Chapter 45 Life's Enduring Regrets - Dongming Clan

Xiao Qingyi gently raised her hand, and the teacup opposite her was already filled with tea. She said calmly, "Sit down."

Xiao Jingze did not sit down. He glanced past the teacup and met her gaze, then slowly said, "The sinking of the Jin family's merchant fleet back then was not due to any natural disaster, but rather a man-made calamity caused by the Immortal of Fengshui, right?"

A surge of spiritual energy pressed down on his shoulder, causing him to sit down. Xiao Qingyi looked at him calmly and said, "Jin Jianwei is stubborn and refuses to see the light. He wants to spread evil magic and will not live."

Xiao Jingze found it utterly absurd and clenched his fists, questioning, "Is she trying to spread evil magic, or is she trying to expose the crimes of you, Immortal Fengshui?"

Xiao Qingyi remained silent, while Xiao Jingze sneered, "You are the culprit behind the Xinzhou flood ten years ago. In order to absolve yourself of all responsibility, you fabricated the story of the Fengshui Immortal to cover your tracks. But after Shen Yichuan took your place and bore the infamy, you decided to eliminate all those who knew about it back then, didn't you?"

Xiao Qingyi said, "None of them died at my hands. Jin Jianwei died in a storm and his ship sank, and Xiao Wang died at the hands of Jin Younian. Jin Younian's death was self-destructive. The Soul-Swapping Talisman is a heaven-defying technique. One day after the soul swap is successful, both of them will be scattered because their bodies and souls are incompatible."

She glanced at the sea of ​​clouds outside the window, her tone indifferent: "The Shen family has had many twins for generations. The Soul-Swapping Talisman was originally meant to destroy the Shen family, but some accidents happened along the way, which led to your grandfather's death because of it."

Xiao Jingze's eyes were extremely cold: "But what about those innocent people who were displaced by the flood? What about those cultivators whose paths were severed because of your selfishness? Grand Preceptor, or rather, you—Immortal of Fengshui, how is your behavior any different from that of the Immortal Venerable of yesteryear? I have never understood why you are the only one in this world who has lived for nine hundred years at the Mahayana stage—perhaps all those senior masters have become nourishment on your path to immortality!"

Seeing that Xiao Qingyi did not answer, Xiao Jingze sneered and threw the Listening Eye in his hand onto the table. The Listening Eye collided with the teacup, making a crisp sound. Xiao Qingyi lowered her eyes to look at it, and Xiao Jingze stared at her and said, "The Heart-to-Heart Mirror, the Heavenly Fire, the Thousand-Search Pearl, the Mountain and River Bell, these were all part of your scheme from the very beginning! Things that had been dormant for nine hundred years appeared one after another after the birth of the goddess you predicted. If you didn't do these things, who else could it be?"

Xiao Qingyi gazed silently at the Listening Eyes for a long time before finally raising her eyelids: "It's me."

The Di Ting Eye remained motionless. Xiao Jingze asked again, "Why?"

Xiao Qingyi's voice remained calm and unwavering: "This is fate; this is the tribulation that the goddess must undergo."

Xiao Jingze suddenly burst into laughter: "Heaven's Mandate, Heaven's Mandate, Imperial Preceptor, even now you still want to pin all these things on the so-called Goddess? You think you've seen through everyone's fate, but have you calculated your own destiny?! Do you even have a place in the divine realm you speak of?! What do you mean by following the will of Heaven, what do you mean by destiny? Your actions are nothing but going against the will of Heaven!"

Xiao Qingyi remained unperturbed: "As long as the prophecy is fulfilled and the divine mandate is realized, I will be able to ascend to godhood."

Xiao Jingze's aura intensified, the golden ring in his hand poised to strike. Xiao Qingyi remained seated, her spiritual energy swirling like the wind: "They cannot harm me in the slightest."

Xiao Jingze's eyes darkened: "How will you know if you don't try?"

At this tense moment, the water mirror suddenly lit up, and the Thousand Machines Guidance began to flash rapidly, drawing the attention of both of them.

Xiao Jingze remained tense and motionless. Xiao Qingyi said calmly, "Dragons are emotionless creatures, and she is a heartless person. I never thought that the two could be combined to create a feeling."

The golden rings around him hummed. Xiao Jingze twitched the corners of his mouth, but didn't actually smile: "How could someone like you understand what a compassionate heart is?"

——

Mingying propped her chin up and adjusted the water mirror: "Why didn't Xiao Jingze answer again?"

She tapped her head. Ever since Xiao Jingze gave her the water mirror, apart from chatting for a while on the day she received it, she had never been able to contact him through the water mirror.

She placed the remaining ice crystals back next to her pillow, then thought of something: where was her bracelet?

Mingying got up and looked around. Finally, she lifted the blanket and looked at the corner of the bed. The space under the bed was empty; the bracelet had disappeared.

