Day of Ascension

Himself from three thousand years ago? And he still looked like this?

Xu Ying’s mind jolted. A chill shot up from his tailbone to the back of his head and then spread through his entire body.

He wanted to laugh, the sort of embarrassed laugh you let out while glancing at the people beside you.

This was absurd.

Utterly absurd.

“Ah Ying, this bird is lying!” Dazhong shouted with a clang, “She’s trying to trick you into working for her and sacrificing your life to help her survive her calamity! You’re only fourteen, how could she have met you three thousand years ago?”

Yuanqi poked his head out from under Xu Ying’s collar and gave the phoenix a cold laugh. “This big bird is trying to fool you. She clearly has bad intentions. I’ve read books for one hundred twenty years, and I’ve never seen anything this absurd!”

Xu Ying shook his head with a smile. Logic told him that this young phoenix was lying, trying to lure him into dying for her. He was just an ordinary fourteen-year-old human. How could he have been born three thousand years ago? And besides, wouldn’t he age? How could a human not age?

Zhou Qiyun had lived for more than three hundred years and already had white eyebrows. Though he still looked like a young man, he was, in fact, nearing the end of his life and racking his brain to survive the tribulation and ascend.

Over the course of three thousand years, Xu Ying would probably have died countless times.

More importantly, he didn’t have amnesia, as he had vivid memories of his childhood. Every single thing was crystal clear in his mind. Every detail was present in his head, even the fire that destroyed Xujiaping Village when he was a child.

Were his memories also fake?

This young phoenix probably says the same thing to everyone, hoping to fool whoever she can, Xu Ying thought.

Dazhong warned him, “Ah Ying, if we don’t leave now, we may get dragged into this. I can sense a powerful force approaching!”

Xu Ying no longer hesitated and leaped down toward the parasol tree below. He heard the phoenix let out a soft, sorrowful sigh.

“You don’t remember what happened before the seal was set, do you? Yes, your seal hasn’t been broken yet. Once it is, you’ll recover your memories. I can help you, as long as you help me survive this calamity.”

Xu Ying landed on the next branch of the parasol tree and thought, A seal? She means I have a seal inside me? As expected, she’s a liar!

But Yuanqi and Dazhong both froze.

Xu Ying himself had never realized anything was wrong with his childhood memories, but they had noticed it many times. Whenever he recalled Xujiaping Village, his memories became distorted. Every time he mentioned his parents, their names changed, never repeating. Yet Xu Ying never noticed.

Dazhong asked Yuanqi in a low voice, “Master Qi, every time Ah Ying remembers his childhood, something goes wrong. Could it be some kind of seal? Could someone have sealed away his memories before he turned six?”

Yuanqi was stunned for a moment, then whispered, “I’m just a snake. A month ago, I was still lying comfortably in Qinyan Cave and reading books. How would I know about these things? Master Zhong, just call me a dumb snake. Don’t ask me these strange questions.”

Dazhong said, “He has been recalling Xujiaping Village frequently. Could his seal have been loosening, allowing fragments of the past to surface? The parents he remembers with different names, are they really his parents?

“Could Ah Ying have already reincarnated countless times, with each life beginning in Xujiaping Village during a different era?”

Yuanqi strained to widen his eyes, but his eyelids kept twitching. He muttered, “Honestly, I didn’t read that many books either. I’m not really into those dull classics. I like strange tales and unofficial histories. I’m really not that cultured—”

Dazhong said, “Maybe he’s been trapped in an endless cycle of life and death, living for more than three thousand years and witnessing history unfold.”

The bell grew excited. “Tell me, is it possible that Ah Ying is even older than I am? Could I actually be his junior?”

Yuanqi shrank into the corner of Xu Ying’s collar and muttered, “I’m just an ordinary snake demon. How would I know about this?”

“If you don’t save me, I’ll die here!” The phoenix’s divine sense echoed in Xu Ying’s mind.

Xu Ying looked back at her, met her gaze, and still jumped down from the parasol tree.

The phoenix said no more. She had sensed powerful enemies approaching, and at this point, pleading with others was useless. All she could do was focus and prepare for battle.

