Jill Young's emotions, like a volcano suppressed underground, finally broke through the surface at this moment, erupting into a torrent of molten lava. She glared, gritted her teeth, her pale face flushed with excitement, and it looked like fire was about to shoot out of her eyes.
Grabbed roughly by Jill, Joan suddenly bit her lip. Her chest heaved violently, and her own emotions burst out like a volcanic eruption.
She wasn’t as composed as last time when she spoke to Simone. Instead, she whipped around to glare at Jill, grabbed Jill’s collar with her free hand, and shouted furiously: “You’re just a kid, acting all grown up—what gives you the right to yell at me? Don’t you get it? I do—I’m not going to last much longer! I’m done for! I can’t be saved! I… I… I won’t be able to keep going with you!”
Jill flared up at those words, grabbed Joan’s collar and roared back, “Nonsense! What do you know? You couldn’t even cure Gabriel Yang—so what makes you think you’re some kind of expert?”
Joan didn’t back down one bit. She lifted her chin and shouted right back: “Did you cure Gabriel Yang? Aren’t you also pretending to be some expert? If you had a way, would you have waited until now?”
The two glared at each other, teeth clenched, looking like they might start brawling any second—or like squabbling kids with zero dignity.
Simone watched from the side, feeling a whole storm of emotions. As the peacemaker between them, she quickly stepped forward to mediate: “Boss, this is all part of the plan—we really do have a way. The Heaven’s Limit Monument is a rare miracle, a power that can create wonders. It can let you shed your old self, cure any illness, it’s perfect for treating you.”
But Simone’s words only made Joan angrier. She glared at Jill and shouted, “So this is your big idea? You’re just fooling yourself! Don’t think I’m dumb—I’ve been through Mystic Isle too. The Earth Tree there covers ‘essence,’ so the World Tree here must cover ‘spirit.’ Maybe the Earth Tree could change someone physically, but the World Tree? No way—it only works on the mind! Even if your mind’s stronger than anyone else, what good does that do me now? So stop fantasizing about ‘rebirth’ or ‘miracle cures’—it’s totally off the mark!”
Simone was about to argue, but after glancing at Jill, she froze—Jill didn’t say a word. She was silent, like someone had hit her right in the weak spot, her face twisted in pain.
A bolt of lightning flashed through Simone’s mind—she remembered Jill once mentioning the word ‘bet.’
A bet, naturally, has both losses and wins.
Besides, if you think about it, Joan actually makes a lot of sense.
Simone stepped forward in disbelief and said, "Boss, could it really be that the medicine just isn’t right for the problem...?"
Jill still didn’t say anything, just clenched her teeth and gripped Joan’s collar tightly, her hand trembling slightly.
Joan looked at the silent Jill, all her anger fading away, replaced by tenderness. She sighed and spoke softly: "So what if the poison’s gone? I’ve burned up my life, my time’s almost up. I’ve only got a few days left. You big dummy, you’re not a kid anymore, stop being so stubborn."
But Jill stubbornly shook her head, panting awkwardly, her beautiful eyes bloodshot, red as if crying without tears.
The sight made Joan’s pupils contract, her heart aching—she’d never expected to see that expression on Jill’s face.
She let go of Jill’s collar and gently stroked her face.
She lifted her head and pressed her forehead against Jill’s.
She closed her eyes, feeling the warmth and vibrant life, and sighed deeply: "No feast lasts forever. Even without poisoning or burning out, I wouldn’t live past forty. But you still have a long time—at least 120 years. What’s forty years more or less?"
You and I are fated to part ways.
Just like I was fated to part with my master.
It’s the natural cycle of life.
But don’t be afraid, you won’t be alone. You’ll have countless new friends, countless new followers, they’ll walk behind you, moving forward with you.
And me—I’ll entrust you with my life, my strength, my dreams.
My strength will always flow through your veins, as if I’m always with you.
Then, you’ll be the only mark I ever left in this world—the proof that I lived, loved, and existed.
So go and claim that miracle for me—don’t waste the world’s gifts.
So go and take that throne for me—don’t forget our promise.
So let go... let go...
Joan’s voice wasn’t loud, but it echoed in everyone’s heart like distant thunder. Fang Hui stared dumbly, finally understanding—this wasn’t infighting, but a farewell. Simone suddenly lost all her strength and collapsed to the ground, her heart, opened by the Sacred Flame’s will, once again filled with sorrow.
Joan was leaving—for good.
Joan gently patted Jill’s back. Time was running out—the Silver Priest could catch up at any moment, so this final farewell couldn’t wait. She put everything into feeling this last embrace. Then, she suddenly opened her eyes, her gaze sharp—time was up.
