"Flame, Thunder… did you truly find it? The traces of our previous reincarnations—between our death on Earth and our arrival in the Dou Qi Continent?"
After parting from Yan Xiaoyu, Xiao Hua flew straight toward a secluded cave. There, his consciousness slipped inward, descending into the depths of his mindscape where two familiar figures awaited him.
They shared his exact appearance, yet each carried a distinct presence—one wreathed in crackling arcs of thunder, the other draped in flickering flames. Their hair, eyes, and garments bore the hues of their respective powers, marking them as the embodiments of Thunder and Flame within his soul.
Before them lay his soul itself, suspended quietly in the spiritual void like a silent moon. The two figures stood solemn and still, their gazes locked upon it.
"Look," said Thunder, his voice low. Instead of answering outright, he only gestured for Xiao Hua to see for himself.
Xiao Hua's eyes narrowed as he focused. Then, they abruptly contracted. There—woven across the surface of his soul—was something faint yet unmistakable: the subtle pulse of the Law of Reincarnation. It was nearly imperceptible, like a single thread of golden light winding through the depths, barely shimmering, barely discernible even to his sharpened senses… yet undeniably present.
"This is…" Xiao Hua whispered, stunned. "It seems… Sister Xue Yue's theory might be true…"
He probed deeper. His expression darkened, like a storm eclipsing the sun. What he found made his heart grow heavy—his previous reincarnations had been sealed away.
"But… this doesn't feel natural. It's as if someone deliberately sealed it away. Hidden not just from heaven and earth—but even from myself…"
"That's not all," Flame interjected quietly. "From what Thunder and I have deduced… these traces don't speak of a few mere cycles. Not hundreds, not thousands… but perhaps millions of reincarnations—each one retaining our memories…"
"Moreover," Thunder added, his voice heavy as rolling thunder, "the one who set this in motion… was not another. It was our past self."
Hearing their deduction, Xiao Hua's expression grew even darker. He had never imagined that the one who sealed away the memories of his past lives—who concealed the very traces of his own reincarnations so thoroughly they could deceive both heaven and earth—was none other than himself.
He knew little of his previous reincarnations, for their memories were locked beyond his reach. Yet even with that ignorance, he understood one thing clearly—such an act could never be taken lightly.
To seal away the echoes of one's former lives was no trivial feat. It was a direct interference with the natural cycle of life and death, a tampering with the very order of the cosmos. Every life carries lessons, karmic debts, and the spiritual essence of its journey. To bind and bury them was to disrupt that sacred balance.
Suppressing those memories might offer temporary clarity or protection, but it came at a grave price: the soul would be unable to draw wisdom from its past, while hidden karma would silently accumulate, pressing down like an unseen weight.
For his previous incarnations to have achieved this, they must have stood at a realm of reincarnation far beyond mortal comprehension. They would have known well the karmic consequences—yet they still chose this path.
"That means… my previous reincarnations must have uncovered something… something truly grave…" Xiao Hua murmured, his tone heavy as stone.
The fact that they were willing to seal away all their past lives instead of simply letting them go could only mean one thing: even if they had cast them aside, it would have been useless. Whatever secret they uncovered would still have pursued them relentlessly.
Thus, they had chosen the unthinkable—sealing away their very existence to escape the gaze of whatever it was they had found.
"Just what exactly… did our past selves discover, to choose such a path…?" Xiao Hua murmured. He had expected many possibilities, yet never this. The revelation still felt unreal, like standing before an abyss with no end.
He bore no resentment toward it—only disbelief. He had once dismissed Xue Yue's theory as far-fetched, her claim that he had reincarnated countless times across different worlds with his memories intact before arriving in the Dou Qi Continent.
Even if such a thing were true, he had assumed those memories were simply erased. But this… this was no mere erasure. This was deliberate concealment—a design so vast that even he had failed to perceive it until now.
"Though it is a reckless maneuver… we attempted to take a glimpse of our reincarnations," Flame said quietly.
