Chapter 231: So I’m the Protagonist After All (End)
Just as Xiao Xingwei swung his first sword at Su Mingxiu, Sui Yihuan summoned the God Sealing Mirror, blocking Tai’e’s attack. The jade-green artifact, struck by the sharp blade, rang out, a crack appearing on its surface.
Sui Yihuan frowned, retracting the God Sealing Mirror. A shadowy figure lunged at her back, only to be stopped by a net of lightning.
Su Mingxiu raised an eyebrow at the Heavenly Demon, who had lost her former elegance, “No greeting for your disciple, Master? How hurtful.”
The Heavenly Demon, her sneak attack thwarted by pure thunder spiritual power: “…”
She’d known this wretched disciple was powerful and sharp-tongued, but it still stung.
Although they’d blocked Xiao Xingwei’s first attack, Su Mingxiu and Sui Yihuan couldn’t create many more opportunities with the pearl.
His tribulation lightning armor prevented them from getting close, and with the Heavenly Demon lurking, waiting for revenge, they quickly tired.
Only then did Xiao Xingwei reveal his true strength.
The path of cultivation grew harder with each stage, the gap between realms widening. Su Mingxiu, though powerful, was no match for Xiao Xingwei, empowered by the Buddhist treasure to the peak of Tribulation Transcendence. Her attacks seemed feeble.
And she had to watch for the Heavenly Demon’s attacks on Sui Yihuan—
She was quickly injured, her left arm nearly severed.
“I’ll handle the Heavenly Demon. You…” Sui Yihuan knew Su Mingxiu was stronger than this, capable of more. The Heavenly Dao’s restrictions were holding her back. “Hold on, I’m coming.”
Drip.
Red blood fell from the sky above the Demon Abyss, disappearing into the vast blood lake without a ripple.
Su Mingxiu locked onto Xiao Xingwei, the smile never leaving her lips. Her voice, though lacking its usual warmth, held a unique tenderness, “I should be saying that to you.”
“We’ve come this far. Dying here for love isn’t my ideal ending.”
Sui Yihuan’s crimson eyes also held a smile. She knew Su Mingxiu’s fear. Though much remained unspoken between them, she knew what Su Mingxiu wanted.
To live, together.
Xiao Xingwei, irritated by their closeness, couldn’t understand their bond. He and Su Mingxiu were both born with Daoist constitutions.
But Sui Yihuan was a filthy demon. He couldn’t fathom Su Mingxiu choosing her over him.
She was foolish, blind to the obvious advantages.
Foolishness demanded a price. He swung Tai’e, an unavoidable blow—
Just one more strike…
Pure black sword energy, with world-destroying power, bore down on Su Mingxiu. The green figure, like a mantis trying to stop a chariot, was quickly enveloped, about to be crushed.
Xiao Xingwei didn’t even look, turning instead to Sui Yihuan, now possessed by the Heavenly Demon and frozen in mid-air. Disdain filled his eyes as he prepared to end them both.
Suddenly!
A surge of spiritual power behind him made his spine tingle. He turned too late, barely raising Tai’e to block!
“Boom!”
A deafening explosion rocked the Demon Abyss. Su Mingxiu’s proximity to Xiao Xingwei meant the tribulation lightning engulfed them both, stray sword energy scattering like an exploding lightning ball.
“You…”
Xiao Xingwei blocked her attack, his eyes widening as he realized how she’d evaded his earlier strike. Not worried, but delighted, he laughed, “You dare ascend amidst tribulation lightning? You’re courting death!”
As he spoke, the tribulation lightning intensified, engulfing the Demon Abyss. The demons thought they were doomed. Only Su Mingxiu knew the lightning targeted her.
Undeterred, she blocked Tai’e and looked down, “I meant to mention, your sword is as weak as ever, all show and no substance.”
Her fingers on Tai’e tightened slightly. Xiao Xingwei’s eyes widened—
Two sword cultivators at the Tribulation Transcendence realm, the difference in raw power laid bare.
Xiao Xingwei doubled over, a Tribulation Transcendence Venerable’s blood splattering onto the cliff beside the blood lake, solidifying into golden crystals, blooming like strange flowers.
The unique power of gold spiritual energy.
