You Look More Credible and Responsible

"If there's a chance... this junior will visit Qingqiu for you, Elder."

Su Jiu spoke these words cautiously.

She had no idea what Qingqiu looked like now.

"A chance?"

The red-haired little girl reacted like a dragon whose tail had been stepped on—her scales practically bristling.

Her golden draconic pupils locked onto Su Jiu.

"What, have Jiu Yue’s descendants grown so overbearing? Even for one of their own to return, they need to wait for ‘a chance’?"

"Is Qingqiu some kind of dragon’s den or tiger’s lair now? Do people need to kowtow three times and bathe in incense just to set foot past its gates?"

Su Jiu’s face twisted into a bitter smile.

"Elder, you misunderstand."

"It’s not that Jiu Yue’s descendants are overbearing..."

She paused, her voice laced with an indescribable sorrow.

"It’s just that... in Great Xia today, Qingqiu no longer exists."

The red-haired girl’s aura erupted violently, shaking the entire chained space to the brink of collapse.

Her expression froze in shock and confusion.

"Qingqiu... is gone?"

She murmured the words, as if asking Su Jiu—or perhaps herself.

Su Jiu bit her lower lip and nodded with difficulty.

"From what I know..."

"A hundred thousand years ago, this world endured an unprecedented calamity. Countless ancient sects and races perished in that disaster... including Qingqiu."

"The entire Qingqiu Holy Land, along with every last member of the Nine-Tailed Heavenly Fox clan, was reduced to scorched earth overnight. None survived."

"And the Great Xia of today... was carved from the ruins by an elder who burned themselves out, using supreme means to sever a fragment of the world and preserve it as a minor realm..."

"Over the years, the Nine-Tailed Heavenly Foxes have long since lost their ancient glory. Even their complete heritage has been mostly lost..."

"Everything I know—perhaps not even the full truth—comes from a few fragmented clan records."

Su Jiu’s voice was soft.

This was a wound the Nine-Tailed Heavenly Foxes had buried for a hundred thousand years. Had circumstances not forced her hand, she would never have revealed it to an outsider.

The red-haired girl stood frozen, her golden pupils unfocused.

She seemed not to hear a single word Su Jiu said after that one phrase.

None survived.

"Hah... No wonder the heavenly tribulation earlier felt off—shattering at a touch..."

After a long silence, she let out a dry, hollow laugh.

"Dead... all of them?"

Her laughter carried an unmistakable desolation.

"Then... is he dead too?"

Su Jiu couldn’t answer that.

She didn’t even know who "Feng" was.

Seeing the girl’s devastated expression, Su Jiu felt an unexpected pang of pity.

After a moment’s hesitation, she spoke again. "Elder... my condolences."

"Condolences?"

The red-haired girl whipped her head around, golden eyes blazing—but this time, not with anger. With resolve.

"This Sovereign doesn’t need condolences!"

"If he’s alive, I’ll see him. If he’s dead, I’ll see his corpse!"

"I refuse to believe he’s gone!"

"How many times has he cheated death in his life? Hundreds? Thousands?"

"He’d outlive anyone."

"This is just another excuse not to see me."

She took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the storm of emotions, and turned her gaze back to Su Jiu.

"You. What’s your name?"

"This junior is Su Jiu."

"Su Jiu..." The red-haired girl nodded. "This Sovereign remembers you."

"I’m leaving this place."

"You’re coming with me."

The moment the words left her mouth, a figure materialized in the space without warning.

Clad in green robes, her hair loose, her beauty ethereal—yet her demeanor was ice-cold, pushing all warmth away.

This time, she wasn’t a hazy illusion. Her form was solid.

It was the green-robed woman who had forced Su Ji to choose his destiny earlier.

"Where do you think you’re going?"

The red-haired girl started at her sudden appearance, then immediately recognized the familiar aura.

Her brow arched, golden eyes brimming with hostility.

"Hm?"

"You’re that vixen’s descendant?"

The green-robed woman didn’t answer.

She simply stared at the red-haired girl, cleared her throat—

And then, a completely different voice emerged from her lips.

Warm. Steady.

Laced with helpless fondness.

A man’s voice.

"You’re still like this. I told you not to call her that."

For a heartbeat, the entire Dragon Binding Abyss fell silent.

The chaotic energy that could shatter space itself froze solid.

Time itself seemed to stop.

The red-haired girl’s expression cycled through fury, shock, disbelief—before finally going blank.

Her golden pupils locked onto the green-robed woman’s face, lips trembling soundlessly.

Su Jiu was utterly lost.

What fresh chaos was this?

She looked back and forth between them, her mind in turmoil.

---

Meanwhile.

Deep in the underground lava cavern.

Su Ji crouched on the ground, looking thoroughly defeated.

In one hand, he held the broken tip of his sword. In the other, the shattered blade.

He fiddled with them, trying to fit them together.

He pressed them firmly—

And the tip immediately fell off again.

"This isn’t working..."

Su Ji’s face twisted in misery.

The more he thought about it, the more his heart ached. He felt like his Dao Foundation might crack.

"Maybe if I heat it? Weld it back?"

Carefully, he dipped his sword into the nearby lava sea.

This time, he was cautious.

If the sword melted, he’d be ruined.

The lava neared the broken edge.

A sharp hiss.

The process dragged on.

The sword glowed red-hot, on the verge of liquefying.

Su Ji yanked it back in panic, blowing on the broken tip several times.

With a click, he stuck the tip back on.

Miraculously.

It held.

Whether it would work in battle, he didn’t know.

But it was attached.

That alone eased his worries.

His luck seemed to be turning.

Delighted, Su Ji immediately tested it—

---

[First Foundation Establishment completed. Gained one Destiny Draw opportunity.]

---

[Destiny ①: Carefree Heart, Unhindered Path]

[Rank: Orange]

[Effect: When your mind is free of all worries, cultivation speed increases tenfold.]

[Destiny ②: Heavenly Tribulation’s Bane]

[Rank: Purple]

[Effect: Reduces lightning-attribute damage taken by 30%.]

[Destiny ③: Old Man’s Youthful Folly]

[Rank: White]

[Effect: In your twilight years, the urge to indulge yourself will grow overwhelming.]

[Fragmented Destiny ④: Bearer of Heavy Responsibilities (1/10)]

[Rank: Red]

[Description: This Destiny is a fragment of the Rainbow Destiny ‘Tenfold Triumph, All as I Will.’]

[Permanent Effect ①: You appear more trustworthy and responsible.]

[Permanent Effect ②: Higher chance to draw other fragments of ‘Tenfold Triumph, All as I Will.’]

[Special Effect: The weightier your mission, the stronger your fortune grows.]