what qi yuan saw before him was... nothingness.

“blind maiden?”

he called out again, but her figure was nowhere to be seen.

scanning his surroundings with confusion, he found himself in a strange, dreamlike, and dazzling space.

other than the paths he remembered walking, the rest of the area was formless and lacked any material structure.

it resembled fragmented, multicolored lines, like trails of fireflies or clusters of garbled data.

[fragments of the void: chaos, unknowable, unseen, and undetectable.]

this chaotic and disordered sight carried an oppressive sense of danger, which qi yuan could feel in his very core.

however, he realized that an ordinary person wouldn’t even be able to perceive these fragments of void.

it was only because of his ability to see hidden information that he could witness these enigmatic fragments. hr

without wasting time, qi yuan followed the familiar path to the blind maiden’s residence.

the paths he often walked remained materialized and intact, while everything else around him was consumed by the void fragments.

the fragments looked like corrupted data, impossible to touch—even trying felt forbidden.

of course, qi yuan wasn’t reckless enough to test them.

hr

soon, he arrived at the blind maiden’s dwelling.

in his memory, there had been a wooden house with a small courtyard there.

but now, only a trickling stream remained, with nothing else in sight.

it was as though all his memories were nothing but illusions.

qi yuan’s expression grew serious.

he searched other parts of the divine wood abyss, but no matter where he went, the result was the same.

the paths he frequently traversed were solid and real, but the rest of the environment was being consumed by void fragments.

the sunlight, the earth beneath his feet, and even the familiar walls were all gone.

what remained was a strange emptiness, dotted with flickering, firefly-like fragments of void, steadily consuming the material world.

the entire divine wood abyss was empty—there wasn’t a single living thing in sight.

no ants, no protozoa, not even bacteria.

hr

“could it all have been... fake?”

qi yuan frowned deeply.

“then what’s real?”

the situation was undeniably bizarre.

standing alone in the vast, silent abyss, qi yuan felt the weight of his confusion.

the blind maiden had vanished. her house had disappeared. the swing was gone.

even the fruit she had once given him was nowhere to be found.

“if only i... uh... relieved myself, maybe i could find traces of the fruit.”

“could it be that all this time, i’ve been talking to thin air? eating thin air?”

“no, that’s impossible. the artifact-forging techniques i’ve learned here are real, and my memory wouldn’t deceive me. so... i need to use my brain.”

qi yuan started to think deeply.

the divine wood abyss had always been strange. several peculiar incidents had occurred, such as the mysterious floral scent that had appeared during that night, and the inexplicable encounter where someone had “pushed” him.

even now, qi yuan had no idea who had done it.

if everything here was fake...

no. it couldn’t be. his memories were far too vivid.

“about the blind maiden... let’s make some bold guesses.”

hr

theory one

the blind maiden truly existed. after helping him perfect the divine descent by providing its final essence, she exhausted all her strength and disappeared.

this was a plausible scenario. perhaps the blind maiden had been real, but her final act—offering a "branch of spring"—had cost her everything.

hr

theory two

everything was an illusion. the blind artifact master was mentally ill, and the blind maiden was merely a figment of his imagination.

this idea also seemed reasonable.

on earth, qi yuan had once watched a film where the protagonist trained under a martial arts master, only to later realize the master never existed—it was all in his mind.

hr

theory three

only the blind could see the blind maiden. now that qi yuan’s sight had been restored, he could no longer perceive her.

this world was filled with peculiarities.

just as two-dimensional beings couldn’t comprehend three-dimensional entities, ordinary humans were limited by their sensory perceptions.

hr

thinking along these lines, qi yuan closed his eyes.

darkness enveloped him.

“blind maiden?”

he called out softly, but only the echo of his own voice responded.

he opened his eyes again, frustration evident in his expression.

suddenly, a thought struck him.

“the blind maiden once said she taught sheng nu artifact-forging techniques. if i can find sheng nu, wouldn’t that prove whether or not the blind maiden was real?”

sheng nu wasn’t blind, after all.

“so, the solution is simple: find sheng nu!”

