Chapter 704: Chapter 558: She Is Your Older Sister

In a flash, the sphere of light erupted into a blazing pillar of fire, lunging toward the Thunder Dragon.

"Alas..." But just then, from outside the mirror world, came the soft sigh of a mature woman. "Both of you, stop. No more fighting."

Immediately after, the oppressive might of Immortal Realm Perfection bore down heavily upon the two of them.

Both the pillar of fire and the Thunder Dragon vanished in an instant, as if someone had wiped them away with a wet brush, leaving not a trace behind.

Tushan Jing Ci and Gui Junmeng left the mirror world and returned to the small courtyard in Yuncai Village.

Between them stood a beautiful, mature woman who looked to be in her early thirties, still possessing a graceful charm.

"Mother..." Tushan Jing Ci called out softly, her voice full of surprise.

For all these years, her mother had been wandering the world.

She hadn’t seen a trace of her mother in decades.

She never expected her mother to suddenly appear in Yuncai Village.

"Jing Ci, it’s been a long time..."

Tushan Xinhua gazed intently at her daughter, her eyes filled with tenderness and longing.

"And you too, Jun Meng..."

Tushan Xinhua slowly turned her head, her gaze falling upon Gui Junmeng. An unconcealable guilt and self-blame colored her expression, and her voice softened.

"To think... you’ve grown so much, Jun Meng."

Gui Junmeng didn’t answer. She just stood there quietly, her face unreadable.

But her slender hand unconsciously tightened its grip on her duster, her fingertips turning slightly pale.

"Jun Meng... take Xiao Mo with you," Tushan Xinhua said in a calm tone.

"Mother!" Tushan Jing Ci took a sharp step forward, her voice filled with urgency. "I won’t let anyone take him away!"

"Jing Ci..." Tushan Xinhua sighed softly, a sound laced with both helplessness and heartache. "Today... you were already in the wrong."

"How was I wrong?!"

Tushan Jing Ci took another step forward, intending to strike at Gui Junmeng again.

But the pressure of the Immortal Realm Perfection once again pressed down on her.

Tushan Jing Ci was instantly immobilized. She could only watch helplessly as a long, snow-white tail emerged from beneath her mother’s skirt, gently wrapped around Xiao Mo, and silently pulled him to her mother’s side.

Tushan Xinhua extended a fingertip and gently tapped the spot between Xiao Mo’s eyebrows before sending him over to Gui Junmeng.

Gui Junmeng extended her arms, steadily catching Xiao Mo and holding him.

She blinked her clear eyes as she looked at Tushan Xinhua, her gaze filled with confusion.

"I hope... that Xiao Mo can make his own choice," Tushan Xinhua said slowly. "What do you think, Jun Meng?"

Gui Junmeng glanced down at Xiao Mo in her arms, then looked up at Tushan Xinhua, and finally nodded. "Thank you for your understanding, Senior. In that case, this junior will take Xiao Mo back to Sikong Temple now..."

Hearing Gui Junmeng call her "Senior," Tushan Xinhua couldn’t help but freeze for a moment, her heart filled with complex emotions. But in the end, she only said softly, "Go on."

Holding Xiao Mo, Gui Junmeng turned and left, her figure gradually melting into the deep night.

"Mother, who is she?"

The doubt in Tushan Jing Ci’s heart grew heavier.

’Why is it that her face, her figure, even her voice, are all identical to mine, as if we were carved from the same mold? And why did Mother help her?!’

"I wasn’t helping her. As for who she is..." Tushan Xinhua bit her lip lightly, gazing deeply into her daughter’s eyes. "In truth, she is the one closest to you..."

"I don’t quite understand what you mean, Mother." Tushan Jing Ci’s eyes flickered, and her knuckles whitened as she clutched the corner of her clothes.

"Jing Ci, I remember... when you were little, you were always pestering me about your father, weren’t you..." Tushan Xinhua said softly, her tone nostalgic and bitter.

