Under the persimmon tree, the mountain breeze rustled softly, while the distant waterfall cascaded down, spraying water in all directions.
After hearing Haitang Jun’s account, Li Muyang frowned slightly.
“…Is it already the final moment?”
What Haitang Jun said boiled down to one thing: Yan Xiaoru was beyond saving.
The combined efforts of both her and Tantai Ming had amounted to nothing but a brief extension of Yan Xiaoru’s demonization and imminent death, allowing her some final moments of comfort.
They could afford her two days of clarity at the end of her life, letting her revert to the sweet and lovable woman she had once been, to bid her final farewell to Li Muyang.
But still…
“How long can Xiaoru’s current stabilized condition last?” Li Muyang asked with a serious look in his eyes.
Tantai Ming squinted her eyes and replied, “At most, it can last a year… Why? Do you have a plan, boy?”
She glanced at Yan Xiaoru, who lay off to the side, her eyes closed. “If you start now, and in a month get her pregnant, Xiaoru might be able to give you a child before she passes—but you’ll need your real body here… Can your real body make it in time?”
Tantai Ming’s words instantly drew everyone’s gaze to Li Muyang.
Su Yi, Liu Lian’er, Third Miss, Haitang Jun, and even the massive green lion lying under the persimmon tree stared at Li Muyang in shock.
In that instant, Li Muyang’s scalp tingled.
“Elder, what nonsense are you spouting?!”
This Tantai Ming was such a psycho freak!
How could she come up with something so horrifying in the blink of an eye? He had no such intentions at all!
Li Muyang quickly explained, “I just wanted to understand the situation, because I have a way—maybe—to save Xiaoru, but I need time!”
“That’s why I asked how much time Xiaoru has left!”
Li Muyang urgently defended himself; if he didn’t clear things up quickly, he’d be labeled as a lunatic.
His explanation finally drew back those strange and uncomfortable gazes directed at him.
However, Tantai Ming clearly did not believe him.
Staring at Li Muyang with a frown, she asked, “You have a way to save Xiaoru? What method?”
Even Haitang Jun turned to look, curious about Li Muyang’s claim.
But there was no way he could explain the system to them.
Li Muyang replied, “It involves a big secret of the Nether Demon Manual, something I stumbled upon accidentally. Please give me some time to try it out, elders.”
Li Muyang politely declined to elaborate.
Tantai Ming gave him a deep look before saying, “Alright, go research it then. I’ll give you a year. How can we help you?”
Li Muyang shook his head and replied, “I won’t need the assistance of the elders for now. My real body is currently running errands for Xiaoru’s sake, and now that Xiaoru’s condition is stable, I’ll take my leave first.”
“If I make progress or if there’s anything I need, I’ll come seek your advice again.”
With that, Li Muyang memorized the location, bid farewell to Tantai Ming, and then headed toward Jiuyuan City with Liu Lian’er and Third Miss in tow.
Li Muyang was now eager to return to the game, although its progress was currently on autoplay mode.
Jie Zijiu had been afflicted with a curse debuff, rendering him unable to sense the outside world or move for thirty-three days.
Li Muyang couldn’t fast-forward the game either, so he decided to take this time to check on Jiuyuan City.
As for Third Miss and Liu Lian’er’s companionship, Li Muyang could stop them from following but saw no need to do so.
Earlier, alternating Tunneling Light with Yu Chan had saved a great deal of time.
With Third Miss and Liu Lian’er joining, they played similar roles.
The trio alternated using Tunneling Light to hurry along their way, arriving in Jiuyuan City after five days.
This time, the three took shelter in a forest near the city, only to find a portal leading to the Netherworld Secret Realm opening up ahead of them.
Entering the portal, they found themselves enveloped in mist, where Yu Chan was there waiting to greet them.
Seeing her elder brother in his new body, Yu Chan wrinkled her nose.
“Brother, this new body of yours is just too ugly.”
Everybody cared about appearances, and while this old man’s body wasn’t ugly to the point of repulsion, it was certainly no match for the youthful charm of Li Muyang’s earlier forms, let alone his previous princess-body’s beauty.
