Goddess in Peril, I'm Determined to Be Her Backer

Taiyi Zhenren's patience had clearly run out.

He looked at Shi Ji as if she were an ant, unaware of its own demise, still stubbornly resisting.

"You refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit!"

Taiyi Zhenren snorted coldly, the arrogance of a Golden Immortal of the Chan Sect on his face now transforming into undisguised killing intent.

"Since you, you wicked creature, are bent on seeking death, I shall act on behalf of Heaven today and send you on your way to the Investiture of the Gods!"

Before his words had even fallen, he flipped his wrist, and a palm-sized, ancient-looking, crimson shield appeared out of thin air, hovering over his palm.

The barrier seemed ordinary, but the moment it appeared, the temperature within a hundred-mile radius of Skeleton Mountain suddenly surged. The air seemed to ignite, becoming scorching and distorted.

Qin Feng's divine sense felt a tremor from the depths of his soul.

Danger!

Extreme danger!

"A Post-celestial Merit Spirit Treasure, the Nine Dragon Divine Fire Cover!"

Shi Ji's pupils contracted sharply, and for the first time, a look of horror appeared on her clear, cold face.

She recognized this magical artifact.

It was a treasure personally forged by Yuanshi Tianzun and bestowed upon Taiyi Zhenren for protection, possessing infinite power and specifically targeting immortal bodies and souls.

"You still have some knowledge, I see!"

A cruel curve formed on Taiyi Zhenren's lips. He flicked his finger, and the Divine Fire Cover grew against the wind, instantly expanding to the size of a small mountain and hovering above Skeleton Mountain.

On the cover, nine lifelike fire dragon patterns seemed to come alive. Their eyes opened, emitting a terrifying, ferocious glare that could incinerate all things.

"Tch!"

Taiyi Zhenren guided the incantation.

"Roar--!"

Nine earth-shattering dragon roars echoed through the heavens. Nine hundred-foot-long fire dragons, condensed from primordial divine fire, roared out from the cover, carrying the terrifying might to burn mountains and boil seas, sweeping towards Shi Ji!

Under the illumination of the flames, Taiyi Zhenren's arrogant face appeared incredibly ferocious.

At this moment, he was no longer a true immortal who had attained the Dao, but more like a demon who delighted in tormenting the weak.

Before the flames even arrived, the terrifying heat had already caused the body of Skeleton Mountain to begin melting. Hardened rock turned into molten lava, flowing sluggishly.

Countless spirits hidden within the mountain didn't even have time to let out a scream before they turned to ash under the residual power of the divine fire.

This was the strength of a Golden Immortal of the Chan Sect!

This was the dominance of the Nine Dragon Divine Fire Cover!

Shi Ji gritted her teeth, not daring to be negligent. She brought out the Eight Trigrams Dragon Beard Scarf in her hand, which transformed into a barrier to protect her. At the same time, the Tai'a Sword shone brightly, unleashing a sharp sword qi in an attempt to carve out a path to survival.

However, it was useless.

All her resistance seemed so pale and weak before these nine divine fire dragons.

The moment the sword qi touched the flames, it vanished like a clay ox entering the sea.

The barrier formed by the Eight Trigrams Dragon Beard Scarf lasted for less than a breath before emitting groans of unbearable strain under the scorching of the divine fire. Its spiritual light rapidly dimmed.

"Pfft!"

The magical artifact was damaged, and with the connection to her mind, Shi Ji spat out a mouthful of blood. A sickly pallor appeared on her exquisite face.

Her body was sent reeling backward by the shockwaves of the fire, leaving a deep footprint on the ground with every step. Her delicate body swayed precariously.

But her eyes remained defiant.

It was a kind of pride that would rather die standing than live kneeling.

"Heh, a dying struggle."

Taiyi Zhenren sneered dismissively, his eyes filled with the mockery of a cat playing with a mouse.

He held one hand behind his back, while the other leisurely controlled the Divine Fire Cover. The nine fire dragons circled and danced, forming a net that continuously compressed Shi Ji's space to survive, yet without directly burning her to death.

