235: Chapter 235 Mysterious Woman

The woman did not turn around; she gently pinched a falling osmanthus petal.

When she spoke, her voice was like a clear spring in a deserted mountain, cold to the ear yet carrying a sense of distance from the mortal world.

"To be able to slay the remnant soul of that Blood Bone, you do have some skill."

Hearing these words, Ye Jing immediately tensed up. This woman knew he had used the Immortal Willow to destroy that Blood Bone?

"Rest assured, I will not do anything to you. As you can see, I am merely a wisp of a remnant soul."

The woman spoke indifferently as she turned her head. Her black hair cascaded down her shoulders like a waterfall, her features were as exquisite as a painting, her skin was like congealed jade, and her eyes were like cold stars yet filled with a gentle light.

Ye Jing's heart trembled, and he found himself speechless.

He could clearly feel the aura from the woman before him; it shared the same Origin as the faintly restless Spiritual Qi within his body, as if this encounter had been predestined by fate.

He clenched his fingertips, suppressed the turbulent waves in his heart, cupped his hands, and said in a deep voice, "Junior Ye Jing, having mistakenly entered this Secret Realm and disturbed the Fairy, I hope for your forgiveness."

The woman smiled faintly, her eyes curving like new moons. She raised her hand to brush away the stray petals on her shoulder and walked over slowly.

With every step she took, tiny spiritual flowers bloomed upon the bluestone path.

"This place was originally left for those destined for it, so there is no talk of disturbance. I have waited here for a long time and finally met you; it gives me a long-lost sense of familiarity."

The woman's words made it seem as if she and Ye Jing had known each other for a long time, but Ye Jing had no memory of ever seeing this woman, making him feel somewhat uneasy.

"The Fairy must be joking."

Ye Jing's hands at his sides tightened slightly. "Junior's cultivation is shallow, and I only entered this place by a stroke of luck. I have never stepped into this Minghai Realm before, let alone met the Fairy. I am afraid you have mistaken me for the person you were waiting for."

Just as he finished speaking, the woman had already walked up to him. Her surrounding fragrance caused the Spiritual Qi in Ye Jing's body to surge uncontrollably.

The woman looked down at him as if seeing through all the doubts in his heart. She raised a slender finger and lightly tapped the space between his brows from a distance.

A gentle yet irresistible Spiritual Qi probed into Ye Jing's Sea of Consciousness. There was no malice; instead, it felt like the soothing comfort of a reunion after a long separation.

This caused Ye Jing's body to stiffen, yet he did not resist. He only felt a warmth flowing through his forehead, and his originally tense mind gradually relaxed.

"Never mind, you know nothing now, but you have reached this step as I wished. Your Family has already stepped onto the path of Cultivating immortality; my paying such a high price was not in vain!"

The woman's pink lips curled into a slight smile.

Price?

Ye Jing suddenly looked up, his eyes meeting hers which were deep as a galaxy, and a massive wave rose in his heart.

Countless fragmented images converged in his Sea of Consciousness.

Until a blurred memory appeared.

Broken swords and ruins, a figure in white standing beneath the Immortal Willow, and a blurred instruction... but the more he tried to investigate, the more his head throbbed with pain. He couldn't help but let out a muffled groan, his face turning slightly pale.

Seeing this, the woman quickly withdrew her hand and spoke softly to comfort him: "Do not try to force your memories. Your cultivation is shallow right now; forcibly unlocking the past will only harm your Divine Soul."

"The past?"

Ye Jing caught the key phrase. "What does the Fairy mean by this? What exactly is the connection between me and the Fairy?"

He was full of doubts. He had Transmigrated here from Blue Star, lonely and without a sect. It was only after his third grandson, Ye Tianhui, was born that this Immortal Willow appeared.

He had thought everything he experienced afterward was a common Opportunity, but now it seemed it was all predestined. This Minghai Realm, this woman, and even his path of cultivation seemed like a chess game that had long been laid out.

