Dominator Emperor

Upon hearing this, Bing Yuxia couldn’t help but murmur, "The meaning of the inscription is that it has no meaning."

"Girl, stop dressing like a man all the time. You’re a girl, so be a girl, don’t try to be a man! Don’t be like your ancestor, who ended up dying old and alone!" Li Qiye finally said with a sigh of emotion, then turned to leave.

Bing Yuxia’s heart jolted when she heard this. She looked up at Li Qiye, but he had already walked out of the building, his expression hidden from her.

Ultimately, Bing Yuxia left with the female disciples of the Bingyu Palace. As she departed, she snapped her folding fan shut, looking for all the world like a dashing, worldly young master. She smiled at Li Qiye and said, "Fellow Daoist Li, if you’re interested, I can play matchmaker for you another day. I’ll introduce you to a few Ancient Kingdom Princesses."

Seeing Bing Yuxia’s persistently devil-may-care attitude, Li Qiye could only give a wry smile. As she and the Bingyu Palace disciples drifted away, he watched her retreating figure and sighed softly to himself.

Although Bing Yuxia looked nothing like the Bingyu Immortal Emperor, her bearing reminded him of her—that arrogant, cold girl! ’Even though I didn’t personally train her back then, I was the one who guided the War God Hall to recruit her into their sect.’

’Unfortunately, that bunch of old fogies at the War God Hall failed to seize the opportunity. They couldn’t cultivate her into an Immortal Emperor. In the end, that arrogant girl left the War God Hall, forged her own path through the Nine Realms, and became an invincible Immortal Emperor of her generation.’

’That arrogant, cold girl... she was always so, so proud. Invincible her entire life, but in the end, she walked her path alone and died old and alone. That girl... In the end, she must have hated me for it, at least a little.’ Li Qiye sighed softly in his heart.

"She’s already gone. Still can’t bear to part?" Seeing Li Qiye’s dazed and dejected expression, Chi Xiaodie shot him a look and scoffed.

Even Chi Xiaodao couldn’t help but ask, "Brother Li, do you like the Ice Fairy?" He had been hoping to set Li Qiye up with his sister. If Bing Yuxia were to enter the picture, his sister truly couldn’t compare.

"Like her?" Li Qiye chuckled. "That girl’s not bad. If she were to be my maid, I suppose I could accept her."

"A toad lusting after a swan’s flesh!" Chi Xiaodie snapped. "Do you even know who she is? To dare speak of making her your maid! You’re truly clueless about your own limits!"

"She’s merely the successor of the Bingyu Palace. Even the female successor of the Feixian Sect is nothing remarkable. As my maid, she would be just about acceptable," Li Qiye stated nonchalantly. "The two maids by my side are in no way inferior to any fairy or princess in the world."

Li Qiye’s words left the siblings, Chi Xiaodao and Chi Xiaodie, utterly speechless. Faced with such unparalleled arrogance, they had no response. A person who dared to utter such conceited words was truly an oddity!

Sikong Toutian, on the other hand, gave Li Qiye a strange look. If anyone else had claimed they would take the successor of the Bingyu Palace as a maid, he would have dismissed it as a joke. ’Are you kidding me?’ he would think. The successor of the Bingyu Palace was high and mighty; across all the East Hundred Cities, there was likely no one who could force her to be their maid!

But when Li Qiye said it so casually, Sikong Toutian’s heart skipped a beat. It seemed that for Li Qiye, such an impossible feat was nothing at all! This didn’t sound like an empty boast.

"Heh, heh... Fellow Daoists, our paths are bound to cross again. We will surely meet in the future. Until then." At that, Sikong Toutian prepared to slip away. He was still wary of Li Qiye and had no desire to linger.

Li Qiye glanced at Sikong Toutian but didn’t try to stop him, allowing the thief to breathe a sigh of relief.

Chi Xiaodao, however, wasn’t about to let him go. He jumped up and shouted, "Hey, you thief! You still haven’t returned my medicinal ingredients!"

"I’ll return them, I swear!" Sikong Toutian immediately promised. "Next time, I’ll be sure to deliver Brother Chi’s ingredients to the Lion Roar Sect. Not a single stalk will be missing."

"Let him go," Li Qiye said with a smile. "I believe he’ll return them."

"Thank you for your trust, Brother Li." After thanking Li Qiye, Sikong Toutian immediately bolted.

Li Qiye said nothing more and headed back to the Lion Roar Sect with the Chi siblings.

"Here," Li Qiye said, tossing the Rotting Nether Beans to Chi Xiaodao after they returned to the Lion Roar Sect. "Go prepare the other medicinal ingredients. In three days, I will change your fate."

Chi Xiaodao caught the Rotting Nether Beans and stared, stunned. "Th-this... Brother Li, this is what you bought at the auction." A top-grade Rotting Nether Bean like this was worth millions on the open market. Moreover, even if someone else had one of this quality, they likely wouldn’t be willing to sell it.

"Consider it a meeting gift. This way, your sister won’t suspect me of trying to cheat you out of your ingredients again." Li Qiye chuckled, then turned and walked into his room.

