Haotian Divine Venerable returned to his Small Middle Heaven, the place where he meditated in seclusion. He did not return to his own divine palace. He clutched his chest, looking at Xuan Ji on the opposite couch. His heart was complicated; this was her bloodline, but it also carried the evil and impure bloodline of the demon race.
He summoned a maid and instructed her to take Xuan Ji to the backyard. "You have a healing spring there that can quickly restore Xuan Ji's external injuries." He felt conflicted about this daughter. At the time, the Blue Demoness did not know his identity.
The moment his bloodline was born, he knew. Thus, he orchestrated for the Blue Demoness to abandon the child in the Heavenly Realm. He predicted that a Divine Maiden would soon be born in the Heavenly Realm, possessing a divine fetus from birth and an innate spatial ability. When the Divine Maiden was five years old, he manipulated events so Xuan Ji became her friend. The Divine Maiden, a chosen one with extraordinary fortune, would provide protection and borrowing of luck while growing up by her side.
Although the events in the Divine Wood Realm back then were kept secret, his sudden injury likely couldn't be concealed from everyone. After arranging matters for Xuan Ji and secretly sending people to watch over her, he began his seclusion, no longer concerning himself with matters of the Immortal Realm.
Within the healing spring, Xuan Ji felt anxious. The moment she crushed the transmission talisman, she anticipated angering Divine Venerable Ye if she failed. Since childhood, a mysterious person had always helped her. When that person gave her the jade talisman, they had told her to use it only in life-or-death situations. However, she hadn't expected that it would summon Haotian Divine Venerable.
She recognized Haotian Divine Venerable. She had seen his portrait at the dojo of the Nine Heavens Divine Lord, so she identified him as soon as he arrived. Yet, at this moment, she couldn't explain why she was afraid. When Haotian Divine Venerable, with a stern face, carried her away at high speed, his countenance frightened her.
"Xuan Ji, the Exalted One wishes to see you!" the maid said to Xuan Ji by the healing pool.
"Alright, please wait a moment!" Xuan Ji dared not be negligent.
The Small Middle Heaven was built to resemble his divine palace, with magnificent golden architecture, soaring eaves, and beautifully painted beams. It was a breathtaking sight.
The maid led Xuan Ji to a meticulously crafted pavilion in the center of a courtyard. Haotian Divine Venerable stood with his back to her in the pavilion, appearing to have waited for a long time.
"Greetings, Divine Venerable. Thank you for saving my life!"
"What did you do to provoke the Divine Maiden into wanting to kill you?" Haotian did not turn around, his voice devoid of emotion, making it impossible to discern his feelings.
"I... I..."
Xuan Ji stammered. She didn't know if the Divine Venerable was truly helping her. She dared not speak. Because of her jealousy towards Ju Xun, she had harbored the thought of replacing her. She was even more hesitant to admit that she had disliked Long Hu, and upon learning that she came from the Divine Wood Realm, she maliciously informed the Nine Heavens Divine Lord. She hadn't anticipated such dire consequences; Ju Xun was forced to perish, and Long Hu actually used her clan's time-reversal ability to save Ju Xun. At the time, she had lamented this, but in the end, she fainted. Upon waking, she learned that both of them had disappeared.
What Xuan Ji didn't know was that Haotian Divine Venerable possessed mind-reading abilities. Those with lower cultivation and less potent divine senses were as transparent to him as glass, their thoughts laid bare.
"Foolish, your ambition exceeds the heavens! I can discern your thoughts. Back then, I intended to offer you a promising future, yet you still colluded with the demon race."
"Divine Venerable, how... how do you know?" Xuan Ji was greatly alarmed. Did the Divine Venerable know about the demonic seed within her? Would he immediately kill her?
Hearing her thoughts, Haotian Divine Venerable paused. He then turned around, immobilized her, and probed her body with his immortal spiritual energy. Within her divine sea, he found the demonic seed.
As Haotian withdrew his immortal spiritual energy, Xuan Ji collapsed onto the ground. He had discovered it... Xuan Ji was filled with dread.
