Guide to the Rebirth of the Evil Woman in the Immortal Realm - Chapter 18

Listening to the fading footsteps outside the room, Ji Ting sat by the table, propping her chin in her hand, and gazed at Shen Fuxin a few steps away.

Unperturbed by external distractions, Shen Fuxin had already begun flipping through a book and meditating, her delicate brows and eyes reflecting nothing but pure focus, devoid of even a hint of extraneous emotion.

After spending a few days with Shen Fuxin, Ji Ting had come to understand her. Though she appeared ruthless and decisive in her dealings with others, in truth, she was harshest on herself.

To seize a sliver of opportunity, she had calmly refined pills right under the noses of the gods at the Divine Court Flower Banquet. Had there been the slightest mishap with the Beast Realm Reincarnation Token she requested from Yan Dan, allowing her adoptive father to return unscathed, she would have faced certain doom. And then there were her subtle schemes involving Yu Zhanxu and Zhao Lanying.

Observing Shen Fuxin’s unnervingly calm expression, Ji Ting glanced at the pages she was flipping through, unsure how to assess this person.

Just half a day ago, she had nearly lost her head in the Divine Realm, and now, back at Qingdi’s Spirit Mountain, she hadn’t rested for even a moment before diving into the study of alchemy.

Was this not the quintessential Shen Fuxin?

At that moment, Shen Fuxin sat cross-legged on the couch, perusing the ancient text given to her by the deity Yan Dan before his departure, completely unaware of Ji Ting’s thoughts.

After turning a few pages, her gaze suddenly halted on a passage. It seemed to be a recent addition by Yan Dan, she touched the page, and the ink was not yet fully dry, leaving a faint smudge on her fingertip.

Here, Yan Dan had detailed how to summon spiritual fire and attach it to external objects.

Shen Fuxin pondered. Since ancient times, few immortals had cultivated the art of alchemy, and even the rare few who did were not known for their combat prowess. She had never heard of an alchemist engaging in constant battles like sword immortals. Even the master she had acknowledged in the Divine Realm appeared frail and sickly even the Narcissus Flower Deity seemed more decisive in combat than her.

If spiritual fire could ignite cauldrons and burn sword platforms, could it also burn immortals?

At this thought, a spark of inspiration flashed in Shen Fuxin’s mind. She suppressed the blazing idea rising within her and suddenly spoke gently to Ji Ting, who was counting spirit stones in her chair: “Ji Ting, you don’t actually practice celestial divination, do you?”

Ji Ting’s expression remained unchanged, her eyes brimming with laughter. “That’s right. I was lying to you before. Actually, I’m the unparalleled great sword immortal of the three realms, above and below. But I lost my memory and my beloved sword. Little Fu, if you give me ten thousand spirit stones, I’ll appoint you as the Divine Martial General once I regain my peak.”

Shen Fuxin didn’t believe a word of her nonsense. However, since meeting Ji Ting, she had attacked her several times, and Ji Ting had never retaliated, only evaded. Though it seemed awkward in the moment, upon reflection, it was clear she had been effortlessly in control.

Her origins were likely anything but simple. With this in mind, Shen Fuxin remained seated on the couch, summoning spiritual fire in her palm. “Since the great sword immortal is so formidable, why not spar with me for a few moves?”

True to her nature, this was not a request but a declaration.

Sure enough, as soon as she finished speaking, Ji Ting saw a cluster of blue-purple spiritual fire shooting straight for her face! She casually tossed a spirit stone, but it only disrupted the flames for a brief moment before the innocent stone quietly vanished in Shen Fuxin’s fire.

Ji Ting let out a soft exclamation of surprise, finding the spiritual fire rather intriguing.

As the fireball hurtled toward her, she sighed softly. “Little Fu, you truly are merciless.”

That slender, pale hand lifted idly, snatching Shen Fuxin’s spiritual fire into its grasp. Ji Ting squeezed her palm slightly; the flame grew faint but refused to extinguish, struggling fiercely as if trying to burn through her hand.

“Aren’t alchemy immortals supposed to follow the path of virtue to win others over?” Ji Ting murmured to herself, turning the spiritual fire over and over in her hand. “Why is your spiritual fire so fierce?”

Seeing the freely moving spiritual fire outside her body so easily subdued, Shen Fuxin hesitated no longer. She channeled the unextinguished flame in her palm toward the several spirit swords emerging from her sword core.

As the texts said, once spiritual fire latched onto an external object and gained the upper hand, it would burn relentlessly, inextinguishable and incredibly stubborn.

In an instant, the blades of the spirit swords flashed with a comet-like blaze!