Xiao Hua's brows rose sharply as he stared at him in disbelief. Even a fleeting glimpse into sealed reincarnations risked stirring too much information—awakening karmic tides hidden from heaven and earth. To draw such forbidden knowledge could provoke a backlash, a tribulation far more terrifying than the Heavenly Lightnings themselves…
Flame only let out a dry, strained laugh under that piercing stare.
"Relax. It was a failure," he admitted. "I couldn't even see a trace of reincarnation, let alone the formation that sealed them. What we sensed was only the detached residue of that sealing formation—a reaction born from enduring millions of reincarnations beneath the Boddhisattva Ancient Tree."
Thunder nodded and added, his tone low and steady. "The Boddhisattva Ancient Tree carries a faint wisp of reincarnation's essence. That resonance stirred the sealed formation ever so slightly, leaving behind an echo within our soul… a mere residue of power contained the law of reincarnation."
"Since it is detached, it bears no karmic weight," Thunder continued, as if to calm him. "It will not draw the attention of heavenly laws, nor stir cause and effect. And with nowhere else to return, that residue simply merged into our soul."
Flame shrugged lightly, though his eyes gleamed with quiet gravity as he spoke.
"Hence, the mysterious figure appearing in Yuyan's dream was likely born from our complete mastery over reincarnation in the far future—etched deep within our bloodline. That distant descendant may have crossed the river of time and stepped into her dream, to avoid karmic backlash or the distortions of time."
Xiao Hua nodded. A quiet relief settled in his hearts; at last, the riddle of the strange figure who carried the bloodline of the Celestial Feather Race seemed to have an answer.
Yet with that answer came another revelation—one that made their blood run cold.
"But this also raises suspicions about the System…" Thunder said suddenly, his gaze narrowing. "There's no way the System is unaware of this. It once told us we carried no natural luck when we arrived here, and that we needed Xun Er's luck to survive. Now that we've uncovered this… the meaning of those words could change everything. Does it… have any connection to our past reincarnations?"
"If that's true… then it's even more concerning." Flame muttered, brows furrowing. "Has the System been with us since the very beginning? Did it join us somewhere partway through our cycles… or has it only appeared in this life?"
Xiao Hua fell silent. No answer came to him—nor could one be found. Yet deep within, he could not shake the feeling that the System was not merely watching… but waiting.
Like an unseen shadow, it had walked beside them through countless lifetimes, its presence veiled yet unwavering, like an echo that follows him. It had never spoken of their past, yet it seemed to know. Perhaps it had always known.
'Is it an ally… or an enemy?'
The question coiled in their minds like a shadowed serpent, whispering of ancient bargains and hidden chains, as they pondered the System's unfathomable origin and its silent, patient gaze.
This was made even more troubling by the fact that the System possessed two functions that had yet to be unlocked—Soul, which could split one's soul and let it be reborn in a different era or world, and Reincarnation, which could perfectly merge the scattered fragments back into the main soul.
After some time, the three of them decided to set this matter aside. No matter how much they contemplated, no answer would emerge. Perhaps the only way to learn the truth was to unravel the seal that bound their memories and past reincarnations… yet doing so would risk annihilating his very existence.
Thus, they chose to bury the matter deep within their hearts, sealing it away in the furthest recesses of their minds—until the day they were truly ready to face it.
"By the way," Xiao Hua asked, "why is it that you cannot even detect a trace of our reincarnation… why is that?"
"The formation lies upon the boundary between reality and illusion," Thunder replied, his tone low and steady. "Unless one comprehends the Path of True and False, it will remain forever concealed."
Xiao Hua's eyes twitched slightly. Reincarnation… True and False…
He never imagined that his past selves had walked such divergent paths or attained such profound heights upon them.
A rich curiosity stirred in his heart. What secret had his past selves uncovered? What kind of enemies had they provoked, to force them into sealing away their entire cycle of reincarnations from the gaze of heaven and earth… even from their future self?
"Do you think… the one our past selves provoked is stronger than the Heavenly Evil Monarch who currently plagues the Great Thousand World?" Xiao Hua asked quietly.
"…Perhaps." Thunder pondered for a moment, rubbing his chin before speaking further. "Our past reincarnations manage to deceive even heaven and earth through their own comprehension… That alone is something I cannot imagine the Heavenly Evil Monarch accomplishing."
