An Linghui

The woman before him froze at the mention of Ji Qingge's name.

"Qingge? You know Qingge?"

Xu Mu didn't answer right away. Instead, he used his Divine Eye to inspect the woman's identity.

Name: An Linghui

Role: Daughter-in-law of the Ji clan patriarch, female lead of Cultivation Returns to Dad Life

Favorability: -2

Destiny Level: 8 (max level 10)

Seeing this information, Xu Mu broke into a knowing smile. Hat Bro's credibility just kept rising.

An Linghui and Ji Qingge—he had no idea how the man had managed to bring both of these women under his wing.

"Are you deaf? Can't you understand when I'm asking you something?"

An Linghui snapped coldly when she noticed Xu Mu wasn't responding.

Xu Mu pulled a phone out of his spatial ring and opened a video in his gallery. "Ma'am, see for yourself. Elder Ji sent me."

An Linghui was skeptical, but she still walked over to Xu Mu and took the phone.

She watched the video—it truly was a selfie of Ji Liang.

"Linghui, the young man holding this phone is named Xu Mu. I've asked him to enter the Ninth Inner Realm to find you. Don't harm him. As for my feelings toward you, have Xu Mu tell you directly."

That was all the short video said.

An Linghui tossed the phone back to Xu Mu and produced a black robe from her spatial ring, draping it over herself.

The flames wrapped around her body also vanished completely.

"What does he mean by his 'feelings'?"

An Linghui looked at Xu Mu indifferently.

Xu Mu studied An Linghui as she stood before him. He hadn't expected her long hair to reach all the way down to her knees.

"To put it simply," he said, "ever since you gave birth, you've barely been home. Ji Qingge was basically raised by her grandfather. And then you went missing for a few years..."

"I get it. He thinks I've been with another man, right?"

An Linghui cut him off.

"He might think that way. But Elder Ji is open-minded. He said as long as you haven't filed for divorce, you're still a part of the Ji family. He's already sent people to look for you several times."

Xu Mu put the phone away. "Elder Ji's message is simple: if you've found someone you love, you don't have to return to the Ji family. Just let me relay that."

An Linghui's face remained calm as still water. She sat down on a white rock, her throat shifting slightly, then asked, "Got anything to drink?"

"Yeah."

Xu Mu took out a bottle of water and some bread from his storage space. "What was that earlier, ma'am? I thought you were dead."

"Xuanwu Stasis. It slows down your breathing and heartbeat. Basically, it's like hibernation. Otherwise, I'd be constantly thirsty and hungry, and my body would age several years."

An Linghui explained briefly. "But with this technique, I can minimize the toll it takes."

She twisted open the water bottle, took a small sip, then downed half of it in one go.

"Ah! I'm alive again."

An Linghui picked up the bread and started eating.

Xu Mu stood in front of her. "So what's your plan? Go back and tell him yourself, or just not return at all?"

"Says the guy who thinks you can just leave this place? Do you think I've been sitting here all these years just to lie low?"

An Linghui took a bite of the bread. "It's because I can't get out."

"And what if there's a way out?"

Xu Mu looked around at his surroundings and smiled.

Logically speaking, this should be the only path through the inner realm's formation. Which meant main characters like Ye Chen and Chen Xuan would most likely end up here. He refused to believe both of them would be stuck and unable to find a way out.

"You do have a point. You're only at the Mortal Severing stage, and yet you made it this far. Plus, Old Man Ji specifically asked you to come—so you must have some real skills."

An Linghui looked at Xu Mu. "I've had these past few years to think. My daughter's grown up now. I'm planning to cut ties with them."

"Got a man?"

Xu Mu asked out of curiosity.

"Got a man, my ass!"

An Linghui cursed. "Do you think I'm that kind of woman? If it weren't for those bastards who drugged me with Spring Night Grass, I wouldn't have ended up with that idiot Ji Hongqi."

Xu Mu gave an awkward chuckle. Looked like Ji Qingge's personality came from her mother.

"So what do you intend to do?"

"I originally insisted on going to the Ji family because I was already pregnant. I didn't want my child to be born without a father."

An Linghui took a deep breath. "But before the child was even born, her father was already gone."

Xu Mu scratched his head. That was indeed a bit awkward.

"If Old Man Ji hadn't treated me like his own daughter, I would've left a long time ago."

An Linghui continued. "But now that my daughter is grown, I think it's time for me to do my own thing."

Xu Mu just smiled. Her own thing?

In the end, it would still all serve Hat Bro's agenda.

"If we can get out of here, would you still go back to the Ji family?"

"Yes. I haven't done anything shameful. Among my people, I'm still young. I have a lot left to do—like avenging my parents."

An Linghui finished the bread and took another sip of water.

"Then I won't pass on the message for you."

Xu Mu pressed his hand to the ground and began carefully probing the formation around him.

An Linghui watched as Xu Mu paced back and forth, formation runes occasionally flickering across his body.

She was secretly impressed. This Xu Mu was truly skilled—so young, and yet already a high-level formation master.

She understood a bit of basic formations herself, and the intricate runes wrapping around Xu Mu could only be deployed by a high-level formation master.

"By the way, you're only at the early Mortal Severing stage. How did you get through the last gate?"

An Linghui suddenly asked.

"The last gate? What gate?"

Xu Mu asked in return.

"The battle, of course. The arena was only ten meters across. Facing an opponent at fifth rank or above, with nowhere to hide—how did you win?"

An Linghui asked curiously.

Xu Mu shook his head. "I didn't fight. I came through directly."

"Impossible. This is the only path to reach here. How could you have just walked in?"

An Linghui refused to believe it.

Xu Mu thought for a moment. Could it be that he'd taken a shortcut through that gap?

When a tier-nine heavenly herb grows, it releases a massive amount of spiritual energy.

Could that tier-nine herb have damaged one of the formation's lines?

He figured that was actually possible.

Ordinary plants could pierce through stone as they grew. A heavenly herb that absorbed the essence of heaven and earth could very well alter formation patterns during its growth.

If that logic held, he'd skipped a stage entirely, leaving all the others far behind.

"Ma'am, do you remember whether there were any heavenly herbs around when you were trapped here?"

Xu Mu suddenly asked. If he could track down the heavenly herb that grew here, he might find a way out.

"First of all, don't call me ma'am. I may be older than you, but by the reckoning of my people, you and I are about the same age."

An Linghui stood up from the rock. "There was a heavenly herb here, but I already ate it a long time ago."

"Where was it located?"

Xu Mu looked at her.

"Over here."

An Linghui walked over to a collapsed pile of white stones.

Xu Mu immediately placed his hand on them, closed his eyes, and concentrated. Lo and behold, he actually found something.

"If nothing unexpected happens, we can get out of here."

Xu Mu scanned the formation as fast as he could, then started to break it apart.

An Linghui looked baffled. "Are you sure you can—"

Bang!

The scene before them shattered all at once. The grass and rocks that had been there were now gone completely. The ground beneath their feet vanished, and the two of them plummeted downward.

An Linghui's black robe flapped up behind her as she fell.

Xu Mu caught sight of the blessed land once more.