But no one had time to admire the spectacle. As Xiao Xingwei was injured by Su Mingxiu’s casual sword energy, the tribulation lightning converged on her, the will of the Nine Continents striking down!
The Heavenly Dao, merciless against defiance, sought to obliterate this failure!
In an instant, the blood lake parted, and a faintly glowing spiritual sword flew out, blocking the destructive lightning before Su Mingxiu.
But the Heavenly Dao’s power was overwhelming. Even with the sword spirit awakened and reconnected to Su Mingxiu, it seemed too small to resist.
Xiao Xingwei, injured but distanced, watched coldly, waiting to finish off the Demon Lord and city lords after Su Mingxiu was reduced to ashes. Such a feat would make him the undisputed ruler of the Nine Continents!
Too confident in Su Mingxiu’s demise, he forgot the possessed Demon Lord. Looking around, he didn’t see the black-clad figure outside the lightning—
【Beware!】
The Heavenly Dao’s voice echoed in his mind.
“Looking for me?”
A cold voice came from behind. He reacted, instinctively swinging his sword, but he was frozen.
A hand pierced his chest, dripping gold blood, laced with black and red curse threads, a terrifying sight. In that pierced hand, she held the faintly glowing green…God Sealing Mirror.
Sui Yihuan, using the Mirror’s power to shatter space, tore through Xiao Xingwei’s body, then infused him with blood curse power, preventing his wounds from healing, immobilizing him.
He could only feel the vile curse spreading through his veins.
“How could you…”
Xiao Xingwei couldn’t comprehend how she’d overcome the Heavenly Demon so quickly, let alone have the strength to attack him.
As the curse spread, tainting even his Daoist constitution, his eyes widened in horror. He made the agonizing decision—
His Nascent Soul burst from his forehead, abandoning his cultivated body. His voice was filled with hatred and desperation, “Heavenly Dao! Protect me!”
Su Mingxiu was doomed! No need to waste all the tribulation lightning on her, killing this Demon Lord who’d taken his body was paramount!
He was the chosen one; his protection was paramount!
His miniature form flew towards the lightning, abandoning all pretense of their deal, shouting—
The lightning surrounding Su Mingxiu hesitated, about to divert to protect him, when he saw a hand gripping a sword hilt within the blinding white light.
Terror, greater than any near-death experience, gripped him. His Nascent Soul tried to turn, too late—
He watched as the hand gripped the sword within the lightning vortex. The sword, already humming from absorbing the tribulation lightning, was turned, its wielder seemingly commanding the very heavens!
The accumulated lightning power, absorbed by the sword and its master, was unleashed in a blinding white flash, less terrifying than Tai’e’s black sword energy, yet silencing the world.
Blinding white filled Xiao Xingwei’s vision.
He heard nothing.
Then, the crackling of tribulation lightning returned, and he rejoiced, thinking the Heavenly Dao’s protection had arrived. Then, darkness.
His Nascent Soul extinguished, he died not understanding his defeat.
Behind his fading Nascent Soul, his body was shattered by the unstoppable blow. Sui Yihuan, knowing he was dead, released his remains to fall into the blood lake, her hand rising instinctively.
She touched the snowflake earring on her left ear; a petal was broken.
But she didn’t care, nor did she look to see where Su Mingxiu’s attack had flown after breaking through the Demon Abyss formation. She rushed to Su Mingxiu’s side, pushing the bloodstained God Sealing Mirror forward, shielding her from the intensifying tribulation lightning.
Su Mingxiu, having unleashed that attack, ready to be struck, saw the figure enter the lightning and said, bewildered, “Why—”
“A lover’s death isn’t my ideal ending.” Sui Yihuan embraced her, their bodies cracking under the lightning, their meridians overflowing with power. With her last strength, she said, “But living alone is far more terrifying.”
Her spiritual sword shattered after that blow. Su Mingxiu focused on absorbing the tribulation lightning, her meridians repeatedly breaking and reforming, the pain indescribable, only blood froth escaping her lips.
She lost the chance to argue; she wouldn’t inflict this on Sui Yihuan. If she feared being alone, why had she made that deal with the Heavenly Dao in her past life?
Embracing, their consciousnesses intertwined, they heard a terrifying sound, but had no time to discern it.
They were fading.
Even the sounds of the world quieted.
The tribulation lightning had long since faded.
