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Hence, the Demon War, which had not erupted in 300,000 years, commenced with the Demon Lord’s agents slaughtering the beings of the Northern Wasteland.

The Immortal Realm began recruiting soldiers, Crown Prince Ya also returned to Lingxiao Hall, and Mi Xi of Taibai Hall deployed for war.

Lan Xi also returned to the Goddess Palace.

At the grand hall of the Goddess Palace, Lan Yan sat in the main seat, holding her daughter’s hand, and instructed, "Lan Xi, the Demon War is never a joke. Therefore, you must be cautious on this mission."

"Yes! I will!" Lan Xi nodded emphatically.

Seeing that her daughter had become much more steady over the millennium, Lan Yan felt reassured about her representing the Goddess Palace in the battle.

"If you can’t win, then return. After all, you are still young and haven’t obtained Divinity, so you are not a true Goddess. That sudden provocation by the Demon Lord must have ulterior motives, so be very careful in everything."

"Mother, I understand. I’ll take good care of myself," Lan Xi promised.

Lan Yan sighed, and although her daughter assured her, she felt uneasy.

In the end, she looked towards the palace exterior with a stern expression and said, "Shaoqing, come out! You have been punished for ten thousand years; I’ll not hold the past against you. This matter is of great importance, and you must ensure Lan Xi’s safety."

With Lan Yan’s words, a tall and upright figure of a man slowly walked in from outside the grand hall.

Lan Xi was confused by Lan Yan’s words—had he not seen her for ten thousand years because he was being punished?

What did he do wrong, and why was he punished?

"Yes!" The man bowed respectfully.

"Alright, everyone has already set out. You two should go as well," Lan Yan said, and then went to inspect the troops herself.

Standing on the high platform of the palace, Lan Xi watched the man not far from her, a sweet smile gradually appearing at the corners of her mouth.

She picked up her dress and ran towards him, catching him off guard with a big hug, "It’s wonderful, Ah Qing! You finally agreed to see me."

The man stood dumbfounded, only after a good while managing to lift his hand and touch her long hair, his voice choked in his throat and unable to come out.

After eleven thousand years, he could finally hear her call him Ah Qing again!

All the hardships of these years were worthwhile.

Lan Xi could not comprehend why she, an immortal, needed a mortal’s protection.

It seemed, her mother’s instructions were very problematic.

"Ah Qing, is there some unspeakable secret between you and mother?" Lan Xi asked, tugging at his sleeve.

The man only shook his head, still reticent, only his face showing a trace of a smile when facing her, only then revealing a bit of human warmth.

Lan Xi was overjoyed, and her mischievous nature quickly emerged.

She felt that Ah Qing should be a part of her life.

With him by her side, she could rediscover her true self.

Under the leadership of Lan Xi, the Goddess Palace mobilized 20,000 troops to rush to Yellow Desolation Mountain in the Northern Wasteland.

By that time, Crown Prince Ya and Mi Xi had already been on the battlefield.

When the first battle commenced, Lan Xi had not yet arrived, and the heavenly soldiers suffered a crushing defeat, losing one hundred thousand soldiers.

Crown Prince Ya led the heavenly soldiers out of Yellow Desolation Mountain, choosing to camp at Great Desolation Mountain. Therefore, by the time Lan Xi arrived, Yellow Desolation Mountain had already fallen, and the battle at Great Desolation Mountain was tense.

Six hundred thousand heavenly soldiers were stationed at Great Desolation Mountain, confronting one million demon soldiers, with the Demon Race also having the assistance of several hundred thousand demonic beasts.

Although various sects of the Immortal Realm had sent reinforcements, they were significantly outnumbered.

Within the Forest of Ten Thousand Stones in Great Desolation Mountain, Heavenly General Zhong Li, Crown Prince Ya, Lan Xi of the Goddess Palace, Mi Xi of Taibai Hall, and leaders of the other immortal sects, all assembled together.

"For reasons unknown, the Demon Lord has, in merely ten thousand years, greatly increased his cultivation. Now our seventeen immortal sects under Elder Zhang and the Ten Heavenly Generals have all been defeated by him."

Clearly, Zhong Li had also sustained grave injuries.

Lan Xi looked out upon the desolate mountain before her, where the earth not far away had already been washed by fresh blood—thanks to one hundred thousand heavenly soldiers buried here.

For some reason, she felt an incessant unease in her heart.

Crown Prince Ya stood beside Lan Xi. He reached out and patted her head, smiling and saying, "Wife, don’t worry. I will protect you."

Lan Xi turned and swatted his hand away, looking towards the man in black, with a beaming smile, "You’d better take care of yourself. I have Ah Qing!"

Ya’s gaze swept over the man in black, a faint smile appearing on his lips, but his eyes revealed a coldness never seen before, "Yes, you do have Ah Qing. If he fails to take care of you well, it would be a grave sin."

"Bastard, are you threatening Ah Qing?" Lan Xi lifted her small face, gazing into the distant, mist-laden sky, her tone resolute, "I’m pretty formidable now with Ah Qing here. We will defeat the Demon Lord."

