Chapter 802: Agreed

“Granny... it’s my fault you were dragged into this,” said Li Xiaofei as guilt filled his heart.

If not for his actions back in Chongque City, Lin Yi and the others wouldn’t have taken over the camp. Granny wouldn’t have ended up like this.

When she heard his voice, a gentle expression softened the old woman’s face.

"Good child," she said hoarsely. "It was fated, an icy calamity destined to befall this planet. They had long set their eyes on the icy planet, using the rift in space-time to build teleportation formations and travel between realms."

M73, the Ice Planet, harbored a single rift in space-time. It was through that very rift that the ancestors of the camp had once smuggled themselves into this world from another.

The rift came and went intermittently, but it followed certain patterns. It was precisely because of this pattern that Eden had chosen to target M73. The rift allowed them to construct interstellar teleportation formations at just one percent of the usual cost. It facilitated both spatial and temporal transit, while also evading official pursuit.

When he looked at the hollow sockets where Granny’s eyes had been, Li Xiaofei turned his gaze sharply toward Lin Yi.

She smiled faintly and said, "There was no other choice. Her eyes are too powerful; they pierce through illusions and trace everything to its origin. So we had to temporarily remove them."

Li Xiaofei said nothing in response. Instead, he took out some fresh water and gently fed it to the old woman.

"Who else have they brought here?" he asked quietly.

Granny took a few sips, then shook her head without speaking further.

Li Xiaofei turned to Lin Yi, "What do you want in exchange for her release?"

𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

"Don’t worry," Lin Yi replied. "She won’t die. For now, you should be more concerned about your wife and daughter."

Li Xiaofei looked once more at the frail old woman in the cage and said firmly, "I’ll get you all out of here. I swear it."

Granny suddenly grabbed his hand. Li Xiaofei felt a sharp sting in his palm. But when he looked down, nothing had changed. There was no visible mark, nor any unusual sensation left behind.

After that, Granny leaned back into the corner of her cage, lips pressed tightly together, saying nothing more. Li Xiaofei stood up and continued walking toward the temple. Lin Yi walked beside him, keeping pace.

Torches crackled loudly inside the temple, casting flickering light and deep shadows across the stone floor.

Twenty massive pillars, each twenty meters tall, supported the vast black dome overhead. Carved statues flanked each pillar. Some had benevolent, gentle faces, while others were fierce and terrifying.

At the far end of the grand hall stood a fifty-meter-tall statue. It bore the same form as the one in the plaza, a bald man riding a turtle.

The statue’s height surpassed the temple itself, its upper half extending above the dome. It exuded an air of solemnity and divine majesty, as though gazing down upon the mortal world. Yet beneath that sacred presence was something deeply unsettling. There was an eerie sense that a monstrous, unknowable evil lurked beneath its godliness.

Before the statue stood an altar and an offering table. Four massive eternal fire orbs, like miniature suns, floated around them. There was no sign of modern technology in the temple. The entire place felt like the ancestral shrine of some ancient tribal civilization.

Li Xiaofei scanned the surroundings but sensed no other presence nearby. He turned to look at Lin Yi.

But she didn’t seem to notice the question in his gaze. Instead, she began to explain in a calm tone, "This is the Hall of the Profound Emperor. The figure before you is the founder of Eden. His Supreme Majesty, the Profound Emperor."

After speaking, she stepped forward and knelt before the enormous statue of the bald man riding a turtle. Her expression was devout, her face serene and pure. She murmured softly, chanting a prayer in hushed tones, as if beseeching the divine.

A moment later, Lin Yi’s entire being radiated with a sacred glow. Her breathtaking beauty, under the light of that divine aura, became all the more transcendent.

When her prayer ended, she rose to her feet and said softly, "Come with me."

They exited through a side door, where they found themselves in a stretch of open grassland. Fountains and carved stone columns stood elegantly around the perimeter. The scenery was suddenly bright, vibrant, and full of color.

Two young girls were practicing swordplay on the grassy field. They were Li Anxin and Li Anyi. One wore a white dress, the other a green one. Each held a longsword in hand, moving gracefully like fairies in flight. Their swordsmanship was exquisite, each movement fluid and full of elegant form.

But it was clear that their life force was being suppressed. Their techniques lacked power, restrained by some invisible force.

Li Xiaofei stepped forward.

Buzz.

A translucent barrier suddenly shimmered into existence before him, halting his advance. He pressed his palm against it, but it wouldn’t budge. It was an energy field formed by a kind of rune-based restriction.

"You can rest easy now," Lin Yi smiled, walking over slowly. "Your precious daughters haven’t been harmed. Their energy has only been sealed."

Li Xiaofei’s gaze remained fixed on the two girls practicing within the grass field.

"Find someone qualified to speak with me," he said flatly. "Someone who can actually make decisions."

"I’m fully authorized to speak for everything here," Lin Yi replied.

Li Xiaofei shook his head and said, "No, you’re not. Send out someone who can."

Lin Yi paused, her smile fading just slightly. She asked, "Why are you so sure?"

"Instinct," Li Xiaofei replied simply.

She fell silent again. At last, she said, "Very well."

Then she turned and walked away. Li Xiaofei remained where he was, watching his daughters on the grass, their swords dancing in the golden light. His gaze softened, filled with a rare tenderness and even a trace of fatherly affection.

Moments later, footsteps sounded behind him once more. A tall woman in a flowing ancient-style gauze gown, her waist cinched with a jade belt, walked forward with elegant, measured steps and came to stand beside Li Xiaofei.

It was none other than Little Yu, the former maid of the Zhou household. Dressed in this new attire, she looked like a statue carved from ice and jade. A cold aura naturally radiated from her, and the temperature around them plummeted noticeably, as if the very air had frozen.

Li Xiaofei didn’t spare her a glance. His eyes remained fixed on his daughters.

"We finally meet," the proud, icy girl said, her voice like the frost of winter. "I am Song Yu, daughter of the Profound Emperor. Am I qualified to speak with you now?"

Li Xiaofei didn’t turn around. His tone was flat as he spoke, "Speak. What do you want?"

Song Yu answered bluntly, "To kill you."

Li Xiaofei chuckled lightly. "Then go ahead."

Song Yu said, "But more than that, I want you to lead us to Heaven."

Li Xiaofei replied, "And you’re so sure I can find it?"

Song Yu said, "That old fox waited hundreds of years and placed his final bet on you. He must’ve had a reason. You’re the only one mentioned in the prophecy with even the slightest chance of finding Heaven."

Li Xiaofei said, "Alright."

Song Yu paused, slightly startled. "What?"

Li Xiaofei finally turned to look at her. "I said, I agree."

Song Yu was momentarily at a loss for words. His immediate agreement caught her completely off guard.

The arguments she had prepared and the threats she had carefully planned had been utterly useless. She suddenly found herself doubting if there was some trap hidden within his easy consent.

Li Xiaofei said, "What now? I agreed. You don’t look too happy."

Song Yu replied, "I just didn’t expect you to betray the High Chancellor so easily. Seems the price of your betrayal isn’t as high as I imagined. I thought too much of you."

"Betray?" Li Xiaofei turned and gave her a look as if she were a fool. "Who said I betrayed the High Chancellor?"

Song Yu frowned and asked, "Then what do you mean? Your wife and daughters are in my hands. Their lives depend on my whim. I suggest you don’t try anything foolish."

Li Xiaofei said calmly, "I agreed to take the High Chancellor to Heaven. But I never said I’d only take him. Do you understand now?"