Chapter 19

◎Defection (Second Update)◎  

The Chongming God was about to erupt in anger when Qingming Zhenwang (True Lord Qingming) beside him restrained him.  

A faint smile lingered on Qingming Zhenwang’s lips.  

He had anticipated such a scenario before arriving.  

Although Chi Shui Zhuo Ying had come to the Supreme Purity Heavenly Palace as a human hostage, what kind of immortals populated the Upper Purity Heaven?  

Hypocrites, pretentious and sanctimonious—mere mortals who only ascended after death, yet they truly believed themselves to be genuine deities, clinging to their rigid propriety as if it could cleanse them of their filthy, vulgar mortal stench.  

Thus, they would not treat Chi Shui Zhuo Ying poorly.  

Not only would they not mistreat her, but he had also heard that the Heavenly Queen seemed particularly fond of this hostage princess, even allowing her to move from Lesser Light Heaven to the Hall of All Phenomena and having Yan Jun from the Celestial Medicine Bureau cure her ailing body.  

Unfortunately, such favoritism had its limits.  

The rules of the Upper Purity Heaven were strict, and the Heavenly Queen had granted her no privileges beyond the celestial laws.  

Because of this, among every batch of immortals who ascended to the Upper Purity Heaven, there were always those who defected to the Mount Sumeru Immortal Realm.  

Even if, in terms of combat prowess, the Mount Sumeru Immortal Realm—weakened by increasingly diluted bloodlines—was slightly inferior to the Supreme Purity Heavenly Palace, in terms of treatment, Mount Sumeru was far more indulgent and extravagant.  

For instance, Qingming Zhenwang had never even met the Goddess Yingchu, yet he still came to the Supreme Purity Heavenly Palace to stand up for her.  

No matter who it was, as long as they belonged to Mount Sumeru, they would not tolerate being bullied by outsiders.  

They did not reason with others.  

Because Mount Sumeru was the orthodox authority—they were the law of this world.  

“Since both Divine Lords have spoken thus, let us discuss what is written in the celestial laws.”  

With a flick of his sleeve, Qingming Zhenwang transformed the hall’s ceiling into a vast sea of stars, where countless points of light flickered and connected into intricate, enigmatic patterns.  

Most of the students had no idea what this was and asked curiously:  

“What does this star chart mean?”  

Only Ye Shi Yun, who specialized in divination and deduction, murmured in astonishment:  

“It’s the Myriad Images Heavenly Evolution Technique of the Nine Luminaries Star Palace.”  

Long before the Immortal Realm split into Mount Sumeru and the Upper Purity Heaven, the Nine Luminaries Star Palace had already existed between heaven and earth.  

Just as mortals had priests who communicated with the Immortal Realm, the Immortal Realm also had Celestial Officials who sought to comprehend the supreme principles of the Heavenly Dao.  

These Celestial Officials presided over the Nine Luminaries Star Palace, interpreting the will of the Heavenly Dao through the shifting patterns of the starry sea.  

The alternation of day and night, the cycles of the sun and moon, the winds and seasons—these were the Heavenly Dao.  

The destinies of mortals, the celestial tribulations of immortals, the calamities of nature—these too were the Heavenly Dao.  

The power of the Nine Luminaries Star Palace was immense, yet it was not something just anyone could wield.  

First, it required bloodline—one had to be a descendant of the Primordial Gods or the Mother Goddess. Second, it demanded innate talent. Thus, the Nine Luminaries Star Palace had remained closed for millennia, until this era produced Qingming Zhenwang, finally restoring a master to the palace.  

—Though only a half-master, it was already enough to invigorate the Mount Sumeru Immortal Realm.  

However, at this moment, he was not interpreting the will of the Heavenly Dao but the fate of an ordinary mortal woman.  

“According to the deductions of the Myriad Images Heavenly Evolution Technique, the mortal woman named Zhong Xianqing was originally destined to grow up as a princess of a noble household, marry a husband of equal status, and live out an utterly ordinary life.”

