Chapter 21: A Ray of Light
Ying Xin had only reached the Foundation Establishment stage at that time, and the toxins gathered in his dantian were merely lying dormant for the moment.
It wasn’t until later, when Ying Xin broke through to the Golden Core stage, that these toxins would fully erupt, leading to a qualitative change and triggering a quantitative transformation.
Once these toxins completely fused with the newly formed Golden Core, the venom of the Bloodthirsty Bat King would become a powerful weapon in Ying Xin’s hands.
Ying Xin naturally understood this.
His original cultivation had been very close to the Golden Core stage, but due to the sudden poisoning, his meridians were severed, rendering him unable to cultivate. His body became like a deflated balloon, and his cultivation kept regressing.
Fortunately, Ye Ying arrived in time, allowing him to at least preserve his Foundation Establishment stage cultivation.
And with his previous foundation, it would be quite easy for him to recover his original cultivation.
Once his internal meridians were fully healed, Ying Xin got out of bed and knelt in front of Ying Tong, performing a grand gesture of gratitude.
“Ying Xin sincerely thanks you for saving my life.”
“You don’t need to thank me,” Ying Tong’s eyes flickered slightly. She had done this for her own reasons as well.
“May I ask for my savior’s name?”
Now that his own problem was resolved, Ying Xin realized he still didn’t know the identity of the person before him.
Wait, when he was first brought here, the person who brought him had mentioned something.
But at that time, he was already in despair, his heart deadened, so he hadn’t clearly heard what the other person had said.
“Ying Tong.”
Upon hearing these two words, Ying Xin’s eyes widened in an instant, and his pupils constricted. “Ying… Ying Tong? You are the Venerable Yunhuang!”
Ying Tong nodded slightly.
“Junior Ying Xin greets Venerable Yunhuang!”
Ying Xin bowed again, this time pressing his forehead heavily to the ground, much more sincerely than before.
“What are your plans moving forward?”
Although she could guess his intention, Ying Tong still decided to ask.
“I… want revenge.”
Ying Xin hesitated for a moment before revealing his true thoughts.
He wasn’t sure if the Venerable Yunhuang would approve of his plan, especially since the people he wanted to take revenge on included members of the Ying family.
The Ying family had a strict rule that members were not allowed to kill one another.
That was why, even though he had become a cripple, he was still alive.
“If you want revenge, then go ahead. But with your current cultivation level, it might be a bit difficult.”
Ying Xin stared at her in shock, his eyes wide. “You’re not opposed to it?”
“Why would I oppose it? The moment I rescued you and decided to save you, I had already made my choice,” Ying Tong said with a smile.
Although Ying Xin might be the one to commit the killings, the ones who had driven him to darkness were those who had hurt and betrayed him.
Given Ying Xin’s talent and the fact that he had already sworn his loyalty to her, Ying Tong didn’t plan to hold him accountable for the things that hadn’t yet happened. Others, however, might not be so lucky.
Upon hearing her words, Ying Xin suddenly felt a warmth inside his heart.
During the time he had been poisoned, he had witnessed the coldness and cruelty of the world. The warmth of human relationships, he realized, was fleeting.
All those moments of beauty he once believed in were illusions. The moment he lost his usefulness, he was cast aside without hesitation.
Ying Xin had already given up hope in this world and had sworn that, if he survived, he would seek revenge on the false reality that had abandoned him.
But just as he was about to sink completely into that endless swamp of despair, the Venerable Yunhuang, someone he had never even met before, extended a helping hand.
She even said she had “chosen him.”
It felt like a ray of light had suddenly pierced the darkness, falling directly upon his face.
Ying Xin, as if having made a firm decision, said, “Though I have decided to seek revenge, I will absolutely not violate the Ying family’s rules. I won’t let the Venerable Yunhuang be put in a difficult position.”
Ying Tong: …
What did he mean by not putting her in a difficult position?
She had already planned to expel those people from the Ying family so that Ying Xin could take his revenge without restraint.
However, it seemed that Ying Xin had a different approach in mind, so she decided not to interfere.
Including Ying Xuan, she had already dealt with three people.
In less than a month, at this pace, she was confident she would soon find all the unruly descendants.
…
After returning to her room, Fentian, who had been holding back his question for a long time, finally asked, “Tongtong, can I ask why you’ve suddenly decided to track down these people?”
After all, according to their original plan, they should have already ascended to the Heavenly Realm by now.
But just as the ascension deadline approached, Ying Tong inexplicably postponed it.
Not only that, she had pulled out a stack of portraits and tasked them with finding certain individuals.
Moreover, just looking at the people in those portraits, it was clear they weren’t good people—the portraits exuded an evil aura.
At first, Fentian and the others thought that Ying Tong wanted to make some final contributions to the Cangqiong Realm before ascending.
But after seeing the two people Ye Ying had brought back, Fentian wasn’t so sure anymore.
The real people and the portraits didn’t match at all—they looked too different.
Ying Tong was about to explain and tell Fentian about the dreams she had been having, but just as the words reached her lips, she felt a sudden wave of anxiety.
She had a strong premonition that if she revealed the truth now, she would pay a terrible price.
Ying Tong shook her head. “The secrets of heaven cannot be revealed.”
Then, pointing upward, she said, “He won’t let me speak.”
When something involves Tiandao, even the smallest matter is no longer a trivial one.
“Alright, I was just curious anyway,” Fentian replied.
Since Tiandao forbade her from speaking, Fentian knew better than to press further. “I’m just worried about your ascension.”
“What I’m doing now is all for the sake of my future ascension,” Ying Tong said, looking at him. “Otherwise, do you think I’m the type to meddle in other people’s affairs?”
“True,” Fentian nodded.
He had known Ying Tong for many years, and she had never been the kind to involve herself in matters that didn’t concern her.
“Finding these people is extremely important to me, so I need you all to take this seriously.”
Fentian sighed, looking exasperated. “We’re trying to take it seriously, but the clues you gave us are too few.”
“How are they few? I gave you portraits and even names,” Ying Tong said defensively.
“But the portraits are outdated,” Fentian pointed out, then remembered Ying Li. “And even the names could be questionable.”
It seemed like there were plenty of clues, but aside from the fact that these people shared the Ying family bloodline, the rest of the information was practically useless. Maybe even worse than having no clues at all.
Ying Tong shrugged. “There’s nothing I can do. If we can’t find these people, I won’t feel secure enough to ascend.”
She needed to eliminate any hidden threats before making her move. Otherwise, even if she ascended to the Heavenly Realm, it would be like marching to her death—unless she planned on never ascending to godhood.
But that wasn’t an option.
Fentian caught on to her key point. Not feeling secure to ascend doesn’t mean you can’t ascend.
