Chapter 1441: Mother and Daughter Reunited

With a strong pull, Chen Mobai led Bai Guang through the light gate. Amidst a flash of bright light, the two finally left the Primordial Heaven. They emerged right outside the black hole vortex where Bai Guang had previously battled the God of Death.

“Did we just… come out like that?” The artifact spirit of the World-Ending Heavenly Axe flew out, gazing at the starry sky of the Profound Palace with clear astonishment.

“Senior, my wife and I are returning to the Immortal Sect. Will you be joining us?” Chen Mobai was extremely courteous to the World-Ending Heavenly Axe. Not only was it a primordial supreme treasure, but it also represented 800 cultivation merits. With these merits, the Immortal Sect could undergo comprehensive upgrades. Among other things, the genuine seventh-tier Star River Array would certainly be deployable. They could also acquire more Profound Dao Heavenly Scriptures, paving broad paths to ascension for future generations of disciples.

“Hmph, I’m following her, not you, a disciple of the Purple Cloud Palace,” snapped the artifact spirit. The wolf-headed artifact spirit of the World-Ending Heavenly Axe shook its head, transforming into a streak of light and returning to the axe handle in Bai Guang’s hand.

Strange. What karma exists between this World-Ending Heavenly Axe and the Purple Cloud Palace lineage? And why did it end up in the hands of the Central Daoist Court? Many questions arose in Chen Mobai’s mind, but he knew Bai Guang wouldn’t have the answers. He would have to wait for a future opportunity to seek clarification from True King Taixu.

“Let’s go home quickly,” Bai Guang urged. She, however, was already eager to return to the Immortal Sect. When she had initially departed, her primary goal, beyond achieving a breakthrough to the Void Refinement stage herself, was to forge a path for the Immortal Sect. Now, all her objectives had been accomplished. Especially after being confined within the Primordial Heaven for so many years, she found that other memories were beginning to fade, while only those connected to family affection grew increasingly vivid. And now, her only living relatives were her husband and daughter.

“In this part of the Profound Palace, due to the expanding Tribulation of Annihilation, the black holes might be unstable,” Chen Mobai cautioned. “To avoid inadvertently falling back into the Primordial Heaven, it’s best not to recklessly use Void Transference.” As Chen Mobai advised Bai Guang, he simultaneously followed the mental link to his true body, flying towards the Immortal Sect’s location.

The moment the couple departed the Primordial Heaven, True King Taixu, who was in the deepest reaches of the Profound Palace suppressing the Tribulation of Annihilation, turned his head in slight surprise, looking towards the Immortal Sect’s direction.

“Dao Ancestor, is something amiss?” Star Illusion Dao Lord, the closest to him, noticed his reaction and immediately inquired.

“A slight anomaly occurred,” True King Taixu replied. “My junior brother encountered a demonic supreme treasure mid-journey…”

Hearing this, Star Illusion Dao Lord’s heart tightened. For True King Taixu to refer to something as a ‘supreme treasure,’ it could only be an eighth-tier primordial artifact. Unless one was in the Pure Yang realm, an ordinary True Immortal Dao Lord encountering such an item would likely be suppressed.

“Would you like me to go and receive your junior?” Star Illusion Dao Lord immediately offered, hoping to make an impression on this mysterious mighty figure from the Purple Cloud Palace.

“This place is still more crucial. I have my own arrangements for my junior brother,” True King Taixu replied. He shook his head, then turned back, resuming his task of suppressing the vast, endlessly expanding black hole before him. Upon hearing this, Star Illusion Dao Lord nodded, but his mind raced, wondering just what kind of demonic supreme treasure it could be. Could it possibly be the Great World-Destroying Mill?

On the Earth Origin Star, the “Wandering Plan” had been initiated. Propelled by streams of spiritual energy flares, it was now leading its satellite planets deeper into the cosmos. After the launch, this monumental undertaking naturally could not be concealed from the billions of immortal citizens, inevitably sparking waves of unrest. These matters, however, did not require Chen Mobai, the sect leader, to handle directly. Qian Xing’s competence in this area was entirely trustworthy.

Today, however, Chen Mobai found himself somewhat anxious, pacing back and forth in his personal chambers. Before him, Hua Zijing, the Hall Master of the Righteous Law Hall, stood respectfully. Half an hour later, a beautiful, bespectacled woman pushed open the door and entered; it was Zhuang Jialan.

“Is everything arranged?” Chen Mobai asked when he saw her return.

“All necessary arrangements have been made,” Zhuang Jialan confirmed. “When Ancestor Bai Guang returns, she will only see what we wish for her to see.” Zhuang Jialan nodded, reporting her work. Chen Mobai breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this. It wasn’t that he feared Bai Guang. Rather, as the Immortal Sect’s leader, he was concerned that a domestic dispute escalating into a full-blown confrontation with Bai Guang, given the power of two primordial supreme treasures, would reduce the Earth Origin Star and everything else to dust. Therefore, he had done his utmost to prevent Bai Guang from seeing anything that might trigger family discord.

“Should we inform Xiaohei beforehand?” Hua Zijing asked.

