Wanxi Rebirth - Chapter 58

The cracking sound of the shell was unusually crisp. Even Luo Yansha, who was about to continue speaking, heard it.

She immediately looked at the Bi Fang egg that Miss Qin was holding in her arms and noticed a crack forming on the top, with tendrils of red mist rising from inside.

The egg shook violently. Qin Suoliu simply placed it back into the soft little nest and continued infusing it with fire spiritual energy.

“This shell-breaking is happening faster than I expected!” Luo Yansha sighed, taking out a food bowl and special feed enriched with fire spiritual energy. “I originally thought it would take another two or three days, but it seems as soon as the Miss feeds it spiritual energy, it’s ready to come out!”

“Maybe it’s because Miss Qin went through the tribulation with me, so the quality of the fire spiritual energy has improved?” Yue Tingxi guessed, casually scanning Qin Suoliu’s cultivation level with her spiritual sense.

The result shocked her—Miss Qin had already broken through to mid Out-of-Body stage?!

That was the cultivation level she had when leading the demon army into the Human Realm in her past life! Now, having absorbed the remnants of a great demon’s soul and capable of temporarily transforming into a nine-tailed fox, she could probably contend with late Out-of-Body cultivators!

Previously, Yue Tingxi only knew from Qin Suoliu’s explanation that she had reached the Out-of-Body stage, but she hadn’t realized she could leap across so many cultivation stages so quickly!

Before the tribulation, Qin Suoliu had only reached the late Nascent Soul stage.

Before Yue Tingxi could fully process this, the crisp cracking continued.

A small turquoise head quickly peeked out, a white beak dripping with fire spiritual energy. Its turquoise and crimson eyes spun about, revealing a delicate little bird.

No matter how violently it struggled, it couldn’t fully emerge. Luo Yansha instinctively wanted to pry the shell open, but Qin Suoliu stopped her: “Bi Fang is proud; let it break out on its own.”

As soon as she finished speaking, the sides of the eggshell shattered.

Two wings spread out from the cracks, each carrying fire-patterned red spiritual energy.

The little bird proudly raised its neck, as if showing off.

…If its wings hadn’t been stuck in the shell, it might have truly resembled a phoenix reborn from fire.

But as long as it broke out, it was fine; no one laughed at it. Qin Suoliu increased the amount of fire spiritual energy she poured into it.

Luo Yansha held up the feed so it could eat immediately.

Yue Tingxi, having regained her composure, deliberately sent a wave of water spiritual energy toward it: “Shell-breaking is great! Let’s take a bath later—egg residue sticking to you must be uncomfortable!”

This method had worked for her a hundred years ago when she hatched herself. She had only learned a little now.

The little bird hated ice and water spiritual energy, so upon hearing this, it screamed “Bi Fang! Bi Fang!” and flapped its wings to shake off the remaining shell.

“No worries! We have a dry cloth!” Luo Yansha quickly reassured it.

One played the stern role, the other the gentle one. The newly hatched bird didn’t understand and used all its strength to kick open the shell, hopping onto Luo Yansha’s arms in a blur, then continued scolding Yue Tingxi.

“Ah, you…” Luo Yansha wiped the egg residue off the little creature, helplessly glancing at Yue Tingxi, silently mouthing: you didn’t need to be hated like this!

“It’s fine, it hatched successfully, didn’t it?” Yue Tingxi shrugged, withdrawing her water spiritual energy. “Since it’s more familiar with you because of me, isn’t that good?”

She had worried that her old friend wouldn’t be able to tame the proud Bi Fang. Luo Yansha wasn’t strong and had an Ice attribute; if Bi Fang didn’t trust her from the beginning, it would be hard to manage later.

Indeed, Bi Fang was closer to Luo Yansha but still allowed Miss Qin to groom its neck feathers. Yet, whenever Yue Tingxi approached, it would bristle.

“How rude, I’m the one who brought you out,” Yue Tingxi teased, secretly relieved, then asked Luo Yanzha, “Have you decided on a name?”

