Snowflakes drifted outside. The candles flickered, and time passed silently.

Ye Lingxuan wasn’t angry at Mu Zhi’an’s shameless sneak attack. She was more flustered and embarrassed.

Unlike her naive younger sister, Ye Qian, Ye Lingxuan had a vague idea of what Mu Zhi’an was planning when he mentioned staying the night.

In the past, she would have summoned the Desolate Time Lock without hesitation, bound him, and thrown him out.

But now, perhaps because she had just emerged from her meditative state, or perhaps because she had never been so intimate with him before, Ye Lingxuan instinctively clutched her robe.

She turned her head, her eyes widening as she recognized the young man’s face. “Brother Mu, what are you doing here? You said you were just going to protect me while I meditated,” she whispered, her voice tinged with annoyance.

Mu Zhi’an’s chest pressed against her back, his arms wrapped tightly around her waist. He whispered in her ear, “It’s snowing outside, Lingxuan. It’s so cold. Can you really bear to let me meditate on the floor?”

“You… you can meditate on the bed, but not like this…” Ye Lingxuan’s face was flushed, her head lowered as she squirmed in his embrace, trying to break free.

However, her half-hearted attempt was futile. Mu Zhi’an didn’t let go, holding her even closer.

“It’s cold. It’s warmer to sleep together,” he said seriously.

“Cultivators don’t feel cold…” Ye Lingxuan retorted, glaring at him playfully. However, under his intense gaze, she quickly averted her eyes, unable to meet his.

Seeing this, Mu Zhi’an boldly tried to make his next move. Suddenly, as if realizing something, Ye Lingxuan grabbed his hand, her eyes filled with a mixture of emotions as she looked up at him.

Mu Zhi’an tried again, but her grip tightened, preventing him from moving any further.

He looked at the beautiful young lady in his arms, his movements ceasing.

His gaze, initially filled with affection, gradually turned into disappointment and resignation.

Then, as if losing all his strength, he released his hold on her waist and sighed softly. “I’m sorry, I was too hasty tonight.”

Ye Lingxuan was stunned, looking at him with confusion in her beautiful eyes.

Mu Zhi’an got out of bed and said softly, “The Ascension Ceremony is approaching. I believe the Sect Master has her own plans for ensuring the Eastern Realm’s victory.”

“Being so intimate with you at this critical moment might make you think I’m only here for the ninth life’s Spiritual Energy, that I came to you tonight because of the Ascension Ceremony.”

He turned to look at Ye Lingxuan, who was now sitting up on the bed, her legs tucked beneath her. He smiled gently. “To be honest, when you asked me to come tonight, I did have some inappropriate thoughts. However, it has nothing to do with the Ascension Ceremony or the ninth life’s Spiritual Energy.”

He gently stroked her hair and said, “I’m simply attracted to you, Lingxuan. You’re very charming.”

Ye Lingxuan instinctively clutched her robe, her eyes welling up as she whispered, “Brother Mu…”

As Mu Zhi’an had guessed, she didn’t dislike intimacy. She wasn’t even against being intimate with him tonight.

The reason she had resisted his advances was likely due to her shyness and his earlier mention of the ninth life’s Spiritual Energy.

Unlike Yao Meng, Ye Lingxuan was a girl who valued rituals. Intimacy after their relationship deepened was acceptable, but mixing it with ‘ninth life’s Spiritual Energy’ and the Ascension Ceremony, matters with clear objectives, made her feel conflicted.

She wanted their relationship to be pure, not based on a goal like obtaining the ninth life’s Spiritual Energy.

“Lingxuan, do you think I’m doing this because of what the Reincarnated Empress said?” Mu Zhi’an suddenly asked.

Ye Lingxuan lowered her head, remaining silent.

He took her hand, placed it on his chest, looked down at her beautiful face, and whispered, “A charming girl like you shouldn’t doubt yourself, Lingxuan.”

“Can’t you feel something from my heartbeat?”

