Eternal Love Within A Smile - Chapter 37
Chapter 37
Qunyu jolted awake from a nightmare once again.
No, it was likely not a dream, but a memory hidden deep within the recesses of her soul.
Ever since she heard the words of Immortal Langyin, she had pondered them several times before finally deciding to personally uncover that sealed memory.
However, despite entering a state of meditation and introspective visualization multiple times, her recollections reached the moment of her awakening on that fateful day and could go no further.
It was as if an indestructible barrier existed in the darkness to block her retrospective journey.
The memories of her current life began in a sea of flowers.
She did not know her name, where she came from, or where she was going.
All that remained for her was a sigh from the depths of her soul: “You are the most beautiful woman in the world.”
But when she looked at her reflection in the water, she saw only an ugly face.
That single sentence became her obsession, her path of cultivation, and eventually her inner demon.
She achieved enlightenment within that sea of flowers, created the Flower Beauty Technique, and became the unique Fangzun of heaven and earth, as well as the most beautiful woman in the world.
What was the meaning of it all now?
Until today, she finally realized that the sigh in her dream might have come from Prince Mo.
It originated from a calculated lie and a premeditated betrayal.
Her four hundred years of persistence were nothing more than an absolute joke.
The heart-wrenching pain from her dream struck again.
Qunyu’s face turned pale instantly as blood seeped from the corner of her lips.
“Yan Zhao…” she muttered the name unconsciously.
Her fists tightened until her knuckles turned white, her brows furrowed, and a look of pain and confusion appeared in her eyes.
“Fangzun! Fangzun! Are you alright?” Qianluo’s concerned and anxious calls echoed from outside the door.
Qunyu regained her composure and slowly raised her head toward the entrance.
“I am fine,” she replied.
By the time she spoke, she had already returned to her usual cold indifference.
Qianluo did not believe her.
“You sound as though you are injured?”
Qunyu wiped the blood from her lips before stepping out of the room.
Qianluo immediately rushed forward and asked with a face full of concern, “Your complexion looks poor. Did you try to force open the seal on your soul again?”
Xihe and Wantang, who were waiting at the door, both looked aggrieved and dissatisfied. they complained, “Fangzun, we tried to stop Yaozun, but we could not hold him back.”
Qunyu waved her hand to indicate it was fine.
With their level of cultivation, there was no way they could stop Qianluo.
Qianluo lacked any of the prestige or posture expected of a palace master.
He followed her around like a young boy experiencing his first love.
Although he was a tall and handsome man as well as a powerful tree demon, Qunyu often felt he was more like a dog demon, wagging his tail in front of her day after day.
If it were any other demon, she would not be polite; she would simply beat them and drive them away.
However, his status was prominent.
While Qianluo could ignore the reputation of the Myriad Thorn Palace to be at his beck and call, she could not openly insult the dignity of his sect.
Furthermore, Qianluo seemed truly unable to understand human speech.
If she spoke even a single word to him, he would let his imagination run wild and find self-satisfaction in it.
Qunyu took a deep breath and said coldly, “My affairs do not require Yaozun’s concern.”
After saying this, she brushed past him and walked toward the Shennong Temple.
Qianluo was long accustomed to her coldness and did not feel wronged in the slightest.
He followed eagerly at her side, nudging Wantang out of her position.
Wantang puffed out her cheeks in anger and was forced to walk on the other side next to Xihe.
Qianluo blended into the Flower God Palace procession without any hesitation, acting as familiarly as if he were a disciple of the palace himself.
“Caring for Fangzun is my duty, so how can it be called a bother!”
Qianluo smiled with total sincerity, though his pale green eyes held a flicker of hidden worry.
“Your aura is unstable. Perhaps you should skip the trip to the Shennong Temple today.”
This day was the main day of the Shennong Festival.
Before dawn, countless people had already crowded outside the temple waiting to offer the first incense.