Li Muyang sighed helplessly and responded, “Having a body to use is already good enough. How’s your mother’s condition?”
The Ghost Moon Fox hadn’t shown up, and instead Yu Chan had come to receive them. It was obvious that Ghost Moon Fox was still recovering.
Yu Chan’s report aligned closely with Li Muyang’s expectations.
The injuries suffered by Ghost Moon Fox were severe, requiring a long recovery period.
Meanwhile, the Evil God’s consciousness that Li Muyang had summoned not only polluted the fleeing Chou Yuyan but also affected Ghost Moon Fox.
Unlike Li Muyang, these two couldn’t rely on a special Magic Artifact like the Resurrection Order to absorb the pollution in their place.
The Evil God’s consciousness exerted a direct and undeniable influence on their souls.
Currently, Ghost Moon Fox not only had to heal her wounds but also needed to recover from the Evil God’s pollution—something that could take a year or more.
This was with the aid of the Yin Life Book, a Holy Artifact of the Netherworld brought back by Li Muyang.
Without the Yin Life Book, the recovery would have taken even longer.
“However, Mother said that now that the Yin Life Book has returned, even if there’s another enemy as strong as Chou Yuyan, they wouldn’t be able to invade the secret realm anymore.”
Yu Chan shared her mother’s reassurance.
The Yin Life Book wasn’t just an essential Holy Artifact; it was also the cornerstone of Ghost Moon Fox’s secret realm.
Ghost Moon Fox had been vulnerable precisely because the Yin Life Book had been disrupted by Li Muyang’s actions, allowing Chou Yuyan to exploit the weakness.
Now that the Yin Life Book had been restored, Ghost Moon Fox could regain her extraordinary status, detached from worldly troubles, observing the mortal realm from a calm vantage.
Confirming that everything was fine, Li Muyang breathed a sigh of relief and said.
“Then this incarnation of mine will stay here for now.”
With the Yin Life Book holding things steady, the secret realm existed above worldly dangers, indifferent to risks from the Mortal World.
It was the ideal refuge.
Li Muyang currently had enemies everywhere in the Mortal World. The Evil God’s projection from the Ancient Resentment Well was still hunting him, while the Immortal Artifact Masters were searching for Ascendants.
Evidently, staying in the secret realm was the safest choice.
After settling this incarnation, Li Muyang returned to the game.
This time, he opened the long-idle Godslayer Simulator to challenge the Extreme Night God.
But after multiple consecutive defeats, it became clear that Li Muyang’s speculation was correct.
—Without further enhancement of his real-world strength, defeating the Extreme Night God was nothing but a pipe dream.
With little else to do, Li Muyang chose not to leave the Netherworld Secret Realm but instead asked Yu Chan to gather various Spiritual Medicine for him outside.
The recent battles and escapades had completely exhausted Li Muyang’s stockpile of Top-Grade Spiritual Medicine and used up most of his Medium-Grade Spiritual Medicine. Replenishment was urgent.
Fortunately, Yu Chan’s connections through Tingyu Tower ensured that spiritual resources could be acquired.
In no time, Yu Chan had sent over exactly what Li Muyang needed.
Meanwhile, Li Muyang’s thirty-three-day game autoplay finally ended, thrusting him back into the game.
As he regained control of Jie Zijiu and opened his eyes, Li Muyang realized he was standing in the all-too-familiar Red Leaf Valley.
Nearby lay the Red Mountain Academic Palace, home to the Jiang Family’s Puppet Masters.
Right in front of Li Muyang stood several Jiang Family Puppet Masters.
Leading the group was none other than Jiang Yunhe, the sacrificial wine of Red Mountain Academic Palace.
Old acquaintances indeed.
The sight before him left Li Muyang stunned.
“…How did I end up back here?”
He turned to look, finding Princess Pingyao standing beside him, cautiously scanning their surroundings.
A dozen puppets surrounded Li Muyang and Princess Pingyao, forming an implicit cage, locking them in.
Seeing Li Muyang finally awaken, Jiang Yunhe exhaled deeply and said, “Mr. Jie, it is a relief to see you finally awake…”
