Feng Jiuxiao lifted her head, and when she saw Song Wanníng, her expression froze. She was not surprised by Song Wanníng's rise in cultivation. What truly shocked her was the aura Song Wanníng now carried.
"You entered the Immortal Cleansing Pool before even ascending?" Her eyes widened in disbelief. This was the first time she had seen someone so reckless. Yet judging by the outcome, Song Wanníng had gained an enormous advantage.
"Yes, I met a Senior." Song Wanníng smiled. She was very satisfied with her transformation, even a little impatient to test her newfound strength.
Feng Jiuxiao caught the eager gleam in her eyes and twitched the corner of her lips. So, this one was also a battle fanatic, no less troublesome than herself. No wonder her future self would like her—she was the same kind of person. The two exchanged a few words, then briefly discussed the next steps. A trace of regret flickered in Feng Jiuxiao's eyes as she looked at Song Wanníng.
"If only you truly belonged to this time and space."
"We will meet again soon. It won't be long." Song Wanníng's smile was bright and confident. She had faith in her strength and believed she would ascend to the Immortal Realm before long. When that day came, they would reunite properly.
"Good. Then hurry up, don't keep me waiting too long." Feng Jiuxiao also laughed heartily, then picked up the hairpin once more and carefully pinned it into Song Wanníng's hair.
"What I promised you, I will do my best to accomplish. I hope I can truly help you."
Song Wanníng's ambitions were vast, and Feng Jiuxiao was willing to lend her strength.
"Many thanks, Senior!"
Without thinking too much, Song Wanníng leaned forward and gently hugged Feng Jiuxiao. Although she was a Senior, being with her felt more like being with a close friend. Even though they had only spent brief moments together each time, there was always a strong sense of tacit understanding.
A faint blush crept onto Feng Jiuxiao's ears. She awkwardly returned the hug, then quickly let go. Everyone said her temper was terrible, and this was the very first time someone had embraced her of their own accord. It felt strange, unfamiliar.
"This junior takes her leave. May Senior take care of herself."
Song Wanníng clasped her hands in farewell. With that final parting, she turned and stepped into the mound of graves. In an instant, the surroundings twisted and distorted, and her figure vanished without a trace.
Feng Jiuxiao stood watching her back disappear, her lips curving slowly into a smile. Lowering her head to the copied array manual in her hands, her eyes blazed with fiery determination. What she had promised Song Wanníng, she would never break her word.
…
Central Region, Huo Family.
The new Patriarch of the Huo family sat gloomily at the center of the main hall. The loss of two Unity stage cultivators in succession had severely harmed the family's interests. Recently, rival clans had been provoking them endlessly, leaving them fuming.
"It's all Huo Yang and Huo Jinchuan's fault. Stirring up all that trouble, then dying cleanly, while we are left to clean up their mess!"
One elder complained bitterly.
Though Huo Yang and Huo Jinchuan were dead, the consequences of their actions still plagued the clan. Especially the loss of certain treasures, which had dealt the Huo family a heavy blow. When the Ancestors learned of it, they scolded them harshly, their anger erupting like a storm.
"Now we must capture Song Wanníng and Bai Lishang. Otherwise, who knows how long we will be laughed at."
"That's right. Everywhere we go, people mock us for this. I'm going insane!"
For the grand Huo family to be toyed with by two mere small cultivators, still unable to capture them—it had become a joke across the region. Even after so much time, people continued to jeer at them, driving them to exasperation.
"Enough. Do we have any news of Song Wanníng?"
The Patriarch cut through their complaints with a sharp question.
"No. It's as though those two vanished into thin air. Could they have left the Central Region?"
"Why don't we go directly to the Four Regions and demand them? Surely they won't dare shield them!"
"Yes, why not go straight to the Four Regions?"
The more they spoke, the more agitated they became, itching to rush out and settle the matter immediately.
"Do you still want us to lose even more face?"
The Patriarch pressed his temples, looking helplessly at the group.
Whenever the matter of Song Wanníng and Bai Lishang came up, these elders completely lost their sense of proportion. But he understood—they were being pushed to the edge.
"Forget it. First, we'll focus on finding their whereabouts.
Yesterday, the Ancestors contacted me. Once there's word of Song Wanníng, we are to report immediately. They intend to personally deal with the two."
Thinking of the Ancestors' furious expressions, the Patriarch felt a chill run through his heart. If the Ancestors moved, those two would surely perish.
…
Dong—
A bell tolled, echoing in her ears. Song Wanníng's figure flickered, and she reappeared within the towering prison tower.
The tormented evil spirits saw her, and it was as if they had seen a "ghost." They trembled violently in terror.
Back in that great battle, they had nearly all been annihilated. Now, the mere sight of Song Wanníng triggered them, as though they might faint on the spot.
Song Wanníng swept them with a cold gaze. The spirits who had been howling in pain instantly fell silent, not daring to make a sound, terrified she would end them with a single strike.
The traces of King Yama and that Mahayana cultivator were gone. Song Wanníng strode forward toward the spirits and began questioning them about what had happened after.
"Y-you… Daren… after you disappeared, the King Yama and that man… kept fighting. Later, reinforcements from the Underworld arrived. That man couldn't win and ran away…"
One spirit stammered, recounting everything it knew.
Song Wanníng's sudden disappearance had caught the King Yama completely off guard. Fortunately, the Underworld's reinforcements had arrived soon after, and together they managed to drive off the maddened Mahayana cultivator.
Having pieced together the events, Song Wanníng turned and walked down the tower.
The moment she stepped out, the King Yama appeared before the gates. Each generation's King Yama was carefully trained and selected. So this man was nothing like the King Yama within the time-space fragment, nor likely to be his descendant.
Yet, for some reason, his gaze upon her felt strange.
"Why do you look at me like that?"
With confidence swelling in her heart, Song Wanníng faced the King Yama with calm composure, without the slightest fear.
The King Yama studied her with a complicated expression. "Come with me to the King Yama's Hall first."
He led her inside. More than her physical and cultivation changes, what shocked him most was the sudden fragment of memory that had appeared in his mind.
His teacher, the former King Yama, had warned him countless times before ascending to guard the Underworld well. Beyond that, nothing else. But now, a new memory had surfaced: his teacher instructing him to wait for a fated person.
Saying it was a command passed down from an ancient generation of forebears. When he opened the portrait, the face he saw was one he now knew all too well.
Song Wanníng.
The King Yama's heart brimmed with questions.
Why had Song Wanníng vanished so suddenly? Where had she gone?
Why had his forebears left behind such instructions?
What truly had happened?
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Wanníng get a new woman (๑˃̵ᴗ˂̵)و