The Mutation of Ying Bing, I Believe in You

Inside the Crystal Palace.

The divine light of the Celestial Phoenix Domain resembled the overlapping shadows of countless worlds. Yet now, it all converged into Ying Bing’s brow. She could no longer grip the divine sword in her hand, letting it fall powerlessly to the ground before hovering and vibrating with a metallic hum, as if even the blade worried for its master.

The tall, aloof maiden stood with an ethereal glow swirling around her delicate figure, accentuating her jade-like skin and flowing black hair, which now bore faint traces of frost. Her expression was impassive, her gaze distant and regal.

“She…”

Qin Yuzhi finally snapped out of her grief over losing the Eighteen Arhats.

In truth, the moment she saw the Celestial Phoenix Domain merge into Ying Bing’s brow, her scalp tingled, and she nearly felt her soul leave her body. It was as if she had glimpsed something even more terrifying than the Dream God.

“Ice Block…”

Li Mo had no time to inspect any rewards. He reached out, stepping forward to take her hand.

“Wait!” Qin Yuzhi stopped him, her face frantic. “Quick, come lie down in the coffin with me. Close the lid and pretend we saw nothing.”

“Why?”

Li Mo wasn’t the type to indulge curiosity in dire moments. But to his eyes—those of a former quasi-Sovereign Realm expert, now a mere Profound Palm cultivator and ex-leader of the Divine Calling Sect—something uncontrollable was clearly happening to Ice Block.

“Your little wife has three and a half of the Nine Phoenix Souls awakened in her!” Qin Yuzhi blurted out, her words rushed and panicked.

“…”

From her disjointed explanation, Li Mo pieced together fragments of the truth.

The Rosy Phoenix Aura, the Blood Phoenix Essence, the Jade Phoenix Divinity, and the Celestial Phoenix Domain—all were part of the Nine Phoenix Souls. Combined with Yun Mengxian’s half-truths earlier…

The legacy of the Nine Heavens Immortals could bring about their revival…

Was something similar to Qin Yuzhi’s past happening to Ice Block now?

An immortal’s resurrection?!

The thought made Li Mo’s heart clench violently, as if a chunk had been torn away, leaving a gaping void.

“Is there any way to stop it?”

He first turned to Tian Miao, but the latter only shook her head slowly, her expression grave.

Then, he looked at Qin Yuzhi.

“A solution… Let me think…”

Qin Yuzhi’s face twisted in recollection before settling into confusion. She slowly crouched down.

“A solution… Is there one? I’ve slept too long…”

Sealing herself in a coffin through secret arts had not been without cost.

Gaps riddled her consciousness, leaving blank spaces in her memory. If he had to compare it to something, it was akin to dementia…

After a moment, Qin Yuzhi gave up trying to remember.

Scratching her head while crouched, she muttered, “Maybe it’s just my instincts telling me this resembles my past situation.”

“Perhaps… it’s not so bad. Her cultivation is still shallow… As long as… Huh? What was I saying?”

“Oh, right. Maybe she’s just assimilating the Celestial Phoenix Domain.”

She was hopeless…

For the first time, Li Mo felt that a Seventh Realm expert could be so unreliable.

“At the very least, I need to understand what’s happening to Ice Block…”

Gritting his teeth, he released his Lunar Divine Intent and pressed forward against the Celestial Phoenix Domain’s radiance.

Ice Block stood there like a breathtaking jade statue, an aura of transcendence—one that seemed to govern the birth and destruction of worlds—wrapping around her.

It was unclear whether this aura came from the Celestial Phoenix Domain or from her.

To Li Mo, it felt as if he had stepped into the embryonic chaos of a world seed.

Except this time, he wasn’t its master.

Channeling the power of his own world, he trudged through the viscous air until he finally reached Ying Bing.

“Ice Block…” Li Mo called softly.

Then, he thought he saw her finger twitch.

A reaction!

Without hesitation, Young Master Li acted!

He seized her jade-like hand, gripping it tightly before pulling her into his embrace.

Her delicate frame felt colder than usual.

"Shared Moonlight", activate!

This martial art, refined to perfection through his insights, could forcibly awaken her consciousness even in this state.

The glow of Lunar Divine Intent reappeared behind her.

Their souls connected once more.

Then—

Li Mo’s vision exploded with scenes of countless worlds being born, flourishing, warring, decaying, and vanishing…

For a moment, he felt like a powerless spectator, his consciousness crushed beneath a millstone.

But at least…

He now knew what Ying Bing was experiencing.

An immeasurable time later, his muddled mind finally cleared. His first instinct was to look down.

The peerlessly beautiful face had regained its color. The Frost Fairy lay quietly in his arms, gazing up at him.

Meeting his eyes, she lowered her head slightly, her saintly serenity now tinged with liveliness.

“Ice Block?”

“Mm…”

Li Mo exhaled slightly in relief.

“Wait!”

Qin Yuzhi’s expression remained grave. As if recalling something, she said solemnly,

“She might not really be her.”

“No.”

Li Mo shook his head—their souls were linked.

But Qin Yuzhi disagreed.

“The change is gradual, imperceptible, something even she wouldn’t notice!”

Like how the mentally ill never think they’re sick?

The smile faded from Li Mo’s face.

“Still, I have a method.”

Qin Yuzhi raised a finger, finally exuding a hint of her former expertise.

“When another consciousness awakens within, it forgets things it would never do.”

“For example, the Dream Ancestor loved chess and would never play mahjong. So the real me could never forget how to play mahjong.”

Something she would never do…

Li Mo turned to Ying Bing.

Then, he saw Ice Block’s lashes flutter as her lips parted.

“You’re a gentleman who likes legs and feet, with a mind full of lewd…”

The Frost Fairy’s crimson lips moved rapidly, on the verge of unleashing a barrage of forbidden words like a machine gun.

Li Mo: “!?”

Well, that was… abrupt.

Worse, Tian Miao was right there, ears perked!

If Ice Block finished, who knew what his next title on the Hidden Dragon Ranking would be?!

He might still be alive, but his reputation across the Nine Heavens and Ten Lands would be six feet under…

Clapping a hand over her mouth, Li Mo declared with righteous dignity,

“No need! I believe you!”

Qin Yuzhi: “?”

Tian Miao: “?”

What just rolled over their faces, leaving only mysterious tire tracks in its wake?

Their suspicion remained, but its target had shifted from Ying Bing to Li Mo.

That… sounded oddly thrilling…

In any case, the crisis with Ice Block seemed temporarily resolved.

For now.

But another problem now loomed before them.

Li Mo put on a solemn face and deftly changed the subject:

"We're currently cornered. There are at least two groups outside, eyeing us like hungry wolves."

"The moment the Crystal Palace's doors open, they'll likely charge in like a pack of beasts."

"Though it's common knowledge that I'm a genius, even three ordinary minds can outmatch a master strategist. We still need to brainstorm together."

"How do we get out of this?"