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. As long as the Imperial Preceptor is around, His Highness the Crown Prince should be able to ascend the throne more smoothly.¡± ¡°What nonsense are you talking about! His Highness the Crown Prince is ascending to the throne?! You must be dreaming! Do you know how the Third Prince, Mu Chen, died not long ago? Wasn¡¯t it just because he spoke up for the Crown Prince? Not long after, he mysteriously died in the palace. But the rumor going around was that the Third Prince was too naughty, and had accidentally drowned while playing in the pond! This was the result of opposing the sorcerer and priest!¡± He continued, ¡°No matter how strong the Imperial Preceptor is, he still doesn¡¯t have the protection of the Heavenly God in this Imperial Court. Do you really think he¡¯ll be able to help the Crown Prince succeed the throne?I believe that he might be next to die if he were to mention this! If the sorcerer and priest Tianxiang hear you, your death is imminent too! You¡¯d better shut up!¡± That drew fear in the ministers¡¯ hearts, and they carefully looked at the sorcerer and priest, not daring to say another word. Just as they thought, the sorcerer had a smug look on his face and his eyes were filled with ruthlessness as he watched the Imperial Preceptor walk over. Meanwhile, the priest, Tianxiang, was standing at the side with a sword in his hand. He looked at the Imperial Preceptor, Xia Guoyong, with a solemn expression. As the Imperial Preceptor walked past the ministers, he had a vague expression on his face. The ministers subconsciously swallowed their saliva as they gazed at the Imperial Preceptor worriedly. They could only hope that he would be able to protect himself. Then, the Imperial Preceptor suddenly kneeled down in the middle of the court and made a gesture with his hands. ¡°The Imperial Preceptor, Xia Guoyong pays his respects to the sorcerer and priest Tianxiang.¡± Not far away, the sorcerer spoke first, ¡°Imperial Preceptor, please rise. Today, the officials of the Imperial Court are here to select the emperor. The previous Emperor passed away because he overworked himself. Tianlong has lost its pillar of support. Since we don¡¯t have an imperial edict with regards to the inheritance of the throne, who do you think should ascend the throne? ¡± The priest, Tianxiang, who was by the side, came over. ¡°Tianlong Temple has sacrificed a lot for the country. No matter who inherits the throne, Tianlong Temple will wholeheartedly submit to the new Emperor.¡± The sorcerer continued, ¡°Yes, not only will he be protected by Tianlong Temple, but he will also be protected by me and the Heavenly God. Is there anyone you would like to recommend?¡± The ministers glanced at each other, yet no one dared to say a word. They knew what kind of protection the sorcerer was talking about: The one chosen to be the Emperor would be trampled under the feet of the sorcerer and the priest for the rest of his life, just like the former Emperor. If that person were to do anything wrong, both the sorcerer and priest would use their ways to ¡°protect¡± him so that they would eventually get their way. This was no different from a puppet emperor. Fortunately, the former Emperor still had the Imperial Preceptor and a group of Tianlong¡¯s strongest soldiers to assist him.That was why the two sides had been evenly matched. But that would no longer be the case as long as the sorcerer or priest became the new emperor. It was obvious whom Tianlong would belong to. No one in the Imperial Court dared to say a single word, nor did anyone dare to say anything about the Crown Prince succeeding the throne. Even the Imperial Preceptor clasped his hands and stood up in the middle of the royal court. He lowered his head, his expression unclear. The sorcerer couldn¡¯t help but smirk when he realized that no one dared to say anything. ¡°None of the hundred or so ministers and officials here in the court have any intention of recommending a new Emperor?¡± Suddenly, at this moment, a new official who didn¡¯t know any better rushed toward the center of the court, shouting, ¡°I have something to say!¡± There was a strange look in the sorcerer¡¯s eyes, but he smiled as he replied, ¡°Oh? Please tell us about it.¡± The priest, Tianxiang, who was standing by the side, maintained his sword-wielding posture as he looked over. All of the ministers and officials present felt goosebumps all over their bodies at this moment. They looked at this official with a stupefied expression. He had just taken office not long ago, yet he dared to speak up in the royal court! They couldn¡¯t help but feel worried for him.. Chapter 18 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°I¡­ I think His Highness the Crown Prince is a candidate for the throne!¡± This official looked to be around 23 years old. He was at the prime of his youth, and at the age to start a family. Yet, he had given no thought to his own life. On the other hand, the Imperial Preceptor stood still without saying anything. He simply lowered his hands and placed them by his side without saying anything. The sorcerer then laughed out loud, ¡°Young man, looking at your age, it seems that you are at the age to get married and have children. Indeed, people at this age are all young and vigorous, and full of enthusiasm. Well, why don¡¯t you tell us why His Highness the Crown Prince is suitable. ¡± The official seemed to not catch on, and even thought that the sorcerer was not angry and allowed him to continue speaking. In an instant, his heart calmed down. He swallowed his saliva and said, ¡°Although His Majesty died from overexertion and did not have time to leave behind an imperial edict, this is our tradition. With the death of an Emperor, the Crown Prince would definitely succeed the throne. Moreover, when the Emperor was still around, he especially admired the Crown Prince¡¯s knowledge. The Crown Prince was the most knowledgeable among all the princes, and even had his own unique military understanding.¡± He then continued, ¡°Furthermore, I was fortunate enough to be a student of His Highness the Crown Prince before I became an official. I naturally know that His Highness is concerned about Tianlong. He¡¯s also righteous and as long as he becomes the Emperor, I believe that Tianlong will become more prosperous in the future.¡± The ministers and officials on both sides carefully raised their eyes to look at the men in front of them. Their hearts were already surging with emotions. Although this official had stated the thoughts of many officials present, he was also challenging the authority of the sorcerer and priest Tianxiang! After all, after the sorcerer obtained the protection of the Heavenly God more than ten years ago, whom had he gone around announcing that could bring peace to the country? And why had they held a memorial ceremony for more than ten years? Before the death of the Emperor, the battle between Tianlong and Shuiguo ended after the soldiers of Tianlong died in battle. Who then was the one who stopped Shuiguo from attacking Tianlong? If His Highness the Crown Prince succeeded the throne, he could protect the country¡¯s security and the safety of the people. These words made it obvious that he was fighting for credit in front of the sorcerer and priest. At the same time, the old priest standing beside the dragon throne said, ¡°You¡¯re right. His Highness the Crown Prince will protect us all after succeeding the throne. You are really a good study partner of His Highness!¡± Unfortunately, the official didn¡¯t notice the sarcasm behind these words. He even said with a smile, ¡°No, no. This is what I should do. After all, His Highness is really outstanding. As long as he succeeds to the throne, we will definitely be better than when the Emperor was around. After all, there¡¯s always someone better we can learn from. ¡± The next moment, another eunuch¡¯s voice came from outside the hall. ¡°Oh no! Oh no!¡± Immediately after, the eunuch ran into the hall in a fluster. At the same time, the Magus stopped smiling. He raised his eyebrows and said, ¡°Eunuch He, what¡¯s the matter? Why are you in such a panic? Don¡¯t be anxious. Calm down and tell me what¡¯s going on.¡± The eunuch swallowed his saliva as cold sweat appeared on his forehead. ¡°Sorcerer, Priest Tianxiang, Imperial Preceptor, something bad has happened! His Highness the Crown Prince has committed suicide!¡± Instantly, the entire venue was in an uproar. That official fell onto the ground with a face full of disbelief and his eyes suddenly widened. ¡°T-this is impossible! I even saw His Highness the Crown Prince yesterday! He was clearly very well and he was in a very good mood too. He wouldn¡¯t commit suicide!¡± When the official saw that the Imperial Preceptor was still silent, he crawled over on his knees as if the latter was his last saving grace. He grabbed the corner of the Imperial Preceptor¡¯s clothes and cried loudly, ¡°Imperial Preceptor! This is impossible! Hurry and say something! Didn¡¯t you always dote on His Highness when the emperor was in power? What should we do now? What will Tianlong do without the Crown Prince? As long as Tianlong is without a ruler, the commoners will not feel at ease. The death of the Crown Prince is definitely not that simple! Imperial Preceptor, you must help us! You must help Tianlong! Help us think of a way!¡± At the same time, the ministers and officials at the side all held their breaths as they watched this scene with trepidation. They were all hoping that the Imperial Preceptor would say something. Yet, they were also worried for the official¡¯s life. Finally, the Imperial Preceptor spoke. He slowly turned around and looked expressionlessly at the official kneeling in front of him. There was slight worry in his voice but he said indifferently, ¡°Young man, please rise. I can especially understand your feelings, but what you said is correct. Tianlong cannot be without a ruler for a day.¡± The Imperial Preceptor went on, ¡°When the Emperor was still alive, the Emperor entrusted me to take care of His Highness, so it was only right for me to dote on him. I was especially grateful for the Emperor¡¯s trust after being a loyal subject for half my life. I was heartbroken by the Emperor¡¯s death and now, His Highness has committed suicide because of his father¡¯s death. I¡¯m really heartbroken! However, the dead cannot be resurrected. I hope you don¡¯t take this too hard. Now that His Highness has committed suicide, there are no candidates for the throne, right?¡± At this moment, the expression in the Imperial Preceptor¡¯s eyes became unclear. He simply stared at the official kneeling before him. He reached out her hands as if his heart ached for the official. As the official looked at the benevolent Imperial Preceptor before him, he gradually calmed down. He was no longer as devastated as before, and he took the Imperial Preceptor¡¯s hands and prepared to stand up. ¡°That¡¯s right, Imperial Preceptor, but I believe that His Highness definitely didn¡¯t commit suicide! Only you can save him as well as Tianlong now!¡± The next moment stunned everyone present. Blood splattered onto the red carpet and a pool of blood dripped from that official¡¯s neck! The Imperial Preceptor was holding a small knife in his hand, and blood was still dripping from the tip of the knife! That official¡¯s eyes were wide open, as if his eyeballs were going to fall out. He looked at the benevolent Imperial Preceptor¡¯s face in disbelief, and his face instantly became gloomy. ¡°You¡­¡± But before he could say anything, he fell to the ground, lifeless. He had died in court. With a smile on his face, the Imperial Preceptor used his clothes to wipe off the blood on the tip of the blade. ¡°Since everyone has placed all their hopes on me, I have to take the throne! ¡± The sorcerer laughed. ¡°Oh Imperial Preceptor, why are you still so cruel? He is still young after all. How pitiful.¡± Then, the priest, Tianxiang, who was at the side, chimed in righteously, ¡°This official¡¯s words were disgraceful. He did something to harm the Imperial Preceptor in the imperial court. That¡¯s why the Imperial Preceptor had to sentence him to death!¡± This threw the audience into an uproar again. It turned out that the Imperial Preceptor was already on the same side as these two! Tianlong was about to perish! In that case, was the Emperor¡¯s death really a result of overworking? Chapter 19 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Meanwhile, in the Heavenly God¡¯s mystical realm. The man shouted, ¡°Woman, we can¡¯t stay here any longer!¡± He watched as the Blood Pupil emitted red light once again. The temperature in the entire valley has risen to a maximum, and the lava had already reached the shore. If they didn¡¯t leave now, they would surely be burned to death. As Mu Yao absorbed all the energy around her, her eyes shot open. All of a sudden, the image of the flying dragon on the sword¡¯s handle flashed with light. Now, Mu Yao felt full of energy and the pain in her body was gone. Even her injuries had miraculously recovered. The next moment, Mu Yao looked up at the Blood Pupil, who was still grinning wickedly. The Blood Pupil let out a shriek. ¡°You ungrateful little girl, go and die!¡± It then shot an even more powerful blood-red beam shot out from its eyes. As the lava flowed toward the man¡¯s feet, he immediately jumped onto the wooden plank to avoid being splashed by the lava. He shouted, ¡°Woman! Dodge!¡± Mu Yao quickly grabbed the handle of her sword with her other hand and waved her hands vigorously. Then, she dragged the silver sword into the air and leaped toward the Blood Pupil. Objectively speaking, it wasn¡¯t Mu Yao who had charged forward with her silver sword.Instead, it was the silver sword leading Mu Yao on. She replied coldly, ¡°Die? It¡¯s hard to say who will die!¡± The Blood Pupil was stunned for a moment before shouting, ¡°That¡¯s impossible! How can you dodge my light and resist such pressure? You are just an ordinary woman who drew aura into her body! How is this possible?¡± Mu Yao took advantage of the momentum and dodged the blood-red beams of the Blood Pupil. At the very last moment, she jumped and raised her silver sword with both hands. The Blood Pupil immediately turned to the side. ¡°Do you really think you would be able to stab me? You¡¯ve made me really angry, little girl.¡± Then, the entire valley began to shake violently. The man on the wooden plank released his resistance and stabilized his body. Meanwhile, Mu Yao was still flying toward the Blood Pupil, who dodged once again. Mu Yao hopped onto the cliff wall before jumping to the other side. Using this momentum, she leaped yet again. The Blood Eye threw his head back and cackled. ¡°You overestimate yourself!¡± Even the man was on tenterhooks seeing her behave so recklessly. ¡°Be careful, woman!¡± Mu Yao glanced at the man casually and smiled. ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡± This time, Mu Yao didn¡¯t move toward the Blood Pupil. Instead, she changed her angle of attack mid-air and headed toward the eyes of the Bodhisattva statue. The Blood Pupil was stunned. ¡°You! You! What are you doing?!¡± However, the Blood Pupil in the sky could only move randomly or shoot out blood-red light. It could not do anything else, much less stop Mu Yao from moving toward the stone statue. When the man saw the woman moving toward the stone statue, he frowned and thought to himself, ¡®What is she doing?¡¯ Of course, Mu Yao¡¯s actions threw the Blood Pupil into a rage, and it blindly swept across the mystical realm with its beams of light. ¡°No! No! Damn you! Stop!¡± Mu Yao smirked and skillfully dodged the beams of light.Then, Mu Yao jumped in the air and stabbed the silver sword into the left eye of the statue! ¡°Die! Soldiers of Tianlong, I will avenge you!¡± The next moment, Mu Yao¡¯s silver sword pierced through the stone statue¡¯s eye. Then, a crack appeared on the statue¡¯s eye and the Blood Eye in the sky froze. Then, the crack grew longer and longer, extending through the entire stone statue. Suddenly, the left half of the stone statue fell off into the sea of lava, causing sparks to fly out from the lava. At the same time, the eyeball of the Blood Pupil in the sky started bleeding and it seemed as though blood was raining down from the sky. ¡°You! How did you know! This is impossible! I¡¯m the Heavenly God! No one has ever defeated me! Who are you? How do you know where my host is? Ah! I will definitely come back!¡± The next moment, the Blood Pupil in the air broke apart and fell into the stream of lava. The eerie screams in the valley disappeared completely. Mu Yao smirked. ¡°Heavenly God? There¡¯s only one place in this mystical realm that can hold you. Where else other than the stone statue?¡± To be honest, Mu Yao knew that it didn¡¯t matter whether she stabbed the left or right eye. Either way, the Blood Pupil would crumble and disappear. After all, this wasn¡¯t its only host. What she had gotten rid of was his true clone. They had only seen one Blood Pupil. However, just like human eyes, there were two Blood Pupil clones. That meant that another clone was waiting for Mu Yao. The man seemed relieved to see Mu Yao alive. Just as he was about to collapse, he mustered up the last bit of strength he had to go forward to hold the woman¡¯s waist. Then, he took a step from the wooden plank and flew toward the door that was still flashing with black shadows on the cliff. Mu Yao felt her body go numb the moment she was held by the waist. It was as if she had been electrocuted. ¡°Hey, I can walk too. Why did you have to hug me?¡± The man looked at her affectionately and curled his lips up. ¡°What do you think, woman? How many times have I told you to leave? But you refused to listen to me. You¡¯ll only listen if I do this!¡± Mu Yao blushed right away. ¡°You! You can go first!¡± The man¡¯s voice was hoarse and weak as he said, ¡°If I leave first, I¡¯ll be letting you off too easily. Don¡¯t forget our agreement. After we get through this door, you have to fulfill your promise!¡± It suddenly occurred to Mu Yao that she owed him an alliance agreement! Although she had killed Blood Pupil¡¯s avatar, she had not found an exit in this mystical realm! The man led Mu Yao through the door and the two of them rolled onto the ground again. The man curled his lips and said with a slight smile, ¡°Woman, we¡¯re finally back..¡± Chapter 20 - Competition Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Mu Yao pressed herself against the man again. The man¡¯s deep and pleasant voice echoed in her ears. ¡°We¡¯re back.¡± Mu Yao was slightly stunned and she replied blandly, ¡°Mm.¡± The man stared intently at the woman in front of him. The corners of his lips curled up slightly, and his chest unconsciously rose slightly. His voice became more and more unbearable: ¡°Woman, you promised me. Shall we start now?¡± Mu Yao¡¯s mind went blank and she didn¡¯t know what to say or do. She could feel the skin under her wrist heating up. Mu Yao widened her large, grape-like eyes and her eyelashes fluttered. Under the dim light, the two of them were pressed against each other. The atmosphere was extremely ambiguous. In an instant, the man lifted his hands and held the woman¡¯s thin waist. ¡°Hm¡­¡± Mu Yao cried out in fright by his sudden gesture. However, she did not realize that the noise she had just made was inexplicably soul-stirring. In that instant, Mu Yao sensed that something was wrong with the man next to her. She blushed as she tried to kick him away. ¡°Hey! You!¡± Mu Yao struggled to free herself from his arms. ¡°Don¡¯t move.¡± All of a sudden, the man lifted her waist and flipped her around, giving him a natural advantage. The man supported himself up as he looked down at her. Those deep and aggressive eyes of his were filled only with Mu Yao. Mu Yao was like a rabbit in a vast grassland that he had been eyeing on for a long time. Now, she had been caught by a ferocious tiger. The entire cave seemed to have fallen silent. There was neither the sound of water dripping nor the sound of wind blowing. Only the pair¡¯s breaths could be heard. Mu Yao could feel her heart pounding in her chest and her entire body burn up at the man¡¯s words. Her skin was touching his. It felt hot and ambiguous. ¡°Woman, do you know that you are very disobedient?