Chapter 66: The Three Immortals of Biyou

A hush fell over the room.

Madam Zhao instinctively looked at Daoist Lü. "Daoist, what does she mean?"

Why wasn't the goddess leaving? Had they somehow offended her?

The warmth that had filled Madam Zhao's heart after getting a clue about her son's whereabouts quickly vanished. She clutched her husband's arm, fear and anxiety filling her weary eyes.

Daoist Lü stood stiffly, his body cold as if he had just stepped out of a snowstorm, his face pale with a sickly hue.

"Please... return, Purple Goddess."

He repeated this plea three times, his face growing paler with each utterance. By the third time, sweat was pouring down his forehead, soaking his back.

"Did she leave?" Daoist Lü gasped for breath, his spine bent as if under an immense weight. He supported himself on his knees, looking up at the black-clad girl, refusing to give up.

"No," Ling Ji replied succinctly after glancing at the Purple Goddess.

Daoist Lü's tension evaporated, and he collapsed to the ground with a loud thud as his knees hit the floor.

"Daoist, what are you doing?" Madam Zhao's anxiety spiked further, seeing the Daoist's sudden collapse.

But Daoist Lü was beyond words.

He extended both hands, fingers spread, thumbs pressing against middle fingers, while index and pinky fingers curled inward. His left pinky hooked his right pinky, forming a Taoist hand seal.

"What is he doing?" Ling Ji watched the Daoist form a gesture and then kneel motionless, perplexed by his actions.

"Uh…" Xing Miao, understanding the gesture but not the Daoist's intentions, was speechless. "He's using a hand seal to amplify his spell."

"What kind of seal?" Ling Ji wasn't initially interested in the Daoist's spell but noticed the Purple Goddess's expression change at the gesture.

"She looks like she's smiling angrily."

"It's the Prince's Hand Seal," Xing Miao added, having seen the Purple Goddess's reaction. "It's used to expel evil spirits."

"What?" Ling Ji was momentarily confused, thinking the spell was directed at her. But seeing the Purple Goddess's increasingly dark expression, she realized the truth.

Her view of the Daoist changed; he wasn't just foolish, he was outright idiotic.

He invited a deity only to treat her like an evil spirit to be expelled. The fact that the Purple Goddess hadn't struck him dead showed her patience.

"Exactly," Xing Miao agreed, observing the Daoist's self-destructive actions. Initially reluctant to intervene, he noticed the Zhao couple's anxiety and reconsidered.

"Daoist Lü, have you lost your mind in your old age? You can't send off a deity using a method meant for evil spirits. Even if you mistakenly took the Purple Goddess for an evil spirit, you shouldn't use the Prince's Hand Seal. Don't you know the Prince's Hand Seal was created by Nezha, who is the goddess's junior?"

Daoist Lü's hands froze, the realization hitting him hard. His internal energy disrupted, he coughed up blood from the backlash.

"You… you're one of the Three Immortals?"

Before she could answer, Daoist Lü fainted.

Seeing him finally comprehend the truth, Xing Miao smirked silently. Inviting a deity without understanding her origin, then treating her as an evil spirit to expel, deservedly resulted in backlash.

During the War of the Gods, Zhao Gongming had assisted the Shang Dynasty at the request of General Wen Zhong, only to be killed by Lu Ya. His three sisters—Yunxiao, Qiongxiao, and Bixiao—sought revenge and set up the Nine Bends Yellow River Formation, capturing most of Yuanshi Tianzun's disciples. However, their formation was eventually broken by Yuanshi Tianzun and Laozi, and the sisters perished.

Jiang Ziya placed their names on the God-Sealing List, but due to their actions against Yuanshi Tianzun's disciples and Tongtian Jiaozhu's severe loss, the Jade Emperor assigned them to the ignoble position of latrine deities. Their powerful treasure, the Hunyuan Golden Bucket, became associated with chamber pots.

The Three Immortals, originally noble and pure manifestations of celestial clouds, were unjustly killed and given humiliating roles. Bound by the God-Sealing List, they were trapped in their positions indefinitely, unable to escape even through death.

"They are disciples of Tongtian Jiaozhu from Biyou Palace," Ye Jianghuai explained to Ling Ji, who didn't initially recognize the names. Mentioning Tongtian Jiaozhu, however, elicited a reaction from her.

