Ji Qingyi Breaks Through

Ji Qingyi wrapped her hand in lunar divine power and seized the dark-blue crystal in a single grasp!

It felt warm yet cool against her skin. An incomparably pure force of Lunar Origin flowed through her palm and into her body, filling her with profound comfort—as though parched earth had finally received a long-awaited rain. Every pore of her body seemed to rejoice.

The power contained within this source crystal was truly a supreme treasure to her, enough to bring about a qualitative transformation in her Lunar Divine Body!

Yet just as her mind relaxed slightly in the midst of this immense delight—

A sudden change erupted!

An extraordinarily well-hidden, savage will had been lurking deep within the source crystal. The instant it sensed the presence of a living being and the connection of divine sense, it erupted without warning!

Following the channel through which she drew in the origin power, it surged upstream. With lightning speed, it pierced straight toward her sea of consciousness!

“ROAR—!”

A ferocious howl exploded directly within the depths of her soul, filled with boundless destruction and greed!

This was no mere baleful aura. It was a fragment of malicious remnant soul, born from the murderous deathly energy of the Jiuyou Ao’s corpse, which had gathered and settled over endless ages!

It instinctively craved life—craved a perfect vessel through which it could be reborn!

“Not good! A remnant will is trying to possess me!”

Ji Qingyi’s soul shuddered as understanding dawned upon her.

The sudden assault was swift and vicious, aimed directly at the most vulnerable part of her primordial spirit!

Outside, the Western Emperor Tower continued suppressing the corpse’s deathly aura. But in this battle for possession, taking place in the deepest recesses of her sea of consciousness—a struggle concerning her very existence—it could not intervene directly for the moment!

At that critical instant, her Saint King realm soul and unwavering Dao Heart erupted with full force!

Deep within her sea of consciousness, a majestic goddess manifestation condensed from pure lunar radiance and unyielding will suddenly appeared. Forming seals with both hands, it scattered endless streams of clear light.

Layer upon layer of soul barriers rose into being, forcibly withstanding the first assault of that savage remnant will!

“Suppress!”

Ji Qingyi shouted inwardly. Enduring the agonizing sensation of her soul being torn apart, she pushed the supreme soul-guarding art of the *Western Emperor Scripture* to its limit.

“ROAR—!”

The remnant will let out an even more violent roar, as though enraged.

Though it was merely a sliver of malicious intent, its source had been an unparalleled ferocious beast that once contended with ancient Great Emperors!

The rank of its life essence was incomparably lofty, and the ferocity and destructive intent it contained had been refined to the utmost purity.

Ji Qingyi gave a muffled groan, her face turning deathly pale in an instant.

The instinctive pressure stemming from their difference in life level made her mind reel. It felt as if she stood before a living primordial beast; a trembling born in the deepest reaches of her soul was impossible to suppress.

She could clearly feel her control over her own body weakening. Her consciousness was beginning to blur, while the cold, vicious will of the remnant soul seeped into her bit by bit, steadily gaining the upper hand.

The Lunar Source Crystal in her hand grew scorching hot. Its violent origin power and the ferocious remnant will attacked from within and without, leaving her beset on both sides and worsening her plight.

The moments of clarity in her cool eyes grew ever shorter, while the savage crimson within them deepened by the second.

The defenses she had constructed with everything she possessed were being forced back and dismantled step by step before the remnant will of that ferocious beast.

Just then—

“Alas.”

A nearly inaudible sigh drifted through the air, carrying a hint of unsurprised understanding—as though this had been expected all along—as well as the faintest trace of regret.

The chaotic mist silently parted, and Gu Changge stepped out at an unhurried pace.

As he took in the scene before him, a flicker of complexity passed through his otherwise calm eyes.

This woman possessed talent and resolve that ranked among the finest in this world.

It would truly be a pity if she were tainted and replaced by the lingering will of an ancient dead thing, her body and soul utterly erased.

A great age was about to begin, and storms were gathering in the Immortal Realm.

This world would need a few promising young talents to grow stronger as quickly as possible.

He raised his hand and made a light, dismissive sweep through the air in Ji Qingyi’s direction.

“Still.”

The single word left his lips, and reality obeyed.

In an instant, all sounds vanished.

The remnant will of Jiuyou Ao that had invaded her sea of consciousness—howling madly as it stood on the verge of success—was silently annihilated before it could stir even the slightest ripple.

Only a wisp of soul essence, purified to the utmost degree, quietly merged into her nearly depleted primordial spirit, becoming the most nourishing sustenance.

One moment, she had been trapped in an endless hell of a tearing soul and sinking consciousness. The next, all was calm. Her primordial spirit was even suffused with waves of warm, soothing nourishment.