¡± the man asked as he brushed away Mu Yao¡¯s messy hair. Mu Yao swallowed her saliva while trying her best to keep her composure. She replied calmly, ¡°I remember our agreement. Get up first.¡± After that, she looked away while subconsciously moving away her hands that had been clamped between the two of them. The man exuded a fiery aura and a sense of intimidation as he towered over her. No matter how rational Mu Yao was, she didn¡¯t know what to do. The man sneered and slowly bent down. ¡°You remember it? Good. Now you¡¯re very obedient.¡± When the man spoke, he let out a warm breath that brushed past Mu Yao¡¯s fair neck. Instantly, Mu Yao felt her ears burn. ¡®No! I¡¯m going to be led by the nose if this goes on! I managed to reincarnate. In my previous life, I was a yes-man. I can¡¯t let that happen again!¡¯ Even if Mu Yao were to do something like that, she wanted to be on top. She¡¯d never be the one at the bottom. Just as the man slowly bent down, Mu Yao smiled and lay back down, gazing at the man with a complicated expression. She then raised her right hand and gently stroked the man¡¯s chin. That stunned the man. Mu Yao then moved her fingers from the man¡¯s chin to his neck. The man looked at the woman, who seemed to be a different person, and his body grew even hotter. Right now, Mu Yao was like a demoness that could capture one¡¯s soul. The man felt that every part of his body that her fingers touched was burning. Mu Yao then stared at the man¡¯s prominent Adam¡¯s apple with an indecipherable look before stroking it with her fingers. Then, Mu Yao raised her head and whispered in his ear, ¡°Obedient? Who¡¯s the most obedient?¡± Her warm breath brushed past the man¡¯s ear, sending tingles down his spine. The man felt that he was about to get drunk before even doing anything. He was still in a daze when Mu Yao bent her knees and put her hands on her shoulders. ¡°Oh!¡± Suddenly, the man felt a tearing pain coming from his lower body. The next moment, he realized that he had been flipped over. With his back against the ground, he bent his knees and rolled around in pain. Rubbing her hands together, Mu Yao rose to her feet and stared coldly at the man on the floor, who was still groaning. ¡°I told you to get up but you were disobedient.¡± The man couldn¡¯t help but feel as though he had fallen from heaven to hell. Not long after, the man lost all his strength and curled up on the ground. Seeing this, Mu Yao glanced at the man on the ground with a smile. How could an eight-foot-tall man do such a thing? He was even playing dead to get out of it! ¡°Hey, don¡¯t play dead.¡± However, the man remained motionless. Mu Yao frowned a little, sensing that something was amiss. ¡°Xiaohuo, don¡¯t joke around. Hurry up and get up. It¡¯s not that serious, right? I just kicked you.¡± Yet, the man remained unresponsive. Mu Yao began to panic. She then squatted down and slowly reached out to touch the man¡¯s elbow. ¡°Hey, Xiaohuo, don¡¯t scare me.¡± Mu Yao swallowed her saliva involuntarily and shook the man¡¯s shoulders. ¡°Xiaohuo.¡± Suddenly, Mu Yao felt her vision go blurry as she was flipped around. When her vision stabilized, she realized that she was under the man again! ¡°You! You cheated!¡± she shouted at him. This time, Mu Yao didn¡¯t give the man a chance as she fought ferociously against him. This time, the man did not leave any space between them and forced Mu Yao to comply. He smirked and said slowly, ¡°Woman, I¡¯m just returning whatever you did to me.¡± The man¡¯s voice was low, revealing a slight annoyance. Then, the man bent down forcefully. Mu Yao felt as if she was a tiny rabbit that was about to be eaten alive. This wasn¡¯t right! There were clearly many more moves in the Hehuan Swordsmanship technique before this . How could they jump straight to the final step? He was clearly bullying her! Mu Yao glared at the man and said angrily, ¡°Don¡¯t forget about all the moves before this!¡± However, the man refused to listen to her, and he moved closer to Mu Yao¡¯s lips.. Chapter 21 - Mu Yao Discussing the Agreement Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡®He¡¯s crazy! How could he skip right to the final step of the Hehuan Swordsmanship technique?¡¯ That meant sleeping together! That was also why Mu Yao had refused to practice the Hehuan Swordsmanship techniques with the man in the first place. Just like the name suggested, the techniques required two people working in harmony. Mu Yao had been against doing this with a man she had never met before from the beginning. If not for the fact that she had no other choice, there was no way she would give up her virginity for a chance to leave. She had been forced to make such an alliance with the man. If they couldn¡¯t find the exit in either mystical realm, Mu Yao would have to practice the techniques with the man. Mu Yao wasn¡¯t unreasonable. However, two things remained unclear. Firstly, what was with the man¡¯s resistance force? If he had such power, couldn¡¯t he try to break open the cave? Secondly, they could just go through with whatever they had to do. What was the point of doing so many unnecessary things? Just like now, the man was trying to bend down to touch Mu Yao¡¯s lips. That was something Mu Yao would never accept! However, she stood no chance of breaking free from the man. ¡°Wake up!¡± she shouted at him. The man¡¯s breath gradually got closer. ¡°I¡¯m very sober.¡± Mu Yao couldn¡¯t help but admit to her fate. Anyway, she would forget about these things after leaving this cave. She hoped that there wouldn¡¯t be a need for her to ever meet Xiaohuo again. Then, she would simply treat this as a dream. Just as the man was about to touch Mu Yao¡¯s cherry-like lips¡­ The man fell to the ground with a loud bang. He slumped against Mu Yao¡¯s shoulder and stopped moving. Mu Yao was stunned again. ¡®What¡¯s going on? Is he pretending to be dead again? But there¡¯s no need to pretend to be dead now.¡¯ ¡°Hey, get up!¡± Mu Yao tried to shake him awake. Because the man was unable to support himself, all his weight was on Mu Yao and she couldn¡¯t help but feel like she was about to suffocate. ¡®He¡¯s so heavy! What did this man eat while growing up? However, his height and muscles are indeed¡­¡¯ Just as Mu Yao was wondering about that, she heard snores coming from beside her. The rising and falling snores were coming from the man who had been so smug just moments earlier! Mu Yao shoved him aside. She then looked down at the man who was sound asleep. She held her forehead with one hand and shook her head. This was the one thing that had rendered her the most speechless since her reincarnation! ¡­ When the man opened his eyes again, he discovered that he wasn¡¯t lying in the same place he had just been, but in the open space in front of the drawing of the Hehuan Swordsmanship techniques. There was also a thin green veil covering his body. It was the woman¡¯s clothes. Then, he heard the woman¡¯s slightly anxious yet cold voice. ¡°You¡¯re awake?¡± The man propped himself up with both hands. Hiss! He felt extremely sore all over. The ache ran through every part of his body. He even felt as though all his bones and blood vessels were about to break the moment he moved. ¡°Don¡¯t move. Do you know how long you¡¯ve been sleeping?¡± The man looked at the angry woman in confusion and shook his head obediently. The woman then put down the broken branch she had picked up from the cave before throwing it into the fire with just one hand. Suddenly, the entire cave felt warm. Mu Yao put a hand on her forehead before replying to him, ¡°Seven days.¡± The man was still in a daze. But the next second, Mu Yao smacked him on the head and said coldly, ¡°You slept for seven days! I was thinking that I might as well kill you if you didn¡¯t wake up soon.¡± The man instantly sobered up at the slap. When Mu Yao had just returned to the cave from the ¡°Summer¡± mystical realm, she had been somewhat resistant to the Hehuan Swordsmanship techniques, including the man¡¯s unnecessary actions. However, Mu Yao had observed the man for seven whole days as he remained asleep, and her heart had grown even more tormented. Firstly, she knew for sure that Tianlong was definitely in unrest right now. She couldn¡¯t help but feel like she was sitting on pins and needles. Moreover, she was worried that the man would not wake up¡­ She had to say that the man¡¯s swordsmanship techniques had been on her mind for the past seven days. There was nothing she could do. This was her only hope. Although she had already drawn aura into her body and had relied on the power of the silver sword to get rid of Blood Pupil¡¯s clone, she was just a beginner, just like the Blood Pupil said. She had tried many methods over the past seven days. However, she simply did not have the ability to open the cave. She had to leave the cave as soon as possible. She had not forgotten about her promise to the soldiers. Mu Yao thought of the men who had given their lives up for her. She would never forget that scene for the rest of her life. At that thought, Mu Yao¡¯s eyes welled up. She suddenly lowered her gaze and calmed down. Mu Yao crossed her arms and looked at him coldly. ¡°I need to get out as soon as possible. What¡¯s wrong with your resistance? Can¡¯t you get out of the cave with your resistance?¡± To the man, the woman sounded as though she was choked with emotions. The man rubbed his head and said guiltily, ¡°This¡­ I don¡¯t know where my power came from either. I can¡¯t use it now, and I think my coma might be related to me using this power.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± As a matter of fact, Mu Yao already knew the answer without asking. This power could only be used by the man when he was in extreme danger. Naturally, he had fallen unconscious from expending too much energy. Thankfully, he was now awake. Mu Yao took a deep breath, and a dark look flashed across her eyes. Her voice was firm as she said, ¡°Let¡¯s practice the Hehuan Swordsmanship techniques. I don¡¯t have time to wait any longer.¡± Then, the man suddenly felt as if his brain was struck by lightning. He turned around in shock and looked at the woman who had a determined look in her eyes. Even her tone was firm. He could not believe that she had just said so. She had clearly been adamant about not doing that before he fainted. Although he knew that he should not be that anxious, he couldn¡¯t control himself because the woman was right in front of him. ¡®What¡¯s wrong with me?¡¯ He questioned himself. ¡®But she¡¯s actually proposing to fulfill this alliance agreement?!¡¯ He gulped and asked hesitantly, ¡°Are you serious?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± The next moment, Mu Yao sat on top of the man and reached out to undo his white shirt.. Chapter 22 - Dual Sword Practice Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°You¡­¡± In the next moment, in the dark cave. The man¡¯s bright chest was half-hidden by the slightly-opened fabric. The man felt the woman¡¯s slender and fair hand trembling in front of him. Then, he grabbed the woman¡¯s wrist. Mu Yao looked up in surprise. ¡°What are you doing?¡± It was only then that the man finally realized what had happened. The corners of his lips curled up and there was a hint of anger in his deep voice. ¡°What I¡¯m doing? It¡¯s useless to jump directly to the final step of the Hehuan Swordsmanship techniques.¡± Mu Yao lowered her eyes, her long eyelashes fluttering under the faint light. The man felt the woman¡¯s upper body trembling slightly. Mu Yao lowered her head. The man could clearly see that the woman was trembling on his lap. ¡®Is she crying? No way!¡¯ The man gulped and looked at the woman worriedly. ¡°Hey, are you okay?¡± Mu Yao said nothing. The man moved closer carefully and his voice softened. ¡°Woman, it¡¯s my fault. I was too fierce.¡± Bang! The man felt as if the top of his head had exploded. As Mu Yao stared at the man, she smacked his head, and a loud sound resonated within the cave. ¡°If I didn¡¯t have to leave the cave, I would have stabbed you to death! If you know that it¡¯s useless to jump to the last step, why did you do that to me seven days ago? Besides, do you know how worried I was when I saw you not moving for the past seven days? Every day, I was afraid that you would never wake up again. If that happened, what would happen to me? What would happen to the soldiers who died for me?¡± Mu Yao shuddered even harder as she spoke. Tears fell uncontrollably from her big eyes, and even her voice started to tremble. The man knew that she was crying, as her sobs echoed in the cave. Mu Yao had no idea what was wrong with her. She felt as though she had held it in for a long time, and the grievances that she had been suppressing in her heart suddenly poured out all at once. Over the past seven days, Mu Yao felt as if she had been forgotten by the world. What would she do if she could not get out of the cave? The only thing she cared about was the unconscious man. But day after day, the man remained in the same position, showing no signs of waking up. That terrified her. She even started to console herself that it would be alright, and that Xiaohuo would wake up. However, every time Mu Yao opened her eyes the next day, she would see the motionless man again. The determination in her heart was collapsing bit by bit. Finally, he had woken up today. That had finally caused her to break down. The man panicked when he saw the woman sobbing. This was the first time he had seen the woman so fragile ever since he had gotten to know her. ¡°Don¡¯t cry,¡± he tried to comfort her. Mu Yao felt as if her acupoints had been opened and she couldn¡¯t hold her tears back. The man raised his hand and put it down before stretching it out again. His hands were at a loss as he looked at the woman¡¯s trembling body. He wanted to hug her, but didn¡¯t dare to reach out for her. ¡°Please don¡¯t cry anymore. I¡¯m begging you. I never ever beg anyone.¡± However, Mu Yao showed no signs of stopping. Suddenly, the man gritted his teeth and pulled Mu Yao into his embrace. It was unusually warm. He then raised his hand to caress Mu Yao¡¯s head. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I was wrong.¡± His low voice reached Mu Yao¡¯s ears, and somehow, it had touched her heart too. Mu Yao¡¯s sobs gradually eased. It was really too comfortable. No one had ever patiently comforted her when she was on the verge of a breakdown. Suddenly, Mu Yao felt the distance between her and the man. Rather, it was the lack of distance between the two of them. She abruptly pushed him away and wiped away the tears at the corner of her eyes, and her expression returned to normal as she said, ¡°Let¡¯s begin. Let¡¯s practice.¡± ¡°Yeah, okay.¡± Because they had separated so quickly, the man could still feel the lingering warmth of the woman on his body. ¡­ Whoosh. The man¡¯s figure skillfully bent his body and turned around swiftly and the sharp sword in the man¡¯s hand cut through the air, producing a gust of wind. The man¡¯s sword went straight for the woman¡¯s neck. At the most critical moment when it seemed as though he was about to stab the woman¡¯s neck, the sword stopped just inches away from the woman¡¯s neck. However, if one were to take a closer look, the sword in the man¡¯s hand was actually nothing more than a broken branch! Yet, he had been so skillful that it seemed no different from a real sword. The moment Mu Yao spotted the branch coming at her, she extended both her hands to her side, and raised her upper body to avoid it. Mu Yao dodged the sword skillfully and retreated a few meters. Then, she stood up gracefully and quickly drew her silver sword from her waist. In the dark cave, the silver sword shone brightly. A moment later, Mu Yao did a backflip and turned around, pressing the sword against the man¡¯s chest. If she were to move just one step closer, she would draw blood from him. Mu Yao smirked. ¡°How is it, Xiaohuo?¡± The man snorted softly. While the woman was distracted, he walked backward. Seeing this, the woman chased after him and shouted, ¡°How dare you escape?¡± With a swift turn, the man suddenly appeared behind the woman. With his right hand holding the branch, he casually waved his arm, holding Mu Yao down. The ¡°sword¡± was pressed against Mu Yao¡¯s slender throat as he said casually, ¡°Woman, you are very talented. It won¡¯t be long before you finish the Hehuan Swordsmanship techniques.¡± Suddenly, Mu Yao leaned back and pressed herself against the man¡¯s chest. Her voice carried a hint of seduction. ¡°Likewise.¡± The man couldn¡¯t help but blush, and he subconsciously moved the branch in his hand away from Mu Yao¡¯s neck. ¡°You!¡± At that moment, Mu Yao raised her cold eyes and smirked as she flung the man back by a few meters. When the man cried out in pain, she pressed her silver sword against the man¡¯s chest once again. ¡°Xiaohuo, you shouldn¡¯t be distracted so easily.¡± A dark glint flashed across his eyes. ¡°Ha, you¡¯re trying to use your beauty against me!¡± Mu Yao raised an eyebrow and challenged him, ¡°That¡¯s just a woman¡¯s natural advantage. It¡¯d be a waste not to use it. How is it, Xiaohuo? Are you afraid?¡± The man gave Mu Yao a dirty look and lowered his eyes. His voice carried a hint of aggression. ¡°Afraid? Woman, let me show you a man¡¯s natural advantage. You won¡¯t be able to escape the Hehuan Swordsmanship¡¯s final step!¡± The man then threw down the wooden branch in his hand, took a big stride forward, and grabbed the woman¡¯s waist. Just like that, the two of them finally reached the final step¡ªDual Sword Practice.. Chapter 23 - Mu Yao Steals the Elixir Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°Are you nervous?¡± The man wrapped his arms around Mu Yao¡¯s slender waist. The dim light shone on the man¡¯s thick eyelids as he stared at the woman. Mu Yao¡¯s slightly blushed face was reflected in his deep eyes. Mu Yao swallowed involuntarily and avoided his affectionate gaze. It would be a lie to say that she wasn¡¯t nervous. In Mu Yao¡¯s memories, this was the first time she was trying something like this, regardless of whether she had reincarnated or not. From her past knowledge, such things only happened between a man and woman in a relationship. But Mu Yao was in a different situation now. She needed to leave the cave. Of course, there were other reasons. She lowered her head and stretched her hands out slowly, stroking the man¡¯s neck. Holding the man¡¯s neck, Mu Yao took a deep breath. She then raised his head without any hesitation. Mu Yao met the man¡¯s deep gaze again. The man curled his lips and tightened his grip. His voice was low as he said, ¡°It looks like someone¡¯s nervous.¡± Mu Yao tugged at the man¡¯s neck, bringing his upper body closer to her. Her voice was as cold as ever, but there was a hint of stubbornness in it. ¡°Who¡¯s nervous?¡± However, this time, the man wasn¡¯t shocked by Mu Yao¡¯s unexpected move. Instead, he let go of the hand around her waist and reached for the back of her head, gently stroking it. That sent chills down Mu Yao¡¯s spine. ¡®Ah¡­ That feels so good. It feels so good to be touched by someone else.¡¯ Before she knew it, Mu Yao was brought to the bed and she leaned on the man¡¯s shoulder obediently. The man tilted his head and whispered into Mu Yao¡¯s ear, and a warm voice surrounded her neck. The man¡¯s voice became deeper. ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid.¡± Mu Yao buried her head deeper in his neck and tightened her grip. Mu Yao suddenly felt like a little bunny that was being stroked. Her voice softened unconsciously and she replied blandly, ¡°Alright.