Though the divine gift was unknown, its importance was evident from the urgency of the man who had rescued Ling Ruo.
"Let's go," Qi Yu stood up. "We'll go too."
...
Yao Mountain.
When Qi Yu and her entourage arrived in full force, quite a few sects had already gathered outside Yao Mountain's barrier.
The Hehuan Sect, which had come to provoke them last time, was among them.
Qi Luo, the senior disciple of the Hehuan Sect, was speaking to a junior sister beside her when she stopped mid-sentence, her gaze fixed on the rolling dark clouds in the sky.
Soon after, Qi Yu, standing at the forefront, appeared before the crowd, fanning herself.
Affected by demonic transformation, Qi Yu's female form was exceptionally graceful, with a slender waist and long legs, a captivating beauty. In her male guise, her silver hair flowed, her black collar was open, and she possessed a striking handsomeness, like a dashing young man.
Qi Luo looked at Qi Yu, her cheeks flushing, and hesitated, as if she had something to say.
Qi Yu merely cast a cold glance at her before openly walking to the very front under everyone's gaze.
Master Zhixing, the sect leader of Shaoyang Sect, saw this and immediately strode forward. "Ice Demon, this is our immortal sect's secret realm. What are you doing here, you fiend?!"
After speaking, he looked at Yu Zhen and Li Yu behind her. Upon noticing the entire Beiyuan Sect present, and even a mythical beast, a Qilin, accompanying them, Master Zhixing felt his entire being falter.
"Master Zhixing, don't get so agitated!" Qi Yu gently tapped his chest with her fan. "Be careful not to hurt yourself from anger~"
"This Seat has made peace with the Qilin tribe and the Beiyuan Sect," Qi Yu curled her lips. "Elders of the various sects, please do not misunderstand this Seat as the great evil one who has imprisoned the people of Beiyuan Sect. That would make this Seat sad."
"Once this Seat is sad, this Seat cannot control itself, and then..."
Qi Yu trailed off, leaving her words unfinished, but ice began to spread from her feet like vines in all directions.
Master Zhixing's leg was frozen, startling him. He quickly shattered the ice and leaped back a distance.
At this, all the sects in the cultivation world retreated a few steps, and no one dared to speak.
Qi Yu scanned her surroundings.
She found no sign of Ling Ruo.
She closed her eyes and sensed her Nascent Soul. When she opened them again, she saw Ling Ruo, who had been afflicted with an invisibility talisman, leaning against a wall, still unconscious, though now unfrozen.
And not far from Ling Ruo, there was indeed a white-robed man wearing a mask.
This man was tall and slender, powerfully built, with long black hair tied in a ponytail and a high jade crown.
The mask on his face seemed to be made of white jade, appearing to be of good quality.
Qi Yu stared at him, releasing a chilling aura to test him.
Unexpectedly, her power could not harm the man in the slightest.
This man... did not seem like a mortal cultivator, nor did he seem to be from any other realm.
In the Divine Realm, those whose power could contend with hers were only the Heavenly Emperor and Si Qing.
However, even those two could not completely evade her attacks.
Therefore, the man was likely connected to the Heavenly Dao, or was the Heavenly Dao itself.
Qi Yu leaned towards the former.
Because the Heavenly Dao also had restraints and restrictions, it couldn't simply descend at will.
The man seemed to have sensed Qi Yu's gaze, and his eyes grew colder.
The next moment, in the blink of an eye, he appeared before Qi Yu.
Qi Yu, as if prepared, erected an ice wall the instant the man approached.
The man's actions seemed to enrage him.
He punched through the ice wall and reached out to grab Qi Yu. Qi Yu leaped into the air with a tap of her toes, and they confronted each other in mid-air.
"Qi Yu, I am the Son of the Heavenly Dao," the man said, his hand gripping Qi Yu's neck. "Ling Ruo is my destined lover. Originally, according to the prophecies, she, who came from another world, was to ascend and become the Lord of all Gods, becoming my divine consort and bringing blessings to heaven and earth."
