“Aunt!” Ji Changkong roared, trembling all over, his eyes crimson, unable to suppress the shock and panic surging in his heart any longer.

The bag of Yuan Stones that Ji Wanyun had used earlier to probe the situation, though accumulated over many years, were not considered precious and offered no immediate benefit to her cultivation.

However, the Flame Yuan Pearl was entirely different. This one, gifted by Nie Yuanshan, was an exceedingly rare and valuable essence stone, its worth far surpassing the entire bag of Yuan Stones Ji Wanyun had just offered.

Most importantly—the Flame Yuan Pearl could significantly enhance her communication with the Vermilion Bird sacred beast, allowing her to break through rapidly within the Four Symbols Heaven Realm! While the other Yuan Stones served no immediate purpose for her, the Flame Yuan Pearl could save her countless efforts during her cultivation!

For such a treasure, vitally important to her, Ji Wanyun was now ready to offer it up again, as a stepping stone for his apprenticeship. How could Ji Changkong watch Ji Wanyun sacrifice so much for him?

After his roar, Ji Changkong completely disregarded Ji Wanyun’s subtle glances, struggling fiercely to snatch the Flame Yuan Pearl into his own grasp.

Ji Wanyun, gripping his wrist tightly, saw that Ji Changkong would not heed her counsel. In her desperation, she had no choice but to secretly channel her Yuan Power.

A soft yet unyielding current of Yuan Power instantly pierced from her palm into Ji Changkong’s body.

In a mere instant, Ji Changkong, who had been struggling so violently, suddenly grew still. Not only was he immobilized, but he could not even utter a word, left only to stare fixedly at Ji Wanyun with bloodshot eyes, desperately signaling with his gaze for her not to proceed.

Ji Wanyun endured the pain and avoided looking at him, turning back toward Old Mother Wushan with a smile plastered back onto her face. She respectfully presented the Flame Yuan Pearl, lowering her posture as much as possible. “This child is still young and rather thoughtless. I implore the Old Mother not to hold his ignorance against him. This Flame Yuan Pearl is but a small token; please, Old Mother, you must accept it!”

“Hmm…”

Old Mother Wushan frowned, nodding slightly. She addressed the middle-aged man in blue beside her: “Lu Yun, accept the item.”

The middle-aged man named Lu Yun stepped forward and took the Flame Yuan Pearl, then returned to stand behind Old Mother Wushan, bowing slightly.

“Before I accept a disciple, I must first clarify their background. Since you can produce something like the Flame Yuan Pearl, you must not come from an ordinary family,” Old Mother Wushan said coolly to Ji Wanyun, tracing the serpent’s head carved atop her staff. “Very well. Tell me about your origins.”

“We hail from the Ji family at the foot of Green Rock Mountain. My nephew is seventeen this year, named Ji Changkong…” Ji Wanyun said, a flash of joy crossing her face.

“The Ji family of Green Rock Mountain…” Before Ji Wanyun could finish, Old Mother Wushan’s expression shifted slightly, and she suddenly snorted. “Are you that Ji family where a ‘Xuanyuan’ appears once every five or six hundred years?”

Ji Wanyun faltered, sensing a sudden, unfavorable shift in Old Mother Wushan’s demeanor. Despite feeling uneasy, she resolutely nodded. Seeing the Old Mother’s face grow even uglier, a wave of panic struck Ji Wanyun. She hurriedly added, “The so-called ‘Xuanyuan Legend’ of the Ji family ceased long ago. Six hundred years have passed without the birth of a new ‘Xuanyuan bloodline’ inheritor, so the Old Mother need not concern herself. We…”

“There is no need to say more!” Old Mother Wushan abruptly cut off Ji Wanyun, turning to walk toward the elegant small pavilion behind her. With her back to Ji Wanyun, she stated coldly, “Lu Yun, see the guests out. I will absolutely not accept a son of the Ji family as a disciple!”

“Old Mother…” Ji Wanyun was at a loss, desperately trying to salvage the situation with a panicked expression.

“The two of you should leave,” Lu Yun frowned, his figure shifting to block Ji Wanyun. He said impatiently, “The last ‘Xuanyuan’ generation from your Ji family once visited the East Sea Isles and stirred up a veritable bloodbath there. They are said to have plundered countless Celestial Master techniques, secret arts, divine weapons, and Yuan Stones from the East Sea factions. While centuries have passed, and the Ji family is no longer what it once was, that feud is not so easily extinguished. Today, for the sake of the Flame Yuan Pearl, I won’t forcefully drive you out—don’t mistake my forbearance for weakness!” Lu Yun’s face grew stern by the end of his speech.

“But…” Ji Wanyun was utterly bewildered, truly not knowing what words could possibly salvage such a tragic outcome.

She understood how much Ji Changkong had pinned his hopes on this trip to Wushan, and how desperately he yearned to possess a trace of Old Mother Wushan’s Yuan Power to cultivate as a Celestial Master. For Ji Changkong’s sake, she had offered everything valuable she possessed. This rejection was not only unacceptable to him, but to her as well!

“Lu Yun, if they haven’t left Wushan in fifteen minutes, have them thrown out!” Old Mother Wushan’s sharp command suddenly rang out from the elegant pavilion.