¡± She was no longer repulsed by the unprecedented feeling of being tamed. All of a sudden, the man¡¯s body tilted to the side, his back on the ground as he lay in an open space not far from the images of the Hehuan Swordsmanship techniques. Because the man was carrying Mu Yao, she was dragged along. The two of them faced each other. The next second, the man flipped over, and their positions changed. Mu Yao was now below the man. Then, the man reached out and slowly untied the knot around Mu Yao¡¯s waist. With his other hand, he gently pulled down the woman¡¯s outer green coat. Under the faint light, the woman¡¯s fair skin appeared even fairer and more mysterious. At that moment, the man was distracted by the woman¡¯s expression. Mu Yao¡¯s mind had already gone blank. Her mind was buzzing and she could not think of anything at all. But the only thing the man could conclude was that the woman was not trying to resist. On the contrary, she was being very obedient. He stripped off her outermost piece of clothing. The next moment, the man was about to untie the clothes around his own upper body. But just as he was about to do so, the woman pulled his white shirt away. At this moment, the man could no longer suppress the ferocious beast within him. To be honest, his body had already reacted earlier on. He would have lost control as long as he touched the woman. If not for the fact that the woman had just cried and was unusually obedient, he would have exploded a long time ago. Then, he seemed to have changed into another person. His entire aura had changed. He hugged Mu Yao tightly as he kissed her on the lips. ¡°Hm¡­¡± He could hear the evident fear in Mu Yao¡¯s voice. He was practically gnawing on her lips. Stunned by the kiss, Mu Yao nudged the man. ¡°Don¡¯t move.¡± The man¡¯s voice wasn¡¯t loud, but it was cold and intimidating. It wasn¡¯t as if Mu Yao had never seen a man as tough as he was before. He had been this tough toward the Blood Pupil, who had bullied her, as well as the soldiers, who hadn¡¯t known that she was the Princess. However, it was his first time showing his anger and desire for her so openly. Mu Yao was held tightly by the man¡¯s arm and couldn¡¯t move even if she wanted to. She felt that the man had really held it in for a long time. She slowly closed her eyes and welcomed the man¡¯s crazy kiss. Their kiss was hurried and intense. Mu Yao could feel the passion in the kiss, as he devoured her whole. The man panted heavily and subconsciously reached out to tug open the innermost part of the woman¡¯s clothes. Slowly, he reached for the woman¡¯s back. ¡°Xiaohuo¡­¡± Suddenly, Mu Yao felt the skin on her back suddenly heat up. In ancient times, had Adam and Eve felt the same as they did now? ¡­ After a series of indescribable sounds, their breathing slowly calmed down in the cave far away from the rest of the world. The two of them hid under the crumpled fabric of their clothes. Leaning on the man¡¯s arm and chest, Mu Yao slowly opened her eyes. The man¡¯s handsome face greeted her. This was the first time Mu Yao had looked at the man from such a close distance. She couldn¡¯t help but reach out her fair hand under her clothes to gently stroke the man¡¯s slightly furrowed brows. Then, she moved to the man¡¯s perky nose and thick eyelashes. And those lips he had once kissed her passionately with. If only time had stopped at this moment. However, time waited for no one. There were still many things in the outside world that Mu Yao needed to do, as well as feelings hidden in her heart that she hadn¡¯t even realized she had. The next moment, she took the initiative to lean down and kiss the man in his sleep. Mu Yao then pried his lips open, and golden light appeared in the man¡¯s mouth. Before long, the light disappeared. The woman swallowed it, then looked at the man with an ambiguous expression and said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯ll return this elixir to you one day..¡± Chapter 24 - Escaping the Cave Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Mu Yao watched as the man took shallow breaths. She then picked up her clothes and turned around, lifting them up in a beautiful arc. The next moment, the woman was dressed neatly, her mind full of what they had just done. She subconsciously blushed yet again. A hint of reluctance and guilt flashed across her eyes as images flashed through her mind. Throughout the duration of the Dual Cultivation, Mu Yao had sensed the power from the man¡¯s elixir. And the moment they had become one, the golden light had appeared, lighting the man¡¯s entire body up and throwing Mu Yao several meters away. Then, the man started shouting as if he was possessed by a ghost. Immediately after, a yellow light floated out of nowhere, before strands of yellow light entered the man¡¯s body. The man closed his eyes and endured the pain of spiritual powers entering his body. Then, Mu Yao saw the man open his mouth slightly, allowing a golden spherical elixir to float out of his mouth. In that instant, Mu Yao understood why the man had such a strong force of resistance around him. It was all thanks to this elixir! In that instant, Mu Yao recalled how the Blood Pupil seemed to have called the man ¡°Netherworld Demon Lord¡± when it was fighting against the man. From Mu Yao¡¯s memories, she recalled that even the most powerful priest of Tianxiang might not have such a pure elemental elixir. The elixir was something that only priests, immortals, or demons possessed. At that thought, Mu Yao dared not think any further. All of a sudden, the man roared loudly and an invisible wave shot out from his body. The power of this wave was so great that it actually caused the entire cave to tremble in an instant. Immediately, a loud tearing sound erupted from the rock wall above the cave. Mu Yao looked up and her eyes narrowed. There was now a crack running across the incomparably hard rock wall above her. As long as Mu Yao wanted to, she could slice it open with her silver sword. She was confident of enlarging the crack and breaking out of the cave. But she didn¡¯t do so right away. ¡®You have so much power just by recovering your spiritual power. Xiaohuo, who exactly are you? Is this as far as our fate goes?¡¯ Suddenly, the man fell heavily onto the ground with a loud bang after recovering his powers. He had fallen unconscious yet again! Mu Yao knew that this was the best time for her to escape while she was still full of energy from his spiritual powers. Once Xiaohuo recovered his spiritual power, Mu Yao would be no match for him. What if Xiaohuo didn¡¯t let her go or went back on his word? What would she do then? After all, Xiaohuo was a one night stand, and a secret she couldn¡¯t expose to the world. However, she could not help but miss the last moments of this life. She lay down beside the man and rested quietly for a while. Once Mu Yao awoke again, she understood it would be too late if she didn¡¯t leave immediately. She gritted her teeth and tightened her grip on the silver sword at her waist. After taking one last look at the man, she turned around swiftly and drew her silver sword. With a loud bang, Mu Yao pierced through the peak. A blinding ray of sunlight shone into the cave. The moment Mu Yao jumped out of the cave, she breathed in the fresh air that she¡¯d not tasted for ages. She did not look back this time. ¡®Goodbye, Xiaohuo.¡¯ What she did not realize was that the moment she broke out of the cave, the man had woken up. The man suddenly widened his deep eyes as he watched the woman leave. As he recovered all his spiritual power and memories, he flared up. Just as he was about to use his spiritual power to make the woman return, he realized that he could not control his spiritual power as he wished. He had to gather more energy than before in order to use his spiritual power. There was only one reason for all of this: The woman had stolen his elixir while he wasn¡¯t paying attention! The Netherworld Demon Lord stood up slowly and glanced at the broken cave before laughing coldly. ¡°Woman, you can have the elixir, but you and the child in your stomach must belong to me!¡± Mu Yao yawned for some reason. Pinching her nose, she thought to herself, ¡®Is someone cursing me?¡¯ Just as Mu Yao had expected, it was a dense forest outside the cave. Unlike ordinary ones, Mu Yao could sense the power hidden in the trees and the air here. This was a place that was especially suitable for cultivating one¡¯s body and mind. Mu Yao jumped onto a tall tree branch and looked into the distance. This forest was very large, so it would take some time to walk out of this place. Suddenly, just as she was calculating how to get out of the forest quicker, arrows shot out from somewhere toward her. Mu Yao swiftly turned around and dodged the attack. With an agile backflip, she hid somewhere to observe her surroundings. She lowered her gaze. It seemed that Blood Pupil was right when he said that he would be back. His people had been lying in ambush outside the forest. However, there was one thing that puzzled Mu Yao: Why were they lying in ambush instead of entering the cave? Mu Yao shot a cold glance through the trees at the cave she had just escaped. All of a sudden, there was a loud bang and a cloud of black smoke rose from the cave and soared into the sky. Mu Yao tightened her grip on the silver sword at her waist and swallowed. A hint of panic flashed across her clear eyes. Xiaohuo had escaped too. She had to speed up her escape from this forest and find a place where she could rest and think about what to do next. Suddenly, Mu Yao felt a sharp pain in her stomach. She looked down at her stomach and her eyes widened. She was at a loss for words! Her stomach was getting bigger and bigger! What was going on?! At this moment, it wasn¡¯t just the Blood Pupil¡¯s men who were chasing her, but also the man who had recovered his spiritual power and was looking for his elixir. At the same time, her stomach grew bigger and bigger, and even the thick foliage couldn¡¯t hide her figure. She suddenly shot her head up and thought to herself, ¡®This isn¡¯t good!¡¯ Hundreds of arrows were aimed at Mu Yao¡¯s hiding place. ¡°Sir, she¡¯s there!¡± The voices of the assassins came from behind. As the group of people ran toward the tree, they gathered their energy and kicked the sturdy tree all at once, causing the tree to fall to the ground with a loud boom. Yet, there was no sign of the woman behind the tree. The leader shouted, ¡°How is this possible? I saw her here just moments earlier!¡± Chapter 25 - Short-sighted Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Not far away from the cave, there lay a cultivation ground not easily discoverable since it was in a patch of green bushes. There was a hot spring that was covered in greenery, and a few colorful butterflies flying around. It was like heaven on earth. On one side of the hot spring lay a woman whose belly was swaying from side to side. It was none other than Mu Yao. She curled up in pain, her hands clenching her stomach. She could clearly feel that her stomach had gone from a three-month pregnant woman¡¯s to a ten-month pregnant one in a matter of minutes! Mu Yao felt as if all her internal organs had been crushed by the growing object in her stomach. ¡°Ah¡­ it hurts!¡± Mu Yao had never felt such pain before. She could not help but wonder if she was pregnant. She bit her lower lip tightly. Her forehead was already dripping with sweat, and her fair face was even paler. The pain only intensified. Mu Yao had only performed Dual Cultivation in order to leave the cave. She had never expected to pay such a high price for it! Giving birth? That was out of the question to her! Besides, how could she get pregnant in one go? She was truly unlucky. Furthermore, not only was she pregnant, but her baby had also grown at such a terrifying speed! She hadn¡¯t even gotten the opportunity to abort her baby. Even a normal cultivator or an ordinary person would definitely have to go through 10 months of pregnancy after getting pregnant. However, it had been less than an hour since she escaped from the cave. Yet, Mu Yao already felt like she was about to give birth! What in the world was this elixir? Could it double the speed of pregnancy? Besides, she was clearly about to be discovered by her enemies earlier on. Just as she was at a loss, an idea came to her mind: turning invisible and running away. Then, Mu Yao turned herself invisible and fled even faster. Even her five senses became especially sensitive. Just what was this elixir? Before Mu Yao could think about it, she felt a sharp pain in her stomach that threatened to burst her stomach at any time. Every meridian in her body, even every nerve, was hurting Mu Yao more as the seconds ticked by. The next moment, she fainted from the pain. At the same time, dozens of men in black moved through the forest. Every man¡¯s face was covered in black cloth, making it impossible to see their faces clearly. They were all equipped with weapons, some with bows, some with swords, and others with unknown ones. The leader of the men in black sprinted ahead. His nose twitched. Then, his cold gaze swept toward the southeast. He smiled under the black cloth. ¡°Hmph! I smell it. Follow me. We¡¯ll head in the southeast direction.¡± The men in black behind him immediately responded, ¡°Yes, Sir!¡± Not long after, the leader of the men in black stopped and swung his right hand. The men in black at the back stopped and gathered into a circular formation. A hint of coldness flashed across the leader¡¯s eyes. ¡°Everyone, pay attention. That woman¡¯s scent is nearby, but it¡¯s very strange.¡± ¡°What¡¯s strange, Sir?¡± one of the men asked. ¡°That¡¯s right, Sir. What should we be afraid of? She¡¯s just a little girl. Do you think can she beat you?¡± another piped up. ¡°That¡¯s right! Our Lord is unrivaled. There¡¯s no need to be on guard. We¡¯ll directly lock onto our target and capture that woman in one fell swoop. When we return, we¡¯ll give a good report to the sorcerer!¡± another encouraged. The leader then glanced coldly at his men, who instinctively glanced at the leader, defeated by his gaze. They did not dare to say anything. ¡°A bunch of useless fools.¡± After saying that, the leader turned around, trying to find the specific direction of the strong scent. But all of a sudden, a powerful force attacked the group from all directions. This strong power was accompanied by a strong female aura. Suddenly, the leader¡¯s nose twitched and he paused. There was a trace of something else besides the woman¡¯s scent! The leader was stunned for a moment. He instantly grabbed the sword in his hand and subconsciously took a step back, muttering, ¡°Crap, we¡¯ve fallen into a trap!¡± The men in black hurriedly looked at each other and panicked. ¡°What? How is that possible?¡± someone shouted. ¡°That¡¯s right, Sir. I can clearly smell that woman¡¯s scent.¡± The leader was no longer in the mood to pay attention to his shoddy subordinates. He jumped into the air. ¡°Run, you fools!¡± The next moment, the leader felt someone roaring behind him. The group of men in black had yet to recover from their shock before they turned into skeletons. Their deaths were so sudden that they probably didn¡¯t even know how they had died! The leader subconsciously turned around and witnessed this scene. His pupils constricted. He drew his sword and chanted an unknown incantation. In an instant, the leader ran toward the sky, trying to speed up his escape. Just then, a man dressed in white descended from the sky. He flicked his sleeves as he slowly landed on the ground. The corners of the man¡¯s lips curled up, and a hint of darkness flashed past his deep eyes imperceptibly. He asked in a low voice, ¡°Trying to escape?¡± The leader gritted his teeth and used all his strength to make his escape as quickly as possible. He had a premonition that he would be turned into ashes if he did not hurry up! He gathered his strength and quickly fled. Only after running a long distance did he turn around and look behind him. Thankfully, no one was chasing after him. Only then did he dare to relax and slow down his speed. He lowered his eyes and muttered to himself, ¡°Sigh, I¡¯ve finally escaped. How could I have underestimated the Netherworld Demon Lord? I was truly foolish!¡± Suddenly, a deep voice floated in front of him. ¡°Is that so?¡± The leader suddenly felt goosebumps all over his body and his scalp went numb. He looked up in fear. Right in front of him was the Netherworld Demon Lord! Chapter 26 - The Oriole Behind Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios The next moment, the leader fell off his sword. Before he could react, he subconsciously knelt down and kowtowed non-stop. His voice was filled with panic. ¡°Demon Lord, Demon Lord, please spare me. I am just a useless piece of trash. I am not worthy of you attacking me!¡± The man leisurely landed on the ground and raised his right foot to lightly step on the leader¡¯s head. ¡°Ahh!¡± The leader instantly felt as though his skull was about to be crushed! How could he exert so much strength with such a light step? The leader felt as though a thousand-pound mallet was weighing down on the top of his head. In an instant, the leader heard the sound of bones cracking, and a gush of warm blood poured out. ¡°Spare me! Spare me!¡± The man smirked, raised his eyebrows, and said in a low voice, ¡°Spare you?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right! That¡¯s right! Demon Lord, I¡¯m willing to do anything as long as you¡¯re willing to let me go!¡± ¡°Sure.¡± the man casually replied. The leader suddenly raised his head, his eyes shining with disbelief. ¡°Really?!¡± The leader felt that this must have been a dream. Was the bipolar Netherworld Demon Lord nothing more than a legend? Then, he heard the man ask calmly, ¡°Where is she?¡± The leader was stunned for a moment. After a few seconds, he reacted. ¡°Huh? Who are you talking about? Ah! She, I am also looking for that demoness. I can¡¯t find her either!¡± Suddenly, a long red mark appeared on the leader¡¯s neck. The next moment, he was decapitated. ¡°You-¡° ¡®Didn¡¯t you say that you would let me off?¡¯ However, the leader no longer had the chance to say that. His skull fell to the ground, his eyes still widened incredulously, and blood spurted out from the neck of the half-kneeling body The Netherworld Demon Lord frowned slightly and patted his sleeves gently. ¡°Demoness? You won¡¯t even get the chance to be my slave in your next life.¡± Following that, he leaped into the air and disappeared. At the same time, in the Imperial Palace¡¯s Imperial Study, the Heavenly God descended once more. Ever since one of his clones had been killed by Mu Yao, the Blood Pupil had lost almost half of its spiritual power. Now, it would be difficult for him to use the parasitic spell to appear in front of the sorcerer. After recuperating for a period of time, he was finally able to plant himself in a host again. When he had first gotten injured, he had sent a message to the sorcerer to send men to hunt the woman down. He could not let her return to the human world. Naturally, the sorcerer agreed to it without any hesitation, allowing the Blood Pupil to begin cultivating in peace. But today, a wave of intense pain had suddenly spread throughout his entire body while he was cultivating. Something was amiss! Scanning through the mystical realms, he realized that the Netherworld Demon Lord and the woman had actually broken out of the cave! In an instant, the Blood Pupil was scared out of his wits. He hurriedly hid his aura and appeared in the Imperial Study again. ¡°Ahhh! Guards!!¡± The sorcerer and priest hurried over. A terrifying crimson eye appeared in the mirror yet again. It slowly opened its eye. The Blood Pupil¡¯s voice was sharp and filled with anger. ¡°You two pieces of trash! I told you to guard them and not let them escape from the cave! They escaped in the end! Is this how you work for me?!¡± Beads of sweat appeared on the sorcerer¡¯s face. He suddenly knelt down and kowtowed non-stop. ¡°Heavenly God, calm down! Please calm down!