Chapter Sixty-Two: The World Beneath the Lake (Part One)

After Ji Mo plunged into the dense mist, she felt a chill seep into her senses. Unlike the sudden cold that touches the skin, this sensation enveloped her from inside out, head to toe, entirely and thoroughly. Next, her body dropped into water.

As she submerged, aside from the intensified chill, Ji Mo felt no other discomfort. In her surprise, she murmured instinctively: Wasn’t it said that the waters of Blue Moon Lake are like the drowning waters of the heavens, and that nothing but dragons can survive here? The rumors are completely unfounded. If nothing could live, why do I feel neither pain nor the slightest discomfort?

“What a foolish girl! Why don’t you check your own condition before you spout nonsense?” No sooner had Ji Mo finished her remark than Peony Fairy’s furious voice rang out in her mind.

Check her body? Ji Mo paused, releasing her soul sense to scan herself. What she saw shocked her—her body was dissolving, bit by bit. In just this brief moment, she had become semi-transparent, like a crystal with impurities. At this rate, it wouldn’t be long before she became one with the water. No wonder she felt nothing but cold—her very being was turning into a part of the lake.

Was she truly about to die? Oddly, as Ji Mo grasped her situation, she felt little fear. Instead, a faint sense of relief rose within her. If she died like this, it would be just fine. The inexplicable Peony Fairy who had entered her consciousness wouldn't force her to seek vengeance or dominate the world anymore.

Ji Mo’s lazy nature meant her greatest wish was to live freely and happily. She had no interest in storming the heavens or commanding the winds, nor did she enjoy provoking hatred and endless killings. Yet once one enters the path of immortality, freedom is no longer theirs. Since meeting Peony Fairy, it had been only six years, and already four lives—directly or indirectly—had been lost by her hand.

Ji Mo truly disliked such a life. But as long as she remained in the cultivation world, it was unavoidable. Even if she kept to herself, trouble would find her, especially with the aura of a prodigy hanging over her. Hoping for a peaceful existence was pure fantasy.

Of course, she could refuse to cultivate, but with Peony Fairy’s presence, such refusal would dash the fairy’s hopes. Imagine the destructive consequences of a celestial soul, driven mad by despair. Ji Mo shivered at the thought. Though lazy and averse to trouble, she would never bring disaster or harm to those close to her.

But now, things were different. Her death would not be a refusal to cooperate, but a simple lack of ability. Surely Peony Fairy wouldn’t vent her anger on those around Ji Mo because of her demise. The thought brought a smile of relief to her lips.

“Ji Mo, if you dare die, I will slaughter the Moon-Gazing Sect and Zhao Family Village, dragging them with you to the Underworld, even if my soul is shattered! I want to see, when they reach the afterlife and realize this calamity was all because of you, how they’ll treat you and how you’ll face them.” Sensing Ji Mo’s thoughts, Peony Fairy erupted in fury, roaring through her consciousness.

“You? You ridiculous fairy, are you even reasonable? In this cursed place, survival isn’t in my hands. At a time like this, you threaten to slaughter my sect and kin? Fine, then let’s die together!” Ji Mo raged, ignoring whether she was a match for Peony Fairy, and lunged at her with her soul sense.

“Back off! You want to perish with me? If you truly had the power, I’d be glad, not angry!” Peony Fairy snorted coldly. Without any obvious movement, Ji Mo’s soul sense struck an invisible wall and was thrown aside.

Ji Mo tried to attack again, but Peony Fairy’s voice sounded once more: “If you don’t want your sect and the people of Zhao Family Village to die with you, you’d better focus on survival. If my observations are correct, before I even act, the one who plotted against you will soon target Moon-Gazing Sect.”

Ji Mo’s soul sense froze. She wasn’t stupid, just subconsciously avoided those haunting troubles. Peony Fairy’s words shattered her self-deception, and all the things she’d tried not to think about came rushing to mind. Why, for instance, had she been repeatedly hunted in the mountain temple behind Zhao Family Village, when she was still a mortal who hadn’t stepped onto the immortal path?

If not for her, who would have bribed inner disciples to attack someone like Zhao Hu, an outer courtyard body cultivator? Most chilling was how, when the culprit tried to reveal the mastermind, they were silenced. And finally, the power that flung her into Blue Moon Lake—it wasn’t something a mere qi-refining disciple could possess, and its appearance was bizarre.

All these signs pointed unmistakably to one conclusion: someone was determined to destroy her. But what was so special about an orphan with no support? Could it be her origins? If so, who was she really? Who were her parents? Did they die of illness or something else?

“Think about all that later. Right now, you need to focus on staying alive!” As Ji Mo struggled to untangle these threads, Peony Fairy’s impatient voice rang out again.

“You have a way?” Ji Mo returned to herself and looked at Peony Fairy.

“I don’t. The water of this lake shares the same origin as the drowning waters of the heavens. Nothing but dragons can survive here,” Peony Fairy replied.

“If even you have no solution, how can I possibly survive? Look, my body keeps dissolving. Soon enough, I’ll be nothing but a drop within this lake,” Ji Mo answered, somewhat despondent.

“I don’t—but the whip does! Its whip spirit is a dragon soul, born from a flood dragon transforming into a true dragon. Hurry and awaken its soul sense. It can carry you safely to the lake’s bottom,” Peony Fairy said, exasperated. Ji Mo could counter her so quickly, but when it came to her own matters, she was as dull as a pig.