Yin Changli refused to release her, continuing to drag her deeper into the depths.

Neither his wounds nor Xiang Haikui’s words, which cut sharper than her blade scales, could alter his voice, which remained low and gentle: “Look at you, with your anger and sharpness. Don’t you resemble my third brother?”

“Yes, the memory you accidentally saw when you entered my dream at the Jin Ling Inn.”

Her head throbbing with pain, Xiang Haikui had no desire to ponder matters that seemed irrelevant to her now.

Yin Changli continued his explanation unprompted: “The brother who refused to surrender to the Heavenly Race after the Mountain Sea Clan’s defeat, the one devoured by Que Chi.”

The memory was vivid; Xiang Haikui remembered now.

“It was Di Jun who drove us into that desperate situation. He showed Que Chi the way, forcing us to submit to him. I advised my brother to preserve our strength, telling him surrender wasn’t shameful. But blinded by rage, my third brother wouldn’t listen. The way he berated me was far more fierce than your words.”

“Don’t—” Xiang Haikui suspected he was trying to manipulate her and attempted to interrupt.

“In truth, I didn’t understand what it meant to preserve strength. I simply didn’t want to lose anyone else,” Yin Changli continued, giving her no chance to speak. “By then, all my relatives except my third brother had perished in battle. I failed to persuade him and ended up with nothing.”

The seawater grew increasingly cold.

He curled his body tighter against her blade scales, intertwining with her neck. He rubbed his head against the part of her head where scales hadn’t formed, whispering, “I lied to you earlier. I said I killed those eight thousand clansmen who stripped my scales, but I didn’t. I understood their fury after witnessing the destruction of their clan and families, their rage at seeing me endure humiliation to survive…”

As he mentioned this, Xiang Haikui suddenly realized she was stripping his scales too.

She hastily retracted her extended blade scales.

The senses she’d lost to demonification gradually returned, with the scent of blood steadily filling her nostrils.

“Little Kui, you’ve been with me for ten years. You should know my heart… Even Meme—I can’t bear to see it hurt. How could I possibly let you go, watching you rush to your death?”

Yin Changli shifted the focus away from himself: “To save you, Lu Xiqiao ignored the backlash of turbid energy and forcibly elevated his cultivation level against my advice. Xiao Bai must also be caught in a desperate situation now. They all want to help you—are they also self-righteous and no different from Di Jun?”

Xiang Haikui’s throat made a gurgling sound as her demonic blood power diminished rapidly.

“If there were truly a chance of victory, even if it meant mutual destruction, I would consider not stopping you. But you lack the strength for complete vengeance right now… You’ve already done remarkably well, Little Kui. Neither I nor your master could have forced Di Jun into such a state.”

The injuries weren’t significant. Di Jun’s current state nearly mirrored Xiang Haikui’s—consumed by rage and viciousness.

This was unprecedented.

After all, Di Jun was cold to his core, yet now he had abandoned all dignity and composure, snapping at everyone like a rabid dog, exceptionally volatile.

Watching these two madmen rage together, Yin Changli felt an indescribable bitterness.

As Xiang Haikui had emphasized, this was between the two of them, with no place for him.

Trying to intervene required extreme caution.

He wasn’t even qualified to stand up for her.

Xiang Haikui stopped struggling, completely retracting her blade scales, saying nothing.

Yin Changli also fell silent, giving her time to calm down. He ceased their descent, coiling around her as they floated motionless in the seawater.

“Yin Changli! Return her to me!”

Jing Ran’s voice, imbued with spiritual power, penetrated the water’s surface.

Xiang Haikui, who had gradually calmed, bristled like a porcupine upon hearing his voice, instantly raising all her spines.

Sword energy radiated from her body, cutting into Yin Changli, who felt bitter anguish.

All his careful persuasion couldn’t match the effect of a single sentence from Jing Ran in provoking her emotions.

The wild intent that had retreated now rapidly climbed again, but Xiang Haikui began to exert extreme self-control rather than letting it run unchecked.

“Please release me,” she negotiated with him. “Otherwise, you’ll get hurt.”

“It doesn’t matter. He and I… are evenly matched.”

Having just awakened from hibernation, while Di Jun had just returned from reincarnation, they were indeed evenly matched originally.

Di Jun, severely wounded by Haikui, was now far weaker than him, but in the blink of an eye, Yin Changli had also been injured, making them evenly matched once more.

Yin Changli avoided Jing Ran’s descending path, turned his body, and swam upward.

The seabed was disadvantageous for both of them, as Di Jun’s spiritual energy, like his own, leaned toward fire.

Besides, he needed to assess the situation above. Having Xiao Bai and Lu Xiqiao present would help stabilize Xiang Haikui’s condition.

Yin Changli had no time to sort through his jumbled emotions; dealing with the immediate situation was paramount.

As long as she could stabilize herself, he could force stability.

…

By this time, Bai Xingxian and Lu Xiqiao had carved a bloody path into the Twelve Palaces.

“Uncle’s Netherworld Fire Seed is incredibly powerful!” Since repelling even the Netherworld Lord with a single palm strike, Bai Xingxian’s confidence had soared to unprecedented heights.

He had channeled the golden Netherworld Fire into his Tian Bao Twin Swords.

Previously, his Tian Bao Twin Swords needed only a slight clash to produce a dazzling golden light from the treasured weapons, temporarily blinding opponents.

Now, enhanced by golden flames, when the twin swords clashed, arcs of light scattered like the miniature sun Jing Ran had released earlier, blazing and brilliant.

The turbid energy was dispersed before the golden light as enormous pure energy radiated from Bai Xingxian’s body.

Even the non-Heavenly Race beings summoned by Jin Ying couldn’t approach him.

