The shift happened too fast for the eye to follow.
One moment—
Xing Yue was bound. The coarse rope bit into her wrists, wound tightly enough to bruise even immortal flesh, her body pressed against the pillar like a restrained offering.
And the next—She was gone. No sound.
No warning. Just a sudden displacement of air. And then—
She was in front of Dingying.
Her hand wrapped around the girl's throat.
Tight. Unyielding.
Dingying's eyes widened in pure, unfiltered horror. Her feet left the ground as Xing Yue lifted her effortlessly, fingers pressing into her neck with terrifying precision.
"How did—" Dingying choked, her voice breaking. "You… you are nothing without your immortality… how could you—"
Xing Yue didn't answer. She only looked at her. And in that gaze— There was no calm.
No restraint.
Only something vast and cold and furious.
Then—
She flung her.
Dingying's body tore through the air like a discarded rag. She crashed violently into the massive statue of Prince Yu Shaochen.
The impact was catastrophic.
Stone cracked. Then shattered.
The once-grotesque figure split apart, fragments exploding outward as the force rippled through the structure. The entire temple trembled, dust raining from above as the ground gave a low, rumbling groan.
Broken pieces of carved stone scattered across the floor.
The golden turtle statue beside it toppled, striking the ground with a hollow metallic clang.
Jiang Yunxian stood frozen. Completely, utterly still. For once in his life—He had no words. His mind struggled to reconcile what he had just seen.
Xing Yue—
The same woman who spent her nights in silent meditation beneath the stars.
The same woman whose presence was usually calm, distant, almost untouchable—
Had just obliterated a stone statue with nothing but brute force.
No technique.
No visible cultivation method. Just raw, terrifying strength. His lips parted slightly.
When… did she become like this?
He had always assumed her power lay in her domain—
The stars. The night. Something ethereal. Something untouchable.
But this—
This was something else entirely. This was not elegance.This was not serenity. This was violence. And not the reckless kind. But the kind that had been refined.
Tempered. Cultivated.
Jiang Yunxian swallowed slowly.
A thought formed in his mind with absolute clarity.
Do not provoke her. Not in jest. Not in teasing. Not even by accident. Because if he did—
There was a very real possibility he would end up embedded in a mountain somewhere far beyond recognition.
He imagined it briefly.
His body flying across the skies. Landing somewhere between the mortal realm and the heavens—
He shook his head immediately.
No.
Absolutely not.
The heavens already disliked him enough.
If he ended up there like that, they might actually take the opportunity to make an example out of him.
No.
Better to stay alive. Better to stay quiet.
Better—
To never, ever cross this woman.
Meanwhile—
Xing Yue had already moved again. Her figure blurred through the air. Before Dingying could even recover—
She was there. Again. Another grab.Another lift. Another throw.
This time—
Into the wall.
The impact shattered stone. Cracks spread like lightning across the temple's structure before chunks of the wall collapsed inward, debris crashing to the floor in a thunderous cascade.
Dust filled the air. The scent of broken stone and old blood thickened.
Again. And again. And again.
Xing Yue moved like a storm unbound. Each motion was precise. Each strike carried terrifying force. Dingying's body was thrown across the temple like a puppet with cut strings, slamming into pillars, walls, shattered remains of the statue. The temple itself seemed unable to withstand the assault.
Cracks spread further. Fragments fell from above. The entire structure groaned as if on the verge of collapse. Finally—
Dingying hit the ground. Hard.
Her body rolled weakly before coming to a stop. Blood spilled from her lips as she coughed violently, her entire form trembling.
"How…" she gasped, her voice broken. "How could you do this…?"
Her body shifted. Her small frame twisted—
And then expanded. Bones stretched. Limbs lengthened. In a matter of seconds, the young girl was gone.
In her place—
A full-grown woman lay sprawled against the broken stone. Her hair disheveled. Her face pale. Her breath ragged.
"That rope…" she whispered hoarsely. "It binds both immortals and humans… why… how…"
"Shut up."
Xing Yue's voice cracked through the air like thunder. It wasn't loud. But it carried a weight that silenced everything else. She stepped forward slowly. Each step echoed across the ruined temple.