Feeling his heartbeat beneath her palm and hearing his gentle words, the conflict within Ye Lingxuan’s heart began to melt away. A warmth spread through her body.

Mu Zhi’an pulled her into his embrace and whispered in her ear, “If you don’t want our feelings to be ‘tainted’ by other intentions, I can give you the ninth life’s Spiritual Energy another time.”

Ye Lingxuan blushed and murmured, “Wouldn’t that mean I have to… with you again, Brother Mu…?”

“Don’t you like it?” Mu Zhi’an asked, looking down at her beautiful face.

Under his loving gaze and sweet words, feeling his heartbeat and the warmth of his embrace, Ye Lingxuan’s last trace of hesitation finally disappeared. She shyly turned her head away.

The candlelight flickered, illuminating her delicate and blushing face.

Mu Zhi’an gently caressed her cheek, lifted her chin, gazed at her increasingly beautiful face, and lowered his head, kissing her soft, rosy lips.

Ye Lingxuan closed her eyes, her hands fidgeting, her long eyelashes catching the candlelight, trembling slightly as time passed.

Slowly, her arms wrapped around his neck, her breathing quickening, her face flushing deeper.

After a while, Mu Zhi’an released her lips. Ye Lingxuan gasped for air, her usual elegance replaced by a captivating allure.

Mu Zhi’an gently pushed her back onto the bed.

He pulled the blanket aside and, under her hazy gaze, lowered his head, claiming her lips once more, his kisses slowly trailing downwards.

After some time, Mu Zhi’an suddenly stopped, his gaze fixed on the young lady, lost in thought.

Ye Lingxuan’s hands rested on his chest. Seeing him motionless, she slowly opened her eyes, her gaze filled with desire. “Brother Mu…?” she murmured.

Her feet rubbed against each other, and she looked at him with longing in her eyes, wanting to say something but feeling too shy.

“Aren’t you going to continue?” she finally asked, her voice barely a whisper.

“I’m wondering how to give you the ninth life’s Spiritual Energy,” Mu Zhi’an said, looking at her flushed face, a sense of confusion washing over him.

Ye Lingxuan: “…”

Although his words were a mood killer, she was also confused.

The Reincarnated Empress had stored the ninth life’s Spiritual Energy within Mu Zhi’an’s body. According to her, the energy would be enhanced within the Innate Celestial Furnace, and once it was returned to Ye Lingxuan, her inheritance would be complete.

However, how were they supposed to transfer it?

Mu Zhi’an couldn’t control the ninth life’s Spiritual Energy, so he didn’t know how to give it to her.

“Maybe… we should try a few more times?” Mu Zhi’an suggested after a moment of thought.

“Huh…?” Ye Lingxuan asked softly, confused.

Then, noticing the intensity in his gaze, she understood what he meant and immediately shook her head. “No—”

Her voice caught in her throat. She frowned slightly, her cheeks flushed, her arms tightening around his neck as she tilted her head back, her toes curling against the bed.

…

Time passed silently.

The Innate Celestial Furnace’s celestial vessel was working at full speed, seemingly merging with Ye Lingxuan’s Vessel. Within the Innate Celestial Furnace, a golden energy filled with vitality silently flowed into Ye Lingxuan’s Vessel.

The Reincarnated Empress’s ninth life’s Spiritual Energy!

This energy was different from the previous eight traces she had inherited. It seemed to have evolved within the Innate Celestial Furnace, containing a trace of Dao Rhyme.

It was the Dao Rhyme formed by the combination of the Seed of Dao Realization and the Soul Returning Pill she had consumed earlier.

Within Ye Lingxuan’s Vessel, the ninth life’s Spiritual Energy became the leader, the nine traces arranged in a pyramid formation, with the newly acquired energy at the top.

Ye Lingxuan’s furrowed brows relaxed as she felt an unprecedented sense of ease and comfort. She couldn’t tell if it was due to the nine traces of Spiritual Energy or simply Mu Zhi’an’s presence…

At that moment, images from her past lives flashed through her mind.