After everyone in the council hall finished discussing the charter, Shen Ci came over. Ming Ying heard the noise, crawled out from under the bed, and took her hand, saying, "Mother, I want to go too."

Shen Ci wiped the dusty face off the puppet and smiled gently yet firmly: "This isn't a trip to see the sights. You'll have to stay home by yourself."

Mingying stubbornly said, "Mother, I am also a member of the Ming family, why are you all excluding me?"

Shen Ci sighed softly, patted her wooden head, and quietly drew a talisman on the back of her head with his fingertip.

Mingying's consciousness gradually blurred, and she uncontrollably lowered her head. Shen Ci carried her to the bed, touched her face and looked at her for a long time, as if trying to see something through her wooden head. Finally, he straightened up and said to the Ming family head outside the door, "Let's go."

The sound of their footsteps faded into the distance, and the room returned to silence. After the door was gently closed, the wooden figure, which should have been lying quietly, sat up again.

——

The golden rings fell into Xiao Qingyi's hands. Ignoring their rejection, she placed them aside, swept away the tea on the table with a flick of her sleeve, and with a light touch of her fingertips, clouds rose from the white jade table, clearly showing the scenery of Liuzhou, thousands of miles away.

Xiao Jingze sat opposite her, frozen in place, his face grim and his eyes gleaming with coldness: "What do you want to do?"

Xiao Qingyi's gaze fell on the ever-changing scenery of Liuzhou: "Nothing needs to be done, what's meant to happen will happen."

——

The people of Liuzhou, upon receiving news from the aristocratic family, gathered in a hushed, disbelieving atmosphere, discussing the matter. Chen Li was standing beneath a stone archway when the earthquake struck. Before she could even react, the archway, billowing dust and smoke, crashed down upon her.

Despite his own safety, Young Master Zhu rushed towards her, holding Chen Li tightly in his arms, while his back was turned towards the collapsing archway.

Stone fragments flew everywhere, dust and wood chips filled the air. At the critical moment, a streak of emerald sword energy slashed down from the sky, causing the archway to collapse. The academy disciples landed one after another, reaching out to unleash their spiritual power to firmly hold the crumbling building in place.

Mingyan glanced at the two of them and spoke quickly and clearly: "This place is not safe to stay for long. The teleportation array has been set up. Quickly follow the academy disciples out of the city."

The sky and earth were gloomy, the clouds hung low, and a torrential downpour was imminent. Cracks crisscrossed the earth as Song Xijia calmly stepped into the location of the four spiritual veins.

The four elders of the academy had already been waiting there in formation. Song Xijia stopped and looked at the leader.

Ji Xiao stepped forward and bowed respectfully: "Immortal Venerable, spiritual veins are the foundation of a cultivator's practice, and must never be destroyed lightly."

Upon hearing this, Song Xijia scoffed coldly. Her Dharma body appeared out of thin air behind her, and with a wave of her hand, she exuded the pressure of heaven and earth. With a casual stroke, her spiritual power swept over the four people, but was dissolved by the invisible and intangible array.

"Oh?" Song Xijia raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Commendable courage."

A streak of light flashed across the sky as Ming Qi led a large group of cultivators to arrive on the wind. He hovered in mid-air, his robes fluttering, and his voice boomed like a bell: "Immortal Venerable, the ways of Heaven are governed by rules. Your journey will surely incur the backlash of Heaven's Dao, and you will be condemned by Heaven and Earth!"

Song Xijia looked up at the sky and smiled coldly, with an arrogant air of looking down on all things: "If Heaven and Earth cannot tolerate me, then I am Heaven!"

Knowing this battle was doomed to fail, Ming Qi said no more. He clenched his fist in the air, and a long arrow wreathed in blazing flames appeared in his hand. He slowly drew his bow and nocked the arrow. As the bowstring twanged, the arrow transformed into a crimson meteor, shooting straight at the enormous avatar!

Song Xijia neither dodged nor evaded, but with a light wave of her hand, her Dharma body behind her raised its giant palm and casually swatted away the rocket. Ming Qi narrowed her eyes slightly; the sparks on the arrow merely touched the Dharma body, yet they ignited half of her body like wildfire.

The snowflakes froze at that moment, instantly repairing the Dharma Body. Song Xijia's Dharma Body smiled even more deeply: "It's nothing more than the light of a firefly; let me show you the real fire!"

The possessed "Mingying" opened her palm, and heavenly fire appeared in her palm. She smiled strangely: "Mingqi, your own granddaughter has a fragile mortal body. It wouldn't be good if she got burned while fighting."

Mingqi's expression remained unchanged, and without hesitation, he shot another arrow at "Mingying"! The Dharma Body once again deflected the arrow, and Mingqi gripped the bow tightly, replying in a deep voice: "If this action can make the Immortal Venerable abandon this journey and return to the right path, Manman will surely be very happy."

