Chapter 227 Rebirth "May you be reborn in the flames."

The raging fires subsided, and the shaking earth suddenly fell silent.

The survivors on the ground tentatively emerged from their bunkers and saw the southern sky, where the pillar that had appeared on the earth overnight and was almost as tall as the sky was crumbling and breaking apart.

Something so tall, so tall that it could be seen from any corner of this land, just fell down like that.

Just like its quiet appearance, no one knows why it collapsed.

After a long time, a loud bang echoed through the world, the ground shook for only a moment, and then all was quiet.

Those demons that appeared out of nowhere instantly lost their power.

Inside Zhaoming City, Ji Yujing withdrew the sword that had pierced the demon's heart. Her face was still somewhat childlike, but her eyes were cold and resolute. Fully armored, she stood atop the city wall and raised her head.

Blood continued to drip from the dark blue blade as she stared blankly until the towering pillar completely disappeared from her sight.

"It seems everything is over." Zhou Sidao, who was protecting her, turned around, but was suddenly startled. "Your Highness, why are you crying?"

Ji Yujing came to her senses, wiped her face, and realized that her face was covered with tears.

Yes, it's all over, so why is she crying?

She didn't know either.

In mid-air, the person who had been running for their life came to a stop.

Before him, the towering pillar was breaking. In an instant, he felt as if he had been struck by a bolt of cold lightning, and an icy chill enveloped him, threatening to freeze his very soul.

He followed the guidance of the mermaid pearl to get here, and she was right here.

The pillar collapsed with a crash, sending huge rubble crashing down and sparks flying everywhere.

Amidst the chaos, the red-clad mermaid neither hid nor avoided, stubbornly searching for that person's figure.

He found the unconscious Wen Yizhan, revived him, and asked him about Jiang Yuhuo's whereabouts.

But the young sword cultivator was unusually silent. He was both terrified and angry, and he had no choice but to go find it himself.

The location of the mermaid pearl is right here, and she must be right here too.

She must be there.

Suddenly, he saw the broken sword blade, not among the rubble, gleaming with stardust.

He picked it up, oblivious to the pain of his cut palm, and pressed it tightly against his heart.

Under the moonlit starlight, the most resilient sword in the world, has broken...

The person wielding the sword was nowhere to be found.

He knelt on the ground, sword in hand, and heard the questioning behind him.

Why are you only arriving now?

Wen Yizhan roared hoarsely, "She's dead!"

He's gone mad! What nonsense is he spouting?!

He will definitely find her...

They had a child, they got married... Most importantly, she promised to be with him, she would be alright.

But he couldn't find her; she was nowhere to be found.

He didn't understand what was happening?

Why did she suddenly come here? Why didn't she tell him anything?

He has many problems, but they all ultimately point to one thing.

Where is she?

In the scorched ruins, lava no longer spews forth; only the flames beneath the ravines still burn fiercely, only flames.

Seemingly sensing something, the merman approached the ravine step by step.

Amidst the raging flames, a single, faintly glowing bead rises alone...

He could no longer deceive himself; all his strength was drained away at that moment, and he collapsed to the ground, his face ashen.

He stared at the bead without moving.

That was his mermaid pearl, the mermaid pearl he gave to Jiang Yuhuo to maintain her body.

"Jia Yue... if I die, will the mermaid pearl return to your body?"

That night in Tianque, she asked him that question. It was a casual question uttered half-asleep, yet it made his heart skip a beat. He didn't answer, but simply pulled her into his arms, forbidding her to say such a thing again.

She was right; the pearl would only return to its original owner's body when the person carrying it died.

So he never told her.

But she was incredibly stubborn; even this concealment couldn't stop her from returning the mermaid pearl to him...

She had probably already made up her mind, which is why she suddenly said she felt unwell in front of the temple, refusing to perform the Double Flow Technique with him and refusing to share her fate with him.

She always refused to take his things.

His sword, his life, and... him.

She doesn't want him.

Even though he had her child and they were bound by a vow, she still didn't want him.

She kept everything from him, abandoned him, and left alone...

He collapsed to his knees on the scorched earth, doing nothing, and the pearl returned to his body on its own. The pearl, which had emerged from the fire, was still warm.

His heart was ashen, yet ridiculously, power surged into his limbs and bones, flowing endlessly. The mermaid pearl, tempered in the fire, became even stronger than before.

But why is he only coming now?

He always missed the mark, always leaving her to face the cruelest things in the world alone.

That's why she didn't want him...

He walked to the edge of the cliff, gazing tenderly at the raging fire below, as if he were looking at his beloved.

Jiang Yuhuo, you can't leave alone.

Jiang Yuhuo, I'm here to keep you company.

He closed his eyes and jumped.

But the raging fires subsided at this moment. As he fell, the flames retreated continuously. By the time he hit the ground, the lava had solidified into black stone, leaving only a few scattered fireballs underneath.

Jia Yue saw all of this clearly, but the flames refused to burn him.

"Is that you? Fishing Light..."

In the dark and empty underground, he searched frantically, wanting to see that familiar figure.

"You're here, aren't you?"

"Please come out. Let me see you..."

"It's my fault, I shouldn't have left you alone, please... please come out..."

"Fishing Light...come out..."

In the vast, deep underground, only the trembling voice of the merman echoed.

No one responded.

“It’s okay, it’s okay if you don’t come out…” Jia Yue suddenly laughed, a cluster of pale blue light gathering between his fingers. He raised his hand to his face, “I’ll come find you.”

When the light pierces his forehead, he will be able to go to her.

They are husband and wife, and no one can separate them, not even death.

"Xiao Hai..."