Chi Xiaodao froze for a moment. ’But... Li Qiye already gave us a meeting gift!’ he thought. ’The Celestial Stone Golden Turtle!’

"Arrogant maniac!" Chi Xiaodie fumed. She stomped her foot, then turned and stormed off. She was furious. ’At the Grave Auction, I played along with his act, and now this arrogant maniac looks down on me? It’s infuriating!’

Chi Xiaodao could only sigh softly. He had really hoped to matchmake Li Qiye and his sister, but it now seemed that Li Qiye wasn’t interested in her.

After both Chi siblings had left, Li Qiye solemnly took out the Wooden Ruler he had obtained at the Grave Auction. Once more, he began to study it carefully, not overlooking a single detail.

Twenty thousand Great Sage Essence Jades. Even if they were the lowest grade, this was still a huge sum for any Cultivator—an astronomical figure. Even an entire sect would find it difficult to produce twenty thousand Great Sage Essence Jades.

To most people, spending twenty thousand Great Sage Essence Jades on a mere souvenir was absolute madness. Not even the most profligate heir would squander wealth on such a scale.

But Li Qiye knew with perfect clarity that this was no souvenir. The so-called Leaf Ghost Wood was just a tale he had spun to mislead the Chenggu Pavilion.

Indeed, the grain of the Wooden Ruler did bear some resemblance to Leaf Ghost Wood. In reality, however, it was nothing of the sort. Now, holding the ruler in his hand, Li Qiye was absolutely certain: it was crafted from Ghost Ancestor Wood. Within the Nine Realms and across the Eight Desolations, there was only one Ghost Ancestor Tree!

Not everything Li Qiye said at the Grave Auction was false. This item was indeed related to the Ghost Race—it might even be connected to their very origin!

There have always been three theories regarding the origin of the Ghost Race. The first, and the one considered most credible, is the version the Ghost Race themselves tell. It posits that their ancestors were ghosts who achieved immortality. They eventually left descendants in the mortal world, from whom the Hundred Races branched out, giving rise to the Ghost Race of today. It is because of this theory that they are also known as the Ghost Immortal Race.

A second theory claims that the Primordial Ancestor of the Ghost Race was a True Ghost who mated with a mortal woman. Only then could they produce offspring, giving rise to the Hundred Races and forming the vast Ghost Race of today.

Some among the Ghost Race believe this theory, while others do not. The majority of the Ghost Race neither confirms nor denies its validity.

The third and final theory is one that the Ghost Race has always rejected. Though the Ghost Race boasts a Hundred Races with countless branches, virtually all of them deny this last explanation.

This last theory suggests that the Primordial Ancestor of the Ghost Race was an ancient corpse. This corpse eventually developed a soul and came to life. It then mated with a mortal woman, passing down its lineage and propagating the Ghost Race.

The Ghost Race, however, has always denied this theory. Any Ghost who subscribes to it is branded a heretic.

Later generations never knew why the Ghost Race was so repulsed by this particular theory. In truth, even the Ghosts themselves couldn’t fully explain it. This denial has been a constant stance since the Desolate Era, continuing to the present day.

However, Li Qiye, having lived for countless eons, knew some of the inside story. The third theory was not entirely baseless. In an extremely ancient era, an ancient corpse had indeed appeared, and it had indeed come back to life. No one knew how long that corpse had been "alive" before that moment!

As for whether this soul-bearing corpse was truly the Primordial Ancestor of the Ghost Race, it was a point that later generations found difficult to verify.

But Li Qiye knew a secret unknown to later generations. At the origin of the Ghost Race, there had been a Ghost Ancestor Tree. It was the only one in existence, a tree that could be called a peerless Immortal Tree or an unparalleled Divine Tree!

This Ghost Ancestor Tree was, to a certain degree, tied to the very origin of the Ghost Race. Legend from a very ancient time told of a key left behind by the Ghost Race’s Primordial Ancestor. This key was said to unlock the secrets of their origin and was inextricably linked to the Ghost Ancestor Tree!

This key was known as the Ghost Source Ancestor Key, and it concealed a world-shaking secret.

In a later era, while acting as the Yin Ya, Li Qiye had heard certain rumors. At that time, a Medicine Dao Family in Donglin City had formed a marriage alliance with a Ghost Race clan. It was said that within this clan was a formidable figure, rumored to be a True Ghost.

Unfortunately, this clan believed in the third theory of the Ghost Race’s origin, which ultimately led to their demise. In the end, a great figure from this clan—possibly the True Ghost—fled to Donglin City and took refuge with the Medicine Dao Family, thus narrowly escaping annihilation.

During this Grave Auction, after observing the valley’s terrain, Li Qiye suspected that this might be the very location of that rumored Medicine Dao Family.

When the coffin was opened and he saw the skeleton inside with a full head of jet-black hair, Li Qiye was certain. The one buried inside wasn’t the Legendary Pharmacist; it was merely someone else buried in his coffin. This was a great figure from the Ghost Race. Moreover, this person had been suppressed before death, and his Divinity had been completely eroded away.