Every year on this day, the temple would be packed to capacity, and the entire Heavenly Capital would be immersed in revelry with crowds surging everywhere.
If the Blood Sect intended to cause trouble, today would be the perfect opportunity.
Qianluo was worried that if the Blood Sect launched an attack during the chaos while Qunyu’s body was weakened, the ensuing battle would be disadvantageous for her.
Qunyu did not answer, so Wantang spoke up: ” Qianluo yaozun should worry about the affairs of Myriad Thorn Palace first.”
Xihe pulled on Wantang’s sleeve and shook her head gently.
“You must not be rude to Yaozun.”
Qianluo knew that these two were the beloved disciples of Qunyu.
He had always been intent on pleasing them, so he naturally did not feel any anger at Wantang’s rudeness.
He said with a grin, “The Daoist Alliance is one big family. Myriad Thorn Palace and Flower God Palace are as close as one. If any danger arises today, I will certainly ensure the safety of Fangzun.”
Qunyu suddenly stopped in her tracks.
She turned her head to look at Qianluo, her eyes, which seemed to contain the crushed glow of ten thousand stars, gazing at him quietly.
Caught off guard, Qianluo stopped as well.
His heart skipped a beat under her gaze, and he asked cautiously, “Does Fangzun have any instructions?”
Qunyu asked, “Why do you persist in pestering me, Yaozun?”
Qianluo spoke with deep affection, “My heart is true to you,Fangzun, and my devotion is unswerving!”
Qunyu gave a cold laugh.
“Is it because of this face? If I still had my original ugly appearance, would you spare me a single glance?”
Qianluo froze for a moment.
“Although you are the most beautiful woman in the world in my heart, my love for you is not because of that.”
Qunyu did not believe his rhetoric.
She said indifferently, “Even though I have forgotten those past events with Yan Zhao, I truly loved him and hated him. Even with my memories sealed, he remains my inner demon. In this life, I cultivate the Path of Heartlessness. I will never again be moved or fall in love with another person. I ask Yaozun to give up on this idea entirely and stop wasting your efforts on me!”
Having said her piece, Qunyu turned and left without showing any mercy.
Qianluo stood frozen on the spot, watching her receding back.
After a long while, he said with secret joy, “Fangzun actually spoke so many words to me…”
Wantang finally reclaimed her spot at the side of Qunyu and muttered, “Fangzun spoke so heartlessly this time. Qianluo Yaozun should finally give up now.”
Xihe peeked at the ice cold profile of Qunyu and whispered, “Fangzun, is your body…”
Wantang was startled and looked at Qunyu nervously.
“Is the Fangzun really seriously injured?”
Sovereign Qunyu said calmly, “My primordial spirit is damaged. I fear it will be difficult to summon my Dharma Aspect. I am telling you the truth so that you can be prepared and not let your guard down.”
Xihe and Wantang took on solemn expressions and bowed.
“We obey your command.”
Xihe had followed Qunyu the longest and understood her more deeply.
With a worried look, she said softly, “Was Fangzun so resolute just now because you were worried that Yaozun might ignore his own safety to protect you?”
The eyelashes of Qunyu trembled slightly, but she quickly regained her composure.
“What I said is also the truth.”
Xihe sighed softly.
“Fangzun often says that we cultivate the Path of Heartlessness, but I see that you are not a heartless person. An affectionate person forcing themselves to walk the path of heartlessness… perhaps this is the life and death trial of the Flower Beauty Technique?”
Li Ying saw Xu Manman again after many days, and a strange look flashed in her eyes.
“In just a few days, your cultivation progress has been so immense that it is simply unheard of.”
Li Ying marveled and patted her hand earnestly.
“Dual cultivation is good, but you must not be too greedy.”
Xu Manman gave a dry laugh, unable to explain the misunderstanding.
She understood one principle: in the face of absolute power, cleverness is useless.