“Yet now, because of a letter of recommendation from Chi Shui Zhuo Ying, Zhong Xianqing became the heir of Prince Duan’s household, studied under the Utmost Subtlety Sage, and returned to the prince’s residence at the age of eighteen. However, she has persistently refused to relinquish her status as the heir and has even formed factions with other disciples of the Utmost Subtlety Sage in the court.”

“If this continues, she might truly become the rightful heir of Prince Duan, eventually succeeding to the title and becoming the first female prince in the Great Yong Dynasty—”

At this point, the young man who had been lounging lazily in his chair sharpened his gaze.

“If the divinations of the Nine Luminaries Star Palace are not mistaken, Zhong Xianqing made two prayers, both merely asking the gods to save her life. Chi Shui Zhuo Ying, in responding to her devotee’s plea, only needed to save her life. Why go so far as to alter her fate so drastically?”

As Qingming Zhenwang spoke these words, the expressions of the immortals in the Supreme Purity Heavenly Palace shifted subtly.

This young True Lord’s visit to the Supreme Purity Heavenly Palace was clearly not solely for the sake of the Goddess Ying Chu or Chi Shui Zhuo Ying.

Sure enough, he slowly rose from his chair and strode to the center of the hall.

Far from moderating his tone, he abandoned his earlier languid demeanor and pressed aggressively:

“The Supreme Purity Heavenly Palace has always been renowned for its impartiality and strict enforcement of laws. Yet, you allow the deities under your jurisdiction to exert such profound influence on the mortal realm—is this your so-called justice?”

“Or is it because she is the adopted daughter of the Empress of Heaven that the laws of the Supreme Purity Heavenly Palace have slackened, and its immortals now indulge in favoritism?”

His voice was not loud, but each word cut like a razor-sharp blade, striking at the most critical points.

The Supreme Purity Heavenly Palace, despite its harsh reputation and frequent portrayal as villains in mortal tales, has endured the worship of humanity for centuries.

Its foundation lies in its fairness and unwavering adherence to duty.

The last incident, where the Goddess Ying Chu caused the deaths of Yaoguang City’s inhabitants, left the Supreme Purity Heavenly Palace with a stain on its reputation that has yet to be fully cleansed in the mortal realm.

Now, it is accused of partiality toward the adopted daughter of the Empress of Heaven.

If this accusation is substantiated, even other factions in the Immortal Realm would begin to question the impartiality of the Supreme Purity Heavenly Palace.

Lord Qing Yuan frowned slightly, while Divine Lord Feng Li’s eyes blazed with anger.

This is bad.

This man has no intention of confronting them with force—he is here to outwit them!

Having said this, Qingming Zhenwang turned his gaze toward the rear hall and chuckled lightly:

“Princess Zhuo Ying, you tell us—does this not violate heavenly law? Should you not be punished?”

Before Zhuo Ying could respond, Fu Yao could no longer contain himself and strode out from the rear hall.

“If we’re assigning blame, let’s start with your Mount Sumeru Immortal Realm!”

The Crown Prince, clad in white robes with a golden sash, matched the other’s intensity as he rebuked righteously:

“Ting Yun tampered with the fate of the Goddess Ying Chu without authorization. Chishui Zhaocui, under your orders, destroyed Zhuo Ying’s temple and privately interacted with Zhong Yingying despite her not being a devotee. Why don’t you account for these?”

Qingming Zhenwang remained unperturbed, feigning reluctance:

“Ting Yun has already been punished according to heavenly law. As for Chishui Zhaocui… the grievances between her and her sister can hardly be blamed on our Mount Sumeru Immortal Realm, can they?”

…He outright denied it all!

Fu Yao panted heavily, realizing this man’s cunning far surpassed most in the Supreme Purity Heavenly Palace. He quickly stepped back.

“Zhuo Ying, what are you waiting for? Refute him!”

He hissed under his breath, shooting a fierce glance toward Zhuo Ying behind him.

However, Zhuoying was not listening to their meaningless debate.  

Her gaze was fixed on the vast starry sky above.  