“Hurry down the mountain, or don’t blame me for showing no mercy!” Hearing Old Mother Wushan’s shout, Lu Yun’s expression instantly changed. Wisps of golden light emanated from him, clearly indicating his readiness to act if Ji Wanyun did not comply immediately.

…

Ji Wanyun’s eyes seemed ready to spit fire as she glared hatefully at Lu Yun. After a tense moment of staring, she suppressed the overwhelming inferno of her anger, grabbed Ji Changkong, and turned around fiercely, retracing their original path down the mountain.

Rumble!

A clap of thunder suddenly ripped through the air, and blinding lightning snaked like dragons through the dark clouds. A deluge of rain poured down from the heavens, fiercely battering Ji Wanyun and Ji Changkong…

Night descended upon the earth. Under the flashing lightning and violent storm, Ji Wanyun could barely drag Ji Changkong, her heart heavy with grief, as they stumbled step by painstaking step along the slick mountain path drenched by the downpour.

… It was late into the night before the two finally reached the large tree where their horses were tethered.

“Changkong… Changkong… Say something…” Ji Wanyun’s eyes were red, tears mingling indistinguishably with the rain as she shook Ji Changkong violently, her face etched with sorrow. She was completely soaked, her long hair clinging wetly to her cheeks, a picture of utter misery.

Ever since Ji Wanyun had lifted the Yuan Power restriction on him after leaving the martial training ground, Ji Changkong had remained silent, his eyes blazing red, his jaw clenched tight. No matter what Ji Wanyun said, he offered no response, exuding an aura of grief, indignation, stubbornness, and helplessness that pierced Ji Wanyun’s heart with unimaginable pain…

“Changkong, don’t frighten your aunt! Please, just say a word to me…” Ignoring the torrential rain, Ji Wanyun shook him frantically, trying to drag Ji Changkong out of this strange, withdrawn state.

The silent Ji Changkong remained unmoved by her shaking. Eventually, he simply closed his eyes, sitting cross-legged in silent meditation on the muddy ground, repeatedly attempting to gather the Yuan Power within him, each failure bringing him to the brink of unconsciousness from the sheer agony…

With every attempt to gather Yuan Power and every resulting collapse into unconsciousness, his face grew paler, his body weaker, giving the impression of a man barely clinging to life, liable to never wake up again…

“Stop it… Stop it right now… Are you trying to die…” Ji Wanyun wept, sobbing quietly amidst the howling wind and rain, trying desperately to stop Ji Changkong from tormenting himself so recklessly.

However, Ji Changkong seemed utterly unresponsive, as if he were an idiot who couldn't perceive the weeping Ji Wanyun beside him. As soon as he regained consciousness from a faint, as long as he still had a breath left, he would relentlessly force himself to gather Yuan Power, completely disregarding the possibility that the next blackout might be his permanent end…

“Oh, Changkong… Don’t be like this… There is still hope… There is hope!” Ji Wanyun, her hair disheveled, her face a mask of frantic helplessness and dazed confusion, shook him numbly, looking almost insane herself.

…

Waking from another blackout, Ji Changkong felt his body had reached its absolute limit. He sensed that one more attempt might truly result in his permanent cessation, a complete departure from this world he both painfully loved and was loved by.

Glancing at the numb and vacant Ji Wanyun beside him, the pain in Ji Changkong’s heart intensified a hundredfold, filling his chest.

If I die, I die. If I die, Aunt won’t have to worry about me anymore…

With a laborious, deep breath, Ji Changkong faced death head-on. He closed his eyes again, once more recklessly gathering the Heaven and Earth Yuan Power.

Enduring the physical pain like being scraped by knives, feeling the soul-piercing sorrow, Ji Changkong stood at the final threshold between life and death, dazed and lost in a fog. He forgot death, he forgot the Ji family… he even forgot himself!

In that moment, Ji Changkong confronted death with utter composure, fearing no sorrow!

Just before death arrived, Ji Changkong’s body began to tremble uncontrollably and violently, a heart-rending agony suddenly spreading from his chest throughout his entire being…

In his confused state, Ji Changkong seemed to hear a crisp shattering sound suddenly resonate from just above his lower abdomen.

…

The next moment.

An immense, almost unimaginable surge of Heaven and Earth Yuan Power, centered at that single point, violently spread throughout his body with destructive force. Wherever the colossal Yuan Power flowed, every meridian, every piece of flesh and blood, every internal organ, every bone—all boiled, all burned, all roared…

Ji Changkong, who had been on the verge of death, suddenly erupted with astonishing, potent life force!

It was as if, in that single instant, an ancient, ferocious beast, imprisoned for countless eons, had suddenly awakened within Ji Changkong’s body…

Ji Changkong abruptly threw open his eyes, which shone like brilliant stars, their dazzling light seeming capable of turning the black night into blinding day.

At this moment.

The sky was no longer the sky he knew; the earth was no longer the earth he knew.

…

:It’s a new week, and Little Ni is pushing for a spot on the new book charts. Whether you are an old reader of Little Ni or a new one, if you like this book, Little Ni begs you to cast all your recommendation votes towards it. Little Ni certainly won't let down your expectations! Urgently seeking recommendation votes!!