"But... it was all you... it was you who refused to completely surrender your body to her before, preventing Ling Ruo from controlling your body freely and delaying the auspicious time for her to become the Lord of all Gods!"
"It was you who injured her today, damaging her immortal roots, making it difficult for her to ascend in this lifetime, and she can only be an immortal, thus breaking her destiny!"
"If Ling Ruo's fate had proceeded smoothly, she could have joined me in preventing the impending century-long catastrophe. Now that Ling Ruo cannot become the Lord of all Gods, the century-long catastrophe cannot be stopped. Do you know how many people in the three realms will die because of this?"
The man seemed enraged, increasing the force in his hands, which trembled slightly.
"You are the Son of the Heavenly Dao..." Qi Yu's lips curved into a smile. "As expected."
Qi Yu waved her right hand casually, and the ground began to shake violently. Countless glaciers from the frigid hell erupted from the earth.
These glaciers seemed to have a consciousness, cooperating with Qi Yu's demonic power to restrain the Son of the Heavenly Dao's cultivation.
"Little Heavenly Dao,"
Qi Yu gently pushed away the man's hand and, in an instant, pressed down on his neck:
"So, when Ling Ruo soul-possessed my body back then, you, as the future Heavenly Dao, foresaw that she would use my body to become your divine consort and lover, which is why you desperately protected Ling Ruo's possession of my body?"
The Little Heavenly Dao stared into Qi Yu's eyes:
"Your body was destined to be Ling Ruo's."
"And you, if you had willingly surrendered your body after being possessed and recognized Ling Ruo as your master, and gone to reincarnation on your own."
"Ling Ruo would have had complete control of the body, ascended to the highest peak, and been with me."
"This would not only have prevented the century-long catastrophe but also given you a bright future."
"But who knew you were ignorant and stubborn, insisting on fighting Ling Ruo, and in the end, bringing it upon yourself, falling into the frigid hell to never rise again."
"According to the prophecies, Qi Yu, if you continue to resist me, the ultimate outcome will be your soul being scattered by me and Ling Ruo before the century-long catastrophe arrives."
"Therefore, Ice Demon Qi Yu, if you truly possess a shred of conscience, you might as well end yourself, sparing your sect and your brethren from suffering karmic retribution because of you."
Hearing this, Qi Yu suddenly burst into laughter. Her fingernails gradually turned black and sharp, and she fiercely pierced the Little Heavenly Dao's chest, wantonly absorbing his life force:
"Little Heavenly Dao, before your father, the old Heavenly Dao, sent you down to the mortal realm, did he ever tell you..."
"That speaking too arrogantly, and judging everything solely by prophecies without opening your eyes, leads to great suffering."
The Little Heavenly Dao was injured, and the heavens and earth were instantly engulfed by a fierce wind and thunderous roars.
Tribulation lightning descended one after another.
Qi Yu raised her hand and cast a barrier. Under the Little Heavenly Dao's disbelieving gaze, she madly absorbed his luck and divine power, easily blocking the heavenly punishment lightning.
The Little Heavenly Dao, witnessing Qi Yu's increasingly powerful chilling aura, finally realized... he had underestimated Qi Yu's current strength.
He used his last bit of strength to push away Qi Yu's restraint and fell from a height. Dragging his body, which had already half-disappeared, he crawled to Ling Ruo's side.
He poured all his remaining luck and life force into Ling Ruo, his gaze fixed on Qi Yu with terror.
Before this.
He had always believed that Qi Yu had merely escaped the shackles of the frigid hell, and that he, as the Son of the Heavenly Dao, could send her back by joining forces with the righteous sects of the cultivation world.
But now he realized that he had oversimplified things.
Qi Yu had not escaped from the frigid hell...
She had severed all her immortal roots, merging her divine soul with the frigid hell, which was why she had the power to devour ghost immortals from the underworld, release all the evil spirits from the eighteen layers of hell, and do as she pleased.
