Chapter 13
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An Lan realized she was wrong.
She had always thought her past laziness stemmed from enduring too much, taking everything for granted. But that wasn’t the case at all.
Upon seeing Bai Lian’s soul flickering within the green lamp, her heart could no longer remain calm. It trembled, as if pricked by a needle—small yet piercing, leaving behind an undeniable discomfort.
An Lan pressed a hand against her flat chest, easily sensing her slightly hastened heartbeat.
She had to admit it now—she was running away.
Not just from her past, but from everything.
She spoke boldly about punishing the one who had betrayed her, yet deep down, all she truly desired was a place where no one could ever find her.
She was afraid.
Afraid of fighting. Afraid of facing herself. Afraid that, in the end, she was nothing but a paper tiger—easily torn apart with a single poke.
This was evident in her interactions with Bai Lian.
She always put on the facade of an awe-inspiring master, acting fierce and unyielding. But the moment Bai Lian pushed back even slightly, her courage would falter, and she’d retreat.
Alas.
An Lan sighed.
“I’m just a waste…”
Her cultivation base and strength had surpassed those of the past and present, reaching heights unattainable by most. But her mentality—her heart—wasn’t strong enough to bear the weight of that power.
She recalled the words Bai Lian often spoke to her foolish disciples:
“Cultivation is about cultivating the heart!”
For the first time, An Lan truly felt the weight of those words.
Hundreds of years ago, under the crushing force of the Taiyi Divine Wheel and the Ten Thousand Calamities Refining Cultivation Method, her soul had been shattered into millions of fragments. Only a single piece had managed to escape.
With her soul incomplete, much of her past had faded from memory. She couldn’t even fully recall how she had lost to the Red Dust Heavenly Lord. She only remembered that woman being despicable, resorting to vile trickery to ambush her.
But now…
An Lan wondered if perhaps the reason she had lost, despite holding the advantage, wasn’t just due to that ambush.
“Maybe… I lost because I was weak.”
She sniffled.
It was pathetic.
Who was she?
The Immortal Heavenly Lord, An Lan!
(つД｀)･ﾟ･
And yet, she was nothing more than a clown.
Unlike Yan Yue, however, An Lan wouldn’t just flop down and accept her fate, idly patting her stomach and saying, “So what if I’m useless?”
She still had ambition.
Otherwise, she wouldn’t have climbed from an ordinary village girl to the ranks of an Immortal Heavenly Lord, standing above three thousand realms.
“If my temperament is lacking, then I’ll start over!”
An Lan resolved to stand tall once more.
During Bai Lian’s absence, she would guide those foolish disciples herself.
This was their journey. But it was also hers.
Besides, once her disciples grew stronger, Bai Lian wouldn’t have to bear so much responsibility alone. She wouldn’t have to constantly run around, taking on every burden.
“I want to change.”
Instead of driving her disciples away, she would take the initiative.
If she could turn them into emotionless cultivation machines, all problems would be solved.
“Yes. This is a good plan!”
An Lan exhaled deeply and opened her eyes, a sharp glint flashing within them.
“Come with me.”
A majestic voice rang out.
Xiao Jinse and the others following behind her nodded nervously.
Could they finally see Elder Martial Sister Bai Lian?
Squeak.
The wooden door creaked open, and sunlight poured into the room. The Jade Rabbit at the front instinctively shielded its eyes with its ears.
So bright.
After a moment, it cautiously lowered its ears and glanced around.
Then, as if drawn by an invisible force, its gaze landed on the blue lamp sitting beside the dressing table.
“Haw!”
The Jade Rabbit darted forward anxiously.
The others, including Xiao Jinse, soon noticed the anomaly as well.
That lamp…
Could it be…
Elder Martial Sister Bai Lian?!
Their eyes turned red with emotion, but before their sorrow could erupt, An Lan raised a hand.
“It’s nothing serious. In fact, it’s not even a bad thing.”
“Eh?”
The Jade Rabbit, perched on the dressing table, looked back in confusion.
An Lan patiently explained, “Bai Lian ended up like this because she overused the Qianhuan Real Eyes. Most of her soul was extracted, nearly shattering in the process.”
Isn’t that the worst possible outcome?
Just as Su Youwei was about to rise in panic, An Lan shot her a glare.
No need to panic.
A small, white pearl suddenly appeared in An Lan’s palm.
The room was instantly engulfed in a chilling air, tiny ice crystals swirling around the bead like fragments of a dream.
Even the Qianhuan Real Eyes, usually brimming with restless energy, now radiated a rare sense of tranquility.
If the Snow Spirit Lord had been present, she would have been utterly speechless in shock.
An Lan continued, “Bai Lian’s soul hasn’t truly broken. She just needs to rest in that lamp for a while, and she will wake up.”
