During these days, she secluded herself in the Asura Hall to focus on cultivation. The Twelve Asuras thought the Empress was attempting to break through the hundredth-level barrier, but in truth, she was merely striving to rise from the peak of Spirit Sage back to the level of Spirit Emperor.
For others, advancing from Spirit Sage to Spirit Emperor would be extremely difficult. But she had already achieved it once before. Her comprehension and experience far surpassed ordinary people, so naturally, her progress was swift.
Zhao Li clenched her fists, her face filled with pain and guilt. She struggled to suppress the agony in her heart, careful not to let Yelan notice anything amiss, and forced herself to speak in a calm tone:
“Actually, it’s all because of you. When you transplanted the Heaven-grade Spirit Root into me, did you also transfer some of your own spiritual power? Otherwise, how could I have experienced a second enlightenment? How could I have suddenly ascended to the Spirit Lord realm? And why is there a trace of your gentle spiritual power mixed within my spirit root?”
I’m sorry. I can only lie to you like this—I can’t tell you the truth.
—This was also part of the agreement with the Starstranger. Zhao Li could not disclose anything related to their transaction.
But it was true that Nine-Tailed Celestial Foxes would experience another enlightenment as their cultivation grew.
After enlightenment, their spiritual awareness would ascend to a new level, allowing them to comprehend things ordinary foxes could not.
However, with her current strength at level 40, she was far from capable of detecting the traces of Yelan’s cultivation and illusion power within her spirit root, let alone discerning that Yelan’s cultivation had regressed.
If Zhao Li were a level-90 Spirit Emperor now, perhaps after enlightenment, she could have seen through the issue with Yelan’s cultivation.
“Our Nine-Tailed Celestial Foxes inherently possess transcendent abilities, which is why we lead all foxes. Now that I share a bond with you, I can sense some of your anomalies. But my current cultivation is insufficient. If one day I reach the Spirit Emperor realm, my connection with you will surely deepen.” Zhao Li fabricated an explanation.
For now, she had no way to return Yelan’s lost cultivation. She could only wait until she herself reached the Spirit Emperor realm before transferring it back.
Yelan watched her in silence.
She was certain that when she transplanted the Heaven-grade Spirit Root, she hadn’t infused even a trace of her own spiritual power.
Is there some hardship preventing Little Zhao Li from telling the truth…?
“What, you don’t believe me?” Seeing Yelan remain silent, Zhao Li grew nervous, her voice tinged with unease.
Truthfully, she wasn’t confident she could deceive Yelan.
Yelan’s illusion power allowed her to observe the past and glimpse the future. To some extent, it was comparable to a stargazer’s divination.
If Yelan wanted to verify her claims, all she had to do was “look.”
“If you don’t believe me, I can swear an oath. Also, about your cultivation regressing—no one else in the Boundless Realm knows besides you and me.”
“I know that given how I treated you before, you can’t trust me so quickly. So, I swear! I, Zhao Li, vow upon the honor and lives of the entire Qingqiu Fox Clan. If I harbor even the slightest intent to harm Yelan, may I be struck by—”
“No need.” Yelan reached out and gently pressed a finger to her lips. “I believe you.”
Yelan gazed at her, smiling softly.
If Zhao Li had reasons she couldn’t speak of, then Yelan wouldn’t ask.
She trusted her unconditionally.
“You…” Zhao Li’s eyes glistened slightly as she caught Yelan’s retreating hand, clasping it tightly between her own. “You’re such a fool… even more foolish than I used to be…”
Adorably foolish.
Not letting her finish that poisonous oath, trusting her without question.
If it were anyone else, how could they possibly trust so easily…
Yelan’s cultivation regressing was a matter of life and death for the Asura Clan, a critical issue that could determine their standing and survival.
“Aren’t you suspicious? Doesn’t it seem strange to you? Don’t you think the contrast between the current me and the past me is so stark that it’s abnormal? Aren’t you worried that before coming to you, I might have already told others about your regression? After all, I used to share everything with Qing Tong…”
The smile on Yelan’s lips deepened.
Her cultivation had regressed, but she was certain no one else would ever know.
“You stopped me from making a blood oath. Aren’t you afraid I might spread this news and put you in danger?”
