Chapter 80: The Emergence of Ziyang

After leaving Tang Family Village, Liu Chunxi was in turmoil, his heart churning with waves of shock. Upon returning, he immediately reported the matter and was swiftly granted an audience with the chief steward. Considering the risks associated with Tang Family Village, and fearing that his superiors might send him to investigate further, he deliberated internally and decided to exaggerate his findings before the chief steward.

The chief steward listened, his composure faltering as he grew increasingly grave, as if the sky were collapsing above him. For a long while, he was silent, the two of them facing each other in heavy stillness. Only when he regained his senses and saw Liu Chunxi still standing before him did he reconfirm, “Are you absolutely certain about this? Do not jeopardize the master’s affairs with falsehoods.”

“Of course it’s true! I might have misjudged their cultivation level, but surely that magical artifact can’t deceive you? I was scared out of my wits at the time! For the sake of the master, I pressed him for information despite my fear!” Liu Chunxi replied with utmost seriousness. Fearing disbelief, he recounted the entire incident in even greater detail.

“Very well! You must not speak of this to anyone else. I will see to it that your merit is recorded. Once I report to the family head, the reward will be swift! You may go now and await further orders.” The chief steward, having heard the same account twice, was now convinced of its truth and began to dismiss Liu Chunxi.

After Liu Chunxi left, the chief steward sat at the head of the reception hall, deep in thought, his face clouded with concern. The urgency of the matter troubled him greatly—he did not know if their master would wish to proceed with the plan after hearing this news. Without delay, he set off for the family estate to report in person.

Meanwhile, at Changbai Mountain, Zixuan had just finished teaching Long San the art of tracking and sent him on his way. Now, he was holding Tang Wei’s hand as they entered the inner space together.

“Brother Zixuan! Sister! You’re here!” Little Ling was already waiting for them in the grand hall. Seeing them enter hand in hand, she cheerfully greeted them and skipped over with delight.

“Well? How’s the preparation I asked for?” Zixuan immediately inquired about finding Yaya. Ever since learning that Yaya was his own child, an urgency had taken root in his heart—something he hadn’t fully understood before. He used to reassure Weiwei not to worry, but now even he could not hold back his impatience. Was he truly so selfish? He pondered, “Is there really such a difference between one’s own child and another’s? I must ask Old Li about this someday.”

“The magical device you wanted is ready. Based on your descriptions, I modeled a simple map of Earth and used some special techniques to craft a unique artifact.” Little Ling conjured a tablet from thin air and gave a brief introduction to her creation.

“How does it work?” Tang Wei took the tablet and saw a flat map of Earth depicted on its surface, with a small recess at the center.

“All you need to do is each squeeze out half a drop of heart’s blood and drop it into this recess. Yaya’s location will immediately appear as a small red dot on the map. Draw a circle around the dot and the map will zoom in; tap it with your finger and it will zoom out.” As she spoke, Little Ling demonstrated, drawing and explaining the process.

Zixuan eagerly crowded around to see for himself—after all, they still had to find Yaya, so he needed to learn how to use it.

“It’s that simple? Little Ling, you’re incredible!” Tang Wei tried it out and found it worked as smoothly as a satellite map on a computer, so she couldn’t help but lavish praise.

“All right, get on with it!” Little Ling was immune to such flattery. Everyone knew that whenever Tang Wei complimented someone, there was usually a catch, so now Little Ling simply ignored her.

Tang Wei awkwardly touched her forehead—Little Ling was getting harder and harder to deal with. She couldn’t even ask how the device was made.

Zixuan found the question pointless and paid her no mind, heading straight to one side to sit and begin channeling his energy. Tang Wei, seeing that Zixuan wasn’t going to help her, knew there was no hope and followed, sitting cross-legged to meditate as well—this was, after all, a matter concerning her daughter’s safety and could not be taken lightly.

As the two meditated, spiritual energy thickened around them, swirling denser and denser. Slowly, a red mark formed between their brows, deepening until it shone crimson. At last, a drop of essence blood emerged from each of their foreheads. Once released, the drops seemed to possess life, gradually merging before flying into the artifact in Little Ling’s hand.

Once the blood merged and dripped into the recess, all connection to them was severed. Immediately, both experienced violent convulsions, their hearts trembling, spiritual energy rampaging uncontrollably, and unbearable pain coursing through their meridians. Unable to endure, they could only channel their energy to resist.

It lasted only a moment, but before their eyes, their cultivation plummeted from the Fasting Stage to the late Foundation Establishment Stage, then to the mid-stage, and still further, until reaching the early Foundation Establishment Stage. Only then did the convulsions subside and their spiritual energy stabilize. Once everything within returned to normal, their cultivation finally steadied.