“if i can locate her, i might finally unravel everything.”

with this thought, qi yuan felt a sense of relief.

turning to face the empty divine wood abyss, he spoke solemnly, “blind maiden, i’ll remember the swing. and i’ll remember your eyes...”

with that, his figure vanished, passing through a speck of light no larger than a grain of rice, returning to the divine wood gorge.

the divine wood abyss was empty and silent.

suddenly, a gust of wind blew, and there seemed to be the sound of falling leaves and the sound of a swing swaying and creaking.

hr

in the divine wood gorge.

xianling yingjun looked at qi yuan with a peculiar expression. “i didn’t expect you to recover so quickly from such severe injuries.”

the last time xianling yingjun had seen qi yuan, the latter had been unconscious and on the brink of death.

he had assumed that only a realm master could truly save him and that any other methods would be temporary at best.

yet here qi yuan was, alive and well, as if nothing had happened.

“well, since you’re fine, i guess my mission here is a failure,” xianling yingjun said, shrugging helplessly.

his mission had been to assist the thorned blood in turning the divine wood into a spectral entity, thereby transforming the blue mountain realm into a spectral domain.

but with qi yuan around, completing this task was impossible.

hr hr hr hr hr hr hr hr hr hr

what did their training or progress have to do with him?

the thorned blood leader’s expression darkened, and a murderous aura filled the air. “qi yuan, you’re bold to enter my thorned blood stronghold. today, you won’t be leaving alive!”

the thorned blood was backed by black heaven. their strength was absolute—or so he thought.

hr

“since you’re all so lazy and complacent, i’ll make sure you lie flat—permanently,” qi yuan said coldly.

with a flick of his hand, he formed a sword from thin air.

a blinding, razor-sharp sword light descended from the heavens, piercing into the heart of the thorned blood stronghold.

blood sprayed in every direction.

the sword light cut through the stronghold like a scythe through wheat, leaving a trail of death and destruction in its wake.

“die!” the thorned blood leader roared, unleashing his divine domain. a terrifying energy burst forth, shaking the heavens.

but in the next instant, the sword light pierced through him as if he were nothing more than a balloon.

his arrogant composure shattered in an instant, and his lifeless body fell to the ground.

“this... can’t be...” gasped the remaining thorned blood members, their faces pale with terror.

their leader, a newly ascended great venerable, hadn’t lasted more than a single move.

how could qi yuan’s power be so overwhelming?

the survivors tried to flee, but it was futile.

the sword light tore through everything in its path.

in mere moments, the thorned blood stronghold was reduced to a blood-soaked ruin, its members slain to the last.

“let this be a lesson: when you choose to lie flat, this is where it gets you,” qi yuan muttered, his tone calm and indifferent.

looking over the devastation, he added, “the experience i gained from these guys isn’t even close to what i got from defeating feng ti.”

with that, he turned to shen lingxuan, wrapping his arm around her waist.

“let’s go, wife. tonight, we’ll stay in the harem.”

the two vanished from the scene, leaving behind nothing but silence and ruin.

hr

hours after qi yuan and shen lingxuan departed, a few surviving heaven-tier commanders arrived at the devastated thorned blood stronghold.

they were greeted by a scene of absolute carnage: blood-soaked ruins, shattered buildings, and corpses strewn across the grounds. the stench of death hung heavy in the air.

the commanders exchanged horrified glances, their faces pale and drenched with sweat.

“even the leader... was killed in a single strike...” one of them muttered, his voice trembling.

“the divine descent... his strength is too terrifying.”

with no leader to guide them and their strongest warriors annihilated, the thorned blood’s grip over the rosha kingdom had been shattered beyond repair.

hr

qi yuan returned to the royal palace of the rosha kingdom, carrying the newly forged divine descent artifact.

the artifact radiated a holy aura, exuding a sense of infinite potential and growth. thanks to the blind maiden’s final gift—a branch of spring—the divine descent now carried within it the ability to continually evolve and pursue perfection.

even now, the artifact’s influence was beginning to reshape the rosha kingdom.

liu sheng, the elder steward of the royal family, stood before qi yuan with his head bowed, his expression filled with awe and reverence.