Even if she planned everything perfectly, she would be turned to ashes if she were caught in the crossfire of a battle between Dharma Aspects.
Only by improving her own cultivation as quickly as possible could she have the power to protect herself.
Therefore, she had been cultivating hard every day, having Tuntun, Ning Xi, and Demon Lord Langyin take turns protecting her.
The cultivation method of the Soul Sect was quite terrifying.
In just a few days, she actually felt a sense of breakthrough.
She was only one step away from the Nascent Soul stage, but in terms of the solidity of her primordial spirit, she could even compete with a Dharma Aspect.
This was likely due to the integration of the half golden core from the original owner of the body.
One could say that she was not cultivating alone.
Therefore, saying it was dual cultivation was not entirely wrong.
“Do you think the Blood Sect will make a move today?”
Li Ying leaned close to Xu Manman and chatted in a seemingly casual manner.
Xu Manman smiled and said, “If I were the Blood Sovereign, I would certainly not strike today unless forced. I would keep stalling until the Daoist Alliance is exhausted.”
Li Ying nodded thoughtfully.
“You mean the sword that has not yet fallen poses the greatest threat.”
“Li Ying is a smart person. You do not actually need to ask me, as you understand this logic yourself.”
Xu Manman looked at Li Ying with a smile.
“What are you trying to test me for?”
Li Ying laughed.
“You are far too alert. I simply felt that you understand the Blood Sect better, so I wanted to ask for your opinion.”
“Oh…” Xu Manman pretended to be enlightened and smiled.
“You feel that my level of understanding regarding the Blood Sect exceeds what I should know given my identity.”
Li Ying smiled but said nothing.
“Since you suspect me, how did you dare to cooperate with me in the first place and let me take Li Que away as bait?” Xu Manman asked.
Li Ying said, “I only suspect your origins; I do not believe you are a member of the Blood Sect. Furthermore, since I dared to let Li Que go with you, I had already prepared sufficient backup plans.”
“Are you truly willing to take such a great risk for the sake of revenge?” Xu Manman asked.
“Call it a clear distinction between love and hate or call it a determination to settle every grievance, this is the pride of the Di Luan. A Di Luan has three lives: the first upon birth, and the second and third through two cycles of nirvana. In your eyes, Li Que is still alive, but the Blood Sect has already killed him once. Di Luan cannot leave such a grudge unavenged. Moreover, now that the Blood Sect intends to target those with Divine Veins, Di Luan cannot sit and wait for death. Rather than waiting for them to come to our door, it is better to join forces with the Daoist Alliance and crush them in their nest.”
A trace of fierce killing intent flashed through her brilliant phoenix eyes.
“I understand.”
Xu Manman sighed deeply.
“The way Ling Zhi refuses to let go of Li Que, and the way Li Que would rather die than submit to Ling Zhi, both stem from the stubbornness and defiance within the blood of Di Luan.”
Li Ying gave a faint smile. “Perhaps so.”
At that moment, a slender figure reflecting gold and red light flew from the horizon, landing before them in an instant.
“Li Que is here.”
Xu Manman smiled and waved at the newcomer.
“You arrived just in time. Let us admire the elegant demeanor of Tuntian together.”
Li Que spoke with slight disdain, “How could the demeanor of the Tuntian clan compare to our Di Luan?”
“Truly a proud little crow.”
Xu Manman shook her head with a laugh.
Before Li Que could react, Xu Manman’s eyes lit up as she exclaimed, “Look, Tuntian Shenzun is coming out!”
Tuntian finally made an appearance after much anticipation.
The round black and white divine beast seemed to have just woken up, walking out of the bamboo forest with a dazed expression.
Without doing anything at all, she drew bursts of screams from the surroundings.
“Tuntun, look over here!”
“Tuntun, I love you!”
When Tuntun raised a paw and waved, some people screamed and nearly fainted.
Tuntun walked slowly up the steps toward the high platform.