“Then would you?”
“Of course not!” Zhao Li shook her head vehemently.
“Then, I trust you.” Yelan’s smile grew even gentler.
Zhao Li could no longer hold back her tears, and they spilled over.
“You big fool! Aren’t you afraid I might be lying to you right now?”
“You wouldn’t.” Yelan’s tone was firm. “You’ve never lied to me before.”
In the past, though Zhao Li had said she disliked her, hated her advances, and always told her to get lost, she had never once lied to Yelan.
She had never been good at lying in the first place.
Zhao Li covered her face with her hands, not wanting to cry so pitifully in front of Yelan.
Yes, before the age of fifteen, Zhao Li had never lied to Yelan.
But starting next year, that would no longer be the case.
In the Wuji Realm, girls came of age at fifteen. After that, they could be betrothed and married.
In her past life, Zhao Li had been willing to betray her own conscience. Even becoming the kind of liar she had never been before just to ensure she could marry Qing Tong smoothly.
Fifteen was the turning point for Zhao Li.
That was why she had chosen this moment to return because it was the starting point of all her misfortunes, the only place where she could still make amends.
—And so, the price demanded by the God of the Foreign Star had been exorbitant. It had taken away a portion of Yelan’s cultivation.
“Don’t cry.” Yelan didn’t dare wipe her tears, only watching her with aching distress. “I will feel heartbroken.”
“Yelan, you said you liked me before. Do you still like me now?” Zhao Li asked between sobs.
“I do.”
“Even though I’m crying so ugly right now, you still like me?”
“You’re not ugly. You’re adorable. Of course, I like you.”
“From now on, call me Lier.” Zhao Li wiped her tears and said.
Yelan’s pupils dilated as she stared at her in disbelief.
“You can also touch me—however you want. I won’t mind.”
“…But didn’t you used to hate it when I got close to you?” Yelan looked at her with a complicated expression.
“Yeah, I was foolish and ignorant back then. I thought that someone as lofty as the Empress, who came to approach me and said she liked me, was probably just bored out of her mind. That you were deliberately toying with me, making me submit to you first before cruelly casting me aside, just to turn me into the laughingstock of the Wuji Realm.”
Yelan: “…”
“You… you really thought that way before?” Yelan had always wondered what she had done wrong to make Zhao Li despise her so much.
Zhao Li fell silent.
Of course, that wasn’t the real reason.
Because I told Qing Tong about your confession, and then Qing Tong said you were a bloodthirsty devil, beautiful but merciless.
And that the Asura Clan survived by devouring other races, with fox meat being their favorite—a great tonic. That you were only getting close to me so you could eat me later.
And I believed it.
But Zhao Li couldn’t tell her the truth and break her heart, so she simply replied, “Mhm.”
She then laughed at herself, saying, “Pretty ridiculous, isn’t it? Even I find it laughable now. Actually, when I think about it, someone of your status lowering yourself to get close to me. I should count myself lucky. Back then, I thought you had too much free time, but now I realize how sweet it was.”
“Are you serious when you say that?”
“Serious—more genuine than real gold.”
Zhao Li wiped her tears, trying to make her expression less disheveled.
Then she beckoned to Yelan and said, “Lan Lan, lean your face over here.”
Yelan obediently tilted her face forward.
Zhao Li’s damp little hands cupped her cheeks and planted a feather-light kiss on her lips.
Though fleeting, that kiss left an endless flutter of emotion and tenderness in Yelan’s heart.
Yelan’s pupils contracted slightly as she watched Zhao Li pull back just a bit.
“Sorry for how I treated you before. I’ve had an epiphany now and understand many things I didn’t before. As my spiritual awareness has grown, I can also tell who genuinely cares for me and who’s just pretending. I don’t feel anything for Qing Tong anymore. I want to try loving you.”
Try loving you.
She had no idea that just those words alone filled Yelan with immense joy.
Yelan had never asked for much. Her greatest wish wasn’t even to marry little Zhao Li as her queen—it was simply for her to live happily. As long as Zhao Li was happy, Yelan was content.