Shen Fuxin’s long sword flipped in her hand, joining over a dozen others in a coordinated assault aimed straight at Ji Ting. As the swords sliced through the air, they ignited a trail of brilliant flames, crackling and roaring to life.

Ji Ting’s eyes gleamed brightly in the firelight. A smile curled her lips as she raised her fingertips once more. The swords halted abruptly before her, leaving only large, scattered sparks falling to the ground.

“Such intense killing intent,” she remarked. “Little Fu, you’d clearly make a fine sword cultivator. It seems your master simply doesn’t know how to teach.”

Shen Fuxin, wholly absorbed in manipulating the spiritual fire, offered no reply.

She had just begun to grasp a hint of the technique, faintly noticing the flames taking on a deeper purple hue. Amid the raging fire, the sword core within her spun rapidly, swelling and, unseen by Shen Fuxin, shedding a layer of crimson casing.

The moment the sword core deepened in color, the flames blazed even fiercer! Immersed in the spiritual fire, Shen Fuxin felt a warm, comforting heat envelop her body, paying no mind to the newly repaired door mended by Yu Zhanxu that had now collapsed once more under the flames.

The fire spread unchecked, its path unbroken.

That night, the peak of Qingdi Spirit Mountain was illuminated as if bathed in twilight, startling countless students within the Qing chambers. Shouts of alarm echoed to the mountain’s rear, where the Yin-Yang Giant Fish circled slowly around a figure, quietly unraveling the protective formation of the ritual platform.

–

Zhao Lanying’s eyes snapped open.

The Yin-Yang Fish still swam gracefully above her, their tails swaying lightly. The sword platform and moonlight alike were cold and serene, making the large piece of crimson fabric in her arms glowing faintly seem strikingly out of place.

Her fingers traced the delicate, finely sewn gemstones on the cloth. This was far from the style she would normally choose; she had selected this fabric solely because she remembered Shen Fuxin often wearing similar dresses.

If she wore them often, then she must like them, right?

Her thoughts tangled into vague, chaotic red threads, almost merging with the fabric in her hands. This shade of red was the color of wedding robes, of sunset skies and and the color of the flames in her cauldron.

The Yin-Yang Fish began to swim restlessly. Following their movement, Zhao Lanying lifted her gaze and saw, to her surprise, flames rising over the Qing chambers at the mountain’s peak.

She stood, her expression unreadable, and headed directly for the mountain peak’s Qing chambers.

–

The fire continued to burn.

Shen Fuxin stood outside the Qing chamber, now reduced to a charred framework, watching the spiritual fire roll down the stone steps of the mountain path. She showed not a trace of guilt for the havoc she had wrought.

The other junior immortals from the surrounding Qing chambers had also emerged. Everyone knew exactly who had started the fire, yet Shen Fuxin stood there openly and unashamed. All the accusations they had bottled up inside suddenly felt impossible to voice.

Li Jiantai stood to the side, slightly apart from the scattered groups of people, worrying about how Senior Sister Shen would handle the situation once the Rainbow Capital Fairy arrived.

Yu Zhanxu held her sword loosely, coldly observing the chaos before her, her lips pressed into a tight line.

She had just watched Ji Ting emerge from behind Shen Fuxin. That so-called fairy attendant named Xiao Ting hadn’t even bothered to tie up her long hair properly truly utterly shameless. If it were her, she would have made sure to tidy her appearance properly, never allowing Shen Fuxin to lose face in public.

At that moment, many minor immortals were still trying to extinguish the spiritual flames. Yu Zhanxu watched for a few moments before losing interest. She had already attempted it herself these flames were incredibly stubborn. Without finding the source, it was impossible to eradicate all of them entirely.

In other words, as long as the original flame continued to burn, the rest of the fire would persist unyieldingly.

At this thought, a sudden inspiration struck Yu Zhanxu.

She turned her gaze back to Shen Fuxin and took a step in her direction. “Shen Fuxin, you!”

Before any of the minor immortals could react, a sharp sword light suddenly pierced through the night, cleaving toward them with the force of splitting mountains and parting seas!

Ji Ting looked up at the sword light, her dark eyes reflecting the glow of both flames and blade. “That’s a fine sword.”

The sword’s intent was like the ocean seemingly broad and gentle at first glance, yet beneath the surface lay endless undercurrents and killing intent.

There was something vaguely familiar about this sword intent. Perhaps because the undercurrents were too numerous and tangled, Ji Ting found it difficult to discern the sword’s true essence. She tilted her head and asked Shen Fuxin, “Whose sword is it?”