Her Supreme Skill blazed inside her like fire, making Joan’s whole body glow.
Since the decision’s made, just go for it.
Don’t wait for the next life—fight for this one!
But just then, Joan suddenly frowned. Jill’s left hand hadn’t let go—it was still gripping her wrist, pinning her to the ground.
“Jill, you...” Joan started to persuade her again, but suddenly sensed something was off. The body she was hugging was growing hotter and hotter—strangely so. She felt it: thump-thump, thump-thump, the heartbeat was strong and wild, almost explosive.
The heartbeat grew stronger and stronger, even Simone noticed something was wrong. She looked up and saw Jill’s skin turning bright red, as if her veins carried molten lava instead of blood.
“Boss, you...” Simone was about to ask, when Jill—who’d been trembling and silent—suddenly stopped shaking, opened her mouth, and let out a long breath.
“Ha——————” That breath was like a fire dragon exhaling, even the air seemed to twist. After letting it out, Jill’s expression finally eased, no longer so pained, and she returned to her usual bright and resolute self. She suddenly laughed, "Finally ready! That was way harder than I thought!"
"Ready?" Joan caught on: "You’re ready—mmph!"
Pfft!
No one expected it—Jill suddenly raised her right hand, pointed her finger, and jabbed it straight into Joan’s chest! Blood splattered everywhere. Jill used real force, piercing through skin and muscle, sliding right between the ribs, and stabbed straight into Joan’s heart, right into the ventricle!
Joan’s face instantly went pale, her life force quickly fading. She stared blankly at Jill, her heart weakening, her power scattering. The suppressed toxic aura surfaced, quickly spreading across her shoulder and the rest of her body.
"Boss, you!!" Simone jumped up in shock, but Jill shouted, "Quick, don’t just stand there—bleed her out!"
"Bleed?" Simone felt her IQ was running low: "Bleed what?"
"You silly, of course the poison blood!" Jill snapped, not waiting for Simone to react, she freed her left hand and slashed out. With a series of quick cuts, Joan’s sleeve was shredded, and wounds opened up all along her fingers, arms, and shoulders. Blood spurted everywhere, splattering the ground, with the dark poison forced out along with it.
At the same time, Jill’s right arm tensed, like a hydraulic press, and with a jolt, her scorching blood spurted from her fingertip wound, pumping fiercely into Joan’s heart.
"Ah—!" Joan jerked like she’d been shocked by a defibrillator, her chest jolted, pupils dilated, and she gasped for breath. Her focus returned, her mind cleared, and she locked her eyes on Jill, exclaiming, "What—what are you doing?!"
"Of course I’m detoxing you! I told you before, my blood can cure poison." Jill gripped her right arm, her heart pumping, sending blood into Joan: "The miracle doctors couldn’t do anything, so I thought up a dumb plan—your poison runs through your veins, so if we swap out all your blood, problem solved!"
"No, let go! This won’t work!" Joan tried to struggle, but as Jill’s scorching blood flooded in, she went limp, her face flushing as if on fire. She could only cry out weakly, "Did you even listen to what I just said?!"
"Heh, of course I heard you—but that doesn’t matter! You and I are both stubborn, so if words don’t work, I’ll just force you!" Jill’s color faded as her blood drained.
She stared back at Joan, her voice steady and determined: "Joan, you’re right—the Heaven’s Limit Monument works on the spirit, not the body, so it can’t cure you. But when body, energy, and spirit align, any one can trigger a miracle. You already have the True Qi rank, and the Monument can help you gain the spirit rank. With all three, something incredible will happen—your problems won’t be problems anymore!"
Weak from blood loss and burning with heat, Joan was drenched in sweat. She gasped, "But even so, I only have two... ah, wait!" She struggled to look at her chest, seeing a dragon-shaped shadow rising from Jill’s arm, slowly entering her body through the blood!
"Heh, that’s right. You think I suffered all that pain for nothing? Fusing dragon power into my blood—hurt like hell!" Jill’s face went pale, her breathing weak, but her eyes shone brighter and more determined: "Joan, I’m lending you my rank, so now you’ve got no excuse. Like you said, my blood’s in your body, so you have to listen to me—live!"
Simone was dumbfounded—she hadn’t expected this at all. She watched Jill wobble and pale, but grow more excited. Tears welled up in Simone’s eyes. She started to believe again that there was real love in this world.
Her tears blurred her vision. All she could see was Jill’s invincible body slowly collapsing onto Joan, but she still didn’t pull her finger out.
She heard Joan’s choked voice, Joan trying to convince Jill one last time, Joan crying out, "Stop! Stop! You’ll die!"