“qi yuan, with this divine descent in our kingdom’s possession, i believe our future will be illuminated with eternal light!” liu sheng declared earnestly.

though his words carried optimism, liu sheng couldn’t entirely suppress the lingering fear he felt toward qi yuan.

qi yuan wasn’t just a powerful warrior. he had also mastered the art of forging divine artifacts, a feat that bordered on the miraculous. his capabilities were nothing short of monstrous.

"with the divine descent, i guess... the future of the rosha kingdom will definitely be bright and everlasting!" liu sheng said seriously.

this time when he returns, he also has to tell his clansmen to be careful.

"i hope so." qi yuan said lightly, "when can you sort out the information about sheng nu for me?"

liu sheng lowered his head: "the information about sheng nu is recorded in the palace and several other states. within three days, i will present all the information about sheng nu."

"okay." qi yuan nodded. three days is not a long time.

"i will sleep in this harem for these three days. don''t disturb me if you have nothing to do." qi yuan waved his hand.

liu sheng lowered his head and walked out of the hall respectfully, not daring to look at anything.

hr

the golden halls of the rosha kingdom’s palace glittered under the soft glow of the evening light.

now alone in the grand throne room, qi yuan stood face to face with shen lingxuan.

“i haven’t taken a proper look at your face yet,” qi yuan said with a mischievous grin.

before shen lingxuan could respond, he reached out and gently tugged at the veil covering her face.

as the veil fell, qi yuan was greeted by a visage of unparalleled beauty.

her skin was like flawless snow, radiant and smooth, while her delicate features seemed to have been sculpted by the gods themselves.

this was no ordinary beauty—it was the kind that could cause kingdoms to fall and empires to crumble.

although shen lingxuan’s expression was as cold and serene as ever, qi yuan could see traces of warmth and shyness beneath her icy demeanor.

“this... is dangerous,” qi yuan murmured, his gaze unwavering.

even with her aloof aura, shen lingxuan’s beauty carried an undeniable allure—a mixture of innocence, elegance, and seduction.

qi yuan couldn’t help but chuckle. “i’ve always had a dream of spending a night in the harem. looks like tonight, that dream will come true.”

hr

he reached for her hand, his touch warm and steady. slowly, his fingers trailed down to her ankle, lifting the hem of her dress slightly.

her smooth, pale legs came into view, gleaming like polished jade in the dim light.

shen lingxuan gasped softly, her breath catching as a faint blush spread across her cheeks.

“don’t look...” she whispered, her voice trembling slightly with embarrassment.

her hands moved instinctively to cover qi yuan’s eyes, but before she could fully hide his view, she leaned forward and pressed her lips against his.

hr

three days passed in the blink of an eye.

qi yuan had fulfilled one of his long-standing dreams—spending a night in the harem.

but more importantly, during this time, the rosha kingdom began to experience profound changes.

with the divine descent now serving as the kingdom’s guiding force, a new sense of order and peace began to take hold.

under the divine descent’s influence, new laws were implemented, focusing on fairness and redemption. minor transgressions were forgiven, while major crimes like murder were still punished according to the old system.

while perfection was impossible, the kingdom was undoubtedly moving toward a brighter future.

hr

on the morning of the fourth day, liu sheng once again approached qi yuan, this time with a humble and respectful demeanor.

“all the information we could find about sheng nu has been compiled here,” liu sheng said, handing over a neatly arranged storage artifact.

qi yuan inspected the artifact’s contents. inside were numerous scrolls, manuscripts, and records—some ancient, others more recent.

his brow furrowed slightly. among the records were several items of great interest, but there were also a few divine artifacts included.

“what are these?” qi yuan asked, pulling out one of the artifacts.

“they’re not related to sheng nu,” liu sheng admitted hesitantly. “they’re the kingdom’s most valuable treasures. i thought it might please you to include them...”

qi yuan shook his head, placing the artifacts back into the storage device.

“if they have no connection to sheng nu, i don’t want them,” he said firmly. “return them to their rightful place.”

hr

liu sheng nodded quickly, though he couldn’t hide his surprise.

qi yuan’s lack of interest in the artifacts wasn’t due to arrogance or a lack of desire. it was because he valued the legacy of the white moonlights—those who had shaped his journey. to qi yuan, their stories and artifacts carried far more meaning than any treasure.