A figure ascending the stone steps seemed to gather all the moonlight, a long sword in hand. Her cold, clear eyes swept over the spiritual flames, which, though mostly extinguished, still struggled to burn with unyielding persistence. Finally, her gaze settled once more on Shen Fuxin, whose eyes curved into a smile.

Zhao Lanying said, “It’s my sword.”

With that, she raised her sword again and brought it down in a fierce strike toward the green-robed youth standing in the night!

Ji Ting narrowed her eyes, focusing intently on the sword strike aimed at Shen Fuxin. She looked up at the descending blade, her fingertips subtly twitching. A transparent, protective sword aura silently embedded itself in front of Shen Fuxin.

The sword was indeed a fine one, and its intent carried the ambition to devour whales and swallow seas.

Yet, the immortal wielding it did not seem to be a perfect match for the sword. Ji Ting stared into Zhao Lanying’s seemingly emotionless eyes, trying to discern whether she, too, was a forgotten acquaintance from her past, but nothing came to mind.

Facing Zhao Lanying, who had finally drawn her sword to strike, Shen Fuxin’s previously empty palm now held a familiar crimson long sword.

The blade blazed with a blinding fiery light. Zhao Lanying glanced at the sword and murmured softly, “So it really is you.”

With that, the two swords clashed fiercely!

The assembled immortals watched as a blazing sword intent and a cold, clear one collided violently, the scorching sun intertwining with the pale moonlight, locked in a relentless, unyielding struggle!

Ji Ting stood idly by, watching the scene unfold. Yu Zhanxu, seeing her so nonchalant, felt a surge of anger. She shot Ji Ting a sharp glare and raised her sword, intending to disrupt the duel. “What are you just standing there for? Help her!”

Ji Ting feigned a delicate, willow-like demeanor, taking a step back. “If I get hurt, my master will be heartbroken.”

Yu Zhanxu’s heart bled with bitter resentment, unable to fathom why Shen Fuxin would be drawn to an immortal envoy of this type. Just as she was about to charge into the fray, the blazing sword radiance belonging to Shen Fuxin drenched her like a bucket of cold water, freezing her in place.

How long had they been fighting?

That day on the sword platform, when Shen Fuxin’s sword had pointed at her, those lesser blades had barely held out for three breaths before her. Now, Shen Fuxin’s sword was directed at Zhao Lanying, and it had already been roughly ten breaths.

This wasn’t right.

Her shock and doubt lasted only a moment before she saw the spiritual flames on Shen Fuxin’s sword finally extinguished by Zhao Lanying’s strike.

The undying spiritual flames atop the mountain peak vanished entirely, and Shen Fuxin’s long sword flew from her hand, instantly melting into a familiar crimson liquid. Facing Zhao Lanying’s incoming blade barehanded, her eyes were terrifyingly calm.

It was too late to intervene now! Yu Zhanxu had never hated her own indecisiveness more. If only her sword could be faster, even faster. But Zhao Lanying’s sword light was already three inches from Shen Fuxin’s chest! What did she truly intend? If she harbored such hatred, why had she agreed to form a bond with her?

Ji Ting narrowed her eyes. One more inch, and that sword light would trigger the protective sword intent she had laid. She waited quietly for that moment, her heart unruffled, yet a trace of timidity surfaced on her face.

At that very instant, another sword light, clear and blue, abruptly shot out, forcibly halting Zhao Lanying’s sword intent!

Sword Venerable Jiexia, who had rushed over in haste, hadn’t even straightened her robes her outer garment hung loosely over her shoulders, and her usually immaculate long hair was slightly disheveled. Seeing that she had successfully separated the two, she let out a long sigh of relief: “No fighting! You’re both immortals about to form a bond. What could be so irreconcilable between destined partners?”

As her words fell, a deathly silence enveloped the peak of Qingdi Ling Mountain.

Only then did Sword Venerable Jiexia belatedly recall that Zhao Lanying had yet to send out invitations to inform the immortal realm she had only mentioned it privately after sword practice that day.

She remembered Zhao Lanying’s expression that day neither joy nor sorrow, utterly unreadable regarding her feelings about this union. But then, who in the entire immortal realm could possibly compel Zhao Lanying?

Perhaps she truly had feelings for Shen Fuxin. Sword Venerable Jiexia’s gaze grew complex. Otherwise, why would Zhao Lanying have asked her where to have wedding robes tailored.

Just as the immortals stood in stunned silence, Zhao Lanying spoke.

She didn’t even lower her sword, merely glanced down slightly and declared in a voice audible to all her disciples: “Tomorrow, I will send out invitations to all immortals in the realm.

“Shen Fuxin and I will form our bond here at Qingdi Ling Mountain. If any of you wish to partake in the wedding festivities, you are all welcome to attend that day.”