The General’s Genius Daughter

“Mom, what’s wrong?” While Hua Qiyue was frantically searching for Tianci, a familiar boyish voice made her turn her head at once. She saw Hua Zun pulling Tianci and watching her curiously.

When he found Hua Qiyue all drenched in blood, Hua Zun was greatly shocked. Tianci hurriedly threw himself forward. Hua Qiyue saw him and embraced Tianci fiercely in her arms.

“Go at once… go quickly. In a moment, he will be here, he will be here!” Hua Qiyue cried out in terror. Night had fallen. All around in the forest were dense, overlapping shadows. It seemed that Tianpi’s figure was everywhere!

He seemed to be here everywhere. His presence drove Hua Qiyue to extreme panic.

“Qiyue, what’s wrong? What happened?”

Hua Zun was frightened and stunned. It took him a long time to recover. By then, Hua Qiyue had already lifted Tianci up and raced away from Hua Zun’s sight.

Hua Zun followed closely behind. They left the Evil Beasts Forest and returned to Ice Palace.

“Mom, what really is the matter? Mom?” When he saw Hua Qiyue acting so erratically, Tianci became very worried. But when he saw Yun Shimo lying supine on the ground after being injected with the Sun Moon Deity’s spiritual energy, he sprang forward in great alarm.

“Dad, what’s wrong with you? Dad!”

“Tianci, don’t disturb them!” Hua Zun immediately came up and pulled Tianci over. But Hua Qiyue advanced and grabbed him fiercely instead. “That devil said that he would kill us… Where is he? Where is he?”

Hua Qiyue was already talking incoherently. Hua Zun could tell in one glance that it was all Tianpi’s doings.

“Qiyue, calm down! There’s not a trace of Tianpi’s aura all around! He’s nowhere near. You don’t need to worry. He has gone away!”

Hua Zun grabbed Hua Qiyue’s shoulders and shouted to her.

“Dad, mom, what really is the matter? Boohoo… Mom, you’re dripping with blood…” It was the first time Tianci had seen such a horrific scene. He threw himself into Hua Qiyue’s arms and started to sob.

Hua Qiyue took a long time before she calmed down. She realized that Tianpi was indeed no longer around, since she could not detect his presence.

Tianci was being consoled by Hua Zun. The Sun Moon Deity carried Yun Shimo back into the palace and placed him on the jade bed.

Yun Shimo had not yet awakened. His entire person seemed to have lost one-third of its moisture. He looked haggard and ghastly.

Hua Qiyue saw this scene and was heartbroken. Her soul seemed like broken shards, totally lifeless.

“The Qi source of his Purple Primordial Chaos Bead has been drained away. It can’t integrate back into his body. Although Tianpi has abandoned that whiff of purple energy, I can only store it in this vial. Can you find a way to inject this purple energy back into his body?”

With a solemn face, the Sun Moon Deity handed Hua Qiyue a white jade vial.

Hua Qiyue started. “Didn’t Tianpi absorb this whiff of purple energy?”

She was too shocked and terrified to know whether Tianpi had absorbed that purple energy. It must mean that he had not absorbed it!

Hua Qiyue found it all too horrific. What if Tianpi returned again?

“No, he did not. Tianpi had such a wonderful opportunity and yet he has spurned it… I don’t quite understand it as well. Without the purple energy, he will relapse into the Devil’s Path due to the demonic energy. It will be catastrophic for this world!” The Sun Moon Deity sighed, his voice full of helplessness.

Hua Qiyue’s heart shivered and she fell into a deep self-reprimand. But it was no time for contrition. She hurriedly walked to Yun Shimo’s side and uncorked the white jade vial, releasing that whiff of Qi from the Purple Primordial Chaos Bead. It gushed out, lingering in the air.

The pure purple fume held the world still for a moment. Even the snow outside had stopped falling. A beautiful crimson light gleamed through the evening clouds in the sky.

Hua Qiyue tried all means and ways but failed to integrate the purple energy into Yun Shimo’s body.

One must know that this Purple Primordial Chaos Qi was sentient. It would not integrate into the body of someone who had rejected it.

Tianci watched all these, stupefied. Then he suddenly cried out, “Mom, let me try to save dad!”

Hua Qiyue clenched her teeth. Yun Shimo was in such bad shape, there wasn’t much time they could waste.

“How would you do it?”

Tianci ran to the bedside and drew out a whiff of purple energy from the Purple Primordial Chaos Bead inside his body. He gently directed it to Yun Shimo’s nostrils.

Unfortunately, that whiff of purple energy acted no differently from the previous one. It would not merge with the Qi inside Yun Shimo’s body.

“He was so adamant that he would die. He is refusing treatment and has made up his mind for Tianpi and you to be together.” The Sun Moon Deity said quietly.

Hua Qiyue brutally pummeled Yun Shimo. “Your jerk! Idiot!”

The Sun Moon Deity gave a cold snort. It retreated to one side without a word. “I thought you wouldn’t accept him? So why should you care if he lives or dies?”

The Sun Moon Deity’s sarcastic tone made Hua Qiyue turn her head back fiercely. “You shut up!”

The Sun Moon Deity was slighted and pronounced his final words coldly. “He only has one day to live. Hurry and do what you must!”

