Yun Xi watched helplessly as disciples of the Yixian Gate perished one after another in a series of self-detonations. Unflinching and fearless, they guarded their sect with their lives. Explosions echoed in every direction, striking fear into the hearts of the invading evil cultivators, who now only wanted to flee—but it was far too late. In the end, they became nothing more than the Yixian Gate's final offering in death.
All of this was concealed by the sect's protective grand array. No outsiders were alarmed. When the final disciple fell, the entire Yixian Gate shook violently before sinking into the earth, sealed away completely.
Once again, Yun Xi felt a force pulling at her, ripping her away. Just before her figure vanished, she caught a glimpse of a group of high-level cultivators rushing to the scene—among them, one bore a striking resemblance to Mo Yuwan's City Lord. Likely a senior from the Mo Yu clan.
In the next instant, the pulling force disappeared. Yun Xi's eyes flew open, and she found herself surrounded by Zi Yan's protective flames. The air was completely cut off around her. In her sea of consciousness, a tiny, anxious voice cried out:
"Master! Master, please wake up!"
Yun Xi responded instinctively.
"Dian Dian, what just happened to me?"
Hearing her voice, Dian Dian immediately poked its little head out from Yun Xi's arms. Its black-bead eyes were brimming with tears. Clearly terrified, its voice trembled with grievance:
"Master, as soon as you entered this place, the Ziji Jade Key transported you here. Then you just sat there like your soul had left your body. No matter how Zi Yan or I called you, there was no response.
An hour later, I barely sensed your presence. But it was broken and scattered—I couldn't tell where your soul had gone. I only knew you were still safe... temporarily.
Soon after that, the spiritual energy here began surging into your body. Zi Yan was afraid the energy might contain toxins, so she wrapped you up and filtered it with flame until you successfully advanced to mid-stage Golden Core."
Yun Xi sent her divine sense inward. Sure enough, her cultivation had reached the peak of mid-stage Golden Core. She was a little surprised by the breakthrough, but the dense spiritual energy flowing through her meridians was real and undeniable.
"Zi Yan, thank you. You've worked hard. Come back."
Upon command, the Mystic Thunder Violet Flame instantly shrank and returned to Yun Xi's dantian.
Only then did Yun Xi turn her attention to the Ziji Jade Key in her hand. After the reappearance of the Yixian Gate, the key had returned to her. She suspected everything she experienced earlier was the result of the key being reunited with its original sect—revealing to her why the Yixian Gate had vanished.
Now she finally understood. The Yixian Gate had been targeted by evil cultivators. More precisely, they had their eyes on a special medicine the Yixian Gate disciples developed using Yinxi Grass.
This medicine could mask and alter the aura of evil cultivators, even in the midst of combat, making it nearly impossible for others to detect them. It was the perfect tool for evil cultivators to remain hidden in the cultivation world.
Sect Master Bai had learned of the impending catastrophe from a diviner. In an attempt to avoid the disaster, he destroyed all Yinxi Grass-related medicines and spirit herbs as the diviner had advised. But that decision only fueled the disciples' curiosity and desire to study the Yinxi Grass further.
What Sect Master Bai did wasn't wrong—but in the end, his actions had inadvertently accelerated the sect's downfall.
Yun Xi had traveled through time in spirit form, returning to when the Yixian Gate still stood. She witnessed the events unfold. Her purpose had been to confirm whether the diviner truly knew of her existence. So she spoke up, offering what she believed was the best solution.
She advised the sect's high-level cultivators to ascend to the Spirit Realm and re-establish the Yixian Gate there. She urged them to preserve a spiritual fire—ensuring the sect's inheritance would never be severed. And finally, she insisted that those responsible for the sect's decline be buried with it.
Now that the Yixian Gate had returned through her hands, she had become its rightful inheritor. The moment she opened her mouth back then, the karmic ties were already sealed.
"Ahhh…"
Yun Xi let out a long sigh, a sudden urge rising within her to slap herself.
"Girl, why the sigh?"
An old voice broke through her daze. Yun Xi turned and finally noticed someone beside her. She quickly stood. Before her floated the soul form of Sect Leader Bai, smiling warmly at her.
Yun Xi immediately bowed with cupped fists.
"Sect Master Bai."
"What's your name, girl?"
"Junior Wei Yunxi. I acquired the Ziji Jade Key by chance and recklessly caused the Yixian Gate to reappear. Please do not blame me, Sect Master."
Sect Master Bai waved his hand.
"This soul fragment of mine has waited far too long, all for this day. Your fate is deeply entwined with the Yixian Gate. Only you are worthy to bring it back into the world.
Though we inflicted heavy damage on the enemy, we paid a steep price ourselves. Still, we preserved the sect's honor. The evil cultivators failed in their scheme. But now that the Yixian Gate has re-emerged, trouble will surely come knocking. Are you ready for that?"
Without hesitation, Yun Xi replied,
"Evil cultivators deserve to be eradicated. I do not share their path and will never stand beside them. If they dare come to me, I'll greet them with a strike from my Seven Stars Soul-Shattering Staff. I'll make sure they regret it."
"Hahaha! What spirit! Since you're so bold, let me give you one more life-saving charm. You've already mastered intermediate-level medical and alchemy arts. Now it's time to learn the art of poison. Make sure no evil cultivator dares come within ten paces of you."
With a wave of his sleeve, he sent Yun Xi straight into the Yixian Gate's inheritance hall.
She didn't even have time to resist before she was plunged into another round of intense training—this time in poison techniques. Worse still, she had to personally experience the effects of various toxins. The sour sting of that ordeal nearly broke her, and there were moments when she wanted nothing more than to retreat into her storage space and never come out.
But in the end, she clenched her teeth and pushed through.
After passing the basic poison refinement assessment, the translucent barrier of the Yixian Gate began to fade. As the three-day time limit expired, cultivators cautiously tested the entrance to the underground sect ruins. Some impatient ones even hurled low-level cultivators into the ruins, hoping to use others' lives to test whether it was safe.
One of these reckless cultivators was swept into the ruins himself by a flick of a Nascent Soul cultivator's sleeve. A cold voice echoed overhead:
"The Yixian Gate has reappeared. All who are fated may enter and seek their fortune. But that doesn't give you the right to use others' lives to test the way. If anyone else dares try this despicable tactic, don't blame me for being ruthless."
The Golden Core cultivator who'd been thrown inside scrambled to his feet. Though furious, he didn't dare voice it. He cast a bitter glance at the Nascent Soul cultivator, then stood off to the side, no longer daring to act out. The chaos died down.
A quarter of an hour later, those who entered the underground ruins had yet to show signs of being corroded by poison. Encouraged, they turned into streaks of light and rushed into the Yixian Gate buried beneath the earth.
Yun Xi, meanwhile, was in the sect's herbal garden, picking ingredients for a poison named "Huayan"—Flowered Face. Despite the beautiful name, it was deadly. Those poisoned would grow more and more beautiful—so beautiful it would make gods and mortals alike envious. And then they would die at the peak of their beauty, never realizing they had been poisoned at all.
When Yun Xi first saw this toxin, she thought it would suit certain people obsessed with eternal beauty. So she started refining it. That marked the beginning of her intermediate-level poison training.
By the time Ye Yirui, dusty and travel-worn, arrived in Yuxing City, the ruins of the Yixian Gate had already been opened to the public. The boldest cultivators had already charged inside.
Seeing this, Aunt Ran's expression tightened in alarm.
"Young Valley Master, we're too late!"