“Master!”
Ling Xuan hesitantly raised her small hand.
“Speak.”
“How long will Elder Martial Sister sleep?”
An Lan pondered. “It mostly depends on her, but at worst, no longer than a year.”
A year.
Xiao Jinse and the others let out a collective sigh of relief.
For cultivators with long lifespans, a year was a mere blink.
And that was assuming the worst-case scenario.
An Lan continued, “I don’t know all the details, but I’m certain of one thing—Bai Lian has been blessed by misfortune. She has fully tamed the Qianhuan Real Eyes. When she wakes up, even if her body isn’t exactly the same as before, her strength will be several times greater.”
Huh?
Ling Xuan curled her fingers in thought.
Before Bai Lian fell asleep, she was already strong enough to slay a sea monster. If her strength increased several times over… wouldn’t she be invincible?
An Lan, however, had no intention of explaining further.
Instead, she walked over to the blackboard Bai Lian had used for explaining human anatomy during night classes.
An Lan sighed.
She had spent the past week hiding behind a crooked-neck tree, glaring from a distance. Never did she expect to stand here in person.
Dong Dong.
She tapped the blackboard with a ruler.
“Bai Lian is asleep, but your training will not be neglected. I will personally instruct you in the meantime.”
Her face was neither severe nor kind, her gaze neither sharp nor soft.
Yet, to Xiao Jinse and the others, she felt different today.
More like a master.
[It’s probably just an illusion.]
Xiao Jinse thought to herself.
If you have to say what’s different, it’s that the master is more approachable now, making people want to get closer to her more than before.
Therefore.
The sky was sunny and bright.
Bai Lian’s room had been transformed into a teaching classroom.
…
Bai Lian didn’t know how long she had slept.
Maybe just a moment.
Maybe ten years.
When she woke up, the brilliant starry sky was still hanging outside the window.
Her mood instantly improved.
She still felt pain.
But unlike the tearing pain from before, this pain had dimmed significantly, and she quickly adapted to it.
In addition to adapting, a sense of relief emerged from the depths of her heart.
One after another.
Like waves undulating.
Bai Lian could not help but hum to herself.
She quickly covered her mouth.
Wait.
She suddenly remembered—right now, she seemed to be only a tattered soul.
Bai Lian rushed to open the system panel.
At first glance, she noticed that her personal information had changed significantly.
First of all, there was an additional “Yin-Yang Fusion Technique” in the cultivation method column, which she had obtained from a system task before.
Next, her basic skill column had turned gray.
That made sense. Who let her get to the point where she didn’t even have a body now?
Without a body, her basic skills had become a string of useless numbers.
The third difference came from [Physique].
Where [Qianhuan Real Eyes] was previously shown, a new [Incomplete Fu Zhu Immortal Body] had now been added.
This was also something she had gained from a system task.
Here comes the problem.
Why is it “incomplete”?
Are you playing games with me?
Bai Lian was furious.
She got mad quickly, but she also cooled off just as fast.
After all, she was easy to “feed.”
“Having something is better than having nothing, isn’t it?”
Her gaze then fell upon the “Spiritual Root” section.
The Water-type Spirit Root had been accompanying her for the past six years, but now it had suddenly become “Snow-type Spirit Root.”
This Snow-type Spirit Root differed from the general kind—it gave Bai Lian’s spirit Qi the ability to consume the physical strength of her opponents.
“Good!”
Bai Lian was excited.
Because this was a huge boost to her strength.
She only had limited knowledge of advanced spells—besides the Moon Sword Formula and Thousands of Flowers, other spells were no longer compatible with her current cultivation base.
She could only rely on her fist, which had been blessed with countless Special Effects, to defeat her opponents!
But Special Effects were just that—Special Effects.
If her opponent wasn’t intimidated by them, her punch wouldn’t be very effective.
Now, the situation was different.
With this new feature, her fist’s damage would increase several folds.
Increased damage meant she could knock down more enemies standing in her way. And by defeating more enemies, she could get closer to saving her master!
Bai Lian sighed contentedly at the thought.
Despite the dangers and several close calls during this trip to North Luzhou, it had ended with a good outcome.
The last difference came from [Traits].
It was this change that left Bai Lian in a long period of silence.
“My Innocent Heart is gone?!”
The only phrase remaining in that column was the solitary “Death Armor.”
Bai Lian’s mouth fell open.
For a moment, her mind went blank.
What happened?
She began to reminisce about everything that had happened since she had fallen into the dark river of the Bronze Valley.
She could only remember the shouts of freedom from her heart.
She didn’t want to die.
She kept repeating the phrase over and over again.
If she died, there would be no one left in the world who could understand her master.
After that, no one would take her master shopping during the festival.
