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Song Zhizhi had not realized that her blind trust in Xie Xiuji had already gone beyond the bounds of ordinary friendship.

Qingyu's expression was unreadable, neither joy nor anger visible. "Do you still insist on your previous decision?"

Song Zhizhi knew Qingyu was thinking of her, so she nodded solemnly. "Master, I know what I'm doing. Even if one day Xie Xiuji truly turns out as you said, I can just kick him to the curb. Three-legged toads are hard to find, but are two-legged men hard to find?"

Qingyu lifted her brows slightly and patted her shoulder in satisfaction. Her words rang like struck metal. "Worthy of the Phoenix King's bloodline—you have his courage and bearing. Excellent! As your master, I approve of your marriage to him!"

Song Zhizhi: ?

Watching how quickly Qingyu changed her face, Song Zhizhi was somewhat at a loss. Why had she been slandering Xie Xiuji before her one moment, then agreeing with her the next? Was Master's stance really this unsteady?

Master, weren't you here to break up a pair of lovebirds with a club?

Qingyu's gaze passed Song Zhizhi and fell on the person behind her. "You heard all of that, didn't you? Mingxiao, I hope you will not betray her trust in you in the future."

Song Zhizhi turned around and discovered that Xie Xiuji had somehow appeared behind her. He slowly walked over, stopped at her side, took her hand, and interlaced his fingers with hers. "I, Xie Xiuji, swear to the Dao of Heaven that I will never betray Zhizhi in this life. Should I violate this oath, may heavenly lightning strike me down until both body and soul are destroyed."

A muffled peal of thunder sounded in the sky. The oath had been established. Song Zhizhi looked at him in surprise. "You..."

This was the cultivation world, not that materialist society where people tossed around oaths as casually as eating and drinking. Oaths in the cultivation world came true. Since Xie Xiuji had made this vow, if he truly broke it someday, heavenly lightning really would strike him until his body and soul were utterly destroyed.

Thus, the higher one's cultivation, the less readily one swore an oath.

She had agreed to marry Xie Xiuji entirely because the child needed a father. If one day Xie Xiuji harbored reservations because of her background, she would not be too heartbroken. At worst, they would part ways. There had been no need at all for Xie Xiuji to make such an oath.

Song Zhizhi could not describe how she felt at that moment. Her heart seemed swollen, filled with some unnamed emotion. Her throat felt a little tight. "You didn't need to do this..."

Sword Venerable Mingxiao lowered his eyes to look at Song Zhizhi. His usually cold eyes were now filled with emotions she could not understand. "Since I have decided to marry you, I will never betray you in this life."

Song Zhizhi's heartbeat quickened. They were clearly only two simple promises, so why were they more moving than all the sweet words in the world put together?

The tips of her ears grew warm, and she did not quite dare meet Xie Xiuji's gaze.

Watching the two flaunt their affection as though no one else existed, Qingyu suddenly felt rather superfluous.

"Ahem." She coughed heavily, interrupting the sour, cloying atmosphere between them. "Since you have already made up your minds, there is one more thing I need to tell you. I hope you will be mentally prepared after hearing it."

"There's more?" Hearing Qingyu's tone, Song Zhizhi's left eyelid twitched. Was there another problem with her background?

"It isn't about you." Song Zhizhi wore every thought on her face, and Qingyu knew at once what she was thinking. Her gaze lowered to Song Zhizhi's abdomen, her expression grave. "It's about this child."

"My child?" Song Zhizhi touched her belly, her heart rising to her throat. "What's wrong with him?"

"I don't know whether my senses are mistaken, but I feel that the child in your womb is not an ordinary human-demon hybrid. His bloodline may have reverted to that of a True Phoenix. I hope my intuition is wrong." Qingyu looked at Song Zhizhi's belly, her expression extremely complicated.

"True Phoenix Bloodline?" Song Zhizhi knew the child was extraordinarily gifted, but she had never considered this possibility. Seeing Xie Xiuji's expression turn grave the instant he heard those words, she grew worried. "What is wrong with the True Phoenix Bloodline?"

"Do you know why, by your father's generation, he was the only Phoenix left in the world?"

Song Zhizhi shook her head, looking uneasy.

"A True Phoenix Bloodline requires an enormous supply of spiritual power even while it is being nurtured. Sometimes, before it is even born, it dies in the womb because of insufficient spiritual power. Yet even if it is born safely, it is very difficult for it to hatch. After hatching, it must undergo a lightning tribulation. Only a Phoenix that survives that tribulation can gain the Dao of Heaven's recognition and successfully enter the world."

Song Zhizhi's pupils contracted. Her grip on Xie Xiuji's hand suddenly tightened, and her face turned slightly pale. "How could... it be like this?"

Xie Xiuji's expression darkened. "Since Martial Aunt understands the cause, you must have a way to deal with it."

Qingyu glanced at Xie Xiuji. "Mingxiao is now at the Mahayana stage. His spiritual power is barely enough to allow the child to be born safely. After the child is born, it will need the warmth of a Heart of the Earth Stone to hatch. But Heart of the Earth Stones have vanished from the cultivation world for many years, so you can only try your luck in the major secret realms. After the child hatches, refining a magical artifact from a Ten-Thousand-Year Parasol Tree Heart and a drop of Phoenix Essence Blood will allow it to safely pass the lightning tribulation. The Parasol Tree Heart is easier to obtain; there should still be some in the Demon Realm. The difficult part is Phoenix Essence Blood. Phoenixes have vanished now, so where could you find any Phoenix Essence Blood?"

"But it is still too early to say any of this. You only possess half a Phoenix bloodline, and the father is human, so the possibility of atavism is not great. Perhaps my senses are mistaken, and this child is merely a hybrid with somewhat better talent. It is still too early in the pregnancy to tell. In another month, we will be able to determine whether his bloodline has reverted."

Song Zhizhi looked stunned, wholly uncomforted by Qingyu's words. The bond between mother and child ran heart to heart, and she faintly felt that this child was not a hybrid, but a True Phoenix.

Song Zhizhi looked helplessly at Xie Xiuji. "Xie Xiuji, do you think our child will..."

Sword Venerable Mingxiao drew Song Zhizhi into his arms and gently patted her back. "With me here, nothing will happen to our child."

Author's note:

As for the female lead's background, I planted clues earlier on. I wonder whether you were able to spot them.

I'm about to get featured, so first, a disclaimer to head off the nitpickers: this story is not a

female-power

novel. Before the female lead transmigrated, she was only an ordinary person. She is not strong enough, not decisive enough, and has many flaws. If her personality truly is not your type, please cut your losses in time. We can meet again in another novel if fate allows. Of course, everyone is also welcome to enthusiastically discuss the plot and share your own views. Muah~

Transmigrated into a Book

Sweet Romance

Transmigration and Rebirth Romance

Tu Yanyan

Amnesia trope