The battle on the western palace wall affected many, and the sound of the wall being pierced could be heard from far away.
Emperor Wen Xiu sat by the window, observing the battle with his Heavy Eyes Meridian, until Princess Chang Xi knocked and entered.
The room was illuminated solely by fire walls standing on both sides of the bed. As the door opened, the cold wind caused the flames to flicker.
Lu Yi guarded the door outside as Princess Chang Xi walked toward Emperor Wen Xiu, stopping at a distance.
Emperor Wen Xiu slowly turned around. His hair had turned completely gray, and blood stains at the corner of his mouth had not been completely wiped away. Yet he had a pair of gentle, calm eyes that looked into Princess Chang Xi’s surprised ones as he raised his gaze.
“Father Emperor…” The last time Princess Chang Xi saw Emperor Wen Xiu, his condition hadn’t been this poor.
Now, everything about Emperor Wen Xiu signaled imminent death.
“Come closer, let this old one have a good look at you,” Emperor Wen Xiu smiled. “I am about to die, and before death, the last person I wanted to see was you.”
Princess Chang Xi hesitated slightly: “Shouldn’t Foster Father or a physician be called?”
Emperor Wen Xiu shook his head and reached out to her: “Just keep me company and talk with me.”
Princess Chang Xi walked forward silently and sat properly by his bedside.
Emperor Wen Xiu looked at her with smiling eyes and said, “Your features resemble the Empress very much. In a few more years, you’ll probably look even more like her.”
Is that so?
Princess Chang Xi remained silent as the image of the dead Empress flashed through her mind.
Emperor Wen Xiu coughed lightly, the handkerchief in his hand full of blood. His voice was somewhat hoarse as he seemed to recall the distant past: “The Empress liked you very much. She often went to the Imperial Martial Alliance headquarters behind my back to secretly watch you. Occasionally, she would personally cook for you, preparing your three daily meals.”
Princess Chang Xi listened with surprise, filling her eyes.
Emperor Wen Xiu’s lips curved into a smile: “Seeing your loneliness, she would also secretly create cats and dogs with star threads to cheer you up.”
Princess Chang Xi felt as if something was stuck in her throat: “…What?”
“Later, after Shu Sheng mentioned that a young man of similar age would cheer you up using the same method, she never went again,” Emperor Wen Xiu sighed softly. “The Empress didn’t dare to see you.”
“Why?” Princess Chang Xi had always wanted to know the answer to this question.
Why couldn’t she?
Princess Chang Xi had previously thought it was because the Empress didn’t like or care about this child. But when standing before the deceased Empress, she could feel an inexplicable gentleness and tranquility, as if telling her that this person didn’t dislike her.
Emperor Wen Xiu tilted his head and looked at her: “Before answering your question, Chang Xi, haven’t you felt that something was wrong?”
Chang Xi asked: “What do you mean?”
Emperor Wen Xiu smiled: “Your star meridians, are they only Eight Meridian Awakened?”
Princess Chang Xi was confused by this question. It seemed easy to understand yet difficult to comprehend.
“Only Eight Meridian Awakened,” Chang Xi frowned. “Body Technique, Heavy Eyes, Thunderous Roar, Circulating Qi, Yin, Yang, Heart, and Spiritual Court—eight meridians.”
Emperor Wen Xiu covered his mouth with a handkerchief, coughed several times, and then said with regret: “You also missed by a little.”
Chang Xi couldn’t understand the meaning of this statement.
Emperor Wen Xiu raised his eyes, looking tenderly at the obedient child before him: “The Empress didn’t dare to go to the Imperial Martial Alliance headquarters to see you because your Foster Father was there. The Empress feared Shu Sheng because she was a Ghost Tribe member.”
Chang Xi’s eyelashes trembled as she heard this. Time seemed to freeze for her in that moment.
Emperor Wen Xiu had married a female Ghost Tribe member as his Empress.
At first, only he knew about this.
Initially, Emperor Wen Xiu just found it interesting. How many people in the world could do such a thing? He gave this female Ghost Tribe member a stable life, yet not entirely stable.
Because of Shu Sheng.
“The Empress knew many secrets. She thought that after telling these things to others, they would be forgotten, but for some reason, I didn’t forget,” Emperor Wen Xiu said. “Thanks to the Empress, those years were very happy for me.”
Chang Xi knew what Ghost Tribe members represented in the Tong Gu Continent, but her first reaction upon hearing this was: It doesn’t matter.
Whether someone was a Ghost Tribe member or not didn’t matter.