I really did see him. Three thousand years have passed, so why does he still look the same? She was confused.

Xu Ying passed Yuan Weiyang and the others. “Something is about to happen here. It may be dangerous. Everyone, leave quickly!”

Yuan Weiyang quickly said to the beautiful woman, “Madam, there’s going to be danger here. Let’s continue this below, where it’s safer.”

The beautiful woman didn’t take it seriously. “The words of a lecher can’t be trusted. If we miss this chance, who knows when we’ll ever encounter a phoenix again? Emperor Zetian Dasheng grasped the insights from the phoenix bone and suppressed the world, becoming a female emperor. This is our chance.”

Yuan Weiyang felt a vague unease in his heart. She knew Xu Ying would not lie to her, so she apologized and leaped down from the tree.

Guo Xiaodie hurried after her. “Brother Weiyang, wait for me! Come with me and capture that lecher, then drag him over to Eunuch Chen!”

Yuan Weiyang had no choice but to let her follow.

The beautiful woman smiled and shook her head. She said to the young man beside her and Uncle Xiao, “Weiyang has become increasingly spirited over the past two years. He’s clearly reached the age for marriage, and Xiaodie likes him too. They met when they were children, so why not pick an auspicious day and let the old matriarch of the Yuan Clan meet Xiaodie, and also let Weiyang visit the Guo clan to meet my sister?”

Uncle Xiao’s heart skipped a beat. He stammered, not daring to speak.

The beautiful woman let out a cold laugh. “Uncle Xiao, do you think Xiaodie isn’t worthy of the Yuan clan? Or is the Guo clan beneath your Yuan clan? Or perhaps our Li clan isn’t worthy either?”

Uncle Xiao secretly cried out in misery.

The Yuan Clan had very few people. Even before Yuan Weiyang was born, the family had pinned all its hopes of reviving the clan on her. Yet the child they welcomed into the world was a girl. The old matriarch had then decided to raise Yuan Weiyang as a boy and present her to the outside world as one.

In the past few years, Yuan Weiyang had gradually grown into herself. Naturally, she was full of heroic spirit and very popular with girls. She truly lived up to expectations, with astonishing natural talent. Whatever she learned, she grasped almost immediately. Her comprehension was astonishing.

Even so, she was still a girl. How could she possibly marry the treasured daughters of the Guo and Li Clans?

Uncle Xiao coughed and hurriedly said, “Dear Sir and Madam, that lecher is quite skillful. I should check on the young master and Miss Guo, just in case something happens.”

He hurriedly jumped down from the parasol tree. Before he landed, he noticed a mass of dark clouds sweeping across the horizon. They moved with astonishing speed. By the time his feet touched the ground, the clouds had already reached the summit of Mount Jiuyi.

He looked up, a little confused. “That cloud...”

He caught a whiff of a bloody stench.

Just then, chaos broke out below the mountain, and someone cried out, “Everyone, be careful! Something is coming up from the Abyss of Cangwu. It had already devoured quite a few people!”

Uncle Xiao quickly looked down the mountain. Crimson flesh was spreading across the cliffs, devouring everything in its path.

He couldn't tell whether the flesh was growing or crawling. Dozens of giant pythons, each dozens of zhang long, extended from it and snapped viciously in every direction.

“The bloody stench I smelled just now was from this thing?” Uncle Xiao was startled and uncertain.

Suddenly, lightning flashed and thunder roared in the sky. That dark cloud suddenly unleashed a torrential downpour. There seemed to be a gigantic creature hiding within the clouds and rain. Whenever lightning illuminated the sky, its long beak became visible, resembling both a bird's beak and a dragon's jaws.

Guo Xiaodie was currently dragging Yuan Weiyang as they chased Xu Ying. The girl was ecstatic and shouted, “Brother Weiyang, corner him toward the lake and make him strip! Let’s see where he runs then!”

Yuan Weiyang coughed and said, “Demon King Xu, we’re far from the parasol tree now. No one will chase us this far. You don’t have to run anymore.”

