Trafford's Trading Club

Chapter 1090: How Could There Be a Path to Immortality in This World? (98) — This Lonely Emperor’s Surname Is Ying

Clouds drifted and dispersed.

Beneath the hovering Leixia Ship, in a forest area that had managed to survive the devastating assault with only moderate damage—

The girl had awakened, leaning against the trunk of a fallen giant tree.

A soft beam of light filtered through the tilted branches of the half-toppled tree, casting half of her face in light and half in shadow.

"You're awake."

The girl heard the voice. Her purple eyes no longer looked so dull… but they weren’t especially lively either—and the earlier emotional turmoil was gone.

Luo Qiu observed her quietly for a while and noticed she just kept looking at him—unmoving, unblinking.

"Can you hear me?" Luo Qiu asked gently—though he rarely spoke loudly, his tone now was especially tender.

The girl hesitated, then nodded—her expression began to shift, from confusion to unease. She cautiously looked around; everything seemed unfamiliar to her.

Luo Qiu continued watching her for a moment before suddenly asking, "Do you… remember anything?"She shook her head.

"Your name?"

She shook her head again.

"What about me?"

She stared at him seriously for a while, but still shook her head.

"So this is the price..."

Luo Qiu shook his head and moved closer, squatting before her. "I'm sorry. The abilities I now possess likely come at a cost. When I saved you, I may have broken some rules... But even so, not everything was taken from me. So I think... something may have been taken from you—something I desired—as the price… or punishment."

The girl looked at him, half-understanding.

Luo Qiu patiently explained, "To put it simply, you had a power within you that could harm me. If you wanted to stay by my side, or if I wanted to keep you close, that power had to be sacrificed. In other words, only once you lost that power would you be considered harmless to me."

She still looked confused and shook her head again.

Luo Qiu gently patted her head.

She didn’t seem to understand, but she clearly enjoyed his comforting gesture. When he withdrew his hand, she even reached out and placed his palm gently against her cheek.

She closed her eyes, as if unwilling to let go.

"This won’t do—I still have work to do."

Under Luo Qiu's gaze, she reluctantly let go of his hand.

"Can you stand?"

She nodded and slowly stood up, though her body was very weak and unsteady. Luo Qiu had to support her and said, "I checked your body earlier. It seems there were issues before. Now that your power is gone, you're fragile—like a newborn child."

Her legs trembled, like someone with muscular atrophy.

"Come on, just get used to it. I’ll walk slower." Luo Qiu took her hand.

She nodded. Her lips moved slightly, as if she wanted to speak, but no words came out.

Luo Qiu patiently said, "Don’t force yourself. Adapting takes time."

Her hand gripped slightly tighter, and even that seemed like a burden to her fingers… Luo Qiu glanced at her. He could monitor her physical state at all times.

Yet any assistance he gave her seemed to vanish without a trace—none of his powers worked on her.

All he could do was move with her… Luo Qiu looked up at the Leixia Ship, then teleported away with the girl.

---

Many had left through the portal opened by Miss Maid, but not everyone.

For example, Qin Chuyu remained.

As did “Mo Xiaofei,” who stood with hands behind his back at the entrance of Penglai Palace… and Windchaser.

After Long Xiruo and Su Zijun's group left first, two more disheveled figures climbed up onto the square outside the palace—

It was Gongsun Wuwei and Gong Fanxing. During the Leixia Ship's bombardment, the two had been scrambling around to avoid destruction. Now that it had stopped, they finally had time to reach the palace.

In truth, Qin Chuyu had spotted them earlier—but the indiscriminate chaos from Leixia Ship left her no room to get close.

Now, with the calm restored, the newly arrived Gong Fanxing and Gongsun Wuwei clearly saw Qin Chuyu… or rather, the Green Lotus Sword Song in her hand.

"Where does this lead?" Gongsun Wuwei curiously approached the still-open portal.

He and Gong Fanxing had only glimpsed a figure disappearing through it.

"This is the way out," Daoist Baijie suddenly spoke up—his purpose unclear.

Gongsun Wuwei frowned, eyeing the portal warily.

Da Zhe stood silently behind Miss Maid, making Gongsun wary—someone as strong as Da Zhe seemed to serve this blonde woman.

Meanwhile—

Gong Fanxing’s seductive gaze landed on Qin Chuyu. She frowned. “You practice the Green Lotus Sword Canon? Why do you hold the Green Lotus Sword Song? What’s your connection to Taibai?”

Qin Chuyu turned her face away, looking toward the ruined treasure vault beneath Penglai Palace. “He is my master. Who are you two, and how do you recognize his sword?”

“Master?” Gong Fanxing blinked, then scrutinized her. “So you’re the little fox spirit Taibai took in back then?”

Qin Chuyu snorted coldly. Her gaze sharpened. A green sword light shot silently toward Gong Fanxing.

But the female demon from five centuries ago merely chuckled, flicked her fingers, and shattered the sword energy. “Condensed sword aura—not bad. You’ve reached the eighth level of the canon, haven’t you?”

Qin Chuyu remained outwardly calm but was deeply shocked—this seductive woman had nearly deduced her cultivation level with just one sword aura.

"Miss Yu, these are Senior Gong Fanxing and Senior Gongsun Wuwei," Daoist Baijie, always good at diffusing tension, stepped forward. “It seems they were trapped here and only escaped thanks to our intrusion.”

Calling them “seniors” wasn’t an issue.

Daoist Baijie had started cultivating later in life, already nearing forty when he began. By then, Gong Fanxing and Gongsun Wuwei were already legends in the Daoist world.

“Gong Fanxing… Gongsun Wuwei?” Qin Chuyu frowned. “My master said he killed you both at the East Sea. Why are you still alive?”

