Ye Shu She's under my protection

At this moment, inside the ruins.

Ye Shu, who was in the middle of a bloody slaughter, had no idea that a net had already been cast outside, waiting for him to take a single step out before springing the kill shot.

Right now, he was immersed in the thrill of returning.

Being able to cultivate again felt damn good.

Though it didn't really amount to much, to be fair.

After all, as he himself had said, the Heavenly Stars Array was way too micro-intensive, nowhere near as simple as the Post-Heaven Merit Method.

Crimson rain scattered through the air as Ye Shu's two avatars kept stacking up karma and merit. Only when every last intruder lay dead beneath his palms did he beckon with a wave, and the two avatars turned into streaks of gold and red light that landed on his shoulders.

Two flowers bloomed, two doors opened.

The two tiny figures sat cross-legged, lotus thrones blooming beneath them.

Ye Shu nodded in satisfaction.

He turned around and saw Mu Xi sitting dazed on a wooden stake, staring at him with tear-filled eyes, not sure whether to laugh or cry.

Ye Shu slapped his forehead.

"Tch, almost forgot about this newly adopted daughter."

"Must be stunned by her old man's dashing demeanor, right?"

Thinking this, Ye Shu slowly turned, chest puffed out, back to the sunlight, striking a suave pose. The dogtail grass dangling from his mouth swayed gently, his hands folded behind his back. He drifted down gracefully, landing before Mu Xi with a faint smile.

"What's wrong, dear daughter? Faced with this long-awaited reunion, too overwhelmed to even speak?"

With that, he extended his palm and opened it slightly.

Resting inside was a round, golden pill — identical to the one he had just swallowed.

"Take it. I refined two."

"A pill that can restore my body should be more than enough to heal that Bingxuanzi."

Only then did Mu Xi, still seated on the stake, snap back to her senses.

She snatched the pill from Ye Shu's hand and pouted in irritation.

"Who's your daughter... wait!"

Mu Xi's eyes flew wide, staring straight into Ye Shu's own, and she spoke slowly, word by word: "You have a daughter?"

Hearing that, Ye Shu froze.

He stared back at her in equal bewilderment: "You... you're not my daughter?"

"You have a daughter?!"

Meanwhile, outside the ruins.

"Hmph!"

Yan Shi and the others had finished laying down the trapping formation to prevent Ye Shu from fleeing, and now he flicked his sleeve and glared coldly at the ruins' entrance: "The ruins are about to close. Once the entrance shuts, that brat will have to wait a thousand or ten thousand years to come out."

"I refuse to believe he won't come out!"

"Hmph hmph..."

The Liu Clan Guardian sneered: "I've already sent word back to the clan to inform the Patriarch. He might even bring people here personally. And when he does, even if that brat won't come out, we'll sink this entire ruin if we have to, to crush him in his cradle!"

"Indeed, he must die!"

"If we don't kill him, we'll never quell the hatred in our hearts!"

The crowd all voiced their agreement, united in their fury.

But then, just as their killing intent reached its peak, a crimson-gold flame suddenly streaked across the sky.

In the next moment, a figure of breathtaking beauty descended from the distant heavens, stepping on crimson flames. She wore a plain green robe, unadorned, with three thousand strands of black hair falling like a waterfall, intertwining with the fire. The golden-red flames bowed beneath her feet, making her look like a goddess descended from the nine heavens.

And yet, this very goddess wore an unremarkable wooden bracelet on her right wrist.

In her hand, she dangled a head.

"That's...!"

The Liu Clan Guardian's pupils contracted as he let out an involuntary gasp: "Isn't that the messenger I sent out?"

Zhao Zhixia held the head aloft with one hand, her expression cold as she swept her gaze over the crowd.

"Ye Shu is under my protection. Got it?"