After absorbing a massive amount of Demon Spirit power, the Nightmare Demon Pot's success rate for refining Demon Spirits seemed to have improved significantly. Out of more than sixty thousand Demon Spirits, nearly one hundred God-tier growth-type Demon Spirits were ultimately born.
He went alone to
Leaving Gu Bei's courtyard, Nie Li executed his Vanishing combat technique several times to avoid other people's sight and walked forward along the path etched in his memory.
The winding, meandering trail stretched far into the distance, passing through dense patches of forest before arriving at a secluded valley.
Peach blossoms bloomed in profusion, their petals drifting like snow—it was practically a paradise beyond the mortal world.
This was precisely that place from his memory.
The quiet valley, the murmuring brook—scenes from his past life all surfaced in his mind.
"Master, you said one must cultivate to the state of 'the highest good is like water,' where water benefits all things without contending. But how can we, living in this world, ever achieve that? Take me for example—I was born in a place called the
Master merely smiled and looked at him: "A stubborn disciple, beyond saving!"
"I'm beyond saving then. Just like in this Feathered God Sect, people everywhere look down on you with contempt. If I were strong enough, I'd make every last one of them kneel before you and beg forgiveness! What's wrong with avenging grievances and settling scores?"
Master gazed up at the vast sky: "People struggle through life, and in the end it's merely an eternal instant. But water can flow vast and long, nourishing all things gently."
Nie Li never understood what his master told him. Even in this life, he still followed his own principles—avenging grievances, an eye for an eye. The crisis of the City of Radiance had been resolved, but there were still debts of blood unpaid. The
As long as these enemies still breathed, Nie Li couldn't rest easy for a single moment. He couldn't even sleep soundly!
Was he supposed to use compassion to convert the Demon Lord? To convert the Saint Emperor?
But Master—she had truly been very good to him.
As Nie Li walked on, memories of his past life trickled back, one fragment at a time, and tears welled up unbidden in his eyes. Master was a person as gentle and refined as jade, the most revered person in Nie Li's heart. But good people don't live long. When Master died in his past life, Nie Li had wished he could slaughter every last person in the Feathered God Sect.
But in the end, he didn't go against Master's dying wish. He didn't carry out a massacre—he only raised a tremendous ruckus, beating down every powerful figure in the Feathered God Sect.
But what good did that do? Master couldn't be brought back to life.
Yet in this life, he had finally returned. Everything before him now was so warm, so familiar!
Nie Li quickened his pace, walked up to the door of the thatched cottage, and knocked three times.
"Come in!" A familiar, melodious voice rang out.
Nie Li stepped inside and saw Master sitting quietly cross-legged on the ground. Her expression was so serene that not the faintest ripple disturbed it. That ethereal quality made it feel as if her presence couldn't even be sensed. Every time he looked at Master, Nie Li always felt a sense of unreality, as though she might vanish at any moment.
Vaguely, Nie Li had a feeling—as if the Ying Yueru before him was the very same master from his past life. His heart filled with questions as he sat down cross-legged in front of Ying Yueru.
The two of them looked at each other for a moment. Nie Li didn't know where to begin, so he simply sat there quietly, gazing at Master. Just that was enough to make him content.
Ying Yueru's clear gaze rested on Nie Li, and she smiled softly. "What I'm about to say—don't ask why. There are things you shouldn't know, and even if you ask, I won't tell you. And things you should know—whether you ask or not, I'll tell you!"
Hearing Ying Yueru's words, Nie Li chuckled. "Then what is Sister Ying going to tell me?" He remembered how, in his past life, he'd called Master "sister" on several occasions and gotten a sharp knock on the head for it.