Chapter 1121: Unique Me

Boom!

One after another, celestial palaces collapsed. Even the High Heavens Hall behind Jing Baichuan disintegrated and fell. Jing Baichuan stretched out his hand, as if trying to stop the collapse of the palaces he had cultivated with such arduous effort, but his body fell along with the crumbling structures.

Ultimately, all the celestial palaces vanished, transforming into the spiritual energy of the heavens and earth, leaving only Jing Baichuan's corpse sprawled in the ruins of Yunluo Palace.

Qin Mu stepped forward, helping Yu Chudu, who lay collapsed in the dust. "Yan'er," he said in a low voice, "leave no one alive, not even their souls. I don't want Heavenly Venerate Haotian to trace this back to me."

At his command, Yan'er became excited. Her body shifted, transforming into a Dragon Sparrow, and she pounced on the four Jade Capital realm experts. The Dragon Qilin, meanwhile, leaped onto the flying ship, attacking the gods and devils on board.

Yu Chudu gasped, unable to stand. He could only sit on the ground and bow to Qin Mu. "Thank you, Senior Heavenly Venerate Mu..." he managed.

Qin Mu chuckled. "You can just call me Martial Uncle."

"Martial Uncle..." Yu Chudu's surprise was evident.

Qin Mu offered a faint smile, just as he was about to speak, when a woman's voice came from behind him. It was exquisitely beautiful, yet carried a melancholic tone. "Heavenly Venerate Mu," she said softly, "you've killed Heavenly Venerate Haotian's disciple. Aren't you afraid of death?"

"Then why didn't the Heavenly Master stop me?"

Qin Mu turned, looking at Bai Yuqiong, who stood not far away. He smiled. "Que Feiyin, long time no see. Is that jade pendant still hanging on your primordial spirit?"

Bai Yuqiong wore white, a departure from the crimson robes she favored in her previous life. Her figure was graceful and lithe, like white mutton-fat jade, her skin as delicate as fine, lustrous jade.

Her expression was complex as she met Qin Mu's gaze. She raised a hand, then lowered it, her heart wracked with conflict.

"Heavenly Venerate Mu," she began, "I am the Third Heavenly Master of the Celestial Heavens. By rights, I should arrest you, but you are also my savior. If not for that jade pendant, I might still be an ignorant, naive girl, killed over and over again by Heavenly Son Yin."

Bai Yuqiong sighed, her breath like the scent of orchids. "I distinguish clearly between kindness and grievance. This time, I won't pursue it; let's pretend it never happened. I can even cover for you in front of Heavenly Venerate Haotian. Heavenly Venerate Mu, let us part ways..."

She turned to leave, but Qin Mu smiled. "Que Feiyin, do you still remember your master?"

Bai Yuqiong's body trembled slightly, and she halted.

Qin Mu continued, "Don't you want to know the mystery of your origins? Don't you want to know why Heavenly Son Yin killed you again and again and allowed you to reincarnate? Doesn't that Vermilion Bird feather spark any memories?"

Bai Yuqiong took out the Vermilion Bird feather, staring blankly at the Vermilion Bird's sacred flame.

Qin Mu's vertical eye between his brows opened. Deep within its pupil, ancient Great Dao runes on the Primordial Heaven Emperor's egg lit up, converging into a focused gaze. The Qin character continent trembled, and the Youdu Great Dao rippled, flowing towards the Primordial Ore at the center of the continent.

The ore gathered the Dao of Primordial and the Great Dao of Youdu, and the power of the third divine eye gradually intensified.

Qin Mu used his vertical eye to peer at Bai Yuqiong, instantly seeing the legendary life of this empress unfold.

From Bai Yuqiong's birth to her becoming a divine arts practitioner, then a deity, avoiding death repeatedly, escaping Heavenly Son Yin's schemes, all the way to her gaining renown throughout the world during the Kaihuang era and scheming against Heavenly Son Yin.

Qin Mu's gaze deepened, encompassing her past lives, her lives before that, tracing back her cycles of death again and again.

Bai Yuqiong stood there, then suddenly tossed away the Vermilion Bird feather in her hand, turned around, and smiled. "Heavenly Venerate Mu," she declared, "I don't want to know. I am me, a unique me! In this world, there is only one Bai Yuqiong!"

Her elegant hair flowed as she severed Qin Mu's gaze, turning and walking away with graceful poise.

Bai Yuqiong arrived before the Spirit Energy Transfer Bridge, looked back, and smiled. "Heavenly Venerate Mu," she said, "I am not the Southern Emperor! If you wish me to become the Southern Emperor, then you are my enemy!"

