Unexpectedly, the first one to receive her divine consciousness—other than the Heavenly Empress—was Si Zhuo. Luan Ling felt that she would have been better off struggling a bit longer and rescuing herself. Unfortunately, it was already too late. Si Zhuo would never miss such a perfect chance to mock her. With great “benevolence,” he swiftly led a group of gods who were on official duty to the scene and rescued her.

“From now on,” Si Zhuo said, shaking his head, “I’m your lifesaver.”

He sighed dramatically. “Who would’ve thought that the mighty Divine Lord Luan Ling—the righteous envoy destined to save the Heavenly Realm—would be immobilized by a casual move from a demon? Truly…”

Luan Ling rubbed her forehead. She knew it—self-rescue would’ve been better. But there was one thing she couldn’t figure out.

“The Heavenly Academy is so far away. Why were you nearby?”

“I wasn’t,” Si Zhuo replied casually. “But given our relationship, of course I sensed your divine consciousness immediately.”

The moment he said that, the gods who had been about to continue their demon-clearing mission froze for a beat—then instantly rushed off to the next location.

Luan Ling felt a deep, wordless frustration. She stomped hard on Si Zhuo’s foot, wanting to say something sharp, but remembering that Xiao Yu was still wandering the Heavenly Realm, she hurriedly followed the scent of the Purple Jade Flower to find her.

Si Zhuo followed closely behind, still tossing out remarks. “Just got hard-controlled by a demon once, and you’re already charging straight back in? Aren’t you afraid of getting caught in the crossfire of a divine-demonic battle?”

Without turning back, Luan Ling said, “No. I won’t fall for the same trap twice. If I can fight them directly, I’ll gather more intelligence on the demon clan.”

Si Zhuo glanced ahead and suddenly said, “I’m afraid the chance for combat won’t be yours.”

Luan Ling saw it too—Xiao Yu, surrounded by gods. Though at the eye of the storm, she still looked eerily calm, wearing that familiar villainous smile. Her gaze was fixed on none other than Divine Lord Wei Sheng.

“So… you’re a demon after all.”

Wei Sheng hesitated for a split second when facing her.

Fairy Ji Yun, however, was far more indignant. She shouted, “You demon! You hid in the Heavenly Realm plotting evil deeds—everything that happened before was clearly your doing! Now that your true form is exposed, what more do you have to say?”

Xiao Yu replied indifferently, “Just because I turned bad doesn’t mean you turned good, right? Little fairy who stole fish—was framing others exciting?”

Generally speaking, once someone turns dark, their sharp tongue improves dramatically. Luan Ling thought this silently.

Ji Yun glared at Xiao Yu. “You—demon! I acted rashly because I already knew something was wrong with you! Now that you’re surrounded, surrender at once!”

Xiao Yu looked at Wei Sheng, her expression briefly complicated. She said to him softly:

“Fairy Xiao Yu was Fairy Xiao Yu. Demon Xiao Yu is Demon Xiao Yu. She truly loved you once. Too bad you were foolish—blinded by appearances. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have awakened so quickly. But seeing that all Heavenly Divine Lords are like this, I’m quite reassured.”

The damage wasn’t great—but the insult was devastating.

Even Luan Ling’s mouth fell slightly open. Demon clan combat power really was something else. If it were her, she wouldn’t even know how to refute that.

Sure enough, Wei Sheng was enraged. He attacked first, and the other gods followed. Xiao Yu was quickly subdued, covered in blood. And then, at that moment, her eyes returned to the clear innocence of the fairy she once was.

She looked around at the gods in confusion, then at Wei Sheng, asking weakly, “Did Xiao Yu do something wrong? Why are you treating me like this? Why did you never believe me? Back then, you clearly—”

Ji Yun drew her sword and thrust it into Xiao Yu’s heart. “Demon! Still trying to deceive us!”

Luan Ling and Si Zhuo exchanged a look. They shared the same thought—

Let her finish speaking! What happened back then?!

With so many gods present, Luan Ling dared not speak up. But she didn’t need to. When the blade was withdrawn and Xiao Yu’s soul began to dissipate, the gods chased after the remaining demonic aura. Only the Purple Jade Flower in Luan Ling’s hand captured a single trace of Fairy Xiao Yu’s essence.

In that instant, a past—simple and tragically easy to summarize—unfolded before her eyes.

Xiao Yu, a spirit born of mountain qi, lived carefree in the forest. She helped lost farmers, chased away small demons, and rescued injured animals.

