"Xiu'er... we... are back..." The moment they returned to the real world, Chu Lian's soul and Li Xiu'er's soul were instantly drawn back into their respective bodies.
Chu Lian's originally healthy complexion turned deathly pale in an instant. Opening her eyes, she slowly raised her hand, wanting to touch Li Xiu'er's cheek, and murmured softly, "Xiu'er, we're back..."
"Mm...?" Perhaps because her soul had been away from her body for too long, or because being confined within Nether City for so long left her unaccustomed, the girl did not open her eyes immediately.
Only after quite some time following Chu Lian's call did she slowly open her eyes, her gaze unfocused as she looked at the girl before her.
"That's great... you woke up..." Chu Lian could feel that both her and Li Xiu'er's souls seemed to be rejected by their bodies, but waking up meant there was still a way to resolve it...
As she thought this, she opened her mouth to say something, but the pain erupting from the depths of her soul tore her consciousness apart. The hand that had been reaching toward Li Xiu'er fell halfway, powerless, as she fainted into her arms.
"Chu Lian..." Seeing this, the girl who had still been dazed instantly became fully alert. Looking at her in her arms, she cried out loudly, "Chu Lian... what's wrong with you? Chu Lian..."
Tears that had already been shimmering in her eyes suddenly fell in droplets onto Chu Lian's face. Lowering her head, she wanted to press her forehead against Chu Lian's, but the intense sense of discord within her body made it impossible for her to do anything.
Then, she saw her world suddenly fall into a gray, chilling stillness. Her consciousness faded, her vision went dark, and she lost all sensation.
"Be good, Mom is here..." In the brief time since their return, Li Mingxue had already withdrawn from the battlefield and returned to Chu Lian and Li Xiu'er's side. Looking at the two unconscious girls, she used her energy to dispel the mark of Nether City on their souls, then held them in her arms, murmuring softly.
"Don't run!" For some unknown reason, the three Heaven-rank experts of the Li family had also experienced a surge in strength, reaching the peak of Heaven-rank. That was the only reason they had managed to hold out against Li Mingxue's attacks for so long. Although the taboo that prevented her from leaving the small house had been personally broken by her, the three of them still could not escape.
As long as they failed to kill Li Mingxue, they would never be able to leave. Moreover, they had to do so within half an hour, or they would explode and die.
Now that they saw Chu Lian and Li Xiu'er awaken, they knew their plan had failed. Filled with fury, how could they allow Li Mingxue to escape? They still wanted to live. If they killed her, there would definitely be a chance.
"Do you really think I can't deal with you?" Holding one girl in each arm, Li Mingxue turned to face the three peak Heaven-rank experts chasing after her and asked gently.
The moment she finished speaking, the entire world seemed unchanged for everyone else. Only the three of them were immobilized in the sky, bound by countless radiant swords as if targeted exclusively.
"Sealing Eyes..." Facing Li Mingxue directly, the three of them saw the change in her eyes and were struck with overwhelming shock.
Those pupils formed a pentagram composed of five long swords of different shapes but equal length, with a faint white figure standing at the center. When she looked at them, it felt as if everything could be sealed away, filling them with immense fear.
This was a legendary ocular power said to be capable of sealing anything. A triangle marked its first stage, a rhombus the second, and a pentagram the third. Beyond that, they did not know.
But they did know of its terrifying reputation—something far beyond their ability to resist.
"Originally, for the sake of you being elders of the family, I never intended to strike heavily. But now, it seems I have no choice. You've gone too far." Li Mingxue made no physical movement. The aura around her condensed into a tall, elegant white phantom, which extended a finger and pointed at the three of them several times.
A vortex appeared behind them, swallowing all three inside. During the entire process, they could not even struggle—only disappearing in silence.
"Reflect on your lives in that endless void. As long as I have no intention to kill you, you will never die. Rest assured." Her words sounded like self-talk, yet also like they were directed at those who had already vanished.
Regardless, with their disappearance, the battle that had taken place in the Li family's rear courtyard came to an end.
Although the number of girls was far fewer than their enemies, their talent was extraordinary, and their combat strength far exceeded others at the same level. With coordinated teamwork, most of the time they treated their opponents as training targets.
With Li Mingxue having dealt with the three leaders, the remaining enemies were leaderless. Even if they wanted to flee, they had no means to do so and were cut down one by one, leaving only their corpses behind to rot.
"Mom..." Chu Chu walked up to Li Mingxue, looking at the two girls in her arms. Sensing no signs of life, her eyes instantly reddened. She clung to a thread of hope, asking her mother to tell her they were alright.
"Mom will fix this. Be good... we're going home..." Gently handing Li Xiu'er to Chu Chu, Li Mingxue looked at Chu Lian in her arms—her pale face and gradually cooling body—and felt a sharp pain stab through her heart.