“For this reason, I decided to fulfill the Empress’s wish—let her leave the palace, and then send you away from Shu Sheng, allowing her to accompany you with a completely new identity. So when the Chu family wanted to poison her, I let her fake her death.”
Emperor Wen Xiu spoke softly, looking at Chang Xi with smiling eyes that nonetheless made Chang Xi feel a touch of sadness: “Unfortunately, she was still discovered by Shu Sheng.”
“When Shu Sheng killed the Empress, the child by your side also happened to witness that scene.”
The information Emperor Wen Xiu provided was difficult for Princess Chang Xi to accept. She slowly stood up, the focus in her eyes trembling slightly before looking at Emperor Wen Xiu, softly asking: “Fang Hui?”
“I believe that’s his name,” Emperor Wen Xiu sighed. “Shu Sheng is very special toward this child, seemingly because this child can resonate with a certain Circulating Qi word formation, thereby discovering… the ninth star meridian in this world.”
“People who awaken this ninth star meridian have, in the river of time, been replaced by another term.”
Princess Chang Xi was so shocked that she couldn’t help stepping back, her pupils trembling, reflecting Emperor Wen Xiu’s smiling face.
She heard her trembling voice ask: “Is it… the Ghost Tribe?”
“There is no such thing as the Ghost Tribe; everyone is the same,” Emperor Wen Xiu shook his head. “It’s just that we haven’t awakened the unknown ninth star meridian. When you awaken it, you become a Ghost Tribe member.”
Princess Chang Xi seemed to vaguely draw an important conclusion from these words, but was too shocked to fully grasp it. Countless pieces of information filled her brain, fragmentary yet interconnected.
“It’s truly a pity. I had thought you would awaken this star meridian like your mother,” Emperor Wen Xiu’s mouth unstoppably leaked blood, his face pale, almost without the strength to speak. “Before the Empress died, she always looked forward to meeting you, taking you away from the imperial capital to live an ordinary, joyful life.”
“Chang Xi, you must… avenge her.”
Emperor Wen Xiu smiled as he gazed at Princess Chang Xi, whose eyes were filled with tears. In this gaze, the light in his eyes gradually faded, becoming dim.
He was dead.
Emperor Wen Xiu was neither a pilgrim nor a Ghost Tribe member.
He was merely a cruel man.
Even in death, Emperor Wen Xiu continued to fool others, leaving Shu Sheng with an insurmountable obstacle.
When Chang Xi left, she couldn’t remember the truth of the world, but she remembered how the Empress had died.
*
The gloomy sky seemed as if it would never welcome the arrival of dawn.
Dong Yeyun carried Zhou Caicai on his back, looking up at Ming Li who was still on the palace wall. He always had a bad premonition, an indescribable anxiety.
Qing Ying was also watching the people on the palace wall, but due to her sensitive Thunderous Roar Meridian, she heard someone approaching. Her expression changed instantly as her peripheral vision swept over: “Senior Brother Liang!”
Liu Zhuo and Hong Xiu were approaching with Liang Junxia. Hearing the voice, they looked over and finally noticed Qing Ying. Their gazes passed over the person carrying Zhou Caicai beside Qing Ying, and they were stunned.
The two groups met above the palace, and Liu Zhuo set down the unconscious Liang Junxia, whose bleeding had been stopped, and handed him to Chen Zhou.
Hong Xiu frowned as she looked at Dong Yeyun, seemingly wanting an answer, but Dong Yeyun couldn’t speak, his eyes showing apology.
“His condition can’t be delayed. My healing technique is low-level and can’t save him,” Liu Zhuo explained briefly, then looked at Dong Yeyun, also frowning: “East Yun?”
Dong Yeyun nodded.
“He can’t speak,” Chen Zhou said as he examined Liang Junxia’s injuries. “How was he injured?”
“Four Ghost Tribe members wearing white masks were taking away Zhou Zixi. He was injured while trying to stop them, and Zhou Zixi was taken away,” Liu Zhuo said succinctly, his brows furrowed as he looked at Dong Yeyun. “They seemed to use a transfer formation.”
Chen Zhou focused on using the Yin-Yang Dual Meridian healing technique, but he wasn’t skilled at it. Moreover, the injury was caused by a Yin-Yang curse technique, something he had little experience with, making his expression increasingly grim.
Qing Ying knew that even her senior brother would find this difficult. In terms of healing techniques, perhaps they needed one of the pilgrims on the palace wall.
Ming Li on the palace wall also noticed the situation below, so she said to Xiang An’ge: “Go down there. I’ll owe you a favor.”
Xiang An’ge glanced at the three people opposite Shu Sheng: “Are you sure you want to be alone?”
Ming Li said, “It’s enough.”