But Su Mingxiu and Sui Yihuan still held each other close, a golden light piercing the Demon Abyss formation, bathing them in warmth, their souls soaking in a comforting spring.
“The former Heavenly Dao, lacking virtue and showing favoritism, caused chaos in the Nine Continents…” A familiar mechanical voice reached Su Mingxiu’s ears, and she, who thought she’d become one with the wind and rain, opened her dark eyes.
Before her, Sui Yihuan also opened her eyes, hearing the same voice, and asked with a strange expression, “Is this a new trick of the Heavenly Dao?”
It shouldn’t be.
It had just tried to kill them; why this conciliatory tone now?
Bathed in golden light, Su Mingxiu pondered, looking down at her body. The lightning scars were gone, the pain vanished, her sea of consciousness vast, sensing the breath of the stars and the Nine Continents.
Her body was clothed in a robe woven from golden light, soft and warm, surpassing any mortal finery.
Alive, Su Mingxiu’s mind raced. After a moment, she smiled at Sui Yihuan, “I don’t think it’s a trick.”
She explained, “My attack must have reached the heavens.”
Unlike Xiao Xingwei’s ascension, aided by the Heavenly Dao, Su Mingxiu’s power was earned. Her sword intent could split heaven and earth. She’d returned the Heavenly Dao’s most powerful weapon against it.
She’d intended to pierce the sky; she hadn’t expected this.
The former Heavenly Dao’s will had been extinguished.
A new will was born, now bathing Su Mingxiu and Sui Yihuan in golden light, reciting a confession of sorts. The former Heavenly Dao, lacking virtue and impartiality,
Was no longer worthy. They, the instruments of change, should…take its place.
Hmm?
Take its place?
Su Mingxiu instantly flashed out of the golden light. After enduring the tribulations of her past life and battling the Heavenly Dao across eight worlds, reunited with Sui Yihuan, she’d had enough of control and emotional suppression. She’d rather be free as the wind than rule all creation.
Besides.
Her heart already belonged to someone.
Sui Yihuan, watching her, quickly understood. She too,
Flashed out of the golden light, apologizing, “I…don’t want to lose my seven emotions and six desires. I’m sorry.”
The nascent Heavenly Dao: “?”
Confused, it reviewed the former Heavenly Dao’s rules. Wasn’t becoming an emotionless immortal the ultimate goal of cultivators?
But then, the old rules were flawed; this wasn’t surprising.
The golden light formed into a child, seven or eight years old, with long silver hair, chubby cheeks, and bright eyes. In a calm, ancient voice, it said:
“Congratulations on breaking free from your unjust fate and following your own path. This deity wishes to atone for past transgressions. You may each make a wish for the new order.”
“A wish?”
Su Mingxiu casually played with her hair, replying indifferently, “I’ve already fulfilled all my wishes myself.”
Sui Yihuan hesitated, glancing at Su Mingxiu, who nodded. She exhaled and said, “I only wish for equality for all beings in the Nine Continents, whether demon, cultivator, or mortal, to stand under the sun.”
“Granted.”
More golden light poured in, dispelling the black and red mist above the Demon Abyss, forming pillars of light, dreamlike and ethereal.
In the slums,
Low-level demons, hiding underground, heard the silence and, seeing no change in the Demon Abyss, knew the Demon Lord had won, emerging to celebrate.
A child pointed at the golden light and asked an elder, “Is that…the legendary sun?”
A demon, sensing the shift in the Heavenly Dao’s will, wiped a tear and smiled, “It’s hope.”
Hope?
Looking at the elder’s smile, the child scratched his goat horns, thinking it must be a good word.
“Don’t you have anything to ask me?”
In the tower bathed in golden sunlight, Sui Yihuan looked at the person dozing since their return and reached for the black neck ring, originally meant for protection, yet still there.
As she tried to remove it, Su Mingxiu caught her hand, the mole at the corner of her eye lazy in the sunlight. She kissed Sui Yihuan’s hand. Just as Sui Yihuan expected her to ask about the Heavenly Demon, Su Mingxiu’s eyes narrowed, her other hand reaching for the snowflake earring.
“It’s missing a petal.”
It was now a five-pointed snowflake.