"Why do you have a demonic seed? Did your mother, the Blue Demoness, find you? Did she place it there?" Haotian Divine Venerable's expression flickered with a hint of unnaturalness.
Xuan Ji stared at Haotian Divine Venerable in shock. This was her greatest secret. It was difficult for her to conceal the demonic energy within her, but the fact that her mother was the Blue Demoness was so deeply hidden. How did he know? Unless he was directly involved, she suddenly harbored a terrible suspicion about Haotian Divine Venerable.
"Why does the Divine Venerable know my mother is the Blue Demoness?" Xuan Ji pressed.
Haotian Divine Venerable showed a trace of discomposure. He and Ye Ling were both known as the two great Divine Venerables. He governed the Heavenly Realm, while Ye Ling was indifferent to worldly affairs, often hiding in his divine palace, amusing himself with his beloved immortal chrysanthemums, living a carefree life.
Had he known back then that he had relations with a woman of the demon race, the people of the Immortal race would surely have been dissatisfied. Therefore, he could never let anyone know that his daughter carried the bloodline of the demon race. This would also make it difficult for her to survive in the Immortal Realm. Yet, he seemed to have been mistaken, otherwise, the Nine Heavens Divine Lord wouldn't have known and used it to threaten him, compelling him to help in the siege against the Dragon Clan's Crown Prince.
After the Dragon Clan's Crown Prince was cast into the void, he turned back and saw the demon race drawing in divine demons from beyond the outer realms, leading to the destruction of the Divine Wood Realm. This filled him with guilt and gave rise to a heart demon. Although he ultimately helped the Saintess of the Nine-Tailed Fox Clan mend the heavens, he also caused a great calamity.
Afterward, he lost all hope and entered seclusion to suppress his heart demon. The Heavenly Realm was left to the Nine Heavens Divine Lord.
"Because, I am your father god." Haotian Divine Venerable finally confessed.
"What? You are my father god? I am actually the daughter of a Divine Venerable? So I was also born noble? Hahaha!" Xuan Ji was stunned, then overjoyed, yet she also felt an inexplicable sense of grievance.
"Why was I abandoned at birth? Did my mother also abandon me?" Xuan Ji couldn't help but reproach. If she had known her father was Haotian Divine Venerable, she would never have been jealous of Ju Xun. She wasn't inherently heartless. Ju Xun's genuine affection, their childhood companionship... Xuan Ji wept uncontrollably. It was all in the past, and it could never be undone. This was all their fault.
"It's because of you. If you hadn't given birth to me, and then neglected me, how could I have... how could I have..." Xuan Ji couldn't finish her sentence. She didn't know if she would betray Ju Xun if she could start over, but now, it was all irreversible.
Haotian Divine Venerable remained silent, looking at Xuan Ji, who was both crying and laughing, a flicker of pity arose in his heart.
"The demonic seed within you must still be removed. Otherwise, if your immortal spiritual energy is completely transformed into demonic energy by the demonic seed, you will be thoroughly demonized, and there will be no place for you in the Immortal Realm."
"No need for your fake concern. Do you think I don't know? My mother, the Blue Demoness, personally supervised me. At first, I had a chance to remove the demonic seed before it was activated. It was she who activated the demonic seed, and now I can no longer suppress it. I hate you all..." Xuan Ji's initial joy upon learning she was the Divine Venerable's daughter cooled as she realized their past treatment of her.
"Calm yourself. As a Xuan Nu, do you have no decorum?" Haotian Divine Venerable looked at Xuan Ji's frenzied expression. Demonic energy involuntarily emanated from her.
A surge of righteous energy struck Xuan Ji's eardrums. Xuan Ji immediately felt her mind clear. She quickly suppressed it with her spiritual power, and the demonic energy within her retracted. At this moment, she also calmed down. She did not want to become a demon, nor did she want to live a wretched existence in the dark and sunless realm of the demon tribe.
"Please, save me. Remove the demonic seed within me. I don't want to become a complete demon." Xuan Ji suddenly knelt. This was her father. He would save her, wouldn't he? He certainly would. Where in the world was there a father who didn't love his daughter? She had seen Ju Xun's father god since childhood. How she envied him...