That single line confirmed everything the Demon Phoenix had said.
He let out a bitter, broken laugh. "Tell me. What could I possibly have done? Back then, my master sat me down for a full day and night, talking about all the chaos that child would bring. I tried arguing—more than once—but I couldn't win…
"I wanted to talk to you about it too. But every time I saw your face, I didn't know how. What could I even say?
"The sect raised me. I could never repay what they've given me. How could I go against my master's command?
"I wanted to return to the mountain, ask Sixth Martial Uncle to help us. But I was only gone for one day... and then the news came—said you were surrounded in the Ten Thousand Mountains!
"At that point, what did you expect me to do? Stand by your side and defy the sect? Or be part of the ones trying to kill you?" A ragged pause. "Fenghuang'er... do you have any idea what I went through back then? What I had to endure?"
His voice was full of anguish, steeped in guilt and grief. But to everyone present, the emotion behind it was clear.
This wasn't the last cry of a man facing death—it was a plea. A desperate, pitiful cry for forgiveness.
Qi Yun's breathing became even more erratic. Li Xun's brows were tightly furrowed, the strange feeling in his chest growing stronger by the second.
But the Demon Phoenix's reaction was the most unexpected of all. Her voice came puzzled, like she genuinely didn't understand what she was hearing.
"...are you begging me for mercy?" She paused for a moment. When Lin Ge didn't answer, she gave a slow shake of her head. Her tone turned hazy, almost dreamlike, tinged with disbelief. "I still remember... a hundred years ago, you were so proud. Even though my cultivation far outstripped yours, you never once bowed your head to me..."
Though she left the thought unfinished, Li Xun understood perfectly: Lin Ge... what game are you playing now?
"Fenghuang'er…" Lin Ge's voice was trembling now. The kind of tremble that could be fear or excitement—Li Xun couldn't tell.
"I know I wronged you. But... our child…"
His voice suddenly dropped.
Li Xun instinctively leaned in to catch it—but instead, what hit his ears was a piercing shriek.
A soul-rending scream that shook his very mind. For a moment, it felt like his skull would split apart.
A pained grunt burst from Li Xun as he clutched both ears tightly. His vision swam; it felt like the whole world was spinning. Just as he was getting to his feet, his body gave out again and he crashed to the ground.
Qi Yun fared even worse. With a dull thud, she collapsed backward, unconscious.
Li Xun still had no idea what had just happened—but one thing was certain: Lin Ge was not the pathetic coward he had just made himself out to be.
No, that was clearly a setup. A performance.
That whole emotional breakdown? The whining? The guilt trip?
It was bait.
As the echoes of that soul-shaking screech finally faded, Li Xun heard a soft thud nearby. Forcing his eyes open, he saw—through a still-tilted world—Lin Ge sprawled face-down on the ground like a mangy, beaten dog.
He blinked. Then blinked again.
His vision slowly cleared—and this time, it wasn't Lin Ge that held his gaze.
It was her.
The Demon Phoenix had turned around.
Li Xun could swear—on his life—he had never seen another woman who could make crimson robes look so cold and majestic.
The effect came mostly from her skin. It wasn't just pale—it glowed. Like moonlight on untouched snow. So flawless it didn't even seem like skin anymore, but rather some ethereal jade, carved by immortal hands.
Her eyes were slightly longer than most, their outer corners slanting up with a graceful sharpness. Long brows arched toward her temples—phoenix eyes and moth brows was no exaggeration. She embodied the phrase.
On anyone else, those features might've seemed seductive. But her eyes… her eyes were like deep wells of ink—dark, still, and endless. They devoured all softness, all charm, leaving behind only chilling silence. No one would dare treat her lightly.
The gentle downturn of her lips gave her a quiet, commanding strength. It was the face of someone born to rule, to conquer.
And when those lips curled into a faint smile—her entire expression shifted—Li Xun felt his breath catch.
Part of him was awestruck by her beauty.
The other part... felt a chill claw its way up his spine.
Just now… Lin Ge must've gone for a sneak attack.
Li Xun ran through the scene again in his mind—and pieced it together nearly perfectly. Lin Ge had been acting since the very moment they met.
He wasn't that weak. Not by far.
All that groveling, that begging—that was just to lower her guard.
And then, when the moment came… he struck.
The only problem? It didn't work. At all.
Lin Ge lay less than a meter away from Li Xun now. He could hear the man's ragged breathing. See the blood pooling beneath him, slowly widening. That wound wasn't fake.
And still… Lin Ge was laughing.
He forced himself upright, wiped the blood from the corner of his lips, and even though his voice was faint, it carried a weight that hadn't been there before—a calm, grim pride.
Even Li Xun had never seen this side of him.
Lin Ge didn't try to hide it. He admitted it plainly:
"Shameful, I know." A dry chuckle. "I still failed. Well… do as you will. Kill me if you must."
The Demon Phoenix's smile was… strange. In it, the frost that seemed to cover her entire being slowly melted. Her voice returned to its previous tenderness.
"Darling… your temper hasn't changed. But your mind... it's grown much deeper."
Li Xun felt a deep chill in his gut.
The way these two were speaking—as if the earlier deadly sneak attack had been just another....chess match—it was impossible to discern their true intentions.
Indeed, Lin Ge had gone for the kill—ruthless and without warning.
But the Demon Phoenix hadn't been caught off guard, either. Her calm demeanor made it clear: she'd seen it coming.
Given the circumstances, even if there were a sea of blood and enmity between them, the atmosphere still felt eerie and sinister. This made Li Xun question everything—Were they ever truly dao companions?
