“She’s awakened?” Fu Ronghua was stunned.

“It’s the Soul Lodging Technique…” Rongshuang’s expression changed drastically as she suddenly looked at Shaoyang Zhenren, her gaze barely concealing her anger: “Someone used the Soul Lodging Technique on her!”

Tian Fangfang asked in confusion: “What is the Soul Lodging Technique?”

“The Soul Lodging Technique is a spell in the cultivation world where one separates part of their primordial soul and lodges it in an object. Only those with Spirit Transformation stage cultivation or higher can accomplish this, but the primordial soul is precious—cultivators rarely lodge their primordial soul elsewhere. This hairpin of Junior Sister Zanxing…” Even Meng Ying’s usually calm gaze couldn’t help but show traces of shock: “It contains someone else’s primordial soul, which blocked that killing move for her.”

If the substitute talisman that Mu Cengxiao had given Zanxing earlier, which could block one strike for her, was already extremely precious, then this hairpin—unless the person who lodged their soul in it died, that most devastating strike would always have someone to bear it for Zanxing.

It protected the hairpin’s owner with its primordial soul.

“Bastard!” Lingxin Daoren’s face turned ashen as he hefted his Demon-Subduing Staff: “If the Ten Thousand Killing Formation can’t kill her, then I’ll do it myself! What right does a mere demoness have to be so arrogant!”

Before his words finished, the Divine Fire Pillars in the Ten Thousand Killing Formation suddenly began trembling violently, as if something was about to burst forth from the ground. Then, with a “boom,” the central divine fire suddenly spread, and in the night sky, a silver radiance appeared abruptly. That silver radiance came with overwhelming momentum, charging into the Divine Fire Pillars with the force to break through thousands of troops.

“Who is it!” Rongshuang shouted angrily.

Countless silver-white snowflakes scattered from the formation’s center.

The moonlight was cold, the snowflakes were cool—that wind and snow extinguished the divine fire of the Divine Fire Pillars with soft sounds, while the silver, shattered moonlight gently caressed the brow and eyes of the person within the formation.

All sounds fell silent.

“Nine Streams of Snow?” Xuan Lingzi was startled: “Seventh Junior Brother?”

Ice and fire gradually dispersed. The young man standing in the formation wore pearl-colored robes that gleamed in the night, and his crimson hair ribbon was more scorching than fire. His features were like a painting as his cold gaze swept over everyone present, finally settling on the person in the formation with sudden gentleness.

“…Gu Baiying?” Putao murmured: “Isn’t he in seclusion?”

Others didn’t know about Gu Baiying’s spiritual meridian issue—they only knew he had reached a breakthrough point in cultivation and was in seclusion. They never expected him to suddenly appear here and break into the formation.

Zanxing only felt that the flame-like burning seemed to have stopped. Someone had helped her up, and a cool aura drifted over from before her. Like the first drop of sweet dew for a traveler dying in the desert, those cool threads of snow turned into spring rain, flowing over dry earth and nourishing withered saplings.

Life found in desperate circumstances.

She moved her fingers slightly, her eyes opened hazily, and her ears seemed able to hear some sound. So she moved her lips and tentatively called out: “Master Uncle?”

The young man lowered his gaze to look at the person in his arms.

She was always smiling.

Happy, she smiled; when unhappy, she would quickly figure things out and smile as well. It was precisely this composed smile that always made her seem full of vitality, distinctly alive compared to the dull fellow disciples in the sect.

In Li’er Kingdom, in Wufan City, in the treasure grounds—every time it seemed like a desperate situation, she was quite disheveled too, but those eyes were always bright, like stars in the night sky, eternally twinkling.

But now, her entire body bore traces of burning, and her eyes seemed covered with a layer of gray mist, making it impossible to see the emotions contained within.

The blood hole left by the Dragon-Binding Spike through her spine was still gurgling blood, wetting his hands. She still wore the emerald dress from her birthday, now scorched to tatters, no longer retaining its former splendor.

She had become a completely different person.

The young man held her, lowering his eyelids. After a long moment, he spoke: “Just as I thought—you fool, you only know how to take beatings. Even when dying, you don’t know how to fight back.”

“Master Uncle?” Zanxing couldn’t hear clearly what he was saying, only feeling that this embrace was refreshingly cool, making her burned body want to lean closer.

“Gu Baiying!” Lingxin Daoren finally came to his senses and shouted angrily: “What do you think you’re doing? Are you going to collude with this demon?”

He hefted his Demon-Subduing Staff and tried to charge into the Ten Thousand Killing Formation, but the moment he approached, he was bounced back by the killing formation.

The ten thousand killing moves hadn’t ended yet—the formation wasn’t closed, so he couldn’t enter.

“Bastard!” Lingxin Daoren was beside himself with rage.

Fu Ronghua pondered for a moment and asked: “Why can’t Lingxin enter the Ten Thousand Killing Formation, but Gu Baiying can?”

“Don’t forget, he’s Qinghua’s son,” Rongshuang said. “Back then, the Demon Lord was personally slain by Qinghua, and the heart blood was personally extracted by Qinghua. Since he carries Qinghua’s bloodline, he should naturally have some extraordinary abilities. I imagine that soul-lodging hairpin was also given to this demoness by him.” She stepped forward, looking at the person in the formation with a pressing gaze: “Gu Baiying, you used the Soul Lodging Technique to save this demoness’s life—did you already know her demon identity?”

Gu Baiying said coldly, “So what if I knew? So what if I didn’t?”

“If you didn’t know, considering your youth and ignorance of the circumstances, we won’t pursue your crime of harboring a demon. Remove the Soul Lodging Technique, wait for the Ten Thousand Killing Formation to end, and this matter will be concluded.” Rongshuang stared at him. Since they couldn’t enter the Ten Thousand Killing Formation now, they could only resolve Zanxing’s matter first before discussing anything else.

The young man laughed lightly, his gaze extremely contemptuous: “What if I say no?”

“You!” Rongshuang was furious.

Gu Baiying set down Zanxing from his arms and picked up the Embroidered Bone Spear. Just as Zanxing had once blocked in front of him in Li’er Kingdom, he now blocked in front of Zanxing.

On the silver-white spear shaft of the Embroidered Bone Spear, crimson traces suddenly flowed like exquisite embroidery stitched into bone—each stitch penetrating bone, inch by inch, bright red. The Yuanli emanating from within made everyone present feel horrified.

They all knew that Qinghua Xianzi’s son must have considerable cultivation, but they hadn’t expected it to be so outstanding. Just from picking up the spear, they could sense his overwhelming Yuanli, no less than these so-called sect master old-timers.

“Junior Brother…” Xuan Lingzi was also inwardly astonished. Because of his spiritual meridian stagnation, Gu Baiying had never revealed his true cultivation level in front of others. Now that his spiritual meridians had completely recovered, he after emerging from seclusion was more terrifying than imagined.

“Yang Zanxing, I told you long ago,” he slightly raised his chin, looking at everyone with his usual arrogant gaze, the crimson hair ribbon fluttering gently in the wind like blazing fire, scorching and dazzling, “in this world, whoever bullies you, you hit them back. Otherwise, it’s shameful to speak of, and don’t say you’re my disciple-nephew Gu Baiying.”

“Gu Baiying!” Lingxin Daoren shouted angrily: “Are you rebelling? You’re openly opposing our cultivation world for this demoness!”

“That’s not right,” Gu Baiying sneered, looking at him with not a trace of warmth: “Isn’t it natural for elders to take care of juniors?”