“Uh…” Sui Yihuan hesitated, unsure how to explain that it had been shattered by a stray lightning bolt when she killed Xiao Xingwei, “Should I find someone to fix it?”
“I’ll do it.”
Su Mingxiu removed the earring. Seeing Sui Yihuan’s eagerness to confess, her face practically screaming “I want to tell you everything, just give me a chance,” she chuckled and pulled her close.
“Alright, tell me.”
Sui Yihuan hurriedly confessed about the Heavenly Demon. It had all happened so fast. The Heavenly Demon, despite her betrayal and hatred, still prioritized the demon race’s revival over revenge. So, in a way, they shared a common enemy.
As long as Sui Yihuan lived and led the demons back to the prosperous Nine Continents, the Heavenly Demon would pay any price, even her own life.
—Another outcome the Heavenly Dao and Xiao Xingwei hadn’t foreseen. Well, the former Heavenly Dao.
Su Mingxiu wondered what it would think, knowing everyone but its protagonist defied its will. It was a pity she’d never know.
The snowflake in her hand melted, and in the dim room, flowers bloomed, swaying gently, their vibrant colors drawing their gaze.
Unexpectedly seeing the sea of flowers again, Sui Yihuan relaxed, nestled in Su Mingxiu’s arms, her eyes reflecting the colors, “I think I remember some things from my past life.”
She felt a twinge of guilt,
Afraid Su Mingxiu would settle old scores.
But Su Mingxiu’s method was unique. With an “Oh?” she suddenly gripped Sui Yihuan’s waist, pulling her closer, “Then tell me, why did you choose a demon as your queen?”
Ah, this.
Caught off guard by such a pointed question, the Demon Lord rubbed her nose, her eyes reddening with nervousness, “I had just become the Demon Lord, my authority wasn’t secure. To invade the Nine Continents, I needed the other city lords’ support. It was just a promise, not a real marriage.”
It wasn’t a real marriage.
Because before that, Sui Yihuan had already traded her soul for Su Mingxiu, just like in the last world Su Mingxiu experienced.
Even though she had to maintain relationships with others, in the end, her heart belonged to her.
Seeing the dangerous glint in Su Mingxiu’s eyes, Sui Yihuan abruptly got up, walked barefoot towards the sea of flowers, looked around nervously, and changed the subject, “Oh no! The broken patch is missing roses!”
Su Mingxiu raised an eyebrow, got up from the deck chair, walked towards her, also into the sea of flowers, looked around, and suddenly opened her palm towards Sui Yihuan—
Under the Demon Lord’s puzzled gaze, she suddenly moved towards her. When she reacted, she realized that the black neck ring that had been locked around Su Mingxiu’s neck was now on hers!
When did Su Mingxiu unlock it…no, how did she even know how to do that?
Sui Yihuan held the thread of spiritual power in her palm, her expression bewildered.
As she stared blankly, Su Mingxiu laughed, her fingertips tracing the edge of the neck ring, her nose rubbing against Sui Yihuan’s cheek, “It’s not missing, the rose is right here.”
Having just finished her sweet words, she slowly hooked the neck ring, leaned closer, and whispered in Sui Yihuan’s ear, “If you don’t say something nice to coax me, this rose’s petals will be crushed, and she’ll only be able to pitifully leak juice.”
Sui Yihuan: “?”
Her face was full of terror. After a long moment of trepidation, she said ingratiatingly, “How about…I marry you? I’ll make you my Demon Queen.”
As soon as she finished speaking, she was lifted into Su Mingxiu’s arms and carried towards the bed. She kicked her feet, knocking a water lily askew in the essence flower sea.
The unsuccessful Demon Lord tried to negotiate again, “This time, I’ll be with you for not just a hundred years! A thousand years, ten thousand years! Is that okay?”
……
In the surging heat, Sui Yihuan thought she had failed in her negotiation.
Until her soul also drifted, she heard the other person’s slightly hoarse voice, the deep affection within it so hot that she shivered even in her sleep, as if branded with an inescapable mark.
“A thousand years? Ten thousand years?”
“Far from enough.”
Since this rose chose to land in her soil, it could only take root and grow here. From then on, all its charm was dedicated to her, all the morning dew it exuded could only nourish her. As the rose grew, the soil provided nutrients. If the rose withered, this land would die with it.
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