“Alright then.” Xiang An’ge’s battle intent wasn’t very high, and hearing Ming Li say this, he simply flashed down to help her save the person.
“How boastful,” Cui Yaocen said, already rushing toward Ming Li with her sword drawn as the words left her mouth.
Cui Yaocen’s speed was very fast. Qing Ying, watching from below, felt a shock in her heart and almost called out for her senior sister to be careful.
However, in Ming Li’s divine miracle ability, Heavy Eyes: Star Observation range, she had already predicted Cui Yaocen’s attack point, so she avoided it with ease. Any fluctuation of star power within her Star Observation would be captured.
Cui Yaocen’s movement technique was strange, her sword strikes were fierce and ruthless, a single stroke soaring ten thousand feet, exceptionally powerful. But Ming Li’s evasive movements alarmed Cui Yaocen.
It was Ye Yuanqing’s Returning Flower Intent movement technique!
“How do you know this?” Cui Yaocen turned back in shock to see Ming Li, who had appeared behind her using the Returning Flower Intent.
Ming Li smiled slightly: “This kind of thing, I learn it after seeing it once.”
Yuan Lu scratched his head: “Ah, it’s this attitude. No wonder I occasionally dislike you, too.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Ming Li pointed a Sound Binding attack at him, creating a large crater at the spot where Yuan Lu had just been standing, with stone fragments flying.
Yuan Lu, who had flashed away to dodge, frowned slightly. This power…
“Since we all dislike each other, why not just leave only one alive?” Ming Li looked at Shu Sheng, who stood motionless, and raised an eyebrow slightly. “What do you think? Do you still want to nullify my Circulating Qi word formation?”
Now, nothing was restricting her star power. As the pilgrim’s fire dissipated, her past and present star meridians merged into one. Even Ming Li herself felt that her current power was too strong and needed to explore balance.
Cold wind blew, lifting Shu Sheng’s clothes. He sighed: “If necessary, that’s not impossible.”
After speaking, Shu Sheng pointed Life-Death at Ming Li. Two incredibly powerful forces of heaven and earth Qi collided, shattering the snow on the palace wall and scattering it, as if a heavy snowfall had just occurred in this place.
Cui Yaocen and Yuan Lu didn’t just stand by watching; they both used their divine miracle abilities to attack Ming Li.
Sword blades flashed, shattering the snow particles that had been blown into the air. Cui Yaocen’s divine miracle ability, originating from the Thunderous Roar Meridian, was called Devouring Breath.
As Cui Yaocen approached Ming Li with her strange movement technique, all sounds around Ming Li disappeared, including the sound of her star power flowing.
Shu Sheng’s Life-Death cut off a few strands of Ming Li’s hair. Cui Yaocen, filled with killing intent, slashed her sword directly at Ming Li’s front, while behind Ming Li, Yuan Lu descended from the sky.
Body Technique Meridian: Myriad Gods’ Body.
Yuan Lu’s Body Technique Meridian was enhanced to the world’s strongest. Even a light tap on your forehead could instantly pierce through you. If hit by Yuan Lu’s punch, one would shatter into pieces on the spot.
Xiang An’ge, on the palace building’s eaves below, couldn’t help but look up at Ming Li on the palace wall while saving the injured, his brow now furrowed.
In that instant, Cui Yaocen and Yuan Lu heard shattering sounds, like porcelain or mirrors breaking. Countless fragments reflecting light suddenly appeared around Ming Li.
Spiritual Court Meridian: Dual Mirrors.
The refracted star power transformed into streams of Circulating Qi word formation sound bindings, counterattacking the two approaching opponents.
This was the second divine miracle ability Ming Li had awakened when breaking through. In the celestial pit, she had also used Dual Mirrors’ reflection to counter Ye Yuanqing’s Heart Piercer.
The explosion range of the Sound Binding expanded further. Yuan Lu continuously flashed to different positions to avoid it, while Cui Yaocen’s attack was too fierce to stop abruptly. Unlike Yuan Lu, whose Body Technique Meridian was enhanced, she realized she needed to retreat, but was half a step too slow. Blood splattered from the side of her face.
Shu Sheng raised his hand, using his divine miracle ability, Circulating Qi Meridian: Myriad Methods. He controlled all word formation techniques in the world. Even against pilgrims, he could suppress their Circulating Qi Meridian, so he solemnly said: “Nullify.”
But the countless Sound Bindings reflected by the Dual Mirrors didn’t stop. Instead, Ming Li raised her hand toward Shu Sheng and said: “Nullify.”
The two battling forces of heaven and earth Qi suddenly disappeared.
