A Pawn's Passage

Qi Xuansu was struck in the chest by the Xuan Jade that Madam Qi had thrown at him. The force contained within the jade did not repel him; instead, the jade itself sank into his chest like a stone sinking into the sea, disappearing completely.

Following his body’s absorption of the Xuan Jade, Qi Xuansu’s vision darkened, and he fell backward.

Fortunately, Zhang Yuelu was right beside Qi Xuansu. She quickly reached out to catch him, cradling him in her embrace as he fell.

Before losing consciousness, Qi Xuansu’s final thought was, How soft.

Qi Xuansu slipped into a dream. In his sleep, he once again arrived at the same old place. The familiar scenery was unchanged. This time, he felt less fearful and more at ease.

It was still the same towering, black mountain.

Without hesitation, Qi Xuansu climbed the rugged path to the mountain’s summit.

The summit was as it had always been—a vast clearing with a massive bonfire burning at its center.

The last time he had visited, there had been nine towering figures behind the fire. This time, there were eight.

These eight towering figures were still shrouded in dense, impenetrable shadows, leaving only vague outlines visible. The only clear feature was the blood-red glow of their eyes.

Last time, Qi Xuansu felt immense pressure from the nine figures—some benevolent, some hostile. This time, the pressure was noticeably less, with more benevolence and less hostility.

What followed was the same as before.

The fire grew brighter, making the surrounding darkness seem even gloomier. The eight figures stood between the flickering light and shadows, muttering something unintelligible to him.

After a while, the murmurs grew louder, as if traversing an endless river of time to reach the present world.

At that moment, the eight figures gradually retreated into the darkness, leaving only one figure stepping forward into the firelight.

Qi Xuansu could now see the figure clearly. It was still the towering woman from before, with ink-black hair cascading to her waist, pale skin, and a face painted with eerie colors. Behind her loomed a strange yellowish-brown totem with a human torso, a snake’s tail, and nine arms.

The figure opened her arms and embraced Qi Xuansu, like a loving mother cradling a child.

The previously dazzling firelight suddenly extinguished, plunging the world into complete darkness.

The ground beneath Qi Xuansu’s feet shattered with a thunderous roar, revealing a gaping void. He fell uncontrollably, swallowed by an overwhelming wave of blood. All he could see was crimson.

After a while, Qi Xuansu slowly awakened. The dark mountain, towering women, and the sea of blood were all gone. In their place was a hanging lamp emitting a warm, orange glow. Looking around, he found himself lying on a bed with no furniture around him.

Qi Xuansu closed his eyes again, faintly hearing the sound of rain outside. Raindrops pattered against the neatly arranged tiles as he began to scan his body.

The result was both exciting and disappointing.

The excitement came from gaining a third additional lineage as he had expected—the Shaman lineage. The disappointment was because this Xuan Jade did not elevate him to the Heavenly-Being stage.

The Xuan Jade left behind by the True Lord Siming was called the Xuan Jade of Divinity, distinguishing it from the earlier Xuan Jade of Life and Xuan Jade of Death.

This Xuan Jade of Divinity had a large capacity to store divine power. It pushed all of Qi Xuansu’s lineages to the ninth level of the Guizhen stage, including his newly attained Shaman lineage.

Of course, this did not mean Qi Xuansu alone could match four ninth-level Guizhen-stage masters because he could not simultaneously perform four entirely different mystical abilities or wield four weapons. However, in one-on-one combat, Qi Xuansu far surpassed his peers, even possessing the power to fight ordinary Heavenly Beings.

Additionally, Qi Xuansu’s Diviner and Martial Arts Practitioner’s lineages remained incomplete. As a Diviner, he had not condensed his Thoughts, and as a Martial Arts Practitioner, he had not condensed his body and spirit.

Only Martial Arts Practitioners who had condensed their body and spirit would be considered high-level. The same concept applied to Diviners and their Thoughts.