After that, no one would shout “let’s have supper together” anymore to her master.
After that, nobody would give her master a gift on her birthday.
After that, her master would become a solitary individual.
That wasn’t the future she wanted.
So, she kept walking.
Even though she was surrounded by an endless darkness she couldn’t see through, she kept moving forward.
The road was full of dangers, and she almost lost herself, but luckily, she finally made it out.
But…
Now is not the time to worry about this kind of thing!
Bai Lian repeatedly opened and closed the system panel.
No matter how many times she looked, the [Traits] column still didn’t show Innocent Heart.
“System?”
“System?”
“Hey, come out?”
As usual, the system gave no response.
Bai Lian sat on the ground, dazed and confused.
It was so sudden.
Her heart felt empty, as if she had suddenly lost a dear friend.
In a sense, Innocent Heart had indeed been her friend.
Since the day it was connected to Bai Lian, she had enjoyed its help every moment of her journey.
Without it, would she still be able to remain composed in front of a formidable opponent like Jiang Jing?
Bai Lian lacked confidence.
Stripped of all her glamorous aura, she was just an ordinary person.
She couldn’t do it.
It was too difficult.
“Master.”
Bai Lian sighed after a long while.
A fleeting image of An Lan’s smiling face appeared in her mind.
That feeling was solid as a rock—immovable.
So.
No matter how many difficulties lay ahead, she only had one path: forward.
Wasn’t it just the disappearance of her Innocent Heart?
She could definitely shoulder it!
Bai Lian slowly stood up, supporting herself with both hands on the ground.
It was time.
Since she had regained consciousness, even though there was still some pain, she had no reason to keep lying here.
She needed to reshape her physical body as quickly as possible and then find a way to break through to the Transmigration Stage.
At that moment, an unexpected event occurred.
Bai Lian was astounded to discover that she could not escape the blue lamp.
“Eh?”
She struggled vigorously several times, but only succeeded in making the soul fire within the blue lamp sway slightly.
“Is it because my injuries are too severe?”
Bai Lian frowned.
Life was a long-distance race, and the more time she wasted, the more danger her master would face.
This…
This was bad!
Bai Lian spun in place in a hurry.
Just then, she suddenly heard the faint sound of footsteps.
Who?
She turned her gaze away.
Standing before her was An Lan, wearing a bright yellow loose gauze dress…
It is time.
An Lan walked to the vanity after she pushed the door open.
She took out a jade flask and began to pour “water” on Bai Lian without saying a word.
The flame seemed much brighter than it did during the day.
“It seems that my treatment is still effective,” An Lan nodded.
Actually, she had a hundred ways to wake Bai Lian up quickly. The quickest one would take only half a day, and even the slowest only about ten days.
After all, she is An Lan!
But she didn’t want to do that.
Because Bai Lian was really too tired.
An Lan reached out, caressing the soul fire in the blue lamp as gently as she could.
Soft.
Warm.
Like jelly.
Even after ten thousand years, An Lan would never forget the pained look on Bai Lian’s face as she closed her eyes and curled up.
It shouldn’t be so.
Bai Lian is the Natural Saint from the Duxian Sect!
Under normal circumstances, she should enjoy adoration like the other Grand Sect’s Saintesses and young sect masters. No matter what she wanted to do, she just needed to give an order, and countless people would step up to do it for her.
But Bai Lian was still Bai Lian.
She always silently bore everything alone.
The heavier the burden she carried, the higher it became, until finally, she became overwhelmed.
“Silly!”
An Lan commented.
There probably weren’t many people in this world more foolish than Bai Lian.
Who could make Bai Lian her eldest disciple?
She still had to protect Bai Lian.
Because of this, she deliberately didn’t use those methods that could help Bai Lian recover quickly.
Because she knew Bai Lian.
Once she woke up, Bai Lian would definitely be getting into “mischief” again.
That wasn’t good!
Bai Lian should just get a good sleep now, preferably without being disturbed by anyone for several months.
To this end, An Lan even stuffed Bai Lian’s soul into the blue lamp.
The green light of the blue lamp had no effect on nurturing the soul, but what was truly useful was the elixir she concocted.
But the green light had a binding effect.
With the green light on, even with a lot on her mind, Bai Lian could only lie down and rest there obediently!
[I’m too smart!]
An Lan smiled slightly and gave Bai Lian a gentle poke in the soul. She then spoke to her softly,
“Don’t think about anything now, just sleep well.”
“Hey, don’t you trust me as your master anymore?”
“Haha, I’m the one and only Immortal Heavenly Lord! Just teaching disciples how to practice—I’m sure I wouldn’t do any worse than you!”
“It’s no use talking more now. Facts are better than eloquence. When you wake up, you’ll know how great your master is!”
