Qin Bufan!
Upon hearing those three words, Little Tower let out a soft sigh, tinged with a complex emotion.
Ye Xuan, curious, asked, “Little Tower, what’s wrong?”
Little Tower sighed again. “Her father was your master’s brother—a brother through life and death.”
A brother through life and death!
Ye Xuan was surprised. “My father’s sworn brother?”
Little Tower replied, “Yes! I never imagined Qin Bufan’s daughter would come to this world, and be so formidable!”
Ye Xuan looked at Qin Guan and smiled. “You can hear Little Tower, right?”
Qin Guan nodded.
Ye Xuan gazed at her. “You know my father and yours knew each other?”
Qin Guan smiled faintly. “I know a bit. Your father is that swordsman in green, right?”
Ye Xuan nodded.
Qin Guan smiled. “I looked into it. He and my father fought side by side once!”
Ye Xuan asked gravely, “Can you resurrect your father?”
Qin Guan shook her head. “No.”
She paused, then added, “No one can resurrect someone who’s truly dead.”
Ye Xuan said, “My father seems to have been resurrected.”
Qin Guan smiled. “That’s different. Those truly dead can’t be brought back, not even with time reversal.”
Ye Xuan hesitated, then asked, “Can you explain further?”
Qin Guan thought for a moment. “It’s complicated. It involves many theories you likely wouldn’t understand.”
Ye Xuan’s face darkened.
Not very harmful, but highly insulting!
At that moment, a voice came from the side. “Miss Qin Guan!”
Ye Xuan turned to see a middle-aged man sitting cross-legged at the temple’s entrance, dressed in a loose gray robe, long hair draped over his shoulders, hands resting on his knees.
The Ancient Wilderness Emperor!
Ye Xuan glanced at him, a trace of wariness in his eyes.
He’d already clashed with this man once!
Terrifying!
Far beyond the realm of quantity transformation!
Qin Guan glanced at the Emperor and smiled. “Ancient Wilderness, you want to be resurrected too?”
The Emperor gave a bitter smile. “Is that possible?”
Qin Guan nodded. “For you, it’s possible. You still have a wisp of your soul, and your consciousness lingers in this world. Most importantly, the one who killed you didn’t erase you completely. Otherwise, there’d be no hope.”
The Emperor stood and bowed respectfully. “Please, Miss Qin, save me!”
Qin Guan fell silent.
The Emperor bowed again.
Ye Xuan tugged at Qin Guan’s sleeve and whispered, “Can you really save him?”
Qin Guan nodded. “I can. But I don’t want to.”
Ye Xuan was stunned. “Why not?”
Qin Guan glanced at the Emperor. “He’s not a good person. If I save him today, one thought from him could harm countless beings in the future. Though I wouldn’t kill them, their deaths would be because of me…”
She shook her head. “Helping others depends on who they are. I won’t save a demon who’d wreak havoc.”
Ye Xuan hesitated, then said, “If he were a good person, you’d save him, right?”
Qin Guan nodded. “Yes.”
Ye Xuan asked gravely, “If you really saved him, wouldn’t you fear angering the one who killed him?”
Qin Guan gave a playful smile. “I have a gun and money. Who would I fear?”
She pulled out a gun, slightly shorter than Ye Xuan’s, dark purple-black. She waved it at him. “This gun is called Equality of All Beings. One shot, and no matter what supreme emperor, they’d bow!”
Ye Xuan: “…”
The Emperor bowed again. “Miss Qin…”
Qin Guan put away the gun and shook her head. “Ancient Wilderness, I know you killed countless for a Heavenly Vein, carrying endless karma and malice… Your fate today is largely due to the sins you committed.”
The Emperor said gravely, “Miss Qin, this world is ruled by the strong. Which cultivator doesn’t have blood on their hands?”
He glanced at Ye Xuan. “Take him—his hands are stained with blood too. Where’s his retribution?”
Qin Guan shook her head. “You’re different from him.”
The Emperor frowned. “How so?”
Qin Guan giggled. “He has someone behind him. You don’t!”
The Emperor: “…”
Ye Xuan: “…”
Qin Guan continued, “Ancient Wilderness, I’m not blaming you. You’re right—cultivators in this world are bloodstained. But personally, I don’t like those who create slaughter. So, I refuse to reverse your death.”
The Emperor fell silent.
Ye Xuan glanced at him, then tugged Qin Guan’s sleeve again. She glared at him. “Pull gently! You’re about to rip my clothes off!”
Ye Xuan: “…”
Qin Guan rolled her eyes. “What do you want to say?”
