Volume 9, Chapter 585 – You Unfilial Daughter

Of course, Qi Huang’s harvest was far more than just that, she had also figured out what the Heavenly Dao truly was, and how one might transcend it.

Qi Huang didn’t keep this vital information to herself. She immediately sought out her main body and laid out all her newfound discoveries in detail.

Cheng Hongling digested it for a long time before finally speaking with caution:

“If everything in that dream is true, then the reason you’ve become like this is very likely because of the assimilation ability from that foreign Heavenly Dao. That would indirectly prove that Lu Yao succeeded.”

“Yes! And this also proves that my search direction was correct. As long as I see Lu Yao find and wield that assimilation ability, I’ll be able to master it too, and then resolve the problem with my soul.”

Qi Huang spoke with excitement.

“But there’s one problem, where exactly is that foreign Heavenly Dao’s power? Just knowing the method isn’t enough!”

Cheng Hongling reminded her.

“It was only after I put on the human skin mask you gave me that I was assimilated by Cheng Ling. I believe that power is in my body. I just don’t understand why I can’t sense it. Could it be that she used it all up? But then why is my assimilation still continuing?”

Qi Huang used her divine sense to probe her body as she spoke.

“Forget it. For now, focus on mastering the method first. Keep working at dreaming.”

Cheng Hongling encouraged her.

“Don’t worry. Maybe I’m not so good at being a woman, but dreaming? That’s something anyone with hands can do.”

Qi Huang flashed a confident smile.

“I think you’re pretty good at being a woman. What man goes around calling himself a fairy at every opportunity?”

Cheng Hongling mocked her sharply.

“Uh… just a conditioned reflex.”

Qi Huang’s smile turned awkward.

“Also, if the female ghost you ran into while stealing my identity plaque was really an illusion conjured by the Boundless Demonic Hair, then that explains why ghost tomatoes only work on you!”

Cheng Hongling’s expression shifted as realization struck.

“I thought the same, but if you think about it, isn’t it a little too coincidental? Not only was I assimilated by the foreign Heavenly Dao’s power, but I also just happened to run into the Boundless Demonic Hair on the way.”

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Qi Huang voiced her doubts.

“Coincidence or not, who can say for sure? Perhaps the artifact spirit of the Boundless Demonic Hair sensed the aura of its master on you, so it deliberately sought you out.”

Cheng Hongling made a bold guess.

“Hmm.”

Qi Huang nodded thoughtfully.

“There’s another issue. Since Lu Yao successfully obtained that foreign Heavenly Dao’s assimilation ability, why then did the blood tears on her face appear on Mother, and then get passed down to me? That blood-tear stain is her main source of Yin Energy. There’s no way she’d simply discard it.”

Cheng Hongling raised yet another doubt.

Qi Huang fell into silence. A sense of foreboding crept into her heart before she speculated:

“Could it be that she ultimately failed after all?”

“Who knows!”

Cheng Hongling smiled ambiguously, then quickly shifted topics:

“Finally, judging from your dream, if you truly are an assimilation body of that foreign Heavenly Dao, then according to Tianjizi’s words, just sprinkling a little more Heaven-Deceiving Water on yourself would let you completely slip past the native Heavenly Dao’s watchful eyes.”

“Who can say? It’s not like we can go knock on Heaven’s door to ask for proof.”

Qi Huang spread her hands helplessly.

“You know, the more truth we uncover step by step, the more I feel we are closely tied to Lu Yao. And that means sooner or later we’ll likely end up opposing the Heavenly Dao itself. After all, she rebelled against Heaven.”

Cheng Hongling spoke her worries aloud.

“It’s fine. Didn’t we already learn how to fight against the Heavenly Dao? You have killing intent…”

Qi Huang suddenly froze mid-sentence, her eyes lighting up as she exclaimed:

“You’re a cultivator, yet you can wield killing intent. Could that also be because of Lu Yao?”

“You’re asking me? Who am I supposed to ask then?”

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Cheng Hongling replied flatly.

“Forget it. Anyway, according to Yu Qian, killing intent can counter the Heavenly Dao. As long as you cultivate strong enough, you won’t need to fear it.”

Qi Huang encouraged her further.

“She said killing intent can only restrain the will of the Heavenly Dao. What about the Heavenly Dao’s Five Element powers? What do we use against that? We’re not like Lu Yao, we don’t command Yin Energy!”

Cheng Hongling corrected rationally.

Qi Huang paused to think before answering:

“There are options. Not just one, but two. First, the assimilation power of that foreign Heavenly Dao. If I can master it, it will definitely stand against the Heavenly Dao. Second, divine sense. Since I’ve already been assimilated by the foreign Heavenly Dao, it means I’m no longer part of the native Heavenly Dao. My divine sense has no ceiling. It can completely surpass it.”