Xu Ying stopped and turned around with a smile. “I thought Brother Yuan was really going to help her catch me.”

Guo Xiaodie jumped in fright. She hurriedly crossed her arms over her chest and stared at the two of them in terror. “You're working together? What are you trying to do? Don't mess around! My Guo clan has people all over the mountain!”

Xu Ying’s expression suddenly changed. He leaped to their side and shouted, “Master Zhong!”

Guo Xiaodie screamed in terror, thinking he was about to force himself on her. At that moment, countless flesh pythons surged up the mountainside and climbed over the rocks. Behind them, enormous masses of blood-soaked flesh bounded upward, threatening to crush them all.

Clang!

A great bell flew out from behind Xu Ying’s head. Patterns of all kinds appeared on the inner wall of the great bell, and strange designs emerged on its outer wall. As the bell rang, a heavy light wall manifested and expanded outward layer by layer. For a moment, all kinds of Dao sounds erupted, blocking those flesh pythons outside.

When the flesh pythons touched the light wall, a sizzling, crackling sound rang out, and they were scorched black, forced to keep away from the great bell.

Meanwhile, more flesh pythons climbed up from below the mountain, rushing toward the parasol tree.

On the parasol tree, many Exorcists were still comprehending the various Dao avatars of the divine birds. Among them were Exorcists from the Cangwu Sect, as well as imperial disciples and Guo clan disciples. In an instant, they were thrown into chaos, suffering heavy casualties.

Finally, the beautiful woman and her husband realized that Xu Ying hadn’t lied earlier. They hurriedly fought back with all their might.

The divine birds perched on the parasol tree also took flight and fought those flesh pythons. Flesh pythons were continuously dismembered and burned to ashes, but some Divine Birds were also bitten by the flesh pythons and assimilated into the flesh.

Increasing amounts of rotting flesh climbed up from below the cliff, gradually wrapping around the parasol tree and crawling upward along it.

The beautiful woman and her husband kept fighting, shock and rage filling their hearts.

“What exactly is climbing up from the Great Abyss of Cangwu?”

Alongside the phoenix, the three Bluebirds with pearls suspended above their heads raised their heads to look at the dark clouds in the sky. The giant creature within the clouds roared like thunder and suddenly lunged at the parasol tree!

The three Bluebirds spread their wings and flew up, their vital energy surging to the heavens. The pearls above their heads burst with light, driven to their absolute limit!

They sacrificed themselves to activate the pearls. Even if they were reduced to dust, they would stop the creature in the clouds.

At the same time, Dazhong’s toll rang out. The monstrous creature in the clouds was filled with a murderous aura, but when it heard the bell, it shivered. It instinctively looked toward the sound.

Distracted, the Bluebirds' jeweled attack struck it. Three bloody holes exploded through it.

They screeched and thrust their sharp claws toward the creature’s eyes. In pain, the creature raised its claws and tore the Bluebirds apart. Just then, the young phoenix flew in. Using her body as a sword, she pierced through the creature's forehead and burst out the back of its head, drilling clean through its skull.

“You ambushed me!”

The creature roared and rode away in the blood storm. Immediately, the sky turned blue and clear. Just moments ago, it had been covered with dark clouds and thunder, but it all seemed like an illusion.

Around the parasol tree, the blood-soaked flesh pythons that had been attacking the Divine Birds and Exorcists suddenly lost all vitality. One after another, they collapsed to the ground. The flesh withered and gave off a putrid stench.

Dazhong had been fending off the flesh masses. When they suddenly withered and rotted away, it stopped in surprise. Hearing the creature's retreating roar, he froze.

It was that heavenly god my clan head had sealed in the well at Little Rocky Mountain!

Just then, a lovely voice rang in Xu Ying’s ear.

“Thank you, Brother. You really are sharp-tongued but soft-hearted. You said you wouldn’t save me, but you still came to my rescue.”

Xu Ying recognized the voice immediately as the young phoenix’s and couldn’t help but freeze. He thought, Hold on. When did I save her?

Her voice came again, faint and wistful.

“Brother, please wait a few days. Once I have recovered from my injuries, I will come to see you again.”