Ye Xuan said gravely, “You mentioned some can be reborn—those with a soul or consciousness still in the world?”
Qin Guan nodded. “Those completely erased can’t be saved. Complete erasure means their essence is gone—that’s true death.”
Ye Xuan understood.
Should he leave a wisp of his soul with Qing’er?
Then, damn it, who’d he need to fear?
If killed, he could just start over!
A grin spread across his face, delighted.
In the distance, the Emperor sighed softly, sitting back down, his expression dim.
Qin Guan suddenly said, “Ancient Wilderness, I came to see that Heavenly Vein. Can I take a look?”
The Emperor hesitated, then opened his palm. A palm-sized white stone floated to Qin Guan, faintly revealing a tiny character inside: *Law*.
Qin Guan examined it, then smiled. “So that’s it…”
She opened her palm, and the Heavenly Vein floated back to the Emperor.
The Emperor looked at her. “Miss Qin, do you know its origin?”
Qin Guan nodded. “It’s from the Forbidden Land.”
The Emperor frowned. “Forbidden Land?”
Qin Guan smiled, saying no more. She turned to Ye Xuan. “I’m heading somewhere to handle something. Want to come?”
Ye Xuan thought for a moment, then said, “Sure!”
Qin Guan smiled. “Let’s go!”
As she prepared to leave with Ye Xuan, he suddenly turned to the Emperor. “Senior, are you passing on your inheritance?”
The Emperor looked at him. “Yes.”
Ye Xuan said earnestly, “What do you think of me?”
The Emperor: “…”
Qin Guan looked at Ye Xuan. “Uh…”
Ye Xuan added, “Senior, after today, finding a genius like me will be tough!”
The Emperor glanced at him. “You’re not quite suitable.”
Ye Xuan quickly said, “Where am I not suitable? I’ll change on the spot until you’re satisfied!”
Qin Guan: “…”
The Emperor was speechless.
Qin Guan leaned toward Ye Xuan and whispered, “His inheritance isn’t that great.”
Ye Xuan blinked. “Really?”
Qin Guan nodded. “I don’t usually lie!”
Ye Xuan: “…”
Seeing the Emperor still hesitating, Ye Xuan smiled and turned to Qin Guan. “Let’s go.”
Qin Guan nodded. She opened her palm, and a sword appeared. It turned into a streak of sword light, circled her, and settled under her feet.
Ye Xuan’s heart jolted. “You… you’re a sword cultivator?”
Qin Guan shook her head. “No.”
Ye Xuan was puzzled. “Then…”
Qin Guan smiled. “I just like riding swords. This one’s for flying, not fighting!”
Ye Xuan: “…”
As they prepared to leave, the Emperor suddenly called out, “Young man… wait!”
Ye Xuan turned. The Emperor opened his palm, and the Heavenly Vein floated to him. “My inheritance is in this Heavenly Vein. From now on, you’re its third inheritor.”
Ye Xuan blinked. “Third?”
The Emperor smiled. “Yes.”
Ye Xuan asked, “Who was the first?”
The Emperor shook his head. “I don’t know.”
Ye Xuan didn’t press further, accepting the Heavenly Vein. “Thank you!”
The Emperor looked at him meaningfully. “Take care.”
His body began to fade.
In the end, he chose to let himself dissipate.
Beg Qin Guan?
He didn’t.
As a supreme giant, he’d rather die than beg. If he feared death, he wouldn’t have fought to the end back then!
Like a dragon, even in death, he wouldn’t grovel.
Soon, the Emperor vanished completely!
As he did, the secret realm began to crumble.
Ye Xuan bowed deeply toward where the Emperor had been, then turned to Qin Guan. “Is he gone?”
Qin Guan nodded. “Completely gone.”
Ye Xuan fell silent.
Millions of years of cultivation, reduced to dust.
A sobering thought.
Qin Guan suddenly said, “Let’s go!”
Ye Xuan nodded, and they prepared to leave. But as the secret realm collapsed, powerful auras appeared on the distant horizon.
Ye Xuan’s brow furrowed.
Clearly, with the Emperor gone, the place was no longer so dangerous, and countless powerhouses were rushing in.
Soon, Ye Xuan sensed two familiar auras.
One was Tai Huang’s!
The other was Mu Xu, the Spirit Demon Clan leader.
They’d all come!
Qin Guan said, “Ignore them. Let’s go!”
Ye Xuan nodded, and they rode their swords away.
In the distant sky, Mu Xu stared coldly at Ye Xuan disappearing into the starry horizon, his eyes icy. “The Heavenly Vein…”
…
