Chapter 880: Lei Xi'er

Buzzing...

The You Si Jian was vibrating at a high frequency.

It hadn't felt such intense rage and murderous intent in a long time. In the hands of its previous owner, it had vented its desires for vengeance countless times, truly embodying the essence of "fierceness" and experiencing pure ecstasy. But ever since it fell into the hands of this current owner, it only got to come out occasionally for a breath of fresh air. This owner was like a closed gourd—always carefree and lighthearted, rarely showing the kind of extreme anger it was sensing now.

The You Si Jian, as a fierce sword, could only unleash its full power when the wielder's intent perfectly aligned with the true essence of "fierceness." Right now... it was so close!

The You Si Jian frantically channeled its fierce demonic qi into its host's body. Just a little more, and it could seize temporary control of this human, allowing it to indulge in its own form of joy.

At this point, Xu Xiaoshou was teetering on the edge of losing control. Normally, he would have noticed the sword's abnormality and his own changes, but his emotions had spiraled from slight instability to complete breakdown, thanks to the fierce demonic qi exploiting the opening. He wasn't just fighting his rationality now; he was also resisting the invasion of the demonic qi. In such a state, confronting Wu Ji Laozu, who was supposed to be an ally, was utterly irrational. Yet, Xu Xiaoshou could no longer control himself. As the You Si Jian, a sword of pure ferocity, its influence was overwhelming—he simply wanted to unleash carnage everywhere.

As he slowly advanced with his sword toward Wu Ji Laozu,

A soft murmur escaped from his arms—Mu Zixi seemed to stir, showing signs of waking. This sound instantly awakened the last thread of clarity in Xu Xiaoshou's mind. He quickly set down the You Si Jian and knelt back down, cradling Mu Zixi.

“Little junior sister?”

Xu Xiaoshou called out softly, and the fierce demonic qi in his eyes began to fade slightly.

The You Si Jian let out an angry buzz, as if scolding its owner for being so weak-willed. But in the end, it was just a sword; while it could take advantage of vulnerabilities, it couldn't fully override the will of this successor chosen by its previous owner.

Unfazed, Xu Xiaoshou carefully examined his little junior sister's condition.

Mu Zixi hadn't truly awakened. After taking the Sheng Xue, it seemed only now that the essence had reached her soul's core, causing a subtle physical reaction. But this was merely a natural physiological response triggered by the overwhelming power of the Sheng Xue. Her consciousness remained dormant.

Rustle, rustle...

In no time, the wind howled through the world, drawing in the life force from surrounding plants, grasses, and insects, all funneling into Mu Zixi's body.

Xu Xiaoshou's eyes lit up, thinking his little junior sister was drawing on life force to recover.

“Suck it all up—take it all!”

He even placed his fingers on her lips. After all, among those present, no one had life force as abundant as his own technique, "Sheng Sheng Bu Xi."

But Mu Zixi didn't react as she usually would—biting in anger. She remained still.

“Come on, suck!”

Xu Xiaoshou grew anxious. He gently pinched her chin and tilted it up.

Her tiger teeth were as sharp as ever, the only part of her that could pierce his defenses, and it drew blood instantly. But there was no sensation of her sucking; the blood simply dripped into her mouth before the wound on his finger healed.

Xu Xiaoshou froze.

Mu Zixi's unusual absorption of energy from the world halted after just a moment. When Xu Xiaoshou probed with his perception, he discovered a surge of life force within her—part from the Sheng Xue, part from the world's energy, but mostly her own, accumulated over time from her constant absorption. This portion was the most vast!

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...

In the blink of an eye, massive amounts of life force escaped from Mu Zixi's body. The torrent of energy transformed the invisible life essence into a visible mist that filled the entire domain, invigorating everyone's spirits.

Where Xu Xiaoshou knelt holding Mu Zixi, the ground suddenly cracked open, sprouting a white bud that grew upward, blooming into a white Bian Hua flower.

The vibrant Bian Hua swayed in the wind...

In an instant, the sacred blooms spread across the mountains and earth. The white Bian Hua, embodying divine power, released an enchanting fragrance and an unknown divine aura, instilling a sense of devout pilgrimage in all who stood amid the sea of flowers.

Everyone was stunned by this turn of events.

Yi Shuang blinked his heterochromatic eyes, snapping out of the mental illusion, his heart churning with massive waves. What kind of power was this? In that moment, he had sensed a faint trace of...

Shen Li?

“Impossible!”

A flash of incomprehension crossed Yi Mou's eyes. He couldn't understand how this young girl, whom he had thrown into unconsciousness, could unleash such immense power.

“The Tun Sheng Mu Body?”

“No, the power of the Zhi Sheng Mo Body?”

Yi was puzzled. Even if he didn't fully grasp the abilities of the Tun Sheng Mu Body or Zhi Sheng Mo Body, how could something like Shen Li—the power of the divine—be released by mere Ling Ti or Sheng Ti?

