Quinn Shepherd (using his alias 'Mark Shepherd') burst out laughing and stepped off the palanquin. "Mark Shepherd, greeting my Southern Emperor sister!" he called out, making it clear he was using his assumed name.
"Mark Shepherd? Southern Emperor sister?"
The red-clad girl looked puzzled. Her voice was soft and gentle, but her expression was a bit silly—almost childlike. She laughed, "You're Mark Shepherd, but I'm not your sister. Silly boy, you've got the wrong person. I'm Que Fuyin, disciple of Moon-Venerable." (Known as the 'Silly Magpie Girl' among her peers.)
Quinn was secretly doubtful: "Did I really get the wrong person? This girl is dressed all in red, her clothes and ornaments match Southern Emperor's style, and the Vermilion Bird feather in her hair is definitely Southern Emperor's own. There's no way I'd mistake her! And the poem she just sang—so bold, so broad-minded, with the grandeur of seas embracing all rivers, stars encircling the sky—how could someone silly write such lines?"
He asked, and Que Fuyin replied, "That's a poem by Cloud-Heaven Emperor, not mine. I heard him sing it once and learned it from him."
Dragon-Qilin said, "Fuyin, my master is a friend of Moon-Venerable and has come to pay respects. Could you please announce us?"
"Master isn't here."
Que Fuyin looked them over. "Master went out with Cloud-Heaven Emperor and isn't in Heavenly Court right now. Are you really Master's acquaintances? I don't recognize you."
Quinn stepped off the palanquin. The eyelid at his brow slowly parted, revealing the Vertical Demon Eye, and in an instant, he saw Que Fuyin's past and present lives with perfect clarity.
His divine eye had fused with more Taichu Primal Stones, granting it even greater mystical power.
He saw that tens of thousands of years ago, at the site of the Vermilion Bird Palace in the southern reaches of the starry sky, a blazing Vermilion fire descended from the heavens, falling into an ordinary household in the Earth-Mother Origin World.
Ten months later, the lady of the house gave birth to a baby girl. As the child was born, red clouds filled the sky, coiling into the shape of a Vermilion Bird that hovered above the birthing room.
After the girl grew up, Moon-Venerable arrived, accepted her as a disciple, taught her Dao arts and divine powers, and brought her to Sky-River Court.
Yet during a fierce battle against the Dragon-Han Heavenly Court, the girl encountered Prince Umbral. With a single exchange, Prince Umbral seized her soul and killed her instantly.
Moon-Venerable, consumed by fury, struck Prince Umbral with a grievous wound and snatched back the girl's soul.
That night, Moon-Venerable found Nether-Venerable gathering wandering souls on the battlefield and entrusted the girl's soul to him for safekeeping.
Another ten months passed, and once again a baby girl was born and taken in as Moon-Venerable's disciple. She was exceptionally gifted, mastering every divine art and Dao technique with ease, yet had no memory of her previous life, unaware of who she truly was.
Her good fortune did not last. On a journey, she perished in an ambush by demigods—once again led by Prince Umbral invading the human lands.
Quinn watched as her third, fourth, and fifth reincarnations played out—each time, the same tragic cycle repeated, always ending in death at Prince Umbral's hands.
In every lifetime, the girl met a mysterious death, always falling to Prince Umbral's hand.
With every cycle, her innate spirituality and memories faded. By this life as Que Fuyin, she had reached her hundredth incarnation.
Even so, Moon-Venerable continued to accept her as a disciple and taught her with great care. Yet Que Fuyin grew increasingly silly, earning the nickname 'Silly Magpie Girl.'
"Prince Umbral did this on purpose. His mastery of the Netherworld Dao is so profound that he can always trace the roots of Southern Emperor Vermilion's reincarnated soul, finding her every time!"
Quinn felt a surge of anger. Through his Vertical Demon Eye, he'd already witnessed Southern Emperor's reincarnated soul die ninety-nine times, each death either at Prince Umbral's hands or connected to him.
"Prince Umbral's soul arts are unparalleled. He must have tampered with Southern Emperor's soul, trapping her in prenatal confusion so she'll never awaken to her true identity. That bastard—he's schemed against Southern Emperor, Empress Aurora Yates, and even Di Yiyue. It's as if he has a vendetta against beautiful women!"
Quinn composed himself, forcing a kindly expression and beckoned to Que Fuyin with a smile, "Miss Fuyin, come over here. I have a precious treasure to show you."
Que Fuyin eyed him suspiciously, but curiosity won out. She jumped down from the ship and landed on the palanquin, asking, "What treasure?"
Quinn gave a half-smile, thinking to himself, "It's a miracle this silly girl has survived this long."
Que Fuyin laughed, "You look at people with such shifty eyes, you must be a lecher! Where's the treasure? Hurry up and show me, I won't steal it from you!"
Quinn was about to examine her soul closely to see what tricks Prince Umbral had played, when suddenly someone called out, "Silly Magpie Girl, why are you on someone else's carriage?"
Annie and Que Fuyin both answered at the same time. Annie lowered her head, embarrassed: "Why did I answer too?"
Que Fuyin quickly hopped off the palanquin. "My senior sisters are calling me. I'll look at your treasure later!" she said, hurrying away.
Quinn was just about to observe the source of her prenatal confusion, and vaguely saw a portal—hazy and indistinct, but it seemed to be the Mingdu Heaven Gate of Prince Umbral—before Que Fuyin ran off to rejoin the young men and women on the tower-ship.
Quinn pondered. He'd just witnessed something strange: Que Fuyin was a reincarnated soul fragment of Southern Emperor, and every time she reincarnated, she was killed by Prince Umbral.
And each time she died, her soul passed through the Mingdu Heaven Gate under Prince Umbral's control.
After passing through the Mingdu Heaven Gate, Southern Emperor's soul fragment would gain an extra set of three souls and seven spirits, completing her soul structure.
"That means Southern Emperor reincarnated using her divine soul, but after ninety-nine deaths, Prince Umbral has given her ninety-nine sets of three souls and seven spirits, diluting her divinity each time."
Quinn looked at the young men and women at the prow of the ship—Moon-Venerable's disciples, all wary of him and warning Que Fuyin not to talk to strangers.
"After ninety-nine reincarnations, Southern Emperor is almost completely sealed, her divinity nearly erased. If she dies one more time, her divine soul will be lost forever—she'll never awaken again."
Quinn couldn't help but marvel: "If Southern Emperor's reincarnation dies again, she'll become a mere mortal. Prince Umbral truly is formidable—he developed soul arts specifically to counter ancient gods in this era. No wonder he's called Black Emperor. His patience is terrifying; to scheme against Southern Emperor ninety-nine times without giving up!"