Su Ji... I don't want to die...

Wang San lowered his voice, adopting the demeanor of a seasoned veteran.

"Senior Brother, see those three small groups at the front? They’re disciples from the Five Saints or Nine Sects—people we can’t afford to provoke."

Su Ji: ???

Wait, hold on.

If Su Jiu knew a lot, he could understand that.

But you, Wang San…

He’d done some digging these past few days.

You were just a promoted outer disciple not long ago.

Where the hell did you get your intel network?

"When the cave mansion’s gate opens later, we’ll slip in at the very back of the crowd. Don’t draw attention."

"Once we’re inside, stick close to me. I’ll make sure you stay safe!"

Su Ji nodded repeatedly, his face brimming with gratitude. "Thank you, Junior Brother! Thank you!"

He kept thanking him aloud, but his mind was racing.

Whether or not he’d even enter this Nascent Soul cave mansion was still up for debate.

Su Ji had initially thought Wang San was spinning a tall tale to lure him out.

Who knew it’d turn out to be real?

Forget about the Golden Core cultivators already rushing here after hearing the news.

Just the Foundation Establishment Perfection cultivators present could end him with a flick of their fingers.

Seriously, he was only at Qi Refinement Fifth Layer!

It was more ridiculous than a husky trying to blend in with a pack of wolves.

Su Ji’s [Fate’s Gaze] cooldown happened to reset today.

Without hesitation.

The world instantly drained of color, turning monochrome.

Three faint, crimson threads materialized before his eyes.

[Heavenly Fox Tribulation].

[Love’s Tribulation].

[Foundation Establishment Tribulation].

At the sight of the first thread, Su Ji’s breath hitched.

Huh…?

Heavenly Fox?

Su Jiu’s here?

Well… that makes sense.

A Nascent Soul-level cave mansion’s treasures would fit right into her character…

Then, his gaze shifted to the other two threads.

Seriously, what’s your deal?

You don’t show up when I want to see you, but now you’re scrambling for attention when I’m clearly picking another option?

Complaints aside, Su Ji reached out and snapped the thread corresponding to [Heavenly Fox Tribulation].

No particular reason.

It wasn’t like he cared about Su Jiu’s fate.

It’s just that targets with a 99-point Jade affinity were hard to come by.

In an instant, the gray world shattered.

The scene before Su Ji began to rapidly shift.

……

This time, the vision showed only two figures.

Su Jiu.

And a woman in a plain white dress standing before her.

In the vision, Su Jiu was no longer the bored girl perched on the ancient tree.

The phantom of nine fox tails unfurled behind her, her expression one of unprecedented solemnity.

"How… how can it be you…?"

Her voice trembled with disbelief.

"Didn’t you already ascend?"

The white-clad woman seemed amused by Su Jiu’s reaction.

An aura of transcendence clung to her, as if untouched by the mortal world.

"Oh?"

"You know of me?"

Su Jiu paused briefly. "Our clan’s ancient texts mention you."

"The last ascendant of Great Xia…"

Su Ji’s heart skipped a beat.

An ascendant?

What kind of heavyweight is this?

The woman’s interest deepened. "What do the records say about me?"

Su Jiu recounted calmly, "The texts don’t say much, but I have a good memory—I happened to recall your portrait."

"The chosen one of the previous era, the one who shattered Great Xia’s Golden Core shackles and stepped into the Immortal Realm."

But someone like her…

Why was she here?

And from the looks of it, her situation was far from the glorious ascension described in legends.

Still in Great Xia, never ascended…

Su Jiu seemed to realize this too. The surging demonic energy around her dimmed slightly, her voice laced with an indescribable chill.

"If even you couldn’t break free… then Great Xia truly is pitiful…"

The woman’s phantom remained unmoved by Su Jiu’s lament. Her voice was eerily calm.

"I lost my last chance."

"I’m no different from you—a failure. Only…"

Su Jiu’s head snapped up, her slit pupils widening in shock. "Your ascension failed?"

