Celestial Dragon Sword Venerable

"Brother Lindao... Actually, in this life, I have no regrets. I have such caring brothers and sisters, and I also have—"

Ye Tianxi was cut off once again.

"Tianxi, is it that you don’t believe in me? If you act like this, what does that make of all my efforts? Giving up won’t bring me peace—it will saddle me with a lifetime of regret! Do you understand?"

Kong Lindao’s tone grew forceful, his voice turning colder.

He never spoke harshly to Ye Tianxi.

But this time, his tone had taken on a cold, stern weight.

Ye Tianxi trembled, an incredulous look in her eyes. But when her gaze fell upon Kong Lindao’s face, when she saw that his eyes were completely bloodshot and that tears of blood were beginning to form, her heart quaked violently.

In that moment, she suddenly understood that her life was not merely her own.

"Tianxi, in the past, when you wanted to experience Reincarnation and live a life in the mortal world, I did everything in my power to help you... But did you ever stop to think? Every time you acted on a whim, both I and the Peacock King, our father, had to pay a heavy price.

But back then, we all thought that with the world constantly changing and a great tribulation on the horizon, none of us had a future. So, for you to be able to go through Reincarnation without a care in the world was, in itself, a kind of happiness. As long as you were happy, nothing else mattered.

But after experiencing the myriad phenomena of the mortal world and comprehending the Heart of Myriad Phenomena and Red Dust, how can you give up so easily now?

The path of the Celestial Dao is long and arduous, and the road of cultivation is fraught with hardship. If I have to walk it without you by my side, what emotional anchor would I have left?

Many Cultivators’ driving obsessions are love, kinship, or even the Celestial Dao itself. But for me, what I care about most is the legacy of our Immortal Phoenix Peacock lineage, and your rise, Tianxi!"

Kong Lindao reached out and gently stroked Ye Tianxi’s head, his voice growing even softer.

The eldest brother is like a father. As a king, the Peacock King wasn’t always present to look after his children, so Kong Lindao often took on a fatherly role.

Among all her siblings, Ye Tianxi was the youngest and the most cherished.

"Brother Lindao... I’m... sorry. I... I was wrong."

Ye Tianxi choked back a sob as tears streamed uncontrollably down her face.

"Don’t apologize. I know this Curse must be agonizingly painful. Otherwise, with your strong will, you would never be unable to endure it and seek only death... Tianxi, rest assured, if we can find the Life Soul Spring or the Elemental Magnetic Aurora this time, we can extend your Life Force by at least two more years! With that kind of buffer, the rest won’t be so difficult."

Though his heart ached terribly, Kong Lindao forced the pain down and spoke, enunciating every word.

This time, upon entering the Ten Thousand Beasts Demon Cave, he was determined to obtain the Life Soul Spring or the Elemental Magnetic Aurora, no matter the cost.

This was also a major reason why he hoped to join forces with Ye Tianling.

If Ye Tianling had a way to control the progression of this Venerable Soul Curse, that would be better still.

"Brother Lindao, I’ll do my best to keep living. But if... I mean, if... if we can’t seize the resources, or if we come into conflict with Brother Tianling, then... you must let him have them..."

Ye Tianxi gazed at Kong Lindao, her expression earnest.

Kong Lindao didn’t answer.

He avoided her gaze.

Kong Lindao raised his head and looked off into the distance.

’If we really do come into conflict with Ye Tianling... if he’s truly set on taking the Life Soul Spring and the Elemental Magnetic Aurora for himself, what am I supposed to do?’

’No—Tianxi cannot die! I’ll fight to the death with anyone who tries to take her chance at life!’

Kong Lindao’s eyes grew dim and fierce, his emotions seemingly spiraling out of control.

"Lindao, my son... among all of you, Tianxi is the only child who inherited my Talent. In the future, the evolutionary paths of the Five-Colored Divine Kill and the Nirvana Nine Transformations can only be unlocked by her. But do not tell her this. Let everything transform naturally, let her awaken on her own. Only then can our lineage have a chance to truly rise.

You are the eldest. All your other brothers and sisters can undergo the Transformation Dao, but Tianxi is the one exception... Therefore, you must protect her, even if... even if it costs you your own life!

Lindao, promise me. Only then can your mother rest in peace..."

The image of a beautiful, gentle young woman surfaced in his memory.

She was coughing up blood, her condition almost identical to Ye Tianxi’s now.

"Mother... I promise. I’ll protect my little sister. I won’t let her suffer any harm... Mother..."

Sobbing, a younger Kong Lindao clutched the beautiful, frail woman, utterly heartbroken.

The woman’s hand fell limp in the air, and a crimson, flame-like light began to pour from her body.

The blood ignited, quickly becoming a roaring inferno.

Within the inferno, the woman’s body burned away, turning to black ash until she vanished completely without a trace.

"Father, why didn’t you save Mother! Father, why didn’t you come to see her!"

The young Kong Lindao knelt on the ground, his hands clenched so tightly that his nails dug into his palms, yet he felt no pain.

"The Venerable Soul Curse ends, but it also begins. If I had intervened, all of you would have been afflicted by this Curse. Your mother’s Life Force wouldn’t have failed so quickly... but she used her own life to sever the Curse’s connection to protect you. How could I have interfered?

Besides, Lindao, you don’t understand. Beneath the Celestial Dao, all living beings are but ants; to struggle is only to invite more death. My responsibility as your father is to ensure you can unlock your legacy, to become a Divine Son and Divine Lady, and to rise completely when the New World makes its Descent, forging an entirely new path for our lineage..."

Tears of blood streamed from the young Peacock King’s eyes as he sighed and departed.

He didn’t even stay to collect his wife’s remains.

Because there were no remains left to collect.

Because everything had already turned to dust and smoke.

...

Gazing at Ye Tianxi, whose face was identical to his mother’s, Kong Lindao’s entire body trembled.

’I can’t let this tragedy repeat itself!’

’Therefore, I will seize any opportunity with all my might—and no one can stop me!’

"Brother Lindao—"

Ye Tianxi sensed an indescribable aura of sorrow from him, and her own heart ached in response.

She called his name through her sobs.

"Mm... It’s—it’s nothing. Brother Tianling can break the curses of heaven and earth; he is a Child of Celestial Mandate who survived Celestial Dao Erasure... A mere Venerable Soul Curse is nothing to him! Who knows, maybe he’s already broken the Curse. So, Tianxi, you can rest easy!"

Kong Lindao took a deep breath, suppressing the chaotic thoughts in his mind. He calmed himself, forced a smile, and spoke in a gentle voice.