This was the person she cared about most. Why had it come to this? The prophecies from before had already begun to take effect, and they were unfolding in the right direction.
But the recent ones had deviated more and more, each more dangerous than the last. Heavens... are you trying to take her away from me?
Absolutely not. She is my daughter—she was, she is, and she always will be. No one will take her away from my side. Absolutely no one.
"Let's go home..." Holding Li Xiu'er, who was slightly taller than herself, Chu Chu spoke in a low voice. Everywhere her hands touched felt icy cold. Even her breathing seemed to have stopped.
What could make things clearer than this about her condition? Let's go home... just go home... no more words... home...
"Mm..." The other girls who witnessed this scene did not know what to say.
Kurosaki Satsuki glanced at them, then silently left first with Hiyori. Now that the battle was over, she found herself unable to do anything else.
She didn't know why, but her heart ached terribly—the suffocating pain felt eerily similar to five years ago, when she had watched her mother die before her eyes.
Tina, on the other hand, looked confused and lost. After taking two steps toward Chu Lian, she suddenly stumbled and fell to the ground. Looking up at Chu Lian, she reached out her hand—but could not touch her.
A burst of white light emerged from her body. The girl's figure gradually faded, and what remained in place was a small white cat with faint, fragile breathing.
Inori gently bent down and gathered Tina into her arms, stroking her fur. She walked to Li Mingxue's side, standing in a straight line with Chu Lian in her arms.
She knew she wasn't dead—because their contract still existed. As long as she woke up, everything would get better. It had to.
But her heart felt like it was being gripped tightly by a hand, making it hard to breathe. Please wake up soon... I can't lose you... I can't...
"From this day onward, the Li family shall cease to exist..." If this incident had not occurred, the Li family might still have had a chance to rise again.
But unfortunately, after this, Li Mingxue no longer felt anything toward the Li family. Since they wished for change, then let them disappear.
Walking out of the Li residence, Li Mingxue turned back. The white phantom behind her reappeared and gently brushed its hand across the plaque above the Li family gates, erasing it.
This act signified that the Li family, which had been passed down for a thousand years, would from this moment become nothing more than history.
"From now on, this place will become a domain where demons roam at night. Those without sufficient strength must not approach. Entry into the Li residence is forbidden without at least Earth-rank strength. This is the restriction."
The Sealing Eyes opened. Countless radiant swords descended, embedding themselves into every corner of the Li family grounds, sealing the true Li family into subspace while leaving behind an ordinary facade to deceive the world.
"We're going home..." After finishing everything, Li Mingxue spoke softly once more.
As her words fell, everyone felt a gust of wind. In the next moment, they realized they were already in the air, traveling through the void. A journey that had taken ten minutes before was completed in less than a single minute.
"It's almost ten... why hasn't Mom come back yet?" Lying on the sofa, Anna felt uneasy. She could sense that her mother's presence seemed to be growing weaker.
But she had promised her mother she wouldn't act recklessly. As long as her mother didn't return by ten, she could go out and look for her. Whoever dared harm her—she would make them pay with their life.
"Mommy..." The door opened. That extremely faint presence of her mother appeared in the house. Anna stared blankly at Chu Lian lying in Li Mingxue's arms, her pale face making it hard for her to believe.
"Mommy?" she called again. But the girl who would always respond to her calls now gave no reaction at all, as if she couldn't hear her.
"Mommy...?" Black runes appeared in her eyes, forming into a strange hexagonal pattern. The aura around her surged rapidly, transforming her from a harmless girl into a terrifying being capable of slaying gods and Buddhas.
"Tell me—where are the ones who hurt Mommy?!" She raised her head, her voice sharp. Li Mingxue knew this tone—it was what happened when her voice reached an extreme pitch before being forcibly suppressed.
In her current state, Li Mingxue could suppress her—but there was no need.
Shaking her head, the white phantom behind her appeared again. With both hands, it drew a circle before Anna. A black vortex formed, and Anna could sense three powerful energies fighting within it. Two of them were intertwined with her mother's aura—it must be them!
Without another word, she leapt inside. Appearing above Nether City, she rapidly descended toward the ghost cultivator's residence.
"Oh? Another one has arrived. Looks like reinforcements." Even for Yukari Yakumo—who stood among the absolute peak of Transcendence Realm experts—facing an opponent only slightly weaker than herself along with a ghost cultivator nearing the supreme path was already somewhat taxing.
She had originally planned to open a gap and leave if the battle dragged on, but unexpectedly, a girl with an extremely strange aura had appeared here.
As if answering her expectations, the moment Anna arrived, her body enveloped in black energy, she immediately attacked the ghost cultivator and his master without saying a single word. This was her vengeance...
"I suddenly feel a bit homesick..." While busy with his own matters, Chu Xiao suddenly felt a sharp pain in his heart. He looked toward the direction of his home, clenched his fists, and murmured quietly...