Shu Sheng’s Life-Death was withdrawn.
—How is this possible?
—Impossible!
Both Cui Yaocen and Yuan Lu’s expressions darkened. Besides Shu Sheng’s divine miracle ability, Myriad Methods, no one could suppress a pilgrim’s Circulating Qi Meridian.
Xiang An’ge withdrew his gaze, surprised in his heart. Her level… seemed even stronger than before.
The shattering sounds on the palace wall continued incessantly. Yuan Lu and Cui Yaocen were forced far back. At this moment, the closest to Ming Li was Shu Sheng.
“It seems that you, who claims to have the strongest Circulating Qi Meridian, are still lacking a bit.”
Ming Li’s peripheral vision swept toward Cui Yaocen and Yuan Lu, who had been forced behind her by the Dual Mirrors. “I’ll ask one last time: where is my junior brother?”
“I won’t tell you his whereabouts until this matter is concluded,” Shu Sheng said calmly. “Nor do you need to know.”
Cui Yaocen asked harshly: “First, hand over Yuan Xi!”
“Stop worrying about your useless brother. I’ve already made him into a dual elephant artifact for my junior sister’s amusement,” Ming Li turned to look at Cui Yaocen, satisfied to see her shocked expression. “If you must find him, I can satisfy you. Making another dual elephant isn’t much trouble.”
“Wait, wait, wait, don’t rush to fight her to the death,” Yuan Lu blocked the teeth-grinding Cui Yaocen and frowned. “Ming Li, your condition isn’t quite right. Are you just at Eight Meridian Completion?”
This question brought a brief silence.
“What do you think?” Ming Li smiled ambiguously. “One after another, all affected by a Circulating Qi word formation with Heart Meridian power, devoured by the wills of those who died hundreds or thousands of years ago, self-proclaimed saviors wanting to kill all Ghost Tribe members.”
“Ultimately, it’s just because you haven’t awakened the ninth Life Meridian and can’t accept it.”
Yuan Lu’s expression changed slightly upon hearing this. “You truly saw something different.”
But Cui Yaocen was blinded by her fury: “At this point, nothing you say can change the fact that you stand with the Ghost Tribe! What ninth Life Meridian…”
“Why are you shouting at me? How to kill Ghost Tribe members is the simplest thing—just nullify the Life Meridian, and they won’t resurrect. Ultimately, their resurrection is only because the awakened Life Meridian hasn’t been destroyed.” Ming Li looked at Cui Yaocen with cold eyes. “When breaking through, you all saw it. Everyone can perceive star power from this world and awaken the star meridian power. Some people only awakened the Life Meridian, while others couldn’t awaken it.”
“There was never a distinction between Ghost Tribe and humans. There was only the eight meridians’ assault on the Life Meridian.”
“Because the initial batch of Eight Meridian Completion who resented the Life Meridian, the ones who left this heaven and earth Circulating Qi, were so unwilling and arrogant, trying to create a world of eight meridians rather than nine.”
“Countless pilgrims influenced by the Divine Oracle helped perfect a world with only eight meridians, causing later generations to gradually lose the ability to discover the Life Meridian, only able to see it after reaching Eight Meridian Completion.”
Ghost Tribe members wouldn’t choose to break through, because breaking through meant certain discovery by the Divine Oracle. Ghost Tribe members who could cultivate to the Life-Death Realm wouldn’t want to let the Divine Oracle take away their humanity.
Those pilgrims who left the Divine Oracle were cunning and cruel, scheming against all who awakened the Life Meridian, depriving them of their humanity, turning them into monsters to be hated and hunted.
Yuan Lu looked at Ming Li and murmured, “How could you remain completely unaffected?”
Ming Li said calmly, “It’s not that I’m unaffected. I merely deceived it.”
This was the reason for her drastic personality change after breaking through—to make the Divine Oracle believe she had been influenced.
“You all clearly know the origin of Ghost Tribe members, yet still choose to follow the Divine Oracle’s will, executing Ghost Tribe members, completely erasing the existence of the Life Meridian, to create a world with only eight meridians.”
Ming Li looked at Shu Sheng: “You’ve killed so many Ghost Tribe members and aren’t as foolish as these two. That mask of yours is to isolate the Divine Oracle’s consciousness from influencing you. I don’t believe you haven’t noticed anything.”
But Shu Sheng asked her: “So, have you awakened the ninth Life Meridian that allows resurrection?”
Cui Yaocen and Yuan Lu, who were about to speak, paused upon hearing this, staring at Ming Li and waiting for her answer.
But before Ming Li could answer, another Star of Mars was lit in the night sky.