Only when they felt it was truly over did they stop and, rising with difficulty, hurried over to Little Ling to see if her device truly was as effective as she claimed.

But to their shock, before they could steady themselves, the entire space began to tremble in waves, as if an earthquake was tearing it apart. Little Ling, even paler, was rolling on the ground in agony. Only then did they realize the gravity of the situation.

“What’s happening?” Tang Wei nearly fell, but managed to grab Zixuan’s arm and asked anxiously.

“I don’t know—something’s gone wrong with the space! We need to get out, quickly!” The space resounded with deafening noise, mountains collapsing, and the ground splitting open. With nowhere to stand, Zixuan shouted and tried to pull Tang Wei outside. With the world crumbling around them, nothing else mattered but survival.

“No! If we leave, what about Little Ling?” Tang Wei shouted back. Seeing Little Ling rolling farther away, already at the foot of the mountain, a watermelon-sized rock smashed down upon her. In agony, Tang Wei refused to leave, shook off Zixuan’s hand, and stumbled toward Little Ling. The tremors grew even more violent, as if the very world was about to shatter. Unable to stand, Tang Wei was soon rolling helplessly on the ground.

Clinging to a pillar, Zixuan called out, “Weiwei, don’t go! It’s too dangerous! Little Ling is a spirit artifact—she’ll be fine!” But seeing Tang Wei rolling on the ground, he could bear it no longer. Letting go of the pillar, he followed, struggling with all his might until he finally reached Tang Wei’s side. Grabbing her hand tightly, he intended to drag her out by force.

Yet no matter how he willed it, his eyes opened to find himself still within the space. Repeated attempts failed, and Zixuan finally gave up. Clutching Tang Wei tightly, the two of them held on no matter where the space flung them.

Regret filled Zixuan’s heart. “Are Weiwei and I really going to die here today?” he wondered.

The world was shaking apart. Tang Wei and Zixuan were tossed like rag dolls, their bones nearly shattered, their ears filled only with the crash of boulders and the rumble of collapsing mountains. They tried to suppress the chaos with their own spiritual energy, but it was useless.

Their minds blurred, memory slipping away, leaving only deep regret. If they’d known, they would not have acted so rashly. Who could have imagined such a disaster, even costing their lives?

Tang Wei’s head throbbed with stabbing pain. She felt she could not hold on much longer—she was truly about to die here. Tears streamed down her face as she thought of her parents, sister, and brother—at least they now had hope and support. Even if she died, she could rest easy. Her life had once hung by a thread, meant to be taken by fate. She had already stolen many years of life and brought hope to her family. Now, if Heaven wished to claim her, she could accept it with a sense of fulfillment.

Only one regret remained. Glancing at the man who held her so tightly, Tang Wei summoned all her strength to whisper in his ear, “Zi…Xuan, we…are going…to die…together! I…just want…to tell…you, actually…I…do…like…you…a little…”

Hearing those words, Zixuan, with strength he knew not from where, held her close and spoke with deep emotion, “Weiwei, thank you. Now I can die without regret! At this moment, I do not ask for life together, but for death as one! My wish is fulfilled!”

The two embraced tightly, closing their eyes to await death’s arrival.

At that instant, an immense aura surged from the grand hall. Layers of purple energy surrounded the hall, slowly flowing through the entire space. As more and more purple energy filtered in, the tremors gradually subsided. When all was calm again, but for the devastation everywhere, one could hardly tell that disaster had just struck.

Zixuan and Tang Wei, battered and bruised, supported each other to their feet. Surveying the scene, they finally found Little Ling beneath a pile of stones. Stumbling over, they cleared the rocks, helped her up, and checked her condition.

As a spirit artifact, Little Ling was far less harmed than they; her unconsciousness likely caused only by the space’s turbulence disturbing her spirit. As the space slowly healed, Little Ling soon opened her eyes. Watching the ground knit itself back together, the three of them were filled with wonder, gazing up at the shifting purple energy above the hall.

When the space was restored, the purple energy gathered above the hall, gradually forming the shape of a person.

“Old Master!” Little Ling, recognizing the aura as something deeply familiar, immediately knelt down and cried out in astonishment as the figure became clear.

“Old Master?” Tang Wei and Zixuan echoed in unison.

“Little Ling, is this your old master? That old man Ziyang?” Tang Wei pressed, curiosity getting the better of her.

Before Little Ling could answer, the purple figure floated lightly before them and laughed, “Girl! Do I look like that old Ziyang to you? How rude! In fact, you should call me father-in-law!”

“You… you’re Zixuan’s father? Haven’t you lived for hundreds of millions of years? How can you still look so young?” Seeing the man before her, Tang Wei was dumbfounded. It was uncanny—someone who had lived for eons looked no older than Zixuan. Standing together, anyone would take them for twins, though Zixuan’s features were a touch softer.