She saw herself wandering alone in the ancient world through nine lifetimes, seeking resonance with different Dao.

This was the Reincarnation Dao.

Ye Lingxuan slowly opened her eyes, her vision blurry for a moment. The images disappeared, and all she could see was Mu Zhi’an’s handsome face and his tender gaze.

She closed her eyes, savoring his warmth and the power of the nine traces of Spiritual Energy within her Vessel.

In addition, the refined energy from the Imperial-Grade Medicinal Herb also silently flowed into her Reincarnation Vessel.

“The Spiritual Energy within my Vessel has increased significantly, and my physique has also improved greatly. And that Dao Rhyme… The laws of heaven and earth shouldn’t allow me to comprehend Dao Rhyme at this level. The reason it’s within my body now must be because Brother Mu’s Innate Celestial Furnace is concealing it from the heavens…”

“The gap between the Core Formation Realm and the Nascent Soul Realm is a significant hurdle. Many participants in the Ascension Ceremony are at the higher levels of the Core Formation Realm. If I can comprehend this Dao Rhyme, I should be able to win…”

Ye Lingxuan closed her eyes, trying to fully refine the Dao Rhyme and comprehend its secrets, something that even Nascent Soul cultivators might not be able to achieve.

“Dao Integration means merging with one of the three Dao: Heaven, Earth, or Human. This Dao Rhyme doesn’t belong to any of them. I need to make my own choice.”

“My Dao is more suited to the Heavenly Dao, but if I merge with it, I’ll be controlled by it…”

“The path of the Heavenly Dao is a dead end.”

As Ye Lingxuan thought this, she suddenly felt as if she had grasped something. Her Spiritual Energy circulated through her body, cycle after cycle. Mu Zhi’an’s energy continued to flow into her Vessel, and the seemingly insurmountable obstacle before her seemed to be illuminated by a ray of light piercing through the darkness.

It was the fourth path, guided by the Heavenly Dao’s energy within Mu Zhi’an!

And the end of this fourth path was still the Heavenly Dao.

Ye Lingxuan slowly raised her finger and ultimately chose the Heavenly Dao.

But it wasn’t the Heavenly Dao of this world.

Meanwhile, Mu Zhi’an also felt a trace of Spiritual Energy silently merging with their combined Vessel.

It was just a wisp of energy, yet it filled him with an unprecedented sense of exhilaration, as if his entire Vessel had come alive, rotating rapidly.

It was the feedback from Ye Lingxuan’s nine traces of Spiritual Energy.

This energy instantly filled his Vessel, pushing him to the peak of the fourth-grade Core Formation Realm!

He was only a step away from breaking through!

I’ve always been the one giving, and now I’m actually receiving something in return… Mu Zhi’an thought, looking at the blushing Ye Lingxuan with her eyes closed.

Ye Lingxuan moaned softly and slowly opened her eyes, her gaze filled with affection as she looked at him.

Boom!

A deafening roar echoed through the silent night of the Two Polarities Sect.

Faint white lights, like stars, appeared in the night sky, illuminating the darkness as if some powerful being had awakened.

In a distant courtyard, Regina, the exotic beauty, looked up at the illuminated sky, her eyes flickering. “Someone has comprehended a trace of Dao Rhyme…?” she murmured.

Under the current restrictions imposed by the laws of heaven and earth, someone had actually comprehended a trace of Dao Rhyme and even triggered a celestial phenomenon…?

For some reason, she couldn’t help but think of a certain someone.

…

Two Polarities Peak.

Shang Yanfei tapped her finger on the table and looked towards the Jade Glass Palace, a faint smile curving her lips.

“Impressive…” Her voice held genuine admiration, but it was unclear who she was referring to.

“Who are you talking about, Master?” Lan Mulian asked, holding a white Go stone, her gaze fixed on the beautiful woman in a black dress sitting opposite her.

“It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it,” Shang Yanfei replied casually. “Go and inform the peak masters to activate the sect’s grand formation.”

“Someone is getting restless.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay