“We’ll conceal ourselves and follow you all! An will definitely appear once the ceremony begins.”
“If the Cloud Whale at the Xuan Guan is truly Yun Paopao, then this ceremony is destined to fail! That divine lady either couldn’t defeat her or never appeared at all. As for who could annihilate the entire Cloud Whale community with such thunderous force, I genuinely can’t think of anyone but An.”
Considering the information Bai Zhiqiu provided, Yan Qingzhu articulated her perspective.
Upon hearing Yan Qingzhu’s words, everyone nodded in agreement.
“Then, let’s go with Yin to attend the ceremony! The moment you detect anything amiss, act immediately! Do not hesitate!”
After the battle plan was set, Bai Zhiqiu and Yin returned to the Cloud Whale clan’s encampment.
Upon their return, Bai Zhiqiu and Yin discovered Yun Nishang anxiously waiting at the entrance, accompanied by several maids.
The moment she saw them approach, Yun Nishang rushed forward, pulling both of them into a tight embrace.
“Where have you two been!”
“Mom! Paopao took me to play in the forest!”
Yin, without hesitation, chose to betray Bai Zhiqiu.
“Paopao! I’ve told you before! Don’t go over there carelessly! It’s very dangerous!”
With that, Yun Nishang twisted Bai Zhiqiu’s ear.
“Never again! I promise, never again!”
“You think there’ll be a next time!”
“Ugh! I swear there won’t be a next time!”
Ultimately, Bai Zhiqiu capitulated, repeatedly vowing never to go there again.
“Alright! Hurry up and get ready for the altar!”
“Huh? But I haven’t had breakfast yet!”
“You can eat after it’s over!”
“Alright then!”
“When do we leave, then?”
Yin asked, her hunger clearly making her impatient.
“We leave now!”
“Yay!”
The altar was not far from their location, so the two arrived quickly.
“This is the altar?”
The moment Bai Zhiqiu saw the altar, she nodded subtly. It was exactly as she had suspected: the altar was indeed the one atop the Xuan Guan.
“Mmm! Mmm! Is something wrong?”
Yin spoke between bites, stuffing a pastry into her mouth.
“Can you please stop eating!”
Watching Yin devour box after box of pastries, Bai Zhiqiu felt a pang of embarrassment.
“I’m seriously starting to wonder if you’re a bloodkin or a pig demon?”
“Of course I’m a bloodkin! Don’t you dare slander me with a creature like a pig demon!”
With that, Yin took the lead and ascended the altar, with Bai Zhiqiu following close behind.
“Don’t you think this altar looks a lot like the one we saw at the Xuan Guan?”
Upon hearing Bai Zhiqiu’s words, Yin finally scrutinized the altar, then nodded. “It really does look similar!”
“Not similar! It *is* the same one!”
****
With the appearance of the clan elder, the ceremony officially commenced.
But at that very moment, a plume of dark smoke suddenly materialized in the distance—it was the Shadow Emissary!
The aura at its forefront was unmistakably clear: it was An!
Bai Zhiqiu saw An, and An, naturally, saw Bai Zhiqiu.
“Indeed! The deepest part of her memory is still this place! Higanbana! I remember! On the day I annihilated the Cloud Whale clan, she kept calling out for you. But who would have thought? Their divine lady never came to save her, not even in the end!”
“I was right all along! The one you dragged off the altar at Xuan Guan was Yun Paopao!”
“So what if it was? But this time, you’re the Yun Paopao! How about this? I’ll give you a choice: become my obedient pet, and I’ll spare them.”
“Dream on! Pangsang!”
As she spoke, the dark crimson scythe materialized in Bai Zhiqiu’s hand.
“No matter what! As long as I kill you, everything will be over!”
“Is that so?”
An’s lips curved into a faint smile. She extended a hand and blew gently, releasing a handful of dandelions that scattered around Bai Zhiqiu, each adorned with specks of starlight.
“That’s! Master!”
Both Yan Qingzhu and Jasmine, observing from a distance, and Bai Zhiqiu herself, felt their eyes contract sharply the moment they saw the dandelion seeds An released.
“Indeed! It is your Master! And the two of you hiding in the distance, come out as well!”
With a wave of An’s hand towards their hiding spot, a black gust of wind swept through, forcing the two hidden figures to reveal themselves.
“Master! Senior Motong! What have you done to them!”
Bai Zhiqiu reached out, catching the drifting dandelions. The seeds, landing on her palm, quickly transformed into a glimmer of light before vanishing.
“You killed them! I’ll make you pay!”
“Zhiqiu, calm down! Don’t fall into her trap!”
Just as Bai Zhiqiu prepared to charge forward and confront An, Yin tightly embraced her from behind, preventing her from breaking free.
“Yin! Let me go!”
At this moment, Bai Zhiqiu’s fury flared, her ruby-red eyes deepening with intense emotion.
“Calm down… This is merely a world created from Yun Paopao’s memories! If we can find a way to defeat her, or awaken Yun Paopao, they will surely wake up! All of this is her trap to lure you in; don’t fall for it!”
Even after speaking, Yin remained uneasy and continued to hold Bai Zhiqiu tightly, preventing her from struggling free.
“Really?”
“Of course it’s true! Why would I lie to you?” Yin replied, gently pressing her body against Bai Zhiqiu’s back. ‘Books say this can provide a sense of warmth,’ she thought. “Besides, I’ve always lived in the Spirit Realm. I understand its rules much better than you do! While there might be ways to kill people within an illusion in this world, it’s absolutely impossible to trap three Sunwheel-tier individuals using a Sunwheel-tier Yun Paopao as a vessel! Not to mention maintaining the presence of a deity.”
“If I’m not mistaken, you did indeed kill Zhiqiu’s and that pervert’s Master! But they haven’t actually departed in reality, have they? Am I right, Miss False God?” Yin challenged An, who floated in the sky.
“False God? It seems you’ve remembered something! I am the God of the Spirit Realm now!”
“Yes, indeed! You are the God of the Spirit Realm! Yet, I’ve never seen a god who could be trapped by the Spirit Realm itself!”
Yin’s words weren’t vulgar, yet they pierced An’s heart with exceptional precision.
After enduring Yin’s relentless barrage, An’s previously calm expression instantly darkened. The people she despised most in her life were those who criticized her divinity!
She was a god! Not a false god!
“You seek death!”
With that, An immediately swung the staff in her hand, aiming it at Yin.
Yin, locked in An’s gaze, instantly became motionless, watching helplessly as An’s attack drew closer.
‘It seems I truly infuriated her…’
Bai Zhiqiu, wielding Pangsang, blocked the attack!
“To harm her? You’ll have to get my permission first!”
Immediately, Bai Zhiqiu swung her scythe once more, aiming a strike at An’s head.
A flash of crimson light, and Pangsang’s edge glowed even deeper red.
“Idiotic minion! You can’t even defeat her now, yet you dare call yourself a god!”
As she spoke, Yin emerged from behind Bai Zhiqiu and made a taunting face at An’s fallen body.
“Fine… Fine… You are very good…”
A flash of black light, and An reappeared in a different location on the horizon. What remained in her place…
…was the corpse of a Cloud Whale.