Tu Shan Honghong looked at her wounded sister and dropped to her knees, overwhelmed by a storm of guilt and fear.
Her life's purpose—the dream inspired by her early encounters with the young Taoist priests—had always been to create a world where humans and monsters could coexist in peace.
But that dream was built on the fragile hope that her family would never come to harm.
If her own ideals ended up getting her loved ones killed, Tu Shan Honghong would never forgive herself.
Her sister had refused to heal her injured eye, even though she could easily have done so with Eternal Meditation. Yaya wanted Honghong to see the pain, to see what her refusal to act had cost.
"I'm sorry, sister… I was careless."
Honghong's red eyes brimmed with tears as she staggered up and pulled her sister into a tight embrace.
Her sobs echoed throughout the palace, raw and mournful.
But Tu Shan Yaya's expression was eerily calm. She held her sister gently, her voice composed, her mind steeled.
This ordeal had forced her to grow up overnight.
She understood now—people are selfish, demons are selfish.
Only a true God could create harmony for all beings.
She was not a god, and neither was her sister.
They were just fox demons, carrying both love and pain.
"Sister, if you truly want peace in the world, there are some things you must be willing to sacrifice… and some pieces of your conscience you must learn to let go.
"This time, the Yiqi Dao League attacked me first. So I fought back.
Now, I'm going to use every one of them as a death sacrifice—offering their blood and souls to the Eternal God."
Tu Shan Honghong struggled to comfort herself: This isn't our fault. Heaven forgives all, but those who sin must pay.
This time, it was the Dao League who had brought disaster—not the Tushan Clan.
After a long silence, Honghong drew a deep breath and rose to her feet. "You are the chief priest, Yaya. You'll take charge of everything. I'll simply follow your instructions and help however I can."
She'd made her choice.
When faced with her sister or the lives of "strangers," she would choose her sister every time.
Refusing Yaya now would only drive an irreparable wedge between them.
At least for now, Yaya was still rational. If she was there to guide her, maybe her little sister could heal, in time, from this darkness.
"I understand, sister," Yaya replied. "Three days from now, the Tushan Fox Clan will offer sacrifices to the gods. Don't forget to attend."
She closed her remaining eye, exhaustion overtaking her, and sank into deep meditation.
My plan worked… and my sister's heart has been tested as well.
Outside the Shrine
Cui Yuling stood under the open sky, hands clasped behind her back.
She was uninterested in the drama unfolding between the Tushan sisters—instead, she watched, curious to see how Honghong would respond.
To allow her little sister to execute hundreds of the Yiqi Dao League's best—this was no small matter.
It would send shockwaves through the entire world, for the Dao League was humanity's greatest power.
If they fell, the human world would be crippled for centuries, its inheritance lost.
The decision was completely at odds with everything Tu Shan Honghong once stood for.
"After all this time… I thought you would persuade her to show mercy. I never expected you to simply abandon the Dao League." Cui Yuling murmured.
"Wrong," Honghong answered gravely. "I just don't want my sister to fall into the abyss. She's still young. If I refused her just now… the whole world might have been destroyed."
Honghong explained: her sister was the true chief priest of the Eternal God, and a member of the Ten Thousand Realms chat group.
The power of ten tails that Honghong had gained was only because she basked in her sister's light.
The real decision-maker was Yaya.
Cui Yuling's eyes narrowed. "Is it really that serious?"
Honghong nodded, voice weary. "She's the one chosen by God, not me… If I defied her and she left in anger, I'd be powerless to stop whatever happened next."
She imagined the awful scenario—Yaya gone, angry, and alone. If that happened, the whole world could be wiped out by the followers of the Eternal God.
Honghong thought of the group chat's stories: even the goddess Solanum Nigrum had once been sweet and innocent—until her brother was killed before her very eyes, shattering her heart and twisting her nature forever.
She didn't want her sister to suffer that fate.
Now Cui Yuling finally understood just how terrifying the chief priest of the Eternal Cult truly was.
As long as God willed it, Yaya could not die, nor could anyone threaten her.
Even if she lost a battle, she'd always rise again—her divine status guaranteed.
And if anyone tried to threaten her, the God would send down an even stronger goddess to wipe them out. This cult is terrifyingly protective… Hehe, as a Jade Spirit, I kind of like that.
