Si Yan’s gaze fell upon the female corpse. He slowly placed his hand against her neck, seemingly wanting to confirm once more if there were any signs of life. However, just as he had observed before, her pulse remained utterly still.
The woman was beautiful—not only was her bosom full and high, but her slender fingers were also long and elegant. To an ordinary person, she looked no different from someone who had simply fallen into a deep sleep.
While it was not surprising to Si Yan that a deity would be hidden within this realm, he wondered who could have killed such a being.
After a long silence, Si Yan shook his head. “Let us go. The person she is waiting for is not us. We must respect the deceased; we cannot rashly take this lady away.”
Furthermore, Si Yan had discovered something.
Beside the woman in purple lay a bundled cloth. It looked like a wrap for an infant, but it was empty. That hollow swaddle sat right next to her as if her child were still lying by her side.
Yet, from the moment Si Yan had entered and looked upon the floor covered in skeletal remains, he had not seen any remains of a baby. Where, then, was her child now?
“Honored Master, there is a secret room back here,” Bai Lan suddenly called out.
To the side of the crystal coffin, Bai Lan had lifted a stone brick where the array technique had long since failed. Behind it, he discovered an exquisite chamber.
The secret room was small and gloomy, but it contained a bed, a dressing table, and other daily necessities. There were also clothes inside; aside from the woman’s garments, the majority were outfits for an infant. However, beyond these items, the room was empty.
The three of them soon emerged from the chamber.
Su Tao’er stood by the coffin, staring blankly as if lost in thought. “Master,” she asked softly, “is it too lonely for her to be all alone in this dark water? Should we listen to Senior Male Disciple and take her with us?”
Si Yan paused before answering. “She may be waiting for someone to return for her, but that person is certainly not us. Tao’er, we must respect the dead. She has the Ice Soul Pearl protecting her body; we cannot simply offend her. It is out of the question.”
Hearing this, Bai Lan’s expression turned strange. He seemed highly unaccustomed to his Honored Master acting with such sudden propriety.
In Bai Lan’s mind, given his master’s usual character, he expected the man to sneak back alone at night to steal the woman away. With his master’s profound cultivation, a round trip would take less than half a day. If he hid her in his Qiankun Bag, who would ever know what sordid things happened at night? Besides, the woman was protected by the Ice Soul Pearl, meaning she would never decay. She would be a top-tier collectible.
However, Bai Lan managed to restrain his personality. He only entertained these thoughts in private, not daring to utter a word aloud, especially since his backside was still stinging with pain.
Si Yan, meanwhile, remained cautious.
This female corpse might be waiting for her child’s return, and their presence had broken her silent slumber.
“Let us leave,” Si Yan said. “We overstepped today by disturbing them.”
At Si Yan’s urging, the three of them backed away from the ice coffin. Before leaving, Si Yan picked up an ancient sword lying beside the remains of the deity. Having lost the gift of its master’s divine power, it was heavily corroded.
Si Yan activated his cultivation once more, refining his magic power into Stellar Qi. He forced the sword qi to surge brilliantly from the ruined blade one last time!
Using his Human God Realm cultivation and his own natal sword technique, the Thirty-Six Styles of Azure Stars, he reshaped a protective shroud of sword qi and dawn-light around the crystal coffin.
Once he finished, the former divine sword could no longer hold together. It turned into fine powder on the spot, drifting away into the air.
Su Tao’er watched Si Yan, captivated by the aura her master exuded while drawing the sword.
In that moment, she felt a vague sense that within the grand, majestic power of Si Yan’s sword intent, there was a hidden trace of vast desolation and sorrow. She recalled what Si Yan had said earlier—that sword intent is the state of the divine soul, the former self, and the source of ten thousand changes. Why, then, was there such mournful grief within her master’s vast power?
Si Yan turned back and smiled, appearing relieved. “Alright, Tao’er, let us go.”
In truth, Si Yan had expected to leave empty-handed. However, just as they were about to depart, he discovered a vast number of Water-Fire Flowers growing in the water outside the palace, along with many rare medicinal herbs. Being naturally lazy, Si Yan refused to move and made Bai Lan harvest them all.
Because of these flowers, they were able to sell a great deal upon returning to Ye Ming City, earning quite a bit of silver. The Phantom Sea was a lawless land, so the circulating currency of other nations was rarely used; most merchants only accepted gold, silver, or barter.
That night, while staying in Ye Ming City, Si Yan had a dream.
In the dream, he saw the woman in purple lying in the ice coffin again. However, in this vision, she was alive.
She held an infant in her arms, roughly one year old. Before her stood that same layered shroud of light, wrapping around them from every direction. With the woman’s level of cultivation, it was impossible for her to pierce through that light.
Behind her, the palace walls were forged from extra-terrestrial meteoric iron, leaving no possibility of escape.
As Si Yan watched this in his dream, he finally understood.
That shroud of light might have been meant to protect them, but while it saved their lives, it also trapped them completely. If they stepped outside, they would surely die. But what of the infant in her arms?
And so, the woman in purple raised the child in that tiny space and the dark rooms behind it. This lasted for several years, until the infant grew into a young girl of six or seven.
By then, the medicinal pills in the woman’s Qiankun Bag—the only things that could satisfy hunger—had been exhausted. She could no longer provide food for the girl. If they stayed, the child would eventually starve to death.
The mother was left with only one choice. After settling her physical body, she used her cultivation to perform a Primordial Spirit projection. Holding the young girl, she burned her divine soul to force her way through the curtain of swords. Amidst the agony, the torment, and the miserable wails, she broke through!
She delivered her own flesh and blood to the outside world. The price was her life, for her burned divine soul no longer had the strength to return to her body.
Yet, she had saved her daughter.
Finally, Si Yan saw her standing above the dark Shenlie Valley. She watched the young girl’s small, fragile back as the child walked alone toward the boundless wilderness.
As the dream drew to a close, the woman in purple watched the girl disappear, then turned her head toward Si Yan.
‘Benefactor,’ she said in the dream, ‘my name is Zi Yinqing. I hope the benefactor will fulfill my request.’