The light of the formation flared, and the last wandering soul floated out of the ink jade, sinking into the inconspicuous Shitian bracelet worn on Bai Ran's wrist.
From afar, Long Yu suddenly turned his head, his casual demeanor vanishing in an instant, replaced by infinite solemnity and seriousness.
"How can this spiritual energy be so immense...?" His voice was extremely low, tinged with disbelief.
Some life was breaking the laws of heaven and earth, growing madly, and raging wildly...
A monster... Long Yu's first instinct was that a monster had appeared...
The next moment, the earth trembled, and the birds and beasts in the mountains and forests let out cries that reached the heavens, passionate, loud, and unending.
"Clang—Clang—Clang—"
A distant and ancient bell chimed, echoing in every corner of the Nine Heavens, solemn and sacred.
The Ghost Clan, the Demon Realm, the Divine Realm, and the Monster Clan all heard it immediately, the Linglong Bell ringing once more...
"This sound is... the Linglong Bell!" Long Yu's eyes widened, and the hand behind his robe clenched a little tighter.
Prophecy cannot be changed, fate cannot be reversed...
When the Linglong Bell rings, the destined daughter arrives...
Long Yu's heart pounded, and his breathing quickened.
His father, the God of War of the Divine Realm, his prophecy... was actually true...
"This is bad—! Great Divine Emperor! The Linglong Bell is ringing again—!!!"
The Fourth Elder rushed into the hall in a panic. The man on the main seat, however, was rubbing his temples, utterly pained.
"Let it ring, I've heard it before."
"But! The Linglong Bell, which has been intact for a thousand years, has actually cracked!"
"What did you say!"
Mo Huai'an stood up abruptly, the shock and panic in his eyes impossible to conceal.
...
"Reporting to the Sect Master! The King's whereabouts have been traced!"
In the dimly lit great hall, the man who was usually lazy and unrestrained stiffened, and the red gem he was playing with dropped to the ground.
"You... say that again?"
"Reporting Sect..."
"I mean the latter part!"
"The King's... King's whereabouts have been traced!"
The man stood up instantly, so excited he could barely form coherent sentences: "Where! Where is the King now!"
"In the Monster Clan—!"
...
"The Linglong Bell is ringing again! Old Mei! I told you that girl was the destined one!!!"
The old man, hunched over, had tears welling up in his eyes.
The solemn bell echoed in his ears, and even the gentle breeze felt warm and soft...
Aunt Mei clasped her hands together and closed her eyes in reverence.
She had never believed in fate or destiny, but at this moment, she wanted to take a gamble, to gamble whether there was a place for her in the prosperous future...
The mountains and forests trembled, and the spiritual energy in the air became extremely abnormal, rushing wildly towards a certain direction.
Birds flew in unison across the sky, and the Vermilion Bird transformed into its true form, leading thousands of birds and beasts in flight and song.
"It's a celestial phenomenon..." Long Jinhan looked at the red-tinged sky, a beautiful arc forming on his lips.
That dazzling, unrestrained red, just like her...
Bai Li Xiao held the cold corpse tightly in his arms, large drops of tears sliding down his face.
And within the Shitian realm, the woman who had been lying in the ice coffin with a pale complexion gradually regained color in her cheeks and warmth in her limbs...
Vast spiritual energy flowed into the space through the Shitian bracelet, and then madly surged towards Bai Ran's dantian.
Shitian looked at the woman in the ice coffin and smiled.
He recalled the scene when he first met his master, when his master absorbed spiritual energy so terrifyingly.
He had even compared his master's dantian to a bottomless vat.
"What are you grinning about?" a strange female voice came. Shitian turned around and saw a little girl about his height.
"Who... who are you?"
Shitian stared at her for a long time, but he had no impression of her in his mind.
"Me? I'm Fen Tian. How could you not recognize me just because I changed my appearance?" Fen Tian glared at him impatiently.
But as soon as she spoke, Bai Hu and the others rushed forward, their mouths agape as they stared at the petite little girl, doubting their own ears.
"You said you are who!? Fen Tian? But Fen Tian is a man???"
Even Xuan Wu, who was usually silent and reserved, came closer and stared at Fen Tian curiously.
Fen Tian pouted helplessly, her sulky expression somewhat cute.
"I am originally a divine artifact. After reaching a certain level, I can cultivate a spirit, and then ascend further to transform into human form."
"But gender is not determined by me. When I transform into human form, it turns out like this."
Now that her master had returned to her true form and her strength had soared, she had also benefited greatly, transforming into human form in one go.
As she spoke, she glared at the stunned Shitian: "Didn't you go through the same thing?"
"Ah, yes, indeed..."
Shitian snapped back to reality and awkwardly averted his gaze. It was indeed true that the gender of a spirit after transforming into human form was not determined by the spirit itself.
If it became a woman, it was a woman; if it became a man, it was a man.
Bai Hu took a long time to reluctantly accept this reality. His good buddy with whom he had addressed as a brother overnight had become a delicate little girl...
"Alright..."
He stiffly scratched his cheek. If he had known Fen Tian was a woman, he would have been gentler. Earlier, Bai Hu and Shitian had treated Fen Tian like a ball and kicked it around...
While they were chatting, Bai Ran in the ice coffin was leveling up at an unprecedented speed.
Heavenly Immortal Realm Stage Two, Heavenly Immortal Realm Stage Three, Heavenly Immortal Realm Stage Four...
The rampant spiritual energy charged through Bai Ran's meridians and was finally swallowed by her dantian, converting into rapidly climbing cultivation.
Heavenly Immortal Realm Stage Nine, True Immortal Realm Stage One, True Immortal Realm Stage Two...
It only stopped at Profound Immortal Realm Stage Five, slowing down and stabilizing.
Twenty-two minor realms!
Since entering the Nine Heavens, the speed of cultivation would only be as slow as a snail. It might take decades, or even centuries, for a cultivator to barely cross one minor realm.
But Bai Ran's return to her true form had actually crossed twenty-two minor realms!
If this were to spread, it would surely cause a bloody storm and a tempest in the Nine Heavens...
Her black hair, like a gushing spring, cascaded down her shoulders, long and smooth. Her brows were naturally exquisite, her skin as white and smooth as jade, and her lips a seductive crimson, like ripe fruit.
The fiery red long dress was embroidered with dragons and phoenixes, symbols of supreme status. They now seemed alive, as if about to break through the barriers and soar into the sky at any moment.
Bai Ran's slender eyelashes trembled, and the lotus mark on her forehead emitted a dazzling light, half black and half white, like a god and a demon.
After a long while, her eyes slowly opened, and the red glow in her eyes flickered with a scorching heat.
The plan had succeeded, and she had successfully returned to her true form...
—
PS: Cultivation ranks in the Nine Heavens.
Heavenly Immortal Realm, True Immortal Realm, Profound Immortal Realm, Golden Immortal Realm, Immortal Lord Realm, Immortal Emperor Realm, Immortal Sovereign Realm.