Within the Shennong Temple, a special Altar of Heaven had been built specifically for her so that she could receive the worship of the masses.
No wise ruler throughout the dynasties of the Great Xing Empire had ever been as beloved as Tuntian Shenzun.
As a high and mighty deity, she never demanded money from her believers, nor did she require them to make any sacrifices for her.
She honestly told her followers: I cannot bless you with promotions, wealth, or marriage; if you are willing, just come and see me.
Originally, the Shennong Temple intended to charge admission fees, but Tuntun rejected this idea.
Upon learning of this, the fanatic love the believers felt for her increased even further.
This was a cute god, a noble god, and a god who had transcended vulgar interests!
Her mere appearance brought endless joy and satisfaction to her believers.
That alone was enough!
Tuntun sat upon the Altar of Heaven, looked at the vast sea of heads below, and let out an “Aooo~” sound.
Every believer below knelt down, their voices rising like a mountain tsunami: “We pay our respects to Tuntian Shenzun!”
The invisible power of faith surged toward Tuntun like a tidal wave, making her fur more lustrous and her power more formidable.
She looked increasingly adorable and charming.
Xu Manman said with a sigh, “Such extraordinary natural talent is truly enviable.”
Li Que snorted in disdain.
“Serving others with mere looks is a disgrace to the reputation of divine beasts. Back then, the Tuntian clan was so majestic that countless demon tribes trembled at the sound of their name. Even the Fu Yue did not dare to come ashore to challenge her. Now, she actually relies on flattery to gain power.”
Xu Manman widened her eyes and looked at Li Que with a face full of admiration.
“Li Que, what you said makes so much sense. I only realized today that you are so handsome and wise. I like you so much!”
Li Que’s face turned slightly red.
He coughed awkwardly twice and said stubbornly, “It is… it is alright, I suppose.”
“Does the feeling of being liked feel good?” Xu Manman dropped her act and said with a grin, “I think you are just jealous that Tuntian Shenzun receives so much love.”
Only then did Li Que realize he had been teased by Xu Manman.
His face turned even redder as he shouted in shame and annoyance, “I am not!”
Xu Manman smiled slightly.
“Both methods obtain power. Originally, it relied on slaughter to create fear, but now it brings joy and happiness to hundreds of millions of people. Is the latter not more worthy of respect than the former? I feel this is the posture a true deity should have, don’t you think?”
Li Que hesitated for a long while but could not find any words to refute her.
On the tenth day of every month, Tuntun would make an appearance and stay on the Altar of Heaven for about fifteen minutes to satisfy the believers’ desire to see her while also absorbing the power of faith.
On the day of the Shennong Festival, believers from all over the world would come, and the number of people watching was more than ten times the usual amount.
To satisfy the followers who had traveled thousands of miles, she would stay longer than usual.
However, when the ceremony was halfway through, a sudden change occurred.
A shrill scream came from the northwest corner of the Altar of Heaven.
A believer in the crowd suddenly went mad, grabbing a sharp dagger and stabbing it into their own neck.
Blood sprayed out instantly, spreading across the ground like a fountain.
The surrounding crowd froze for a moment before reacting, then erupted into panicked screams, pushing and shoving to escape.
The same situation occurred in other corners.
Almost at the same time, screams and cries of alarm rose from eight directions surrounding the Altar of Heaven.
The originally orderly line suddenly fell into chaos as the terrified crowd pushed and trampled one another, creating an uncontrollable scene.
Tuntian regained her senses.
Her face, which usually seemed perpetually dazed and cute, now wore a serious expression.
She roared toward the sky with a majesty like heavenly wrath.
When the believers heard the roar, their legs went weak and they knelt on the ground, their faces showing a moment of absentmindedness and trance.
However, not everyone was affected this way.
The eight people who should have died from the stabs to their throats remained where they were like puppets, kneeling with dull eyes.