Suddenly, a voice called from behind, faint and weak, like a flame flickering in the wind.

But he heard it.

Jia Yue suddenly turned around.

There was a small flame in the corner, and Jiang Yuhuo stood there, smiling as he looked at him.

“Fishing lights…” He was overjoyed and immediately ran towards her, but his arms missed her the moment he tried to embrace her.

He then realized that her body was incredibly transparent, and she was no longer the same as before she left; she had returned to her former appearance with white hair and golden eyes.

This is... her soul, no, not even a soul, just a wisp of consciousness attached to the flame. When the last flame goes out, she will completely dissipate.

The joy of regaining what was lost instantly turned into a bone-chilling cold.

He tried to use his spiritual power to freeze her consciousness, but no matter how much spiritual power he used, it just passed through her body without leaving any trace.

She shook her head at him. "Xiao Hai, I'm here to apologize to you."

"I think... I can't keep my promise to you..."

As the firelight dimmed, her figure became increasingly transparent.

"No...it can't be..."

The merman knelt on the ground, protecting the flame with both hands. A surge of powerful spiritual energy coursed through the small space in his palms, but the last flame inevitably weakened.

In the darkness, only the crisp sound of pearls falling to the ground could be heard.

Jiang Yuhu squatted down in front of him and smiled apologetically, "You've broken your promise before. This time... let me break my promise this time too."

"No..." he cried as he tried to hug her, but he only passed through her body in vain. "Don't leave me, I'll go with you."

"Xiao Hai...take good care of Mu Chao, okay?" Her pale palm stroked his face. "I'm really happy when I'm with you."

"But...I'm sorry..."

An apology sounded like a sigh, and the flame that had been forcibly kept alive was finally extinguished. The white-haired, golden-eyed figure completely vanished without a trace.

The world was silent.

In the darkness, the merman stared blankly into the void, utterly despondent.

She knew he would follow her in death, which is why she left a wisp of her spirit behind to wait for him as she vanished. She seemed so thoughtful, yet she was unaware of how cruel she was, doing everything behind his back, facing death without hesitation, only to leave him behind to take care of Mu Chao.

What he originally wanted to keep her child became his burden.

He was taught that life is neither possible nor death.

She cast a curse on him, ensuring that he would never find liberation in a world without her.

*

"Still don't want to wake up?"

In the silence, a gentle voice suddenly appeared.

"So you're willing to die like this?" the voice chuckled softly. "Silly child. Once you're dead, you won't feel anything anymore."

Feelings... What are feelings?

"...Don't you want to see those people again?"

How to see...?

The sound stopped, replaced by uninterrupted chanting. At first, she couldn't understand what they were singing, but gradually, she joined in. They were actually singing only one sentence, repeated over and over again.

She had heard that phrase before.

Where?

She tried desperately to think.

In the towering forest, the winged people stood in a circle, delighted to see the ashes on the ground stir.

Where exactly did I hear that phrase before?

The chanting continued.

She remembered! In a tomb, someone had poured a voice into her mind, she said.

May you be reborn from the flames.

Rebirth!

In that instant, she remembered who she was. Jiang Yuhuo wanted to feel, to touch the wind, to hear the rain, to smell the cool air, to swallow the sweetness, to see... the scales like shattered gold.

At the same time, sparks flew from the ashes on the ground, and the flames reignited.

"Wake up... Forty-nine days have passed, your body has been rebuilt, and your soul should awaken."

The flames slowly grew, swaying in the wind as they rose, gradually turning into a raging inferno.

A figure emerged from the flames, with slender, well-proportioned limbs and a pair of crimson wings on its back, with gold flowing between the crimson feathers. The person's eyes were closed, and its snow-white hair flew wildly in the flames.

“Aunt Wan, she is Si’s daughter…”

"Sister Si really does have a daughter."

"Look! She's awake. Her eyes are golden, and she shares the same bloodline as Aunt Yuan. She's so beautiful..."

“Aunt Wan, it’s fortunate that you met her and imprinted your blessing on her soul, otherwise we would not have been able to see her in the Nine Heavens.”

A group of winged people cheered and jumped around the person in the flames. Their faces and hair colors were different, but they all had wings.

"It wasn't that I met her, it was that she saved me." Yu Renyuan smiled as she looked at the person who shared her bloodline; in a way, she was her great-great-grandmother. That blessing brought her soul back to the Nine Heavens, allowing them to rebuild her body in the flames. Now that her soul had returned to its rightful place, she was a Yu Ren of the Nine Heavens.

"Welcome back to the Ninth Heaven, my child."

The person inside the flames seemed to want to raise their hand, but suddenly spread their wings.

The winged people surrounding her covered their mouths and laughed, thinking she wasn't quite skilled yet.

She was rising steadily, without even flapping her wings, yet her ascent was accelerating.

Yu Renyuan realized something was wrong and immediately spread her wings to try to grab her.

This is the Ninth Heaven; above that lies the Divine Realm.

"Stop! Where are you going?"

Yu Renwan could no longer catch up with her, so she could only shout at the figure in the air, "Don't go there, you won't be able to come back, stop now!"

However, her body was clearly out of control, and she flew straight to a height that Yu Renyuan could not see.

From the ninth heaven, Yu Ren Wan fell back to the ground alone, and all the Yu Ren people who had been cheering just now became dejected.

She went to that place, and yet another winged being "became a god".

But they will never see their loved ones in the underworld again.

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Author's note: Oh, lovelorn fish, please wait another lifetime (not really).

The next chapter will feature their reunion! And then the grand finale, hooray! [rainbow emoji][rainbow emoji][rainbow emoji]