"You dare compare a mere rope to me?"
Her eyes burned. "You dare compare a god to an immortal?"
She let out a cold scoff. "How pathetic."
Dingying froze. "A… god?"
The word trembled on her lips.
Xing Yue's gaze sharpened further. "You say you admire me." Her voice dropped.
"Yes. I am a fading immortal."A pause.
Then—
"I can still beat you into pulp."
Dingying's expression twisted. Shock. Confusion. And something darker.
"Impossible…" she whispered. Her voice cracked with obsession. "He should have been mine…"
Her fingers dug into the ground. "Why give him to another…?"
That was it.
Something in Xing Yue snapped again. She moved—
Faster than before. Her hand shot forward—
Aimed for Dingying's throat.
This time— Not to throw. Not to strike. But to end it. To crush. To silence. To erase. But before her fingers could reach—
A hand caught her wrist. Firm. Unyielding.
Jiang Yunxian.
His grip tightened instantly, locking her movement in place.
"Enough."
His voice was low. Serious. No trace of his usual laziness remained.
Xing Yue struggled.
Her body trembled with restrained force.
The air around her felt unstable, as if even the space itself reacted to her fury.
"Let go," she said.
But beneath the anger—There was something else. Something heavier. Something quieter.
Guilt.
It coiled deep within her chest, tightening with every breath. The faces. The voices.
The memory of that night. They had been awake. They had seen her. They had begged.
And she—
Had walked away. Her strength faltered for just a fraction of a second. But Jiang Yunxian noticed.
He raised two fingers calmly to his lips.
His eyes softened slightly.
Then—
He whispered an incantation. A faint ripple spread through the air. Invisible.
Silent. But immediate.
Xing Yue's body froze. Completely. Her limbs stilled. Her breathing slowed.
The violent energy surrounding her dissipated like smoke fading into the sky.
The No Effect Spell.
A technique designed not to harm— But to halt. To still the body.To quiet the storm.
Xing Yue stood there, unmoving.
Her anger still burned in her eyes—
But her body could no longer act on it. The temple fell silent again.
Broken.
Ruined.
Dust settling slowly over shattered stone and fallen pillars. Jiang Yunxian exhaled quietly. His grip loosened slightly, though he did not fully release her.
He glanced at her from the side. For once—
There was no teasing in his expression. Only quiet understanding. Because beneath her fury—He had seen it. The weight she was carrying. And it was far heavier than the destruction she had just unleashed.
___
For a long moment after Xing Yue stilled under the spell, the temple felt as though it had exhaled. Dust settled slowly over broken stone. The shattered remains of the statue lay scattered like fallen relics of a forgotten faith. Cracks ran along the walls like veins, and faint beams of sunlight slipped through the fractured roof, cutting across the ruin in pale gold lines.
Jiang Yunxian did not move immediately.
His hand still lingered near Xing Yue's wrist, though he had already loosened his grip. His gaze drifted to her face. She stood motionless. Eyes still burning. Body stilled by his spell. And for the first time since he had known her—
She looked… fragile. Not in body. But in something deeper. His expression dimmed slightly. A thought pressed at the edges of his mind. Was she truly losing her immortality? The idea unsettled him more than he cared to admit.
The first time he had heard it—
Was that night. The night of the Red Omen.
The sky had bled crimson, and the moon had hung low and unnatural, as though watching the world with a silent warning.
And beneath it— She was In different places fighting a woman clad in crimson and black robes. The crimson robed person has said it. That she was nothing without her immorality.
At the time, he had dismissed it. Assumed she was simply exhausted. Perhaps she needed more meditation. More time beneath the stars.
But now—
Hearing it again. Seeing it. Feeling it. It unsettled him.
Why didn't she tell me?
The thought came unbidden. He frowned faintly. Too many things no longer aligned.
Too many things felt… fractured.
But one thing—
One thing he knew with absolute certainty—
Xing Yue must not kill. His gaze darkened slightly. She was a god.
And gods—Did not kill.
Even with the Heaven's Eye shattered…
Even with the chaos that had followed…
Even with the fact that he himself had accidentally destroyed her supposed fate the very first day they met at Cloud Peak Sect—
That truth did not change. Gods did not take lives. They judged.Or they delivered judgment to those who could.