¡± The next moment, the sorcerer vomited blood. When the priest saw this, he swallowed his saliva and said with a trembling voice, ¡°Please calm down, Heavenly God. That woman is just a mortal and doesn¡¯t have any martial arts skills. You shouldn¡¯t take it to heart.¡± The Blood Pupil did not make a sound and merely blinked its eyes slightly in the arc mirror. The priest held his breath and continued, ¡°Besides, even if the Netherworld Demon Lord recovered his memories and spiritual force, he will not look for you. After all, you¡¯ve never appeared while he was drugged. He has no evidence to hold against you!¡± The eye in the mirror squinted at this moment, but it revealed no emotions. ¡°Even if he wants to blame someone, he¡¯ll come after me and the sorcerer. We are willing to sacrifice ourselves for you, so please don¡¯t be angry. You must take care of your health!¡± The sorcerer and priest, Tianxiang, naturally knew that the Heavenly God had been recuperating recently. While the latter had not elaborated on the reason for that, the both of them guessed that the Heavenly God must have underestimated his enemy in the mystical realm and had been subdued by the Netherworld Demon Lord. But even if the Netherworld Demon Lord had seen the Heavenly God in the mystical realm, he had only seen its host, which was the Blood Pupil. No one had seen his true appearance. At that moment, the Blood Pupil opened his eyes. He was no longer as angry or gloomy as before, and his tone also became gentler. ¡°It¡¯s been hard on all of you. However, continue to send people to keep an eye on her. Although she is a mortal, she absolutely cannot be left alive.¡± At the same time, the priest¡¯s eyes flashed with the same expression. He asked with a puzzled voice, ¡°Heavenly God, she¡¯s just a scapegoat we used. She¡¯s just a mortal. Why do you care so much about her?¡± The Blood Pupil hesitated for a moment. There was no way he could tell them that a mere mortal had injured him so severely. Furthermore, the Netherworld Demon Lord clearly cared a lot about this woman. Based on just these two points, this woman could not be spared. The Blood Pupil then said unhurriedly, ¡°Didn¡¯t our lovely sorcerer say something about this woman?¡± The sorcerer looked up, confused. ¡°Yes? I¡¯m here.¡± The Blood Pupil chuckled. ¡°This woman will bring disaster to our country. How can we let her live?¡± The three of them glanced at each other before their hearty laughters rang out in the Imperial Study. Seeing that Heavenly God was in a better mood, the sorcerer carefully stood up, then cupped his hands and said, ¡°Heavenly God, please rest assured that I will definitely not let this woman live. I will send more people to kill her now.¡± The priest glanced at the sorcerer and cupped his hands too. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Heavenly God, I will also send priests from Tianlong Temple to help out.¡± The Blood Pupil stopped smiling and said in a jolly mood, ¡°Sure, but don¡¯t forget about the memorial ceremony in a few days. This time, I need the spiritual power of a pure newborn. Hurry up and get it done.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°Yes!¡± The reason why they were sacrificing a newborn this time was very simple. It was because the Blood Pupil had lost too much of his powers. The fastest way to regain his powers and recover from his injuries was to absorb only the purest spiritual powers. This was something that couldn¡¯t be compared to the spiritual power of other cultivators. Immediately, a series of hearty screams came from the Imperial Study. ¡°Hahaha! I¡¯ll wait for your good news.¡± Then, the Blood Pupil disappeared. The two men shared a glance before heaving a sigh of relief. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± the sorcerer said weakly, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth. ¡°We need to discuss the sacrifice with the new Emperor.¡± ¡°Yes, next time, you must think carefully before acting. It¡¯s not like you don¡¯t know the temperament of the Heavenly God,¡± the priest reminded him. At the same time, in the forest beside the cave. Mu Yao lay unconscious on the edge of the hot spring, blood trickling down her slender legs. Her fair legs were stained red. It was a ghastly sight.. Chapter 27 - Birth of the Baby Shocks Heaven and Earth Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°Waah!¡± A series of baby-like cries rang out beside Mu Yao. When she looked closer, she realized that there were actually two little children who were not even a year old. All of a sudden, one of the babies cried and crawled to Mu Yao¡¯s side. He reached out and grabbed Mu Yao¡¯s cheek. As for the girl, she looked at her brother in a daze as she placed her finger in her mouth to suck on it. Suddenly, a golden light appeared around Mu Yao, and it slowly rose up. It turned out that the elixir was helping Mu Yao¡¯s weak body recover. When the power of the elixir touched the two little guys, it protected them too. After some time, Mu Yao was slowly escorted down by the golden light amidst the cries. Mu Yao slowly opened her eyes and tried to support herself up with both hands. Hiss! As soon as she got up, Mu Yao felt a dull pain in her lower body. When she came back to her senses, she saw two identical cute faces reflected in her clear eyes. ¡°Who are you?¡± The two little children stared at the woman in front of them with their big eyes. Seeing that Mu Yao had woken up, the little girl instinctively put down her hand, propped up her limbs, and crawled slowly to Mu Yao¡¯s side. Mu Yao shuddered involuntarily. The next second, the little girl turned around and leaned her head against Mu Yao¡¯s thigh.She grunted as she squirmed around before finally falling asleep comfortably. Only then did Mu Yao notice her belly. It had reverted back to its original form! It was as if her growing belly had never existed. ¡°What? How is this possible? Could this be my¡­¡± Just then, the boy blinked and tilted his head at Mu Yao, then stopped crying. Unconsciously, Mu Yao was attracted by this gaze and looked up. She stared at the boy in front of her seriously. He actually looked somewhat similar to Xiaohuo¡­ The little boy was practically a miniature Xiaohuo! His large and deep eyes were evident even at a young age, and that high nose bridge. Mu Yao was stunned. She couldn¡¯t wait to look down at the little child on her lap. She reached out her slender hand and gently stroked the little girl¡¯s hair that was covering her face. The baby girl¡¯s side profile was reflected in Mu Yao¡¯s large eyes. Time seemed to have stopped then¡­ Although the little girl looked exactly like the boy, Mu Yao somehow felt that the young girl looked more like herself. As she caressed the girl, Mu Yao didn¡¯t even realize that she was now smiling affectionately. ¡°Mommy.¡± That brought Mu Yao back to reality. She had to admit that these were children that she had accidentally conceived after the Dual Cultivation with the man. Perhaps, these two children had been born faster than normal children because of the existence of the elixir. That was Mu Yao¡¯s guess. She thought that this was all because of that mysterious and powerful elixir. Little did she know that this had caused an uproar in the outside world. The Three Realms had sensed the birth of the Netherworld Demon Lord¡¯s children. The birth of the children had shocked both heaven and earth. At the same time, the sky of the human world instantly changed from day to night. Dark clouds covered the sky, and thunder rumbled. Boom! Boom! Boom! The sorcerer was observing the astronomical phenomenon in front of a spherical magic tool, looking uneasy. ¡°Why did the weather change so drastically? Something is about to happen!¡± The next moment, the thunder in the sky boomed again! The sorcerer counted ten bolts of lightning. He remembered the Heavenly God telling him that this signified the birth of the Netherworld Demon Lord! At the same time, the priest, Tianxiang, who was cultivating in the cave behind the Tianlong Temple, suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood. Just as he was about to successfully advance to the late-stage Foundation Building realm, he suddenly felt a sense of danger rippling around him, as if something evil was attacking him. He opened his eyes and stopped meditating. The next second, he felt extreme discomfort in his body and mind, and he spat out another mouthful of blood. This was the first time the priest had allowed the aura of the outside world to disrupt his meditation. In fact, he was even being led by the nose! He abruptly raised his head and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. His shrewd eyes were filled with worry. He thought to himself, ¡®What exactly happened outside? Why is it affecting me so greatly?¡¯ On the other side, a figure with blood-red pupils suddenly flashed in the arc mirror. The Blood Pupil opened his eyes in horror and said with a trembling voice, ¡°This is bad! One demon is enough, but now, I can feel the aura of another demon!¡± The figure flashed for a few seconds before quickly disappearing. For the ordinary people who had never set foot in the cultivation world or the demonic realm, they would simply have thought that this was a normal storm that was simply a little more ferocious than usual. There was no need for them to be afraid at all. After all, they believed in a Heavenly God who would protect them. Meanwhile, in the Demonic Realm. The Netherworld Demon Lord had already changed into his own red clothes and was laying leisurely in the dim hall. He raised his neck, held up a wine pot, and poured it into his mouth. There were also many red-dressed demonesses surrounding him, stroking him and laughing. ¡°Demon Lord, where have you been? I¡¯ve really missed you so much! You don¡¯t even know how lonely I was without you around! Look at how loyal I am to you!¡± one of the demonesses tried to suck up to him. ¡°Heh, don¡¯t lie just because the Demon Lord¡¯s back. That day, I witnessed you fooling around with that ghost. In terms of loyalty, I am the most loyal to the Demon Lord!¡± another exposed her. The Demon Lord threw his head back and chuckled. He was slightly drunk from the wine and suddenly hugged all the demonesses around him. With a smile hanging on the corner of his lips, he replied, ¡°I want all of you to serve me today!¡± ¡°Ok, Demon Lord!¡± The demonesses took off their clothes, which were not much to begin with, and stepped between the Demon Lord¡¯s legs. They could not wait to undo the Demon Lord¡¯s clothes and pants. Suddenly, there was thunder outside. Then, eight bolts of lightning struck. It had actually reached the Demonic Realm! In that instant, a cold glint flashed across the Netherworld Demon Lord¡¯s deep eyes.. He then shouted at the disgusting demonesses beside him, ¡°Get lost!¡± Chapter 28 - Netherworld Demon Lord Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios The demonesses by his side were instantly repelled by a powerful force. There were a few consecutive bangs as the women fell onto the ground. ¡°Demon Lord, calm down! I was wrong!¡± one demoness pleaded for mercy. ¡°Don¡¯t kill us. We¡¯ll leave now!¡± Everyone eyed him carefully, and fled without any hesitation. The Netherworld Demon Lord lowered his gaze. His ears seemed to be ringing after the thunder. His deep eyes were instantly filled with blood as he shouted, ¡°Guards!¡± A man in black jogged in. If one were to take a closer look, the two horns on the man¡¯s head would be evident. The man smiled, cupped his hands, and nodded. ¡°Long time no see, Leng Hanxiao.¡± The Netherworld Demon Lord¡¯s back was facing the other as he said coldly, ¡°Chen Yi, you sure are bold. We¡¯ve only not met for a few days. How dare you call me by my name?¡± Chen Yi burst out laughing. ¡°Alright, enough small talk. Hurry up and say it. What¡¯s the matter?¡± Leng Hanxiao was silent for a moment before turning around, his face slightly red. He asked in all seriousness, ¡°Chen Yi, what do you think a relationship feels like?¡± The other man blinked his dull eyes. The two horns on his head instantly seemed to soften as he looked at Leng Hanxiao in disbelief. Then, he quickly ran in front of Leng Hanxiao and carefully touched the latter¡¯s forehead. He stuttered, ¡°Um, Leng Hanxiao, you¡¯re not running a fever. Are you really Leng Hanxiao? Why do I feel like this isn¡¯t you?¡± Leng Hanxiao scoffed and slapped the other¡¯s hand away with slight disdain. His voice was a little unnatural as he said, ¡°Nonsense. I¡¯m the real deal. If you dare to be rash again, I¡¯ll kill you.¡± At this moment, the storm in the outside world had already died down. Chen Yi coughed and glanced sideways in the direction where the demonesses had escaped. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t dare to do so. I was wrong. Then¡­ Demon Lord, tell me what those demonesses earlier meant.¡± Leng Hanxiao raised his head and clenched his fist in front of his lips. He coughed uncomfortably but did not speak. Chen Yi crossed his arms and said in a teasing tone, ¡°Don¡¯t you usually not do such things? Even if you did, you¡¯d always just send them away in the end. Why did you call so many demonesses right after coming back today? We haven¡¯t seen each other for so long, but you¡¯re still so lecherous.¡± Upon saying this, Chen Yi raised his eyebrows and said with a smile, ¡°Hmm, Demon Lord, don¡¯t you think so?¡± Unexpectedly, Leng Hanxiao suddenly seemed to be immersed in his wild and fanciful thoughts. The look in his eyes slowly turned from one of indulgence to one of gloominess. There was even a hint of sadness in his eyes. That turned Chen Yi pale with fright. ¡°Damn, don¡¯t tell me something is wrong outside! Also¡­ what did you just ask me about? What do you mean? I¡¯m confused!¡± Leng Hanxiao raised his hand and knocked the top of the other man¡¯s head. ¡°You¡¯re such an idiot!¡± ¡°Hey, that hurts!¡± Chen Yi rubbed the spot where the Demon Lord had hit him. He felt his horns throbbing slightly. By then, the noise outside the door had already ceased. Then, the blush on Leng Hanxiao¡¯s face disappeared at once. A cold glint flashed across his deep eyes. He looked at Chen Yi and said in a low voice, ¡°The lightning has ended.¡± The latter looked up and said coldly, ¡°Yes, I understand. Do you want me to get rid of it?¡± Leng Hanxiao replied indifferently, ¡°No.¡± The other man raised his head in a daze. ¡°Huh? This is the first time in your entire life that lightning has struck eight times. The last time was when you were born. After so many years, it¡¯s actually struck eight times again! What does this mean? That person must be eliminated. If he isn¡¯t eliminated, he will threaten you when he grows up.¡± Leng Hanxiao replied indifferently, ¡°Yes, I know.¡± ¡°So¡­¡± The gears in Chen Yi¡¯s brain started turning. Then, as if he had thought of something, his eyes widened. He patted Leng Hanxiao¡¯s back with one hand and instantly said with tears streaming down his face, ¡°No way! Lenghan Xiao, I¡¯m so touched that you haven¡¯t let me down after so many years of friendship. Are you worried about my safety? Is that why you won¡¯t let me get rid of that scourge!¡± He continued with his monologue, ¡°Don¡¯t worry! Even if I die, I¡¯ll die happy. I will go and eliminate this demon at once. Don¡¯t worry, with me around, your position as the Demon Lord will never be threatened!¡± As Chen Yi spoke, he swiftly turned around and walked out of the door. He even waved and said, ¡°Bye bye!¡± Just as Chen Yi was about to walk out of the door, he felt a huge bruise swell up at the back of his head. ¡°Ouch! Why did you hit me so mercilessly again, Lenghan Xiao?¡± The man in question glanced at him and said in a low voice, ¡°I say, when are you going to change this bad habit of yours? I really want to blow your head off. Can¡¯t you listen to me? I don¡¯t want you to get rid of them! I want you to protect them!¡± Chen Yi rubbed the back of his head and asked with a puzzled expression, ¡°What do you mean by them? Do you mean that there¡¯s more than one demon? Also, are you stupid? There were eight bolts of lightning. Why would they need my protection? I¡¯d be lucky not to be killed!¡± Leng Hanxiao sighed and held his forehead. His face darkened. ¡°Forget it, I¡¯ll tell you. They¡¯re my children. Otherwise, why would the Heavenly God strike eight bolts of heavenly lightning after all these years? Who else could it be other than my children?¡± Chen Yi¡¯s eyes instantly widened as wide as saucers, and he felt as if his eyeballs were about to fall out. He was at a total loss for words, and gulped down a mouthful of saliva. His right hand trembled as he pointed at Leng Hanxiao. ¡°You¡­ you you you¡­¡± Leng Hanxiao put down his hand and said coldly, ¡°Yes, stop talking nonsense. If you continue to talk nonsense, I will kill you. Go quickly and protect the mother and children in secret. Do not expose your whereabouts or my name.¡± Chen Yi was just about to ask why when he felt an impatient force burning behind him. ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll go. I¡¯ll go right now!¡± As soon as he turned around, Chen Yi immediately ran out. He thought to himself, ¡°Oh my god, if anyone knew that the great Demon Lord was actually a virgin who suddenly had two children at once, the entire Demonic Realm would probably laugh at him for a long time!¡± All of a sudden, Chen Yi was thrown against the wall by a strong force from behind. Then, he slowly slid down. ¡°Hey, brother, I¡¯ve already distanced myself but you can still hear me? I¡¯m sorry, I was wrong!¡± Chapter 29 - Mu Yaos Weakness Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios At the same time, within the garden where Mu Yao was in. A clear and bright voice of a baby boy called out, ¡°Mommy.¡± Mu Yao turned to look at the boy sitting right in front of her, giggling with his big grape-like eyes wide open. He looked so adorable! Mu Yao gulped. Her mind went blank when she saw this. ¡®This is impossible! This is absolutely impossible!¡¯ No matter how calm and intelligent Mu Yao was, this was an unprecedented shock. ¡°You¡­¡± Mu Yao swallowed and asked nervously, ¡°What did you call me, kid?¡± The little boy was stunned, then he tilted his head and said, ¡°Mommy.¡± A smile instantly appeared on his dazed face. In the blink of an eye, the little boy had grown small front teeth. Mu Yao¡¯s shocked face was reflected in his big, dark eyes. However, the boy¡¯s smile was so healing that Mu Yao felt her heart melt. The next second, the girl on her lap opened her eyes and rubbed herself against Mu Yao¡¯s belly. Mu Yao was on the verge of breaking down. ¡®This is too therapeutic!¡¯ Holding her breath, she mustered her courage and stood up. With a plop, the little girl rolled to Mu Yao¡¯s feet. Mu Yao didn¡¯t dare to look at the little girl, fearing that she wouldn¡¯t bear to leave the children. The pain in her body had lessened significantly. Then, she closed her eyes, allowing her other senses to instantly become sharper. Mu Yao¡¯s ears twitched and she sniffed around. At that moment, other than some small animals moving in the grass and the rustling sound of the wind blowing across the grass, there were no other smells or sounds of movement. Mu Yao suddenly opened her eyes and sighed softly. ¡°Fortunately, they didn¡¯t catch up.