She pressed her palm onto the altar of the Spirit Energy Transfer Bridge and stepped into the shimmering light. "Heavenly Venerate Mu," she called out, "Heavenly Venerate Haotian's disciple is dead, and Emperor Bai's beloved general is dead. They will surely come to investigate. I'll buy you some time; you should leave now."

Her figure vanished, and the Spirit Energy Transfer Bridge collapsed with a thunderous roar!

"What a clever woman, a clever woman..."

Qin Mu gazed at the collapsed altar, muttering, "Should I awaken her and let her become the Southern Emperor Vermilion Bird, or not awaken her and let her remain Bai Yuqiong?"

He picked up the Vermilion Bird feather and examined it for a long moment.

Behind him, Yan'er, having killed the four Jade Capital realm experts, immediately helped the Dragon Qilin dispatch the gods and devils under Emperor Bai on the flying ship.

Qin Mu looked at the Vermilion Bird feather, thinking to himself: "Awakening the Southern Emperor's soul would be equivalent to killing Bai Yuqiong. But isn't Bai Yuqiong the Southern Emperor? Even if the Southern Emperor Vermilion Bird is awakened, Bai Yuqiong's memories won't disappear; they'll become part of the Southern Emperor's vast, ancient memories..."

Yan'er flew over, chirping, "Young Master, it's done! Where's my mother?"

Qin Mu handed her the Vermilion Bird feather. "Yan'er," he explained, "your mother doesn't want to become the Southern Emperor. She's too intelligent; she guessed from my words that she is the Southern Emperor's reincarnation. Yet, she believes it's better to be Bai Yuqiong or Que Feiyin. She feels that if she awakens the Southern Emperor's memories, it will be the end of Bai Yuqiong or Que Feiyin."

Yan'er looked somewhat bewildered, muttering, "But aren't Bai Yuqiong, Que Feiyin, and the Southern Emperor Vermilion Bird all her?"

Qin Mu put away the Celestial Dragon Chariot and treated Yu Chudu's broken bones. "Bai Yuqiong has destroyed the Spirit Energy Transfer Bridge," he said. "She did this both to delay Heavenly Venerate Haotian or Emperor Bai from reaching here and to prevent us from returning to the Celestial Heavens. She's even more worried I'll make her die again to revive the Southern Emperor's soul."

Yan'er was still confused, muttering, "But that's all herself..."

Qin Mu couldn't help but recall his own situation with Qin Fengqing; his experience was strikingly similar to Bai Yuqiong's.

Back then, Qin Mu always believed he was simply himself, unique. Yet, as things transpired, he was merely a second consciousness born within Qin Fengqing's physical body.

He was just an accidentally generated consciousness; neither his body nor his soul was truly his own.

All he possessed was his consciousness.

Later, Qin Mu regained his sight and was reborn. Only then did he truly have his own soul.

How strikingly similar was Bai Yuqiong's experience to his? In fact, Bai Yuqiong's was even more tragic; she had reincarnated nearly two hundred times, constantly exhausting herself to survive, forcing herself to become ever more intelligent.

It would naturally be very difficult for her to accept that she wasn't herself, but merely the reincarnation of the Southern Emperor's divine soul.

"Nephew Yu Chudu, can you walk now?" Qin Mu asked with a smile, having finished treating Yu Chudu.

Yu Chudu stood up and moved around a bit, finding his physical injuries healed. However, the injuries to his primordial spirit had not. Qin Mu's Creation Art could heal physical wounds, but was less effective for primordial spirit injuries.

"I can walk now, Martial Uncle..."

Yu Chudu hesitated, studying Qin Mu. "I've never heard Master mention having another Martial Uncle..." he said.

"You actually have two martial uncles," Qin Mu chuckled. "I'll tell you more about it later."

Qin Mu flicked his finger, and the old gods guarding Yunluo Palace fell into a deep sleep. Their memories were also altered, erasing any recollection of seeing Qin Mu and the others. He smiled. "Let's go. The Celestial Dragon Chariot can't be used; traveling in it would definitely leave traces, and if someone saw us, Heavenly Venerate Haotian would know I was the one who eliminated his disciple. Nephew Yu, do you know of a shortcut that can get us back to the Celestial Heavens quickly from here?"

"To answer, Martial Uncle," Yu Chudu replied, "the closest route is from Baichuan in Jizhou, Central Divine Continent, one of the Nine Provinces. There's a Spirit Energy Transfer Bridge there that leads to Emperor Bai's Celestial Palace. If we were to travel through space, it would probably take fifty or sixty years to reach the Celestial Heavens."