What he wanted was not just to kill her, but to utterly crush her dignity and destroy her Dao heart.

Let you witness the despair brought by your origins!

Let you understand that your so-called ten thousand years of cultivation are nothing but a joke before a Golden Immortal of our Chan Sect!

Shi Ji retreated step by step, soon being forced to the entrance of White Bone Cave.

Behind her was the dojo she had painstakingly managed for thousands of years.

Nowhere left to retreat!

She felt her mana rapidly draining within her body, and the searing pain in her primordial spirit from the divine fire. A deep sense of powerlessness surged into her heart.

Her master was in Biyou Palace, thousands of miles away, and could not possibly arrive in time.

None of her fellow disciples from the Jie Sect knew of her plight today.

Could it be that today, she was truly destined to meet her end here?

She looked around, her gaze sweeping over the cave dwelling she had personally carved out, over the mountain spirits that had peeked out ignorantly while she preached, over this place she considered home, White Bone Cave.

Now, everything had turned into a sea of fire and scorched earth.

Finally, her gaze unintentionally fell upon an unremarkable, ordinary rock in front of her cave dwelling.

It was a stone that had been there since she first arrived. For thousands of years, it had endured the wind and rain, never changing in the slightest, as if it existed for eternity.

Looking at the stone, a hint of bewilderment and sorrow, unnoticed even by herself, flickered in Shi Ji's eyes.

She remembered her master, Tongtian Jiaozhu's, teaching of "education for all."

All beings have spirits and can seek the Dao.

But reality?

Reality was that the disciples of the Chan Sect were arrogant, viewing creatures with fur and horns as ants.

Reality was that she, Shi Ji, whose original form was a mere rock born of heaven and earth, despite cultivating diligently for ten thousand years and reaching the Taiyi level, was still seen as an "outsider," bullied at will, her life not her own.

A surge of extreme grief and unwillingness welled up from the depths of her heart.

She raised her head, looking at the face in the sky filled with contempt and cruelty. She gave a desolate smile and murmured to herself.

Her voice was very soft, so soft it was as if she were speaking only to herself.

"Is the Heavenly Dao unjust, that even a mere rock has no chance to attain the Dao?"

"I, Shi Ji, have cultivated diligently until now, and today I face this calamity. Do I truly have no one to rely on?"

This was not a plea to anyone.

This was merely the most desperate cry of an arrogant female immortal, pushed to the brink, against her own destiny.

However, these two sentences struck the core of Qin Feng's consciousness like two world-shattering thunderclaps!

A mere rock has no chance to attain the Dao!

Has no one to rely on!

Boom!

Qin Feng felt his divine sense, no, his entire soul burning at that moment.

He had transmigrated ten thousand years ago, trapped in this stone, enduring endless loneliness and despair.

He had just made a solemn vow to protect this woman who had accompanied him for thousands of years, preventing him from going completely mad!

And at this moment, her cry of despair struck the softest, yet most furious, point in his heart!

No!

This is unfair!

Why!

Who says a mere rock cannot attain the Dao!

Who says you have no one to rely on!

I!

I am your support!

The unyielding obsession in Qin Feng's heart and Shi Ji's despairing cry resonated powerfully at this moment, transcending the boundaries of matter and soul!

His newly formed Dao heart, centered on protection and sharpened by defiance of fate, instantly blazed with light!

And at this very instant!

A cold, mechanical, yet heavenly electronic voice, without any warning, exploded directly in the depths of his mind!

[Ding! Strong resonance detected, target locked: Goddess Shi Ji!]

[Goddess Shi Ji's 'request for support' detected, host's Dao heart perfectly matches the request!]

[Support Cultivation System officially activated!]

[Newbie quest issued: Do you accept the quest to become Goddess Shi Ji's support?]

The mechanical question echoed in his mind.

Qin Feng did not hesitate for even a moment.

Ten thousand years of suppression, endless rage, and the obsession to protect converged into a roar that shook his very soul.

"Accept!"

"I will be this support!"