The Taiyin Origin Crystal in Ji Qingyi’s hand, which had been trembling violently amid swirling black qi, abruptly froze in place.

All that remained within it was the purest, most fundamental power of Taiyin, now lying quietly and obediently dormant.

Ji Qingyi’s body went weak. She staggered a step, then suddenly opened her eyes and gasped for breath.

All color had drained from her exquisite face. Her eyes, however, were wide open, filled with the dazed confusion of surviving a catastrophe and an incredulous terror.

She stared at the suddenly appeared Gu Changge, at his placid expression—as though he had merely done something utterly trivial—and a tempestuous wave surged in her heart.

It was him!

So easily, so casually, he had resolved a predicament that should have meant certain death!

Gu Changge lowered his hand. His gaze lingered briefly on her pale face, taking in the overwhelming shock and confusion in her eyes.

Yet before she could thank him, she felt the vast primordial essence within the purified crystal flooding madly into her body, far beyond what she could endure!

She immediately sat cross-legged and circulated her cultivation technique with all her strength, guiding and refining the overwhelming power.

Gu Changge did not leave at once. Instead, he stood quietly to one side, watching her with an even gaze.

Taiyin divine power surged around Ji Qingyi, and her aura rose steadily. In rapid succession, she shattered through the peak Saint King barrier and rushed toward the threshold of the Great Saint Realm!

Yet just as she was about to break through into the Great Saint Realm, the Dao aura surrounding her suddenly became sluggish and chaotic, as though she had encountered some sort of bottleneck.

The enormous power rampaged through her body, even showing signs of spiraling out of control and causing a backlash!

Her brows drew tightly together, and fine beads of sweat formed on her forehead. Clearly, she had encountered an immense obstacle.

Watching this unfold, Gu Changge gave a slight shake of his head.

“You’ve taken the narrow path.”

Ji Qingyi’s mind shook violently!

At this moment, when she was somewhat disheveled and beset by troubles both within and without, those words struck her heart like a thunderclap!

Instinctively, she looked toward Gu Changge.

He remained standing there, calm as ever. His gaze seemed to rest upon her, yet at the same time, it appeared to pierce through her and see the path along which the power within her body flowed.

He raised two fingers as though they were a sword and lightly pointed toward her from across the air.

That single point seemed to target an extremely subtle obstruction in the circulation of her cultivation technique—one caused by a flawed understanding of the Dao of Supreme Yin, so obscure that even she herself had never noticed it!

“The power of Supreme Yin is the ultimate in darkness and gentleness. It is the mother that nurtures all creation.

“Your Yaochi method draws upon its cold and extinguishing aspect. It is more than sufficient for preservation, yet it has lost the true meaning of transformation, nourishment, and cultivation. How could it possibly contain the Supreme Yin origin of the Primordial Age?”

The instant his words fell, Ji Qingyi’s entire body trembled violently!

Gu Changge’s finger seemed to shatter an invisible shackle along her path of cultivation.

A passage of an ancient scripture, obscure and difficult to comprehend yet pointing directly toward the Great Dao of Supreme Yin, flowed into her heart like a clear spring. It resonated with her previous understanding of her cultivation technique, yet stood on a far higher level, instantly completing its most crucial link!

Under the guidance of that scripture, the ancient Supreme Yin origin that had been rampaging through her body began to grow docile. It even started circulating on its own along an arcane trajectory.

Not only did it rapidly repair her damaged meridians, but it also began to turn the tables, tempering, purifying, and assimilating her own Supreme Yin holy power!

“Boom——!”

An immense aura, unprecedented in its power and perfectly harmonious, erupted from Ji Qingyi’s body and soared into the heavens!

Before this newly formed Supreme Yin Dao resonance, which carried a trace of the vitality of Heaven and Earth, the barrier to the Saint King Realm shattered like paper!

The vast pressure of the Great Saint Realm spread outward like mercury poured across the ground!

The moonlight surrounding her was no longer merely cold and aloof. Instead, it now conveyed the vastness and inclusiveness of the moon reflected in ten thousand rivers, embracing countless stars. Within its pure radiance, a gentle vitality seemed to flow.

She had broken through!

Not only had she entered the Great Saint Realm, but the very essence of her Dao of Supreme Yin had also undergone a world-shaking transformation!

Ji Qingyi abruptly opened her eyes. Divine light blazed within them, as though they contained an endless night sky.

The first thing she did was look toward Gu Changge. Her eyes were filled with boundless shock, gratitude, and awe born of sudden enlightenment.

Making up for the chapter I owed yesterday!