"Qingfeng, you've just woken up, don't think too much. Get some rest, I'll go contact the Divine General Baize."

Yu Guiwan's eyes avoided his gaze.

"Alright."

Xu Lai didn't think much of it.

With the help of his daughter and son, Xu Lai struggled to leave the coffin, even stumbling during the process.

But being alive felt truly wonderful.

Xu Lai took a deep breath of fresh air, itching to roar to the skies and tell the world.

He, Xu Qingfeng, was back!

Not only was he alive, but Xu Lai felt the vitality in his body was even more vigorous than before he endured the Karmic Tribulation. He even suspected that his Boundary might improve due to consuming the Immortal Fruit.

Unfortunately, Xu Lai was very weak at the moment and couldn't verify this.

"These past two months, have you listened to your mother?"

Xu Lai sat in a chair, flicking Yiyi's nose gently.

"I have! But mom went to do something really important. She said she'd only come back when Yiyi and Ping'an could fly to those white stars."

As Xu Yiyi spoke, her tone grew increasingly low, and she finally choked up: "Dad, mom went on the Immortal Path, she's never... never coming back, wah!"

"Yiyi, don't scare dad."

Xu Lai's vision went black, but he forced a smile and said, "Ping'an, go get your mother."

Seeing Xu Ping'an standing still, head lowered, Xu Lai's voice began to tremble:

"Ping'an!"

"Auntie and Master Aunt never wanted to tell me and sister, so we pretended not to know anything."

Xu Pingan raised his head, his smile bright, but tears streamed down, like a dagger piercing Xu Lai's heart:

"But father, the Immortal Fruit was picked by mother for you."

"Qingfeng..."

Hearing the children's cries, Yu Guiwan rushed over, a bit at a loss, and felt a deep ache for the children.

It turned out Yiyi and Ping'an knew everything, and only pretended to be innocent to keep others from worrying.

"Senior sister, is this true?"

Even though Xu Lai asked, deep down he already knew the answer.

"It's true."

The Qingfeng Sword Spirit transformed into human form and lowered her head: "Huang Zhongtian gave her three Suiya lanterns. I couldn't stop her. It has nothing to do with you, senior sister, Ruan Lan, or anyone else."

Xu Lai looked over, his expression calm.

The Qingfeng Sword Spirit felt an indescribable anger and murderous intent burning.

She didn't explain, only looked silently at him.

At this man who had crafted her with his own hands and stood with her at the peak of the Immortal Domain.

"Phew."

Xu Lai exhaled a turbid breath: "Later, let Ruan Tang give you some hairpins. This one... is too ugly."

"You don't blame me!?"

The Artifact Spirit's body trembled, even when faced with Xu Lai's intense murderous intent, she hadn't lost her composure like this.

"She doesn't like me to be angry."

Xu Lai beckoned, holding the Qingfeng Sword, and said: "I may need you to be my crutch for a few days, sorry to trouble you."

If Xu Lai had reprimanded her a bit, the self-blame in the Qingfeng Sword Spirit's heart might have diminished somewhat.

But this kind of lifting high and letting down gently only made the guilt in her heart multiply, to the point she wished she could self-destruct.

"Ruan Tang is surely still alive."

Xu Lai's voice gradually grew firm: "Since she went on the Immortal Path, we'll find her and bring her back."

"I'll go with you!"

"Naturally."

Xu Lai smiled.

Yu Guiwan bowed her head in self-reproach: "Little junior brother, I'm sorry..."

"Senior sister, don't say such things. I understand Ruan Tang's nature; once she's determined on something, no one can stop her."

Xu Lai took his senior sister's hand, placing it on his daughter's hand: "Yiyi, Ping'an, listen to your Master Aunt in the coming days."

"And what about you, father?"

Xu Ping'an instinctively clutched the hem of Xu Lai's clothing.

Xu Yiyi's cries grew louder: "Dad, are you going to leave Yiyi too?"

"I need to retreat for a few days to recover my body."

Xu Lai patted the heads of the two little ones and gently said: "Then, I'll go find your mother."

"Can you bring back mom?" Yiyi's big eyes were full of hope.

"Absolutely."

"Really?"

"When have I ever lied to you?" 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Xu Yiyi thought for a moment, realizing it to be true, and reluctantly watched as her father staggered back to the room.

"Creak."

The door was gently closed.

The room was filled with Ruan Tang's scent.

Xu Lai, in a daze, said: "Ruan Tang, having one more of me in the Immortal Domain means nothing. But without you, this Immortal Domain isn't the same."

Xu Lai was willing to stand against the likes of Tiangui and other Emperor Realm adversaries, willing to endure Karmic Tribulations, unafraid of death.

Besides fulfilling his duty of delivering a peaceful era for the Immortal Domain, he mostly wished for Ruan Tang and their two children to live on.

"In the end, I couldn't save the Immortal Domain, couldn't kill Tiangui, and even lost you... How can I be at peace?"

Xu Lai looked longingly toward the Immortal Path.

The Qingfeng Sword Spirit remained silent by his side.

"Tell me what's been happening recently in the Immortal Domain."

"Where should I start?"

"Start after I died."

...

...

Besides a few people on the mountainside, only a handful knew about Xu Lai's awakening.

This included Baize, Fairy Qing Yuan, and two Quasi-Emperors of the Taotie Clan, along with Jin Shi and Sikong Jiu.

But they were all too entangled with the Barbaric Beasts throwing the Immortal Domain into chaos.

Baize, though stationed at the Heavenly Court, was occupied with an even more diverse and messy workload.

Yu Guiwan initially thought that upon hearing of her little junior brother's awakening, a crowd would swarm the mountainside, yet no one came.

Five days swiftly passed.

With Xu Lai's revival, the gloomy atmosphere in the Heavenly Court's mountainside over Ruan Tang's departure on the Immortal Path was swept away.

Because both Yu Guiwan, Xu Yiyi, and Xu Ping'an believed Xu Lai would bring back Ruan Tang.

Only Ruan Lan was worried: "Sister Qi, do you think my sister is still alive?"

"Since the Supreme Emperor can die and be resurrected, with him acting, your sister will definitely be safe." Sister Qi comforted.

"Having heard from senior sister and Sister Sword, my brother-in-law's remains weren't destroyed by the great Karmic Tribulation because of the Corpse Emperor's intervention. If my sister were to fall, who would protect her remains?"

Ruan Lan bit her lip hard: "And the Immortal Fruit, there's only one."

Sister Qi remained silent.

Ruan Lan was right.

But she certainly couldn't voice this thought.

"Ugh, this is so annoying, let's go buy some wine outside the city!" Ruan Lan went down the mountain.

In recent years, many villages had sprung up near the Heavenly Court's Sect Gate, mostly comprised of honest farmers, tilling the land.

Ruan Lan frequently went down the mountain over the past two months and had become familiar with the locals.

"Miss Ruan, has something good happened lately?"

"Yes, in recent days, you looked worried. Now your brows are relaxed, and you do look better when you smile."

In the fields, a few elderly ladies cheerfully greeted her, and Ruan Lan responded with a smile for each.

"Boom"

"Boom"

"Boom"

"..."

The ground suddenly began to tremble.

The elder ladies looked around in panic, the next moment collapsing in the fields in fright, while Ruan Lan braced herself as if facing a great enemy.

A three-zhang-tall strange demonic beast, with blood-red eyes, charged toward the nearest village, each step causing the ground to quake.

The beast's limbs were particularly strong, its eyes an eerie dark green.

"It's a Barbaric Beast!!!"