“I have! I originally wanted a name with a fire radical, but my name already has one. If I give it that, it’d practically be my sister! I’m its mother!” Luo Yanzha pouted.

“Then according to the elements, shouldn’t it be an earth radical?” Yue Tingxi tried to suppress a laugh. “What’s the name?”

She watched her friend condense spiritual energy into ice on the table and write the three characters “Luo Chenjing.”

“A good saying goes ‘to shine with the light of the dust’ to avoid disaster,” Luo Yansha explained, self-deprecatingly. “I may never become a powerful mother, so I at least want to give it a meaningful name.”

She had long accepted that she was an ordinary cultivator. Even with help from benefactors, her cultivation would only reach a certain level in this life.

“Don’t belittle yourself,” Qin Suoliu said, “As long as you live safely and don’t stray from the path, there’s still a long road ahead.”

“Thank you for your kind words,” Luo Yansha smiled, feeding Bi Fang and taking out a spiritual parchment: “I almost forgot! I usually record events in the mountains and human realm here!”

After bidding Luo Yansha farewell, Yue Tingxi put away the parchment and went to report to Chan Ying and Yun Ruan, returning soon to her residence in Qingyu Mountain.

She still had one question for the mountain dwellers, but since she had promised Miss Qin to meet her old friends, she would postpone it for now.

“You’re now mid Out-of-Body stage. What’s your plan for Shuo Han Hua?”

She wanted to handle Miss Qin’s matter as well.

“Remove it and transplant it to Xishan,” Qin Suoliu replied. “Although it provides me spiritual energy continuously, it’s a conscious plant that can influence the soul. Leaving it in my body would be harmful.”

“Then I’ll have the mountain dwellers figure out the best place to plant this troublesome thing,” Yue Tingxi agreed.

Miss Qin smiled, and a few fluffy fox tails stretched out from beneath, gently swaying toward her.

But there was still one matter to discuss. Yue Tingxi continued: “The human-realm wanted ‘Ghost Sword Cultivator’ is undoubtedly Lan Gou. Should we eliminate him early?”

“If he scanned He Shen using the 7364 system, he can likely detect the demon token in He Shen and analyze its composition,” Qin Suoliu explained. The drooping fox tails betrayed a hint of concern. “He entered the secret realm yet killed and plundered on a large scale, probably constrained by the world consciousness. He can’t freely take secret realm treasures and must search for materials from others to forge demon tokens.”

“Then we should trap and kill him in the secret realm sooner,” Yue Tingxi frowned.

“True, but after knowing the connection between the secret realm and world consciousness, it’s better to lure him there,” Qin Suoliu said. “Do you remember the ‘intruder’ and the organization behind them?”

Yue Tingxi paused, then understood: “You plan to use the secret realm to increase the isolation effect again?”

“Exactly. World consciousness has countered the intruder’s tactics over centuries, but the outside world can’t be fully controlled,” Qin Suoliu nodded. “We’ll let him run for a couple more years. But if I find a chance, I’ll set a trap.”

The two fox tails twined around Yue Tingxi’s arm.

“Don’t mention him, Tingxi,” Qin Suoliu murmured.

Yue Tingxi, curious about her plans, sat beside her, feeling her arm and fox tails entwine, and asked, “Why have you become so clingy?”

“Perhaps I sensed your attitude toward me has changed,” Qin Suoliu rested against her, inhaling her scent.

“You’re perceptive,” Yue Tingxi allowed her, “But I’ve never had a partner. Even my snake tail knows how to love you.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Qin Suoliu closed her eyes. “You know I will always love only you and that I’m willing to be your Dao partner. That’s enough.”

Their fingers intertwined. Yue Tingxi felt her fingertips a little cool.

Before she could think further, the fox tails twined and playfully tossed her around.

Soon, Miss Qin seemed satisfied and obediently relaxed her tails, attentively waiting for Yue Tingxi to place water spiritual energy.

At some point, the mountain dwellers had casually glanced in and decided to ignore the two.

Yet unease lingered in Yue Tingxi’s heart as she continued observing Qin Suoliu.

