Volume One: Hidden in the Azure Abyss Chapter Forty-Nine

She could not believe it—the truth was actually like this.

When her phoenix eyes looked again, the gaze that had just been lowered now carried a hint of amusement, and those eyes fixed on her with a piercing brilliance.

After a wave of coldness, she felt an overwhelming sorrow and grief welling up from the depths of her heart.

Her eyes gradually reddened, tears brimming and threatening to fall.

She murmured softly, “If the Demon-Sealing Guide brought calamity to the Sea God, then isn’t the lineage of the Divine Maidens the enemy of Gengyuan? Am I… am I Gengyuan’s enemy?!”

Guilt and heartache surged within her, growing heavier and heavier, until at last she could only sob uncontrollably.

At that moment, a blue flame suddenly burst forth from Jinli’s chest. In a flash, a long sword gleaming with cold light sliced through all the illusions before her.

Jinli awoke with a start.

She looked at the Xuan Yin Sword before her, then reached out her hand, and the sword obediently fell into her palm.

The spirit of the Xuan Yin Sword had awakened.

It had all been an illusion.

If what she just saw was an illusion, then what had Gengyuan seen at that time?

This place reeked of demonic energy. It was not a place to linger. She should leave as soon as possible.

No sooner had she stepped out of the Illusory River than she was surrounded by soldiers of Illusory Dust.

Someone had deliberately set an ambush here.

From the crowd strode a woman in red, beautiful and delicate in appearance, and to her shock, this woman looked exactly like Jinli—her features, her mannerisms, every glance and every smile were identical.

“This person is a spy from the demon clan, having infiltrated Illusory Dust with malicious intent. Kill her,” the woman commanded.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Who dares!”

What on earth was happening? Why was there someone who bore her exact face?

How could the world be so strange?

Then, another figure emerged from the crowd, gently embracing the woman in red.

Gengyuan?

That man had the face of Gengyuan.

But Jinli saw immediately that he was not Gengyuan; the cunning in Gengyuan’s eyes would never be so wantonly displayed. He was not Gengyuan, but Kunyao, whom she had met before in Xichuan.

Yet as for the woman before her, Jinli still had no idea who she was. All she knew was that this woman’s every word and gesture seemed like a perfect imitation of herself, flawless to the untrained eye.

But a counterfeit would always be a counterfeit. No matter how hard she tried, she could never become the real thing.

She could only wait for Sangli to arrive; that was the only solution she could think of.

She was thrown into a dungeon. The walls were black, not a hint of light to be found, making it impossible for Jinli to tell how many days had passed.

Everything within the Illusory River was strange and unfathomable—she could not even be sure whether time itself was affected.

She did not know how long had passed when she finally heard the sound of a lock turning, followed by a shaft of light.

By candlelight, someone was carried in on a palanquin. Jinli could clearly smell the scent of blood.

It was that witch.

“Stop,” called the royal official, his voice echoing through the prison.

Jinli regarded the witch on the palanquin coldly—the witch who looked exactly like her.

That woman’s eyes were proud, her expression calm and composed. “Hand over that item.”

What item?

“What?”

The witch flicked her slender fingers, and a shell fell from her sleeve into her hand. Jinli leapt up and cried, “Give it back!”

The witch opened the shell, looked at the little sleeping merman inside, and smiled lightly. “He does not belong to you.”

“Who are you, really?!”

The witch’s lips curled with a perpetual smile. “There will be plenty of time for us to meet again. But for now, some things are about to happen, and you’ll have to stay here for a while.” She put away the shell and, as if recalling something, added, “To keep you from escaping, I’ll seal your immortal power for now.”

“How dare you! A mere demon dares to defy a goddess!”

No matter how Jinli roared, the witch remained unruffled. “A demon? The one you love will also one day become a demon. When that happens, there will be quite a show to watch.”

“Let’s go.”

The group departed in grand procession.

Why had Sangli not yet come? Could something have happened to the Celestial Sovereign?

Her powers sealed, Jinli was as helpless as any mortal. Each day, food was delivered, but only by mindless puppets.

She began to count the days from the time she awoke. Ten days had passed.

On this day, the door opened once more. Her eyes, long accustomed to darkness, were dazzled by the sudden light, and for a moment, her vision blurred.

“Ali! Ali!”

Sangli had come.

Jinli rose. Sangli looked at the thin, frail girl, his eyes full of guilt and concern. “Are you all right?”

Jinli clutched his sleeve tightly. “Where is Gengyuan? How is Gengyuan?”

“He… he is well, in the Southern Sea.”

“What?”

The witch had spared him?

“What about the demon clan?”

“The demons have been wiped out.”

“And Illusory Dust?”

“Illusory Dust is unharmed.”

“And inside the Illusory River?”

Sangli paused in thought, then spoke slowly, “A merman demon has already been forged from within the Illusory River.”

“The Demon God is about to awaken?!”

Demon bone, demon bone.

Gengyuan, Gengyuan.

Sangli dissolved the seal on Jinli’s powers. Immediately, Jinli wanted to seek out Gengyuan.

“Ali!”

Jinli froze as Sangli spoke, “It was Gengyuan—he released the merman god! When I arrived, there was no sign of the demon clan—they had been destroyed by him. Since he could destroy the demons, why did he not rescue you from prison?”

Sangli’s words echoed in Jinli’s mind like a thunderclap.

Gengyuan had refined the Sea God into a merman demon.

He had awakened the demon bone.

He had abandoned her.

A thousand doubts churned in Jinli’s heart, but faced with these facts, she could only accept them in silence.

“Where is the merman demon?”

“I don’t know. Gengyuan now denies everything, and the demon’s whereabouts are unknown.”

“And the Demon God?”

“The seal is weakening. The celestial officials say the barrier can only last for nine more days.”

“Senior brother, it is time for us to fulfill our promise.”

Marriage, to forge the Demon-Sealing Guide.

Jinli and Sangli returned to the secret chamber from before, now collapsed in ruins. The suspension bridge had been washed clean, the witch’s statue reduced to dust.

Everything was destroyed. As she left, Jinli filled in the remains, leaving nothing behind but a solid wall.

Prince Ce had finally returned, and even brought back the real Third Princess Consort.

Prince Ce, dignified and imposing, did indeed resemble Gengyuan somewhat. By his side stood a gentle and demure young woman.

They made a fine couple.

Jinli did not go to the Southern Sea to question Gengyuan’s motives. All she could do now was forge the Demon-Sealing Guide and then extract the demon bone.

She could not afford to invest any more feeling in Gengyuan.

In the Ninth Heaven, the immortals discussed the matter of the Demon-Sealing Guide.

Since ancient times, it was said that to forge the Demon-Sealing Guide, a divine maiden and a member of the celestial clan must be united in marriage. Only then would the divine maidens offer the lotus heart flower for the forging.

In the end, the wedding was set.

Jinli gazed upon the sea of clouds and stars, weariness filling her heart. She had seen the suffering of the world, the might of the Demon Lord. The merman demon’s whereabouts were unknown. Nine days remained—enough time to extract the demon bone.

Unwittingly, she found herself in the Holy Realm.

Here, broken walls and ruins remained—a relic of the ancient war. After the disappearance of the Emperor of Nine Mysteries, the place had never been restored.

She looked at the divine throne. If the Emperor were still here, he would surely make the same choice: to trade his own life for the peace of all beings.