“Ah Xing, why aren’t you asleep yet?”
Xin Zhui walked in carrying a bowl of hot soup.
“I asked Lady Sun the physician for a recipe to replenish qi and nourish the blood. I made some medicinal stew and left it simmering on the stove.
I was going to wait until you woke up to have it, but when I saw your tent still lit, I brought it over instead. Don’t mind me being so forward.”
Jiang Xingyan was still in her praying posture. She opened her eyes and glanced at him.
“Why didn’t you get yourself a bowl too?
You’ve lost some vital energy as well—you need to replenish yourself properly.”
Xin Zhui set down the soup bowl, a warmth spreading through his heart.
“I—I already had some earlier.”
As he spoke, he realized something felt off.
“Ah Xing, were you praying for the State Preceptor?”
Jiang Xingyan didn’t try to hide it. She admitted it openly: “Yes.
He’s in a very bad state.”
There was no need to study her expression—just the worry in her voice alone was enough to make anyone feel how deeply she cared for Yun Chunfeng.
Xin Zhui swallowed the bitter ache blooming in his chest and offered a gentle warning: “Just don’t wear yourself out too.”
Jiang Xingyan gave a casual reply as she stood up, picked up the bowl of medicinal stew from the table, and downed it in one go.
After all, she needed to take good care of Huo Ci’s body.
If he could wake up sooner, maybe the two of them could switch back earlier too.
“If there’s nothing else, you should go get some rest. I’ll take care of things here.”
Xin Zhui didn’t want to leave, but he had no legitimate reason to stay.
Then a sudden idea struck him, and he quickly asked Jiang Xingyan: “If more people pray, will the State Preceptor wake up faster?”
Jiang Xingyan hadn’t really considered that.
“Hmm… well…
I just remembered that on the battlefield, I saw the soldiers’ gratitude turn into golden light, and it seemed to help Yun-ge somehow.
As for whether one person’s prayer actually works—I don’t really know.
But since there’s nothing else to do, it’s at least some comfort.”
Perhaps catching the hint of dejection in Jiang Xingyan’s voice, Xin Zhui rushed to say: “It must work!
Ah Xing is the person the State Preceptor cares about most—your prayers are bound to be a hundred times more effective than anyone else’s.”
Jiang Xingyan let out a soft laugh. “I hope so.”
“At the end of the day, the State Preceptor made such a sacrifice for our Huo family army.
As a deputy general, even though I wasn’t there to witness it, I still want to do what little I can.
Let me pray together with Ah Yan for the State Preceptor!”
Jiang Xingyan thought for a moment, then lowered her gaze to glance at Yun Chunfeng.
She noticed that his face, which had been deathly pale, had already regained some color.
She didn’t dare take the credit herself, but she felt that heartfelt prayers must count for something after all.
“Alright!”
Xin Zhui was visibly delighted.
If he had a tail, it would surely be wagging like crazy.
He didn’t ask for much—just being by Ah Xing’s side was enough to make him perfectly content.
He flipped the hem of his robe, knelt down solemnly, and pressed his hands to his forehead—looking even more devout than Jiang Xingyan.
“State Preceptor, your righteousness commands my deepest bow.”
Jiang Xingyan couldn’t help but smile.
Xin Zhui’s lighthearted interruption had actually lifted her spirits a little.
With company, there was no loneliness.
Two specks of golden light flew out from their chests, left the tent, and met countless other golden lights outside. They merged together into a massive luminous orb that floated all the way to Yun Chunfeng.
His master, Bu’er, let out an exclamation: “Wow—they’ve rolled you a giant pill!”
Yun Chunfeng smiled helplessly.
Bu’er examined it and announced in a voice that cared nothing for tact: “And there’s even one from your rival in love!”
The smile on Yun Chunfeng’s face froze completely.
Master, I thank you so much!
The Heavenly Dao’s roar echoed from all directions: “Impossible!
I am the one and only master of this world! You all must obey me!
Whoever I want dead—dies!
How dare you, mere fireflies, compete with the sun and moon!”