With that, it left. Hua Zun furrowed his brows. He felt extremely pained seeing Hua Qiyue act this way. She had not even time to treat the gash on her neck.

Tianci had no other way. His watery eyes welled up with tears. “Mom, is there no other way?”

“Of course there is. But the method is the same as the one with Tianpi.” Hua Zun suddenly spoke.

Hua Qiyue’s entire person started. She seemed to have remembered something. Then she stared helplessly at the motionless Yun Shimo, lifeless on the bed.

Hua Zun pulled Tianci and they both retreated silently. Tianci did not know what the case was. But he did not dare ask more after seeing the expression in Hua Zun’s eyes. Perhaps mom had a way to save dad. But it would all depend on her willingness.

Just before shutting the door, Tianci pleaded with an imploring face. “Mom, I beg of you, you must save dad… he’s our only kin! Mom, no matter what misdeed dad has done, doesn’t he treat us well now? I hope mom will straighten out your thoughts in a day. We won’t disturb you for the day.”

Saying this, Tianci shut the room door.

Hua Qiyue’s gaze fell on Yun Shimo’s shriveled and sallow face. Although one-third of its moisture was gone, it still could not hide the man’s handsomeness.

Hua Qiyue did not have the presence of mind to guess where Tianpi had gone, or if he had completely demonized. Her only thought was to decide whether to use this method to save Yun Shimo’s life!

There was no Qi source from the Purple Primordial Chaos Bead inside Yun Shimo’s body. But there was one in hers.

Once they consummated their relationship, Hua Qiyue could merge half her purple energy into his body. Then he would be saved!

Hua Qiyue slowly sat down and stretched out her hand, gently caressing that shriveled face.

When Tianpi threatened him with her life, Yun Shimo had unhesitatingly given Tianpi what he wanted.

He must have done that to save her life.

For more than two years, she would dream of him almost every night. She would dream of his voice and smiling face, and of his tenderness, pliant as water.

Yet when she came face to face with him, Hua Qiyue could not quite forgive his misdeed in her earlier life.

But at this moment, complex emotions were all in a turmoil within Hua Qiyue’s heart— sorrow, worry, frustration, pain… She ought to hate Yun Shimo. And yet at this moment, she could not.

There was still no sound from that handsome man on the bed. He could not see Hua Qiyue’s tears, or her complex emotions. His prepossessing features and suave bearing were now blurred. But with the moisturizing prowess of the Purple Primordial Chaos Bead, he would surely recover his former radiance!

Cold air blew in from outside the window, bringing in a few drifting snowflakes.

Hua Qiyue could not feel the cold at all. But she silently pulled up the blanket on Yun Shimo’s side for him.

She gazed silently and intently at his face, sitting continuously for four hours, until her legs went numb.

When she found that time was running out, Hua Qiyue finally stood up, stretched out her arms and disrobed. She extended her delicate fingers toward the man on the bed…

The night was dusky. Only glimmers of light could be seen in the dark sky, reflected by the wide expanse of snow on the ground…

—

A few thousand kilometers from Ice Palace, there was a continuous belt of forests. This place was the renowned Qilong Continental Forest.

This continent was not on the same continental plate as Changjing Kingdom and her neighbors. It was on another plate altogether.

Tianpi sat quietly there, his eyes shut. A butterfly landed lightly on the top of his head.

There was no snow here but only warm sunshine. After penetrating the dense foliage, a few glints of sunlight fell on Tianpi’s body. They made him feel exceptionally warm.

Tianpi suddenly opened his eyes, a blood red light flashing once across. In an instant, there was only a tiny tinge of profound blackness left in those eyes. The rest was a blood-curdling riot of red.

“Fiery Divine Tree, show yourself. I know that you are here. I am entrusting an item to you for her.” Tianpi spoke flatly. “If you won’t come out, I will destroy this forest in a conflagration.”

Tianpi’s words had just faded when a large fissure appeared in the earth before him. A red light sparkled and the Fiery Divine Tree emerged from the chasm, its body scintillating with crimson light.

“Tianpi, I didn’t expect you to find your way here. How did you know I am here?” The Fiery Divine Tree waved its branches, asking coldly.

Tianpi gave a lazy smile. A touch of mockery was on his diabolically handsome face.

“Didn’t you give Yun Shimo an Extermination Bead? You think I’m a novice in Qi Art and won’t know? Since the Extermination Bead has your aura, I could trace your whereabouts.”

Tianpi smiled, lightly slapping a millennia-old tree by his side.

With a loud boom, the gigantic tree collapsed.

The Fiery Divine Tree was quite angry. “What do you mean by this?”

The Fiery Divine Tree had been promoted on this continent to be the overseer of this forest. Its responsibility was to look after all the trees here. Tianpi’s action was a clear provocation.

“Nothing. I have to ask you again: will you do me this favor?” Tianpi asked lazily. He strolled to another large tree and leaned relaxedly against it.

The Fiery Divine Tree gritted its teeth. “Fine, I agree!”

Tianpi gave a smile and fished out a white jade vial from his robe linings. “Give this to Qiyue. I’m sure you know what’s in it.”

He then threw the white jade vial casually to the Fiery Divine Tree.