“No, there’s no need. She can’t keep a secret; if she knows in advance, the surprise will be ruined,” Chen Mobai replied. He shook his head. While he had eliminated considerable evidence and silenced many, he still wished for his daughter’s emotions to be genuinely conveyed to Bai Guang. He greatly anticipated the reunion of mother and daughter.

“She’s here.” At that moment, on the outermost edge of Chen Mobai’s spatial vision, he spotted Bai Guang flying through the starry sky. His own figure vanished instantly from his spot.

With a flash of silver light, Chen Mobai instantly appeared before Bai Guang. The Morning Bell avatar reverted to its original form, and with a soft chime, it flew into Chen Mobai’s hand.

“Welcome home,” Chen Mobai said with a gentle smile.

“Have you told our daughter about my return?” Bai Guang asked. The closer Bai Guang got to the Earth Origin Star with Chen Mobai, the more conflicted and anxious she became. When she had left, it was akin to abandoning her husband and daughter, leaving her unsure how to face her child after all this time.

“Not yet,” Chen Mobai replied reassuringly. “But I believe our daughter will forgive you.” He had previously hinted to Chen Xiaohei that Shi Wanyu was indeed Bai Guang, and given Yu Huiping’s good graces, there was a strong likelihood she would accept her.

“You’ll have to put in a good word for me then…” Bai Guang, however, lacked confidence. Even one as powerful as her found herself at a loss when it came to dealing with her daughter.

With a flicker of silver light, Chen Mobai led Bai Guang through the grand formation, instantly teleporting them home to the Wangwu Grotto-heaven. Hua Zijing and Zhuang Jialan had, of course, already departed.

“Our daughter is currently the Hall Master of the Kaiyuan Hall,” Chen Mobai explained as he showed Bai Guang around their home. “However, she tends to be quite laid-back, so she should be back once her work shift ends.”

“It brings back so many memories,” Bai Guang murmured. As she gazed at the familiar surroundings, her expression softened. The usual sharpness in her brow relaxed, suddenly revealing the gentle and virtuous demeanor of Shi Wanyu.

“So you secretly experienced all this after you first awakened,” Chen Mobai realized, surprised.

“Wasn’t it curiosity?” Bai Guang retorted. “When I first learned of this situation, my immediate instinct was to draw my sword and come for you. Luckily, I was talked out of it.” Bai Guang recounted her awakening prior to the War of Creation. Fortunately, she was a reasonable person. Knowing that she had used unconventional means to forcibly conceive Chen Mobai’s daughter, she felt somewhat in the wrong. Moreover, Chen Mobai held a significant position in the Immortal Sect at the time, so she decided to let the matter rest for a while. Later, driven by curiosity, her consciousness merged with Shi Wanyu’s, allowing her to experience many of the ‘good days’ of being a wife and mother. This truly solidified her identity as both.

“Then, did you also merge when we… were intimate?” Chen Mobai asked, a hint of surprise in his voice. He knew that he cultivated the Pure Yang Scripture, which filled his body with vigorous Yang energy, ensuring a harmonious marital life whenever he wasn’t in seclusion. Since Bai Guang emerged from her own seclusion, their intimate moments had been frequent.

At his question, Bai Guang’s cheeks instantly flushed crimson, and she shyly lowered her head. She had indeed experienced it. Initially, she had felt shy, but after merging with Shi Wanyu and experiencing it once, she had actually begun to anticipate it.

“We’re husband and wife, there’s nothing to be shy about regarding such matters,” Chen Mobai said with a chuckle. He had seen Bai Guang’s reaction and already understood the answer, unable to suppress his laughter as he spoke.

“This current body of mine hasn’t experienced… that kind of thing yet,” Bai Guang murmured, a little awkwardly. Chen Mobai, however, immediately understood her implication, and he paused, slightly taken aback.

As he had grown older, Chen Mobai had increasingly dedicated his focus to cultivation. Matters between men and women had become little more than an occasional thought, a minor diversion from his otherwise monotonous days. Of course, this was largely due to a lack of novelty. As Bai Guang and Shi Wanyu were essentially the same person, their appearance and physique were naturally identical. However, Bai Guang, being the Immortal Sect’s foremost sword dao genius since antiquity, had achieved mastery in cultivation at a young age, forever preserving her youthful appearance.

Thus, upon seeing her, Chen Mobai felt a momentary disorientation, as if he had been transported back to when he was eighteen years old. He recalled that time when he was on his way to the Artifact Dance Dao Academy, seeing Shi Wanyu on the train, carrying her luggage. She too was eighteen then, exuding a vibrant, pure, and beautiful youthful aura. While Chen Mobai and Shi Wanyu had shared many intimate moments after their marriage, by then Shi Wanyu had already given birth to their daughter. Though she possessed a distinct mature charm, Chen Mobai had always harbored a small regret. Now, it seemed, that long-held regret could finally be remedied. A long-forgotten sense of novelty instantly suffused Chen Mobai’s entire being, causing his gaze upon his wife to intensify with a fervent warmth.

“Dad, I’m back.” Just then, Chen Xiaohei’s voice rang out, accompanied by the sound of the door opening. Their daughter, who had inherited the striking features of both Bai Guang and Chen Mobai, walked in.