Xiao Hua and Flame exchanged glances and silently nodded. There was truth in Thunder's words.
They knew well the method the Heavenly Evil Monarch had used to deceive the Great Thousand World—entangling himself with the Immortal Emperor's seal, refining his aura until it resonated with the world's own laws, tricking the world into treating him as one of its own rather than an invader.
But their past reincarnations had not merely deceived a single world… they had deceived an entire universe. There was no doubt now that those past selves were figures of unfathomable might—existences who had far surpassed even the Heavenly Evil Monarch.
And yet, this truth only weighed heavier upon their hearts. If that was truly the level their past selves had reached, then even should Xiao Hua one day ascend to the rank of Great Ruler within the Great Thousand World, he might still be unable to uncover the reason they chose to seal their reincarnations—or defeat the enemy that once drove them to such extremes.
"Regardless… we should focus on growing stronger first," Thunder said at last, breaking the gloom that had settled over them. "Only when our strength reaches that height can we hope to glimpse the truth of our reincarnations—and the enemy who once stood before us."
With that, they returned to the real world and spoke no more of the matter. If even a Great Ruler could not unravel this mystery, then talking about it now would yield nothing—not a clue, not a thread to follow, not even the faintest answer.
So, they chose to leave it buried in the distant future.
…
Time slipped by like wandering wind, brushing past all without care—heedless of who reached for it, and who begged it to stay.
Xiao Hua devoted himself to guiding Yan Xiaoyun in her training, spending time with his family, and quietly watching over the disciples as they trained.
During this period, both Xun Er and Little Fairy Doctor ascended to the Dou Sheng class. After a week of grand celebration by the Moonlit Chaos Mansion and Gu Realm, Xiao Hua finally shared his first nights with them—naturally on separate days.
To remain fair, he also spent tender and enchanting nights with Ya Fei and Cai Lin.
There were countless nights filled with warmth and passion—sometimes one by one, sometimes in pairs, and at times all together. Yet despite their joy, none bore the fruit of their love: their own child.
At times, their passion would burn so fiercely that the nights stretched into weeks… yet still, no child came to be. Truly, the stronger one's cultivation, the more difficult it became to conceive—a reality as cruel as it was frustrating.
Still, neither he nor his beloveds gave up. No matter how long it took, they were determined to bring forth a child of their own. Cai Lin, too, longed for another—wishing to give little Yuyan a younger sibling.
Between these moments, he didn't forget his own cultivation, immersing himself in refining his techniques, polishing his pill refinement arts, deepening his medicinal knowledge, and further honing his control over fire and lightning.
Even so, the Golden Pill remained beyond his grasp. He had considered seeking guidance from Lady Azure but knew she was currently occupied with the arduous task of opening the barrier that concealed the Dou Qi Continent from the outside world.
The Di Pill could only be refined by those who had already stepped into the realm of Dou Di. By that logic, the Tier 9 Golden Pill—a rank just beneath the Di Pill—should be within his grasp.
Yet no matter how long Xiao Hua pondered, he could not glimpse the path to it.
His thoughts churned like a storm-tossed sea, circling endlessly with no shore in sight. At last, he exhaled softly and made his choice.
If the way forward cannot be seen, then one must return to the very beginning… and temper the foundation anew.
He closed his eyes and quietly traced the steps of pill refinement within his mind, each one replaying with crystalline clarity.
Material. Flame. Spiritual Strength. Preparation. Refinement. Purification. Condensation. Formation.
It had always been this way. He had memorized this sequence so thoroughly that he could recite it even in his dreams. But now, as he repeated each step, something shifted.
For the first time, he no longer saw them as cold, rigid stages… but as flowing movements, merging into one another like ripples upon the same stream.
The medicinal ingredients were not mere materials. Their preparation was already the first spark of transformation. Refinement was not simply extraction—it was the continuation of that change. Purification and fusion were not separate—how could they be? Purification was already fusion, and fusion itself demanded constant purification.