¡± After ensuring the safety of the surrounding area, Mu Yao looked at the two babies subconsciously and felt conflicted. She clearly understood what she had to do after leaving the cave. This was also the deepest regret of her past life. She wanted to kill everyone who had tried to kill her in one fell swoop. That would be the perfect ending to her tragic death. Her death was closely related to her own family. Even now, she could still feel the intense pain she had felt right before her death. It was as if she had been betrayed and abandoned by everyone. In just one day, everyone who had loved her had simply watched her die in front of them. In fact, the person who had reported her was her beloved father! Even though Mu Yao knew very well that her father wasn¡¯t her biological father, the feelings between people couldn¡¯t be fabricated. Eighteen years of kinship had turned out to mean nothing to him! Because Mu Yao had all these weighing on her mind, she had left the cave to ask her family for an explanation. But what would they say? Of course, Mu Yao knew that nothing would come out of it, but she had to do it. However, who would have thought that she would encounter the soldiers of Tianlong on her way out? It was then she found out that her death had to do with the defeat of the Tianlong soldiers. On the surface, the citizens of Tianlong thought that Mu Yao was the Emperor¡¯s child, and a demon who deserved to die. Only a few people knew that Mu Yao¡¯s death was just a farce. Her death was merely an absurd reason that the Heavenly God made up in order to obtain spiritual powers for cultivation. He had even plotted to kill the millions of soldiers under the Tianlong Emperor. Because of her existence, the soldiers had died tragically. Because she had been labeled as a demoness who would bring calamity to the country. Anything bad that happened in Tianlong was because of her responsibility because she was still alive. How absurd! In the end, Mu Yao was just a scapegoat so that the people in power could answer to the commoners. Before she died, the citizens had blindly followed the majority without any suspicions. No one had even thought of proving her innocence. However, she didn¡¯t hate them. She knew that even if these citizens rebelled, it would be of no use. They were just like her in her previous life. They were lambs that were at the mercy of others, not even knowing when they would die. The ones she hated the most were the masterminds¡ªthe sorcerer, the priest, Tianxiang, and that terrifying Blood Pupil they called the Heavenly God! There was even her father, Xia Guoyong whom she did not want to acknowledge. They were all Mu Yao¡¯s enemies! After learning some of the truth, Mu Yao even thought about dying. When the soldiers attacked her in the mystical realm, causing her to collapse, she couldn¡¯t help but think, ¡®It¡¯s so tiring to live. Why did I have to reincarnate?¡¯ However, a dream stirred up her desire to live once again. She had been in so much pain in her previous lifetime! She had been too weak and silly. Since she was lucky enough to be reincarnated, she would definitely not live like she did in her previous life, being an obedient lamb waiting to die. Since she wanted to live, she had to be the one who slayed the lamb instead! In this life, she had to rely on herself. She would no longer beg others as easily as she did in her previous life. What she had to do was become the enemy of her enemies! That dream had strengthened her resolve. Even now, Mu Yao was grateful that she had come to her senses. If she died again, she wouldn¡¯t have found out that there were people who really cared about her in this lifetime. Besides, the group of black shadow soldiers, who only had their souls left, had even offered their lives up for her¡­ Mu Yao¡¯s eyes welled up at that thought. Because of that, she had another purpose for coming out of the cave. She had to prove the innocence of the millions of soldiers who were killed by the Blood Pupil. She wanted to give Tianlong¡¯s ignorant citizens a future! But now that she had escaped the cave, this had happened! If it had merely been a treasured sword, a manual, or treasure, Mu Yao was sure that she wouldn¡¯t hesitate as much. After all, her obstacle was alive and kicking. Besides, it wasn¡¯t just one person, but two! ¡°Mommy.¡± ¡°Mommy!¡± Seeing that Mu Yao was ignoring them, the two babies started yelling. Mu Yao felt like she was going to break down. She would be dragged down if she brought those two with her. This weakness would prevent her from taking revenge. Besides, she¡¯d never even done this in her previous life! Raising a child? She¡¯d been no more than a teenager, yet she needed to be a mother now? That was ridiculous! Chapter 30 - Being a Mother is Tough! Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Mu Yao¡¯s mind was in a mess. She couldn¡¯t predict how many things she would encounter on her way to revenge. And now, he had already encountered two weaknesses right after leaving the cave. Mu Yao had already given up her first weakness. As for this second weakness¡­ Suddenly, Mu Yao felt something soft wrap around her legs. She broke out in a cold sweat as she slowly lowered her head. There were two cute little things wrapped around her legs, one on each side. Two pairs of large eyes blinked and two small mouths grinned in unison. Even the little girl had grown out her front teeth. ¡°Mommy.¡± ¡°Mommy!¡± How could Mu Yao bear to part with them just like this? They were so adorable! Besides, she had given birth to them after struggling in agony for almost two hours! They were her flesh and blood, and her children with Xiaohuo¡­ Their children even looked identical to her and Xiaohuo! She thought to herself, ¡®Mu Yao, you have to be more ruthless. It doesn¡¯t matter if you¡¯re seeking revenge or hiding from your enemies. Having two children will be a burden and a weakness!¡¯ The next second, she gritted her teeth and clenched her fists. Mu Yao had sworn to be a different person. If she wanted to become her enemy¡¯s enemy, she could not afford to leave any obstacles or weaknesses behind! She then squatted down and forcefully pulled the two children away. Instantly, she closed her eyes and rushed toward the exit! She couldn¡¯t bear to look at them. She knew that she would definitely be soft-hearted if she were to do so. ¡®It doesn¡¯t matter, Mu Yao. Xiaohuo will definitely be able to find them! They will be fine as long as he finds them!¡¯ ¡­ There was a dilapidated villa ten miles outside from the forest. By now, the sun had already set and it was completely dark. Mu Yao hadn¡¯t eaten or drunk for more than twenty hours and was utterly exhausted, She had been planning on going to the Imperial Preceptor¡¯s residence first. However, she realized that the forest was more remote than she had expected. Not only that, but the roads were also torturous. It hadn¡¯t been easy for her to get out of the forest! Thankfully, she had not encountered any demons, monsters, or even humans chasing after her on the way out. Even Mu Yao herself was a little surprised by that. Finally, just as she was about to collapse, Mu Yao spotted a village she could temporarily stay in. Although the sun had just set not too long ago, the lights of every household in this village were already extinguished. That was strange! Looking into the distance, Mu Yao found not a single soul on the road toward the village¡ªnot even a stray cat. Panting, Mu Yao carefully entered the village. On both sides of the road stood houses built with wooden stakes and straw. The strange thing was that there were traces of people living along the street where Mu Yao was walking. Holding her arm, Mu Yao struggled to reach for a sweet potato. It was still a little hot. ¡®If there were people on the streets not long ago, then there must be people in this village. But why is there no light in the houses?¡¯ At a glance, it was pitch black, with no end in sight. ¡®Whatever, I¡¯ll just eat first. The sweet potato¡¯s free. I might as well have my fill! I might not be able to hold on much longer if I don¡¯t fill my stomach now!¡¯ she thought to herself. Even with the elixir, there was no way she could last so long without food. Mu Yao put her things down, picked up a sweet potato and started peeling off the skin of a sweet potato openly on the dark street. What Mu Yao didn¡¯t know was that someone was watching her every move. In every cottage, there were a few pairs of eyes peeking out from the gaps between the doors and windows. They watched as Mu Yao wandered around the streets. Meanwhile, Mu Yao had finished peeling the sweet potato and was about to put it into her mouth when a heart-wrenching cry came from behind her. Mu Yao took a deep breath and subconsciously put a hand on her forehead. She moved the sweet potato away from her mouth. Mu Yao crouched down and blew at the sweet potato in her hand. She then split it into two halves and fed them to the two adorable babies. That was right. Mu Yao couldn¡¯t bear to part with the twins in the end. She had walked out of the forest carrying the two babies that were getting increasingly heavier. Along the way, Mu Yao had almost abandoned her two babies several times. But every time that thought came to mind, the image of Xia Guoyong reporting her to the authorities in her previous life would appear in her mind. She did not want these two adorable children to be abandoned from birth. In the end, she even named the two children. The elder brother was called Zimo, while the younger sister was called Zichun. Zimo grabbed the sweet potato and started chomping on it. On the other hand, Zichun ate it slowly and gracefully. Mu Yao¡¯s face darkened. She had no idea how to educate her two kids. It didn¡¯t take Zimo long to finish his portion, and his gaze turned to the sweet potato that his sister was still slowly eating. Then, he grabbed it and threw it into his mouth. That sent Zichun bursting into tears. The eerily-quiet village was filled with only the cries of the newborn, which were no longer adorable, but downright terrifying. Mu Yao was at a complete loss! ¡°Hey, Zichun. Don¡¯t cry!¡± However, the young girl cried even louder! ¡°And you, Zimo, how could you steal your sister¡¯s food?¡± The next moment, Zimo burst into tears as well! Mu Yao didn¡¯t know what to do. Seeing the two babies crying louder and louder, she felt aggrieved and frustrated. All of a sudden, she jumped to her feet and pointed at the two kids angrily. ¡°Cry again and I¡¯ll leave you here to be eaten by the wolves!¡± The two children widened their big red eyes and froze for a while, and they even stopped crying! Mu Yao scratched her head and rejoiced inwardly. ¡®I guess being fierce is the only way to go! That¡¯s how kids should be taught!¡¯ But just then, an even louder cry sounded. This time, it was comparable to the howl of a fox! Because their mother had been so fierce to them instead of doting on them, they instantly felt extremely frustrated, and they cried to the point they seemed as if their internal organs were about to be torn out. Mu Yao, who was losing her hearing, couldn¡¯t help but sigh at the sky and shout, ¡°Ah! It¡¯s not easy being a mother!¡± Chapter 31 - Two-pronged Attack Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios In a certain room, a pair of hazy eyes was watching Mu Yao¡¯s every move. That pair of eyes had an abnormal expression as their gaze lowered before tensing up. That person was holding a small knife, which glowed faintly in the darkness. Mu Yao and the two kids were standing right in front of the door. Outside the door, Mu Yao was sitting on the ground and wailing. Her entire body was trembling, and she scratched her ears and cheeks as she raised her head and shouted. Her voice spread throughout the quiet and deserted village, and she looked like she was on the verge of a breakdown. Suddenly, the sound of hooves came from behind Mu Yao. Mu Yao¡¯s ears twitched, and her expression changed immediately. She picked up the two young children and turned around to hide behind the sweet potato stall. Although the two children didn¡¯t know what was happening, they seemed to have realized that they were in danger, and they instantly shut their mouths and stopped crying when they saw their mother¡¯s expression. Holding one in each arm, Mu Yao pressed her fingers to the children¡¯s lips and crouched down behind the sweet potato stand. The sound of horse hooves drew closer and closer. Mu Yao held her breath as she listened to the sounds and made a preliminary judgment. There were probably hundreds of horses, with hundreds more men riding on those horses. It was unusual for such a remote village to host such a large number of horses unless this was a camp for soldiers, or even bandits! If these men were bandits, it wouldn¡¯t be strange that the villagers had hidden themselves. But Mu Yao was all by herself, and she was even carrying two young children. She would definitely be no match for them. On the other hand, if they were soldiers, they would definitely recognize her given her status. That meant that she couldn¡¯t show herself in front of them either. No matter who it was, Mu Yao would have used her invisibility spell without hesitation if she were alone. However, the reality was that she couldn¡¯t do that with the two young ones. A cold glint flashed across Mu Yao¡¯s clear eyes. She frowned and touched the two kids¡¯ lips. She was so nervous that she broke out in cold sweat. The two little babies stared unblinkingly at their mother with their big grape-like eyes. Sensing Mu Yao¡¯s nervousness, Zimo reached out his tiny hands to touch her face. The latter turned to her son, thus moving her face away from his small hands. Then, Zimo opened his palm and placed them on Mu Yao¡¯s cold face. The warm touch spread across her cold face. He then grinned, revealing his incomplete front teeth. Mu Yao couldn¡¯t help but cover her mouth and giggle involuntarily. She couldn¡¯t resist the sudden cuteness! Taking advantage of Mu Yao being distracted, Zichun pulled away Mu Yao¡¯s hand that was covering her mouth. She then rose to her feet and planted a peck on her mother¡¯s cheek. The moment she did so, she turned around and looked at her brother with a smug expression before sitting back down. Zimo pursed his lips instantly, looking like he wanted to kiss Mu Yao too. ¡®These two ignorant brats are still competing at such a critical moment!¡¯ Mu Yao didn¡¯t know whether to laugh or cry! Mu Yao suddenly felt warm at the sight of the two little children fighting over her affection, and the anxiety she felt for no reason disappeared. The pair of eyes behind the door saw everything that had just happened¡ªMu Yao¡¯s warm interactions with her two little children. They were still a distance away, but now, they were getting closer and closer to the door. The mysterious person behind the door frowned, and that person¡¯s grip on the knife tightened. Of course, Mu Yao knew nothing about this. Suddenly, a wave of light flashed at the end of the village, appearing alongside galloping horses that rustled up the soil, covering the entire village in a layer of fog. ¡°Oh no.¡± She would definitely be able to hide from the light if she were invisible. However, no matter how the three of them tried to hide, the light would eventually shine on them in this darkness no matter how hard they tried. From afar, she could hear the leader shouting while holding a thick wooden stick that was burning with flames. He shouted loudly, ¡°All of them! Search this place thoroughly for any targets. If you find them, capture all of them alive!¡± ¡°Yes, Boss!¡± his subordinates dutifully replied. ¡®Target? Could they be the same group of people that was chasing me earlier? Are they the sorcerer¡¯s men?¡¯ Mu Yao couldn¡¯t help but wonder. Picking her two children up, she glanced around, looking for a secure hiding place. If there was really no one in this village, then they could enter all the empty houses as she wished! By now, the group of people had reached the street where Mu Yao belonged, and she would run into them in a matter of seconds! She didn¡¯t mind being arrested, but she couldn¡¯t let her two children suffer with her. At the same time, Zichun wasn¡¯t used to Mu Yao¡¯s tight hug. She started flailing her limbs and bumped into a wooden basket nearby, causing it to fall to the ground with a thud. The twins instantly seemed to have understood that their action had brought trouble to their mother, and they quickly cupped their mouths to avoid making any sound or movement. Mu Yao shuddered as her mind went blank! When the leader of the village heard this, he smirked and raised his torch. ¡°Brothers, there¡¯s someone in front. Chase after them!¡± The leader narrowed his eyes and looked in the direction of the sound. He seemed to have seen something, so he shouted again, ¡°There! Follow me!¡± ¡®The sounds of horse hooves and the dazzling light are getting closer and closer! It¡¯s over! I have to escape no matter what!¡¯ Mu Yao thought inwardly. As such, she gritted her teeth and carried the twins in her arms. Turning around, she spotted a straw hut. Upon closer inspection, there seemed to be a rather large gap in the door. Mu Yao smirked and thought to herself: ¡®I¡¯ll have to run as fast as I can.¡¯ Sure enough, the elixir appeared instantaneously and Mu Yao dashed forward with the two young ones in her arms. To her surprise, the door opened a second before she reached it. The door opened and a hand appeared behind the dark door. Worse still, that hand was actually holding onto a sharp knife! Panic flickered in Mu Yao¡¯s eyes. Zimo, who was still in Mu Yao¡¯s arms, instinctively closed his eyes when he saw the sharp knife. He leaned against his mother¡¯s neck. On the other hand, Zi Chun subconsciously wanted to cry out. However, she covered her mouth with her chubby hands and, in order not to make a sound, bit her own hand. Her face immediately turned red. Mu Yao thought that she would be able to survive after escaping from the dangerous cave. How was she to know that she would encounter obstacle after obstacle? At the same time, the horses¡¯ hooves were only a few meters away. The light from the torch had already reached the sweet potato stall where Mu Yao had been. Mu Yao was almost at the door when she saw that the hand holding the sharp knife looked a little old. It had even started to tremble under the flickering light. Mu Yao took a closer look at the hand. Not only was it old, but it was also covered in wrinkles and age spots. However, she knew that stepping into the unknown darkness would be suicide without knowing whom the enemy was. Besides, Mu Yao could no longer give up her life so easily. She had a mission to fulfill, and as much as she didn¡¯t want to admit to it, she was now a mother. Mu Yao was at a loss. She was about to put the twins down, pull out her silver sword, and fight with that bunch of ignorant fools. All of a sudden, however, the old man threw the knife into the house and the owner of the hand leaned toward Mu Yao and grabbed her shoulder. Mu Yao subconsciously tried to resist, but just as she was about to resist, the door closed quietly. By then, Mu Yao had already been dragged into the house, and she realized that her mouth was being covered by the old man¡¯s wrinkled hand. Outside the door, the leader had already arrived with the flame in his hand. Behind him were dozens of black-clothed men armed with weapons. The leader outside the door had a confused look on his face. He jumped off the horse, picked up a torch, and threw it at the sweet potato stall where Mu Yao had been hiding. A cold and piercing gaze flashed past the leader¡¯s eyes. There was not a soul present there! He frowned and his face was instantly filled with anger. He roared, ¡°This is impossible. I clearly saw that there were people here. They must have hidden somewhere!¡± The men in black behind him looked at each other in confusion. ¡°Boss, could it have been a stray kitten or puppy? We¡¯ve been combing this stupid village for a few days. Every time we come, there¡¯s no one around. If only we could fish them out of the streets in broad daylight. Why do we have to be so sneaky at night?¡± Immediately, the leader¡¯s face turned green, and anger flashed in his eyes. He shouted in a low voice, ¡°All of you just need to listen to my orders and carry them out. There¡¯s no need for you to question the orders from the higher-ups. Are you tempting fate now?¡± The men in black behind immediately shut their mouths and did not dare to say a word. Then, one after another, they took out their torches and prepared to dismount.. Chapter 32 - An Innocent Smile Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios The frantic sounds of footsteps were heard as the men in black got off their horses one after another. With expressionless faces, they carried torches and searched every house meticulously. With a clang, a man in black kicked open the door of the straw hut opposite the one Mu Yao was in. ¡°Ahhh!