“Go to sleep.”
…
Bai Lian stared at An Lan blankly.
Master~
She didn’t know how to describe her feelings, but it was complicated anyway.
But one thing needed to be said. In that moment, she felt that she had freed herself from a shackle, and she would no longer feel afraid because the Innocent Heart had disappeared!
After a few minutes, An Lan put her hand back.
She stood up and waved at Bai Lian.
“Good night.”
“… Good night.”
Bai Lian barely hesitated before waving at An Lan.
When she made the move, An Lan had already backed out of the room.
Bai Lian shook her head with a smile.
The warmth arising from her heart made her unable to sleep at all.
Hmm.
She believed.
If the master took it seriously, nothing could stop the master. After all, she was the one and only Immortal Heavenly Lord!
The second half of the night.
Bai Lian heard the footsteps again.
This time, it was not the master who came back, but Tong Yao with her eyes slightly red.
“Huh?”
Bai Lian paused for a moment.
She had already brought back the Lord of the Hades Hall and Qianxue—why was Martial Sister Tong Yao still crying? Could it be that those two were in trouble?
Her heart sank.
But she could only be worried now—she couldn’t even ask questions.
Tong Yao sat down in front of the dressing table, staring fixedly at the flickering candles before her, and then burst into tears with a wail.
“Elder Martial Sister Bai Lian!”
Alas.
Don’t cry.
Bai Lian had a headache, and she wished she could move around now.
Tong Yao finally raised her hands and wiped away the tears at the corners of her eyes after crying for a while.
The purple-haired girl said haltingly, “Elder… Elder Martial Sister Bai Lian, thank you. If it weren’t for you, I would never have seen my parents again.”
As she spoke, she started apologizing again.
“Sorry, Elder Martial Sister Bai Lian, it was my fault that you became like this. I’m really a waste.”
…
These days, why was everyone so eager to become a waste?
It took a long time, but Bai Lian finally pieced together what had happened to Tong Yao in the past half month.
Thankfully, the Lord of the Hades Hall and Qianxue were still alive.
Especially the Lord of the Hades Hall—his soul was not severely damaged, and with the assistance of Master Qin, he only spent seven days reshaping his body.
But Qianxue was different.
Under the impact of the Dust Snow Curse, her soul was close to collapsing.
If it weren’t for the Teardrop of the Moon Sea’s ability to reverse yin and yang, she would have long since vanished from this world.
The Duxian Sect’s ability was limited—they could only temporarily prevent Qianxue’s soul from dispersing, but not restore her.
The Hades Hall was usually knowledgeable in the way of souls, but even the Lord of the Hades Hall was helpless in the face of such a degree of injury.
Reluctantly, the Lord of the Hades Hall had to say goodbye to Tong Yao.
No matter how many mountains and rivers he had to traverse, or how great the cost may be, he would find a way to save Qianxue!
Tong Yao was disappointed that her family had been together for only a few days and had to part again.
“Actually, this is also good,” Bai Lian thought.
This was a trial exclusive to the Lord of the Hades Hall and Qianxue.
23 years ago, they separated due to various accidents.
23 years later, they finally reunited.
The joy of reunion after a long absence was enough to dull all the suffering on this trial path.
She just didn’t know how long it would take for Martial Sister Tong Yao to recover from the shock.
“If I had a body now, I should be able to comfort her soon, right?”
What a headache.
Bai Lian rubbed her cheeks.
Sure enough, she was still needed out there. She couldn’t rest yet—she must get up and continue to fight.
She…
Hey?
Bai Lian suddenly noticed that Tong Yao had stood up.
“Elder Martial Sister Bai Lian, actually I’m not sad. You don’t need to worry for me. I have grown up. I understand these are the experiences I must go through, and one day, my family will be reunited together.”
…
Bai Lian smiled softly.
She noticed that Tong Yao clenched her fists tightly, a strange light flickering in her eyes.
Martial Sister Tong Yao… is she serious?
Then I…
Bai Lian lowered her gaze, looking at her hands once more.
Again, she heard Tong Yao’s soft voice in her ear.
“Elder Martial Sister Bai Lian, just go to sleep peacefully. I will come to see you when I have time.”
“…”
Sleep at ease?
Bai Lian lifted her head, staring at the moonlit sky.
Then… go to sleep!
Meanwhile.
At the foot of the mountain, the Lord of the Hades Hall withdrew his gaze from the full moon.
He gently stroked the jade pendant in his hand and murmured,
“Let’s go, Qianxue.”
One person, one shadow—wandering beyond the horizon.
The moon arched over the world, casting its silent glow.
Bringing joy to some.
Bringing sorrow to others.
How many families bask in happiness?
And how many are still wandering outside?