Yun Chunfeng slowly traced a Taiji diagram in the air before him.
“One who upholds the Way has many allies; one who forsakes the Way has few.
This has been true since ancient times.
Stop struggling. Your master is coming back.”
Thousands of purple-gold bolts of lightning slammed violently into the Taiji diagram.
In that instant, the earth shook and the sky fractured—heaven and earth shattered.
A vast, deep rift tore open in space and time, carrying the power to devour all creation as it surged forward.
The Heavenly Dao’s sentience was ripped out into a blurry afterimage.
“No! I cannot fail!
This world was mine by right—what wrong did I commit!”
The spatial rift grew larger and larger. No matter how the Heavenly Dao’s sentience struggled, it showed no mercy, swallowing it whole.
Having exhausted the power of the sage, Yun Chunfeng also fell from the heavens.
“We invite the three sages to return to their thrones and restore the Heavenly Dao!”
“We invite the sages to return!”
The assembled immortals and Buddhas bowed before Heavenly Sovereign Fuxi, Heavenly Sovereign Nüwa, and Heavenly Sovereign Shennong.
The three Heavenly Sovereigns exchanged glances and nodded to one another.
“It is time.”
“Brothers, let us go.”
Heavenly Sovereign Fuxi made a clasped-hand gesture to the immortals and Buddhas.
“We entrust the human race to your care.
See to it that the world stays free from war, and that all living beings find their rightful place.”
“We shall abide by the sages’ decree!”
The immortals and Buddhas watched as the three sages ascended toward the ninety-ninth heaven.
Behind them, three enormous golden disks slowly rose.
As they ascended, the dark clouds that had blanketed heaven and earth gradually dispersed, revealing a sky of such pure blue as if it had just been washed clean.
Gentle drizzle drifted down upon the mortal world, halting weapons and turning conflict into goodwill, restoring everything to its most beautiful and original state.
The immortals and Buddhas inclined their heads in reverence: “The sages have returned—peace and clarity reign under heaven!”
Yun Chunfeng knelt on one knee, his spirit slowly fading away.
His master, Bu’er, felt his heart tighten. He recalled the sincere vow Yun Chunfeng had made that day, and though he wanted to follow, his feet remained rooted.
“Xiaojiu, whether you’re a mortal or a cultivator, you will always be my most prized disciple.”
His eight senior brothers stood with tears in their eyes: “Xiaojiu, take care of yourself down there!
If anything happens, don’t forget to call your brothers!
You know the price and the procedure!”
Just before he vanished, Yun Chunfeng bowed respectfully to his master and senior brothers: “I am deeply grateful for the kindness you have all shown me.
Though I am now a mortal, I will never forget your grace.
We will meet again often. I wish you all good health and ever-greater cultivation!”
Jiang Xingyan woke up to find the world bright and clear, with fragrant breezes wafting all around.
It was as if someone had washed the entire mortal realm clean, inside and out.
She turned around in shock—Yun Chunfeng’s complexion had returned to normal, and his breathing was much steadier.
Overjoyed and startled, she exclaimed: “Yun-ge, this is all because of you, isn’t it!”
She quickly summoned Sun Yaxiang to take his pulse.
Sun Yaxiang had been busy all day yesterday and had only been asleep for three hours when she was called. She arrived with bleary eyes and a face full of irritation.
Her movements were rough as she grabbed Yun Chunfeng’s arm and casually felt his pulse.
“Mm, not bad. The pulse is firm, steady, and strong.
No longer as hollow and erratic as before—it seems he’s mostly recovered.”
Jiang Xingyan stared at Sun Yaxiang with sparkling eyes: “Then when will he wake up?”
Sun Yaxiang rolled her eyes in annoyance: “Look at that pathetic lovesick look of yours!
How should I know when he’ll wake up?
He’ll wake up when he’s ready to wake up!”
Jiang Xingyan scratched her head sheepishly.
Sun Yaxiang let out a big yawn: “I’m going back to sleep.
Unless it’s a life-or-death emergency, don’t wake me up.”
“Report!
Madam General—Tuo Bahongxue is awake!”