Lu Xiqiao had become a beneficiary of this power. Originally struggling to contain the turbid energy within himself, he now found Bai Xingxian acting as a spiritual energy spring. Not only did he suppress the turbid energy, but he also used the opportunity to further enhance his cultivation.

Complemented by the golden flames’ radiance, his attacks grew increasingly powerful.

“If this treasure is so powerful, why didn’t you use it before?” Never in his life had Lu Xiqiao fought with such exhilaration as today, seemingly purging all the frustration accumulated in his heart. “Otherwise, Big Sister Kui wouldn’t have struggled so much back in Yin Sha City.”

“I couldn’t,” Bai Xingxian shook his head and explained. “I couldn’t take it out actively before. It would only appear when my life was in danger. The last time at your home, it was because I sensed it wanted to emerge that I could retrieve it.”

He pondered, “It might be because I’ve come of age. According to my uncle, these past few years mark my coming of age.”

“You’ve only just come of age?” Lu Xiqiao’s lips twitched.

“I’m a demon, and demons have different maturation periods.” Having fought his way here, Bai Xingxian now skillfully controlled the golden fire. While speaking, he swung his sword, sending sword energy accompanied by golden flames like an arrow released from a bowstring, piercing through the chest of someone attempting a sneak attack.

Golden light exploded from the wound, tearing the attacker into fragments without spilling a drop of blood.

Bai Xingxian was startled.

He had only intended to kill the person, not cause such a gruesome death, completely disintegrated.

He grew hesitant to use this power again.

The Other Shore City had been engulfed in war, but Jin Ying had no time to deal with the Mountain Sea Clan, focusing only on observing Bai Xingxian from afar.

He watched as Bai Xingxian’s control over the Heavenly Race’s golden light evolved from clumsy to increasingly adept.

Such adaptability indicated that these powers inherently belonged to him, forcibly separated before and now returning to their rightful owner.

While lost in thought, a tremendous splash erupted as a massive creature leapt from beneath the water, landing on the ruined palace pavilion.

Upon landing, Yin Changli reverted to human form, his feathered cloak instantly covering Xiang Haikui, whom he held in his arms.

Xiang Haikui also transformed back from her dragon form, her hair disheveled, face pale, lips cracked, and eyes still tinged with blood, though fortunately, the whites of her eyes were no longer as turbid.

“Uncle! Little Kui!”

“Big Sister Kui!”

Bai Xingxian and Lu Xiqiao immediately flew toward them.

Another thunderous splash from the sea signaled Jing Ran’s pursuit. Knowing this, Yin Changli handed Xiang Haikui to Bai Xingxian: “The sword wound in her chest is severe, penetrating front to back. Be careful.”

“I understand.” Bai Xingxian quickly sheathed his swords and carefully took her, trying not to touch her wounds.

Their last parting had been at the inn, fighting over chicken legs. Seeing her in this state now brought tears to his eyes.

As Lu Xiqiao rolled up his sleeves, preparing to confront Jing Ran, Yin Changli instructed him: “The World Tree has regenerative powers. Try using your abilities to repair her heart meridians.”

“Oh, alright.” Lu Xiqiao had no idea how to proceed, but if the boss said he could do it, then surely he could.

He drew a small knife, initially intending to cut his wrist and sever a meridian, but realizing this wouldn’t compare to heart meridians, he went straight for his neck: “Big Sister Kui, just wait a moment. Let me practice first, I’ll be ready soon.”

In dragon form, Xiang Haikui had felt no pain, but returning to human form, she felt as if she’d died once. Nearly unconscious from pain, Lu Xiqiao’s hot blood splashed across her face, the heat bringing her back to awareness.

Her cracked lips moved slightly before she swallowed her words.

The cut was already made; stopping him would be pointless.

Xiang Haikui’s gaze shifted to Yin Changli.

He had done this deliberately.

Yin Changli pretended not to understand her look, casting out a scale that transformed into a light barrier encompassing all three of them.

He turned to face the direction from which Jing Ran was descending.

Jing Ran’s initial fury subsided considerably upon seeing Xiang Haikui’s weak and haggard human form, as if doused by a bucket of cold water.

He remained silent for a long moment after landing, his face frigid.

“How does Di Jun wish to fight?” Yin Changli subtly adjusted his position to block his line of sight.

He held two scales in each hand, one black and one white.

The black scale was divine ability, the white divine sword.

Jing Ran’s eyes darkened: “Yin Changli, we needn’t have reached this impasse. If you hand over the divine artifact to me, I promise to release all those imprisoned and never again suppress your people.”

Yin Changli ignored this.

Jing Ran smirked: “Your hesitation to use the divine artifact suggests you have concerns and risks, doesn’t it?”

Yin Changli toyed with the scales: “Yet who would dare trust Di Jun’s promises?”

Jing Ran stepped to one side, circumventing Yin Changli to look at Xiang Haikui again, as if justifying himself: “No matter how powerful that divine artifact is, it cannot kill me. My ruthless actions aren’t for myself but for all the Heavenly Race. Even if I deserve death, do all our Heavenly Race deserve to die? You must know that those of our race with limited spiritual perception are no different from ordinary humans.”

Xiang Haikui stared at him intently, unmoved.

As his wound ached, Jing Ran took a deep breath and turned back to Yin Changli: “We didn’t even exterminate your Mountain Sea Clan completely, did we?”

Yin Changli replied gravely: “That’s because Di Jun could not uproot us entirely. Count how many species you’ve annihilated—isn’t it quite a few?”

As Jing Ran was about to respond, he suddenly froze.

His gaze slowly moved to Bai Xingxian, startled by the faint golden aura surrounding him: “El-Elder Brother…?”

Bai Xingxian:?

“Call him Uncle,” Yin Changli signaled to Bai Xingxian. “I’m the fake uncle, he’s the real one.”