¡± There was actually someone behind the door, and he even let out a scream. ¡°All of you, don¡¯t move! It¡¯s so dark outside. If anyone dares to do anything rash, you will die!¡± She saw a couple in shabby clothes kneeling on the ground, trembling, their expressions uneasy as they raised their hands. They pursed their dry lips and said in a trembling voice, ¡°Sir, we are just a pair of poor commoners without much money. If you want anything, we will give it to you. Please let us go.¡± The men in black outside carried torches and went straight in to raid the house, smashing everything in sight before using the torches to light up every corner of the thatched house. The men searched every room and even raided the wardrobe, only giving up when the bottom of the wardrobe was revealed. They even kicked over the bed boards, looking for things hidden under the beds. When they did not find what they wanted, they pulled the couple¡¯s hair and demanded fiercely, ¡°How long have you been married?¡± Mu Yao saw that she had no chance or time to draw her sword since she had her two children in her arms, so she decided to stay put. The owner of the pair of hands on Mu Yao¡¯s lips was hidden in the dark. The flickering light of the torches outside shone on the clothes of the owner of the hands. There was nothing strange about this piece of clothing. It was just an old and tattered cloth robe worn by commoners. Sensing Mu Yao¡¯s lack of hostility, the owner of the hand carefully removed his hand from her lips. As the hand slowly moved away, the face of the hand¡¯s owner slowly appeared in the light. At the same time, the couple on the other side shouted, ¡°Lord, Lord, we really don¡¯t have any children! We¡¯ve been married for many years, but we¡¯ve never been able to conceive. Even if we did, we wouldn¡¯t have the ability to raise a child!¡± The next moment, a certain man in black stepped ruthlessly on her husband¡¯s head, and the sound of bones cracking could be heard. As the woman was being held down by two men in black, her tears flowed freely as she knelt on the ground and cried loudly, ¡°My Lord! Don¡¯t touch my husband! I beg you!¡± The man in black, who was stepping on his husband, smiled evilly and smirked at the woman. ¡°Let him go?¡± His wife was about to rush forward when she was pulled back by the men in black. ¡°Ahhh!¡± She couldn¡¯t help but scream in pain. Because her pants were already worn out, her skin on her knees was scraped as the men dragged her along the ground, and fresh blood oozed out of the wound. The man in black, who was stepping on the woman¡¯s husband, suddenly had a fierce look on his face. He said calmly, ¡°Those who beg for mercy are useless and deserve to die. However, if you tell me the whereabouts of your child, I can consider letting you go.¡± The husband struggled to get up and shouted, ¡°I told you we don¡¯t have any children!¡± The next second, the sound of bones cracking could be heard again. Suddenly, a stream of warm blood gushed out from the man¡¯s head. Upon seeing this, his wife¡¯s eyes suddenly widened and her voice became hoarse. Even so, she shouted, ¡°No! No! I¡¯ll tell you! Don¡¯t kill him! I beg you!¡± The husband suddenly struggled with all his might. His eyes were instantly filled with blood and some turbid tears. He opened his mouth, which was also full of blood, and looked at his wife with despair. ¡°Xiaohua! You!¡± At the same time, Mu Yao witnessed everything that happened behind this door. It turned out that the person holding the knife was an elderly lady in her sixties. Behind her stood a flustered couple. Each of them was carrying a newborn child. The next moment, the man spoke first, ¡°Mother! You¡¯re being silly! How could you let a stranger in at such a crucial time? For the past week, we have been hiding day and night just to save our lives!¡± Meanwhile, that old granny was looking at the confused Mu Yao and the two adorable little children in her arms with their chubby little hands still on their mouths. She remained silent. His wife, who was beside him, frowned and comforted the child in her arms who did not dare to open his eyes. She whispered, ¡°That¡¯s right. Mother, we have suffered so much just to save our lives. We¡¯ve been trying so hard to hide all day, pretending that there¡¯s no one in the house. Who would have thought that they would break into our village and even our houses tonight? What should we do now? We can¡¯t even take care of ourselves. Are we supposed to take care of this woman and her children?¡± She continued her rant, ¡°Besides, we haven¡¯t seen this woman even after living in this village for so long. What if she¡¯s a bad person? Moreover, if this woman¡¯s child hadn¡¯t accidentally kicked a bamboo basket, she wouldn¡¯t have lured those men in black to our village. Don¡¯t you know? I heard from Xiaohong from another village that many of their children were snatched away in the night! It looks like it¡¯s our village¡¯s turn today!¡± Her husband¡¯s face was livid. Gritting his teeth, he glared at Muyao. ¡°That¡¯s right! If that woman¡¯s child hadn¡¯t knocked over that wooden basket, those men wouldn¡¯t have known anything! Now, they¡¯re probably going to raid the entire village!¡± At the same time, Zimo and Zichun, who were in Mu Yao¡¯s arms, seemed to have gotten used to the shock and felt a little safer. They slowly moved their hands away from their lips. The moment they did so, they blinked their big and bright eyes at the elderly lady in front of them. Then, they even grinned widely, revealing their little front teeth that had yet to fully grow. They happily smiled at the old granny. At this moment, the old granny actually burst out laughing.Even the couple behind them was stunned. They too were melted by the twins¡¯ naive and innocent smiles. However, their expressions were still fierce due to their pride. After the granny finished laughing, she put down the hand that was still holding the knife and finally said, ¡°Young lady, we don¡¯t have time. Hurry and hide. The men in black haven¡¯t come to our house yet. I reckon¡­¡± Before the granny could finish, Mu Yao, who had been silent all this time, cut in, ¡°This house is the closest to them. I bet they think it¡¯s the most dangerous place and that no one would dare to hide here. That¡¯s why they would subconsciously think about searching it last.¡± When the granny heard that, she raised her eyebrows and said, ¡°That sounds true, Miss.¡± At the same time, the couple¡¯s desperate pleas came from outside. Mu Yao¡¯s ears twitched and she lowered her eyes. She then put down the two little kids and quickly got up, placing her hands on the handle of the silver sword at her waist. The next moment, Mu Yao opened her eyes and a cold gleam flickered across her clear pupils. Mu Yao smirked. ¡°Grandma, stay here and protect my children. I¡¯ll be back soon.¡± Seeing that, her smiling face suddenly turned solemn. She warned in a low voice, ¡°Miss! Don¡¯t be rash!¡± The stunned couple finally realized that the woman in front of them had an aura that was different from that of ordinary women. She also had a silver sword carved with a flying dragon in her arms. Then, their shock turned into anger. The husband shouted at the top of his lungs, ¡°Young lady, I don¡¯t care who you are. If you dare to leave this house now, our entire family will be dragged down with you. Once you leave, you will definitely be discovered by those men in black!¡± The woman at the side also chimed in, ¡°That¡¯s right! Ingrate! We just saved the three of you! Once you go out, all eight of us will suffer! Are you trying to tempt fate?¡± The old granny raised her hand, signaling for her son and daughter-in-law to remain silent. Her voice was calm as she said, ¡°Don¡¯t speak too harshly. What did I teach you in the past?¡± The couple shouted in unison, ¡°But-¡° ¡°Alright, keep your voices down. We have to be careful not to be discovered.¡± At the same time, the screams in the house on the other side were growing louder. The man was already on the ground and couldn¡¯t move. Even so, he kept repeating, ¡°Xiaohua, we don¡¯t have any children.¡± ¡°How dare you try to lie to us?¡± The man in black exerted even more strength on his foot. ¡°Ah!¡± The man screamed in pain. Xiaohua struggled to break free of the man¡¯s grip to save her husband. By now, the clothes on her body were already torn and tattered due to the repeated tugging. It even revealed the smooth and white skin of the woman. Still, she continued to shout stubbornly, ¡°Let him go! I beg you! Our child is¡­¡± ¡°Xiaohua!¡± her husband shouted. Then, the man in black, who was stepping on her husband, let go of him and walked toward Xiaohua with an evil expression. He raised Xiaohua¡¯s chin with his index finger. ¡°Tell me. Where is your child?¡± the man in black asked coldly.. Chapter 33 - Run! Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Xiaohuo scoffed, a stubborn look in her eyes. ¡°You promised to let us go if I told you.¡± The man in black smiled and stroked the woman¡¯s chin. ¡°Of course. I wouldn¡¯t go back on my word.¡± Her husband could no longer speak. He seemed to be on the verge of fainting and was hanging on with his last breath. Seeing the miserable state her husband was in, Xiaohua¡¯s stubborn eyes instantly turned misty. She swallowed her saliva. She could taste blood in her own saliva. ¡°He¡¯s in the dry well in the backyard.¡± Xiaohua confessed before closing her eyes in despair. The men in black immediately headed to the well in the backyard to look for the child. After they left, only the man in black, Xiaohua, and her husband were left in the room. At that moment, the man in black glanced outside and suddenly approached Xiaohua. His smile widened. ¡°Hahaha. You¡¯re so smart and beautiful. What a pity¡­¡± Sensing that something was amiss, the woman¡¯s eyes shot open. The next moment, the man ripped open her top, exposing her fair and slightly rosy shoulders. Xiaohua subconsciously shouted, ¡°What are you trying to do?¡± The man in black threw his head back and guffawed as he did something obscene. He leaned close to Xiaohua¡¯s ear and whispered, ¡°What a pity. You¡¯re such a beautiful lady. Why did you get married to such a useless man so early on in life? He didn¡¯t even want to protect you. Compared to you, he chose the child instead of you. So now, he has to pay the price of his choice. That is¡­¡± The man at the side was about to faint when he saw this scene. He clenched his fists with difficulty and tried to get up. He shouted fiercely, ¡°You beast! How dare you touch my wife?¡± However, the man in black acted as though he didn¡¯t hear anything. He immediately leaned over and pounced on Xiaohua. Then, he started to nibble on the latter¡¯s neck and shoulder. He panted slightly before continuing, ¡°That is to live happily with me. It¡¯s better than death since you¡¯re so beautiful.¡± Xiaohua had no idea what to do as she lay beneath the man in black. All she knew was that she still had to resist the man as long as she had the strength to do so. She pushed the man in black away desperately and shouted, ¡°Chen Lang, save me! Save me! Save me!¡± However, she knew that it was useless. After all, her husband, who was lying on the ground, did not even have the strength to speak. How could he get up to save her from being tainted? ¡°Chen Lang!¡± Yet, she went on shouting because there was nothing else she could do. She desperately wanted to live! By the side, Chen Lang mustered up all of his remaining strength to lift his head. With that, the blood on his head flowed uncontrollably toward his face. Before long, his entire face was covered in blood. ¡°Chen Lang¡­¡± Xiaohua, who was being held down, choked on her tears. She cried as she looked at her husband who was trying his best to get up in spite of the blood flowing down his face. She slowly closed her eyes and her voice weakened. ¡°Forget it, Chen Lang. I guess this is our fate¡­¡± Xiaohua instantly gave up on resisting the man and lay there motionlessly for the man to do as he pleased. ¡°No¡­ Xiaohua, I can do it.¡± Chen Lang struggled to support himself. But it didn¡¯t take long before he fell back with a thud. He propped himself up again and kept muttering, ¡°Xiaohua¡­¡± Meanwhile, the man in black was immersed in lust. Just as he was about to undo his pants, he heard the man behind him crying, ¡°Xiaohua¡­¡± The man in black frowned and pushed himself up impatiently. He stood up, walked over and kicked the other man mercilessly. In an instant, the man on the ground was kicked to the wall, and blood stained the wall. At the same time, Xiaohua lay there, without saying a word. She opened her eyes slightly and closed them. She saw her husband being treated like this. Even she was being treated like this by the men in black. There was also the newborn child in the backyard¡­ The family of three would not be able to escape this man¡¯s abuse. She slowly shut her eyes. ¡®Forget it, I¡¯ll just die. What¡¯s the use of resisting? Fighting is futile. Believing the words of an evil person is as laughable as a foolish sheep believing that a wolf wouldn¡¯t eat it. Evildoers are evildoers because they commit all kinds of crimes. They have no morals, no limits, or humanity!¡¯ Her husband fainted from the blow, and his blood-stained body slowly slid down the wall. In the courtyard outside, the shouts of the other men in black could be heard. ¡°We¡¯ve found it. It¡¯s a baby that¡¯s not even a year old. Master will definitely like it!¡± ¡°Bring him here!¡± the man in black casually replied. The man in black curled his lips and rolled up his sleeves. He turned around and looked at Xiaohua, who was lying on the ground in a disheveled state. He licked his lips and said in a devilish voice, ¡°Woman, now that it¡¯s quiet, let me have some fun with you.¡± The next moment, the man in black got down on the ground again. He positioned himself on top of Xiaohua. This time, the man in black didn¡¯t have much patience. He wanted to get down to it immediately. However, his leader outside couldn¡¯t wait any longer. He had to get back and report to his higher-ups. The man in black glanced at the motionless woman below him, and his lower body immediately reacted. He slowly stretched out his lower body and was about to do something. But just then, a silver sword with a dragon pattern engraved on it suddenly appeared behind him. The next moment, Xiaohua smelled a foul liquid spraying all over her body. Her eyes, which were filled with despair, shot open. A silver sword then pierced through the chest of the man in black on top of her. Yet, there was no one behind him! Immediately after that, the man spat out a mouthful of blood before collapsing onto the ground, motionless. That man probably didn¡¯t even know how he died! At that moment, the men in black rushed over. One of them was holding a crying baby in his arms. They shouted from outside, ¡°Hey, Lin Shen, stop wasting time inside. Hurry up and come out. We have to report to the leader. This time, we have really done a great deed!¡± What they didn¡¯t know was that Lin Shen had already been stabbed by a silver sword that appeared out of nowhere, dying on the spot. It was eerily silent in the house. Suddenly, the silver sword was pulled out by an unknown force from behind her, and Xiaohua was so frightened that she subconsciously retreated. She shouted carefully, ¡°Ahh! How is this possible? How can a silver sword move on its own?¡± Instead of remaining there, the silver sword rushed into the back courtyard. ¡°Sigh. Lin Shen must be messing with another young lady. Let¡¯s go in and call him.¡± the man in black carrying the newborn baby said as he walked in. The other men in black followed behind him. Just then, a gust of cold wind blew towards the group of men. ¡°What¡¯s going on? Did the temperature suddenly drop?¡± ¡°Perhaps.¡± The man in black in the front row instantly shouted, ¡°Ah!¡± Then, he stopped moving. The men behind him stopped abruptly in their tracks. ¡°What¡¯s going on? What¡¯s wrong with you? Why are you suddenly shouting?¡± one of them questioned. ¡°Exactly! Why are you shouting? You scared me! I thought you ran into a ghost!¡± ¡°Hey, don¡¯t talk nonsense. There aren¡¯t any ghosts in this village apart from us!¡± someone else replied. Everyone burst into laughter at that joke. ¡°I can¡¯t say that you¡¯re wrong, but we¡¯re just weak underlings. Who else would do such things for them if not us? Think about it. Which parent would sacrifice their own newborn for a ritual?¡± one of the men said. ¡°You¡¯re right, but who cares? It¡¯s not our child. It¡¯s none of our business.¡± the group of men said nonchalantly. ¡°That¡¯s true, but why isn¡¯t he moving at all!¡± Then, everyone¡¯s attention returned to the man in black who was holding the baby in front. He had stopped moving after screaming. The people behind him had already sensed that something was wrong. One of the men raised his finger and poked him in his back while shivering. ¡°Hey, what¡¯s wrong? Why aren¡¯t you walking? Is there something ahead?¡± The black figure in front didn¡¯t say anything. The man behind him frowned and started shoving him instead of probing him. To everyone¡¯s surprise, the man leading the group toppled over. However, the child in his hand was floating in midair! At the same time, the men behind him finally noticed a silver sword that had appeared out of nowhere, and was stabbed into the man¡¯s chest. They let out a blood-curdling scream in unison. ¡°This! How is this possible?¡± ¡°It-it must be a ghost! This is absolutely impossible. How could he suddenly die like this?¡± One of the men in black was so frightened that he had even peed on the spot. Then, the men in black huddled together and picked up their weapons and torches. They trembled as they glanced around. Other than thatched huts, there were no traces of other people around them. Just then, the silver sword that was stabbed into the black figure was pulled out, and blood sprayed out from the black figure¡¯s chest. When the men saw this, they immediately screamed, ¡°Ahh! Run! Damn it!¡± Chapter 34 - The "God" of the Village Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios The silver sword was right behind him, chasing after the fleeing men in black. ¡°Save us, my Lord!¡± Everyone ran out of the straw hut they had just entered. At this moment, Xiaohua had regained some consciousness. She crawled to her husband and called out softly, ¡°Chen Lang¡­¡± However, Chen Lang remained motionless. At the same time, the group of men in black screamed and ran toward her house. Xiaohua looked over, only to see a silver sword floating in front of her child, and her child was floating in the air! Because the child had suffered such a huge shock and was surrounded by so many strangers, he cried even louder. In front of the child and the silver sword was the group of shameless men in black who had just bullied her and her husband! No matter how much Xiaohua didn¡¯t believe what she was seeing, she subconsciously knew that the silver sword wouldn¡¯t harm her. Instead, it was protecting her and her child! The group of men in black quickly ran up to Xiaohua¡¯s side, shouting, ¡°Help! Help, my Lord!¡± The silver sword quickly caught up to them and was about to fly out. Seeing this, Xiaohua swallowed her saliva nervously and subconsciously clasped her palms together. She silently prayed, ¡°Heavenly God, thank you for saving us.