Chapter 54 Chapter 54 "It's broken after all."

The hall door opened and closed, and four figures in mortal attire filed in.

At the end of the team, Jiu Zhao saw a familiar beautiful face with black hair and black eyes.

Zhu Yan.

Why is he here?

It's no surprise Jiu Zhao was puzzled. Repairing the Heavenly Stairs required a significant expenditure of immortal energy, but the accumulated experience and rewards were relatively modest compared to the effort, making it a barely adequate task.

But then again, something is better than nothing. Such thankless tasks were usually assigned to newly ascended Golden Immortals without family or clan support. Just look at the two women and one man standing in front of Zhu Yan, unsure of what to do when they caught Jiu Zhao's eye.

One day in the lower world is one year in heaven.

It will always delay a lot of practice.

Jiu Zhao was well aware that Zhu Yan had long been a thorn in Meng Chu's side due to his outstanding strength and because he had testified for him. However, the personnel to repair the Stairs to Heaven were to be sent by one person from each of the four Divine Kings' territories. Without the approval of the Northern Divine King, Zhu Yan would not be sent here.

Suddenly, Jiu Zhao felt a hint of hidden sympathy in his heart.

However, no matter what she thought or did, she did not show her familiarity with Zhu Yan in front of others.

She raised her hand to call the four immortals who were bowing to their feet. As usual, she gave them some instructions on addressing "Your Highness and Young Lady," and then, businesslike, she addressed the progress of their mission: "Have you inspected the Heavenly Stairs? What damage has been done? When will they be fully restored?"

"Reporting to Your Excellency, Young Lady, the several cracks on the damaged steps may not appear serious on the surface, but one of them, after inspection by our subordinates with their immortal powers, has penetrated deep into the interior. Repairing it will, I'm afraid, be quite time-consuming—"

Jiu Zhao's notoriety for her capricious moods was well-known, from the gods of the Three Pure Heavens to the immortals stationed in Yunshengshi. Even with her recent improvement in reputation, these Golden Immortals, meeting Her Majesty face to face for the first time, remained somewhat apprehensive, fearing even a single misstep might anger her.

After changing positions one after another, each report seemed tongue-tied and stumbling. Jiu Zhao's already limited patience ran out. Frowning, she asked directly, "How long will it take? Just tell me directly—if you're slow, will I eat you?"

"At most, no more than half a year..."

According to the Chinese calendar, half a year is equal to one hundred and eighty days.

As the supervisor, she is not allowed to leave her post and return to Sanqingtian before the stairs to heaven are repaired.

In other words, by the time she led these Golden Immortals back, one hundred and eighty years had already passed in the upper realm.

It sounds like a long time.

But the long process has its advantages. When she returns, she and Fuxu will go their separate ways.

Jiu Zhao convinced himself, trying to ignore the suffocating feeling in his chest. He nodded to the Golden Immortal who was reporting. "It doesn't matter if it takes more or less time. The most important thing is to complete the task successfully. The Heavenly Stairs are related to the ascension of the immortals and have a significant impact on the Three Pure Heavens. Whether inspecting or repairing, you must be extremely cautious. Of course, even though I'm the supervisor, I won't be watching you all day and night without giving you a break. When the task is completed, as long as you haven't made any mistakes, I will report to the Father God and make an extra note on your achievements."

"Okay, if there's nothing else, you guys can go down first."

Such a pleasant attitude.

The urging words are not threats but encouragement.

In addition, there will be one more entry on the list of achievements that affects promotion, so there are real benefits.

Upon hearing the news and knowing that their superior was the Nine-Zhao Divine Princess, the Golden Immortals, who had been secretly complaining, suddenly flashed their gazes. As they bowed again and took their leave, their voices were filled with a hint of sincere gratitude: "Thank you, young lady. We will definitely not let you down."

"By the way, I wish Immortal Yan to stay."

…

Jiu Zhao asked Yanba to stand guard on both sides, and wanted to get Li Huo and Xun Ze to go out together to get closer.

