Chapter Sixty-Seven: Forgotten

The flames that had filled the sky were extinguished in an instant.

Xingxi had succeeded in driving her weapon into Su Ziye.

From her past experience, the girl's attacks were always lethal; even if she didn't strike a vital point, the power she infused into every blow was enough to kill her enemy outright.

But this time was different.

At the moment their blades clashed, Su Ziye was distracted for a heartbeat when he should not have been.

In that same instant, Xingxi launched her attack without hesitation.

Her silver blade pierced Su Ziye’s abdomen, and that deadly power surged through his body. First came the icy chill, then a force that shattered and obliterated. Interwoven with the laws of the world, this power could reduce even the indestructible to nothing.

And yet, Su Ziye did not die then and there.

He continued to look at her, even as she struck to kill. The young man still smiled at her and asked, “Why do you still keep it?”

Xingxi was surprised. Her right hand, holding her golden blade, was still parrying Su Ziye’s Blade of Desolation, while her left hand’s silver blade remained buried in his abdomen.

She had the clear advantage, but she was also unable to press her attack further.

Su Ziye had used his own body as a lock, restraining her next move. Even as the girl’s ravaging power poured into him, Su Ziye, still very much a true Skyrealm cultivator, had drawn his domain inward, confining it within himself so that he could withstand Xingxi's assault.

Thus, in this moment, Xingxi was forced into a face-to-face conversation with Su Ziye.

Yet she remained silent.

She focused all her will on killing him.

Su Ziye lowered his head and smiled, his gaze drifting to the slender red cord around the girl’s neck.

At its end hung a single-hooked jade pendant, translucent and luminous, clearly of extraordinary quality.

It was almost the only ornament she wore.

“Do you remember who gave that to you?” Su Ziye asked.

He was spending his life to prolong this conversation.

Xingxi tried to wrench her blade free, or to twist her hand and tear Su Ziye apart from within.

But she could not.

In terms of pure strength, Su Ziye now held the upper hand.

At last, the silver-haired, golden-eyed girl opened her mouth and spoke in a muted tone. “I’ve forgotten.”

“But I remember.” Su Ziye gazed at her. His right hand gripped the Blade of Desolation, while his free left hand reached into his robe and brought forth another single-hooked jade pendant of the same blue-green hue, displaying it to Xingxi. “Do you remember? These pendants were once a matching pair.”

“I’ve forgotten,” Xingxi replied, emotionless. “I’m about to kill you.”

“That’s why forgetting is the most terrifying thing in this world,” Su Ziye sighed. “Back then, when you went in my stead into that hell, did you ever expect you’d become what you are now?”

Xingxi no longer responded, focusing instead on her assault.

Though Su Ziye’s strength now seemed inexhaustible, it was undeniably Xingxi who pressed the attack.

Her power surpassed the limits of the Profound Realm, never entering Skyrealm only because she had yet to find the right threshold to cross.

She channeled her immense power into Su Ziye’s body, seeking to destroy him from within. If he showed the slightest weakness, she would utterly crush him.

“The way you are now, you’re not the least bit endearing,” Su Ziye said. “Or perhaps it’s because I’m your mission target, so you must be this ruthless.”

So saying, he replaced the jade pendant in his robe, then gently cupped the girl’s cheek with his hand.

With both of Xingxi’s hands restrained by Su Ziye, she could not resist.

“I’d like to lift your veil and see your face, but I know you wouldn’t want me to see you as you kill,” Su Ziye continued softly. “I promise you only one thing: I will save you.”

For a fleeting instant, the girl’s eyes wavered.

She released her left hand.

Then she retreated in a flash, coming to a halt at the edge of the courtyard.

“You were about to kill me—why did you run?” Su Ziye called out, calm.

“I don’t know,” Xingxi shook her head. “Perhaps I have a more important target.”

With that, she drew a deep breath and fixed her gaze on Liu Ru.

Realizing Su Ziye was not an opponent she could quickly dispatch, she turned her sights to Liu Ru instead.

After all, even now, she was completely unscathed.

No one present seemed capable of harming her, so despite Su Ziye’s unleashed domain of destruction, she still held the initiative.

A flash.

Xingxi’s figure flickered as she struck at Liu Ru.

But this time, her attack halted midair.

“It ends here.” A quiet voice spoke from behind Liu Ru.

She turned and saw a pair of pale violet eyes.

The Master of the Mountain stood at her back, gazing calmly at Xingxi. “Your Highness, your attempt has failed.”

Xingxi was keenly aware of danger.

In that instant, she understood just how perilous this man was.

She abandoned her assault, yet did not immediately withdraw.

She weighed her options, considering what objectives might still be achieved, though the mission had already grown far more difficult than anyone could have imagined.

She had stormed into the Bingshan Villa without warning, her aim to kill Xiye, the Prince of Ster.

She had very nearly succeeded.

But there had been far too many unexpected complications.

“I’ll give you a chance to leave safely,” the Mountain Master said to her. “You are Dark Star’s most prized asset. They won’t stand idly by if you come to harm, but if you don’t cherish your own life, the consequences may not be as you wish.”

Xingxi closed her eyes.

The Mountain Master’s expression changed abruptly.

His figure blurred, and in the next moment, he appeared before Xingxi.

The Lord of the Western City reached out to restrain her. He didn’t want to kill her—there were too many entanglements, too much karma. For Su Ziye alone, killing Xingxi would mean a vendetta that could never end.

But he had not expected Xingxi to attempt a breakthrough then and there.

Already so fearsome in the Profound Realm, if she forced her way into the Skyrealm, the situation would spiral out of control.

Even though she was not at her prime for such a breakthrough—meaning she would lower her future potential—she paid that no mind.

At the very instant the Mountain Master struck, Xingxi opened her eyes.

Her gaze was still empty of emotion, but she was now at the other end of the courtyard.

She stood before Xiye, her finger lightly pressing his chest.

“No!” Liu Ru murmured, closest to Xiye.

Xingxi’s attention had shifted to Liu Ru.

Even in front of the Mountain Master, she still intended to kill.

And she succeeded.

Xiye’s chest was pierced in an instant, then frozen. As the frost spread, his body began to shatter.

He had no domain immunity from the Blade of Desolation to counter Xingxi’s power.

“That’s enough!” The Mountain Master, for once, showed anger.

Xingxi had used her breakthrough to distract him, seizing the only opportunity to kill the most vulnerable target.

She had realized that, from the start, Liu Ru was under the Mountain Master’s protection, while Xiye’s sole defender was the grievously wounded Su Ziye.

The Mountain Master appeared before Xingxi, and in the next instant, the girl vanished into thin air. Yet this could not prevent Xiye from being reduced to a pile of shattered ice.

Su Ziye landed heavily, clutching his abdomen, silently witnessing the scene, then gritted his teeth and looked at the Mountain Master.

“You must not kill her.”