The Judgement Pillars.
His thoughts drifted briefly. In the Heavenly Realm, punishment was not dealt carelessly.
There was order. Structure. Balance.
The Judgement Pillars were not mere instruments of punishment. They were truth made manifest. A vast hall of black and white. Light and shadow shifting endlessly across the space.
There—One's sins were weighed. Measured. Judged. If the hall dimmed—
Your sins were grave.
If it brightened—Your life had been righteous. And when judgment came—
The pillars would fall.
One. Or many. Each one carrying the weight of your sins. And the pain— Was not ordinary pain. It was said to be a million times worse than anything the mortal body could comprehend.
That— Was justice.That—Was the heavens' way. Not this. Not anger.Not impulsive destruction.
Jiang Yunxian exhaled slowly. That was why he had acted. Why he had cast the No Effect Spell. Not to restrain her. But to stop her from crossing a line she could not return from.
Finally, he turned away from her. His gaze settled on Dingying. She lay on the ground, her transformed body trembling slightly, her breaths uneven. The purple of her robes seemed darker now. Almost alive.
Jiang Yunxian looked at her for a long moment.
Then—
He smiled. But it was not his usual smile.
Not the lazy, carefree one. This one was different. It carried disappointment.
Sharp.
Unforgiving.
"Did you tell them," he asked quietly, "that you loved that man?"
Dingying's brows furrowed immediately.
"Why should I?" she snapped weakly. "They don't deserve to know."
Jiang Yunxian let out a short laugh. It wasn't amused. It was incredulous. "Are you a fool?" He tilted his head slightly. "You're a mind demon. What are your abilities? To read thoughts. To understand what is unspoken." His eyes narrowed slightly.
"But humans are not like you. They cannot read your mind. Did you expect them to simply know what you wanted?"
Dingying's lips trembled.
"They don't deserve to know," she repeated stubbornly.
Jiang Yunxian's expression hardened. "And you chose to appear as a child." His voice sharpened. In
"A five-year-old, no less." He gestured at her current form. "What do you think that looks like to others?A lost child taken in by a family. If anything, people would accuse them of wrongdoing. Child trafficking. Abuse. Suspicion." His tone carried a quiet edge now.
Dingying stilled. Her breathing faltered.
Jiang Yunxian continued. "If you had appeared like this—"
He gestured again at her adult form.
"They might have listened. They might have considered your feelings. And if the two truly loved each other…" He paused briefly.
"Why would they break an engagement that existed long before you even arrived?"
The words settled heavily in the air.
"They were promised to each other before they ever met you." He exhaled. A quiet sigh.
"Demons and humans are not the same. Why couldn't you understand that?" His gaze softened slightly.
Not with pity. But with finality.
"You didn't even try to understand them."
"And yet…" His voice dropped. "You killed them."
Silence. Complete and bsolute.
Then—
Dingying shook her head. Slowly at first. Then more violently.
"No…" Her voice cracked. "No… that's not true…"
Her eyes widened, something unraveling behind them. "That's impossible…"
Her hands trembled against the ground.
"How could that be…?" Her face twisted.
Not with arrogance now. But with something broken. Something collapsing. The air around her shifted. A faint wisp of purple smoke curled from her sleeves.
Then another. And another. The smoke thickened. Darkened. Until it began to burn.
Purple flames flickered to life.
They crawled along her robes like living things, consuming the fabric, then her skin, then everything. Her scream tore through the temple. Raw. Agonized.
It echoed against the broken walls, rising into the cracked ceiling before dissolving into the morning air. The flames grew brighter. Brighter—
Until her figure was completely engulfed.
And then— Gone. No ash. No remains.
Only a faint trace of lingering heat. And silence.
Jiang Yunxian stood there.Watching.
His expression returned to its usual calm.
Detached. Almost indifferent.
As if—
Whatever had just happened—Was no longer his concern. The temple settled once more into quiet ruin.
Dust drifted. Light shifted. The broken statue lay still.bAnd behind him—
Xing Yue remained frozen in place. Caught between rage and regret. Unable to move.
Unable to act. Left only with the weight of everything that had just unfolded.