Master is Also Running Away from Marriage Today (Transmigration) - Chapter 53

The Demon King’s cultivation had advanced yet again, leaving no one in the world as her match. With her own power, she stirred up storms of bloodshed across the three realms. Not only did the immortal sects fear her, but even the demonic clans dreaded her unpredictable temper.

Fifteen years passed in the blink of an eye.

The balance of power among the three realms had undergone a dramatic reversal. The demonic realm ran rampant in the mortal world, while the immortal sects declined. The Demon King even erected a towering prison around Lufeng Town, specifically designed to imprison cultivators.

Once proud and lofty cultivators had fallen into the dust, hiding and fleeing from the demonic realm’s pursuit. The four great immortal sects had crumbled, and the entire Earth Sovereign Alliance had collectively surrendered to the demonic forces.

However, after ruling the world for so many years, the immortal sects had naturally left behind many means of survival. Some of their core forces remained well-hidden.

For instance, the Qingyi Sect, which the Demon King had exhausted all methods to find, had relocated many years ago, retreating deep into the mountains to avoid the conflicts of the world.

On this day, heavy rain poured from the sky, accompanied by flashes of lightning and rolls of thunder. Bai Mufeng and Bai Fengqing arrived on their swords, both drenched to the bone. Clearly, the situation was urgent. So urgent that they hadn’t even had time to cast a water-repelling spell.

“Sect Leader, Master Bai is here.”

Ding Xin knocked on Zhao Yunshi’s door. When it opened, Zhao Yunshi’s slightly pale face appeared.

Ding Xin glanced at her, hesitating as if she wanted to say something, but in the end, she lowered her eyes and silently led Zhao Yunshi outside.

“The Demon King has captured cultivators from the Pei Sect and extracted clues about your whereabouts. She will likely find this place soon. You can’t stay here any longer!”

Outside, Bai Fengqing, still dripping wet, got straight to the point.

“Has the Demon King’s rampage reached this extent?” Zhao Yunshi coughed twice before handing the sect leader’s token to Ding Xin. Ding Xin bowed her head and hurried out, and soon, the faint sounds of hurried packing and moving could be heard.

This was already a common occurrence for the Qingyi Sect.

Over the past fifteen years, the sect had relocated multiple times, all thanks to Zhao Yunshi’s friendship with Bai Mufeng. Bai Mufeng had spent those years traveling extensively and knew of many remote hiding places.

“I know of a valley not far from here, usually uninhabited,” Bai Mufeng said, standing nearby and casting a worried glance at Zhao Yunshi. “What’s wrong with you? You look worse by the day.”

“These years, I’ve been obsessed with avenging myself against the Demon King and made some mistakes in my cultivation,” Zhao Yunshi lowered her head, steering the conversation away. “We’ve only survived this long thanks to you. Is the outside world still the same?”

“The Demon King runs wild, capturing countless cultivators and throwing the world into chaos. Who knows what she truly wants?” Bai Mufeng sighed. “In all my years of judging character, I never imagined she could be so sinister and cunning. Do you think if back then, when she was Lin Qingge, no one had exposed her as Yan Qi, would things have?”

“There are no ‘what ifs,'” Zhao Yunshi interrupted irritably, her brows furrowed as if she couldn’t bear to speak of the Demon King. “Some people are just rotten to the core from birth.”

Bai Mufeng noticed Zhao Yunshi’s impatience and gave her a deep look before falling silent.

Soon, under the cover of night, the entire Qingyi Sect had packed their belongings and quietly moved to the valley Bai Mufeng had recommended.

As the leader of the immortal realm, Bai Xumen had much to attend to amidst the chaos of war. Bai Mufeng and Bai Fengqing did not linger long either. After ensuring Qingyimen had settled in its new location, they took their leave.

Ding Xin escorted the two to the valley entrance and inspected the protective mountain array there before returning to Zhao Yunshi’s room. By then, another person had joined them.

This newcomer was gentle and serene, his demeanor reminiscent of an ancient piece of jade. Yet upon closer inspection, one would notice his eyes had lost their light. Had the Demon King been present, he would have recognized him instantly. This was the eldest disciple of the late Peak Master Xu of Qianji Peak, now the current Peak Master Liu, whom the Demon King had been searching for all along.

“Grandmaster, are you truly unharmed?” Ding Xin, usually composed, now had reddened eyes. “This method defies the heavens. Peak Master Liu has already lost his sight, and you’ve suffered severe backlash. Please, let’s not continue.”

“This is the only way,” Zhao Yunshi seemed to disregard Ding Xin’s plea as she stepped forward and sat by the bed, signaling Peak Master Liu to proceed with the ritual. “I have a feeling your master will return soon.”

In the years prior, just as Zhao Yunshi had said, she had avoided confronting the Demon King directly, biding her time to gather strength for a decisive battle. But as the Demon King gradually revealed himself over the years, a piece of news from a decade ago struck Zhao Yunshi like thunder: “The Demon King has mastered some dark art, she can now command beasts to fight for her.”

Zhao Yunshi fell silent for an entire afternoon upon hearing this.

Others might not understand, but as a descendant of the Phoenix Flame bloodline, one capable of manipulating paper cranes. She knew all too well. This was no dark art. It was the awakening of the Phoenix Flame bloodline!

In that instant, Zhao Yunshi also realized why the Demon King had built prisons to confine so many cultivators. At its peak, the Phoenix Flame bloodline could not only control beasts but even manipulate human mind

Though she did not know the Demon King’s ultimate goal, with so many cultivators under her control, she could achieve anything.

Not long after Zhao Yunshi realized Yan Qi was her lost child, Peak Master Liu sought her out.

Since the death of Peak Master Xu, Peak Master Liu had devoted himself to cultivation. At the cost of his sight, he finally deciphered the half-revealed prophecies of the past and uncovered the truth of Mu Ling’s origins.

