Her senior brother had clearly reached the Deity Forming realm; why was there only a wisp of his primordial spirit left? Why had he become the Ancestral Master of Xuanyue Temple? She needed to find out today!
Zhi Mi glared at Nanli with resentment, angrily turning his head away. The sun was shining bright overhead, exuding abundant yang energy.
Nanli first drew a talisman to protect their souls from being harmed by the yang energy. Zhi Mi tried to evade, but Nanli caught him by the wrist and pressed the talisman down, saying, "Since when did you stop listening to me?"
Zhi Mi stared at her, his voice cold. "Are you believing her nonsense? She denied Master and Chong Jiu even the chance of reincarnation; she should be killed immediately! Are you afraid of bearing karmic burdens and reluctant to act?"
Nanli pondered for a moment. She reached out to stroke Zhi Mi’s head and said, "I want to save you all more than I want to take revenge on her. Even if it’s a minuscule chance, I will try. Do you understand?"
She no longer hid her sorrow, her eyes reddening at that moment.
Zhi Mi felt like a thunderbolt had struck him, instantly understanding that his senior sister was not unwilling to seek vengeance but was instead temporarily swallowing her anger for their sake.
Suddenly, he was flooded with grief and regret, choking out, "Senior sister, I’m sorry for not listening to you..."
Nanli reassured him, "No need to say that; sometimes, a person’s fate is hard to change. It’s predestined, and I can’t go against it."
When she learned about Zhi Mi’s situation, a snowstorm had just collapsed a house in Ye City, trapping many civilians beneath it. Her first instinct had been to save lives. By the time she realized, the talisman within Zhi Mi had extinguished.
Xuan Yinyue, on the other side, was becoming impatient, urging her repeatedly. Nanli turned back to glare at her. "Don’t rush me; I’m trying to gather the primordial spirit!"
"You... you still need to think it through on the spot?! It turns out you don’t have any real skills at all!"
Xuan Yinyue’s emotions shifted rapidly. At this moment, she called back the Dragon Spring sword. However, the golden body in her left hand suddenly became exceedingly heavy, nearly slipping from her grasp.
"Senior brother?" Xuan Yinyue stared at the golden body in a daze.
Realizing her senior brother’s intention, she sat down quietly beside it, no longer pressing Nanli, and began to murmur softly to the golden body.
It wasn’t that Nanli lacked ability; it was just that this Ancestral Master had already reached the Deity Forming realm, his soul having transformed into a primordial spirit. The talisman formations she had learned previously were not very effective.
However, change is often in the details. Nanli combined the knowledge from the immortal cultivation books she had read and tried various formations. Eventually, she successfully created a talisman formation to gather the primordial spirit.
A brilliant golden light enveloped the formation, which hovered in mid-air. The primordial spirits from the golden body and the well cover all converged together. After a series of bright flashes, a figure gradually appeared.
It was a remarkably handsome Taoist, seemingly just over thirty years old. Unfortunately, he only appeared as a half-formed spirit.
Zhi Mi and the others observed and remarked, "This doesn’t resemble the Ancestral Master in the treasure hall much; the Ancestral Master there has a beard."
The shadowy figure turned around, explaining, "Beards make one look more profound, but in truth, I’ve always looked ."
"Senior brother!!!" Xuan Yinyue was overwhelmed with excitement, screaming at the top of her lungs.
She saw her most beloved and precious thing but feared being rejected and dared not approach. Instead, she cautiously observed while tears streamed down her face.
"Junior sister." The ethereal figure sighed softly and shook his head slowly. "I never imagined it would end up ."
"Senior brother, what do you mean? Why? You clearly reached the Deity Forming realm; why is there only a wisp of your primordial spirit left? What happened after I lost consciousness that day?" Xuan Yinyue bombarded him with questions.
The figure took his time to respond. He turned to Nanli and respectfully saluted, introducing himself, "I am Xuan Jingmo of Limitless Palace, also known as Firewood Chopper."
Nanli’s face was expressionless. "Chopping wood, splitting wood, you and your junior sister’s titles are certainly unique."
Xuan Jingmo laughed heartily. "In the past, when Demon Cultivators ran rampant, my junior sister and I had to slay several each day. She took heads while I split people. Over time, we earned these titles."
Xuan Yinyue seemed to recall those glorious days spent together, her face reddening a bit, feeling shy.
But Xuan Jingmo shifted his tone, saying, "Unfortunately, during one duel, my junior sister lost to the Celestial Sovereign, and then she fell into a mental demon and began practicing demonic sect techniques. By the time I discovered it, it was already too late."
Once again, Nanli heard the name Celestial Sovereign. However, Xuan Yinyue denied, "It wasn’t because I lost to the Celestial Sovereign that I developed a mental demon. It was because I could never win against my senior brother during normal cultivation, so I had to resort to Demon Cultivator methods to force him to marry me."
Xuan Jingmo didn’t expect this reason, pausing briefly before gently shaking his head. "Alas, my parents were too good-looking; I inherited half of their looks and became a source of trouble. It seems that being overly handsome is not suitable for cultivating the Dao."
Xuan Yinyue chimed in, "What my senior brother says is true."
Tears welled in her eyes as she looked at the expressionless Nanli and Zhi Mi. "You must believe me; my senior brother is the most handsome man in the Immortal World, a powerhouse second only to the Celestial Sovereign."
Nanli found it puzzling. "From this, it sounds like you’re not completely superficial, yet you fell for this narcissist instead of the Celestial Sovereign?"
When Xuan Yinyue mentioned others, her face and mood returned to normal. She coldly replied, "The Celestial Sovereign once went to the North Sea to cultivate in his youth and was burned by an ancient poison, making him exceedingly ugly. He’s scared of scaring others and often conceals his face with spells."
"No matter how high his abilities are, he cannot compare to even a single finger of my senior brother!"
"Alright, alright." Xuan Jingmo waited for her to finish before continuing, "Though I am quite perfect, I have one fatal flaw."
Zhi Mi, intrigued, asked, "What flaw is that?"
"Simply put, I am too perfect."
"..." Zhi Mi thought of himself as a disciple of Xuanyue Temple and that this person was the Ancestral Master of Xuanyue Temple, wishing he could headbutt a wall.
"Ha ha!" Xuan Jingmo laughed heartily, "Zhi Mi, I’m just teasing you. In truth, disciples of Limitless Palace are forbidden from marrying, so I cannot be with my junior sister."
At this point, Xuan Yinyue became saddened again. "Senior brother, could it be that I forced you into a dual cultivation, and you, feeling hopeless, scattered your cultivation and took your own life?"
Xuan Jingmo lightly coughed, "Junior sister, is this something you can speak of outside?"
Xuan Yinyue, reprimanded, didn’t get angry; instead, she felt shy.
She warily cast a glance at Nanli, her expression full of hostility.
No other reason; it was simply because this young girl was exquisite and radiant, and she had some connection with her senior brother—she had to be on guard!