Wanxi Rebirth - Chapter 66

As the sound of the Bashe resounded, the red core, which Yue Tingxi had not yet touched, suddenly shot toward her!

Before she could react, the protective force surrounding her soul emitted a shattering crack. In the next moment, the red core pierced her soul at the chest. Agonizing pain spread instantly throughout her entire body!

…Could this be… the curse of the Bashe?

It felt like drowning. Yue Tingxi was overwhelmed by the sudden pain and fainted.

Countless images flooded her mind. She seemed to die over and over, only to return repeatedly to certain points in her past.

During this time, she and Qin Suoliu intersected again and again—sometimes fighting side by side, sometimes fighting to the death, sometimes facing death together, sometimes separated by life and death.

The images flashed by so quickly that she could barely make out individual events. She even glimpsed scenes she had previously dreamed about.

Deep within her mind, a voice kept counting, though she could not discern whether it came from the lingering consciousness of the Bashe or from her own mind:

“First… second…”
“Thirty-second… sixty-fifth…”

Until the voice counted to the eightieth time, the images suddenly became clear.

Yue Tingxi saw herself, trapped in the hall of the sect leader of Qingxu Sect, her emotions and words no longer her own.

She also saw Qin Suoliu, who had already fallen into a demonic state, sitting in the hall of Tushan Jinglan, writing her name repeatedly on paper.

She had also seen this in the memories of the young mistress. At that time, the young mistress had lost all her family and clung her feelings to Yue Tingxi, “her benefactor who lived safely and freely,” hoping day and night that after returning to the human world to exact revenge, she could die at her hands.

“…Is this the cycle of the world consciousness and the invader over hundreds of years?” Yue Tingxi murmured. “Eighty cycles… including our current life, that’s eighty-one rounds of time?”

Now she finally understood why the Bashe said this was both a gift and a curse.

The Bashe seemed to have forcibly passed all her knowledge to Yue Tingxi, perhaps using the soul core to make a last-ditch effort to break through the seal on memories of previous cycles imposed by the world consciousness.

Indeed, there was information she cared about. But as Xie Zhi had previously warned Qin Suoliu: “If the same people and the same environment are experienced too many times in different ways, your memories of them can become confused.”

Fortunately, Yue Tingxi had taken two Soul-Purifying Pills before taking over the body. Under the effect of the medicine, the memories of all eighty cycles were buried deep within her soul, shrouded in a thick fog. Unless she actively recalled them, she could only vaguely know that she had experienced them, nothing more.

Moreover, the more information she gained, the more she questioned the world consciousness.

Why did it need to restart so many times? From the experiences of her previous eighty cycles, there was rarely any interference from the world consciousness. But why did it just watch? Wasn’t the invader its mortal enemy?

If the Bashe intended to drive a wedge between her and the world consciousness, Yue Tingxi had to admit, it was a clever tactic. Now her mind was filled with questions without answers.

But regardless, the invader and its organization were the common enemy of both her and the world consciousness. Before defeating them, she would continue to follow the world consciousness’s guidance.

Yue Tingxi’s consciousness floated between clarity and chaos.

She did not know how long she had been unconscious. When she finally woke, her body was wet and cold, as if immersed in an icy pond.

Yet amidst the damp chill, she detected a familiar scent.

“Qin Suoliu?” she murmured, reaching out, only to have her hand firmly grasped.

“You’re finally awake.”

Qin Suoliu’s voice was calm like still water, yet a few drops of warmth fell on her hand.

After the body takeover, Yue Tingxi’s senses became incredibly sharp. Without opening her eyes, she could sense that Qin Suoliu was also submerged in the same cold, damp water.

“Let’s get out. It’s cold and wet here,” she instinctively said. “You don’t like it.”

“Alright, I’ll ask Qingyu Shanren to remove the shackles for you…”

“No need, I’ve been watching all along.”

With Qingyu Shanren’s calm voice and the clinking sound of metal breaking, Yue Tingxi felt a sudden lightness in her body.

She lifted her eyelids and saw her reflection in the water: long, waterfall-like snow-white hair. The face mirrored in the water was identical to hers.

“You are now using Bashe’s body, but after the takeover, her appearance has been replaced by yours,” Qingyu Shanren explained. “Your own body has been placed in an ice-cold box. Once you wake, you can decide what to do with it.”

“Directly consume it, seal it in the dantian as a nascent soul, or temporarily leave it in the cold box… all are possible,” Xie Zhi added leisurely. “If needed, you can split off a portion of your soul to continue using her body.”

After studying the device related to the world consciousness for a few seconds, Yue Tingxi stood up from the pond, holding Qin Suoliu’s hand, and leaped lightly to the shore. With a thought, she instantly drained the water from their clothes.

“I need some time to think,” Yue Tingxi said. “For now… I plan to share Qin Suoliu’s power.”

