The Adopted Child of Sui Zimeng

The Holy Land of the Immortal River was now in chaos unlike anything recorded in its history. Every sacred peak trembled. Each cultivation ground was stained with blood. Every hidden corner echoed with the sounds of battle and the stench of betrayal.

The outbreak of violence erupted without the slightest warning, surging forth like a tidal wave crashing upon a calm shore. No one had time to prepare. No one knew who was friend or foe.

Mu Nansi, who just moments before seemed to have lost her composure, managed to reclaim her clarity the instant she saw Han Ming stepping in to save Ji Yiren. The aura he released just then had sent a chill through her very bones.

She gathered her senses swiftly and calculated the situation with a mind sharpened by years of experience. Though her heart still burned with fury hot enough to consume everything in its path, she did not let it cloud her judgment.

She had known this day would come. The Wu Clan's attack wasn't unexpected.

Through spies planted within the Wu Clan and the life-sacrificing prophecy of Yun Zhenying, everything had gone precisely as foreseen. Yun Zhenying had predicted that the Wu Clan and its allies would soon launch a full-scale assault.

But their true objective… was not victory.

What they truly sought was to force the Holy Land of the Immortal River to awaken its Five Supreme Ancestors.

Those five were cultivators whose strength had already surpassed the realm of ordinary Great Emperors. Though they hadn't yet reached the level of Sui Zimeng, their power was beyond what this world could endure.

The moment they unleashed their full might, the world itself would reject them. And if even one of those five Supreme Ancestors disappeared from the Holy Land of the Immortal River...

Then, according to Yun Zhenying's prophecy, the Wu Clan would unleash everything every last force, every sacred treasure in a final assault. They would disregard all consequence. They would not care if they perished alongside their enemies.

Because in the end… the Holy Land of the Immortal River would be destroyed.

Thus… the hope of sending the ancestors beyond this realm to seek aid had become nothing more than a distant dream.

But that wasn't what troubled Mu Nansi the most. What truly disturbed her—was the fact that disciples within the sect had started killing one another. That alone brought forth a terrifying possibility in her mind. The possibility that the enemy possessed someone with mastery over celestial secrets similar to Yun Zhenying.

The rebellion from Heavenly Bamboo Peak, the clashes between inner and outer disciples, the division among the elders none of it would have escaped Yun Zhenying's foresight unless there was a third hand manipulating it all from the shadows. And she could already guess who it might be. One of the seven adopted daughters of Sui Zimeng.

Just yesterday, she had used her unique ability to investigate the past of Mo Yanshen. But what she saw… was nothing but false memories, an illusion carefully and masterfully constructed.

She spent a long time before she discovered a certain artifact that had hidden Mo Yanshen's true past. And that artifact was not from this world it originated from the Upper Realm. But even that couldn't stop her from uncovering the truth in the end.

And what she discovered was that Mo Yanshen possessed two souls within a single body. One was his original soul, and the other belonged to someone unfamiliar yet someone she had seen before. That soul belonged to a former attendant of the Divine Son from the Holy Land of the Immortal River in the true Infinite Spirit Realm. And through this, she came to understand many things.

They didn't intend to kill her. Their goal was to remove her from the competition for the title of Saintess of the Holy Land of the Immortal River in the Upper Realm. Their plan was to imprison her in the Lower Realm for three years, preventing her from participating in the upcoming trials.

After learning this, she turned her attention to Ji Yiren's past. Even though the Heavenly Dao itself tried to stop her, she pushed through and uncovered the truth. Though doing so caused the Heavenly Dao to develop an intense aversion toward her... she didn't care.

Mu Nansi turned around and swiftly regained her composure, then faced the gathering of elders, grandmasters, and ancient patriarchs within the grand hall.

Her voice rang out with unshakable authority, like a decree from the heavens themselves.

"Peak Masters of the Nine Sacred Peaks, Chief Elders, Guardian Elders, and all Patriarchs... go and hold them back for ten minutes."

She paused for a moment, then turned to one elderly man.

"Except for you, Bai Li... you'll maintain order and eliminate every last traitor within the sect."

There was no room for hesitation in her command.

At that moment, the light of the teleportation array burst forth in the center of the hall. Without a single question or word of protest, all high-ranking leaders vanished instantly.

Now, only three people remained within the great hall: Mu Nansi, Ji Yiren, and Ye Lin… whose body was releasing the power of a peak-stage Great Emperor like a rampaging ancient beast. And beside them, the corpse of Mo Yanshen.

The ground of the sacred peak at the heart of the Holy Land of the Immortal River trembled violently, as though the entire world itself was shaking. The clouds above twisted and warped under the pressure of overwhelming spiritual force. The sounds of battle from all directions thundered into the heart of the grand hall.

Mu Nansi stood silently before Ye Lin and Ji Yiren. Her face was still flawless and serene, yet those piercing blue eyes of hers grew colder with each passing second.

A faint smile curled on her lips as she spoke, her words sharp and mocking like thousands of needles piercing into the listener's heart.

"What is it you want, you pitiful Heaven's favorite orphan… who can't even accomplish anything on your own?"

Ye Lin gritted his teeth, rage boiling up from deep within his chest.

"Let my master go!!"

Mu Nansi let out a soft laugh, her eyes brimming with ridicule.

"Let her go? I never imprisoned her in the first place… are you stupid or what?!"

But before Ye Lin could respond, an odd, unfamiliar warning echoed within his mind.

"Dodge now!!"

Ye Lin instinctively twisted his body to dodge the attack, but his arm was still severed cleanly by something he couldn't even perceive. In that instant, the air before him transformed, turning into flowing water that moved with eerie sentience. It then compressed and solidified into tens of thousands of translucent blades, slicing through the air and surging toward Ye Lin like a tidal wave of death.