Xiao Hua drew a slow, deep breath. His turbulent thoughts stilled, like ripples fading upon a calm lake.
He realized then—he had always treated the process as a ladder. One step, then the next, climbing ever upward. But it was not a ladder at all.
It was a circle.
A cycle where each stage gave birth to the next, and the next echoed the last.
A single current—flowing, reshaping, returning.
The pill embryo he once believed fragile… was it truly fragile, or merely reflecting his own doubt?
The flame he had struggled to control… was it truly unruly, or had he simply been forcing it against its nature?
He closed his eyes. The steps no longer appeared as words or instructions, but as images: herbs softening under flame, essences intertwining, liquid forming shape, a glowing sphere pulsing gently like a heartbeat.
It was no longer theory. He could see it.
And in that moment, Xiao Hua understood why the Tier 9 Golden Pill had eluded him. It was not a matter of missing strength, or lack of technique. It was because he had been trying to command the process, when what was needed was to guide it—like turning a stream, not breaking a dam.
A faint smile curved his lips. For the first time, the path ahead was no longer hidden.
Just as he was about to test this newfound insight, a familiar call stirred within his soul—it was Lady Azure and Xue Yue. His expression grew composed, then brightened as realization struck.
They had finally opened the barrier!
Kacha!
Just as the thought surfaced, the space around Xiao Hua twisted abruptly, warping like ripples in shattered glass before spiraling into a tunnel of swirling light. It beckoned him silently, a path carved through the void itself.
Two familiar auras drifted from its depths—one blazing with searing heat, the other carrying a chilling cold that could freeze the soul.
And beyond them… a sensation he knew all too well.
Origin Qi!
His eyes narrowed, a spark of exhilaration lighting within them.
There was no mistaking it. This tunnel led beyond the Dou Qi Continent—for Origin Qi had long since vanished from that land.
Without the slightest hesitation, Xiao Hua stepped forward, an eager smile tugging at his lips.
The moment he entered, the spatial tunnel behind him folded in on itself and faded, leaving no trace.
…
As he emerged, the icy chill of the void pressed gently against his skin, unable to pierce the natural protection of Dou Qi that cloaked his body.
Before him stretched an eternal expanse of darkness, vast and silent.
Countless stars shimmered like scattered diamonds upon an endless black canvas, each one radiating a soft, ancient glow. Far off, comets carved silver arcs across the void, their flaming tails unfurling like ribbons, leaving behind rivers of starlight.
The sight stole his breath.
Compared to this boundless cosmos, the Dou Qi Continent was but a single droplet in an infinite sea.
Here, the Origin Qi surged freely, weaving unseen currents between the stars, pure and unrestrained.
With eyes reflecting the brilliance of a thousand constellations, Xiao Hua whispered, almost reverently,
"So this… is the world beyond."
Behind him, the spatial tunnel sealed with a final shimmer and vanished, leaving him suspended alone amidst the infinite starry sea.
Pang!
Xiao Hua suddenly felt a light smack to the back of his head. It wasn't painful—merely gentle, carrying a hint of care, much like the chiding touch of an older sister.
He turned around, rubbing his head with a dissatisfied look. Though it didn't hurt, the strike still held enough force to make his head give a slight shake, which was far from pleasant.
"What? Don't give me that look. It's your fault for standing there all awestruck," Lady Azure said, her tone brimming with mock indignation. "We're here to settle the matter of you absorbing the remaining power of the twenty-one Primordial Heavenly Flames and nine Heavenly Lightnings, remember?"
Her expression made it clear she found it audacious that her little brother dared to show even a trace of dissatisfaction, especially when she and her fellow sister had gone to such lengths solely for his benefit.
"Haha… I just thought there might've been a gentler way to snap me out of my trance, Sister…" Xiao Hua replied with an apologetic smile, scratching his cheek awkwardly as he let out a dry laugh, seeing the exasperation flicker across Lady Azure's face.
His gaze swept across the vast expanse, and his brows rose slightly. Behind him lay the Dou Qi Continent—yet aside from it, there was nothing else but endless emptiness.