Ming Qian, who was at the heart of the formation, gripped the jade slip in his hand, ready to unleash his power. Only after seeing Song Xijia deflect the arrow with a wave of his hand did he slowly exhale a breath of turbid air.

Song Xijia's face turned ugly, then she burst into laughter: "Good, very good."

The power of his Dharma Body surged once more, covering heaven and earth. Ming Qian's expression was cold and solemn as he unfolded the jade slip in his hand: "Taiyi Guardian Formation, Evolution Nineteen!"

The protective array shone brightly, and Song Xijia's spiritual energy surged, allowing him to float gracefully in mid-air. He smiled and looked down at the dark mass of people below, his tone contemptuous: "The Ming Clan has quite the ability to rally people, managing to gather such a large group to attack me. Unfortunately, they are nothing but a bunch of ants!"

She finally grew tired of the tedious stalemate, raised her hand and struck out with a palm, unleashing a torrent of powerful spiritual energy. The protective array was struck and began to tremble violently, with many Ming Clan disciples unable to withstand the impact and teetering on the verge of collapse.

Ming Qi unleashed both palms, standing before the formation to defend with all his might, yet he was still forced back several steps by the spiritual energy, coughing up blood. He steadied himself and looked up at the Dharma body in the air, a look of shock crossing his face. This was merely a single palm strike; just how powerful was the Immortal Venerable? Was this the insurmountable chasm between immortals and mortals?

Just as the Dharma Body was about to strike again, a figure in pure white rushed from behind her. Ignoring the overwhelming power, Shen Ci put two fingers together and pointed at Ming Ying's forehead altar. Incantations flowed between her fingers. She quickly snatched Ming Ying's body and was about to retreat.

Song Xijia's expression turned cold, and a palm strike arrived. Shen Ci was prepared; his body was enveloped in light, and his figure grew larger. Protected by the Rakshasa, his strength surged, becoming indestructible.

However, she was only at the Nascent Soul stage, and Chen Ci swayed, spitting out a mouthful of blood.

Ming Qi suppressed his surging blood and qi, nocked another arrow, and fired it, interrupting the Dharma Body's movements. Song Xijia was finally enraged; the heavens and earth trembled, all things withered, and the land cracked inch by inch. He struck down with his palm once more!

Just as Mingqi was about to meet the attack head-on, an unexpected wooden puppet leaped up from the side, facing the devastating spiritual power. The runes carved on its body instantly dimmed, and the puppet's severed limbs scattered all over the ground.

Song Xijia narrowed her phoenix eyes, staring at the still rolling half of the head, her face so gloomy it could drip water.

The weakened spiritual energy rushed towards Ming Qi, who was severely injured and on the verge of death. Yet, he straightened his back and laughed heartily: "I have devoted myself to cultivation in my cave for nearly twenty years. Do you think I have only produced this after all my painstaking efforts?"

With his last breath, he drew a symbol in the air: "Transform your body into an array, reverse cause and effect—"

In the council hall the day before yesterday, Ming Qi uttered his last solution, adding in a desolate tone, "This is the price, the price for the Ming family's defying the heavens for a century." The hall fell silent. Shen Ci turned her head away, "But this price is far too terrible..."

Mingqi smiled and said, "Then let everyone make their own choice. Now that things have come to this point, we shouldn't force anything."

Mingqian was the first to make a decision, his expression unreadable: "To force something, isn't that also forcing something full of things?"

Ming Qi said coldly, "This is what she should do as a goddess."

Heaven and earth crumbled, and all things collapsed. Mingqi had already fallen, while Mingying's body floated in the air, runes coiling around her like swimming dragons.

Song Xijia frowned, then chuckled softly, the laughter gradually growing until it became a wild, unrestrained laugh: "So that's how it is! So that's how it is! Hahahaha... How ridiculous!"

Her laughter abruptly stopped, and a murderous glint appeared in her eyes: "How could I allow you to get away with this!"

A surge of powerful spiritual energy swept across the area, threatening to collapse the Taiyi defensive formation. Mingqian shuddered and coughed up a mouthful of blood. He slowly wiped his mouth, but there was no fear in his eyes. He exhausted his spiritual energy to stabilize the crumbling defense.

Shen Ci had transformed into a Rakshasa and stood before the battle, her gentle gaze replaced by a fierce one. After receiving a palm strike brimming with spiritual power from her Dharma body, the light and flames on her body rapidly dimmed, blood seeped from her seven orifices, and her Rakshasa body shattered inch by inch. Her remaining spiritual power was completely insufficient to sustain her.

Shen Ci was prepared, and simply smiled faintly. He glanced back at Ming Ying, who was entangled in runes in the air, and as the second spiritual energy swept over her, it finally turned into fragments on the ground.

