“Oh?” The woman in green, dignified and kind, said in a gentle voice, “Are you referring to that immortal-grade young man who has absorbed the divine essence of two generations of Dao bodies and possesses an innate heart of Xuanming?”

Dao Ancestor, you certainly know a lot. That description is quite long…

But then again, considering the Dao Ancestor’s consciousness has been overlooking the mortal world for thousands of years, there’s probably little she doesn’t know.

Nodding slightly: “He is determined to practice the Chaos Dao, but is troubled by not having a Dao Physique. If Dao Ancestor you could pass on your legacy to him, he might even do better than I could.”

“Don’t you want to be my successor?” The woman in green seemed more curious about this.

“Certainly not,” Qin Ruqing shook her head, “Dao Ancestor, you are the supreme being in the mortal world, the origin of the immortal path. To be your direct disciple, even your only disciple, would be the highest honor. Even if the ancestral graves of my Qin family were to emit green smoke, we couldn’t hope for such good fortune. How could I not be willing?”

“In that case, why do you wish to share such honor with others?”

“I’m certainly not that generous, especially since that person is my rival…” Qin Ruqing continued. “So I’m not sharing the honor with him; I simply want to alleviate my own pressure.”

“The burden of saving the immortal world is too heavy. I’m a relaxed person, indeed with some ambition and talent, but my original expectation was just to be a top talent and lead my Qin family to glory. Of course, if I could briefly be the top of the immortal world and then be overthrown by the next generation, that wouldn’t be so bad. But among these expectations, saving the world was never part of it.”

The more prestigious the title, the greater the responsibility.

Qin Ruqing only wanted to be a prodigy, not a hero.

The Dao Ancestor could sense that Qin Ruqing was serious.

In this vibrant and lively soul, she felt a deep, unspoken exhaustion.

“Your original desire for power came from wanting the power to break free from shackles and reduce constraints. But now, this very power has bound you.” The Dao Ancestor’s tone was calm but cutting.

Qin Ruqing nodded, smiling sincerely and brightly at the woman in green, “So, Dao Ancestor, do you want to meet that immortal-grade disciple?”

“I can meet him,” the Dao Ancestor agreed. “But he is destined to not become the Azure Lutos successor. This is not something I can decide, as each generation only has one Azure Lutos successor. The primal laws dictate this, and even I cannot change it.”

Qin Ruqing could not say whether she was disappointed or not; she simply nodded. “This person is obsessed and trapped in the vortex of memories. There are reasons of his own, as well as his parents’ reasons. I originally intended to kill him, but after glimpsing his memories, I changed my mind.”

“He believes that practicing the Chaos Dao is a way to achieve liberation and prove everything, so I gave him this opportunity.”

The Dao Ancestor’s consciousness synchronized with Qin Ruqing’s.

As soon as she finished speaking, the figure of the Fifth Lingyu began to gradually materialize in this space.

The essence of the Sixth Domain is the sea of consciousness of Azure Lutos; there is no concept of distance here.

Appearance and disappearance depend entirely on Dao Ancestor’s will.

Fifth Lingyu’s beautiful face still carried a hint of confusion, like someone waking from a nightmare, unsure of what day it was.

As he scanned the area and his gaze fell on Qin Ruqing, his expression returned to its usual indifference.

“Did you summon me?” Fifth Lingyu asked.

“It wasn’t me, it was Dao Ancestor,” Qin Ruqing moved aside to reveal the woman in green behind her.

Fifth Lingyu’s eyes shifted, clearly showing his surprise.

Qin Ruqing smiled.

He was probably surprised to find that the revered Dao Ancestor, honored as a deity by the world, was actually a young and elegant woman.

Dao Ancestor spoke: “Do you wish to see me?”

Fifth Lingyu silently knelt and saluted.

When he lifted his head, he spoke directly and to the point:

“I, Fifth Celestial-grade disciple Fifth Lingyu, request Dao Ancestor to grant me the Azure Lutos inheritance.”

“You do not have a Dao Physique. How can I grant you the inheritance?”

Fifth Lingyu’s clear gaze pointed towards Qin Ruqing. “The disciple has already absorbed the divine essence of two generations of successors. If the essence is not complete, I am willing to absorb more.”

Qin Ruqing raised her eyebrows.

How bold of you to say that, saying you want to kill me right in front of the Dao Ancestor?

Dao Ancestor’s tone remained calm, “The Azure Lutos successor is determined by heaven. Even if you absorb all the divine sources, you cannot become the true successor.”

“Oh?”

Qin Ruqing was also surprised.

Isn’t it that having a Dao Physique makes her the Qinglian(Azure Lutos) successor?

From the Dao Ancestor’s words, it seemed more like it was because she was the Azure Lutos successor that she had the Dao Physique?

Fifth Lingyu clearly also understood the Dao Ancestor’s meaning, “So even if I kill her and take the divine source, it would be useless?”

“If you kill her, the next generation of Azure Lutos successor will appear in five hundred years.” Dao Ancestor said. Implicitly, it couldn’t happen now.

“And,” Dao Ancestor paused, “you cannot kill her.”

This seemed to trigger something.

Qin Ruqing smiled as she walked towards Fifth Lingyu, radiant purple-golden flames enveloping her.

“Do you know? You’re really quite annoying,” Qin Ruqing said as she threw a punch.