“She...”

Yi suddenly realized that events were spiraling beyond his expectations. His gaze locked onto Mu Zixi's closed eyes, from which black and white mists were emanating.

“What is this?”

Wu Ji Laozu, standing in the sea of white Bian Hua, looked equally bewildered. Unlike Yi, he had spent time on the Xu Kong Island and encountered high-level forces up close—including Shen Li! Now, from this girl he had discarded, a genuine wisp of divine power was emanating after her brief coma. It wasn't an illusion—it was real Shen Li! Just a faint trace, but Wu Ji Laozu recognized it instantly.

“What have I done...”

Regret gnawed at Wu Ji Laozu. He finally understood that Mu Zixi was no ordinary person. Perhaps, like Xu Xiaoshou, she was someone cultivated in secret by the Ba Zun An. And now, because of his personal grudge, had he disrupted Ba Zun An's plans?

“Insane!”

“Why didn't anyone tell me how important she is!”

“If only...”

Wu Ji Laozu's face paled. His thoughts ground to a halt, his lips mumbling as he tried to think of something to say or do to make amends. But he realized he hadn't even figured out the full extent of the girl's changes yet—what could he possibly do?

Meanwhile, Xu Xiaoshou, closest to the burst of Shen Li, felt his mind sharpen instantly. The fierce demonic qi in his body was completely suppressed, and his eyes cleared.

“Jing Luo?”

Gazing at the extraordinary sea of Bian Hua, the word inexplicably came to his mind. A whale's fall brings life to all things—and wasn't this exactly what was happening now? Mu Zixi hadn't even woken, yet the power escaping her body had turned the wilderness into a blooming paradise, with birds and beasts rejoicing.

But... what about his little junior sister?

She couldn't fall!

“Isn't the Sheng Xue from the Jin Zhao lineage supposed to be like divine protection, healing any level of injury in an instant?”

Xu Xiaoshou was frantic. He had already given her the Sheng Xue, but his perception showed that most of its power was just accumulating inside her without any healing effect.

Xu Xiaoshou's pupils contracted. With his mind clear, he uncovered the true mystery within Mu Zixi. She wasn't injured at all! Or rather, any wounds on her surface or inside had been healed by the Sheng Xue long ago—she just hadn't woken up. And that had used only a fraction of the Sheng Xue's energy.

The last time Xu Xiaoshou exhausted a drop of Sheng Xue, it was because he activated the Sheng Xiang. Only Sheng Xue paired with Sheng Xiang could perfectly balance input and output. But now, Mu Zixi's body was only receiving energy, with no output. If the specially treated Sheng Xue from the Jin Zhao lineage didn't have any side effects, its violent power might have already destroyed her life force entirely.

“No injuries...”

“And this strange Shen Li...”

Xu Xiaoshou murmured to himself, piecing it together as his pupils trembled. He looked at Mu Zixi's eyes. In his earlier emotional chaos, he hadn't noticed such details, but now calm, he saw the anomaly. In this world filled with the white Shen Li of the Bian Hua sea, everything should have been purified and sacred. Yet, from Mu Zixi's right eye, an incongruous black Mo Qi was still drifting out.

That Mo Qi wasn't like the fierce demonic qi of the You Si Jian, which focused on murder and violence. Instead, it was utterly yin, evil, dark, and gloomy—true demonic energy!

“Shen Mo Tong?”

Xu Xiaoshou's head buzzed. He recalled the other voice inside Mu Zixi—perhaps her second personality? Could it be...

“Ugh!”

Just then, Mu Zixi let out a painful groan, interrupting his thoughts. Despite no forces colliding within her, she seemed to be enduring immense suffering, her face scrunching up as her body began to tremble.

Her teeth chattered...

She groaned in agony...

Then, “Ahhhh!!!”

With shrill cries of pain, Mu Zixi's body arched upward, floating into the air unsupported.

“Ughhh... ahhhh...”

Amid the sacred sea of Bian Hua, waves of excruciating screams echoed.

Xu Xiaoshou was completely panicked, with no idea what was happening to his little junior sister.

As the screams reached their peak, Mu Zixi's suspended body suddenly stopped trembling.

Buzz!

Her eyes snapped open, the black and white pupils of her Shen Mo Tong spinning rapidly while endless black and white mists billowed out. The Shen Li in the world halted, and the black Mo Qi began to surge, devouring and invading the divine power like a spark igniting a prairie fire!

Sizzle...

The first Bian Hua on the ground turned black in an instant under the Mo Qi's assault.

Then the second, the third...

“No!”

Xu Xiaoshou, closest to it, was the first hit by the Mo Qi. His eyes turned red again, but he shook his head vigorously, as if realizing something, and reached out to stop whatever might happen next with Mu Zixi.