However, Qi Xuansu gradually noticed some discrepancies. There were still differences between Rogue Cultivators whose lineages had been supplemented by Xuan Jades, and natural-born Banished Immortals. For one, Zhang Yuelu lacked the miraculous regenerative abilities of Martial Arts Practitioners. He had also never seen her soul travel before.

This was something Qi Xuansu could discuss with Zhang Yuelu in the future.

Qi Xuansu ended his introspection and opened his eyes again.

At that moment, he heard Zhang Yuelu’s voice in his ear. “You’re awake!”

Qi Xuansu looked over in the direction of the voice. Due to the bed hangings, Zhang Yuelu’s figure was obscured as she sat at the bedside, hidden behind the draped fabric.

That was why he had not noticed her presence at first.

Qi Xuansu quickly sat up and asked, “How long was I asleep?”

“Three days and two nights,” Zhang Yuelu replied, standing up and moving to the front of the bed.

Zhang Yuelu was not wearing her formal Daoist attire. Instead, she donned a moon-white dress with teal trimmings. Her black hair was styled into a neat bun and secured by a jade hairpin. She appeared elegant and graceful, more like a well-educated wealthy young lady than the Deputy Tiangang Hall Master.

Qi Xuansu silently admired her for a moment before averting his gaze and asking, “What is this place?”

“This is the Huasheng Hall branch in Jinling,” Zhang Yuelu replied.

Qi Xuansu blinked. “You brought me here?”

“Mhmm.” Zhang Yuelu nodded and pushed open the window, revealing a pond outside that was shrouded in misty rain, accompanied by the sounds of frogs croaking.

Noticing that Zhang Yuelu seemed downcast, Qi Xuansu became more cautious and softly asked, “How is Jinling now?”

Zhang Yuelu rested her hands on the windowsill. “Not great. Although we repelled True Lord Siming, many still died because of the Divine Descent. Nearly one in every ten households in Jinling is holding funerals. That doesn’t even include families where no one survived. Preliminary estimates suggest over 10,000 deaths.”

Qi Xuansu fell silent.

In times of chaos, the deaths of thousands, tens of thousands, or even millions were common. People died from plagues, famines, and wars. Back then, everyone had become desensitized to death. For nobles, such deaths were just another number. For the common folk who struggled to survive day by day, they had no energy left to sympathize with others.

However, things were different now. This was a time of peace, long free from war. Even Zhang Yuelu, a member of Tiangang Hall, or Qi Xuansu, who had taken more lives than he cared to count, had never witnessed such a tragedy.

It was no wonder Zhang Yuelu’s mood was so heavy.

From Zhang Yuelu’s detailed account, Qi Xuansu finally understood the general situation.

True Lord Siming had spread yin energy throughout Jinling to absorb souls and flesh. After the Daoist Order defeated the Ancient Immortal, his vessel shattered, allowing many souls that had not yet been consumed to return to the mortal realm, re-enter their bodies, and come back to life.

As a result, these people—though dazed and disoriented—survived and could gradually recover. This group consisted of tens of thousands that were categorized as injured.

However, those marked by the Gifts were beyond saving. They were devoured by True Lord Siming. Although the Jiangnan Daoist Mansion did its best to clear out the Gifts, many areas were neglected in the chaos.

The shantytowns suffered the worst, with over 9,000 deaths. Local authorities and the Jiangnan Daoist Mansion had begun dealing with the aftermath—collecting bodies, continuing to clear out the lingering Gifts, and hunting down any surviving Cult of Fates members.

Another thousand or so died in the chaos because of collapsed houses that had buried entire families and other human-inflicted tragedies. This portion of the aftermath was primarily handled by the County Office and Prefectural Office, providing compensation where due and arresting those responsible where necessary.

The Governor, Jiangnan Daoist Mansion Master, and Deputy Mansion Masters had returned to Jinling to oversee the operations. Thus, Zhang Yuelu, as the Deputy Tiangang Hall Master, did not need to worry about the aftermath. This was why she could stay at Huasheng Hall to watch over Qi Xuansu.

Qi Xuansu could not help but sigh. “It’s always the common folk who suffer, whether in times of prosperity or war.”