THIP Chapter 36

The scene of her death replayed over and over in her mind like a nightmare. Every time she thought about how Mingli might die after her, a dull pain throbbed in Mu Liuyin’s heart. That was Mingli—the girl she had raised since childhood.

Clear tears slipped from her tightly shut eyes. No one knew how much time had passed before Mu Liuyin finally pulled herself out of that nightmare. She opened her eyes, staring blankly at the familiar layout of the room. Her eyes fluttered slightly, and she asked Xiao Jiu, “Did everything rewind?”

“No,” Xiao Jiu replied, just as confused. “Your soul is currently inside the late-stage Foundation Establishment puppet you once gave Mingli.”

Mu Liuyin’s eyes widened slightly. She looked around the room more carefully—everything was exactly like how her quarters used to be when she lived in the Taiyan Sect.

“The target recreated your old room from the Taiyan Sect,” Xiao Jiu said softly. “But… this place is inside the Demon Realm.”

“The Demon Realm?!” Mu Liuyin was stunned. She asked, “Did Mingli fall into demonic cultivation?”

Xiao Jiu let out a hesitant hum. “Although she did fall, there still seems to be spiritual energy hidden within her dantian. And… she didn’t go on a massacre of the cultivation world like in the original timeline. She just secluded herself in the Demon Realm.”

Mu Liuyin curled her finger, and a wisp of pure spiritual energy gathered at her fingertip. Had Xiao Jiu not reminded her, she never would’ve guessed this place was within the Demon Realm. The spiritual energy here was dense, so clean and abundant.

But the Demon Realm… how could it possibly contain spiritual energy?

Suppressing her confusion, Mu Liuyin got out of bed and walked to the copper mirror. Reflected at her was a face strikingly similar to Huan Xi’s—nine parts alike. A beautiful, refined young man with an icy, aloof aura, like a snow lotus growing high atop a sacred mountain—elegant and untouchable.

“Host, the mission target is coming,” Xiao Jiu warned.

Mu Liuyin’s lips pressed into a thin line. She didn’t know how to face Mingli now. After a moment of thought, she lay back down on the bed and closed her eyes, pretending she hadn’t awakened.

With Xiao Jiu’s help, masking her soul’s presence, Mingli didn’t notice her master’s consciousness had returned to this puppet.

She entered the room in a flowing crimson robe, her forehead marked by a vermilion birthmark, and a lifelike blood-red spider lily bloomed across her collarbone against her snow-pale skin. Paired with her cold demeanor, the effect was haunting—an intoxicating mix of demonic allure and icy restraint.

Mingli sat at the bedside. Her cool, delicate fingertips gently traced the youth’s finely sculpted features. Her gaze, filled with tenderness and longing, fixed on Mu Liuyin. But beneath it lay an unspoken grief and sorrow that weighed heavily on her heart.

Back then, Mu Liuyin’s original body had been consumed by the tyrannical spiritual power of the Heaven Book. That loss had utterly broken Mingli. As she once said, she hadn’t spared any of those responsible. All of them were utterly annihilated.

It was then Mingli realized the truth of her feelings toward Mu Liuyin. It wasn’t the admiration of a disciple for her master—it was love. Deep, romantic love—the kind shared by Dao companions.

How could she fall in love with her master?

Mingli thought, perhaps it was because her master had treated her too well, so well that she couldn’t help but fall for her.

But her love had come too late. The person she loved hadn’t even left behind a body in this world.

Only this puppet, which looked so much like her master, remained.

Mingli leaned down and kissed the youth’s lips. Her eyes, clouded with emotion, shimmered with tears. One warm droplet fell onto Mu Liuyin’s flawless face—a soft, aching touch.

Only heaven knew how much willpower it took for Mu Liuyin to stay still the moment Mingli’s lips touched hers. But when that tear landed on her skin, all her suppressed anger… was instantly extinguished.

To prevent Mingli from doing anything more… extreme, Mu Liuyin slowly opened her eyes, even though waking now would be awkward.

Her eyes, filled with a soft ache, met Mingli’s tear-streaked face. But to her surprise, Mingli didn’t stop kissing her.

Instead, after a brief pause, she deepened the kiss.

Mu Liuyin froze.

Only when she felt the press of Mingli’s tongue and breath in her mouth did she finally react, trying to push her away.

Sensing the resistance, Mingli finally pulled back. Her lips lifted from the dazed youth’s mouth. Her gaze, filled with joy and longing, trembled as she whispered, “Shizun…?”

Seeing the dried tear trails on her face, Mu Liuyin gave a quiet, “Mm.”

“Master…” Mingli’s voice broke as she choked back a sob. “You’re alive… you’re really alive…”

She buried her face in the crook of Mu Liuyin’s neck, tears soaking into her snow-white robes. Mu Liuyin raised a hand and gently patted her back, over and over.

No one knew how long she cried before Mingli finally calmed. Then she remembered—when her master had awakened, she’d been kissing him.

A blush rushed up her pale cheeks. She blinked, as if wanting to say something.

Before she could speak, Mu Liuyin explained that she was able to regain consciousness because she had left a sliver of her soul in this puppet body.

Mingli already knew about that. When Mu Liuyin had first died, she’d clung to the hope of reviving her through the puppet. But after a hundred years with no miracle… she had given up.

Mingli nodded, her blood-red eyes still misty with tears, ethereal and stunning.

Remembering what Xiao Jiu had said, Mu Liuyin’s voice turned hoarse. She asked softly, “A’Li… do you still have spiritual energy within you?”

To possess both demonic and spiritual energy simultaneously, the two forces were inherently opposed. It must be excruciating.

Mingli remained silent. When she had succumbed to the darkness out of grief, she had never forgotten her master’s words—that she must cultivate to become an immortal. Even in the Demon Realm for a century, with no sign of hope for her master’s return, she had held on.

Now, there was only a tenth of her spiritual energy left. And in less than half a year, that, too, would be consumed.

“…There’s still a little,” she rasped, her voice still hoarse from crying.

Mu Liuyin’s heart ached. Maybe this was why her mission hadn’t failed yet—because Mingli hadn’t fully succumbed. There was still hope. She could still become immortal.

But when she thought about all Mingli had suffered, Mu Liuyin found herself unable to say the words that would push her to pursue the Dao again.

Noticing the thick, rich spiritual energy in the room, Mu Liuyin asked, “Why is there so much spiritual energy here?”

“I refined the Heaven Book and used it as the core to form a spirit-gathering formation,” Mingli replied softly. Her voice was low and tender. “Shizun, I killed Ye Fengjue. And all those who killed you… I didn’t let a single one of them go.”

After she finished, she looked at Mu Liuyin with a soft, curved smile, as if asking for praise.

Mu Liuyin opened her mouth… but didn’t know what to say. She couldn’t even begin to imagine how much grief and despair Mingli must have felt.

Seeing her remain silent, Mingli’s smile lingered. Her husky voice carried a soft, seductive note.

She said, “Master, I love you.”