Fifth Lingyu’s unemotional pupils reflected Qin Ruqing’s increasingly enlarged fist.

Of course, he couldn’t just stand there and let Qin Ruqing hit him.

The power of this punch wasn’t fast enough to be unavoidable.

He tilted his head, but that punch still accurately and undeniably struck his face.

Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, and Fifth Lingyu understood.

Xuanming Technique: “Confrontation”

The practitioner exposes their energy, like a sword drawn from its sheath—once the sword is out, victory or defeat is inevitable, with no way to dodge or block.

Dodging is equivalent to losing.

The law will actively determine that the strike will hit.

To break this law, one must face the attack head-on.

If one’s energy is stronger, it can turn the attack around and severely injure the opponent.

Qin Ruqing could hurt Fifth Lingyu not because of surprise, but for one reason only: her energy was stronger than Fifth Lingyu’s.

Her “sharpness” was greater than Fifth Lingyu’s.

Fifth Lingyu pressed his lips together, turned to retaliate, and his hand blade struck towards Qin Ruqing’s forehead but was blocked by an invisible blade.

Fifth Lingyu’s hand blade also began to ooze blood, as if cut by a sharp weapon.

Qin Ruqing began to press Fifth Lingyu down with punch after punch.

It seemed they were fighting hand-to-hand, but in reality, every strike was a contest of the Xuanming Technique.

Qin Ruqing used only one technique from start to finish: “Confrontation.”

The law judged a hundred times, and each time, Qin Ruqing’s edge was sharper.

In the final instance, Qin Ruqing pinned Fifth Lingyu down, holding his neck with one hand.

Looking down at Fifth Lingyu, Qin Ruqing said:

“You were born with the Xuanming heart, yet you cannot even surpass me in the Xuanming Technique. What right do you have to say you’ll kill me?”

“What right do you have? Is it because of your self-entangling hatred?”

The angle and tone were reminiscent of how Fifth Mao, his father, mocked Fifth Lingyu. “What right do you have to kill a Celestial-grade clan leader? You’re nothing but trash.”

Qin Ruqing was, of course, doing this intentionally.

She met Fifth Lingyu’s gaze and slowly mouthed the words, “You’re nothing but trash.”

The moment the last word fell, Qin Ruqing felt a tangible killing intent, one that even she couldn’t avoid.

A flash of golden light in her eyes shifted the killing intent, and at the same time, Qin Ruqing tilted her head, and a blood blade cut across her cheek.

Qin Ruqing’s smile deepened, and she taunted: “Is this your Xuanming heart? Look, isn’t it quite useful? Why aren’t you using it?”

“You hate it, are enraged by me, yet you can only use this thing to hurt me?”

“This is why you lose every time you clash with me. Your innate ‘sharpness’ is burdened by two lives. How can you possibly surpass me?”

Two lives—one is his mother, and the other is naturally Fifth Mao.

Why did Fifth Lingyu remain in his mother’s womb for twelve months, and eventually cause the death of a Nascent Soul cultivator?

It was because Fifth Lingyu had a natural Xuanming heart that clashed with his mother’s original source of cultivation.

And Fifth Mao, due to his son’s Xuanming heart, became estranged from the Fifth family, and later died trying to save his son’s Xuanming heart.

These two lives were the reason that constrained Fifth Lingyu’s power.

He disagreed with his father’s accusations but was deeply troubled by them.

Fifth Lingyu’s gloomy eyes locked onto Qin Ruqing, and suddenly he smiled.

With a sharp, ghostly grin, his lips curled up.

“You were nothing but an ant under my command,” Fifth Lingyu said.

“Have you forgotten when you used to follow me and sweetly called me Director?” He emphasized the word “Director” with a sticky, provocative tone.

“You saying that just makes me feel pleased,” Qin Ruqing said, gathering her fingers with a slow smile.

“An ant back then can now hold your throat and control your fate.”

When they began fighting again, Dao Ancestor didn’t even blink, watching them calmly.

When they started to exchange barbs, Dao Ancestor listened for a while before speaking.

“The Qinglian Dao lineage is not suited for you. And the path that suits you has been rejected by you.”

“If you wish, I can help you remove the Xuanming heart.”

The sarcasm and sharpness on Fifth Lingyu’s face suddenly froze.

Removing the Xuanming heart… this might be a path he had never considered.

Qin Ruqing was also surprised, and her smile grew even brighter.

“Wow, that’s a good idea. Your father called you a monster and you didn’t like it, and your mother died because of the backlash from the Xuanming Qi. This thing is the root of your misfortune, and now you finally have a chance to remove it. So, what do you say? Do you want to give it a try?”

Fifth Lingyu, pinned to the ground by Qin Ruqing, looked up towards the void.

But there was no void here.

Everything here is part of the Dao Ancestor’s consciousness.

What can be seen is just a vast, white, virtual wall.

Qin Ruqing knew he was contemplating.

Removing the Xuanming heart might indeed be a terrifying temptation for Fifth Lingyu.

After an indeterminate amount of time, he seemed to snap back to reality, his cold gaze falling on Qin Ruqing’s face.

He pushed her away mercilessly and stood up.

“Thank you, Dao Ancestor. I am unwilling to abandon the Xuanming heart,” Fifth Lingyu said, looking at Dao Ancestor.

The woman in green showed no change in expression, as if any answer from Fifth Lingyu was expected.