"Sister Azure, Sister Xue Yue… why can I not sense the presence of the twenty-two Primordial Heavenly Flames and nine Heavenly Lightnings?" he asked, puzzled.
He had expected those world-shaking forces to be circling the plane of the Dou Qi Continent, yet he found nothing of the sort. No matter how he searched—whether with his sight, his divine eyes, or his perception—there was only silence and emptiness all around them.
Lady Azure rolled her eyes and let out a soft sigh, lips curving with a trace of playful exasperation.
"You really are hopeless sometimes," she teased gently.
Beside her, Xue Yue merely shook her head, her expression as calm and distant as moonlight. When she spoke, her voice was cool and steady—yet beneath that icy tone lingered the unmistakable warmth of an elder sister.
"If they were left exposed in the outside world, the Fiend Clan or even experts from the Great Thousand World would certainly detect them and rush here. That is why they are hidden within a unique space, sealed away from all sight and sense."
"Ah…" Realization dawned on Xiao Hua as he scratched his head, a sheepish smile creeping across his face. He had completely forgotten such an obvious truth.
"Anyway, that unique space can only be opened by us," Lady Azure added with a soft, teasing smile. "Even if someone were to stumble upon it by chance, they could neither unlock its gate nor enter it by mistake or miracle."
Xue Yue gave a slight nod, then turned her gaze back to Xiao Hua. Her eyes, though cool and distant, carried a solemn glimmer—the quiet concern of an elder sister.
"Once you are ready," she said evenly, "we will open it at once."
Xiao Hua drew in a slow breath, steadying the anxious thrum of his heart. Once his mind regained its calm and his spirit settled, he gave a firm nod—signalling that he was prepared to absorb and refine the remaining might of the twenty-two Primordial Heavenly Flames and nine Heavenly Lightnings.
Seeing his resolve, Lady Azure and Xue Yue exchanged glances. The playful glint faded from Lady Azure's eyes, and both sisters nodded with quiet solemnity. In unison, they raised their hands, their sleeves fluttering as intricate seals began to form at their fingertips.
Shuahua!
In an instant, the space before them rippled, faint light seeping through the cracks of reality. At first, the ripples and glow were barely visible… yet they thickened swiftly, growing denser and more blinding.
Within three breaths, the pressure from the spatial distortions grew so intense that even Xiao Hua felt his balance waver, a sharp sting lancing through his eyes as he struggled to keep them open.
Hua—!
A moment later, the churning spatial ripples converged, folding in upon themselves until they shaped a tunnel—leading to the unique space that Lady Azure and Xue Yue had spoken of.
Though not a trace of aura seeped from within, Xiao Hua's expression grew extremely grave.
Activating his divine eyes, he beheld what lay beyond—twenty-two Primordial Heavenly Flames blazing like newborn suns, and nine Heavenly Lightnings roaring like ancient dragons. Each strand of lightning, each flicker of flame, pulsed with a force of pure annihilation… enough to reduce the entire Dou Qi Continent to scattered dust.
It was as if he stood on the edge of an apocalypse—watching the birth of ruin that could swallow worlds.
In that instant, Xiao Hua finally understood what it meant for power to transcend realms… power that could erase even the Heavenly Sovereigns of the Great Thousand World—beings two whole realms beyond the Dou Di, standing as Sovereigns of the upper plane.
"We've placed a protection on you," Lady Azure said softly, her tone teasing yet laced with worry. "It will shield you from their might… but only for a few weeks."
"You must absorb and refine them all before that protection fades," Xue Yue added, her voice cool as frost, yet carrying an unmistakable warmth beneath it.
Both sisters exhaled gently. Their breaths curled like twin threads of moonlight, entwining around Xiao Hua's form and settling as a thin, translucent veil. Though it seemed delicate, Xiao Hua could feel the unyielding and indomitable strength woven within it.
"I understand…" Xiao Hua replied solemnly, stepping forward and crossing the threshold into the unique space.
The moment he vanished within, Lady Azure and Xue Yue sealed the spatial tunnel behind him, concealing it from the sight and sense of all creation.
Now, they could only wait… and silently pray that their little brother would succeed in this perilous endeavor.
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