Long ago, Feng Xingzhi had been the lord of the Huaxu clan.
He had loved his childhood friend, Ji Yunxi, quietly and deeply. They never spoke the words outright, but their hearts had always known each other. When he learned she had come to the World of Creation, he followed. In the end he sacrificed half his divine power to save her, was betrayed by someone he trusted, and—under the pretense of friendship—was stripped of his memories by Jiang Yaoji. That loss set everything that came after into motion.
He opened his eyes amid a storm of thunder to find Ji Yunxi hovering over him, worry and tenderness in her face. She was still there beside him.
Yue Chen could not get close. His face flushed with fury, his eyes wide and blazing—he looked as if he wanted to tear Feng Xingzhi apart.
“You—” He spat the word. He could not forgive that, because of Feng’s hesitation, their divine power had been stolen from them. It ought not to have happened.
Rage made him reckless; he lunged to kill Ji Yunxi on the spot.
Feng’s gaze snapped sharp. He moved in a single, fluid step and intercepted Yue Chen’s strike. Calmness settled over his features as his remaining divine power surged—he blocked the attack outright and even managed to nick Yue Chen in the exchange.
Yue Chen stumbled back a few paces, realization dawning. This power belonged to Feng Xingzhi. No wonder they’d been faking it—everything had been aimed at getting that power back.
The three of them were frozen in that tense triangle when Jiang Yanju and Jiang Yaoji arrived, and the balance shattered.
Ji Yunxi looked at them coolly. “Jiang Yanju. Long time no see.”
The two siblings went still. Ji Yunxi shouldn’t have been able to speak his name unless her memories had truly returned. They met each other’s eyes and saw the same fear mirrored there—she had remembered. If her power was fully restored, they could not act carelessly.
Yue Chen snorted and hid the new wound Feng had accidentally inflicted, the sound threaded with mockery. “So lively. It’s been a while.”
Nobody paid him any mind. With her brother at her back, Jiang Yaoji no longer bothered to conceal her contempt for Yue Chen. Her gaze traveled between Ji Yunxi and Feng Xingzhi like a blade.
Jiang Yanju leaned close to his sister and hissed, angry and low, “Why are you still looking at him? When has that man ever cared for you? You’re only making a fool of yourself.”
Embarrassment stained Jiang Yaoji’s eyes, but she forced a retort. “Shut up, brother. I wasn’t looking at him. I was… sure Ji Yunxi’s power isn’t fully back. The World of Creation hasn’t collapsed; now’s the time to finish her off.”
Jiang Yanju finally understood and glanced around. Indeed, the Creation World showed no signs of imminent ruin—perhaps she’d only regained flashes of memory. He nodded. “You’re right. Now is the best chance.”
They moved as one, drawing swords and advancing on Ji Yunxi.
Yue Chen was pushed aside—no longer part of the equation. Feng Xingzhi faced Jiang Yanju while Ji Yunxi faced Jiang Yaoji; Yue Chen, an outsider, could only watch.
Ji Yunxi wasn’t whole yet. The wound left by the God-Slayer had left her weak; facing Jiang Yaoji directly was wearing her down.
“Zhi!” she cried.
Feng understood instantly. He drew the God-Slayer and tossed it to her. She caught it in the same motion and surged forward to meet Jiang Yaoji.
Jiang Yaoji hesitated. She didn’t dare press too close—she remembered the blade’s curse. Even the smallest cut could spill divine power too quickly to contain.
Ji Yunxi took advantage of that caution and pressed the attack for a time. But Jiang Yaoji’s depth of power told—the tide turned. She found the opening and prepared a killing strike.
From the side, Yue Chen widened his eyes and leapt forward, knocking aside Jiang Yaoji’s blow.
Jiang Yaoji narrowed her eyes and sneered. “What, Yue Chen? Are you protecting Ji Yunxi now?”
He said nothing. Regret passed over him—he had raised a tiger and it had come back to bite him.
“Sheesh, how entertaining,” Jiang Yaoji mocked, turning her words into venom. “You two—what is this? Hatred turned to love? Ji Yunxi, you really are shameless. With Feng Xingzhi by your side, you didn’t cherish him. But after a few days in the Upper Realm with Yue Chen, you’ve even gotten him to fight for you. That’s quite a talent.”
Ji Yunxi said nothing, only stared at her. The accusations sounded absurd in her ears.
Jiang Yaoji attacked again. With Yue Chen’s reluctant intervention, Ji Yunxi managed to hold her off, blade against blade.
Jiang Yanju watched his sister being pressed and wanted to help, but Feng Xingzhi’s power had swelled—he couldn’t disengage easily.
Seeing the fight could not continue if she risked the God-Slayer, Jiang Yaoji’s eyes flashed. She slid a hand to her waist and flicked a hidden projectile into the air. The dart snapped free and shot toward Ji Yunxi.
Ji Yunxi was startled and tried to evade, but the weapon was small and swift—too late to dodge.
Yue Chen saw it a fraction sooner. He no longer wielded Feng’s power; he could not match Jiang Yaoji’s full strength. But there was one thing he could do. He threw his body in front of the weapon.
The dart struck his back.
For a moment no one moved. Ji Yunxi’s hand shot out, catching Yue Chen as he collapsed to the ground. She stared down at him, speechless; even Feng Xingzhi and Jiang Yanju paused mid-spar.
Jiang Yaoji, stunned for the blink of a heartbeat, then erupted into laughter—harsh and deranged. She pointed at Ji Yunxi. “How pathetic! Ridiculous!”
Her voice warped with something like madness. “Ji Yunxi! You flirt everywhere, you fickle woman! How dare you? Feng Xingzhi, look at her—see what she really is!”
Feng’s face went cold. “Ji Yunxi’s choices are no concern of yours. Men and women aren’t all the same—you’re the one who sees filth in everyone because that’s how your heart is.”
He admonished her without mercy, not sparing the siblings’ pride. Jiang Yaoji felt a bitter ache. Also once a favored daughter of heaven, and yet Ji Yunxi was being adored and elevated while she was left to taste contempt. Yue Chen had come chasing Ji Yunxi to kill her, yet in the end had shielded her, ready to die for her—how laughable that all of it turned to humiliation for Jiang Yaoji.
Her eyes cooled like ice. “Yue Chen,” she said quietly, “don’t imagine yourself so noble. If you die by my hand, you won’t have been wronged.”