Mingqian's eyes were filled with sorrow. He could no longer hold on. All the meridians in his body broke, and his body slowly collapsed.

With the formation's core destroyed, Taiyi's defensive formation is about to dissipate.

Looking at the clean and tidy scene, Song Xijia happily opened her arms: "Who can stop me now!"

Ming Yan slowly descended into the formation, standing steadily in the same spot where Ming Qian had just been.

Song Xijia looked at the Golden Core cultivator at the center of the formation and couldn't help but laugh: "There are truly no geniuses in this world. A mere Golden Core cultivator dares to come forward and die."

Ming Yan scoffed coldly, showing no fear: "You old thing who hasn't died for nine hundred years, what right do you have to shout here!"

The array's brilliance intensified once more, but Song Xijia was no longer in such a hurry. She casually swept aside a few pieces of wood blocking her path, pointed at them with her finger, and the disciples maintaining the array collapsed to the ground, coughing up blood one after another.

Mingyan's face grew paler and paler, and she could only barely stand by supporting herself with her sword. Song Xijia admired her for a while, then with a flick of her finger, she cut off her right arm, her tone mocking: "So you're also a fan of that goddess?"

Mingyan groaned, her eyes bloodshot. The blood-stained Bixiao Sword fell into her left hand, and she transformed into a streak of emerald light, like a swift swallow: "She was never some goddess, she is my sister!"

Song Xijia paused for a moment, as if she had heard something extremely interesting, then laughed again: "Then how about I do a good deed and reunite your family?"

The silk ribbons, like scattered clouds, break the azure sky; the swallows' cries echo, and the heavens weep blood.

Mingyan remembered Mingying as a child, who looked dull and silly, as if she were sick. She didn't know when she had become so clever and wicked. She couldn't trick her into becoming her bodyguard. But her mother said that to be the head of the Ming family, one should protect everyone.

Mingying is a weak and sickly woman. If she wants to become the head of the Ming family, then we have no choice but to protect her.

Warm blood rained down on the puppet's face, and the last glimmer of light poured into the Mountain and River Bell, which rang out mournfully, echoing out in waves.

Xiao Qingyi sat calmly on the observatory, watching the scene unfold: "Fate will eventually return to its proper course; those who shouldn't live will not live."

The surface of the Heart Sea rippled, and Mingying emerged from the water. She remained motionless, tears falling from the corners of her eyes and slowly dripping into the Heart Sea to merge with her. Clearly, she was the one who should have left first, so why did she become the last one left behind?

Song Xijia's voice rang in my ears, her tone low and melancholic: "Does it hurt? If you die, it won't hurt anymore. Come, give me your heart sea... As long as you sever your heart flow, you can eliminate the pain."

Mingying slowly straightened up, her face expressionless: "You deserve to die."

Song Xijia looked at her with great interest: "Really? You..."

Before she could finish speaking, the spiritual energy in her mind surged, creating a monstrous wave. The violent current turned into a whirlpool, trying to shatter her invading consciousness!

Song Xijia's expression hardened, and she hurriedly withdrew from her mind's sea. The body floating in mid-air suddenly opened its eyes, and Mingying raised her hand to tear off the runes wrapped around her. She stood directly in front of the Dharma body in a flash, and without saying a word, she was about to strangle it.

The Dharma body instantly dispersed into scattered specks of light. Mingying held fire in her left hand, and flames surrounded her body. The scorching heat caused the snowflakes falling from the sky to evaporate completely before they even got close.

Unable to solidify her physical form, Song Xijia knew she couldn't linger any longer. She looked at the figure wielding the heavenly fire and left behind a string of laughter filled with irony and pity: "Hahahaha... Goddess! This is the prophesied goddess, what a pathetic and laughable wretch!"

The Dharma body had already dissipated, but Song Xijia's voice still echoed between heaven and earth. Mingying ignored her, standing there blankly, her gaze sweeping aimlessly over the corpses scattered on the ground. As if suddenly remembering something, she staggered forward, looking down for familiar faces around her. She saw Mingyi and nudged him, calling out, "Uncle Ming, Uncle Ming..."

Undeterred by the lack of response, she moved to the other side and nudged Ming Shu, her eyes pleading, "Aunt Ming, Aunt Ming... wake up!"

There was still no response. Her eyes were stubborn. She stood up unsteadily, her gaze falling on the blurry, indistinct red corpse in the distance. She hugged it and shook it, calling out, "Mingyan, sister, sister..."

She called out to them blankly, one by one, but no one answered her.

-----------------------

Author's note: (covering head with pot) This plot was written in the outline. The foreshadowing was laid from the first instance. I didn't want to write it this way for two days, but if I didn't write it this way, the later parts would fall apart. So I had to let the Ming family members line up to get their lunch boxes.