Since the tribulation, Miss Qin had become clingier, almost desperate as if fearing the next meal might not come.

If it were only due to their joint struggle in the illusion, it would be simple, but the mountain dwellers believed their eyes about soul changes.

An overly clean soul wasn’t necessarily a good thing.

She had seen cases where extreme purity made a cultivator insensitive to emotions and attachments, doing everything purely rationally, detached from family or worldly ties.

Yet now, Qin Suoliu was just clingier. Yue Tingxi understood where her heart had previously been blocked, so she let the mountain dwelling jade cabbage handle it first.

Three more days passed.

Yue Tingxi was stuck with Qin Suoliu every day, whether training or simply being intimate, often needing to carve out time to meet the mountain dwellers and the World Balancer.

Even during the confrontation with Tu Shan Jinglan, she was curious why her demon core could unlock the ancient demon Ba She’s seal.

Upon entering the Lotus Ice Wheel, once both were seated, she asked directly: “Am I perhaps the reincarnation of the demon Ba She?”

She was a spirit born from gathered energy without parents, but the gathering site was on Xishan, which had once suppressed the great demon. The soul’s energy source made it complicated.

“Who told you that?!” The mountain dweller responded sternly. “Your soul is clean. How could it relate to that damned thing?”

Yue Tingxi recounted her confrontation with Tu Shan Jinglan. The mountain dweller already knew her past, and the World Balancer could observe the past, so nothing was hidden.

“Don’t speak too absolutely,” the World Balancer said. “But… I can confirm you’re not Ba She’s reincarnation. As for why your soul carries her aura, it might be due to choices made by world consciousness.”

She continued: “But don’t worry. As your ancestor said, your soul is clean. Even if connected to Ba She, she cannot taint your consciousness.”

“Both of you have reached Out-of-Body stage already. Aren’t you going to say more?” the mountain dweller asked.

“Not yet, it’s too early,” the World Balancer said frankly. “Wait two more years; the answer will come in the Ghost Realm Secret Realm.”

Originally anxious, Yue Tingxi relaxed, remembering Tu Shan Jinglan had said that a golden-eyed woman had suppressed Ba She during past demon upheavals.

Yet she still confirmed: “Did you seal Ba She back then?”

“Partly involved,” the World Balancer replied. “The title ‘World Balancer’ came from that time, from the words of two cultivators from the two races.”

“Since you’ve learned this from the demons’ memories, let me reintroduce myself.” She drew golden lines in the air, writing “Xie Zhi,” and said: “I am Xie Zhi, the creation of world consciousness, also its shackles and sword.”

“That’s all I can tell you for now. More will be revealed in two years in the Ghost Realm Secret Realm.”

She transformed into golden light and disappeared, leaving only the characters “Xie Zhi” floating in the air.

“Really love to act mysterious! Everyone enjoys riddles,” the mountain dweller muttered, used to it, but watched Yue Tingxi with concern: “Rest assured, I won’t allow malicious human cultivators into Xishan this lifetime!”

With no intrusions, the seal would remain intact.

Fearing overthinking, she added: “Once you return to the Human Realm and sense danger, immediately use the teleportation talisman I gave you!”

After confirming she wasn’t Ba She’s reincarnation, Yue Tingxi relaxed and smiled, patting the mountain dweller’s back.

Seeing her beloved jade cabbage ready to move on, the mountain dweller didn’t mention it further, shifting topics: “Handle Shuo Han Hua later. I calculated; tonight’s hour is best.”

At night, when the mountain fog was thickest, the mountain dweller led the two to a vacant spiritual field behind the residence.

“Plant Shuo Han Hua here,” the mountain dweller said. “I’ll watch it and won’t let it harm any female cultivator.”

She opened a barrier of isolation and tossed a jade green stone into the field, purpose unknown.

Yue Tingxi released a large amount of water spiritual energy, ready to assist in removing Shuo Han Hua.

Qin Suoliu closed her eyes, sending her spiritual sense into Yue Tingxi’s “Ouroboros” seal to probe Shuo Han Hua.

