Chapter 13: The Final Blaze

“What does this have to do with you?”

“Haven’t you done enough for her?”

“In your current state, even walking is a problem. How do you expect to save anyone?”

“Give up, just end the simulation. There’s no need to go this far for a character that doesn’t exist in reality.”

…

In a split second, Xu Xi’s mind was flooded with thoughts, each one making perfect sense, allowing him to comfortably ignore the grand Righteous vs. Demonic War.

His body was in pain, twitching.

His spirit was utterly exhausted.

The side effects of burning his Spiritual Root, cultivation, and lifespan.

Had subjected Xu Xi to three years of torment.

On this final day of his life, his body had deteriorated to the point where even Xu Xi himself couldn’t recognize it—pale complexion, withered arms, and a lower body completely numb.

And the deep, bone-chilling itch, as if countless insects were wriggling inside.

The occasional sensation of muscle tearing, as if being sliced by an extremely sharp knife.

“This physical condition is indeed terrible…”

Xu Xi endured the pain.

He mustered every ounce of strength from his exhausted body, but even so, he couldn’t complete the simple act of sitting up.

It really hurt.

And he really wanted to give up.

The constant ringing in his ears was like urgent warnings, reminding Xu Xi that his body had reached its limit.

Gradually, Xu Xi’s vision was filled with a bloody hue.

His body, on the verge of collapse, finally gave out. Blood flowed from his ears, eyes, nose, and mouth, blurring his vision, staining his teeth red. As his mouth slightly opened, more blood uncontrollably poured out.

Soaking the bed beneath him in a cold, eerie blood flower.

“Ugh—”

Bubbles rose in his throat.

Xu Xi truly couldn’t hold on any longer. This pain had surpassed human limits. He was in too much agony, not wanting to endure even a second more.

He wanted to let the pain drown his reason.

To completely end this simulation.

But in his daze, within his increasingly blurred vision, a familiar figure appeared, growing from a baby to a young girl, from healthy to frail.

“Mo Li wants to earn lots and lots of money for big brother!”

“Mo Li loves big brother the most!”

“Big brother, will Mo Li die…”

Memories of the past suddenly surfaced, clearing the haze from Xu Xi’s eyes.

“Mo Li is still waiting for me to save her. I can’t, I can’t die here,” Xu Xi struggled to sit up from the bed, his pale face twisted in pain, fine beads of sweat forming on his forehead.

Xu Xi wanted to stand up, but his body lost balance, and he tumbled off the bed.

—His vision suddenly shook.

He had fallen.

And knocked over many items by the bedside, scattering them across the floor.

With a body that could barely stand, could he really get involved in the battles between cultivators? Did Xu Mo Li even need his help?

Xu Xi didn’t know.

All he knew was that, as her elder brother, he had once promised to save his sister no matter what.

It didn’t matter if he could do it or not.

It didn’t matter if the simulation world was fake or not.

What mattered was that it was a promise he had made.

“Hahaha, hahahaha, ahahaha—” Laughter replaced the cries of pain. Xu Xi laughed, coughing up blood, and as he fell to the ground, his hands fumbled around until they finally grasped the wooden sword hilt.

As soon as he touched it, he felt the surging Nascent Soul mana within.

This mana obeyed Xu Xi’s will, forcibly surging into his broken body that had lost its Spiritual Root, squeezing into every shattered meridian, providing Xu Xi with a brief burst of strength.

He stood up.

He staggered out of his home.

His body began to collapse unnaturally due to the forced infusion of mana, exploding into clouds of crimson blood mist.

If this continued, Xu Xi might not even leave behind a complete corpse.

But what did that matter?

“Big brother is coming to save you…” An astonishing surge of mana shot into the sky, startling the cultivators from both the righteous and demonic factions. By the time they regained their senses, a sword light had already flown far away, heading rapidly towards the Heavenly Sword Sect.

…

[You are dying. Long-term illness has long since drained every bit of your strength. Your body has already reached the end of its life, but you have achieved a miracle that should have been impossible.]

[Your willpower has surpassed human limits, forcibly driving your body to move.]

[Even though the pain in this process far surpasses anything you’ve experienced before, you have no regrets.]

[You once again ride the sword light, heading towards the Heavenly Sword Sect in your memory. When you return to the sect, you find it has already been breached by the demonic path, and the Sect Protection Array has completely lost its effect.]

[Blood, severed limbs, damaged magical artifacts.]

[The war is still ongoing, but the scene of a river of blood has already formed. The entire Heavenly Sword Sect has become a living hell. Shocked, you worry for your sister and your master.]

[You forcibly wield the wooden sword to kill enemies. Some recognize you, with expressions of either joy or fear.]

[You have gone mad with killing.]

…

As a Nascent Soul sect, the Heavenly Sword Sect was not weak.

Although not among the very top of the Cultivation World, it was still a first-rate sect, a renowned orthodox faction with a proud legacy, with disciples throughout the ages taking pride in the Heavenly Sword Sect.

But.

In the torrent of the confrontation between the righteous and demonic paths.

Facing the numerous demonic cultivators, even the mighty Heavenly Sword Sect had to accept the fact of defeat.

The Sword Peak crumbled.

The main hall was cut in half.

Countless disciples were slaughtered, the various peaks surrounded, and even several Nascent Soul cultivators had fallen, leaving despair and driving people to kill in a frenzy.

Before the official attack.

The demonic side had made meticulous plans, and some people had to be killed.

Like Xu Mo Li.

This second True Disciple of the Forest Sword Peak was simply too extraordinary, completing Foundation Establishment in a year and aiming to form a Golden Core in another. Countless demonic elders exclaimed in terror.

It could be said that the reason the Heavenly Sword Sect was targeted by the demonic path.

Was largely because Xu Mo Li was too逆天 (defying the heavens).

Making the demonic overlords eager to recruit and control her. If they couldn’t, they would kill her on the spot to eliminate future threats.

“Surrender, Fairy Mo Li!”

“If you are willing to join our Heavenly Demon Sect, the position of Holy Maiden is yours for the taking!”

“You are like a bird in a cage, with no chance of escape!”

Two late-stage Golden Core, five mid-stage Golden Core, and nine early-stage Golden Core.

This was the number of demonic cultivators surrounding Xu Mo Li.

While loudly persuading her to surrender, they cast wary glances at the cold, white-clad figure holding a long sword across from them.

Xu Mo Li truly lived up to her reputation as a prodigy with the grace of an immortal.

Her strength was overwhelmingly powerful.

With only Foundation Establishment cultivation, she had successively slain several Golden Core cultivators.

But in the end, she was still only at Foundation Establishment, with limited mana. No matter how逆天 (defying the heavens) she was, she couldn’t escape the encirclement of over a dozen Golden Core cultivators.