Zhao Li said, “Don’t you think I’m being too much right now? Elder Ming was right. I just had an ‘epiphany’ that Qing Tong never cared for me, and now I’m turning around to seek you out. Even I feel like I’m going too far.”
Yelan’s fingers gently brushed Zhao Li’s face, and only when she saw no resistance did she dare to continue the caress.
“Not at all. I’m overjoyed,” Yelan murmured, her gaze fixed on Zhao Li’s eyes, softer than moonlight.
“Lan Lan, I’ve always wondered—why would you fall for someone as clueless as me?”
This question had lingered in Zhao Li’s heart for a long time.
Yelan stroked Zhao Li’s face tenderly, her voice gentle. “I’ve always been watching you. After a while, I just fell in love.”
Zhao Li’s lips twitched—was that even a reason?
Fine, if you don’t want to say more, forget it. I’ve got plenty I can’t tell you either, so we’re even.
The current Zhao Li, having endured betrayal and an apocalypse, would never naively believe in love at first sight.
Of course, she didn’t know that Yelan’s “always watching you” spanned tens of thousands of years.
Yelan’s illusionary power granted her the ability to glimpse the future. So when she was just 15, she had already seen the future Zhao Li—and the future version of herself, utterly devoted, willing to sacrifice everything for her.
Every generation of the Asura Kings possessed this ability: “Clairvoyance.”
But they could only “see,” for this was an unchangeable fate, bound by destiny.
To forcibly alter fate would defy the natural order and invite divine retribution.
In other words, Yelan’s love for Zhao Li, her willingness to throw herself into the flames for her, was all predestined.
And because of their power to perceive past and future, the Asura Kings of each era were invariably detached in temperament.
Without extraordinary mental fortitude, without a transcendent indifference to worldly gains and losses, it would be nearly impossible to maintain sanity after absorbing so much information.
Moreover, “seeing” required immense mental exertion, so the Asura Kings rarely peered into the past or future—only during moments of great historical divergence.
So, at first, Yelan remained indifferent to such a future.
But within that indifference, there was also a hint of curiosity.
So, she “looked” a little more.
She saw the little fox born, so innocent and adorable.
She saw the immense effort she put in to break through to level 10.
She saw her running around tirelessly to protect her clan from being bullied by outsiders.
She saw her abandoned by the very Qing Tong she adored, ultimately meeting her demise.
The more she watched, the more she found this little fox endearing. The more she saw, the more her heart ached for her.
Zhao Li first met Qing Tong at the age of 12, and it wasn’t until she was 17 that Qing Tong officially began using her, turning her into a mere tool.
Before 17, things were relatively safe.
So during this period, even though Qing Tong hadn’t yet done anything too terrible to Zhao Li, Yelan already knew—that worthless dogtail flower didn’t deserve Zhao Li’s affection.
Zhao Li’s desire to unite with Qing Tong was mostly due to blind admiration, with only a small part motivated by the interests of Qingqiu. Qingqiu was weak and needed a powerful ally.
That’s why Yelan proposed early on to take Zhao Li as her queen. The Asura Clan was naturally far more formidable than the Flower Clan.
She couldn’t alter the unchangeable fate. She couldn’t choose to meet Zhao Li before she encountered Qing Tong, couldn’t choose to save her then.
—This was the sorrow of the Asura King who possessed the power of illusion. She could see everything, yet could only remain an observer, unable to change a thing.
Defying heaven to alter fate would bring calamity upon the Asura Clan, even the entire Wuji Realm. This was a sin Yelan couldn’t bear.
Zhao Li would never know.
And what Zhao Li would never know was that, in the end, Yelan of her past life did defy heaven to change fate.
Offering herself as a sacrifice, she struck a deal with the God of the Foreign Star to preserve Zhao Li’s soul.
The God of the Foreign Star was the only being in the infinite universe capable of altering unchangeable fate. So Yelan paid the price of eternal damnation to secure Zhao Li’s survival—and to ensure the Wuji Realm wouldn’t be consumed by the consequences of her “sin.”
The irony was, the tragic fate that befell the inhabitants of the Wuji Realm was entirely of their own making.
Had they not schemed against the Asura Clan, the Shadow Realm would never have devoured the Wuji Realm in the end.
They brought about their own destruction.