Gong Fanxing giggled flirtatiously. “You still don’t get it? Little fox, of course your master loved me. He told the world he killed me, but really, he just stashed me away in a golden house! Taibai and I spent three very happy years together.”

Hearing this, Gongsun Wuwei widened his eyes and muttered, “This woman has no shame…”

“Nonsense! Don’t insult my master’s name!”

But the claim truly enraged the usually composed Qin Chuyu. After a piercing cry from the Green Lotus Sword Song, dozens of sword beams shot forth—yet even faster was Qin Chuyu herself, sword in hand!

Gong Fanxing didn’t dodge. With a twist of her fingers, she caught the sword blade between them, then moved the blade skillfully, slicing down the following sword beams one by one.

Qin Chuyu was shocked. She twisted her wrist and infused immense power, finally forcing Gong Fanxing to release her grip.

But Gong Fanxing was quick. She reached out and pressed a palm lightly against Qin Chuyu’s abdomen!

Taking that palm strike, Qin Chuyu flipped backward. After landing, her expression turned serious as she reached for the spot where the palm had hit. She frowned… There was no pain—only a light push.

“Oh my, drawing your sword at the slightest provocation… You really are Taibai’s disciple,” Gong Fanxing said with a sigh.

Qin Chuyu frowned. “Why did you hold back?”

Gong Fanxing giggled, her ample chest trembling slightly. “Silly girl, I was your master’s old flame, after all. At the very least, I count as your half-master’s-wife—how could I bear to really hurt you? But honestly, the fact that you got so furious just from one offhand comment… don’t tell me you harbor some unspeakable feelings for your master?”

“Don’t spout nonsense!”

Qin Chuyu shouted coldly and once again swung the Green Lotus Sword Song. As if sensing her rage, the sword exploded with a powerful green light.

“Little fox spirit, your chest may be small, but your temper sure isn’t,” Gong Fanxing laughed coquettishly. “How about showing a bit of respect for your elders, hmm?”

With that, Gong Fanxing leapt into the fray.

At once, figures blurred and sword energy surged across the square outside Penglai Palace—a fearsome duel that, anywhere else, would be considered catastrophic.

But after seeing the Penglai Treasure Vault, the Combat-Type Gaia, and the terrifying Heavenly Sword of Da Zhe, this high-level battle seemed somewhat underwhelming to Daoist Baijie by comparison.

Still, because Gong Fanxing provoked Qin Chuyu into action and drew everyone’s attention, Gongsun Wuwei quietly slipped away.

---

Inside Penglai Palace, in a dim corridor, Gongsun Wuwei could faintly hear the sounds of battle outside. He shook his head. “That woman really knows how to stir things up.”

Despite that, his feet didn’t stop. He moved swiftly through passage after passage, eventually reaching the depths of Penglai Palace—until he stood before the massive crystal that encased Cicero’s body.

Gongsun Wuwei halted, looking up at the seemingly slumbering Cicero inside the crystal. A strange glint flickered in his eyes.

Taking a deep breath, Gongsun Wuwei strode toward the giant crystal.

But just then, a figure shot toward him!

Frowning, Gongsun Wuwei swung his fist to counter. The two clashed in an instant—but the opponent’s strength was clearly inferior and was sent flying backward.

Boom—!!

“A demon?” Gongsun Wuwei saw a young demon clan member land on the ground. But what shocked him was: “Why do you know our clan’s Imperial Heaven Shattering Fist?”

“My big brother taught me!” the little demon—Windchaser—replied, eyes locked on Gongsun Wuwei.

“Your big brother?” Gongsun Wuwei paused, then suddenly turned around—only to see a young man emerge slowly from the shadows, hands behind his back.

This youth’s presence was like a deep abyss, and the aura he exuded made Gongsun Wuwei’s heart tremble.

“Big brother!” Windchaser shouted. “This guy hits hard—be careful!”

‘Mo Xiaofei’ gave Windchaser a brief glance, then focused on Gongsun Wuwei. Calmly, he asked, “Your surname is Gongsun?”

“That little demon said you taught him the Imperial Heaven Shattering Fist?” Gongsun Wuwei asked instead. “Who are you? How do you know one of my clan’s supreme martial arts?”

‘Mo Xiaofei’ replied coldly, “That woman outside intentionally stirred up trouble while you snuck in here. The two of you work rather well together… So tell me, why did you infiltrate this place?”

“Hah! I ask you one question, and you shoot one back?” Gongsun Wuwei sneered. “Then eat my fist, old man! Let’s see how much of the Imperial Heaven Shattering Fist you actually understand—don’t tell me you’re just copying the moves without knowing the essence!”

Gongsun Wuwei launched a devastating punch, with the momentum of a warlord conquering the world!

Inside the palace, everything shook violently!

But ‘Mo Xiaofei’ stood unfazed. Looking up at Gongsun Wuwei’s incoming form, he snorted coldly:

“Hmph! Aside from the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, you dare call yourself a king before this Lonely Emperor?”

In that moment, Gongsun Wuwei’s overwhelming aura was crushed.

A terrifying imperial pressure, like Mount Tai descending from the heavens, directly suppressed him!

His punch backfired, and the powerful force rampaged within his body—until he finally spat out a mouthful of blood!

The Imperial Heaven Shattering Fist was rooted in sheer dominance. Without an aura that could overwhelm the world, it couldn’t even be activated. That aura could be repelled—but never suppressed.

Yet now, Gongsun Wuwei’s aura had been utterly subdued… crushed by an even greater imperial will.

“Imperial Heaven Shattering Fist… its highest realm?” Gongsun Wuwei gasped in horror. “You—who are you? Aside from the founding ancestor, the Yellow Emperor, no one has ever reached that level!”

“This Lonely Emperor’s surname… is Ying!”

(End of Chapter)