“Your reasoning makes sense. Then go and prove it.”

Cheng Hongling nodded in agreement.

In the following days, Qi Huang continued helping her main body increase her cultivation. In her spare time, she also used ghost tomatoes to strengthen her divine sense. She knew that, at present, the threat from the Lü Clan was far more pressing than the intangible, untouchable Heavenly Dao.

Because Elder Zuo’s ghost tomatoes were gradually ripening, the Golden Fortune Auction House purchased them at an ever faster pace. Meanwhile, Qi Huang’s divine sense steadily, if slowly, grew stronger.

That day, Qi Huang picked up a ghost tomato and fell into thought:

‘If everything in the dream was true, then my divine sense growing this fast actually has nothing to do with the Tongming Comb!’

To test her guess, Qi Huang took an ordinary comb, dipped it in ghost tomato juice, and combed her hair. The result confirmed her suspicion, the strengthening effect was exactly the same.

“Of course. If the Tongming Comb were really so miraculous, how would it have ended up in my master’s hands?”

Qi Huang chuckled at herself. Still, she did not look down on the comb. It had, after all, let her live as a man for quite some time.

Meanwhile, Lin Tu’s imperial decree to lower the draft age was officially issued. The common folk wailed in misery, but in a world where even food was scarce, who had the strength to resist? They could only resign themselves to fate.

Though Qi Huang felt pity, she herself was barely hanging on. Where could she find the energy to play the savior of the common people?

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A month passed in the blink of an eye.

Lin Tu’s sixtieth birthday banquet was drawing near, and at last Lin Ran, the Sixth Princess, returned.

Upon arriving at the palace, the first person she naturally had to meet was her father.

In the imperial study, Lin Tu’s expression was dark as he spoke with a biting tone:

“So you do remember to come back? If I weren’t holding a grand celebration for my sixtieth birthday, I suppose I’d never see you again in this lifetime, would I?”

“Father exaggerates. For a cultivator, going into seclusion for a few months is completely normal.”

Lin Ran replied calmly.

“Oh? Then why did I hear from the people of Poyun Peak that you were never in seclusion at all?”

Lin Tu clearly wasn’t about to let the matter drop, denying her any way to step down gracefully.

“…”

Lin Ran wanted to explain, but in the end, she said nothing.

“I know what you want to ask. The expert who injured you at the Evergreen Conference, that was someone I sent.”

Lin Tu admitted openly, with complete confidence.

“Why?”

Lin Ran bit down hard on her teeth as she asked.

“Because you’re useless! You couldn’t defeat that Qi Huang. Rather than have you bring shame upon the royal family, better to give you a reason to forfeit.”

Lin Tu said mercilessly.

“But do you know what people are saying outside? That it was all staged, that I ran without fighting. Isn’t that just as shameful?”

Lin Ran challenged him.

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“Still better than you losing to Qi Huang in front of everyone. I’ve already been toyed with by her once. If you lost to her too, what dignity would the royal family have left?”

Lin Tu shot back.

“You are my father! Without even fighting, how can you be so sure your daughter would definitely lose?”

Lin Ran shook her head in bitter disappointment. Her father didn’t understand her at all. She was not someone who gave up easily. No matter how slim the chance, she would always fight.

“Why lie to yourself?”

A trace of disdain flickered across Lin Tu’s face. Then he said:

“Enough of this unpleasant talk. For my sixtieth birthday, many royal families of allied nations will be attending. Dress yourself up beautifully, don’t let the Western Radiance Dynasty lose face.”

Lin Ran only gave a disinterested “Mhm.” With the people suffering so terribly, she had no mood for celebration.

“What’s wrong? You’re not happy?”

Lin Tu’s face darkened further.

“Father, why lower the draft age? The secular world is already plagued by fiends and suffering from harsh climates. The commoners are pitiful enough.”

Lin Ran asked directly.

“Do you even need to ask? Do you realize how many nations are attacking our Western Radiance Dynasty simultaneously right now? If I don’t conscript, would you rather your father become the ruler of a fallen kingdom?”

Lin Tu retorted harshly.

“And wasn’t it your warmongering that invited all this trouble? I’ve advised you countless times. Why won’t you ever listen?”

Lin Ran spoke with bitter disappointment.

“Nonsense!”

Lin Tu suddenly stood and shouted in fury:

“You unfilial daughter! What do you understand? It is those enemy nations stirring up trouble, and yet you blame your own father for warmongering? You, the Sixth Princess of the Western Radiance Dynasty, siding with outsiders… so spoiled and arrogant! Do you think I can’t punish you?”