“Master was deceived,” Peak Master Liu said, blood still seeping from his eyes. “The one behind this is immensely powerful. They orchestrated a grand scheme, even altering the celestial omens Master observe.”

In Peak Master Xu’s divinations, Mu Ling was meant to bring a sliver of hope to a world destined for devastation. But someone had concealed the other half of the truth: the soul from another world also carried the key to opening the celestial rift.

For too long, no one in this world had ascended to godhood. The fallen grandmaster Song Tianxing, who had strayed onto the demonic path, had come the closest yet he perished at the final moment. Perhaps the path to divinity simply did not exist here. Only the intervention of an external force, one not of this world, could pry open the celestial rift.

Thus, the mastermind blinded Peak Master Xu’s foresight, leading him to summon an otherworldly soul at the cost of his life.

“So to save the three realms, we must rely on Mu Ling?”

Zhao Yunshi furrowed her brows tightly, recalling that girl who always had smiling eyes and a cheerful expression. A dull ache still lingered in her heart. “But Mu Ling is already dead.”

“She isn’t dead,” Peak Master Liu replied with a serene smile. “She merely returned to where she came from to settle unfinished worldly ties. She has become the key to opening the rift in the Heavenly Barrier. That person, fearing she might cause complications if left in this world, deliberately killed her.”

“Yet she has only gone back temporarily. This place is her true destination.” Peak Master Liu turned her sightless eyes toward Zhao Yunshi. “If she cannot return, she will be utterly annihilated across the Three Realms.”

“Headmaster, for both public and private reasons, we must summon Mu Ling back now.”

After a long silence, Zhao Yunshi chose to participate in the plan.

She wasn’t sure whether it was for the sake of the Three Realms, for Muling, or for her own child who had already strayed far down a dark path.

In the depths of night, Zhao Yunshi often dreamed of Yan Qi’s hollow, lifeless eyes.

She had also seen images of Yan Qi from earlier years.

If she had been strong enough back then to prevent Yan Qi from being taken, would her child have turned out differently?

But this was a tormenting secret Zhao Yunshi could never share with anyone.

Bearing both heartache for the two children and concern for the future of the immortal realm, she burned her own life force, searching for a sliver of hope within the vast, merciless Heavenly Dao.

Finally, fifteen years after Muling’s physical form perished, Zhao Yunshi exhausted every last ounce of her strength and managed to capture a wisp of her soul, guiding it back to this world. Yet her remaining power was insufficient to place the soul into its intended vessel. Just as the soul was about to dissipate, a sudden burst of light emerged from somewhere, pulling Muling’s soul toward it.

Zhao Yunshi watched as the soul descended toward the direction of Lufeng Town and let out a relieved sigh. But then her spirit trembled violently. Gritting her teeth, she mustered the last of her dwindling spiritual energy and began seclusion to recover.

Though she had never given up searching for her daughter, deep down, she had long believed the girl was dead. Before, she had lived only for the Qingyi Sect and for vengeance. But now, Zhao Yunshi found an unprecedented will to survive: she hoped her battered body could hold on long enough to witness that sliver of hope, to see a happy ending for those two children.

When Muling woke up, her head throbbed as if it had been clamped in a vice.

Had she been rescued again?

Frowning, she lifted her head, only to be blinded by a glaring sunlight. It took her a long moment for her vision to clear, and she stared blankly at the ancient-style architecture around her.

What is this?!

Her heart raced wildly. Struggling to get out of bed to confirm her suspicions, she realized this body had been lying still for days and had no strength left. The moment she tried to rise, she tumbled straight onto the floor.

Hurried footsteps sounded outside the door, and a woman rushed in, helping Mu Ling up. “Ling’er, you’re awake? Are you hurt?”

This woman…

Muling froze, staring at the much-aged face before her. “Zhen Niang?”

Only later did Muling learn that she had now become Zhen Niang’s daughter. A girl who had been mentally impaired for over a decade, devoid of any spiritual power.

What astonished Mu Ling even more was that this body looked exactly like her modern-day appearance. A pretty and charming young beauty. Although it bore only a slight resemblance to her previous body and wasn’t as stunning, Mu Ling still preferred her original looks.

As for the reason she had come to inhabit this body, Mu Ling suspected it was related to the seed that had grown in her spiritual sea. Even now, the seed remained nestled in her dantian, glowing faintly with a warm radiance.

Back when Yan Qi had fought against the others, Zhen Niang had been so frightened that she might have died along with her unborn child. It was this seed that had protected Zhen Niang and the baby in her womb. However, the child had still suffered damage. No soul had grown within its body, which was why it had remained a simpleton for the past fifteen years.

Mu Ling found it all rather strange: Could such a unique body, one without a soul and even identical to her own appearance have been prepared specifically for her?

But now was not the time to dwell on that.

Using the excuse of wanting to learn more about this world, Mu Ling discreetly probed Zhen Niang for information. After escaping the Red Sleeve Pavilion, Zhen Niang and Xiao Zhu had come to Lufeng Town. Perhaps because the town was close to the Demon Palace, life here was far more peaceful than in the immortal realm, all thanks to the intimidating presence of the Demon King who ruled with absolute power. As for the current state of the world, Zhen Niang, who spent her days at home caring for her “foolish” daughter, knew little. Everything would have to wait until Xiao Zhu who now worked at the Demon Palace prison returned home.

Mu Ling waited anxiously for Xiao Zhu to come back.

She had never imagined she would return, and now, fifteen years had passed.

Taking in her surroundings, Mu Ling felt a wave of trepidation. The kind one feels when returning home after a long absence. What would the world be like after fifteen years? And what of Qingge, who had watched her leave all those years ago. How would he look now?