Her ears twitched. Er’er blinked and looked at him with a smile: “You want me to seek refuge somewhere?”

Li Ye didn’t deny it.

The Ninth Heaven was already in chaos. Even if he stopped now, the people of the Netherworld would not let matters rest unless the Heavenly Dao Diviner appeared and announced his submission to the Netherworld. Otherwise, the flames of war would continue to burn. But rather than making someone like the Heavenly Dao submit, killing him would be more convenient.

The battle had reached its most intense point, and he wanted to keep her safe.

But when this little creature looked at him with that smiling expression, Li Ye suddenly felt his question was unnecessary.

He smiled faintly. With a gentle lift of his hand, Er’er immediately understood and transformed back into a white cat, jumping onto his shoulder and affectionately nuzzling his cheek.

“High God?” Zhu Yan, watching this scene, felt a heavy sinking in his heart and opened his mouth to continue explaining.

However, Li Ye turned around and said to him with remarkable calmness: “Take people to support Zhong Su.”

Countless explanations stuck in his throat, Zhu Yan’s expression grew complex.

…

…

If Li Ye had questioned him, he would have had many excuses ready. But Li Ye asked nothing, said nothing, leaving Zhu Yan unable to discern his thoughts, which made him even more anxious.

Ordering him to take people as reinforcements—did this mean Li Ye believed Er’er’s words, or his?

If he left now, and Er’er said something more to Li Ye, would he still have any chance to redeem himself?

Zhu Yan always liked to consider matters with a long-term perspective. Kneeling here now, his thoughts had already turned to possibilities centuries ahead, making his expression grow solemn.

“What’s wrong?” Li Ye asked again after Zhu Yan failed to respond for some time.

His spine stiffened slightly. Zhu Yan came back to his senses and reluctantly cupped his hands: “This humble immortal obeys.”

He stood up, hesitated for a few steps, glanced at Li Ye once more, then departed on a cloud.

Li Ye’s eyes reflected his retreating figure, growing smaller until it disappeared. His face remained impassive as he slowly closed his eyes, fingers lightly rubbing his sleeve.

“Aren’t you going to ask me why I didn’t take action against him?” he asked after a while.

The white cat on his shoulder yawned, lazily swishing her tail: “What’s there to ask?”

Li Ye gave her a peculiar sideways glance, raising an eyebrow: “Isn’t the most popular play in the mortal realm about ‘flying into a rage for the sake of a beauty’?”

Licking her paw, Er’er pursed her lips: “That’s a commoner’s play.”

After all, she was a daughter of the imperial family.

His expression relaxed slightly as Li Ye snorted with laughter. This little creature was quite reassuring at times.

Zhu Yan had his ambitions. Following him all these years, he merely wanted to use Li Ye’s hand to kill the Heavenly Dao Diviner. Li Ye knew this but didn’t object, since his rage had been exploited by the Heavenly Dao in the past, bringing calamity to Zhu Yan’s family—this could be considered compensation.

But he hated being deceived.

Reaching out to scratch the chin of the cat on his shoulder, Li Ye turned his head to look at the dark, heavy clouds on the horizon.

***

With Li Ye at the forefront, the people of the Netherworld were unstoppable, killing gods and slaying Buddhas that stood in their way. But the Ninth Heaven was not their territory, and after a month of great battles, they began to tire.

Logically, this would be the time to persuade the enemy to surrender—winning without fighting would be the best strategy. But Zhu Yan didn’t do this. Instead, he opened the Life and Death Gate, creating a path from the Netherworld to the Ninth Heaven, leading more ghosts and demons upward.

As a result, casualties in the Ninth Heaven grew more severe. Even those who surrendered were not spared, which enraged the gods and Buddhas, making the battles even more fierce.

Two months later, the Netherworld occupied all the major immortal sects of the Ninth Heaven, and the Heavenly Dao Diviner finally had nowhere to hide.

When Li Ye received the news, he was playing with the cat on the Wind-Watching Terrace.

He had been mischievous today, preventing Er’er from transforming back to human form, so she could only remain cradled in his arms, her whiskers standing up in anger: “Is this what immortal techniques are meant for?!”

Li Ye smiled faintly: “What else?”

Listen to that self-righteous retort—is that proper? Is that proper?!

Er’er’s fur bristled as she extended her claws to scratch him, but fearing she might draw blood, she retracted them slightly into her soft pads before scratching fiercely at his armor.

Li Ye chuckled, flipping her over and vigorously rubbing her soft belly.

“High God,” Zhu Yan stood at a distance, hands cupped in salute as he reported, “We’ve found the Heavenly Dao.”

Er’er immediately quieted down, her expression turning serious. But the man holding her remained frivolous, casually rubbing her cat ears while remarking nonchalantly: “He only has a strand of soul left, yet he managed to run for so long.”

Zhu Yan sighed: “After all, he’s someone who can divine the future. This humble immortal has already tried to persuade him to surrender, but he refuses. He’s currently holding his ground at Barren Mountain. The formation there is too complex, and this humble immortal dares not act rashly, so I’ve come to seek the High God’s guidance.”

Placing the cat back on his shoulder, Li Ye swept his sleeves and walked out: “Understood.”

The score with the Heavenly Dao was something he always intended to settle personally.

The surroundings began to retreat rapidly. Er’er, clinging to the plumes on his shoulder, instinctively surveyed the places they passed.

The air everywhere was filled with shattered souls and dismembered limbs of ghosts, creating a bone-chilling scene. But the fighting had mostly subsided. The four seasons continued to change as usual, and the weather patterns in the sky operated according to their original rhythm. The mortal realm wasn’t greatly affected—at most, there were more sunset glows and fiery clouds.

Remembering the shattered Sky Mechanism Lock, Er’er sighed.

The outcome would be the same either way. Why did the Heavenly Dao Diviner always choose paths that harmed others without benefiting himself?

Barren Mountain lived up to its name—not a blade of grass grew there. The mountain range was covered with thick black ash, and the highest peak emitted multicolored lights, making it immediately noticeable.

Li Ye stepped onto a traveling cloud and headed straight toward it.

“Wait,” Er’er tugged at his collar. “You’re rushing in without knowing what formation it is?”

Li Ye paused, then glanced sideways: “A cornered beast matter how complex the formation, it can’t trap me.”

With only a strand of soul left, how much immortal power could the Heavenly Dao possess?

Er’er scratched her head, feeling she had overthought the matter. Her tail drooped as she followed him into the colorful lights.

Zhu Yan followed behind, loyal and honest.

“The Heavenly Dao previously negotiated terms with this humble immortal,” Zhu Yan said as they entered the mist. “He said that if the High God spares his soul, he’s willing to relinquish the position of lord of the Ninth Heaven.”

Li Ye scoffed upon hearing this: “Relinquish?”

In the current situation, even if the Heavenly Dao wanted to keep its position, it couldn’t.

Zhu Yan nodded, smiling stiffly: “So this humble immortal didn’t agree, and he set up this formation here.”

The formation was strange, with an eerie wind that sometimes pushed Fire Dao spiritual power at them, Water Dao spiritual power.

“It’s the formation from the Sky Mechanism Lock,” Er’er recognized it immediately, frowning with concern. “Be careful.”

As an immortal with a Fire Dao foundation, Li Ye was somewhat uncomfortable. He summoned a defensive barrier, but fire and water are natural opposites, and when the wind blew against his barrier, it cut like a knife.

Er’er quickly released her Five Elements barrier.

However, in her cat form, the barrier couldn’t be very large—just enough to protect Li Ye and herself. Zhu Yan stood far away, his body exposed to the formation’s wind.