Ya felt as if a knife had plunged deep into his heart.

Did this woman even realize whose wife she was?

Was it not she and he who were supposed to defeat the Demon Lord together?

Could it be that he, being the esteemed Crown Prince, was not stronger than a mere mortal?

"Wife, since the two of you are so remarkable, then I should join you, and you can protect me," Ya said, his beautiful phoenix eyes narrowing as he grabbed Lan Xi’s sleeve, "No refusal allowed, otherwise I’ll reclaim the seed of the Tree of Immortality."

Lan Xi’s face darkened, and she glared at the purple-clad man in front of her, grinding her teeth. In the end, she couldn’t bear to lose the Tree of Immortality she had carefully tended for a thousand years, which now stood half a person’s height.

The man in black had been silent all along.

He stood beside Lan Xi, draped in a black robe, his hair like a cascading waterfall, holding a seven-foot longsword. When the wild wind blew, his hair interwove with hers, and in the light of the cold moon, their shadows merged into a single silhouette.

He had promised never to let her get hurt again.

Ya, looking at the man in black beside Lan Xi, felt a flicker of jealousy. Yes, he was very jealous.

Though he was the Crown Prince of the Heavens, adorned with supreme glory, he envied a mere mortal.

At five hundred years old, he had witnessed Lan Xi and this mortal form a life-sharing contract and had since slept for thousands of years.

By ten thousand years old, he had also watched as Lan Xi, for his sake, ventured into the Demon Realm, only to return badly injured, her Cultivation dissipated. Yet, she didn’t want him to blame himself and hid all the truths.

Over the years, everyone saw Lan Xi revert to two thousand years old, undergoing a new phase of growth.

Originally, among them, Lan Xi was the eldest and most capable; now, everyone was merely on the same level, advancing shoulder to shoulder.

If it were not for Shaoqing, Lan Xi would probably be able to stand alone by now, becoming a Demi-Goddess revered by all, and no Demon Lord would dare to misbehave in front of her.

If others weren’t sure why the Demon Lord had suddenly become so formidable, he could guess some of it.

During the expedition to the Blood Demon Sea years ago, Lan Xi had sacrificed her own Primordial Spirit Blood to save him.

Primordial Spirit Blood is the seed of Divinity. Only with it can one cultivate into a deity.

The reason for the Demon Lord’s swift increase in power must surely be the assimilation of the Primordial Spirit Blood.

As for why Lan Xi was unharmed, the only explanation was that she had more than one drop of Primordial Spirit Blood.

That’s why she had saved him so decisively back then, telling him not to worry.

All these years, these secrets were buried in his heart, never brought up by anyone.

Zhong Li discussed war tactics with everyone.

He looked at Crown Prince Ya and asked, "What do you think of the strategy, Your Highness the Crown Prince?"

Ya snapped back to reality and coughed, for he hadn’t been listening, "Um, I was deep in thought just now. I didn’t catch your tactics."

"What we mean is, if we could go to the Nine Abyss Extreme Cold Region and retrieve the Divine Artifact Qiankun Bowl, we might stand a chance in battle," said Zhong Li.

"The Qiankun Bowl is a divine mystery, only a deity can wield it. Moreover, it was sealed by the previous War God in the Nine Abyss Extreme Cold Region; it’s not so easily recovered," Ya said, looking at Lan Xi. She is the successor to Divinity. Although she may become a deity in the future, her current level of Cultivation isn’t enough to control the Qiankun Bowl.

"I’ll try!" Lan Xi could feel the chilling wind lashing across the desolate mountain. The ancient Demon Battlefield had always been unfair to the Heavenly Family. For the soldiers of Heaven, battling in such places was particularly grueling.

The climate was more suitable for the Demon Race, making the Heavens suffer tremendous losses in every war.

As the inheritor of Divinity, replacing her mother, she had the duty to protect the people around her, the possessions, and the peace of this land.

"Xixi, don’t be reckless," Mi Xi said worriedly, "Otherwise, we could join forces with everyone and fight the Demon Lord. If there’s any slight mishap in retrieving the Divine Artifact, everything will turn to ash."

After all, Lan Xi was not a true Goddess yet.

But Lan Xi shook her head, looking at the man in black beside her, "Ah Qing! You’ll support me, right?"

The man in black silently nodded. Her glory was his glory. What she sought to protect was what he needed to protect as well.

So, no matter what she did, as long as he was with her, it was fine.

Through hell and high water, unafraid.

Seeing this, Zhong Li nodded and said, "Your Highness Lan Xi, the lives of these one million soldiers, and this battle, all depend on you.

But you must be very careful. If you cannot secure the Divine Artifact, return immediately.

Do not jest with your life. If it becomes impossible, we will think of other methods. "

Lan Xi nodded, then turned and left.

Helplessly, Mi Xi gave instructions to the disciples of Taibai Hall behind him and followed her.

Retrieving the Divine Artifact was nothing short of a fierce battle. Otherwise, the Qiankun Bowl wouldn’t have remained undisturbed for millions of years.