The Bashe’s presence had completely vanished, and even the red core that pierced her soul during the takeover left no trace.

Though she did not know what the Bashe had intended at the final moment, she had fully mastered the body and knew exactly how much power the demon had absorbed and how much room remained for new energy.

“You just woke up, rest a bit,” Qin Suoliu shook her head. “I also have something to tell you.”

“Then go rest at my place,” Qingyu Shanren volunteered. “Xie Zhi said you would wake today. Tea, snacks, and food are ready.”

Yue Tingxi had no objection, holding Qin Suoliu’s hand as they stepped into a teleportation array and instantly arrived outside Qingyu Shanren’s residence.

Fallen yellow leaves and the autumn breeze greeted them.

“…How long was I out?” Yue Tingxi asked.

“Counting today, exactly ninety-eight-one days,” Qingyu Shanren said. “Autumn has been here for a while.”

How strange—“eighty-one” again…

“Other than the moment of the takeover, your state has been stable, like a peaceful sleep.” Qingyu Shanren looked at Qin Suoliu. “During this time, Suoliu has been watching over you—the sudden disappearance of the great demon in Xishan required an explanation to the mountain demons.”

Once inside the cabin, Qingyu Shanren showed them where to get tea and food before leaving, leaving them to converse.

Yue Tingxi wiped Qin Suoliu’s eyes.

“Has your soul’s illusionary realm improved? Otherwise, why would you cry?” she half-joked.

Qin Suoliu was silent, taking out a fine cow-bone comb to smooth Yue Tingxi’s snow-white hair.

“Any discomfort?” Yue Tingxi asked. “During the takeover, you looked in pain, and the water in the pond stirred many times because of your demon body.”

“The water splashed on you?” Yue Tingxi immediately asked. “It was very cold. Did you stay in it while caring for me? Weren’t you uncomfortable?”

“Thanks to the Wuqing Dao, I don’t feel discomfort,” Qin Suoliu replied, pinning her hair with a plain yet expensive jade hairpin. “Any discomfort on your side?”

Yue Tingxi still retained some traces from the eighty cycles. She recalled the feelings carefully, then assured, “I’m fine now, don’t worry.”

“Where is Bashe’s soul core?” Qin Suoliu asked, placing her hand on Yue Tingxi’s chest. Though seemingly touching her body, Yue Tingxi felt her soul touched as well.

“…Seems your soul has made progress,” Yue Tingxi tried to deflect.

“Fused? Or vanished?” Qin Suoliu pressed.

Yue Tingxi sighed: “I don’t know. The core broke Xie Zhi’s protective barrier but then disappeared. I sense no trace of Bashe now.”

Qin Suoliu didn’t reply.

“I’ll get some food; I’m starving.” Yue Tingxi got up and soon brought a basket of food for both herself and the young mistress, along with a pot of hot tea.

Bashe had been suppressed under Xishan for thousands of years. Though of tribulation-level cultivation, her body was weak under various formations and shackles.

Now that Yue Tingxi had the body, she ate heartily to replenish energy and considered what to do with her original body.

She had thought of leaving a copy at Qingyu Shanren’s side if she ever needed to go beyond this realm, acting as if she had never left.

But no one knew what would happen if the original soul died. Would the host body die as well or continue acting on its original habits as a “puppet without a master”?

“Yue Tingxi.”

Startled by the young mistress calling her full name, Yue Tingxi froze, sensing something bad.

“If some information is inconvenient to tell now, I won’t ask,” Qin Suoliu said.

Yue Tingxi: …

This was even more crushing than her persistent questioning.

“It’s not that inconvenient,” she replied, “just… haven’t decided what to do with my original body.”

Unlike Qin Suoliu, who only absorbed a soul, Yue Tingxi wanted Bashe’s body as a container for absorbing soul power.

Though the body had belonged to a calamity-level demon, Yue Tingxi discovered that from the moment she woke, she fully controlled it—as if it had always been hers.

Whether this was due to Xie Zhi or world consciousness’s interference, or Bashe’s intentional act, she did not know.

“…So, I have two bodies now,” Yue Tingxi explained. “One innate, one acquired, but using the acquired one feels natural.”

“Best to leave it for now,” Qin Suoliu said. “The energy of Xishan nourishes you, your body is being cared for, just consider it a backup.”

Yue Tingxi agreed and no longer worried. She asked about the fairy grass.

Lan Kongming had said that to fully break the “Withered Bones Blooming” formation in the Ghost City, one needed the fairy grass Ji Duo Hansu from Yuqiongmen Glacier Valley. Before the takeover, Qin Suoliu had mentioned contacting Lan Fengqing.

If obtainable, they’d get it; if not, they’d take it by force in two years when entering the Ghost Domain.