¡± It didn¡¯t matter where this silver sword had come from. To Xiaohua, the omnipotent and invincible Heavenly God had to be real! How else would she explain what had happened tonight? The silver sword seemed to be able to understand what Xiaohua had just said. It paused and stopped moving. Then, it gently floated the child in front of the woman. Xiaohua¡¯s heart stopped for a moment, but she suddenly felt a warmth in her heart and her eyes became inexplicably misty. The next second, Xiaohua stretched out her arms to take her child into her embrace. The moment his warm body touched Xiaohua¡¯s, the latter felt as though something in her heart had dropped. Without waiting for a moment, she lowered her head to look at her child¡¯s red face, letting out a soft sigh. ¡°Thank God you¡¯re not injured.¡± The moment the child returned to his mother¡¯s embrace, the crying stopped and a smile appeared on his face. Then, the silver sword turned, and a white glow appeared around it. That glow appeared to be the silhouette of a person, which suddenly grew bigger. The next moment, the rays of light slowly converged from the silhouette of the person to a certain point in the air, eventually forming a small ball of light. Immediately following that, the ball of light flew toward Chen Lang, who was lying motionless on the ground. Xiaohua was shocked. She immediately knelt down with the child in her arms and hurriedly kowtowed. ¡°Thank you, Heavenly God. Thank you for protecting my family and me!¡± Her voice became extremely choked with emotions. ¡°I never thought that there would really be a kind and righteous God in this world! Thank you, my God!¡± When Mu Yao, who was using the elixir to conceal herself, heard these words, an indescribable feeling arose in her heart. That woman sounded as though she was willing to sacrifice herself to God. Mu Yao couldn¡¯t help but feel sorry for her. However, devout believers who believed in God would be happy to die for their beliefs, feeling the kind of happiness a moth flying into a flame felt. As Mu Yao used some of the elixir¡¯s power to save the man on the ground, she couldn¡¯t help but sympathize with the man. She wouldn¡¯t even mind others discovering her invisibility powers if that was the only way she could save this family. It was then that she finally understood how it felt for those righteous men whose dream was to save the world. Mu Yao wanted to be someone like that too. In the blink of an eye, she exhausted the power of the elixir in her body. In less than an hour, her invisibility powers would also lose its effects too. If she wanted the elixir to supply her with energy continuously, she had to cultivate herself. As such, Mu Yao had to end the battle quickly. If she was discovered to be invisible, she would not be the only one in danger. Zichun and Zimo would be implicated as well! Now that she had drawn aura into her body, she hid herself away, preparing to face the attack of hundreds of men in black alone.She had to make them stop their dirty acts! Even if it seemed like a suicide mission, Mu Yao knew that no one else could do the job now. She had already gone through the experience of leaving someone in the lurch. This time, she did not want to be a coward who would hide behind others. She wanted to defeat them! Then, the silver sword charged out with a burst of force. In Xiaohua¡¯s eyes, the silver sword seemed even more holy now. Although there didn¡¯t seem to be any changes on the outside, she couldn¡¯t help but feel that the aura around the silver sword was different. Meanwhile, the large group of men in black were still crying on the streets in the village. ¡°Help! Boss!¡± all the men in black cried out simultaneously. The situation in the other houses was similar to what happened in the previous house. The only difference was that houses didn¡¯t have what they were after. Some of the houses had children, but they were no longer newborns. ¡°What¡¯s wrong! Why are you so flustered!?¡± A man in black who was covered in blood ran out from inside. When he saw his companions running in such a panic, he said in an amused tone, ¡°You bunch of cowards. Didn¡¯t I ask you guys to search for newborn babies? How can you be scared? What¡¯s there to be afraid of about babies?¡± ¡°No! It¡¯s not about the babies! It¡¯s a silver sword!¡± one of the men wailed. ¡°What silver sword? Are you hallucinating?¡± the man drenched in blood asked. Right at this moment, an incomparably sharp silver sword swiftly pierced through the man who was covered in blood. Once again, a man in black was stabbed in the chest, and he immediately vomited blood and died! Before the man in black died, he still had a mocking expression on his face. His eyes were wide open as he fell to the ground with a thud. ¡°Ahh! Boss! Another one down! Hurry up and find Boss!¡± one of the men instructed. ¡°Yes!¡± The group of men who had escaped ran relentlessly down the street. However, Mu Yao charged after them without any hesitation. She couldn¡¯t tolerate them any further. She had hoped that the innocent villagers would be spared, but along the way, she saw men in black getting out of every thatched house. Her heart ached at the sight. Without exception, all the hands of the men in black were stained with blood. Some of them were even holding the skulls of the citizens! Mu Yao was so enraged that she didn¡¯t want to face these men. Right now, all she wanted to do was catch this group of men in black who had committed such heinous crimes! She leaped in front of the men who were lagging behind and immediately raised her sharp silver sword. With a glare, she jumped up, raised her silver sword with both hands, and stabbed at them without a moment¡¯s hesitation! ¡°All of you should pay the price for your evil deeds!¡± Rip! Mu Yao¡¯s silver sword pierced through the man in black who was running behind her, and the tip of the sword stabbed through the man¡¯s skull onto the ground. At the same time, the man in black shouted, ¡°Boss¡­¡± Then, the sound stopped abruptly. What replaced the sound was the sound of silver hitting the ground below. With a loud boom, the enormous force created a huge hole in the ground. The men who had witnessed this scene were all shocked! They raised the weapons in their hands, about to charge toward the silver sword that was inexplicably floating in the air with such powerful force. ¡°Brothers! This evil creature dared to harm our brothers. Drop everything you¡¯re doing and let¡¯s charge forward to kill it!¡± With that, the men in black instantaneously put down the babies, women, children, and corpses in their hands before charging at Mu Yao. It was only then that Mu Yao truly realized the reality of her situation. She was one against hundreds! Then, all of the men in black stepped forward and formed a ring around the sword, each with a weapon pointed at the silver sword floating above them. The next moment, they shouted in unison, ¡°Attack!¡± Mu Yao felt like she couldn¡¯t hold on any longer. However, she would lose her invisibility in less than ten minutes.She had to give it her all at this critical moment! She held her breath for a moment, lowered her eyes, and wholeheartedly felt the power of the elixir in her body. Because she had just used her power to save someone, Mu Yao had lost almost half of her power. Mu Yao mustered her remaining strength and decided to use her ultimate move to kill all the evil men around her at once. From an outsider¡¯s point of view, the silver sword emitted a white light, which grew more and more dazzling as it expanded. Then, the silver sword suddenly rose into the air, causing the white light to suddenly disperse! With that, a large group of men in black in the front spat out blood and collapsed. Witnessing this, fear arose in the surviving men¡¯s hearts. They immediately shouted, ¡°Boss! Quickly come and save us! We can¡¯t hold on much longer!¡± Just as Mu Yao was about to strike the group yet again, a door of a house not far ahead suddenly opened. Out walked their leader, who was smiling and holding a small knife against Zimo and Zichun¡¯s necks. The old lady¡¯s family followed behind him, all held hostage by the men in black. Then, the boss shouted at Mu Yao, ¡°Heh, you¡¯re finally here..¡± Chapter 35 - Xia He and Mu Yao Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Mu Yao¡¯s pupils contracted. Her eyes narrowed, and she sheathed his sword from the air before landing on the ground. The invisibility spell wouldn¡¯t last for much longer. Besides, Mu Yao had used up almost all of her energy in that move just now, causing the elixir to weaken. Gradually, she stepped out and appeared in front of the men in black. All of a sudden, a woman in a green dress appeared in front of everyone with a silver sword in her right hand, looking valiant and fearless. She remarked blandly, ¡°Boss? You¡¯ve sacrificed so many of your brothers¡¯ lives just to get me to show up? You¡¯re really ambitious.¡± At the same time, the men in black who were surrounding her saw that the ghostly being they had feared so much earlier was actually a woman. They were both shocked and ashamed at the same time! The men in black started to shout, ¡°Demoness! You¡¯re finally here. You¡¯re done for! Do you know who our boss is? If he catches you, you¡¯ll die!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right! Alright, there are so many of us. I was wondering what it was. You¡¯re just a woman, yet you¡¯re still acting mysterious here. How ridiculous!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, brothers. We can¡¯t let this woman off today, can we?¡± ¡°Boss, you must take revenge for our dead brothers!¡± Just then, the person holding the knife to Zichun and Zimo¡¯s necks showed up. Right after Mu Yao finished her sentence, she saw the true face of their boss. It was¡­ Her half-sister whom she had grown up with¡ªXia He, who was also the daughter of Xia Guoyong¡¯s wife, Qin Yu! Xia He and Mu Yao were both shocked when their gazes met! ¡°Xia He¡­ why is it you?¡± Mu Yao questioned. ¡°Mu Yao, you¡¯re still alive? How is that possible?!¡± Mu Yao was shocked. The situation seemed incredulous. Her younger sister, who had grown up with her, was now holding a knife to the neck of her children. Her younger sister was even threatening her and helping her enemy. How could it be Xia He? Later on, she recalled that Xia Guoyong was the Imperial Preceptor. Furthermore, when Xia Guoyong was young, he often sacrificed his children with aptitude to the priest Tianxiang and the Tianlong Temple. With that thought in mind, she roughly understood that Xia He was representing the priest, Tianxiang, at this moment. In that case, everything made sense. Xu Wen and the sorcerer were already on the same side, controlling the entire Sky Dragon Kingdom. Moreover, they had thousands of people like Xia He working for them mindlessly. Mu Yao knew that her younger half-sister wasn¡¯t a violent person. Neither was she someone who couldn¡¯t tell right from wrong. She was a good girl who could clearly distinguish between good and evil. She was also Qin Yu¡¯s beloved daughter. Qin Yu had never been biased toward them¡­ With that in mind, Mu Yao gradually drifted into her memories. Back then, in the Imperial Preceptor¡¯s residence. At that time, she was still young and still learning to speak. She was playing with a kite in the yard while Qin Yu watched from behind her, when she suddenly tripped over the kite line. Naturally, she fell into the mud and started wailing. Then, Qin Yu looked at Mu Yao with a doting expression and said with a smile, ¡°Even after playing so many times, you still get tripped by the rope all the time. You have to be careful. Get up quickly.¡± Qin Yu was carrying Xia He as she said so. . At that time, Mu Yao was such a delicate girl that she wouldn¡¯t have gotten up without her mother¡¯s help. Even if she could have gotten up without any help, she couldn¡¯t help but wail at the sight of her mother hugging her sister, Xia He. Her cries were pitiable, and there was snot and tears all over her face. Seeing this, Qin Yu shook her head helplessly and said with a smile, ¡°I can¡¯t believe you¡¯re still jealous over your sister. Alright, I¡¯m coming.¡± Then, Qin Yu put down Xia He and placed her in a safer place. At that time, Xia He had only just learned how to walk. The moment her mother placed her on the ground, the little toddler immediately started wailing. Seeing that her sister was crying, Mu Yao didn¡¯t back down and cried even harder! At that age, it was only natural for children to fight for their parents¡¯ love. Neither of the two children backed down, and the entire courtyard was filled with cries. Qin Yu turned back to look at Xia He before looking at Mu Yao who was not far ahead. She smiled helplessly. ¡°You two little children really know how to make trouble for me!¡± She then went back to carry Xia He. Because Xia He was younger, Qin Yu carried her up first. However, Mu Yao had no idea about all that. She was devastated to see her mother dote on her younger sister more than herself! Just as she was about to cry even louder, Qin Yu had already turned around. Then, she held her breath and slowly squatted down. With her other hand, she picked up Mu Yao. In her left hand was Xia He, and in her right was Mu Yao. Then, Qin Yu struggled to get up, her face instantly turning red. She looked at the two little kids who had stopped crying and instantly smiled. ¡°You two naughty brats. I¡¯m not biased.. I love you both equally!¡± Chapter 36 - Get Rid of the Demoness! Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios The moment her mother picked her up, Little Mu Yao grinned and gave the former a big kiss. When Little Xia He, who had just learned how to walk, saw this scene, she couldn¡¯t stop smiling and reached out her hand, trying to grab something. Seeing that, Little Mu Yao reached out to pinch her little sister. The next moment, Little Xia He grabbed Little Mu Yao¡¯s hand and leaned over to kiss her on the cheek. Instantly, Qin Yu and the two little brats burst out laughing, and the entire courtyard was now filled with laughter instead of cries. This beautiful memory flashed past and she returned to reality. Xia He, who was still holding the knife, was glaring at her. Mu Yao¡¯s clear eyes were filled with pain. Why couldn¡¯t it be someone else confronting her? Why did it have to be Xia He? While Mu Yao was hesitating, Xia He coldly said, ¡°Mu Yao, you¡¯re still haunting me like a ghost. You¡¯re already in the netherworld, yet you¡¯re still ruining my plans. Do you know how many of my men have died to lure you out? Do you know how much punishment I¡¯ll suffer if my master finds out about this?!¡± As Xia He spoke, the knife in her hand drew closer to Zimo and Zichun¡¯s necks and even touched their skin. If she took another step closer, they would bleed! The more Xia He spoke, the colder her eyes became. She was like an emotionless demon. ¡°So, I don¡¯t care if you¡¯re a human or a ghost! If you ruin my plan, you¡¯re my enemy and I¡¯ll kill you! Put down your weapon now and the two kids will live, do you hear me, Mu Yao?¡± Mu Yao¡¯s heart sank and her eyes were filled with pain. It wasn¡¯t heartache for her children being threatened by Xia He, it was heartache for that discerning Xia He who knew good from evil and had had love in her heart. That Xia He was gone¡­ ¡®Why did you turn out this way, Xia He? Why did you have to kill these commoners for no reason? Why did you have to be so cruel?¡¯ ¡®Be it human or ghost? As long as they hinder you, they¡¯re your enemy? Ha¡­ Everything has changed. Even those who were close to me have changed.¡¯ Mu Yao thought to herself. Mu Yao wiped away the tears in her eyes, looked up, and said in a choked voice, ¡°Xia He, I¡¯m your sister, and you¡¯re holding my children. They¡¯re also your nephew and niece. Are you sure you want to continue doing such a wrong thing?¡± The moment Xia He heard the words ¡°I¡¯m your sister¡±, a trace of clarity flashed past her fierce eyes. However, in an instant, this clarity was covered by hatred. Disgusted, she yelled, ¡°My sister? Shut up, Mu Yao! The moment you were caught, you were no longer part of our family. You¡¯ve disgraced our family. I hate you. You¡¯re the one who brought disaster to our country. You¡¯re not my sister. You shouldn¡¯t even be alive!¡± As she said so, Xia He looked at the two children in her arms with an ambiguous smile. ¡°My nephew and niece? Hahaha¡­¡± She raised his head and glared at Mu Yao. Her eyes were murky as she said, ¡°They¡¯re the children of a traitor. Mu Yao, you¡¯re so shameless. You not only managed to survive, but even have a pair of children. You¡¯re a traitor who brought the entire country down, so what are they then?¡± Xia He glanced at the men in black, who immediately understood what she meant, and shouted, ¡°Boss, they¡¯re obviously demons too! We have to get rid of them. Otherwise, Tianlong will continue to be in danger!¡± ¡°Did she say that what we¡¯re doing is wrong? This demoness is really spouting nonsense! We are all top-notch Daoists of the Tianlong Temple. What we do is chivalrous and righteous. We punish evil and advocate good. If we don¡¯t kill you today, we will be letting the evil continue to wreak havoc!¡± another man shouted. ¡°That¡¯s right! She clearly died on the sacrificial altar. How did she revive herself?¡± One of his compatriots replied, ¡°Isn¡¯t that simple? It¡¯s because she is a demoness! How else could an ordinary person come back from the dead? It¡¯s really too scary. She caused Tianlong to suffer a huge defeat in that battle. Is it not enough that so many innocent soldiers died? Now, she isn¡¯t even staying in the underworld and is coming back to harm the human world! Boss! We have to kill her quickly! Killing her will bring glory to Tianlong! If the priest knows about this, he will definitely promote you to be the principal disciple!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. This demoness just killed so many of our brothers and delayed us from completing the mission given to us. We have to kill her so that we can continue our mission and report to the Master!¡± ¡°Get rid of the demoness! Get rid of her!¡± ¡°Get rid of that demoness¡¯s children!¡± ¡°Get rid of them!¡± The men chanted in unison. The cries of the men in black echoed in the village! The men in black standing at the entrance of the other houses also looked pleased as they agreed wholeheartedly. On the other hand, the villagers were covered in blood and injuries watched on in horror. They were terrified that Mu Yao would die! If she died, all the villagers would be on the road to sure death! Chapter 37 - This Demoness Brought Down our Village! Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios None of the villagers wanted Mu Yao to put down her sword. After all, she was the only one who would fight for them. But there was something else too. This lady did not seem to be as bad as the rumors made her out to be. If she was truly a demoness who only brought trouble to the country, why did she raise her sword to help the villagers earlier on? They knew very well that this girl wasn¡¯t a bad person, but they were at the mercy of the men in black. As such, no one dared to speak up for Mu Yao. They all knew that they would die if they said another word. All of a sudden, the pain in Mu Yao¡¯s eyes vanished. In its place was intense coldness. Since this was the case, there was no need for her to think about familial relations anymore. The once-loving family had gone their separate ways, and were now enemies. Their relationship had once been almost unbreakable, yet now, her sister was calling her a demoness! Xia He was now filled with hatred, anger, and killing intent. Since that was the case, why should Mu Yao care about their relationship now? Mu Yao smirked. ¡°You want me dead? Xia He, you¡¯ll have to kill me yourself then.¡± Xia He was furious when she heard that. ¡°Do you think I wouldn¡¯t dare to do it?! Or do you think I¡¯m stupid?¡± Then, Xia He drew the knife closer. In an instant, Zichun and Zimo¡¯s innocent faces were filled with terror as they cried out, ¡°Mommy!¡± ¡°Mommy! Mommy!¡± At this moment, someone finally stepped forward. ¡°Miss Mu! You¡¯re going to get us killed!¡± It was the old woman¡¯s son. The old lady¡¯s son spoke first, ¡°Young lady! Put down the knife! Haven¡¯t you caused us enough suffering? If not for you, would we have been caught? If not for you, would so many villagers have died?