They raised their stiff hands and, using their own blood, drew eerie runes on the ground.
The Daoist Alliance cultivators, who had been on guard, rushed toward those eight self harming individuals the moment they noticed something was wrong.
But the roar of Tuntian also acted as a deterrent to them.
For a moment, their internal energy surged and their movements became sluggish.
Only the dead were unaffected by the divine prestige, and they quickly finished writing the eight blood runes.
The eight blood runes echoed one another, linking together to form a formation in the shape of the Eight Trigrams.
In the very center of that formation was Tuntun.
A blood red cage emerged out of thin air, trapping Tuntian inside.
She swung a fierce punch, and her bear paw actually passed through the cage as if meeting no resistance at all, yet her movements suddenly stiffened.
She looked down at her own palm and, as if refusing to believe what happened, threw another punch at the blood red cage.
However, this time she fell to her knees, curling up into a round, furry ball.
She trembled slightly and let out a painful cry.
Xu Manman was also dazed by the sheer majesty of the sovereign for a long while before recovering her senses.
When she raised her head toward the Altar of Heaven, she saw only the sight of Shenzun kneeling on the ground.
The fur ball shook a few times before a white light flashed over her body, transforming her into a young girl.
Xu Manman stared intently at that blood red cage and thought to herself that something was wrong.
Tuntun had fallen into a trap.
That was not a cage at all.
It took the form of a cage simply to lure Tuntun into trying to break it, but the moment she touched it was the moment she truly fell into the snare.
Xu Manman had encountered this substance once before.
it was extremely similar to the resentful cursed energy previously attached to the Soul Locking Nails.
This was an evil object created by the Blood Sect.
However, compared to that cursed energy, this blood red cage was far more malevolent, perhaps due to its connection to the sacrificial ritual of those eight blood cultivators.
Tuntun had thrown both punches with her full strength.
Even the Fu Yue would have been in pain for half a day after receiving those two hits.
Yet striking the air was completely useless.
When her power collided with the blood red cage, she felt only a greasy and gloomy force entwine itself around her arm.
It was like a cold snake crawling along her limb toward her heart, causing her entire body to freeze instantly.
She had never seen such a thing before and naturally did not know its danger, so she immediately threw a second punch.
This time, that venomous snake swallowed all of her strength and took a fierce bite out of her heart.
She could no longer support herself and collapsed to the ground, transforming into her human form.
At that very moment, the entire Shennong Temple suddenly glowed with golden light as the protective grand array was fully activated.
Xu Manman flew onto the Altar of Heaven and took a porcelain bottle from her sleeve.
Using a willow branch to dip into the water within the bottle, she sprinkled it across the altar.
The blood red cage dissolved instantly upon contact with the water.
Only then did Xu Manman land beside Tuntun.
She took the girl’s hand and pulled up her sleeve, revealing a hideous dark red mark on the fair skin.
Xu Manman immediately poured the bottled water onto the mark and watched as the stain slowly faded away.
“Fortunately, I was cautious and prepared the Guanyin Water in advance. Tuntun, you were much too impulsive,” Xu Manman said with a sigh of relief.
Tuntun sat on the ground in her human form.
She was a young girl of about sixteen or seventeen with two low ponytails.
Her face was chubby, and her eyes were round and bright.
She wore a soft white dress transformed from her black and white fur, with a circle of white fur around the collar that framed her small face.
She looked soft and cuddly, not at all like the legendary divine beast that awed the world, but rather like a sheltered and innocent young lady from a wealthy family.
She looked at Xu Manman with moist, dark eyes and muttered aggrievedly, “Manman, when you all said you would protect me, you were lying, right? You used me as bait.”
Xu Manman gave a dry cough and resisted the urge to pinch the girl’s cheeks in public.
She said solemnly, “How could that be? We share a deep sisterly bond. You must not doubt me.”
Tuntun looked her up and down with suspicion before nodding reluctantly.