She heard Jill’s weak but thunderous shout: "Don’t talk sense to me—I don’t do sense!"
"I don’t know if this’ll work, I don’t know if it’ll succeed, and I don’t care—I’m willing to bet everything for you!"
"Forget lifespan, forget fate—break them!"
"Forget destiny, forget rules—break them!"
"Joan, don’t shrink back, don’t be afraid—break them, break all that crap!"
"I saw someone break the limit with my own eyes—I saw him live for eighteen hundred years and still be unbeatable!"
"So, Joan, I won’t die, and you can’t die either!"
Watching Jill like this, hearing her shout, Fang Hui was stunned and Simone sobbed uncontrollably. And Joan, closest of all, staring right into Jill’s eyes, suddenly felt her heart pound hard, just like the one whose blood now ran in her veins. She clenched her teeth, unable to say another word of refusal.
Hot tears suddenly welled up at the corners of her eyes.
Tears fell, one by one, in a stream.
Blood dripped, one by one, in a stream.
Blood from both arms splashed onto the ground, the dark aura forced out by the sacred blood. The blood spread in a huge crimson pattern on the earth, like a phoenix spreading its wings—reborn from fire.
Joan finally moved her neck, forcefully, fiercely, nodding her head. She bit her lip, sobbing and shouting, "I will—I will... I’ll do my best to live!!"
Jill finally smiled, exhausted but happy. Pfft, she pulled out her finger and sealed Joan’s chest wound. She grabbed Joan’s collar again and slowly stood up: "Don’t forget, this rank is just a loan—you have to give it back. So—" She stood tall, threw her arm forward: "A thousand years, ten thousand years, live forever!!!"
Whoosh—Joan was tossed right into the stone cave.
Swish—the cave lit up, beginning the inheritance of the Heaven’s Limit Monument.
Jill turned around, staggered, barely able to stand. She’d given Joan a full blood transfusion—most of her sacred blood was gone. This iron-tough woman could barely stand now.
Thud—Simone dropped to her knees, big tears splattering on the ground. Her eyes shone with longing, and she croaked, "Boss, I... I want to be your friend too... Can I be your friend?"
"What silly thing are you saying—of course not!" Jill walked past Simone, laughing heartily, wild and free: "You’re my demon girl!"
Simone stared at Jill’s back, and after a moment, her face lit up with joy. She jumped up and shouted, "Yes! I’ll always be Boss’s demon girl!"
"Catch!" Jill tossed the jade zither that once held the Lotus Treasure Music chapter to Simone, then staggered toward the tunnel: "Play some music!"
"Yes, ma’am!" Simone hugged the zither and strode forward, the bold music soaring skyward, a never-before-seen vitality erupting from the notes. As she played, the world around her blurred, some strange power awakening—Kingly Phenomenon!
Simone was finally about to reach the Kingly Realm!
"Ha, great playing! Last time Joan protected me, now it’s my turn to protect her. Doesn’t matter who comes, I’ll take them all!"
The phantom dragon power was injected into Joan, but the true dragon power couldn’t be lent. Twin bloodlines connected, Jill’s right hand kept bleeding, filling Joan’s veins. Meanwhile, her bone marrow activated, life essence surging, boosting blood production.
Jill staggered on, slow yet somehow fast, and in a blink, she walked out of the mysterious stone wall she’d crashed through before. Outside, the tunnel was littered with battle marks—proof of the fierce fight between the Silver Priest and the World Law King. The traces led outward; clearly, the Silver Priest had retreated.
Did they go out to call for backup?
Looks like Joan scared them off!
"Hahaha, gutless bandits—what’s there to fear!" Jill laughed, striding ahead. Simone followed close, her music growing fiercer.
Outside the city walls, the final battle raged, the siege reaching its fiercest stage in the blink of an eye.
With the inheritance of the World Tree, heaven and earth changed.
A strong wind blew, fierce and wild, torches flickering and barely holding on.
Killing intent surged, the sky darkened, clouds gathered overhead like a heavenly calamity.
In the midst of this turmoil, Jill walked into the city. She looked up at the sky, then opened her mouth and began to sing.
Joan, haven’t you always wanted to hear me sing?
Today, I’ll sing for you—sing for your journey!
[I—stand in the roaring wind]
[Wishing I could sweep away the burdens in my heart]
[Looking—to the heavens, clouds move in all directions]
[Sword in hand, asking the world: Who is the hero?]
Thud—the giant sword was pulled from the storage space, and Jill dragged it forward.
Creak, creak—the archers fired another wave of arrows that blotted out the sky. Jill took a deep breath, her chest swelling, then let out a lion’s roar that shook the world.
"Who dares to fight!"