Heaven and earth have mercy, life continues endlessly.
But would the heavens grant her a way out this time?
Bitterness welled up within Meng Shuying, and when Su Luowei wasn't looking, her eyes showed a trace of sorrow.
If the heavens would give her another chance, that would be ideal. But even if they didn't, she wouldn't complain.
Having accompanied Su Luowei for this journey, she felt she had already fulfilled her wish. She should be content.
She shouldn't ask for more.
The teleportation array stood silently at the mountain's peak, just as it had for millions of years, waiting for someone to activate it and fulfill its purpose.
Su Luowei stepped to the center of the array, instantly recognizing that it wasn't crafted by a cultivator or a demon, but by a higher power.
Likewise, activating this array would be difficult with their current abilities.
But since Meng Shuying had brought her here, she must know how to activate it.
She looked at Meng Shuying, only to find her standing alone outside the array. Her head was lowered, her expression hidden, and her figure exuded a sense of loneliness and sorrow.
Why did she seem so sad when they were about to leave this place?
Su Luowei watched her for a long time, but Meng Shuying remained unresponsive. Unable to bear the heavy atmosphere any longer, Su Luowei coughed lightly and asked casually, "Ah Ying, do you know how to activate this array?"
Meng Shuying remained silent, her head still lowered.
Su Luowei repeated her question twice before Meng Shuying seemed to snap out of a trance, finally lifting her head to respond, "I know."
Meng Shuying gazed deeply at Su Luowei, her eyes growing misty before she quickly concealed it.
"I know how to activate the teleportation array," she repeated softly, walking slowly forward until she stood before Su Luowei. With a solemn expression, she retrieved a piece of white jade emitting a soft, warm glow from her robe and placed it carefully into Su Luowei's hand.
"And this is?" Su Luowei looked at her, puzzled.
The jade in her palm was the same color as her skin and emitted a slight warmth along with a strange vibration. The frequency of that vibration matched her breath, making her feel a sense of intimacy and familiarity, as if this jade had always belonged to her.
"This is the divine bone," Meng Shuying whispered, her fingers brushing tenderly and reluctantly over Su Luowei's palm.
"The divine bone…" Su Luowei murmured, studying the object in her hand. "So, it was this that called to me in the demon realm."
But whose divine bone was this? And why did it feel so familiar?
"It's yours," Meng Shuying replied, her hand slipping under Su Luowei's, gently supporting her palm. Her fingers tightened, holding Su Luowei's hand firmly.
Gazing at the divine bone, Meng Shuying was filled with emotion.
In her previous life, after her master had vanished, she had been left with only this divine bone. Later, she had refined it into her body, carrying it with her across countless mountains and rivers, trying to find her master.
Back then, all she had wanted was to find her master and serve her forever, never imagining they could have a closer relationship.
To her, her master was a celestial being, and the mere fact that she had noticed her was a blessing.
But now, having truly been with her, Meng Shuying realized how laughable those thoughts were.
She was a greedy person—once she got something, she wanted more.
Just like now, simply looking at her senior sister made dark thoughts rise in her heart: to break her promise to Wen Miaomiao, to disregard the human realm and all living beings.
To live a life like that of immortal lovers, just the two of them, in a secluded paradise.
Once this thought arose, it spread like wildfire, burning so fiercely that Meng Shuying's eyes gleamed, her throat dry.
Her emotions were intense, but Su Luowei was too engrossed in the divine bone to notice.
"My divine bone?" Su Luowei was surprised.
She wasn't originally from this world, and it was uncertain whether she could even cultivate a divine bone. Besides, even if she could, her current cultivation level was only at the Great Ascension stage, far from reaching immortality. How could this possibly be her divine bone?
Becoming an immortal was as difficult as ascending to the heavens.
According to the original story, among the myriad of cultivators, only Wen Miaomiao managed to ascend.
Wait, no, there was also Meng Shuying. According to Xiao Ba, Meng Shuying had also ascended to become the demon lord in parts of the original story that weren't documented.
Even so, hearing Meng Shuying say this made Su Luowei feel a twinge of unease.
She took a deep breath, forcing a smile. "How could this be mine? It seems more likely to be yours."
After a brief pause, she added meaningfully, "I think the heavens know you'll eventually ascend, so they sent this divine bone to you in advance. The demon realm has Fu Guang, but the human realm currently has no one who can stand against him. If one day Fu Guang leads his demon army here…"
Her tone was playful, but her words were sincere. "Ah Ying, the hope of the human race lies with you."
Though Su Luowei was looking at her, in that moment, her gaze seemed to pass through Meng Shuying, as if she were seeing all living beings across the world.
Meng Shuying trembled.
So... did Su Luowei know everything?
Did she know what she had done in her past life?
Meng Shuying's heart ached, and she found it difficult to breathe. The wildfire in her heart was instantly extinguished. She bit down hard on her lip, forcing out her words, "The hope of the human race... is you."
As soon as she spoke, Meng Shuying felt a sharp pain in her chest, as if someone had grabbed her heart and was pulling it down, the pain so intense she bit her lip, the rest of her words dying in her throat.