Unexpectedly, her spiritual sense was pulled into an illusion.

Relying on her Out-of-Body cultivation and soul strength, Qin Suoliu remained calm, curious what the plant would do in its death throes.

She didn’t intend to destroy it, only relocate it outside where it could face the tribulation.

[I can help you, if you let me stay.]

A young female voice echoed in her consciousness.

[I grew deep in the secret realm where the heartbeat of world consciousness can be heard. I know how to suppress its power.]

[Make a deal with me! You wouldn’t want to become a cultivator insensitive to the Seven Emotions, would you, mother?]

“Who are you to call me that?” Qin Suoliu snapped. “Get out of my body.”

Before Shuo Han Hua could respond, she wrapped it fully in her spiritual sense.

[Do you know that your current clinginess and ability to be intimate with your beloved is due to my resistance to world consciousness’s influence?]

[If you expel me, you will become what you most fear.]

[If you don’t believe, you may try.]

She had already tested this.

As her spiritual sense fully enclosed Shuo Han Hua, coldness surged from her soul, as if in the dead of winter.

[Everything has a price.]

The flower continued:

[You accepted the aid of world consciousness. Your cultivation skyrocketed, even surpassing another mother… But ordinary cultivators can hardly bear this power in a short time.]

[Let me stay, as atonement and compensation. I won’t attempt to become your child again, but you will need me.]

“Compensation? I hear only a threat cloaked as benefit,” Qin Suoliu said, tightening her spiritual grip. “Notice, you’ve never truly repented, only assumed your offer would sway me.”

[Is that so… I thought my terms should satisfy you.]

Shuo Han Hua sighed. [Do as you please. I’ve been trapped once; no matter how you plead, I won’t return.]

Qin Suoliu felt that listening further would taint her soul. With a thought, a silver-gray teleportation spell attached to Shuo Han Hua, permeating it.

[This is your last chance; don’t blame me.]

With Shuo Han Hua’s warning, Qin Suoliu activated the teleportation array.

In an instant, she buried the large flower deep in the soil of the spiritual field.

Seeing it struggle to escape, Yue Tingxi and the mountain dweller reinforced it, pinning it firmly.

The flower was only Out-of-Body stage and couldn’t compete with the mountain dweller.

“Done!” Yue Tingxi exhaled. “Finally removed that troublesome flower!”

Previously guided by the gray moth, she had felt guilty, but now it was over.

She looked joyfully at Qin Suoliu, affectionately calling her nickname: “Ah Wu, shall we descend the mountain? I’ll greet my old friends, then go home with you… Ah Wu?”

For some reason, Miss Qin seemed lost in thought.

Yue Tingxi touched her shoulder and reached for her hand, only to be avoided.

“Why are you dodging? Are you unwell? Or did Shuo Han Hua leave any aftereffects?”

“No,” she shook her head. “It only said disgusting things while struggling, triggering unpleasant memories and anger.”

“Not necessarily,” the mountain dweller, observing her soul, frowned. “Your soul changed again, unnaturally clean. What happened just now?”

Her probing wasn’t omnipotent, but she saw Qin Suoliu’s spiritual sense vanish briefly upon contact, likely a domain space cultivated by Shuo Han Hua.

“Isn’t a clean soul what you wanted?” Qin Suoliu asked. “Together with Tingxi, we ensured that the filthy memories no longer pollute my soul.”

Her tone was stiff, yet the mountain dweller didn’t scold. She frowned at Yue Tingxi: “A soul too clean is only seen in emotionless Dao cultivators! Stay here a few days more.”

“What?!” Yue Tingxi was shocked. “You just removed Shuo Han Hua! How is she an emotionless Dao cultivator?!”

“Exactly why you must observe her,” the mountain dweller said. “Since she loves you so dearly and cultivates with you, she must be responsible to you.”

She worried that if they went somewhere unseen, Yue Tingxi might be neglected by Qin Suoliu.

Even cultivators with love, who believed their feelings could surpass Dao constraints, ultimately fell victim to the side effects of the emotionless path.

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