Elsewhere, in a Bamboo House
Dongfang Huaizhu gazed at the full moon, her heart heavy with regret.
How did it come to this?
She squeezed her hands tightly.
If only the royal family hadn't been so reckless, none of this would have happened… Stupid men…
Now, hundreds of her fellow Daoists—elites, friends—were caged like animals.
She herself was to become a living sacrifice, an offering to the gods.
The rage in her eyes faded, replaced by fear.
Her family, the Sacred Fire Clan, was down to only herself and her aging father. If she died, what would become of them?
Tears ran down her cheeks.
What girl doesn't long for spring, for love, for a future?
But if I refuse the sacrifice, my father will die. I have no choice…
No one slept well that night.
The Return of Tu Shan Honghong
Hope briefly flickered in the hearts of the Yiqi Dao League when Honghong returned.
Surely the Demon King would save them!
But that hope died almost instantly—she vanished into the temple without even looking at them.
Even the other monster clans—Shi Kuan, the queen of Shahu, Qingtian—were uneasy as they observed the caged Daoists.
The Shahu queen, once so bold, was now anxious.
"I really can't tell if this is a blessing or a curse. That little one… she's scarier than Tu Shan Honghong herself."
"She really captured those people by herself?" Shi Kuan asked.
"You saw it! Even pure Yang Flames couldn't touch her. Who else could resist?"
Qingtian, remembering the scene, still shuddered.
Pure Yang Flame—fire that monsters most fear—froze into snowflakes before her. How could that be?
"I've heard," Shi Kuan said quietly, "that the sacrifices will begin in three days. We'll learn the truth then."
"But… does the God really exist?" someone whispered.
Three Days Later
A bright, cloudless sky stretched over Tushan.
Tens of thousands of monsters gathered for the ceremony.
The captives of the Yiqi Dao League were tossed to the ground by fox demons; their bodies, bound by ice for days, had already begun to decay.
"Kill. Offer spiritual blood as a sacrifice to the God," came a cold voice.
The three sisters of Tushan stepped onto the stage—Yaya in the lead, Honghong on the left, Rongrong on the right.
Blades of wind shimmered in the air.
From afar, Dongfang Guyue could barely stand to watch; the finest of the Dao League were being executed en masse.
Blood poured across the ground, but instead of soaking in, it was drawn by mystical forces toward the altar, swirling and glowing.
"Bring the living sacrifice!"
Dongfang Huaizhu emerged from the crowd, her face pale, yet she walked with dignity.
She knelt before the altar, surrounded by the headless corpses of her friends.
Tu Shan Yaya faced the great, withered Tree of Affliction and raised her voice:
"The ceremony begins!"
The three sisters stood in their appointed places, directly before the altar.
"Today, the Tushan Clan offers the afflicted tree and the women of the Eastern Spirit Clan as living sacrifices, and the dead of the Dao League as blood sacrifices—
We offer everything to the Eternal God!"
As her voice rang out, monsters all across Tushan fell to their knees, not daring to look up.
"Great Eternal God, hear the voice of your servant Tu Shan Yaya. I offer these sacrifices, yearning for your arrival…
You are greater than all, older than time…
You are eternal…"
Her clear voice carried into the heavens.
The entire altar began to glow, faint at first, then brighter and brighter.
The three great monster clans exchanged anxious glances.
Is it really so simple to offer a sacrifice? No incantations? No elaborate spells?
This was nothing like what they'd expected.
Suddenly, the world changed.
A violent hurricane roared out of nowhere.
Black lightning streaked across the sky, the sun itself grew dim.
All the world's light gathered into a single point in the heavens.
Flame, frost, darkness—every possible vision of elemental chaos danced across the sky.
All the monsters felt a fear that came from the soul itself—an instinctual terror that made even the bravest shudder.
If their bodies weren't frozen in place, every one of them would have fled.
"What… why is the starry sky shining in broad daylight!?"
"No… this isn't the starry sky we know… What is that?!"
"Is this the realm of the gods?"
"I saw a dragon… My god, it's bigger than any monster I've ever known…"
Cui Yuling knelt nearby, her three eyes trembling in awe and terror.
So this is the world of the gods… No wonder the Tushan Demon King said divine power was invincible.
Just a breath from that world, and all monsters lose the will to fight.