In Su Jiu’s understanding, this woman’s life had been nothing short of legendary.

She was like a magnet for misfortune—even a simple meal outside could earn her countless enemies.

Countless had sought her death.

And she had narrowly escaped death time and again.

Forced to leap off cliffs, or lose her memories.

Yet after every ordeal, she returned stronger than before.

No trial could break her.

She began cultivating at fifteen, barely reaching Qi Refinement First Layer by eighteen, obtaining a white-grade destiny.

Yet by twenty-five, she forged an unrivaled Nascent Soul with a Nine-Petal Golden Core…

And bore ten destinies upon her!

Two white, four orange, three crimson, and one prismatic!

She ascended to immortality before the eyes of the world…

A true favorite of heaven’s fortune.

For such a peerless figure to have fallen…

Leaving behind only a wisp of her soul.

Just how terrifying must the one who killed her be?

The white-clad woman didn’t answer, as if unwilling to dwell on the past. Instead, she shifted the topic.

"That’s all in the past."

"My appearance before you now—you understand what it means, don’t you?"

Su Jiu fell silent.

She knew all too well.

Su Ji’s pupils constricted.

Is she trying to seize her body?

The woman’s voice grew ethereal.

"My era has long passed. The me of the past may have stood above the heavens, gazing down upon the mortal realm… but that was fleeting."

"This world no longer belongs to me. To its new generation, I am but discarded history…"

"Yet I refuse to accept it…"

"I want to try once more…"

"Given another chance…"

"With the bloodline of a Nine-Tailed Heavenly Fox… I could succeed."

"I know better than you what awaits at the end of this path…"

"Let me take your place."

"Let me walk it in your stead…"

Su Jiu remained silent for a long time.

For some reason, Su Ji could almost sense the turmoil in the woman’s heart—a weariness and resentment forged by fate’s relentless games.

Su Jiu, too, was quiet for a while.

Then, a stubborn resolve reignited within her.

"I’ve seen a vision in a secret realm—many have broken through beyond the Golden Core in the future."

"So, Senior, rest in peace."

"We’ll carve our own path."

"I, too, wish to fight for my chance!"

"A future unhindered by you!"

The woman laughed coldly. "Beyond Golden Core? Hah! Lies, all lies! This world is beyond saving!"

The conversation left Su Ji utterly bewildered.

Wait, seriously?

We’re already touching on the secrets behind the ‘Heavenly Dao’?

Isn’t this way too early for my growth stage?

Before he could dwell on it further, the vision shifted again.

This time, Su Jiu lay collapsed in a pool of her own blood.

The white-clad woman wasn’t faring much better—her once-solid form now flickered like a dying candle.

Then, to Su Ji’s horror…

Su Jiu began crawling toward him.

"Su Ji… I don’t want to die…"

"Only you can save me now..."

"Can you kneel down and listen to me..."

Then, Su Ji knelt down.

The next moment, Su Jiu grabbed Su Ji's spiritual root.

The grip was feeble.

"Feed me..."

Su Ji: ???

Wait—what?

Could it be...

Su Jiu had mistaken her last breakthrough's enhancement as something granted by this?

In this situation, Su Ji couldn’t bring himself to take advantage of her vulnerability.

Without hesitation, he channeled the enhancement into Su Jiu.

But...

[Effect Two: Additional two-way binding can be applied. Your cultivation progress and Dao Heart insights will also nourish the other party, who may gain the breakthrough they most urgently need (must be actively triggered, limited to once every seven days).]

"May gain."

This time, luck did not favor Su Jiu.

Su Ji heard the notification of failure.

Su Jiu’s aura began to rapidly decline.

The hand clutching his spiritual root went limp.

So...

How could this predicament be resolved?

Preemptively "feeding" her—

No, preemptively enhancing her once more?

Before Su Ji could carefully consider a solution,

the scene before him shattered like a mirror, hurling him back into the present world.