“Cang Yan!” A tear fell from Yun Qingxue’s eyes, but Cang Yan only smiled. “Qingxue… come closer… I… I want to whisper one last thing to you…”
Yun Qingxue lowered her head, only to feel something transfer from Cang Yan’s body to hers.
“The only thing I can do for you… is to live well…”
“Cang Yan! Where is the Beast King’s Token?” A sharp, feminine voice rang out at that moment.
Yun Qingxue looked up to see Bai Ling, the daughter of the previous Beast King whose throne Cang Yan had usurped, leading a group of beast soldiers to the edge of the divine realm.
Cang Yan gazed deeply at Yun Qingxue but spoke to Bai Ling. “Obey the Flower King… When the deed is done… she will hand the Beast King’s Token to you…!”
Halfway through his words, Cang Yan took a deep breath before mustering all his remaining strength to say, “The Cang Wolf Clan, heed my command… Swear to protect the Flower King with your lives!”
A desolate wind swept past as Cang Yan, with a roguish yet sorrowful look, whispered to Yun Qingxue, “Live!”
With those final words, his body dissipated into the wind…
“Woo-woo~” The members of the Cang Wolf Clan who had followed Bai Ling let out a mournful howl to the heavens before fiercely joining the battle.
Yun Qingxue pulled out the Beast King’s Token Cang Yan had just given her and tossed it to Bai Ling. “Take it!”
Bai Ling caught it, staring at Yun Qingxue in astonishment. “Aren’t you afraid I’ll take the token and leave?”
“The White Tiger Clan would never betray their word… Besides, the Divine King, Huan Tian, has fallen into demonic ways and practices dark arts. If we don’t stop him today, the entire Xuanling Continent will be slaughtered by him! When the nest is overturned, no egg remains unbroken—need I explain this to you?”
“The Flower King is indeed wise. No wonder that ambitious wolf Cang Yan was willing to sacrifice his life for you, even abandoning the Beast King’s throne he schemed so hard to steal from my father!” Bai Ling gave Yun Qingxue a profound look before leaping into the air, joining the fight against Divine King Huan Tian with the token in hand.
Yun Qingxue wasted no time and followed suit.
Lan Xuechen, having just regained a physical form, was still too weak to fight and could only watch from the sidelines.
The battle raged for three days, exhausting everyone, yet it showed no sign of stopping…
The first to falter was Mo Su…
She was struck hard by the Divine King and thrown out of the fray.
Next were Bai Ling, Shui Liu, Huan Shi… and finally Yun Qingxue…
One by one, they were knocked down by Huan Tian. Then, suddenly, Huan Tian reached for Mo Changxing’s heart as he weakened.
“Wretched fiend, die!”
“Senior Brother Changxing!” Yun Qingxue gasped, summoning her last strength to leap forward.
Yun Ye and Purple Song Sage also launched attacks to intervene, but a shadowy figure darted ahead of them.
“Damn it! Where the hell did this ghost lead us?!” At the edge of the divine realm, Xiao Xiaoxiao panted, hands on her hips.
Just as she spoke, she spotted Yun Qingxue and waved excitedly. “Hey! Qingxue, you’re here too!”
Yun Qingxue turned, slightly surprised. “Xiaoxiao?”
Xiao Xiaoxiao was about to run over when Ming Di grabbed her arm, his voice grave. “Stay out of this! Can’t you see what’s happening over there?!”
“I see it!” Xiao Xiaoxiao blinked innocently. “That ghost is charging at the golden-armored guy—is it trying to eat him? Holy crap! Ming Di, look! That guy’s like a Saint Seiya or something… He’s a god, right? Wow, ghosts are getting ambitious now—they wanna eat gods?!”
Yun Qingxue: “…”
Ming Di: “…”
Everyone else: “…”
“Wuuu…” The ghost wailed as it lunged at Huan Tian.
Huan Tian smirked coldly, deftly dodging the attack before slamming his palm onto the ghost’s head.
Instantly, a dark energy streamed from the ghost’s head into Huan Tian’s palm.
Seizing the moment, Yun Ye and Purple Song Sage attacked again. Huan Tian withdrew his hand, and the once-ferocious ghost rapidly shrank, transforming into a frail, exhausted young woman.
Her body was flung aside like a ragdoll.
“Qing Ruo…” Recognizing the ghost, Lan Xuechen gasped and rushed forward.
Xiao Xiaoxiao was dumbfounded. She hadn’t expected the “Saint Seiya” to be so overpowered—the ghost she and Ming Di had chased for months was subdued in mere moments.
And… how did the ghost suddenly become so pretty?
Do ghosts have shape-shifting abilities or something…?
“Uh… should we go grab the ghost now?” she whispered hesitantly to Ming Di.
Ming Di frowned. “No need. Her cultivation has been drained—she won’t survive.”
“Damn! If he can suck a ghost’s power that easily, what the hell is that golden-armored guy?” Xiao Xiaoxiao muttered in shock.
“He’s the Divine Emperor,” Ming Di said grimly. “But it seems he’s fallen into demonic ways…”
“Demonic ways? A god turning demonic…” Xiao Xiaoxiao shuddered.
“Qing Ruo…” Lan Xuechen helped the woman up, her face deathly pale. A faint, sorrowful smile crossed her lips. “Flower… Flower King… Please… protect my two children…”
“Who?” Lan Xuechen was stunned.
“Changxing… and… Huan Shi…” Qing Ruo pleaded weakly.
Her words sent a ripple of shock through the crowd.
The infamous ghost of Xuanling Continent… was Mo Changxing and Huan Shi’s mother?!
Legend had it that the Divine King, drunk, had once lain with a goddess, resulting in an illegitimate pregnancy. The goddess secretly gave birth to twins, but when the Divine Emperor discovered it, he flew into a rage, viewing it as a disgrace. He executed the goddess and abandoned the children…
“All these years… I’ve longed for my children… I hated Huan Tian… So I willingly became a vengeful ghost… But I never imagined… Huan Tian would practice dark arts… Ha… The mighty Divine Emperor, reduced to a demon… Flower King… I once served you faithfully before ascending… I beg you… protect my children…”
Qing Ruo’s pupils dilated as she murmured, “How I wish… to hear them call me ‘Mother’…”
“Qing Ruo, hold on…” Lan Xuechen’s heart ached. She never imagined the ghost that plagued Xuanling Continent was Qing Ruo, her former attendant who had ascended to immortality a millennium ago.
A thousand years…
No one knew what Qing Ruo had endured after ascending. But her choice to forsake divinity and embrace the path of a vengeful ghost spoke volumes of her suffering.
As a mother herself, Lan Xuechen understood Qing Ruo’s pain.
“Changxing, Huan Shi, kneel!” Lan Xuechen barked at the stunned brothers.
They remained frozen.
“Kneel! She is your mother!” Lan Xuechen shouted again.
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