The door opened and closed again, blocking out their curious and disappointed gazes.

Only the familiar people were left, and the airs of a goddess that Jiu Zhao had tried so hard to maintain collapsed.

She looked gloomy, leaning on the armrest of the chair and drinking a sip of hot tea: "What a coincidence, I always see you in unwelcome places."

Zhu Yan was not annoyed: "Miss, what a coincidence."

Jiu Zhao didn't like being looked down upon by others, so he asked the young man to kneel in front of him across a low table.

She casually observed the color of his eyes and hair, which had been transformed by his magic, and heard Zhu Yan's self-conscious explanation: "Most mortals have black hair and black eyes. Although all creatures in the world can become immortals, most human cultivators reject those of other races. To make it easier to travel, I changed my appearance and color."

Such a stunning beauty, even if she conceals all the colors on her body, still makes people unable to take their eyes off her.

The black hair and eyes like condensed ink added a bit of heroism and restraint to Zhu Yan's already gorgeous facial features.

However, Jiu Zhao was in a low mood and lost interest in admiring the scene after just a few glances. "I was curious why all of the Northern Divine King's children came to Yingluo's birthday banquet a few days ago, but you were the only one missing. So you were banished to this Yunsheng world."

"I heard that Princess Yingluo had her gender changed at the birthday banquet, and was officially made Crown Prince by the Western Divine King."

Zhu Yan followed her lead and started a small talk, "Miss, do you know why Princess Yingluo Zongji doesn't want to be a woman anymore? The position of the Divine Crown Prince has nothing to do with gender. Even if she remains the same, given her outstanding performance, she will be made the Crown Princess sooner or later."

Zhu Yan's words were originally intended to wait for Jiu Zhao to answer his questions, but they caused her to be distracted.

No matter what I say.

After all, it was because "Yingluo" became "Yingluo" that the fuse between her and Fuxu was completely ignited.

If Yingluo was not a man.

If she had never reconciled with Yingluo——

Wouldn’t the result be different?

Jiu Zhao didn't realize that no matter what she did, she subconsciously connected it to Fu Xu. A faint voice deep inside reminded her that it was wrong to take her anger out on others. But she still blamed Ying Luo, and then, Zhu Yan for bringing up the topic of gender.

Her tone suddenly hardened, and she said coldly, "You're a bastard who can barely fend for yourself, why are you concerned about other people's family affairs? What? If Yingluo was still a woman, would you still marry her? What wishful thinking!"

"That's not what I meant—"

Jiu Zhao retorted, "You know best in your heart whether it's true or not, but it's really ridiculous. What on earth have you done to deserve such disfavor from the Northern Divine King? He sent you to do this kind of work that even the more prestigious aristocratic families and tribes are unwilling to do. Do you know that repairing the Heavenly Stairs consumes immortal energy? Even if you return to Sanqing Heaven and seclude yourself for five hundred years, you may not be able to recover it."

The output is crackling.

Only after Jiu Zhao had finished venting and shut up did Zhu Yan smile good-naturedly. "Miss, you just said that the time is not important. The most important thing is to complete the task wholeheartedly. I think your idea is correct. Since we are here, we should make the best of it and do everything with a clear conscience."

"What a weird guy."

Jiu Zhao mocked him, "But besides deceiving yourself, there's nothing you can do, right?"

As soon as she said this, she suddenly realized her gaffe.

Sometimes, talking to people is like looking in the mirror.

She laughed at Zhu Yan's inability to change the status quo, wasn't she the same?

While Fuxu hadn't signed the severance agreement yet, she hurriedly agreed to take on the task with Father God, and in a blink of an eye she came to Yunsheng's world. In the final analysis, the reason she acted so decisively was simply because she was afraid that she would really feel the connection in her body being completely severed, and would collapse and cry out loud.

Jiu Zhao's expression changed again and again.

Until Zhu Yan changed the subject as if nothing had happened: "Miss, I will learn from your criticism and will work hard to change the current situation.

