"Don't you care about the common people of this world?"
"Aren't you annoying? I'm inherently heartless, so how can I care about the common people? Other gods can have emotions and desires, but don't you know that about me?"
He was speechless upon hearing Ma Lihua's words.
“Send the child to the Li family. She has her own mission, and you can’t take her away.”
Shangguan Wenyan tightened his grip on the child. This was his and Lihua's child. Although it wasn't conceived by his own divine body, it was indeed their child.
"You know, even if you take her away, she won't be able to survive in the realm of gods."
Ma Lihua felt a slight pang in her heart; she was now a woman who had given birth.
"I know, I'll send her to the Ma family's place then."
"when?"
"When we left."
In the sweltering heat of September, Ma Lihua died while giving birth, and Ma Linghua and Ma Hehua stood on the sinkhole.
"The world is not peaceful now. Nothing has changed for ordinary people, but for someone like me, it is the end of the road."
Ma Linghua's eyes darkened, her once jet-black hair turned gray, she had lost half of her cultivation, and her appearance seemed somewhat damaged.
Her eyes were dark and lifeless, like two dry and desolate ancient wells, filled with hatred and sorrow. Her former lively and gentle charm had vanished, leaving only a resolute determination that had been crushed and pieced back together.
"Now that some of our family members are dead and others are injured, it's time to settle accounts."
Ma Linghua spoke slowly and deliberately, her voice hoarse and deep, as if forced out from a parched throat, each word carrying a chilling coldness.
Ma Linghua nodded slightly, her gaze passing over the sinkhole and looking towards it with a complicated expression: "Lihua is gone, but the child still has a glimmer of hope. This is the last bloodline of the Ma family, the spark of life, and it must not be lost halfway."
A hint of tenderness flashed in her eyes when the topic of children was mentioned, but it vanished in an instant, replaced by a resolute expression. "Shangguan Wenyan wants children? Hmph, he can forget about it!"
_
Outside the sinkhole, sunlight dappled the ground, but it couldn't dispel the heavy atmosphere that enveloped the area.
Ma Linghua was dressed in plain clothes, the hem of which swayed gently in the wind. Although her hair was a little messy, her sharp aura remained undiminished, like a frost-covered blade unsheathed, its cold light gleaming.
She looked up and happened to bump into the figure of Qingwei Daoist walking unsteadily towards her.
"Oh! Fairy Ma, long time no see! What... how come you look so different?"
When Qingwei Daoist spoke, his voice trembled and trailed off. His face was deeply lined with wrinkles that hinted at the decay of time. His body was severely hunched over, his back bent like a taut bow. His legs trembled like leaves when he walked, and his disciples hurriedly reached out to support him, barely managing to steady him.
Ma Linghua curled her lips into a mocking smile and retorted without any politeness, "Oh! You old codger, I thought you were dead! What's wrong? Did the door at home not close properly and let you out, you old dog?"
Her tone was light and quick, but every word was like a poisoned arrow. Her gaze swept over everyone lightly, as if even a glance was a favor, revealing a deep-seated aloofness and contempt.
Qingwei Daoist looked as if he had been slapped in the face in public; his face instantly turned bright red, veins bulging on his forehead. Trembling, he pointed at Ma Linghua, furious: "You...you are simply..."
The words were on the tip of his tongue, but he got so angry that he couldn't finish them, and it took him a long time to get the rest of the sentence out.
Ma Linghua crossed her arms, slightly raised her chin, and cut him off, adding crisply, "It's your mother. You can't even speak properly anymore, why are you getting involved? Old woman, ptooey!"
He spat on the ground, startling up dust and completely extinguishing Qingwei Daoist's thought of unleashing his fury.
Ma Hehua, standing to the side, stared wide-eyed, like a wildcat with its fur standing on end, her whole body tense, watching Qingwei Daoist warily.
She had never met this person before, but having heard her mother's shrewish manner since childhood, she knew perfectly well that anyone who could be scolded so harshly by her mother was definitely not a good person.
She quietly shifted her feet, standing a small step in front of Ma Linghua, her hands clenched into fists, ready to fight at the slightest provocation, her young face filled with the determination to defend her mother.
Qingwei Daoist was so angry at the mother and daughter's display that he was panting heavily, his chest heaving violently. It took him a long time to recover. His eyes were red, and he retorted defiantly, "Ma Linghua, don't be arrogant! The Ma family has fallen to such a state. Do you think you can still cause any trouble? Don't be stubborn."
Ma Linghua sneered and stepped forward, forcing Qingwei Daoist to instinctively shrink back. She lowered her voice, but every word was chilling: "Down on your luck? Hmph, even a starved camel is bigger than a horse. The Ma family's grudges haven't been settled yet. If you old thing know what's good for you, you'd better get lost. Otherwise, you might even have your Sanqing Temple buried with you in the next moment."
Having said that, he pulled Ma Hehua up and strode away, leaving Qingwei Daoist standing there, his face ashen and his heart filled with resentment.
The area around the sinkhole resembled a pot of bubbling soup, steaming and restless.
People from all walks of life gathered here. The disciples of Emei Temple were dressed in plain brocade Taoist robes, their clothes fluttering, and their eyes held a hint of otherworldly aloofness.
The Celestial Masters of Longhu Mountain exude an aura of majesty, and their every move reveals the demeanor of a distinguished family.
The Maoshan sorcerer wore a black robe with mysterious runes peeking out from the hem. His eyes were cunning and shrewd.
Add to that the various rogue cultivators, demons, and ghosts, a vast and chaotic scene, with noise rising and falling, but for a moment, eerily quiet, when Qingwei Daoist spoke.
"Hmph! Husband dead, son-in-law dead, granddaughter missing, what does your Ma family have to be proud of this time?"
Qingwei Daoist yelled at Ma Linghua's departing figure, his face twisted with malice, his once kind features now contorted with schadenfreude, his wrinkles filled with gloating.
As soon as the words fell, an uproar erupted all around, and eyes rained down on the Ma family mother and daughter.
Ma Linghua seemed not to hear anything, her back straight, her steps perfectly steady, and she continued to stride forward.
Ma Hehua, on the other hand, was so angry that her face turned red and her eyes instantly filled with rage. She turned around and was about to rush back to argue, but Ma Linghua grabbed her arm.
"Don't fall into his trap. If you lose your composure now, you'll be in trouble later."
Ma Linghua lowered her voice, her eyes filled with suppressed hatred.
Among the crowd, ambitious mortals clenched their fists, their eyes burning with fervor that seemed to ignite the air. They stared longingly at the sinkhole, fantasizing about rising to the top in one step and escaping obscurity.
Those with some cultivation were even more eager to seize the opportunity and dominate the region.
The monsters concealed themselves, their bloodshot eyes gleaming with greed. Ghosts drifted about, their mournful cries filled with resentment. Everyone was like a hungry wolf, coveting the unknown "fat meat" in the sinkhole, waiting for the right moment to pounce and tear it apart.
"Minister, the Ma family's three...two people have arrived."
Baihu lowered his voice and said.
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