Because the frigid hell originated from the evil thoughts of the three realms, as long as the evil thoughts of the three realms persisted, the frigid hell would exist forever, and even his father, the Heavenly Dao, could do nothing about it.
The Little Heavenly Dao's voice trembled:
"Qi Yu, what Ling Ruo took from you was merely a body. After giving it to Ling Ruo, you could have reincarnated and had a new one. Why go to such extremes..."
"You are fighting against heaven. Even if you gain the upper hand for the time being, you will surely suffer retribution in the future."
At this moment, the Heavenly Dao had already unleashed thousands of tribulation lightning bolts upon Qi Yu.
This was the most numerous lightning tribulations.
But Qi Yu, who had absorbed the Little Heavenly Dao's luck, now the new consciousness of the frigid hell, had become a half-evil god. Supported by the evil thoughts of the three realms, the Heavenly Dao could not kill her.
Finally, the Heavenly Dao could only pause the lightning tribulations, send down divine light, and take away the nearly dissipating Little Heavenly Dao.
Qi Yu floated in mid-air, looking at the increasingly transparent Little Heavenly Dao, her voice cold:
"Merely a body? You want Ling Ruo to ascend and become the Lord of all Gods. Why didn't you let her reincarnate and cultivate immortal roots on her own? Why should she possess my body!"
"In the six realms and three realms, all living beings achieve their true fruits through their own strength! Why should Ling Ruo directly seize someone else's immortal destiny and ascend in one step!"
"Your Heavenly Dao is so unjust, then I shall defy the heavens."
The Little Heavenly Dao opened his mouth.
Qi Yu suddenly broke through the divine light and took the Little Heavenly Dao's last wisp of spirit, condensing it into a bead and placing it in her heart.
The Heavenly Dao was enraged!
Thunder rumbled.
Qi Yu raised her eyes and looked directly at the divine light:
"I will not allow what happened hundreds of years ago, when the Heavenly Emperor used my family as a threat, to happen a second time."
"If you want to save the Little Heavenly Dao, then punish Ling Ruo and give me justice. Otherwise, I will scatter this Little Heavenly Dao's soul, causing evil thoughts to proliferate throughout the three realms, demons to run rampant, and chaos to ensue!"
With that, the divine light weakened, and the sky returned to normal.
Qi Yu returned to the Yao Mountain barrier.
Ling Ruo had already awakened.
The Little Heavenly Dao's last divine power and luck were absorbed by Ling Ruo's immortal body, allowing Ling Ruo, though not yet a demigod, to recover her immortal roots.
At this moment, many sects had placed Ling Ruo behind them, looking at Qi Yu and the Beiyuan Sect with hostile eyes.
"Let's go, into Yao Mountain," Qi Yu glanced coldly at Ling Ruo, who was hiding behind other sects, disdainfully ignoring her, and led her group away.
Master Zhixing, protecting Ling Ruo, looked at Qi Yu with contempt. "So what if you become an evil god?! It's not legitimate! Miss Ling Ruo, no, Goddess Ling Ruo, you are the future rightful Lord of all Gods. Let's think of a way. Evil cannot triumph over righteousness."
"Let me think," Ling Ruo said weakly, appearing like a wilting flower. "I remember the North Sea is now managed by the new Crown Prince? The Crown Prince of the North Sea Dragon Clan has only recently ascended and his Dao cultivation is still shallow. Why don't we try to persuade the North Sea Dragon Clan first and get them on our side."
Master Zhixing agreed. "Then let's enter Yao Mountain first, get what we need, and then head to the North Sea. No matter what means we use, we cannot let the Ice Demon succeed!"
—
Tomorrow, Qi Yu will face her disguise as a man being revealed. Will anyone bet on whether her disguise is discovered?
The update schedule is tentatively set for one chapter at midnight, one chapter at eleven in the morning, and one chapter before nine in the evening.