The woman turned and walked slowly toward a nearby osmanthus tree. She reached out to stroke the rough trunk as osmanthus petals fluttered down, landing on her hair and shoulders, adding a touch of tragic and beautiful loneliness.

"The connection between us... the time has not yet come. I cannot tell you everything, lest it disturb your Dao Heart in this life. Also, I would be discovered by 'them'..."

She looked back at Ye Jing, her eyes showing both reluctance and relief. "The power of my remnant soul is about to be exhausted; I cannot hold on for much longer."

"This place hides my complete Legacy, which was originally left for you. From now on, the Legacy is yours. You only need to remember to stay true to your heart and forge ahead. When you reach the day of Major Achievement in your cultivation, the past will naturally come to light."

"Fairy!" Ye Jing's heart tightened. "You haven't told me yet, who are you?!"

The woman's body gradually faded. She only showed a hint of sadness, shook her head slightly, and then disappeared.

Only a single azure feather remained floating in mid-air. Seeing this, Ye Jing cupped his hands and said, "Thank you, Fairy."

But he still felt something was not quite right, though he couldn't put his finger on it. He was currently just a Foundation Establishment Cultivator; all he possessed was this Immortal Willow and his Family.

He looked up at the empty courtyard. The ancient osmanthus tree was still lush with foliage, but the spiritual flowers on the bluestone path had withered away, leaving only the rustling sound of the wind sweeping through the petals echoing in his ears.

The "them" the woman mentioned, the price paid, the layout spanning time and space, the truth of his Transmigration, and the connection between the Ye Family and the Immortal Willow.

Countless mysteries weighed on his heart, yet they also made him more determined in his cultivation. No matter what it was, he would just keep moving forward with his feet on the ground.

He walked up to the azure feather. The feather flashed with spiritual light and in an instant transformed into a scroll, upon which was written 'Azure Feather Wind-Riding Art'.

This was a Cultivation Technique. At the beginning of the scroll was a line of small-print notes: "This art is transformed from the Azure Feather Origin."

"Draw Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi as the wind, gather Divine Soul essence as feathers. Once cultivated to the Transcendent stage, one can ride the wind through the sky, shatter the void and break through realms, and live as long as the blue heavens."

These few short sentences exuded a vast aura that looked down upon the world. He read it intently, becoming more shocked the more he saw.

This Azure Feather Wind-Riding Art focused on speed, movement techniques, and the condensation of the Divine Soul, emphasizing the concepts of 'swiftness' and 'command'.

Cultivating it could condense Azure Feather Qi to attach to the body, allowing one to travel a thousand miles a day and fly through the air.

Integrating it into the Divine Soul would allow one to see through illusions and strengthen the Dao Heart.

If infused into a Magic Treasure or a Yao Beast, it could cause their movement speed to skyrocket and become ever-changing.

He thought back to the various dangerous situations he had encountered in the Minghai Realm, especially the strange techniques of that Xuanyou Sect.

If he could learn this technique, with its amazing speed, he could maneuver with ease and even counterattack powerful enemies.

This was a technique that cultivated both the internal and external; it could both nourish Qi and Cultivate the Divine Soul. It perfectly compensated for his previous shortfalls of a Foundation that was too aggressive and stiff movement—it was a match made in heaven.

After Ye Jing put away the technique, he thought that this technique seemed to seek stability; perhaps the Fairy was using this to give him some guidance.

He stored the method within the Immortal Willow. He saw the elegant small pavilion gradually turn into ruins and broken pillars, while the black seawater below was constantly boiling up.

Ye Jing then looked back at the corridor he had been circling in and was surprised to find that the corridor was wrapped in an illusion array. When he probed with his Divine Sense again, he could see no end to it.

In other words, they had not actually gone deep into the Hall of the Demon God, but had been circling the periphery the entire time.

This meant the treasures they had obtained were just the tip of the iceberg. No wonder cultivation had to be suppressed upon entry.

Was this some kind of twisted sense of humor from that Demon God?