The suppressed emotions from before surged back like a tidal wave with the Mo Qi entering his body. Xu Xiaoshou's consciousness wavered, nearly shattering, but he held on.

Buzz!

The You Si Jian trembled and flew back into his hand, adding fuel to the fire. Xu Xiaoshou's mind went blank, but after instinctively biting his tongue for the pain, he endured the dual onslaught of the demonic forces.

“No—!”

He roared upward, still focused only on Mu Zixi, leaping into the air to hold her tightly.

The moment he touched her, the life force still escaping from her body jolted him awake slightly. He sensed something wrong—Mu Zixi's body had changed dramatically from before, likely due to the massive loss of life force. It wasn't negative; rather, it seemed she had shed excess life force, reverting to her natural form before any suppression of growth.

Had she grown taller? Xu Xiaoshou noticed that Mu Zixi's green dress, once reaching her knees, now barely covered her thighs. Her legs were now long and shapely, nothing like the skinny stalks they used to be.

The rest of her body had changed too. Aside from her slim waist, which remained the same, her chest and hips had filled out impressively as the life force dissipated. Her previous lolita-style outfit was now stretched taut by this sudden transformation.

Yet, her body still trembled slightly, and she hadn't woken up.

“I...”

Xu Xiaoshou didn't know what to do. He held the waist of this familiar yet strange woman, wanting to let go but afraid to. The feel of her under his hands made him think his little junior sister might have become someone else entirely.

But when he looked back at her face...

That delicate and adorable face hadn't changed much. Beyond a newfound allure in her features, it was still the one he knew.

In that instant, Xu Xiaoshou understood. He realized why Mu Zixi had the Shen Mo Tong and why there was another voice inside her.

“You're not her!” Xu Xiaoshou declared firmly.

The grown Mu Zixi remained motionless.

The white Bian Hua on the ground, representing Shen Li, was now nearly half swallowed by the Mo Qi.

“Go back!”

Xu Xiaoshou was desperate but clueless. Then, an idea struck—he activated his "Hu Xi Zhi Fa," cupped her face, and began devouring the Mo Qi from her right eye.

Gulp.

Gulp.

It was like drinking water, the Mo Qi bringing a bizarre sensation of heat and chill through his mouth and nose. The color shift of the Bian Hua sea slowed, but it continued.

Xu Xiaoshou's mind grew even foggier; he was barely holding on against the dense Mo Qi. But if he didn't do this, how could he stop the Bian Hua from turning black?

“Go back!”

He pushed his "Hu Xi Zhi Fa" to its limit, wishing he could max out this basic passive skill. Even at full force, though, he couldn't keep up with the speed of the Shen Mo Tong generating Mo Qi.

“Let go of me...”

When the flower sea became a half-white, half-black yin-yang state, an irritated voice reached Xu Xiaoshou's ears.

He froze. It was Mu Zixi's voice... but not quite. Though similar, the tone and that seductive charm weren't hers.

“Get out—bring my junior sister back!” Xu Xiaoshou shouted angrily, continuing to absorb the Mo Qi.

“Enough!” The enchanting female voice now carried clear displeasure.

Her body still couldn't move, so she could only let him hold her face, her Shen Mo Tong eyes observing this familiar man up close for the first time.

Xu Xiaoshou refused to back down and kept drawing out the Mo Qi.

But it was too slow. When the sacred Bian Hua sea was seven-tenths blackened, Xu Xiaoshou didn't notice the woman he held twitch her fingers slightly...

Then, her lips curved, her lashes fluttered, and her Shen Mo Tong stopped spinning, radiating a demonic allure. “Want to suck it up, do you?”

She lifted her chin, pressed her jade hand forward, and sealed her lips to his.

“Mmph!”

The sudden soft assault left Xu Xiaoshou's mind blank, his toes curling and palms spreading wide as he froze in midair.

Not only did his "Hu Xi Zhi Fa" stop, but his breathing vanished entirely in that moment.

He could only stare dazedly, his left eye locked on the Shen Mo Tong's right eye mere inches away, watching the infinite, eerie black Mo Qi swirl into an abyss, pulling his very soul in.

Clang—

The You Si Jian, one of the five great Chaotic divine artifacts, experienced for the first time being dropped by its owner mid-battle.

Their lips parted.

“Calmed down now?”

Xu Xiaoshou, catching his breath at the question, inhaled sharply, nearly pulling her back in as the oxygen deprivation lifted and he regained his senses.

Then, in his daze, he stopped breathing again.

“Repaying her debt for you...” The woman before him blushed slightly in the silence, turning her head and shifting her gaze, pretending to be composed as she explained.

Xu Xiaoshou hesitated for a long time before stammering, “Mu Zixi?”

The woman's Shen Mo Tong spun as she looked at him and slowly shook her head: “Lei Xi Er.”