The changing winds and seasons, the cycle of the sun and moon—this was the will of Heaven.  

Could these countless stars truly divine the will of Heaven and the fate of mortals?  

Zhuoying grew more and more absorbed.  

The sounds of argument faded from her ears, replaced by the majestic expanse of stars reflected in her eyes, unraveling into the myriad phenomena of the world and countless obscure omens.  

What others saw as an incomprehensible chaos of constellations, Zhuoying’s mind deciphered into one divination after another.  

One sign: the sun and moon in endless cycle, beginning anew.  

Another sign: the heavens hold the sun and moon, the earth cradles mountains and rivers.  

And the constellation divination of Zhong Xianqing, which True Lord Qingming had just unraveled—she had not understood it at first, yet it was as if an unseen hand had parted the mist before her eyes—  

Then, she saw the world as True Lord Qingming saw it.  

“Princess Zhuoying has been silent for so long. Do you also agree with me and are thus repenting for your sins?”  

A voice calling her name pulled her back from the depths of the starry sea.  

Everyone turned to look at Zhuoying, who had appeared in the hall.  

“Truly, Princess Zhuoying, such a minor matter would be no issue at all in our Mount Sumeru Immortal Realm. After all, we are not as hypocritical as the Supreme Purity Heavenly Palace.”  

True Lord Qingming smiled at Zhuoying, his pine-green robes lending him a gloomy air, his words laced with sarcasm.  

“What a pity. Now that Princess Zhuoying is in the Supreme Purity Heavenly Palace, I fear she will be dealt with harshly, all to preserve the reputation of these old-fashioned—”  

“In that case, do you wish to recruit me?”  

Zhuoying spoke softly.  

Her words sent ripples through the crowd.  

The students of Fusang Academy and the other immortals of the Supreme Purity Heavenly Palace stared at Zhuoying in shock.  

What had she just said?  

With a single sentence, she had disrupted True Lord Qingming’s prepared speech. His smile faded as his gaze locked onto the woman before him—her beauty striking, her expression as serene as white peonies.  

“Princess Zhuoying, are you trying to deceive me?”  

Speaking to a clever man, Zhuoying saw no need for pretense. She took a few steps forward.  

“Mount Sumeru Immortal Realm and the Supreme Purity Heavenly Palace have long been at odds. If I were to side with the Supreme Purity Heavenly Palace, it would be quite troublesome for you, wouldn’t it? As you said, compared to their reputation, they would naturally choose to preserve their own. I have no intention of being sacrificed for their sake.”  

“Zhuoying—” Divine Lord Feng Li abruptly stood. “If you’ve done nothing wrong, why would we push you out to take the blame? Don’t listen to his nonsense!”  

Chongming God let out a cold scoff, while Ting Yun studied Zhuoying with a puzzled gaze.  

Only True Lord Qingming regarded her with eyes that seemed intent on carving out her heart.  

“Empty words, offering to join Mount Sumeru? Princess Zhuoying, do you take me for a three-year-old child?”  

Zhuoying chuckled. “I do have a gift to prove my sincerity—though I fear you may not dare to accept it.”  

She turned her gaze to the vision of the mortal realm, formed by scattered starlight in the air.  

“I will now descend to the mortal world as a Sinful Celestial of the Supreme Purity Heavenly Palace and eliminate Zhong Xianqing, this calamity, to atone for my excessive interference in mortal affairs. What do you think, Divine Lord?”  

True Lord Qingming laughed.  

“Princess Zhuoying, do you think yourself so clever that others must be fools?”  

“Your plan sounds fine, but why would you eliminate Zhong Xianqing? She is your believer, the one you guided step by step from a peasant girl to the heir of a noble house—”

Zhuoying said, “We can use an Inner Demon Vow as proof.”

The Inner Demon Vow was one of the most basic spells.

Though basic, its effects were profound. If the vow was broken, the consequences ranged from madness and demonic possession to the severing of one’s Immortal Root, rendering them forever crippled.

The students of Fusang Academy were utterly baffled by what was happening.