"Back then, just like you, I fell deeply in love with a Human Race man. That man... was your father. He was a Sword Cultivator from the World of Ten Thousand Laws."

She looked up at the night sky and continued slowly.

"But my love for a human was a great taboo within the Tushan Race. And your father’s Sect wouldn’t allow us to be together either."

"And so, we were hunted by both the Demon Race’s World and the World of Ten Thousand Laws. We wandered to the ends of the earth, hiding our identities, wanting only to escape the world’s conflicts and live our lives in peace."

"Later, I became pregnant with you, and we found a quiet place to settle down."

Tushan Xinhua paused, her eyes shimmering.

"I thought we could finally live a peaceful life, but fate is cruel. No one could have expected that your constitution would be so special. The bloodlines of the Human Race and the Fox Race conflicted within you, as incompatible as fire and water..."

"To save you, your father went alone to the Desolate Land to find a way to preserve you," Tushan Xinhua said gently.

"Fortunately, your father eventually found a treasure from the Ancient Times. That treasure could split the bloodline within you in two. Once separated, both of you sisters could be saved."

"Unfortunately, your father was gravely injured in the process. He passed away not long after, leaving us behind."

"After that, I brought you back to Tushan. Your father’s adoptive father—your grandfather—was a highly respected elder in the Demon Race’s World who had just come out of seclusion. With your grandfather’s persuasion, the Grand Elder finally agreed to let me give birth to you both safely."

"You, who inherited the bloodline of the Nine-tailed Celestial Fox, stayed by my side. The other child, the one with the human bloodline, was taken away by Daoist Yun Xi to be raised by her."

She looked deep into Tushan Jing Ci’s eyes and said, word by word:

"So, Jing Ci... strictly speaking, Jun Meng... is actually your older sister."

...

On the summit of Sikong Mountain, the night wind gently brushed past the eaves of the temple.

A soft knock sounded on the temple’s main gate. The sound wasn’t loud, but it was exceptionally clear in the silent night.

Before long, the gate slowly swung open.

It wasn’t another disciple of the temple who opened it, but the Abbot of Sikong Temple himself—Master Yuan Kong.

"Amitabha Buddha."

Master Yuan Kong looked at the young woman in the Daoist Robe before him, and at his own disciple nestled in her arms. He put his palms together and bowed his head, chanting the Buddha’s name.

"Benefactor, please follow me," Master Yuan Kong said, his expression as calm as still water. He didn’t ask a single question.

"Thank you, Master." Gui Junmeng nodded slightly and replied softly. She tightened her hold on Xiao Mo and stepped through the temple gate.

Half an incense stick later, Gui Junmeng arrived at the courtyard where Xiao Mo lived.

She gently laid Xiao Mo on the bed, carefully covered him with a thin blanket, and gazed at him for a moment before turning to leave the room.

As soon as she stepped outside, she saw the old Abbot standing quietly in the courtyard, having already waited for some time.

"Benefactor, if you have nowhere to stay for the time being, you may reside in the adjacent courtyard. It is empty and has never been occupied," Master Yuan Kong said slowly, his tone kind and unhurried.

"Thank you for taking me in, Master." Gui Junmeng bowed with her hands clasped, then looked up at Master Yuan Kong, her gaze tinged with inquiry. "But... aren’t you going to ask about the reason for all this, Master?"

"What need is there to ask? And what would asking change?"

Master Yuan Kong smiled faintly.

"To you all, he may have another name, another past."

"But to this old monk..."

He turned his head to look at the young monk sleeping peacefully in the room, his cloudy eyes full of affection and pity.

"From beginning to end, he has only ever been my disciple. Just the infant I found at the temple gate."

"Que Yin... Que Yin..."

He repeated the Dharma name he had personally bestowed, his voice carrying a hint of helplessness and a sigh.

"I gave him that Dharma name..."

"But in the end, the karma from his past life still hasn’t been resolved..."

"Perhaps... this is my disciple’s fate."

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