“Probably will have to take it by force,” Qin Suoliu said calmly. Lan Fengqing’s sudden recovery had raised suspicions, so she could no longer keep the fairy grass.

Yue Tingxi guessed: “He thinks it was the world consciousness that healed Fengqing?”

“Yes, but now we have enough power to eliminate him, so no rush for the grass.” Qin Suoliu continued: “He’s still in seclusion, collecting materials to forge demonic tokens. I predict in two years he’ll send the demonic ghost into the Ghost Domain.”

“If we can’t kill him there, he may bring out a method to unseal the demon realm.”

“I’ll handle it,” Yue Tingxi said, snapping a chicken leg. “He’ll see what real power suppression is!”

In their last life, the young mistress had lost due to cultivation disparity.

After discussing, Yue Tingxi asked about the 7364 system.

“It still occasionally reports invader movements,” Qin Suoliu said. “All one-way. It doesn’t want to communicate with me.”

“Is it hiding the connection between it and Qin Yingguang?” Yue Tingxi guessed.

“Actually, it revealed that the first time it introduced itself. That’s why it used Yingguang’s voice, even though it could hide its true identity.”

She paused: “Regarding Yingguang, the 7364 system, and the world consciousness, I have a rough idea now. But clues about the invader are still lacking. I can’t guess the methods the invader’s organization used to capture the world consciousness’s avatar.”

They both fell silent.

“Let’s wait; the Ghost Domain entrance will open soon,” Yue Tingxi said, feeding her a piece of tangerine. “The invader will die there, and the world consciousness should keep its promise.”

She recalled the world consciousness had promised: [When you kill this person, you will know.]

Killing “Lan Chaoyao” was inevitable.

In Qingxu Sect, sect leader Lan Chaoyao, examining Ji Duo Hansu, shivered.

“So this tiny, delicate grass can open the Ghost City’s seal?” he said to the 7364 system. “After repair, you really surprised me!”

He schemed to use the Ghost Domain to summon a corpses army to secretly kill anyone obstructing his mission.

Yet he wanted more convenience. He pondered, Could I advance the opening of the Ghost Domain using worldly resentment?

[Warning: If discovered by the Immortal Alliance, irreversible reputation loss for the host…]

“I don’t care!” Lan Chaoyao interrupted, opening his storage bag. “Only by abandoning rules and hunting can I maximize gain!”

Once he acquired the army command, he could destroy the Qin family and sweep away Yue Tingxi and Qin Suoliu, then open Bashe’s seal…

He rambled to the 7364 system, which silently listened.

When he finished, the system suddenly asked:

[Host, do you remember why you came here?]

“Why such a sappy question?” Lan Chaoyao grumbled. “I came for an important person! Even if I’ve forgotten their name or identity, it only obstructs the mission. Otherwise, the main brain wouldn’t have erased it temporarily.”

He sighed: “I’ve been here too long, spent all my rewards, delaying affects my performance. I hope the main brain doesn’t deduct points for the past years…”

He didn’t seem to expect a reply. The 7364 system remained silent.

Three days later, fully rested, Yue Tingxi wanted to absorb some of Qin Suoliu’s soul power, but she disguised her as Lingjian.

“I want to take advantage while Wuqing Dao is still here to build the ‘Ghost Sword Cultivator’s’ reputation,” Qin Suoliu said. “Help me.”

She could do it alone, but having a tribulation-level cultivator with Gray Moth’s stealth made it more discreet.

In the end, the blame would fall entirely on the invader, letting them bear the wrath of the “victim” sects.

“Alright, I haven’t wielded a sword in a while,” Yue Tingxi said, weaving law force into her favorite longsword with sheath, wearing a fox mask crafted by the young mistress during the eighty-one days of care—a small nod to her original serpent body.

Prepared, the two descended the mountain and headed to the Red Dust Hall in Xianjing City.

Qin Suoliu had a hit list ready, based on information collected from Lan Fengqing.

That day, even the walls of the hall were dyed red with blood.

They acted together, one wielding a sword, using Gray Moth’s concealment to enter, and immediately began killing.

Qin Suoliu searched for Ze Mei, a deeply corrupt person. Based on Lan Fengqing’s intelligence, her crimes far exceeded what Qin Suoliu had previously known.

Ze Mei poisoned countless young women, indoctrinating them to serve men, claiming this was the only path to happiness. Those who resisted faced cruel punishments. Even an unfortunate noblewoman had been thrown into a den of rogues.

“The person you seek is with the hall master,” Yue Tingxi transmitted. “Take the master too. Neither are good people.”

Qin Suoliu nodded. Yue Tingxi positioned herself, determined the teleportation direction, and in a thought, sent Ze Mei over, then retrieved her.

The world fell silent. Moments later, screams of terror erupted inside the hall.

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