Huh? Why are we suddenly talking about eliminating Zhong Xianqing?

And now an Inner Demon Vow is involved?

No way… Could Princess Zhuo Ying really be defecting to Mount Sumeru?

The Divine Lords, however, were not as naive as the students. They understood exactly what Zhuoying intended.

Yan Jun immediately spoke up to stop her:

“Absolutely not! You endured unimaginable suffering to gain this chance at cultivation—how can you gamble with your future like this!”

Lord Qing Yuan also frowned and said:

“This is a feud between the Supreme Purity Heavenly Palace and the Mount Sumeru Immortal Realm. It has nothing to do with you. Step back!”

But Zhuoying remained unmoved, her gaze fixed on True Lord Qingming.

He found this human princess somewhat inscrutable, sensing an extremely dangerous trap lurking beneath her words.

Yet the proposal she offered was undeniably tempting.

“…First, make an Inner Demon Vow so I can see it,” True Lord Qingming narrowed his eyes.

After a brief moment of contemplation, Zhuoying smiled and said:

“Killing Zhong Xianqing outright would likely rebound with karmic force and cost me my life. Instead—how about ensuring Zhong Xianqing loses all she loves, condemned to a loneliness beyond what ordinary people endure, while helping Zhong Yingying stay with her beloved for eternity?”

True Lord Qingming’s brow relaxed slightly.

That did sound appealing.

Goddess Yingchu was now eighteen, and her greatest desire was no longer trivial matters like competing with Zhong Xianqing for clothes or their father’s affection.

After interpreting the tribulations the Heavenly Dao had set for Yingchu, he learned that aside from being born into poverty in this life, she was also destined for a love tribulation—”the one she loves will never love her back.”

Thus, in this lifetime, the Heavenly Dao had arranged for Yingchu’s beloved to fall for Zhong Xianqing instead, leaving Zhong Yingying to suffer the agony of unrequited love.

Now, Chi Shui Zhuo Ying was proposing to make Zhong Xianqing lose all she loved while ensuring Zhong Yingying could be with her beloved forever.

This suited his purposes perfectly.

If not for knowing that no one else in the Immortal Realm could decipher the star charts, he might have suspected Chi Shui Zhuo Ying had gleaned something from them earlier.

Still, this meant they couldn’t undermine the foundation of the Supreme Purity Heavenly Palace after all.

After a brief consideration, True Lord Qingming had another thought—

Why not invite all the immortal clans to witness this?

Let them see how the Supreme Purity’s favored Immortal, once exposed by Mount Sumeru, would be humiliated and forced to descend to the mortal realm to atone.

Though Chongming God was simple-minded, he had an intuition.

This Chi Shui Zhuo Ying was clever—would she really defect so easily?

He warned True Lord Qingming, “Qingming, be careful. This human princess is full of schemes…”

True Lord Qingming raised a hand to cut him off:

“As long as she makes the Inner Demon Vow, there’s no fear of her going back on her word.”

He knew Chi Shui Zhuo Ying was cunning, but precisely because she was intelligent, she would know when to yield—unlike those obstinate Immortals of the Supreme Purity Heavenly Palace.

Even if she did have ulterior motives, as long as she fulfilled her promises, they wouldn’t lose out.

In fact, they stood to gain everything without shedding a drop of blood—an absolute victory.

After swearing the Inner Demon Vow, Zhuoying also felt she had scored a major win.

For the sake of Merit Points, she had no choice but to involve herself in Goddess Yingchu’s affairs anyway.

Now, by conveniently solving a major problem for the Supreme Purity Heavenly Palace, they would surely be deeply moved.

As for the so-called Inner Demon Vow—  

To possess a vast empire is, of course, to endure boundless solitude.  

And to make Zhong Xianqing lose the love of her life, forced to reminisce day and night with her male consorts about past lovers—shouldn’t that be considered a fittingly immense punishment?  

Author’s Note:  

The next chapter will conclude Zhong Xianqing’s little side story in the mortal realm~