Her tone was far from playful.
Su Luowei's sense of unease grew stronger. She struggled to speak. "What do you mean by that?"
Meng Shuying didn't answer. Instead, she suddenly closed her eyes, swaying as if she might collapse.
Su Luowei rushed to catch her, but Meng Shuying grabbed her wrist instead.
When Meng Shuying opened her eyes again, the calm expression she usually wore was gone, replaced by a look of urgency. "Senior Sister, the human world is in danger!"
She let go of Su Luowei's hand and quickly stepped back, retreating from the teleportation array's range.
Her gaze stayed fixed on Su Luowei, filled with deep reluctance. "This teleportation array can only transport one person at a time. I'll send you first."
To activate the array, divine power was needed to trigger the core runes. Although Meng Shuying hadn't yet ascended to godhood, with her past life memories, she knew how to channel the divine power within the divine bone.
But there was only one divine bone, so she could only send one person through.
And that person had to be Su Luowei.
The Endless Sea had no other exit besides this teleportation array. From the beginning, Meng Shuying had intended to send Su Luowei out.
As for herself—
Meng Shuying felt a bitter taste in her mouth.
This was probably her retribution.
"What about you?" Su Luowei took a step towards her, but Meng Shuying stopped her.
After a brief hesitation, Meng Shuying continued in a near tearful voice, "Don't worry, Senior Sister. I'll follow right after."
She took one last look at Su Luowei, then formed a hand seal, dropping to one knee and pressing her palm firmly against the ground, releasing all the spiritual energy within her spiritual sea without hesitation.
The spiritual energy illuminated the runes of the array, all the light converging beneath Su Luowei's feet, climbing up her robes until it gathered at the divine bone in her hand.
Heaven and earth seemed to hold their breath as the ancient array activated. A golden light rose from the ground, shooting into the sky, separating the two and blocking their view of each other.
Things were happening so fast that Su Luowei barely had time to react before the golden light obscured Meng Shuying's figure. Although Meng Shuying said she would follow soon, Su Luowei's heart ached inexplicably, so much so that she could hardly breathe.
The activation of the array was accompanied by a loud noise as spiritual energy tore through space, cutting off all sound. Just before she was pulled into the void, Su Luowei used all her strength to shout, "I'll be waiting for you at Yanmo Mountain!"
The light faded, and Meng Shuying's body wavered before she collapsed backward.
She lay on the ground beside the array, her limbs weak from exhaustion.
Rain began to fall, unimpeded by trees at the mountain's summit, and the droplets landed directly on her face and body.
She lay there dazed for a while before curling up, wrapping her arms around her knees.
She cried silently.
There is no pain greater in the world than being separated by life and death.
Ten Directions Abode.
The dim teleportation array suddenly emitted a faint light, and before long, a brilliant beam of light shot into the sky.
A cultivator, who had been meditating on a prayer mat with eyes closed, sensed the fluctuation of spiritual energy and slowly stood up.
She kept her eyes fixed on the teleportation array, drawing her sword and standing at attention like a bow pulled taut and ready to release.
As the light faded, a figure slowly materialized within the teleportation array.
The figure wore a moon-white robe, with a layer of silk woven from celestial silkworms draped over it. The figure's appearance was as bright as the moon but carried a more personal warmth.
Seeing the newcomer, Wen Miaomiao relaxed, lowering her tensed sword.
It was Su Luowei.
But for some reason, Meng Shuying wasn't with her, and Su Luowei's cheeks still bore traces of tears.
Su Luowei was stunned for a moment when she saw Wen Miaomiao, then hurriedly wiped the tear stains from her face with her sleeve.
"Miaomiao?"
When she realized how familiar the surroundings were, she was even more surprised.
"This place is…"
"This is Ten Directions Abode."
Su Luowei had a myriad of questions, wanting to ask Wen Miaomiao why she was here, whether she had been waiting for her, and how she knew that the other end of the teleportation array led to Ten Directions Abode.
But then she saw Wen Miaomiao stagger forward and fall to the ground.
All the questions died in Su Luowei's throat.
Wen Miaomiao was hurt—seriously hurt.
Her entire back was soaked with blood, a massive wound stretching from her shoulder to her waist, nearly splitting her in two.
Ten days before Su Luowei and Meng Shuying arrived on the island, the seal that had held for millions of years was broken. With a deafening noise, the Demon Lord descended into the human world, followed by a massive demon army.
Years later, the elders of Dan Yang Alliance who survived the battle still vividly recalled the events of that day.
The Demon Lord descended, countless demons and beasts crossed into the human realm, and despite the united efforts of every cultivator in the Dan Yang Alliance and all the rogue cultivators in Nanyi City, they couldn't prevent the fall.
The city walls crumbled, lives were lost.
The crimson-stained walls, the blood-soaked earth—the once bustling ancient city was annihilated in an instant. No matter how many years passed, the horrors of that night remained etched in the minds of all who survived.