¡± After saying that, he turned to Xia He and asked eagerly, ¡°My Lord, will you let us go as long as we can make her put down her sword?¡± As soon as the man finished speaking, his wife chimed in, ¡°That¡¯s right, my Lord! It¡¯s all her fault. Not only did she¡­¡± She glanced at the man, who then reminded her, ¡°She caused the soldiers to die tragically in battle.¡± The woman nodded, then continued, ¡°That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right. She caused the deaths of the soldiers. She¡¯s really a demoness! We can¡¯t wait for her to die. My Lord, please be kind. We¡¯re not like her. If we get her to put down her sword, can you be magnanimous and let us go?¡± At this moment, the old lady was being held captive and could not move at all. Even as she watched everything unfold before her eyes, she could not say a word. Her slightly turbid eyes were glistening with tears. When Xia He heard this, she shrugged and raised her eyebrows as if she was watching a good show. She said lazily, ¡°You guys can try it out first.¡± Mu Yao frowned and tightened her grip on the silver sword, but she didn¡¯t say anything. As for the son and daughter-in-law of the old woman, they naturally thought that the woman had agreed to their request. They immediately knelt down, kowtowing while thanking her profusely, ¡°Thank you, my Lord! Thank you! We will give it a try right now.¡± Right then, the villagers¡¯ eyes lit up. The moment the couple spoke, they could not help but sweat because they feared for their fellow villagers¡¯ lives. They were pretty much tempting fate by speaking to the lady in this manner! Unexpectedly, the boss of the men in black had chosen not to kill these two people. In fact, she had even laughed and told them to take a shot at saving themselves. Of course, Mu Yao¡¯s life meant nothing to them now that their lives were at stake. The villagers also spoke out because they hoped that they could live too. ¡°Erm¡­ My Lord, I have something to say too.¡± Once one person spoke, it would always encourage even more people to speak up. ¡°Well, I have something to say too.¡± ¡°Me too!¡± ¡°My Lord, we don¡¯t know this demoness. She has nothing to do with us at all. We are just ordinary commoners living in this village. We didn¡¯t do anything wrong. You can¡¯t kill us!¡± After hearing this, the old woman¡¯s son immediately responded. ¡°Are you all stupid?! She has nothing to do with us?! It¡¯s this demoness that caused our villagers to suffer like this. It¡¯s because she¡¯s a demoness, you bunch of idiots! If she didn¡¯t come to our village and tip over that bamboo basket, would we have suffered like this?! Look at the people who are dead right now? They could have been alive! Why did they die? Don¡¯t you understand?!¡± The man and his wife were emboldened, and they continued, ¡°That¡¯s right! Just now, we advised her not to go out! We were kind enough to save her family, but look at us now. Our entire family has been captured by the soldiers. Why?! It¡¯s because she insisted on going against those people that so many of us died in vain!¡± Upon hearing this, the old woman closes her eyes. A lone tear fell from the corner of her eyes¡­ Chapter 38 - Is Something Wrong? Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios At the same time, Mu Yao was trembling uncontrollably. She lowered her gaze slowly as she struggled internally. She still hoped that someone would stand up for her. Even if it was just one sentence¡­ If someone just said something, she would be able to muster all her strength to fight these men off! Was it true that everything she did was wrong just because they viewed her as a demoness? What kind of warped logic was that? Her heart grew colder and colder. Yet, she yearned for someone to speak up for her. Just one sentence. She was waiting for just one brave soul. At the same time, the villagers, who had been worried about Mu Yao just moments earlier, swallowed their saliva and shared meaningful glances under the careful watch of the men in black. Soon, everyone started criticizing Mu Yao. ¡°What? No wonder she could turn invisible. When I saw her just now, I thought it was strange. How could an ordinary girl turn invisible? Even an immortal might not be able to do that!¡± ¡°Yes! I don¡¯t think anyone other than demons can do it!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right! She¡¯s a demoness. Don¡¯t be fooled into thinking that she was trying to help us just now. Actually, all of that was just a smokescreen. She looks like a good person, but she actually wants to use this opportunity to kill us.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Think about it. Why was it that we were all fine before she came? Our village suffered a calamity when she brought the two little demons here! Those were human lives! Not just human lives, but our children as well¡­ They¡¯re still so young. Why did they have to go through all this? They had so many good days ahead of them, but they were gone in an instant¡­¡± Instantly, the children held by the men in black started crying loudly. ¡°Mother! Father! Save us!¡± Whether they were children or newborns, they were all captured¡­ When the villagers heard the children¡¯s cries, they lost all rationality. Even if Miss Mu was a good person, they had no choice! Now, even the villagers who had been standing by the sidelines joined in. ¡°We¡¯re going to save you. Don¡¯t be afraid!¡± ¡°Son¡­ Your mother has let you down. I coudln¡¯t protect you well, but don¡¯t worry. As long as this person surrenders, we will have a chance of survival!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, demoness! Just treat it like you¡¯re doing a good deed. Take pity on us. Our lives weren¡¯t good to begin with. Our entire family is so poor that we even have to share a single bun for two days. Even so, we didn¡¯t steal anything. We¡¯ve been living our lives in peace and listen to whatever the officials say. We haven¡¯t done anything wrong. Why are you treating us like this? We¡¯re just commoners. We really just want to live our lives in peace. I beg you, young lady. If you¡¯re really a good person, then be a good person until the end. Put down your sword now and admit your mistake to the men. Save us!¡± ¡°Exactly! Haven¡¯t we suffered enough because of you? Why did you come to our village? If you hadn¡¯t come, these officials wouldn¡¯t have been lured here. Although I don¡¯t have a child, my life is important too. My wife just died. Do you think you can absolve yourself of all responsibility?¡± ¡°You guys are too ridiculous. Why do you care about whether she¡¯s a good or bad person? She¡¯s a demoness! There¡¯s no doubt about it! If she doesn¡¯t put down her sword, we¡¯ll all die! Do you think a demon can be killed so easily? Didn¡¯t you hear what the lady said? She has already died once before! If she isn¡¯t a demon, would she still be standing here alive right now?!¡± When Xia He heard the villager¡¯s complaints, she felt an inexplicable sense of comfort in her heart, and she couldn¡¯t help but smile. She mocked the other from afar. ¡°Mu Yao, even the villagers that you want to protect are going against you. How does that feel?¡± Mu Yao lowered her head, her eyes misty. She was in so much pain. ¡®Why is this world so unfair? What right do they have to treat me like this?¡¯ She lamented inwardly. It didn¡¯t matter what she had done. She had to take the blame for everything that had happened! Everyone was only thinking about themselves. Whether it was Xia He, these men in black, or the villagers that she had helped, they were all turning against her without any rhyme or reason. It was ridiculous! Could there be anything more senseless than this? If someone with power and influence branded one as a traitor, then there was no chance of escaping that fate no matter how much one struggled. Mu Yao had already died once because of this ridiculous situation. Yet, here she was again! It wasn¡¯t just Xia Guoyong, but also Xia He, and the family members who had loved her in the past. None of them cared about the relationships they had once shared because of public opinion. It was incredulous! Just then, Mu Yao felt a wave of fatigue wash over her. It felt as though she was being abandoned by everyone. Perhaps, there was no point in living a new life. A new life would simply mean getting despised and insulted by everyone yet again. It seemed like what she was waiting for wouldn¡¯t come¡ªno one would speak up for her. However, Mu Yao didn¡¯t regret helping the villagers. Her only regret was not being strong enough to defeat the public¡¯s opinion. If only she was as strong as everyone said, she wouldn¡¯t be defeated so easily. Finally, Mu Yao finally used up the last bit of her strength after enduring it for a long time, and the silver sword in her hand fell to the ground. A crisp sound rang out. Then, Mu Yao slowly lost consciousness. She fell backward and her head hit the ground.. Chapter 39 - Xiaohuas Family Finally Speaking Up for Muyao Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios All of a sudden, Mu Yao fell to the ground with a loud thud! Xia He narrowed her eyes and looked at Mu Yao in confusion. ¡®What is she doing? Is she trying to evoke pity from me? Mu Yao, aren¡¯t you a witch? How could you have fallen? You overcame death and were even reborn. Do you mean that these rumors could defeat you? Could it be that you¡¯re not as weak as I thought?¡¯ Xia He wondered. Xia He didn¡¯t dare to make a move and simply observed Mu Yao quietly for a few seconds. An imperceptible look flashed across her eyes. Mu Yao, on the other hand, couldn¡¯t help but smile as she took in the bloody scene around her. It was an incredulous sight. ¡®I¡¯m sorry I couldn¡¯t protect you. I¡¯m sorry, Mu Yao of the past. I returned to this world, but still couldn¡¯t get what you wanted. I was defeated so easily¡­ I¡¯m sorry. There¡¯s still no one willing to believe you in this life.¡¯ Mu Yao thought to herself. At that thought, Mu Yao smiled and slowly closed her eyes. Just then, a roar broke through the crowd! ¡°Heavenly God, thank you for saving our family! You must hold on! Don¡¯t fall! We believe in you. No matter what, we will believe in you. You can¡¯t be a demoness. You are our family¡¯s God! ¡° Carrying her child and Chen Lang, who had just woken up, Xiaohua rushed to where Mu Yao was. That shocked everyone. ¡°Do you want to die? Why did you come out?!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right! Xiaohua, don¡¯t you understand the situation? Don¡¯t you know which side to stand on? Do you think you¡¯ve lived for too long?¡± ¡°Shut up, Xiaohua. Mr. Chen, tell your wife to shut up. It wasn¡¯t easy for you guys to survive. Don¡¯t be foolish and sacrifice your lives for a demoness!¡± When the men in black saw this, they rushed toward Xiaohua¡¯s family and shouted, ¡°You don¡¯t know what¡¯s good for you, do you? How dare you spout nonsense here? Do you know who our boss is? Are you really tired of living?¡± ¡°Stop talking nonsense! Hurry up and attack her! How dare she talk back to us? She should be killed!¡± When Xia He saw this, she frowned and glanced at Mu Yao, who was motionless on the ground. Suddenly, a dark look flashed across the former¡¯s eyes. ¡®It seems like you¡¯re not all that impressive, Mu Yao. Just now, I thought you were very capable. You killed so many of my brothers. But it seems like you¡¯ve all your demonic powers!¡¯ Xia He smirked to herself. The corners of her mouth curled up as she understood what was really going on. She muttered to herself, ¡°Just now, I was actually a little afraid that she would mess around. This isn¡¯t fun at all. She¡¯s actually just a piece of trash. She isn¡¯t worthy of me wasting my time here.¡± Then, Xiaohua mocked the villagers who couldn¡¯t differentiate right from wrong. ¡°You guys can¡¯t even differentiate right from wrong. Can¡¯t you see who¡¯s the demoness in human skin? Can¡¯t you see who¡¯s the good one? You guys are actually helping the bad guys and publicly hurting the God who helped you! You really deserve to be killed. Why did God save you bunch of heartless things?¡± Chen Lang also added angrily, ¡°That¡¯s right! This woman risked her life to save me. I was already on the brink of death. It was this God who used her spiritual energy to save me. Otherwise, I wouldn¡¯t have had the chance to see Xiaohua and my child again! Without her, none of you would be alive either! For a demoness who kills without batting an eyelid, you are distorting the truth. My heart really aches for her!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right! Chen Lang, our lives were given to us by her. Our child¡¯s also alive because of her! Now that she has collapsed after saving everyone, not only did you not thank her, but you even spat on her and insulted her. You¡¯re really ungrateful!¡± As soon as these words were spoken, the other villagers lowered their eyes and looked at each other. They lowered their heads guiltily. That was because they knew that Xiaohua and Chen Lang were right. However, they had to save their lives. If this lady could kill all of these men in one go instead of collapsing from exhaustion, they might not have turned against her. As commoners, they had no choice! Guilt, helplessness, and guilt lingered in everyone¡¯s hearts. When the old lady saw this scene and heard that someone was finally speaking up for the lady, she smiled with tears in her eyes. However, these words didn¡¯t encourage anyone to speak up. Instead, they all chose to remain silent. Only the old lady¡¯s son and daughter-in-law retorted, ¡°Hey! Xiaohua, Chen Lang, you guys are just standing there. She did save you, but what did entail? She got our family into trouble. Look, our family of five is being threatened by these people.. How many of us are there? How many of you are there? Don¡¯t be so selfish, okay? If she didn¡¯t go out to help you, our family wouldn¡¯t have been found!¡± Chapter 40 - Xia He, Since Youve Had Your Fun, Its My Turn! Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°That¡¯s right. We kept persuading her not to go out just now. It was all because of her stubbornness that led us to this bloody scene!¡± Xiaohua looked amused. ¡°Who in our village doesn¡¯t know that you two are the most stingy and selfish? Do you think you¡¯ll be able to survive if she doesn¡¯t save us? Stop dreaming. Don¡¯t you know why these people are doing this? How many children in our village have been taken away this month? It¡¯s only a matter of time before our whole village is gone. Even if she didn¡¯t appear, everything that happened today would still happen. It might even be worse!¡± She continued, ¡°All of you didn¡¯t even thank her for everything she did, but instead insulted her. Let me tell you something, you bunch of ingrates. That includes all of you who are standing by the sidelines! All of you will receive retribution!¡± When the old lady¡¯s son and daughter-in-law heard these words, they were instantly at a loss for words! Because Xiaohua was right. Even without Mu Yao, the villagers would have faced this situation sooner or later. In fact, more people would probably die! Yet, they could afford to back down now. If they did, they would definitely be killed by the boss not far away! Suddenly, a voice sounded, ¡°Shut up! You¡¯re talking nonsense!¡± Before her son could finish speaking, the old lady suddenly slapped him. A loud slap sounded and half of the man¡¯s face turned red. He looked at his mother, who was furious, in shock and said in an aggrieved tone, ¡°Mother, you hit me!¡± The daughter-in-law was in shock too. ¡°Mother, why did you hit him?¡± A cold glint flashed across the old lady¡¯s deep eyes as she said, ¡°B*stard! What have I taught you since you were young? You¡¯ve been swallowed up by your own selfishness! You¡¯ve become so indiscriminate that you¡¯re afraid of death! You know very well who our savior is! Shut your mouths! Just pretend you don¡¯t have a mother like me!¡± When Xia He heard this, she couldn¡¯t help but feel annoyed. She frowned and glanced at Mu Yao, who was still motionless on the ground. She thought to herself, ¡®Sure. Mu Yao, I see that you¡¯re not faking it. That makes things easier.¡¯ Xia He raised her eyes and looked at all her subordinates in the village. She immediately shouted, ¡°Kill them all, including the demoness, but keep the children alive!¡± ¡°Yes, Boss!¡± the men in black replied obediently. They quickly picked up their weapons and raised them. With this order, all the villagers subconsciously trembled. Immediately, they fled in all directions, and the silence was broken. Xiaohua shouted, ¡°Look, you understand now! No matter what you do, we will all die! But if you didn¡¯t do that to the Heavenly God earlier, she might not have fallen!¡± Immediately, the villagers by the side began to cry as they tried to flee. ¡°Hurry up and run!! We were really wrong! We were absolutely wrong. We were stupid to have placed our hope in the wicked. The reason the wicked are wicked is because they have no conscience!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t kill me! I¡¯m begging you!¡± ¡°Heavenly God, please save us. We didn¡¯t do that on purpose just now. We only said those words to survive. Xiaohua, speak up for us, or you will be killed too!¡± The biggest reaction naturally came from the son and daughter-in-law of the old lady. When they heard Xia He¡¯s order, they immediately kneeled on the ground and begged for mercy. ¡°My Lord, please don¡¯t kill us. You promised us that you wouldn¡¯t kill us as long as she put down the silver sword. Didn¡¯t we do it? She put down the silver sword!¡± ¡°Yes, yes. Let us go. We can give you the child. Please let my husband and me go!¡± the man begged. Upon hearing this, the old lady roared, ¡°You two ingrates! You¡¯ll give up your own child to save your own lives?!¡± At that moment, Xia He suddenly burst into laughter. She raised his eyebrows as she witnessed the scene before her. She then threw Zichun and Zimo aside, and walked toward the couple with a knife. Soon, two small knives were placed against their necks. The two of them immediately shut their mouths as they trembled in fear! Xia He then exclaimed fiercely, ¡°You two are really noisy. My ears are buzzing with your annoying voices. I promised you? When did I make that promise? You don¡¯t even understand human language. You really don¡¯t deserve to live in this world.¡± The moment she finished her sentence, Xia He raised her knife and was about to stab the two of them when they shouted in unison, ¡°Help! Miss Mu!¡± Just then, Xia He was surrounded by a ball of black fog. She felt as though she was being bitten by small insects. The pain was simply unbearable. Behind her, a familiar voice sounded. ¡°Xia He, have you had your fun?¡± In an instant, Xia He felt as though her entire body had disintegrated. She fell to the ground and spat out a mouthful of blood as she rolled back and forth on the ground! She gritted his teeth and shouted, ¡°It hurts! It hurts! What¡¯s happening to me?!¡± It wasn¡¯t just her, but even the other men in black were forced to throw their weapons away as they unconsciously fell onto the ground, rolling around in pain. Black shadows surrounded each one of them. Meanwhile, the villagers who had been fleeing and crying moments earlier were all stunned when they saw this sight! ¡°What?! What¡¯s going on?!¡± one of the villagers shouted. ¡°Could it be¡­ Miss Mu?!¡± another wondered. Everyone looked in Mu Yao¡¯s direction. The moment they did so, their faces and eyes were filled with shock and utter disbelief! That was because Mu Yao was standing in the same spot, surrounded by a cluster of black shadows that darted out of her body like arrows, striking all the men in black! On closer inspection, Mu Yao seemed to be watching the scene with wide eyes and a smile on her face, as if she could control everything at will. At this moment, she finally opened her mouth and said, ¡°Xia He, are you done playing? If you are, it¡¯s my turn!¡±