One day, she encountered a man covered in blood. Kind-hearted Xiao Yu exhausted nearly all her power to save him, reverting to her true form. At that very moment, Ji Yun found Wei Sheng. She brushed aside the dying spirit fish and told him she had finally found him—thankfully, he was alive.

They left together.

Xiao Yu was about to fade from existence when a demon picked her up. The demon didn’t know Xiao Yu, but recognized the divine power within her. This fish should have been a celestial fairy. How she fell to the mountains didn’t matter—this would become the demon’s gateway into the Heavenly Realm.

After the demonic invasion, the Heavenly Realm tightened its defenses. But the spirit fish had saved a Divine Lord and thus gained the destiny she deserved—returning to heaven, arriving by Wei Sheng’s side.

But by then, Wei Sheng already believed Ji Yun was his savior. Xiao Yu was merely a weak little fairy in his eyes.

Xiao Yu had saved many people. At first, she didn’t recognize Wei Sheng. By the time she did, he no longer remembered her. So she stayed silently by his side, hoping to become strong enough to continue accompanying him.

Then came one melodramatic twist after another, all the way to her leap from the Heavenly Realm’s border.

Why did Xiao Yu jump?

Because once again, Wei Sheng forgave Ji Yun out of gratitude. Years of buried grievance finally erupted. She no longer wanted to stay in the Heavenly Realm. It felt like home—but also not.

She wanted to return to the forest, to her quiet little pond, where nothing demanded thought and nothing hurt her.

She never made it home.

The demon within her awakened instead. And the life that should have ended long ago finally found release.

After hearing everything, Si Zhuo asked, “So… what are you going to do?”

Luan Ling looked at him. “You know what I like best in situations like this?”

She closed her eyes. The moment she locked onto the demon Xiao Yu’s lingering aura, she transmitted all those memories into Wei Sheng’s mind.

“Let them remember everything. Let them relive it.”

She opened her eyes.

Si Zhuo looked into the distance. “Honestly, that insult earlier was pretty accurate.”

“Right?” Luan Ling nodded. “Some gods really are just… god-awful.”

She perked up. “And let me tell you—that kind of melodrama is actually pretty mild. There’s worse—”

Fragments of the withering Purple Jade Flower drifted away with her gesture, just like Xiao Yu’s final trace, dissolving into the heavens.

After yet another demonic incursion, the Heavenly Realm grew tense again. Regulations were strict, and enacting new celestial laws took time—so before a new defense cycle began, anxiety was inevitable.

Luan Ling didn’t see Luan Qingchen intervene this time. In truth, he was always elusive. She’d never seen him fight seriously—his power existed on an entirely different level. As long as matters remained within control, he wouldn’t act. If he did, it would mean the Heavenly Realm was facing annihilation.

The gods were busy with divine affairs. For the junior gods of Qilin Hall, however, the most important thing was—

“Senior Sister!! There’s huge news I haven’t told you yet! Are you with Divine Lord Ruibi? I’m coming to find you!”

The Heavenly Academy was on break. With the Peach Banquet approaching, Luan Ling wanted to gather everyone to share the news—but the eldest disciple had gone to the mortal realm, and the youngest was training with the God of Cuisine.

So she dragged Si Zhuo along, delivering the news one by one.

Upon hearing they could perform at the Peach Banquet, Zhu Yin remained calm as ever—though the way she played the konghou gradually took on a distinctly rock-and-roll intensity that didn’t escape Luan Ling’s ears.

“Really?” Zhu Yin asked calmly.

Luan Ling nodded furiously. “The Heavenly Empress herself agreed! Her word is ironclad!”

“Excellent news.”

The voice didn’t belong to anyone from Qilin Hall. Luan Ling turned and greeted politely, “Divine Lord Ruibi.”

Ruibi nodded and said to Zhu Yin, “I didn’t expect you to perform at such an important event before even graduating from the Academy. Zhu Yin, this is your chance to advance. Train diligently—and incorporate your drum set into the Formless State as well.”

Ah.

Luan Ling imagined it—the konghou, flute, dulcimer… and suddenly a full drum kit.

Well. Gods should learn to embrace all things.

“Senior Sister, shall we go tell Junior Brother together?”

Zhu Yin was about to stand when Ruibi handed them several books.

“Recent disturbances in the Heavenly Realm—don’t stay out too late. And these are the newly updated compendium of demonic characteristics. Take them back and study them carefully.”

💝 Support the Team

April0427

✍️ Translator

💙 PayPal