"But mountains aren't built in a day or a month, and change can't happen overnight. Since you've arrived in Yunsheng World, why not take a stroll and relax? Thousands of years ago, I served as a resident immortal official at Hutian Treasure House, and I have some understanding of the local customs and practices. If you don't mind, I'd be happy to accompany you on horseback in my free time."

Zhu Yan's words awakened Jiu Zhao.

The Father God appointed me as the supervisor because he wanted me to change places and relieve my stress.

What's the point of coming down to earth and staying here, with my mind still constantly thinking about everything related to Fuxu?

Jiu Zhao hesitated to agree, and said casually: "You also served as a garrison immortal official in Yunsheng World...?"

"The Yunsheng world is the lower realm, where immortal energy is weak and cannot support the cultivation of immortals. If the same person is assigned to guard it for a long time, it will be tantamount to blocking his path to advancement, which inevitably violates the fairness advocated by the Heavenly Order. Therefore, when the Emperor ascended to the throne, he ordered that the position of resident immortal official be held by two people at the same time, and they would be rotated every thousand years. This means that after about three years of guarding the Yunsheng world, one can return to the Three Pure Heavens."

Zhu Yan simply answered by rote, without emphasizing the reason why he became the stationed immortal official.

With his vast knowledge and strong memory before him, Jiu Zhao felt ashamed of his own ignorance of the government affairs of Sanqingtian.

Calculated this way, this task is even worse than repairing the stairs to heaven. Not being able to return to Sanqingtian for a thousand years not only means that one's cultivation level will lag behind that of his former companions, but even the feeling of unfamiliarity with everything and everyone else is enough to make one feel uncomfortable.

No wonder Lihuo and Xunze were so enthusiastic and fawning when they first met. Most of the time, they wanted to win her favor so that they could return to heaven earlier.

When he was entangled in countless troubles, Jiu Zhao became more and more satisfied with Zhu Yan's character of never causing trouble to others.

She thought about it and decided that if she wanted to relieve her mood, she had to make some plans to relieve it. Zhu Ying and Jiang Yu had never been to the human world, so she couldn't rely on them. Zhu Yan had helped her time and time again, and he had a good character. He didn't seem like the kind of villain she needed to be on guard against. It was not bad to have him accompany her to relieve her boredom.

"That's it, then."

She nodded in agreement, then couldn't resist another rant. "That's right. No one else in the human world can see your efforts. It's better to save your mind to please me, the supervisor. Then I can speak well of you to the Father God, and you won't have to endure the wrath of that fool Meng Chu."

…

The third floor of Hu Tian Zhen Bao Zhai is occupied by Jiu Zhao, the first floor is used for business, and the second floor is the residence of the Four Immortals.

One day of repair means three days of peace. The gods who rarely come down to earth will most likely go out to experience the fun that is not available in heaven.

Only Zhu Yan accepted the task of accompanying Jiu Zhao to relax and went back to the house to make a plan.

A day in the human world passed quickly. After talking with my subordinates and putting away my luggage, it was night in the blink of an eye.

Jiu Zhao leaned against the raised window frame, looking at the bright moon in the night sky, and suddenly realized that a year had passed in Sanqingtian.

The letter sent by Xiangbi stated that Fuxu had recovered to his divine state and he no longer needed to deal with the spell on his forehead.

It's up to you whether you want to destroy it or whatever you want.

Even her last communication with Fuxu was full of childishness and weakness.

Jiu Zhao was lost in thought, recalling the scene in the past when she leaned against Fu Xu's ear and told him with a chuckle that the spell to break the curse was "Jiu Zhao Jiu Zhao, I love you."

The blood vessels on my right wrist suddenly hurt.

Raising his arm to check, he saw a bright blood-red light silently emerging from the purple veins.

After stagnating in front of my eyes for a moment, it automatically broke and disappeared.

Jiu Zhao was stunned, and then his eyes seemed to be crying and laughing——

The bond between her and Fuxu was finally broken.