Ye Lin, not far from the onslaught, swiftly swept his hand to conjure a defensive barrier. But those blades of water reverted to liquid mid-air, easily slipping through the barrier and reforming into sharp spikes aimed straight at his head.

His eyes widened. He knew full well he had no chance of withstanding an attack like this. Not only was he unfamiliar with the full force of a peak Great Emperor's power, but he hadn't yet adapted to this overwhelming realm.

Yet in that very moment

Cling!

A silver arc of sword light sliced through the air, scattering the water spikes into shimmering mist. From the void, a figure shot forth.

A black-haired woman emerged, her long, flowing hair cascading down her back. She wore a tight-fitting black outfit that hugged her curves with dangerous elegance, her voluptuous chest especially eye-catching. In her hands, she held a pair of twin blades exuding a chilling aura of death.

Behind her, six other women stepped silently out of the void. Each one possessed a peerless beauty, and each radiated an awe-inspiring pressure that made the air itself tremble.

Mu Nansi stared at the seven women as they appeared from the void, then cursed silently to herself.

"Damn it… this wasn't in the prophecy."

She composed herself quickly, closed her eyes briefly, then lifted the corners of her lips slightly, already thinking of ways to stall for time.

"My, my… as expected of the eldest of the Seven Celestial Fairies. Such grandeur and presence."

The twin-bladed woman smiled at the compliment without hesitation.

"Thank you, Lady Mu, for your kind words. But yours are quite grand themselves. I honestly envy the man who'll become your husband."

But before they could continue their banter, one of the seven celestial women her long white hair flowing and voice laced with disinterest spoke in a languid tone.

"Is this really the time for this? …Well, whatever. You're already surrounded. Just surrender quietly, will you? Don't make me waste unnecessary energy."

Mu Nansi stood still, her expression maintaining the same icy smirk that was her signature. Her eyes showed not even a flicker of fear.

Standing before her were the seven adopted daughters of Sui Zimeng supreme prodigies from the True Infinite Spirit Realm. They were spoken of in reverent tones across worlds, known equally for their extraordinary talents and transcendent beauty, like immortal fairies who had descended upon the mortal world.

Mu Nansi spoke in a low voice, her tone teasing and deliberately provocative.

"The seven of you… are so stunning I can barely take my eyes off you. Why not marry me instead of letting yourselves be wasted on that worthless trash Wu Zhao?"

One of the seven stepped forward confidently, her eyes a brilliant pink in the shape of hearts. Her lips curled into a mischievous smile, the kind that blurred the line between jest and intent.

"What a shame… I'm not really into women. But if I could play with a noble lady like you descended from gods themselves well, I think that might be quite… fun."

She licked her lips lightly.

In that very moment, just as Mu Nansi was about to take action, her body froze.

She couldn't move not even a twitch.

The pink-eyed girl now stood silently behind her, having appeared without a sound. Her breathtaking face was adorned with a playful grin, while her gaze, brimming with obsession, shimmered like that of a predator who had finally cornered its prey.

Mu Nan Si's body was completely immobilized. She couldn't even twitch a fingertip, as if something had pinned her in midair. She instantly realized this was the power of the girl standing before her.

The girl with heart-shaped pink eyes slowly reached out her hands, placing them with a deliberate touch along the contours of Mu Nan Si's body both front and back with skilled precision.

Her slender fingers glided slowly across Mu Nan Si's soft skin, applying pressure just enough to disturb the balance between cold and heat. A faint breath brushed past Mu Nan Si's ear, sending a strange tingle through her body.

"…Nnngh…"

A quiet sound escaped Mu Nan Si's lips, her cheeks flushing faintly.

The freezing numbness of being restrained clashed with the rising heat from the unfamiliar sensation, trapping Mu Nan Si in an emotional whirlwind like being burned by icy flames.

The girl with the pink heart-shaped eyes leaned in and whispered in a sultry voice by her ear, her lips nearly grazing her skin.

"What a perfect body… So strong, and yet… incredibly soft."

She gently trailed her hands again over Mu Nan Si's form, eyes gleaming with an entranced glint, as if caught in a dreamlike trance. Her fascination with Mu Nan Si's beauty seemed to override all restraint.

The oppressive mix of her touch and words stirred Mu Nan Si's mind further into chaos. But just then

BOOM!!

A surge of azure spiritual energy burst violently from Mu Nansi's body, shooting into the sky as if it would tear the heavens apart and split the world in two. The chamber quaked violently under the explosion, threatening to collapse at any moment.

The pressure radiating from her was so immense that everyone in the Holy Land without sufficient cultivation instantly dropped to their knees, unable to withstand the force.

Mu Nansi's gaze remained ice-cold, even though her body now radiated heat and her face was flushed red.

Deep blue light laced with flickering violet spread out from her, shaking everything around her with uncontrollable force. Anyone who dared violate her would pay the price.

Her aura exploded with such overwhelming might that the entire floor trembled. Ye Lin immediately understood he wouldn't survive under this pressure.

Clenching his teeth, he mustered his final ounce of strength and rushed forward, grabbing hold of his master. In the very next moment, it was as if a strange power warped them away.

Mu Nansi didn't make a move to stop Ye Lin. Not because she had any intention of letting him escape, but because she had to deal with something else namely, the girl with heart-shaped pupils who was now clinging tightly to her.

The girl's arms wrapped around her as she leaned in slowly, licking Mu Nansi's ear while her fingers traced every curve of her body with disturbing gentleness. Her smile brimmed with amusement and obsession.

But just then, the auras of five Great Emperors erupted from the deepest part of the Holy Land of the Immortal River.