Lin Ge smiled faintly at her soft remark. "Hardly. I'll never be your equal… In fact, I've been thinking... knowing the way you were back then, there's no way you would've wasted time with all that talk just now—if you hadn't wanted me to take that shot."
"Besides, from start to finish, not a single crack in your defenses. If it wasn't for the mention of the child, I probably wouldn't have gotten the chance to strike at all. So tell me—who taught you?"
The Demon Phoenix gave a soft, almost tender smile, all warmth and gentleness, with not a hint of sharpness. "Why not just ask who helped me escape back then?"
Li Xun's heart stirred at her words.
He knew the general story—back in the day, 33 sects had joined forces to set up the Heavenly Extermination Formation. It was airtight. No way out. And yet, somehow, the Demon Phoenix slipped away without a trace. Based on what little they could piece together, someone on the inside must've helped her. Some sect had played the traitor.
For a hundred years, no one's ever figured out who it was. Righteous or demonic, every sect points fingers, but no one knows for sure. And now… was she about to say it?
Lin Ge nodded without hesitation. "For a sect to risk the world's wrath, help you escape, and even dissolve the tribulation… such a heaven-shaking feat—Lin can't help but admire it."
The Demon Phoenix tilted her head slightly, as if letting out a soft sigh. Then she began to murmur:
"Heavenly sounds merge with the mysterious transformation; the three caves' jade returns to truth."
Li Xun was still confused, but out of the corner of his eye, he noticed something—Lin Ge's pale face suddenly flushed red, violently so, and then in the blink of an eye, the color drained, leaving his skin a sickly, ashen gray.
Li Xun could feel it—Lin Ge's body was trembling, just barely, but it was real. This wasn't an act.
Then it hit him like thunder: Heavenly sound… jade to truth… wait—Jade Wanderer?!
In that instant, the way Li Xun looked at Lin Ge completely changed. If he had just been shocked by all the hidden scheming a moment ago, now all he felt was pity.
Lin Ge didn't have to pretend anymore. Even his voice was hoarse: "You're right… Jade Wanderer's cultivation was deep—he truly had power that defied the heavens…"
But halfway through the sentence, he broke.
With a snarl, he punched the ground, teeth clenched. "Why did you go to him?!"
The sudden roar startled Li Xun so much he flinched. The way his voice scraped out at the end was like a red-hot brand pressed straight onto your skin—sizzle—enough to make your hair stand on end.
No man, upon learning he'd been made a cuckold, could still speak and smile as if nothing had happened. The fact Lin Ge could still force out a strained laugh just now… he'd already gone above and beyond.
But the Demon Phoenix actually laughed—really laughed: "My husband couldn't save me and my daughter, so of course I had to find someone who could. What's wrong with that?"
That was the first time she'd ever called Lin Ge "husband"—and that single word stabbed straight through his heart like a blade.
You could see it on his face—he'd completely lost it. His eyes were bloodshot, like a beast about to tear someone apart. The killing intent radiating off him made Li Xun instinctively inch backward.
Big mistake.
Lin Ge's bloodshot eyes abruptly shifted to him.
Lin Ge looked confused for a second—then his face turned ten times redder than before!
Li Xun froze like a frog caught in a snake's stare. Every muscle locked up. His mind just screamed: What did I do?! What the hell does this have to do with me?!
Luckily, that look didn't last long. Lin Ge seemed to regain some clarity, and all that was left… was a long, pained sigh.
And yet, Li Xun didn't feel the slightest bit relieved.
In fact… he was even more on edge than before.
Because right after Lin Ge, the Demon Phoenix turned her eyes on him too—with a look that was hard to read, but clearly held a touch of amusement.
"This one—your disciple?"
"…Yes."
Li Xun heard himself answer as he forced his head up, mustering his courage to meet her gaze.
Unfortunately, she looked right back.
The moment their eyes met, a chill ran down his spine. His neck went stiff—completely frozen. Even if he wanted to look away, it was no longer possible.
He had no idea what that strange glint in her eyes meant. The stare lasted barely half a breath, and then the Demon Phoenix casually shifted her attention to someone else—Qi Yun.
"That girl's quite the cutie. Is she yours too?"
"No, she's not… You—"
He didn't even finish before the Demon Phoenix lazily stretched out a hand—and Qi Yun, who wasn't even standing that close, was yanked into the air like a puppet, landing squarely in her grasp.
The Demon Phoenix was tall. Petite as Qi Yun was, her toes dangled several inches above the ground.
That sudden jolt finally snapped Qi Yun out of her daze. She looked up—and came face to face with the architect of her worst nightmares.
She'd cultivated for decades, but that wasn't nearly enough to handle this kind of terror. With a raw shriek, she blindly swung a palm at the woman.
Idiot…
Li Xun closed his eyes, too ashamed to keep watching her stupidity unfold.
A sharp, brittle crack echoed through the air—every bone in Qi Yun's arm shattered clean through. She didn't even have time to scream.
The Demon Phoenix's fingers tightened slightly around her neck. As she watched the girl's face darken and twist with pain, her voice came soft and cold: "Do you know why you're still alive?"
Qi Yun couldn't speak. Tears streamed down her face. The fear was too much—it had stripped her of even the ability to respond.
Then, the Demon Phoenix flung her aside, like tossing out trash. She landed right next to Li Xun—less than half a foot away.
"I don't kill women unless I have to," she said calmly. "As for that male disciple of yours, he still lives only because he's got the Phoenix Feather Needle on him.
That makes two survivors—and frankly, that's one too many. I only need one. Just one person to spread the word of my darling's death to the world. The rest… can be buried with him."
Li Xun's heart seized—and then, strangely, it started to burn.
But his mind… had never felt colder.
Qi Yun lay beside him, within reach, crumpled on the ground.