Her gaze involuntarily shifted to the Purple Goddess, disbelief on her face. "It can't be…"

After all, Tongtian Jiaozhu was a sage, and even she wouldn't dare to defy a sage.

Moreover, Tongtian Jiaozhu was known for fiercely protecting his disciples.

If she hadn't been too young and weak back then, she would have joined the East Sea Biyou Palace instead of hiding among humans.

"Nothing is impossible. Even sages are subject to the will of Heaven," Ye Jianghuai said. The will of Heaven favored humans, and to give humans more resources, Heaven had used the War of the Gods to eliminate many powerful beings.

Those who survived were shackled by restrictions, and when the Heavenly Court moved beyond the mortal realm, it took the last remaining gods with it, leaving the world for humans.

A few gods and demons who stayed gradually weakened due to the world's thin spiritual energy, their former glory fading, with no chance of further advancement.

Ye Jianghuai looked at Ling Ji, who was unaware of these changes, his gaze darkening.

Fortunately, Ling Ji wasn't involved.

"Didn't you tell me all the gods and buddhas left this world?" Ling Ji asked, tugging on Ye Jianghuai's sleeve and nodding toward the Three Immortals. "Why didn't they leave?"

Ye Jianghuai shook his head. "I don't know."

Ling Ji turned to Xing Miao, who also shook his head. "I don't know either." While historical records detailed the War of the Gods, why some didn't leave likely only they knew.

"Daoist…" Madam Zhao instinctively cried out seeing Daoist Lü unconscious. She turned to her husband for help. Zhao Lirun sighed almost imperceptibly and checked the Daoist's breathing. "He's alive."

"Then let's call an ambulance," Madam Zhao suggested, pulling out her phone.

"It's pointless. He suffered backlash. Going to the hospital would only hasten his death," Xing Miao said, stopping Madam Zhao's actions. She clutched her phone tighter, cold dread filling her. "What should we do?"

"He should have some medicine," Xing Miao replied.

Madam Zhao's gaze fell on a black wooden box. Before she could act, a grey-clad figure quickly opened it and skillfully retrieved a bottle, feeding the Daoist a pill.

It was the grey-robed boy accompanying Daoist Lü.

After swallowing the pill, Daoist Lü's complexion improved slightly, gaining some color. But soon, his face paled again, even more so than before, almost transparent.

Seeing this, the boy tried to feed him another pill.

"It's useless." Xing Miao glanced at the Three Immortals, recalling the past. "He didn't dismiss the summoned deity, so his body must continue to channel spiritual energy as a bridge between the divine and the mortal realms."

Nothing in this world comes without a price.

Summoning a deity requires a medium, and a mortal's fragile body can't withstand the strain for long.

That's why the Daoist, in his desperation, resorted to an exorcism spell.

Ignoring Xing Miao's words, the boy fed another pill to Daoist Lü, then stood up and retrieved two jade bottles and a jade pendant from the box.

He approached the Three Immortals, holding out the items. "These are offerings. Please accept them."

Xing Miao gave a soft "Hmm." "Can you see the goddess?"

"He has opened his spiritual eye," Ling Ji noted. She hadn't paid much attention to the boy until she smelled a faint scent of sandalwood, like the incense lingering in temples, and looked at him closely.

That's when she noticed the boy's anomaly.

But she had no time to dwell on it, as the Three Immortals moved.

"Are you… Zhulong?" Yunxiao asked.

"Yes." Seeing Yunxiao recognize her, Ling Ji smiled brightly, feeling a sense of kinship due to her reverence for Tongtian Jiaozhu.

However…

Ling Ji tilted her head, puzzled by the change in Yunxiao. Though her face and features were the same, this Yunxiao seemed different.

The previous Yunxiao had a stillness born from despair, a lifeless calm, with madness, wildness, and desperation in her eyes.

Now, Yunxiao's calm was like a serene ocean, her eyes reflecting the passage of time and deep understanding.

"Who are you?"

"I am… Yunxiao."

Yunxiao's smile was gentle, like sunlight breaking through the clouds.

Ling Ji seemed to see layers of white clouds drifting by, carrying the elegance and grace accumulated over time, walking slowly through the river of time, bathed in the first light of dawn.

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