Kongheng had served alone under Yu Su, without any other members of the Li Family nearby, so he couldn’t confirm Mount Yan Pass’s exact status. Li Ximing stayed silent for a moment before finally speaking, "We can’t head north into the demonic mist. All we can do is await word... The two elders are powerful and should be safe... but I fear for Xizhi and Wushao... Brother Xizhi was injured earlier, and he could be in danger now."
Kongheng thought for a moment, then gently consoled, "Although Mount Yan Pass has fallen, the situation at Chengshui Tomb may not be as bad as it seems."
As a buddhist cultivator of an ancient lineage, Kongheng had clearly deduced Tang Shedu’s intentions from the clues at hand. He explained, "Tang Shedu simply wishes to join the Northern Buddhists. The North-South conflict is a matter of Dao lineage and great destiny. With his deep foundations and high status, he may become the next Merciful One if he joins the North. This means his future prospects are boundless.
"If he intends to undertake the karmic transformation ritual, he would surely submit under a Maha. Upon success, the heavens would shine with divine light, lotus flowers would descend, and all of us who cultivate the Buddhist Dao would sense it..."
He shook his head and said, "I was close enough to Chengshui Tomb, yet I sensed nothing, not even upon reaching Baixiang Valley. Something must have gone wrong. Perhaps the ritual was interrupted by someone in the Purple Mansion Realm."
The expressions of the Li Family members eased slightly at that. But Li Xuanxuan remained uneasy and began asking for details. Li Ximing sat quietly at the table, folding Yu Fuzi's intelligence with care. Outside, the snowfall had lessened. A man rushed up from below, hurried and anxious, arriving quickly before the hall.
His face pale, he spoke quickly, "Your Highness! Lady Xu is in labor..."
Li Zhouwei’s gaze snapped to him. He strode swiftly out of the main hall, and leaped onto the wind. He pierced through the clouds and across the frozen lake, landing directly in front of the central hall.
Though anxious, he masked it well. He strode through the corridor and neared the palace gate of the rear hall. The scent of blood had already reached his nose. Li Zhouwei’s ears twitched at the sound of panicked cries. His expression darkened as he pushed the door open, and his breath caught.
A suffocating wave of blood-tinged heat rushed out, mingled with an odd fragrance that nearly induced nausea. The lamps had all toppled, and the floor was dotted with glimmering beads of blood that gleamed gold under the flickering light.
Two maidservants had backed into a corner, sobbing as they clung to each other. When he followed the trail of blood, he finally saw Xu Peiyu.
The woman lay motionless on the couch, lit by dim, yellow light. Blood dripped slowly down her thighs, and a newborn lay on the floor. Its entire body was wrinkled, and its golden eyes were already open. Its tiny hands clutched Xu Peiyu's thigh tightly, tongue extended to lap up the dripping blood. Its lips moved slightly, revealing a faint white gleam.
The Jade Court Guards nearby were frozen beside the child. Their hands bore fresh bite wounds, and they were unsure whether to act or retreat. The moment they saw him enter, they fell to their knees with a thud.
"Your subordinate... was incompetent..."
Li Zhouwei paid them no mind. An old, lingering premonition was being confirmed in his heart, leaving him speechless. This child was supposed to be his eldest son. Li Zhouwei had even chosen his name in advance, naming him Li Jiang’ao.
His heart sank step by step as he stepped over the blood and grabbed the child by the neck. But the moment he lifted him, Li Jiang’ao shrieked, opening his unnaturally wide mouth to reveal sharp, interlocking white teeth, and tried to bite him.
But how could he possibly harm Li Zhouwei? A casual flick and a surge of mana stifled any attempts to bite from Li Jiang’ao. His overly large eyes stared at him with a dull, mindless hunger.
Li Zhouwei swept his spiritual sense across the child. The strange bloodline connection told him clearly that this child was neither a reincarnated soul nor the product of any dark sorcery...
He's simply... not human.
His gaze fell upon Lady Xu’s young face. Her eyes had already lost their light as they stared blankly at the ceiling. A thin veil lay unmoving over her lips.
The hall was oppressively silent. None of the attendants dared speak or move. All knelt together, watching as Li Zhouwei slowly walked up to the bed and pulled the veil away.
He wound the veil around an arm as he slowly lifted the child to eye level and examined it carefully. One hand supported the child from beneath, the other clutched its throat. His fingers pressed against the tiny neck of Li Jiang’ao without moving. His eyes narrowed as he felt the faint pulsing of blood beneath the skin.
The child seemed to sense the threat of death. Its golden eyes widened into orbs, glaring back with fierce, unblinking hostility.
"Minghuang! Minghuang!"
As father and son stared each other down, Li Zhouwei’s grip slowly tightened. Li Xuanxuan rushed forward, calling twice urgently. But an unfazed Li Zhouwei casually unwound the veil around his wrist and wrapped the child.
It was less wrapping and more binding. His eyes returned to Lady Xu’s face.
When Li Xuanxuan finally looked away from the bloodstained floor to him, Li Zhouwei held the child and said heavily, "A curse upon our house."
The family had closely monitored Lady Xu’s condition. Her belly had suddenly expanded in her first month, then gone still, before seeming to resume normal growth like any infant.
Medicines had been administered to nurse her health back, and all had seemed to improve. No one had expected her to go into labor without warning in the third month. Kongheng, whom they planned to contact, had disappeared, and though he had returned, it was too late.
The woman had perished, her face pallid with a bluish tint. Li Xuanxuan stood dazed, only able to ask, "How... could this happen..."
Li Ximing and Kongheng followed behind him. As Li Zhouwei handed over Li Jiang’ao, the child bared its sharp white teeth and twisted, trying to bite Li Xuanxuan’s wrist.
But Li Zhouwei had bound him tightly, so he couldn’t turn over. Li Xuanxuan recoiled at the sight of those jagged teeth and golden eyes. He turned to Kongheng, voice trembling with disbelief, "Master Monk! This..."
Kongheng’s eyes flickered as well. He lowered his gaze and chanted several buddhist verses before reaching out to take Li Jiang’ao, examining him closely before responding quietly, "Not quite human... he was affected by Your Highness. Bright Yang is not an ordinary force, it’s far more volatile than the Twelve Essences. And with the prior karmic entanglements... he was inevitably altered."
Li Zhouwei was already lifting the woman's corpse in his arms. He whispered an apology and left ahead of them. The thick, suffocating scent of blood still hung in the air, mixed with a nauseating sweet fragrance.
Li Ximing took two steps back. Kongheng lowered his voice and said solemnly, "In our Buddhist scriptures, the one who attained enlightenment through Bright Yang, the Undefeated King of Brightness, had four wives in his lay life. He had five sons among all his concubines... all enemies of the Dharma, sweeping wind and light in their wake, killing countless... they were five demon heads.
"As for the Wei’s Li bloodline... generation after generation bore abnormalities. There were consorts dying violently, children noble while mothers perished. That too may be linked to Bright Yang..."