The moment Chen Xiaohei entered, her eyes widened at the sight of her mother, who stood blushing and appeared even younger than herself. After rubbing her eyes hard to confirm she wasn’t mistaken, Chen Xiaohei’s expression became a mix of shock and bewildered curiosity. Finally, she looked at Chen Mobai, who stood in the center of the room. “Dad, who is this?”

As the Hall Master of the Kaiyuan Hall, Chen Xiaohei naturally knew that the Immortal Sect possessed cloning technology. She feared Chen Mobai missed Shi Wanyu excessively and had ordered Yuan Xu and others to perform such a forbidden act. Although Chen Xiaohei also deeply missed her mother, she didn’t believe that a clone, merely sharing her mother’s cells and appearance, could truly be her mother. After all, a clone was merely an empty vessel; the nascent personality would not be the original.

“This is Yu Baiguang,” Chen Mobai announced, taking charge as the head of the household. “She is your mother’s true self.”

“Mo…ther…” Upon hearing this, Chen Xiaohei’s mouth fell open, and she stared at Bai Guang in disbelief. Although she had already learned of this when Yu Huiping passed away, seeing her mother truly alive before her eyes still filled her with an ineffably complex mix of emotions.

Yu Baiguang saw Chen Xiaohei standing frozen in place. Following a subtle glance from Chen Mobai, she spoke, “May I hug you?”

Upon hearing this, Chen Xiaohei snapped out of her myriad memories of her mother. Her eyes were blurry with tears, but she pouted her lip and managed to say, “Before Grandma passed away, she told me to call you ‘Mom’ when I saw you.” With that, Chen Xiaohei threw open her arms and rushed into Bai Guang’s embrace, crying out loudly, “Mom!” In that moment, Chen Mobai saw tears welling in the corners of Bai Guang’s eyes as well.

Just as the family of three reunited, news quickly spread among the Immortal Sect’s high-ranking cultivators. After all, as a Void Refinement cultivator, Bai Guang’s return caused spatial fluctuations that were impossible to conceal. Besides, Chen Mobai had no intention of hiding it. By all accounts, Qian Xing and the others should have immediately come to pay their respects. However, knowing Bai Guang’s temperament best, they chose not to disturb the family. Chen Mobai, naturally, cherished this rare moment of peace.

After the mother and daughter were reunited, Bai Guang was eager to compensate Chen Xiaohei for centuries of missing maternal love all at once. She resolved to train her daughter into a peerless sword cultivator, no less accomplished than herself or her husband. However, the habitually lazy Chen Xiaohei couldn’t endure the high-intensity training. By the third day, she had rebelled and run away from home, choosing to eat and work solely at the Kaiyuan Hall, refusing to return.

“How can our daughter be so lazy?” Bai Guang exclaimed, distressed. “She has none of my perseverance or your talent!” Bai Guang was deeply pained to see her daughter, who had, in her eyes, become somewhat ‘spoiled’ by the comfortable and peaceful environment of the Immortal Sect. In her view, Chen Xiaohei, possessing the most perfect genes from two Void Refinement cultivators—herself and Chen Mobai—should, even if not yet at the Divinity Transformation stage, at least have reached the Nascent Soul stage in her sword dao. “It must be because the Profound-Guiding Sword didn’t instruct her wholeheartedly!” The innocent Profound-Guiding Sword took the blame, for Bai Guang refused to attribute it to herself, and certainly not to her even more exceptional husband, Chen Mobai.

“If our daughter is a bit lazy, so be it,” Chen Mobai said dismissively. “We worked so hard precisely so our descendants could live in comfort, didn’t we?” Chen Mobai, however, was completely unconcerned. He and his wife had endured all the hardships for their daughter; what was wrong with letting her enjoy a lifetime of blessings?

“But the Void Refinement realm isn’t quite enough,” Bai Guang countered. “We both need to work harder and strive for Dao Integration. And if our daughter doesn’t achieve Dao Integration, she’ll eventually perish as the years pass. No, she absolutely must be pushed to cultivate diligently.” On this matter, Bai Guang’s perspective diverged from Chen Mobai’s. Having finally reunited with her family, she longed for all three of them to achieve immortality and remain together forever.

“Each generation has its own destiny, my dear wife,” Chen Mobai said, his expression becoming serious. “On this matter, you should listen to me.” He felt that this discussion was an opportune moment to establish who held ultimate authority in their home. Bai Guang’s brow furrowed as her gaze met Chen Mobai’s.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Chen Mobai raised his right hand. The power of the Purple Cloud Palace erupted, instantly suppressing the World-Ending Heavenly Axe in Bai Guang’s grasp. Amidst a flash of golden light, the World-Ending Heavenly Axe’s artifact spirit had barely emerged before it was swept away by the Purple Cloud Palace, along with the axe itself.

“Oh?” Bai Guang watched with some surprise as the World-Ending Heavenly Axe in her hand disappeared.

“Alright, my dear wife,” Chen Mobai said, a mischievous glint in his eye. “Now that this troublesome axe is gone, let’s go to bed and discuss this matter properly.”