Ah Yin Will Just Have to Suffer a Little More

"Ya Li, for the sake of our long friendship, this is my final warning: leave now, and I will not lay a hand on you."

"I cannot. Yaozhu, for the sake of our past..."

"Tsk!"

A flash of impatience crossed Leng Yaozhu's eyes as she tightened her grip. At this moment, she had only one thought: to return to the Leng Family as quickly as possible and settle the two people she was carrying.

It was not that she couldn't understand Ya Li's persistence; she was blocking the way only to beg Su Jiu to remove the elements from Yun Ming's Sky-Propping Spear. Those overbearing dual elements were still preventing the Heaven-Propping Water Pipe from reverting into the Sky-Propping Spear, and were even threatening to gradually destroy the origin of the Sky-Propping Spear martial soul.

If left unchecked, Yun Ming would be finished.

Leng Yaozhu was also helpless. She had explained Su Jiu's current condition to Ya Li—that he was in a coma and could not wake up—but there was nothing she could do.

Yet Ya Li was acting as if possessed, on the verge of tears, deaf to both reason and persuasion. She assumed Leng Yaozhu was lying on purpose and clung to that belief, rendering all of Leng Yaozhu's defenses futile.

The sound of their urgent, relentless arguing reached Su Jiu's ears. He furrowed his brows, feeling incredibly irritated. Who could enjoy being woken up the moment they fell asleep?

One voice he knew well—it was his wife, Yaozhu, so he couldn't bring himself to snap at her. But the other one... who was it?

It seemed he would have to extort the other party properly later.

At the same time, he was filled with curiosity. The injuries on his body didn't hurt anymore, and in fact, they were gone.

Refusing to believe it, Su Jiu immediately used his spiritual power to inspect himself. The injuries to his meridians and bones, especially those on his right chest and arm... they were all healed. Su Jiu knew his body's recovery speed perfectly well; with injuries of that severity, it would normally take at least three days to recover.

The current situation was... very strange.

Su Jiu opened his eyes abruptly, gently lifted Leng Yaozhu's hand from his waist, and immediately left her embrace.

Facing the blinding noon sun, he looked up to see Ya Li standing before him, along with the unconscious Yun Ming and his Heaven-Propping Water Pipe.

So that was what this was about. No wonder.

If he left it alone, Yun Ming really wouldn't be able to perform the Heaven-Propping: Sun-Shooting in the future. He would have truly crippled him.

Hiss—!

Su Jiu drew a sharp breath, pondering to himself. This wouldn't do. If he couldn't shoot the sun, who would block those two little boys in the future?

He didn't want to do such thankless, exhausting work.

"His Holiness of the Holy Spirit, please forgive me. This was a matter of self-defense, which is why I accidentally fired a shot at Yun Ming. But fortunately, he is unharmed. I will remove it for you right now."

Su Jiu stepped forward slowly and reached out to take the Sky-Propping Spear. Looking through the tip of the spear, the hole connected straight to the tail. Seeing this, Su Jiu gasped, once again witnessing the overbearing and terrifying power of the Flame Demon Roar.

He gently stroked the spear body with his fingertips, and the Ultimate Fire and Destruction elements on the Sky-Propping Spear retreated like a receding tide, falling silent, vanishing, and dissipating...

Seeing Yun Ming's tightly locked brows gradually relax and smooth out, the heart Ya Li had been holding in her throat finally settled.

"Many thanks, Wuduan."

"However, I do not understand. Why did Wuduan attack the Golden Ancient Tree? Of course, I am not here to hold you accountable..."

As Ya Li's words reached his ears, Su Jiu couldn't help but shake his head repeatedly.

It was already so obvious, yet these people only had eyes for the giant hole in the Golden Ancient Tree, completely ignoring the blue-green sap seeping from the tree hole and the blue-gold vines entwined within it.

Thinking of this, a faint smile curled his lips. His Void Sharp Bee Sentry had already successfully collected a sample of Ah Yin's divine power.

With this divine power as a sample, many things would be easily resolved and much simpler to handle from here on out.

"His Holiness of the Holy Spirit, sometimes one must look beyond the surface of things and see the essence. Just as you see the Golden Ancient Tree, I see the Blue Silver Emperor. As it happens, this Blue Silver Emperor and I have a small grievance..."

"The Blue Silver Emperor?!!"

Leng Yaozhu and Ya Li looked up. Under normal circumstances, the sap of the Golden Ancient Tree should be transparent, containing rich light and life elements. But this blue-green sap contained only life elements; it clearly did not belong to the Golden Ancient Tree!

His words awakened the dreamer!

Ya Li instantly understood the gravity of the situation and was about to head back, but Su Jiu called out to her.

"Wuduan, is there something else?"

Su Jiu chuckled again, wearing the same smile he had used earlier when facing Vice Sect Master Zang and Sect Master Cao, and with a "refined and gentle" air, he began to scheme.

"I have heard that the union between His Holiness of the Holy Spirit and Pavilion Master Yun is a match made in heaven. However, due to some events in your early years, His Holiness has been unable to bear an heir for Pavilion Master Yun, which has become your only regret."

"I have a method that can fulfill your wish."

Su Jiu's "proposal" undoubtedly struck the softest and most sensitive corner of Ya Li's heart. This issue had haunted her like a nightmare, becoming a deep-seated obsession for many years.

In how many midnight dreams had she fallen into the same illusion?

In the dream, she had a lovely child, lived with her beloved, raised their family, and led the ordinary, complete, and happy life she had yearned for all her life.

But whenever the dawn broke and the dream shattered, only the cold, biting reality remained, crushing that sliver of illusory warmth without a shred of mercy.

Ya Li's anxiety was written all over her face; she had clearly taken the bait. Su Jiu understood the importance of letting the bullet fly for a while, especially with someone so deeply obsessed, so he played his "playing hard to get" card once more.

Even if the reasoning seemed clumsy and unable to withstand the scrutiny of reality.

But for Ya Li, it was like a gambler facing a one-in-a-hundred chance at sudden wealth. Even if there was only a one-in-ten-thousand chance, she was willing to take the risk, clutching this hope like a straw to save her life, unwilling to let go.

Su Jiu placed a single finger to his lips, signaling her not to interrupt his bluffing.

"His Holiness of the Holy Spirit, I know you are anxious, but please (wait a moment) do not be in such a hurry. This concerns the lifelong affairs of you and Pavilion Master Yun. Can you decide Pavilion Master Yun's life on your own?"

"So, wait until Pavilion Master Yun wakes up, then come find me. Of course, my method is not free—one 100,000-year Immortal Herb."

"I trust that a hundred-thousand-year Immortal Herb is not even one ten-thousandth the value of His Holiness of the Holy Spirit and Pavilion Master Yun's child... My doors are always open to you (and your Immortal Herbs)."

"Let's go, wifey... Hm? Na'er, what happened to her?"

Su Jiu's gaze finally fell upon Na'er, and her condition was far more dire than he had anticipated.

The sight of the gruesome, gaping bite wound on her wrist made the sequence of events instantly clear to him.

A wave of intense self-reproach and heartache surged forth like a tide, instantly shattering the composure he had maintained while swindling others.

Does this girl not realize the danger she is in? To act so recklessly... she is truly foolish enough to break one's heart.

In a single heartbeat, he had made his decision.

The Void Sharp Bee Sentry that had been collecting divine power turned back immediately, its numbers increasing to seven this time.

To ensure Na'er recovered as quickly as possible, Ah Yin would simply have to suffer a little more.

"Wifey, give Na'er to me. I have failed her."

"You'd better know it. You must make it up to her when we get back, or I won't be able to stand by and watch!"

"I know, I know..."

As for why he wouldn't let Ya Li treat Na'er?

Su Jiu had no intention of letting Ya Li discover the secret of Na'er's blood. A single drop of the Silver Dragon King's blood of creation could potentially heal Ya Li's hidden reproductive injuries entirely. If that happened, how could he trick Ya Li and Yun Ming into undergoing gender swaps and swindle them out of their Immortal Herbs?

That's right, Su Jiu's plan was to have Ya Li and Yun Ming enter the Universe Inquiry Valley to undergo gender swaps.

Ya Li only suffered from internal reproductive damage; if she were swapped into a male, wouldn't her external organs be perfectly fine?

And as for Yun Ming?

Su Jiu believed that for the sake of Ya Li and their child, he would be perfectly willing to become a female, wouldn't he?

Of course, Su Jiu didn't want Ya Li's gender swap to succeed. Why not let both Yun Ming and Ya Li become females, and follow the example of the soon-to-be-female Sect Master Cao and Vice Sect Master Zang—wouldn't it be better for them to just fiddle with each other?